Shuffleblog #53

The first five songs on shuffle on my ipod, first day back into the crushing inevitability of work following the Easter bank holiday season 2011:

Loudon Wainwright III - Fame and Wealth
Frank Turner - A Decent Cup Of Tea
Ox.Eagle.Lion.Man. - The Drowned and the Saved
Doctor Octoroc - Ryu The Red Nosed Ninja
The Mountain Goats - Song For Lonely Giants

Shuffleblog #52

The first five songs on shuffle on my ipod, Easter Sunday 2011:

Neko Case - If You Knew
Roddy Woomble - Under My Breath
James Kochalka Superstar - All The Boys Just Wanna Rock
The Beatles - Paperback Writer
The Shangri-Las - Right Now And Not Later

Arrested by Song #4: Hip Hop in Development

I was introduced to today's song, which I was reminded of recently by the helpful shuffle on my ipod, by my friend, bandmate and co-conspirator Alex Hawkins, who subtly put on the below video one lazy spring afternoon while we were failing to study. It's since become one of my all-time favourite hip-hop tracks, falling just short of knocking the Beastie Boys' 'Rhymin and Stealin' from the top spot. I'm no expert when it comes to hip-hop, but I enjoy older, more intelligent artists who leant towards social commentary (NWA, Public Enemy etc) than any recent chart-botherers. I do occasionally have bizzare cravings for Snoop and Dre which are easily satisfied and love a bit of crossover, but my tastes will always be dominated by whiny indie-rock. This track, however, is a summer anthem which is smooth, accessible and bright. Hip-hop can rarely be described as lovely but this is always the word which springs to mind. It is a relaxing song, and one whose lyrical content is beautiful and asks, in subtle, sweet exclamations, what happened to all the love, at least a decade before the bland chart-guff of the Black Eyed Peas asked the same question. Open some juice, put this song on and chill in the sun.

Shuffleblog #51

The first five songs on shuffle on my ipod, 18th April 2011:

Eisley - Memories
Hall & Oates - You Make My Dreams
Grizzly Bear - Ready, Able
R. Dean Taylor - There's A Ghost In My House
The Ramones - Ignorance Is Bliss

Shuffleblog #50

The first five songs on shuffle on my ipod, a sunny Sunday:

The Age of Rockets - An Ocean Away
Joe Hisaishi - Spring
Belle and Sebastian - Dear Catastrophe Waitress
The Weakerthans - Left and Leaving
Maoists of Aix - The Sanctity of the Italian American Family

Arrested by Song #3: Off the beaten Pavement

So after the horror of the previous 'Arrested by Song' post I'd like to prove I do listen to non-twee music occasionally. An example which has crept back into my earphones this week is 'Jenny and the Ess-Dog' by Stephen Malkmus, from his wonderful eponymous solo album. It's one of my favourite songs lyrically because it tells a beautiful and moving story, made all the more so by Malkmus' lazy drawl. His slacker vocals set the tone for the song, which describes life going by in a haze as a relationship, clearly doomed from the start, falls apart.

Musically it's a winner, with immediate entry vocals and a Beatles-esque opening which segues neatly into a few seconds of noise in the middle of the song before calming back down and concluding the story with the precision and talent of the finest of novelists or scriptwriters. Well done, Stephen. I salute you.

Arrested by Song #2: Guilty Pleasure Alert

A wise man once told me that there's no such thing as guilty pleasure songs, only jaded opinions. He was drunk, and lying to make me feel better about whichever crap band I was banging on about, but he had a point. If you enjoy a song then don't let anyone tell you you can't because it's uncool.

I'm not mentioning this because I'm in need of vindication, of course. I'm unabashed about my love for the band Hellogoodbye, and especially their new album, Would It Kill You?, which you should totally go buy. But the song which has arrested me this week is an early song of theirs, in fact the first song they (or their frontman Forrest) wrote. It's called 'Bonnie Taylor Shakedown [2k1]'.

It appears on their self-titled EP which I only came by recently and which was knocking around before their major label debut Zombies! Aliens! Vampires! Dinosaurs! and assault on the mainstream with their uber-poppy mid-to-late noughties hit 'Here (In Your Arms)'. Don't pretend you don't remember it. You do, and you love it. Stop lying.

Anyway, it's twee, it's high school, it's sickening teenage synthy twaddle and I love it. It's a damn catchy chorus which I can't stop humming to myself at work. I think it's because it tastefully borrows just a couple of lines lyrically from an old folk song and makes them into modern pop, which is always a winner. Check it out.

Shuffleblog #49

The first five songs on shuffle on my ipod, April 12th 2011:

Harry and the Potters - I am a Wizard
Animal Collective - Lion In A Coma
Conor Oberst - Milk Thistle
Stapleton - Grasshoppers
Death Cab for Cutie - Lowell, MA

Arrested by Song #1

I'd like to write occasionally about the moments when a song just grabs you, takes hold and refuses to let go. So this is my new occasional feature called 'Arrested by Song'.

Today I was possessed by 'The Meter Marks OK' by Loney, Dear (the intriguing stage name of sweet-voiced Scandinavian Emil Svanangen. I first encountered him in 2009 at End of the Road Festival in Dorset, a beautifully green and polite festival with a perfect amount of attendees. Not having heard of him, and amused by the regular confusion of the word 'Loney' for the word 'Lonely', my father and I stumbled toward the main stage in the mid-afternoon sun, hoping for a pleasant surprise at best. His set was low-key, subtle and charming and his onstage banter was handsomely bizarre (there was a lengthy reference to the festival reminding him of a 'child balloon party', whatever the chuff that is - can any Swedes help me out?). This song, towards the end of the set, was the highlight, although it has taken nearly two years for it to sink in.

The video below begins, as the performance I saw did, with him teaching the audience an airy, playful singalong which errs just on the wrong side of being difficult to remember if you haven't heard the song before. He got most of the audience humming along at least, include me and my dad, but it wasn't a loud, energetic howling along like the singalong of so many rock shows. It was a beautiful chorus of charm and contentment. I am slightly ashamed to say that I forgot his set quickly because I soon witnessed the insanity of Bob Log III on the same stage, but today rediscovered the beauty of the song.

I got the album, 'Loney, Noir' last night on a whim, having seen a video in the related videos on youtube which reminded me of that set way back when (well, 2009). I recalled there being a singalong with a sweet, fragile but confident voice but couldn't remember the melody. I enjoyed the album greatly from the off, and was just about to give up hope that I would find that moment on record when it suddenly kicked in, about 2/3 of the way through the track. I listened to it on the train on the way to work this morning a great number of times because I was sat outside Waterloo for nearly half an hour. I was enjoying the song so much I didn't even sigh in despair. Give it a listen and, if you like it, buy the album. It's one of the best Scandinavian albums of the last five years and has genuine beauty.

Shuffleblog #48

The first five songs on my ipod, some days after April Fool's day:

Gavin Osborn - Charlie's 18th Birthday
The Academy Is... - Down and Out
Luke Pickett - And Asleep I Am Your Everything
Seasick Steve - Shirley Lou
Belle & Sebastian - Don't Leave The Light On Baby

Shuffleblog #47

The first five songs on shuffle on my ipod, 29.3.2011.

Taylor Dayne - Tell It To My Heart
Kids In Glass Houses - Dance All Night
The Get Up Kids - Coming Clean (Live)
Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly. - Morning Light
All-Time Quarterback - Why I Cry

Shuffleblog #46

Shuffleblog returns, after a lengthy holiday in the recesses of my laptop. The first five songs on shuffle on my ipod, 28th March 2011:

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Higher Than The Stars
Pavement - Stereo
Kimya Dawson - Underground
The Hold Steady - Constructive Summer (SXSW Daytrotter session)
Tubelord - Arms Watches Fingers

Shuffleblog #45

The first five songs on shuffle on my ipod, the smallest of the small hours, St Patrick's Day 2011:

All-Time Quarterback - Plans Get Complex
Bruce Springsteen - I'm On Fire
Biffy Clyro - The Weapons Are Concealed
Jonathan Richman - Lonely Financial Zone
Suede - The Asphalt World

Film Review - Norwegian Wood

I was instantly captivated by the silence and oriental beauty of the trailer and posters for Norwegian Wood. Having studied Murakami's novel 'Kafka on the Shore' as an undergraduate attempting to write a dissertation about talking cats, every other novel by Murakami is somewhere towards the middle of my Aeneid-like 'to do' list; 'Norwegian Wood', however, has sat somewhere near the top for a number of years. I've since become a bit more obsessed with Kazuo Ishiguro, but if Haruki asks you, please deny all knowledge. Incidentally I couldn't find the UK poster but a google image search did throw up loads of cool ones I'd never seen, such as this little graphic-novel-cover-like gem:

So I was certain the film would be brilliant; all the previews had called it beautiful and the trailers gave me no reason to think otherwise. Once the film started I agreed with them, of course. The film is incrediby tastefully and artfully shot, with subtle but arresting images in the background of Japan's thorny transition from the sixties to the seventies. The backdrop provides a suitable climate of uncertainty and ennui (one of my favourite subjects in film and literature - get me) for a film which explores, in some depth, how we deal with relationships and the life events which unexpectedly inform their construction. The beauty is cut short a few minutes in by a slow, graphic (but bloodless) suicide scene which sets the tone for the rest of the film. From thereon it follows Watanabe, the best friend of dead teenager Kizuki, as he embarks on a disjointed affair with Kizuki's girlfriend, Naoko. They are apart for most of the film, while she attempts to deal with Kizuki's death, during which time Watanabe studies and meets another girl, Midori. The two interlinked plots combine intricately and effectively, leaving just enough room for speculation and for a feeling of great satisfaction when they tie themselves together in a bow at the film's conclusion.

Plot and beauty aside, though, Norwegian Wood is not an uplifting film. I love a depressing film or book as much as the next man in a check shirt with a bad haircut, but Norwegian Wood was just a little too much. Its silence, contrasted with surprisingly lengthy and graphic sex scenes and long periods of animated, soulful weeping got to me a little bit. I usually find myself philosophical at the end of such cathartic films but was left feeling empty and absent, which I think is largely due to the film's slow, Waiting-for-Godot pace. I would still, however, highly recommend it and believe it is worth a watch. I probably wouldn't, however, watch it again.

Incidentally I saw it at the HMV Curzon in Wimbeldon which was a surprisingly beautiful little arty cinema and only a pound or so more for the ticket than your average Odeon or Cineworld. If you're ever near South London I'd highly recommend it.

Shuffleblog #44

The first five songs on shuffle on my ipod, 15/03/2011:

Fireworks - You've Lost Your Charm
Gogol Bordello - Supertheory of Supereverything
Cap'n Jazz - Theme From '90210'
Bishop Allen - The Chinatown Bus
Franz Ferdinand - No You Girls

Shuffleblog #43

The first five songs on my ipod, Ash Wednesday (a.k.a. pancake boxing day) 2011:

Bat For Lashes - Daniel
Something Corporate - Drunk Girl
Duran Duran - Hungry Like The Wolf
The Matches - Clumsy Heart
Alexisonfire - No Transitory

Shuffleblog #42

The first five songs on shuffle on my ipod, Pancake Day 2011:

I Was A Cub Scout - The Hunter's Daughter
We Are Scientists - Lousy Reputation
Reel Big Fish - Beer
Harry and the Potters - Felix Felicis
Johnny Foreigner - Champagne Girls I Have Known

Shuffleblog #41

The first five songs on my ipod's shuffle, the seemingly very early morning of 7/3/2011:

Braid - First Day Back
Sufjan Stevens - Jingle Bells (Instrumental)
Field Mouse - Six Years
Joe Hisaishi - Vanity and Friendship
Goodbooks - The Curse of Saul

Shuffleblog #40

The first five songs on shuffle on my ipod, 3/3/2011:

Gavin Osborn - Boy From The Middle Class
Kevin Devine - Guys With Record Collections
Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly - D.A.N.C.E. (Justice cover)
Phoenix - If I Ever Feel Better
Marmaduke Duke - Je Suis Un Funky Homme

Shuffleblog #39

The first five songs on shuffle on my ipod, 1/3/2011 (let's hope Jonny gets 2/5):

Fountains of Wayne - The Valley of Malls
Weezer - In The Mall (I see a theme developing here, ipod...)
Joanna Newsom - Autumn
Eddie Vedder - The Wolf
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Higher Than The Stars

Is this an instance of subliminal but badly targeted and generalised advertising for shopping centres? Who knows.

Shuffleblog #38

These posts are now dedicated to the pointless education of Jonathan Rose in whiny indie pop. The first five songs on shuffle on my ipod, 28/02/2011:

Broken Bells - The High Road
Sufjan Stevens - Adlai Stevenson
Jenny Lewis - Acid Tongue
Small Brown Bike - Safe in Sound
Hightide Hotel - I Know What The Word Gone Means

Shuffleblog #37

The first five songs on my ipod's shuffle, 27/2/2011:

Grizzly Bear - About Face
John Nolan - Existentialism on Prom Night (Live)
Sara Bareilles - Hold My Heart
Luke Leighfield - Too Little, Too Late
The Pains of Being Pure At Heart - A Teenager In Love

I hastily sketched a comic about parties. Check it out here.

Shuffleblog #36

The first five songs on shuffle on my computer, 24/2/2011:

Jukebox The Ghost - Under My Skin
Hot Club de Paris - The Anchor
M83 - Guess I'm Floating
The Break and Repair Method - Your Numbered Days
Something Corporate - 21 and Invincible

Shuffleblog #35

From my computer again, not my ipod, the first five songs on shuffle, 23/2/11:

Fleet Foxes - Sun It Rises
Sonic Youth - 'Cross The Breeze
Incubus - Diamonds and Coal
Into It.Over It. - What's Written On Your Wrist
Patti Smith - Because The Night

"Let me tell you why...

...the years go on and we're still fighting it, we're still fighting it..."

As the Ben Folds song goes. It's about growing up, and fatherhood. Check out my scribble about it and how it made me (nearly) blub on my other site and watch the vid here. It's not the official vid because embedding was disabled but it's not a bad slideshow of the man himself.

Shuffleblog #34

The Weepies - Somebody Loved
Something Corporate - Little
Standard Fare - Let's Get Back Together
The Decemberists - When The War Came
Death Cab For Cutie - Soul Meets Body

Valentine's Day

It's cliched to be cynical, but fashionable to hate it. What's a boy to do? It's interesting to note this year that most of the newspaper articles/twitter trends/multimedia guffing have been about how it's boring to hear about how much you hate Valentine's day. I'm a bit of a fence-sitter - I disagree with it on principle because I don't think you should need a day to set aside for love. True love is a never-ending celebration in itself and makes every day worth living. However, if you're in a relationship and don't engage with it you just look mean. That wasn't my reason for getting up at 5.30 this morning to surprise my beloved before work with a mixtape and poem, however; I really can't resist the opportunity to be totally cheesy and hollywood-romantic-ridiculous, like in those films they have these days, and I totally love her, so why miss the opportunity to bring it home? Obviously if you're single it can be a crushing reminder of the fact if you're not happy with it, but can also be a good opportunity to test the water with potential interests - drop them an anonymous card and see if they can tell it's you. You never know what might come of it. But if you don't want to engage with it, then don't. It can be just another day if you want it to. I know it's hard to ignore what with all the shop displays and whatnot but it can be done - I did it for a number of years before falling in love quite easily. Most of all, just don't grumble about it because some people have fun, and make all the other 364 days full of love too. To illustrate my point, here is a comic I drew:

You can also view the comic and my comic archive on my website. Happy Valentine's! Special mention must also go to Dave Gorman and his radio show for reading out my text and advising on the best course of gift action with the recommendation of a mixtape.

Shuffleblog #33

So I've neglected the blog for some time because I've been writing, scribbling and learning how to use a graphics tablet, as well as falling even more madly in love with the work of James Kochalka. So here's a double special, from my computer instead of my ipod this time as I finally found the hard drive where I store all my songs when I was having a crazed tidy-up.

Tegan and Sara - Speak Slow
Rage Against The Machine - Testify
Weezer - In The Garage
Rufus Wainwright - Tulsa
Low - Stars Gone Out
Seasick Steve - Cut My Wings
Taking Back Sunday - Timberwolves at New Jersey
Explosions In The Sky - Day Four
Mates of State - La'hov
Guillemots - Trains To Brazil

Shuffleblog #32

The first five songs on shuffle on my ipod, 15/01/2011:

Demetri Martin - Personal Information Waltz
The Shins - Your Algebra
Beach House - Heart of Chambers
Built To Spill - Carry The Zero
Rolo Tomassi - Seagull

Shuffleblog #31

The first five songs on my ipod's shuffle, 14/01/2011:

Silverchair - After All These Years
Sam Isaac - Sideways
Say Anything - Walk Through Hell
Joanna Newsom - En Gallop
Casiotone For The Painfully Alone - Oh Illinois

Shuffleblog #31

The first five songs on shuffle on my ipod, 12/01/2011:

Field Mouse - Dirt vs. Grass
The All New Adventures of Us - I'm Leaving You For Sweden
Allo, Darlin' - Will You Please Spend New Year's Eve With Me?
Tegan and Sara - You Wouldn't Like Me
Bad Religion - You Are (The Government)

Shuffleblog #30

The first five songs on shuffle on my ipod, 9/1/2011:

Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly - Morning Light
Voxtrot - The Start of Something
Taking Back Sunday - A Decade Under The Influence
Fleet Foxes - Sun Giant
Camera Obscura - Let Me Go Home

Shuffleblog #29

The first five songs on shuffle on my ipod, as of 06/01/2011:

65daysofstatic - Radio Protector
The Beautiful South - Just a Few Things I Ain't
The Mars Volta - Son et Lumiere
Pinback - Tres
Luke Leighfield - Every Day

Shuffling into a new year

So this is the new year, and I don't feel any different.

Or do I? I do a little. I just like to remind myself of the opening lyric of 'Transatlanticism' around this time of year.

My Christmas album is now hidden on Bandcamp (booo) but will return next year. Seeing as the JustGiving page stays open until 2015 I thought I'd make a bit of a five-year plan (not like that), which is that each December for the next few years I'll add another couple of songs to the album and re-release it, to keep the charity ball rolling.

I'll hopefully be doing more comics soon (put them on hold to record the album), including a totally brand new character. My girlfriend likes the sound of him, and she's very discerning indeed, so I think he'll be a hit.

And, as always, I will try and fail to blog the first five songs on my ipod's shuffle every day, arriving at an intermittent, disparate list of irrelevant songs. Here's the first for the year:

Rival Schools - Good Things

Pearl Jam - Life Wasted

Men at Work - Down Under

Rufus Wainwright - He Ain't Heavy

Slow Club - It Doesn't Have To Be Beautiful