The Current Music Blog: October 30, 2007 Archive

The Stream 10/30/07

Posted at 8:52 AM on October 30, 2007 by Barb Abney

Common to release "hits" compilation.

Oasis to begin recording 7th album.

B-52's releasing a new album next year.

This Day In Music History:
1939 - Grace Slick (Jefferson Airplane) was born.
1967 - Brian Jones (Rolling Stone) was sentenced to nine months in prison for possession charges.
1967 - Gavin Rossdale (Bush) was born.
1998 - Black Sabbath reunited temporarily to play the David Letterman Show.
2002 - Jam Master Jay (Run-DMC) was murdered in Queens, New York.

"My 3 Songs" for Tuesday

Posted at 1:02 PM on October 30, 2007 by Steve Seel

Dan Haeg of Mpls rubs the sleep from his eyes today and comes up with a winning set ... he says, "What better, and more appropriate, to awake to" than these songs?

1) Arcade Fire, "Wake Up"
2) The Walkmen, "Wake Up"
3) The Shins, "Sleeping Lessons"

The River - Side 1

Posted at 3:00 PM on October 30, 2007 by Mac Wilson

The most frustrating thing in the world happened as I was trying to transfer this file to put online -- I wound up deleting everything I had written about Side 1. After a ninety-second string profanities, I tried to reconstruct it so I could have it up on the Current Music Blog like I promised. It was better originally, I promise.

"The Ties That Bind" -- One of the major themes of the album is family: mothers, fathers, children, and (prospective) spouses. In "The Ties That Bind", the narrator sings to a person suffering from some sort of heartbreak, reminding them that some things (the titular bonds) are there through thick and thin. He may very well be wooing a woman hencefore jilted, but there is just enough lyrical ambiguity to suggest it could very well be a fellow family member who is feeling down. With its themes of reassurance and security, it's no wonder the song made its way into the setlists for the Rising tour of 2002 (at my prior Springsteen show, in Fargo in September 2002, this was the first non-Rising song he played). One final thought to ponder: before extending the album to two records, Springsteen originally planned to release a single set entitled...The Ties That Bind.
"Sherry Darling" -- The first of many "block party"-esque songs on the album, complete with whoops, hollers, and claps live in the studio. The narrator of the song is stuck shuttling Sherry's mother to the unemployment agency; he would rather, of course, take Sherry to the beach and let Sherry's mom fend for herself. It's all rather bouncy and typically goofy (with a cheery Clarence Clemons sax solo), but at its core, "Sherry Darling" embodies the quintessential Springsteen theme of escape: instead of a dead-end town or a backbreaking job, it's an yappy mother-in-law with big feet.
"Jackson Cage" -- If you read the lyrics on paper, "Jackson Cage" could easily have appeared on Darkness on the Edge of Town. It is a rumination on how grinding blue-collar work tends to grind down the people involved, too, as evidenced by the unhappy couple here. Still, it's not all gloom, as Danny Frederici breaks out a jaunty organ line and Springsteen and Van Zandt add some nifty guitar licks.
"Two Hearts" -- A staple of the E Street Band's 1999 reunion tour, namely in regard to the reunion between Springsteen and Steven Van Zandt. A standard rocker about why companionship always trumps solitude.
"Independence Day" -- The first tearjerking epic on the album, dealing with Springsteen's ever-complicated relationship with his father (someone should really go on JSTOR and see if anyone has written a master's thesis on this subject). Backed by what is arguably Frederici's most evocative organ line, the narrator outlines his case for leaving home to his father, progressing from youthful rebelliousness to sighing inevitability. One of the most beautiful songs on the album, and the first instance of the album's upbeat/downbeat dynamic -- after a string of rockers, we close things out with the very sedate "Independence Day".

Song Of The Day - Telly Tunes 10/30/07

Posted at 3:20 PM on October 30, 2007 by Barb Abney

Tunes On The Telly Tonight:
Sex Pistols on Leno

** It's The great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is on tonight, as well.

Song Of The Day Info - John Ralston
Today on our Song Of The Day Podcast we're featuring John Ralston with the tune "Fragile" from the album Sorry Vampire which is in stores now.
More here and/or here.

New Releases 10-30-07

Posted at 10:03 PM on October 30, 2007 by Mark Wheat

As if the music biz wants to relax to celebrate Halloween with the rest of us, there are very few new new releases except this soundtrack to the new film called 'Control' about the life of Ian Curtis, lead singer of Joy Division, who took his own life in 1980 on the eve of their first tour of the USA. All the Joy Division albums have been remastered and reissued today to coincide with the release of the film. Tix will be available at Transmission Wednesday night at Club Jaeger. Have a safe and happy Halloween whatever scary deeds you do! I'll be spinning some 'celebratory' music tomorrow night and enjoying a live session at The Fitz with Sia at 9.30pm