Joe Jackson’s Big World is an album I want to know much better than I do.
Released in 1986, it’s an album of original material that was recorded and mixed live with no added overdubs or post-production. The audience was asked not to applaud during or immediately after the performances. Stew used a similar tactic on his great album, The Naked Dutch Painter and Other Songs.
It’s always exciting to hear about upcoming music from one of my favorite artists. The neat thing about my more obscure favorites — Tift Merritt, say, or today’s featured artist, Josh Rouse — is that those announcements usually sneak up on you.
Such was the case with Rouse’s new album, The Embers of Time, due out on April 7.
MTV stopped showing music videos years ago in favor of reality TV, but thanks to YouTube the art form is very much alive.
In fact, for marketing purposes, music videos are sometimes more important than the songs they feature.
Take Carly Rae Jepsen’s new single, ‘I Really Like You.’ The song is nowhere near as catchy as her smash ‘Call Me Maybe,’ and on its own could have fallen with a thud and relegated her to one-hit wonder status.
Hozier’s ‘Take Me to Church’ was a huge hit but the sort of song one could easily see as a one-hit wonder.
It’s weird and gothic in a way not many Top 10 songs are, and I can imagine Hozier slipping into obscurity (playing for a small but fervent fan base) before becoming a staple on the charts.
I’ve always wanted to be a big Kinks fan. I love the idea of The Kinks, their general sound, the way their music has been used in some of my favorite movies.
But I have never taken the time to really get to know their music. Just a single here and there on a movie soundtrack.
Meet Me In Montauk 