Jeff Greinke - Before Sunrise

Sometimes a music odyssey brings you a special treat. One that can really create a framework for the year. This isn't that album, but it was fun to listen to and it did lead me to a few other albums.

1) High Flyers on the Night Sky - Really strong opening with first light horns bringing the underlying basoon maybe? in and out of focus. I really like the layering on this song. It's dirge-y, but the flavors are so different. The strings give an Old West type of feel, but there's a Celtic vibe, and a didgeridoo sound as well. Maybe that's it instead of a basoon, but there's a reed sound that's coming in. Just when it starts to settle, the horns pierce through - slightly muted. A lovely arrangement.The fade out is really pleasant and lingering as well. Outback type of feel. The Austrailian outback not Outback the restraurant chain. Fosters... It's Austrailian for Beer.

2) Slow Train on the Open Plain - strings and piano, what a lovely album to start the morning. Trickling piano like rain on a windowpane. I can see myself sitting and watching the rain drip down the window - the trees and world outside coming alive with the build of some horns. 

3) Night Watch - This is much more atmospheric. Space-soundy with some muted bells ringing through. So far, I've really appreciated the mix of instruments and layers. Not much to say about this one. I liked it, but it's just a soothing layer of sound with small dings.

4) Before Sunrise - Very nice lead in. Oh, interesting start to this. I can absolutely see why this song is title Before Sunrise. It has that sense of promise and beginning. Waking up. A lot of building sounds. Some interesting bumps in this music. They building layers and now the strings coming in really bring this music to life. It's not quite Tan Dun, but it's the first thing that comes to mind. So there's something there, I guess. 

5) Under Falling Stars - At some point, we faded into this song. The transition must have been fairly smooth because I wasn't even aware that we had moved into a new song. That could be because of the transition or the fact that I was a little distracted during the move. That said, a lot of the same elements here. Maybe the ding of a triangle instead of bells? Not sure. Anyway. it's already over. 

6) Mountains and Clouds - Slow build organ sound to start off here. This is another song that is titled appropriately. I can see this from the window of an airplane. Transitioning through the lower layer, into the clouds, and breaking through into the sun above the clouds. It easily holds that space and is nice to listen to. The small peaks pull me along. Not unpleasant. Not the greatest. It doesn't have the layering that I really enjoyed in the previous songs or the diversity, but it's not awful.

7) Rain, then Snow - Nice piano lead in. I already have a lot of hope for this track. The trill of piano notes can really work for me sometimes. This is one of those times. Annnnnd. I was interupted... so, I assume this was good.

8) Before Sunrise (2?) - Yea. A lot more like the first Sunrise track, but longer. A nice upbeat way to close out the album. Whoa.. 11 minutes or something. Maybe a little too long.

Overall, I'd give this album 5 sunrises out of 7.5 Falling Stars.

Son Lux - Brighter Wounds (2018 Full Album Leak Download MP3 320)

Do you know how many times I’ve tried to listen to this album?  A lot. But until now I didn’t actually ever start.

https://sonlux.lnk.to/BrighterWounds

1. Forty Screams

Sounds like Son Lux so far! I love shimmering, and echoes, and falsettos. And YEAH THAT’S SOME SERIOUS BASS. I probably have the volume up too loud but who needs hearing later in life anyway? No one has anything all that different to say so I can probably fake it when I’m 80 and enjoy Son Lux super loud right now. I appreciate that this song isn’t rushing to get anywhere, just like 80-year-old me. I don’t know if I love the “Tommy” vibe halfway through but I’ll give it a chance.

“Young ghost in an old body”. Man…this is really coming together and I didn’t even plan it.

2. Dream State

I was just thinking about the one Radiohead album I actually like the other day (Kid A) and how much I appreciated the blaring horns at the start of one song. This has that too. Not as distinctive as the Radiohead version but it ropes me in with sharp cacophony and then just starts hammering away. Relentless. The AAAAOOOOOHHHH chorus in the background sounds like something that would be in a big summer pop hit, but it works. Because it’s evocative of PARTY TIME EVERYTHING IS GOOD but subverted by the overlaying lyrics of “Awake, awake / This is a dream state/ Though we were wide awake/ This is a dream state”. And pretty much all the other lyrics too. I want to type them all out but I won’t.

OK, one more:

How do we feel?

How do we feel in that photograph

And how do we feel it again?

So good.

3. Labor

I wanted shimmer and I got shimmer. 90 seconds of shimmer is just about my limit though. I’m not loving this song so far. After the endless shimmer there’s a stripped down lounge act thing happening and it doesn’t work. Am I supposed to envision this dude laying across a grand piano while wearing a red sequin gown. I don’t understand the ending of the song either. It’s dumb.

4. The Fool You Need

Not the fool you deserve? POW POW POW this song comes in to kick the crap out of my eardrums. Yeah, I probably have it way too loud. Oh well, this song is great so far. Although I’m still hoping for at least one really catchy number before we get too far into the album. This song is like all production tricks in a giant shiny ball but that’s OK as long as I can sing along with at least one of the songs before the album is over. “I am not letting go no matter what you do” is pretty fun at least. I can gargle water while I sing it and sound just like the album version. A couple minutes in there are giant mosquitoes buzzing in my ear but they buzz to the beat and pulse and pulse and I THINK I AM HYPNOTIZED BY MOSQUITOES.

5. Slowly

Whoa – was that it? Short song. Oh…haha…FOOLED YA IT’S JUST GETTING STARTED. This song is soulful. Through a ton of filters and distortion but still soulful. STOPPED AGAIN! FOOLED YA AGAIN! I really appreciate how “sharp” the sounds are on Son Lux albums. So many of the sounds have clear edges and nothing ever mushes together. I don’t care about this actual song so much yet but the sounds are so darn crisp. I do feel a little worn out at the end of each song, but good exhausted like if I actually exercised or something. I don’t exercise though so I guess I should listen to more Son Lux.

6. All Directions

Uh oh…another soulful ditty. I hate when two songs in a row are too similar. This has robot strings and electronic bouncy balls so I think I like this one better. It’s also not trying to trick me by stopping every so often. KIDDING! WE’RE STOPPING NOW! Dammit. I was excited for it to end with another ball drop but now there’s another song starting inside my song. Oh – it’s not even half over. You know, I’m not so mad after another minute of new song inside song – I think I like the second song better. It has real strings and the bouncy balls are more rubbery. And it has a chorus of voices that builds and builds and WOW

I’m really tired after that one. Great workout, me.

7. Aquatic

There’s lots of clicking and rustling sounds in the background on this album and this song has the most. Hey, he said “rustle in the dark”! Great observation, me. Even better than the workout aspect of Son Lux albums is the fact that they let you congratulate yourself so much. This is starting off great; really “classic Lux” with a little Antlers.

You won't find me where I fall

We may all begin aquatic

But we leave through the fire for our homes

This song is making me cry. It’s beautiful.

8. Surrounded

No rest after Aquatic – drum drum crazy drum time! “You're losing yourself / Slowly disappearing / Caught in your skin, surrounded” I’m going to need such a long nap after finishing this album. Even though the drumming is off the hook crazy yo there’s this glossy wave of sound slowly pulsing behind it that binds it all together. I’m super loving this album. I keep visualizing outer space and if I’m being honest with you live review I’m more than a little bit emotional. I think Son Lux did that to me.

9. Young

OK, this was actually a short song. No robot trickery this time. By the time I started to write down my thoughts it was already over.

10. Resurrection

The filtered vocals sound like “Somewhere Over The Rainbow”. I wonder if that’s intentional. They also sound a little aquatic but that’s kind of a Son Lux thing overall. There’s a dissonant fuzzy organ loop pushing the vocals out of the way and vice versa and here we go – building and building and BOOM.

Can we be this ugly and still have a beautiful life

Be a beautiful wife?

'Cause I'm a believer but I'm not a fool

The blend of religious allusion and personal reflection is totally distracting me from the fact that this is the kind of song I usually hate because it’s so disjointed. But it works. And then at 3:25 it hits a new level and sounds like a musical about the bible where everyone is crying because each and every character just lost a loved one. Including me. Great job, Son Lux. You made me feel human emotion.

Final Rating:

Nine sparkles out of 10. No, maybe 10 sparkles. A lot of sparkles. Can I change my scale to be out of 100 shimmering space rainbows? 97 out of 100 shimmering space rainbows. Three demerits for putting two songs with the same tempo back to back. I’m going to go cry myself to sleep now.

First Aid Kit - Ruins

+

1. Rebel Heart - I like this kind of harmony. The voices soar together, but it's just in snippets instead of extended segments. Oh wait. They are doing both. I think that since I started listening to First Aid Kit and The Staves at the same time that they get lumped together. That's not really fair though, I think First Aid Kit does some more things with instruments and arrangements, but The Staves really let their voices and harmonies take flight. All that to say, I really like this first track. Setting up for a nice album.

2. It's a Shame - Ooo - that first "Lately" immediately reminded me of Emmylou Harris. That offset change in a word is sometimes great - sometimes awful. It's working for me here with the twangy guitar. Oops - I know it's a shame, but I lost a couple minutes of this song due to distraction. Zing.

3. Fireworks - Oh goodie! This song is really working for me. The lyrics are working well with the music and pulling me right along. This does have that extended harmony, but then stripping everything down to just a solo singer with some simple guitar. I love it when songs pull that off when you have a strong lyrical component. Similar to a writing device in a novel or an offbeat line break that draws your attention to something important. Yea, I really liked this song.

4. Postcard - A little more upbeat start than I expected on the heals of the last song. Pretty standard country-ish type of beginning. Back to the twangy guitar and predicatable beat. In order for this to not sound like every run-of-the-mill country song, you have to have some outstanding lyrics. So far, not making the cut. Probably because this song is about all the regular tropes around a postcard. Meh. Oh no... Don't.. Yep. "kick it for me, James" - throwing to a solo piano segment. Yea. Throw this away. Oh no.. a wind up ending. Wow - it's.. that has to be the worst track on here, I hope.

5. To Live a Life - Letter writing. Uh oh - is this like the postcard?! I'm not sure if she's drinking and driving, but it sounds like it. She's definately drinking and writing this song. However, this song is a lot better lyrically. Has to be though - this is just a muted guitar, piano, and voice. I really like that arrangement. Ooo - "Then Suddenly" - yea, I like this song. I want to go back and listen again to get more of the lyrics. I was distracted a bit, but I liked the music quite a bit.

6. My Wild Sweet Love - This is more the style of First Aid Kit that I think of. A lot like the first track. It's more interesting musically, but less focus on the music of their harmonies. It's good, comfortable, and nice to listen to in the morning.

7. Distant Star - This was going on in the background while I was doing something else. Seems good. That's all I can say about that.

8. Ruins - Okay! Title track. DO NOT FUCK THIS UP. Yea, this singer has to have listened to Emmylou Harris a lot. It's not unique to Emmylou, but the sound is so similar. Ah, I like the way they are singing this. This has a lot more of a unique sound than the rest of the album. I think it's sounds like First Aid Kit to me, but it definately stands out. So far, good choice for a title track. The end is so solid when you strip everything down. I dig it.

9. Hem of Her Dress - You say you found yourself/in someone else  -- here eyes are golden hue / and everything you knew / slips away at the hem of her dress. Love that sequence. Though it does have some thing weird trappings of youth thinking that NO ONE COULD UNDERSTAND MY FEELINGS. Oh no... wait... why. Who the hell are all these people singing now. It's like a live album now. The singer gave up and is just letting the crowd destroy something. Welp, this went from interesting to meh to gross pretty damn quick.

10. Nothing Has to be True - Last track? Already? Damn that went fast. 10 tracks is a good number for an album. No reason to crowd an album with additional songs if you've said what you wanted to say. This is a winding song. Winding down the album, I guess. The music just drops floors a few times. Appropriate, but not as powerful or well done as you'd hope to close out a 10 track album.


Overall, I'd say it's what I would expect to hear from First Aid Kit. It's not surprising, but also pleasant to listen to. I'd listen to it again, and later in the year. We'll see if it has the staying power.

I'd give this 4 band-aids out of 7 strips of gauze. That's just the first listen though. Their last album grew on me over time. Maybe this one will too.

Ezra Furman - Transangelic Exodus (2018 Full Album Guest Download MP3)

I have no frame of reference, I don’t even know what genre it is but my husband wants me to live review. I suspect I won’t like it very much because we have different tastes. He was all geeked out about that Moses Sumney album and it wasn’t that great. Every time someone says “you’ll really love this” then you’re let down. If you don’t have any expectations then you don’t have to feel like “this is a piece of crap” and can say “oh, it’s not that crappy”. Like Fight Club.

Also, I’m painting so if it goes against painting I might not like it based on that. If it’s not a good painting album.

What’s the first track called? Oh…god…

1. Suck The Blood From My Wound

That sounds like the baby. Is the baby waking up? Did he say “I woke up bleeding in the crapper”? haha…HAHA…oddly enough, this reminds me of Hedwig. Who’s Tom? Oh; I thought you said “Tom and Hedwig”. I keep thinking “a cross between Trent Reznor and Bonn Jovi”. It has that “we’re traveling on…” and then some weirdo part. It could almost be upbeat if the lyrics weren’t so nutso goth. It’s an uplifting tune about vampirism. 

Do you know how old this dude is? I always wonder where these kids get their influences.

Is that a Romeo and Juliet quote?

2. Driving Down To LA

Is this a guy a girl. Is he gay? Androgynous? I was just caught a little off guard by “driving with my baby” and what they were doing. I just assumed Ezra was a boy. What’s the name of the album? [Transangelic Exodus] OK…It has a very vampire-y vibe so far.

3. God Lifts Up The Lowly

COUGH COUGH COUGHING COUGH

I just think I would like this better if it had different lyrics. The lyrics fill me a lot with “what the hell are you talking about dude? Kind of seems like a little bit of a narcissist too. No one gives a shit about your angel, dude. I guess you have to write about something, but it could be anything else at this point. Is this about heroin? It makes more sense if it’s about heroin. That’s sort of a cop-out though…it’s so Lou Reed. “I get street cred ‘cause I’m writing about heroin.”

You have to decide if we’re talking about this as we go. Because if you talk it’s going to change my perception and that will change the live review.

4. No Place

I’m definitely feeling the androgynous, David Bowie rocker. You can see where the influences are coming in. That’s why I’m getting the Hedwig too because there’s a lot of Bowie there. And there’s the Trent Reznor too.

Doesn’t this sound like the drum line from the pig song? What the heck is the name of that song? You know that Nine Inch Nails album. Mixed with like…a superhero horn section. I know it’s not like Captain America but kinda sounds like it.

5. The Great Unknown

It that like an elephant or something in the background? An ostritch? It kinda sounds like an elephant. We’re driving again. That’s so like, Bon Jovi/Jon Mellencamp throwback.

6. Compulsive Liar

What’s this track called? It definitely sounds like he’s trying to sort out some sexual issues. Is this his first album? Hmm…

7. Maraschino-Red Dress $8.99 At Goodwill

HAHAHA…so he’s Jewish! That makes sense…Ezra.

8. From A Beach House

This has a very…like…musical soundtrack feel to it too. Like Rocky Horror or something. Definitely taking a ton of influence from sexually-androgynous glam rock. It’s almost trying too hard – It’s trying to jam too many things into one. It’s like having a conversation with someone who wants to prove how smart they are, only about music. Which is a bummer, because I kind of like the music. It’s reasonable to paint to.

9. Love You So Bad

A lot of metaphor in this song. Did he just say, “I wanted your penis so bad”? I hope that’s not what he said. I’m glad he got away from the metaphors. It was kind of screwing me up.

10. Come Here Get Away From Me

Oh! It’s Frank Black! I was trying to think of what it was reminding me of. This feels more genuine though than some of the other stuff on the album. HAHA…”come here…”. Give me a kiss…

11. Peel My Orange Every Morning

It’s very specific. It makes me a little bit uncomfortable that when he’s…I think it’s OK to sing about whatever…like personal feelings. But when you get really specific like “the hotel manager is going to pick up the peels” maybe you could make it a little more inclusive. That’s where I’m getting the narcissistic thing. Because it feels a little bit like a therapy session. I can’t think of the name of the album where they’re talking about their cousins or whatever…Carissa…it was just a little bit too self-referential. It pulls me out of the music a lot. Because I’m like…uhhhh… I don’t know that I want to get that intimate before we’ve really met each other. I think you see it a lot with juvenile artists too. They want to get a reaction so they do things that are personally embarrassing to get attention. 

12. Psalm 151

I thought you could type really fast. I don’t want to have an incomplete live review. I’m actually liking this song so far. It’s really the type of song I want to hear in the middle of an album. I’m assuming this is the middle of the album. I guess I shouldn’t assume that but…I’m not looking at a track list. Based on time. Kind of heavy, kind of emotional, a little bit slower than the beginning tracks. A good mid-album song. I’m going to laugh if this is the end of the album.

13. I Lost My Innocence

Does he have split personalities? I feel like half the album Is written from a male perspective and the other is from a female perspective, like alternating every other song.  Maybe it has been and I haven’t noticed? I’ll have to listen to it again. This would be really fun if it had an animation that went with it. You’ll need to get right on that.

That’s the end? Oh. That was jarring. I think this album could use a lot of…well…first I think it needs some edit. And I think the track list should be rearranged. Cause that last song was not an end of album song. Maybe like a “second track” song. I don’t know which one I’d have come first. Definitely not the first one we heard, because that was not a good way to start the album.

Overall I had a pretty good impression because it harkens to a lot of things I really love. But it doesn’t do those thing particularly well. But it doesn’t do them particularly poorly either so I can’t totally hate it. I think I’d be more forgiving if it was his first album, but I get a sense that he surrounds himself with people that don’t ever tell him anything negative about himself. I think he could really benefit from someone being a little…um…mean…maybe not mean but he needs an editor…what’s a music editor called? Someone to cut it down. I think this guy would do an amazing job at making a theme album – like one solid idea to go through the whole thing. I don’t know if the female back and forth was on purpose but he could play that up a bit and that could be kind of fun.

I would definitely listen to it again. Even though it was a little bit heavy I appreciated that it was a little bit pop music-y too. Like heavy lyric-wise. I’m glad we listened to it together because I think it has things that we both really love so it was nice to share that together. I don’t know that I’d want to listen to it with someone that hadn’t heard Hedwig or listen to music that had references to homosexuality or gender-ambiguous stuff. A lot of people get really uptight about that crap.

Final Rating: Six out of nine princess points.

Hot Chris Bun - A Live Review Of Hamilton: Cross Bun (Full Album Leak Download)

I wrote this intro last. Mostly because I forgot to at first but also because someone was scandalized that I would live review something that wasn’t an album. Well guess what – this is an album. Too bad for you the RIAA already removed my download links.

Bite One

That’s not as soft as I thought it would be.

A mess! I don’t like mess!

There is icing on my lip.

I think this was a poem.

Bite Two

I don’t like burned things. The bottom part of this bite was burned. Too bad, because I like the rest of what’s happening here. I don’t know why I was warned about too much cardamom. If anything, I’d say there’s not enough too much cardamom. Not that I know how much cardamom is supposed to be in a hot cross bun. I just took a sip of cold coffee and the burned part isn’t so bad.

Bite Three

Is this even a hot cross bun? I don’t know anything about them except for the song. I’m halfway done – this bite was awesome. No burned part, soft and not too crumbly. Tastes kind of like Pan de Muerto. I’m halfway done with my bun, what fun!

Bite Four

No icing. A real misstep on my part. I’m realizing too late that you have to strategically bite this bun to ensure a little icing in every bite.

Bite Five

I’m conflicted. This bite had extra icing (good) but the rest of the burned edge from bite two (bad). Overall more good than bad though because there was bun in between. And also…raisin? Is there a single raisin in the bun (by Lorraine Hansberry)?

Bite Six

Maybe the raisin is a thing with hot cross buns. This bite was too big but half would have been too small. I planned well though, and it was the best tasting of the bites. OK, so I just learned that hot cross buns are a thing for Good Friday. Which was days ago. Was I fed a stale hot cross bun? Maybe. Did I like it anyway?

Final rating: Seven raisins out of 10. Even though I only actually got one raisin, this was a solid bun and there was just the right amount of icing cross once I learned the appropriate eating strategy. I would have liked six more raisins and the one edge to not be burned but overall I prefer this to a bun that is neither nhot nor cross.