Zoom Out. Ebba Åsman

De jonge Zweedse muzikante Ebba Åsman verrast, verleidt en betovert met een bijzonder stemmig en beeldend jazz album, waarop haar trombone de hoofdrol speelt.

Ik ben normaal gesproken niet zo gek op jazz en had nog nooit bewust een trombone gehoord, tot ik de muziek van Ebba Åsman tegen kwam in een NPO documentaire over jonge muzikanten. Het is een documentaire die een mooi verhaal verteld, maar die ook prachtige muziek laat horen. Het is de muziek op het eerste album van de Zweedse muzikante, die prachtig sfeervol speelt. Zoom Out is een album van de nacht en een album van de stad waarin Ebba Åsman momenteel woont, maar het is ook een ruimtelijk album dat je eindeloos mee sleept in haar bijzondere muzikale wereld.

Onlangs belandde ik tijdens het zappen bij een aflevering van de NPO serie New Generation. De aflevering was volledig gewijd aan de jonge Zweedse muzikante Ebba Åsman en vertelde haar verhaal.
 
Het is een verhaal dat begon toen Ebba Åsman op zeer jonge leeftijd wilde kiezen voor een instrument dat niemand anders bespeelde en uiteindelijk koos voor de trombone. Ze bleek zeer getalenteerd en vond door een gastles op haar middelbare school in Stockholm een geschikte docent in de Nederlandse trombonist Ilja Reijngoud.
 
Hij weet haar over te halen om na de middelbare school te kiezen voor Codarts, een in Rotterdam gevestigde internationale hogeschool gericht op muziek en dans, waar Ilja Reijngoud werkzaam is als docent. Ebba Åsman twijfelt geen moment en verruilt Stockholm voor Rotterdam, zelfs voor ze formeel is toegelaten op Codarts. Het blijkt een verstandige keuze, want Ebba Åsman ontwikkelt zich sindsdien razendsnel en is met haar trombone een graag geziene gast in talloze muziekprojecten.
 
Ik kwam de documentaire zoals gezegd tegen tijdens het zappen, maar ik ben tot de aftiteling blijven hangen en heb de paar minuten die ik heb gemist achteraf nog bekeken. Het is een documentaire die indruk maakte vanwege het mooie verhaal en de moedige keuzes van Ebba Åsman, maar ik werd ook geraakt door de muziek in de documentaire.
 
Dat is op zich gek, want de jonge Zweedse muzikante maakt vooral jazz en dat is een genre waarin ik nauwelijks thuis ben en dit geldt zeker voor jazz waarin de trombone de hoofdrol speelt. De muziek in de documentaire blijkt afkomstig van het eerste album van Ebba Åsman, het vorig jaar verschenen en binnenkort ook fysiek uitgebrachte Zoom Out. Het is een album dat me sindsdien verrassend dierbaar is geworden.
 
Op Zoom Out horen we naast Ebba Åsman een ritmesectie en een pianist, maar het is de trombone van de Zweedse muzikante die voor een belangrijk deel het geluid op het album bepaalt. De warme en sfeervolle klanken van de trombone maken van Zoom Out een album van de avond en de nacht en het zijn klanken die prima passen bij de verhalen die Ebba Åsman met haar muziek wil vertellen. Het zijn verhalen over nachtelijke ritten op haar fiets, de straat waarin ze woont die ’s avonds tot leven komt en de nachtelijke blik over de Maas en de skyline van Rotterdam.
 
De muziek van Ebba Åsman is absoluut in het hokje jazz te duwen, maar het is niet het soort jazz waar ik vooral nerveus van wordt. De jazz van Ebba Åsman is zich langzaam voortslepende en bijzonder sfeervolle jazz. De jonge Zweedse muzikante maakt muziek van de nacht en muziek van de grote stad, maar het is ook ruimtelijke muziek, die zich ongetwijfeld heeft laten inspireren door de weidsheid van haar vaderland.
 
Ik hou normaal gesproken niet zo van instrumentale muziek en niet van jazz, maar de muziek van Ebba Åsman zit vol betovering en verleiding. Het is muziek die garant staat voor een lome sfeer en prachtige beelden op het netvlies, maar het is ook muziek die iedere keer weer opvalt door de rijkheid en de vele verassende wendingen. Zonder de fraaie NPO documentaire was ik dit album nooit op het spoor gekomen, maar inmiddels vormt het de basis voor het verder onderzoeken van dit genre.

Erwin Zijleman


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(The hits of) Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich

After writing on Manfred Mann a while back, Wo. focuses on another, almost forgotten hitmachine from the 60s.

A while back I bought a greatest hits album by this band with the fairly absurd name second hand. The album looked old, maybe from the early 70s. It is not music that comes by on the radio a lot any more, despite the fact that the band scored a lot of hits between 1966 and 1969. Many of which I have an active memory of and not songs that I got to know later. The singles I did not know that are on the album, I truly did not know until I bought the album and played it.

This is something I wrote before but have to do again. I was extremely early in passively-actively following music. My parents did not have a device whether radio or record player (let alone a tv) in the home for three or four years, after I broke the arm of my mother's record player as a three year old. The act itself I cannot remember but certainly the effect it had as there wasn't any music in the home any longer. The effect of music on me was there from the pre toddler phase. Apparently some of my first words were there to ask for my favourite songs. My first single was given to me as a one year old.

So whenever I visited people that had a gramophone I always wanted to hear music. Especially if there were older, usually girls, children in the home as they had the latest singles of pop bands or the radio tuned to Radio Veronica. The pirate station laying off the coast of Scheveningen sending out all the latest pop singles and golden oldies. What a relative term that has become by the way. What I heard is what I got to know. The strange thing is I knew nothing of The Rolling Stones or The Who and everything by The Beatles, The Kinks and among many others Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich.

Listening back to the band's greatest hits record I can't but marvel at the songs the band released. Not so much in quality but in the kind of songs. With perhaps one or two exceptions they were all novelty hits, always leaning on some kind of gimmick. Where nearly all other artists leaning on a gimmick disappear after the first, often giant, hit, Dave Dee c.s. were in the charts for four consecutive years. The band still exists, a Tich II or a Mick III may be involved, but only the original Beaky remains of the original members after Tich retired in 2015 and Dozy died in the same year. There's no new record since 1983.

Let's take a look, hit by hit.
The first hitsingle in the U.K. and several other countries was 'Hold Tight'!'. This is one of the exceptions I mentioned. With the fuzzed guitar (solo) it is a fairly solid song. The staccato way of singing by Dave Dee is characteristic for the band, something that only changes in 1968 when the band started to flash out again. 'Hold Tight!' is one of the songs I did not know, but is easy to like. It holds ideals moments to sing along to.

'Hideaway' is up next in the U.K. Again it is a mix of toughness and soft harmonies. There's no predicting what will happen next listening to this song. It is a normal pop song, with again a fierce guitar solo for a pop song. It gives the song a garagy atmosphere. The guitar aims to please the boys, the singing is definitely after the girls.

'Bend It!', again an exclamation mark in the title, is the first hit in NL. A song I also remember as one I heard as a little kid. Gone is the guitar. Enter a Greek influence. This is 'Zorba the Greek' the whole of the way. The whole rhythm and the bouzouki/mandolin effect is a gimmick if I ever heard one. Also the melody fits the singing better than the previous two songs. Dave Dee seems to be more in his element with this lighter song. For the U.S. the lyric may have been too controversial, for the rest of the world this spelled major hit single. Compared to the first two I have to say I like it less in 2020. Nothing but a nostalgic memory is left, so o.k. but not more than that.

The next hit in NL, I'm skipping the U.K. from here on, is 'Save Me', but there are no recollections here. It is a song that has a fast played bell as a gimmick. A bit irritating, but the song as a whole is, though not outstanding, but certainly okay. The melody works, a guitar has a prominent part, which I almost always like and most of all it is upbeat.

The word okay has been used twice in the above and that is the title of the next, big hit. 'Okay'. The success of 'Bend It!' in mind, another gimmick comes in, being a Russian 'Kalinka' influence. I remember the song from the day but certainly had nothing to compare it to at the time. We had 'Russian Spy And I' by The Hunters in 1966, but I did not know the song at the time (talking of gimmicks that worked only once). Then 'Okay' was just a funny song probably. What did I know of Russia or Russian music then? Nothing. Listening to it now, it is a bit cheesy, isn't it?

The next hit single may be the strangest one of them all. Who ever thought up a song like 'Zabadak'? It must have involved a lot of smoking. I distinctly remember liking it at the time as it was easy to sing along to for someone not understanding the English language. Especially the "kale kak" part we could sing in Dutch. Listening to it now, I can only wonder what made people buy this record? It is so extremely weird. Off all edges. The music has an eastern flavour to it. The percussion is all over the place. I can only imagine what the five band members thought when they entered the studio and  songwriter duo Howard and Blaikley presented this song to them.

But wait, that's only half of the story. At the same time listen to the real tune and the way it is sung and the attraction is divulged. It is about discarding the Zabadak part and listen behind it. There's a golden melody hidden behind the psychedelic weirdness. In hindsight it seems like the stepping stone to what was to come in 1968. Listening closer things are explained. There's more to 'Zabadak' than I thought.

Also the whole oeuvre of the Dutch band The Buffoons is explained by the second melody in 'Zabadak'.

Next up is another clear gimmick. The whips, thunder and Spanish guitars of 'The Legend Of Xanadu'. Now that is an effect that impressed me at the time. It is also a song where the band was allowed to sing truly again. There's a sound melody, scores of ah-ah in the background. The mariachi trumpets give the song its own Mexican flavour. It starts to explain why the score of hits ended soon after. There wasn't a musical gimmick to explore any more. The whole world had been covered. But no, it is not the lack of quality of the hitsingles that are to follow from here. It is totally correct that this is the song that still comes by occasionally on the radio.

The next hit I do not remember. The summer of 1968 passed me by. My guess is that the weather was too good and we were playing outside the whole day and do what boys do, explore places where we were not supposed to go, from the roof of our apartment building to the railway and the city as a whole. 'Last Night In Soho'. The loud guitar returns in the intro. This is a song again and not a gimmick, although the musical influence is U.S.. The song sounds like American Breed and a few hits like that from early 1968. Coming to think of it, I could easily argue that 'Bend Me Shape Me' was influenced by Dave Dee, etc. 'Last Night In SoHo' is a great pop single, with a dark edge that makes it different from other songs of the time and a link to the earlier singles of the band.

'The Wreck of the Antoinette' was not a hit here but a nice song now I'm at it.

The next hit always was my favourite of the band and the last hit with Dave Dee as front man, the only one without his (a?) nickname in the band name. 'Don Juan' is of course the über gimmick hit of Dave Dee, etc. But one that is totally serving a strong song song and melody. The mariachi trumpets are there to underscore the passion of the toreador Don Juan who is about to die. This song still works for me 51 years down the road. The singing is strong, all the counter melodies are just great and fun. In my opinion this is not just another hit song but a mature and complex song that still held star quality to make it a huge hit. The proficiency in song writing is incredible. This is what passion should sound like. This is, was and probably will stay my all-time favourite of this band, that, by the way, was a real band. The four nick named lads all played their instruments and sang all these harmonies.

The career of Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich ended here. Dave Dee left the band to pursue a solo career, with one small hit in 1971 if I remember correctly. D, B, M & T had one more top 5 hit though late in 1969 and another of my favourites. This probably had to do with the fact that by 1969 I had become an avid listener of Radio Veronica and friends who brought singles over to play together. Passive - active had become active. Not so much in buying, far too expensive, although my first self-bought singles are from 1968 and 1969. 'Tonight, Today', a song not on Spotify to check out while writing. It may be the only single I have of the band though. It also has that driving force, with a bit of a country flavour I notice. Again the band manages to incorporate a few overlapping melodies over the same chords. The dark one starting is the gimmick but just listen to what happens next. This is just very well done. The three voices come together for a strong chorus. The only thing left to write is: this was a hitsingle.

Four years of straight hits came to an end here. Perhaps because Dave Dee had left the band or simply because the magic was gone. Not much later the band called it quits, to return to the 60s hits tours later. Listening back the band fits in with other 60s hit machines like The Hollies and The Tremeloes and not with the more serious bands starting with The Beatles. It makes it all the more distinctive that the band scored so many hits with totally different songs of which most are based on a gimmick. The band must have done something right, starting with working with the duo that wrote all the hits for them, Ken Howard and Alan Blaikley.

There remains one small thing to mention. On the greatest hits album I own is a song called 'Help Me'. Listening to it I mused 'I know this melody' and thought of The Family Dogg. It turns out the song was written by Steve Rowland, so that figures. Having written that, listen back to the true melody in 'Zabadak', I'd say it spells 'The Way Of Life' fully, completely.

To finish, let me give you their real names:

Dave Dee - David John Harman (vocals)
Dozy        - Trevor Ward - Davies (bass)
Beaky      - John Dymond (rhythm guitar)
Mick        - Michael Wilson (drums)
Tich         - Ian Amey (lead guitar)

Wo.


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Mothership. Flying Horseman

Is it possible to be reminded of David Sylvian, Roxy Music mach II and Talking Heads in one song? Yes, it is. 'Where Do You Live?' holds all this within itself. The repetitive, though soft and delicate rhythm could have been a Talking Heads ballad, the eastern connotation in the singing is 'Red Guitar' all over again, while the overall atmosphere is like Roxy Music of the early 80s.

This story is only one way of beginning to write about Mothership. My first association was the following: Why have I never started a series on the very first albums I owned and see what I think of them now? Why do I have this thought?, I asked myself immediately after. Because something on Mothership made me think of 'Wish You Were Here'.

Flying Horseman is a band from Belgium. A name that came by but never really stuck. I have another album in my possession I found out but it must have made no impression at all, as I do not have a single recollection having ever listened to it. Mothership seemed to be going into the same direction, but having received an album I always try to give it a second chance. That second chance led to the opening description of this post.

Mothership is "only" 8 songs long, like the average album of old used to be when artists released an album, or more a year. It feels however like an immense double album. The music is somewhat top heavy. My second impression is of Editors. 'Citizens' certainly has Editors connotations. The synth sound, the dark way of singing. Flying Horseman lets in more light and shows not to take itself that seriously by not going over the top. Instead it creates rest further on in the song. As it opens up, it allows more melody and influences to flow into 'Citizen' making the song so much more interesting. Along the way it is danceable too.

Promo photo: Alex Schuurbiers

Singer (and guitarist) Bert Dockx is extremely prominent in the mix. He is up front of it all so dominating the sound of Mothership. He's the colour the album provides. This is mostly a dark colour due to his timbre and way of singing. Around him solid, not necessarily loud, sounds are created but there's always a mysterious element in there as well. These are the 'Nightporter'/'Red Guitar' influences. A guitar sounding as light as a feather to be blown away with the first sweep of wind. The synths that grace a melody, not support it. Underneath a solid bass sounds, no matter how smooth, while percussion can be ever so soft if necessary to support the magic flying around. Percussion can be a muted guitar playing single notes. Angelic backing vocals by Loesje and Martha Mahieu provide the finishing touches to 'Where Do You Live', a song between fairytale and nightmare. Simply because there's no telling how this may end. 'Where Do You Live' shows a band that is not afraid to hold back at all and create a suspense that makes listening to it so interesting.

Mothership is an album with many layers. They may come from the past and the album does sound out of date in that way. Fact is that I never got through an album like this in the 80s and still do not. Not Talking Heads, not Japan/David Sylvian, not Roxy Music. After a few songs it's (more than) enough. I have no such troubles with Mothership. The album intrigues and hits a homerun at all the right moments. Take the explosion in 'Hotel'. It creates musical havoc without losing control for a second. Flying Horseman knows exactly what effect it wants to achieve here and comes back home easily and impressively.

As have no previous recollection of the band, I cannot judge in how far the change of producer has influenced its sound and approach. Whatever the answer is here, I would heed the advice of young Mr. Grace: "Keep up the good work".

Wo.


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The Loves Of Your Life. Hamilton Leithauser

Huisvlijt van de Amerikaanse muzikant Hamilton Leithauser levert een sprankelend en uiterst veelzijdig album op, dat alleen maar leuker wordt.

Ik heb het solowerk van The Walkmen zanger Hamilton Leithauser tot dusver niet echt gevolgd, maar zijn nieuwe album bevat me zeer. The Loves Of Your Life is een verrassend veelzijdig album, dat opvalt door de expressieve zang, de bijzonder klinkende instrumentatie en de aansprekende songs, die stuk voor stuk verhalen vertellen. Het is een album dat begint in de jaren 50 en via de jaren 70 en 80 uitkomt bij muziek zoals die ook door topbands als The Lone Bellow en The Lumineers wordt gemaakt. Niet iedereen zal hier vrolijk van worden, maar ik kan er persoonlijk geen genoeg van krijgen.

Hamilton Leithauser ken ik vooral als zanger van de Amerikaanse band The Walkmen. Het is een band die ik jarenlang genegeerd heb, maar de laatste twee albums van de band, Lisbon uit 2010 en Heaven uit 2012, vond ik erg goed.
 
Sinds 2012 is van The Walkmen niets meer vernomen en dat heeft alles te maken met de solocarrière die Hamilton Leithauser na het laatste album van The Walkmen is gestart. Het is een solocarrière waar ik tot voor kort niets van had meegekregen, tot de man’s nieuwe album The Loves Of Your Life mijn aandacht trok.
 
Het derde soloalbum van Hamilton Leithauser opent met een track die de helft van de luisteraars de gordijnen in zal jaren, maar ik vind het prachtig. De instrumentatie is bombastisch, maar ook weemoedig en is bovendien zowel nostalgisch als eigentijds. Hamilton Leithauser zingt vervolgens de longen uit zijn lijf en zorgt voor een openingstrack die hoe dan ook binnen komt.
 
Het doet me wel wat denken aan de muziek van The Lumineers en The Lone Bellow; twee bands die niet door iedereen gewaardeerd worden, maar steeds weer opduiken in mijn jaarlijstjes. Of het nieuwe soloalbum van Hamilton Leithauser dat ook gaat doen zal de tijd leren, maar vooralsnog ben ik erg onder de indruk van The Loves Of Your Life.
 
De muzikant uit New York maakte zijn nieuwe album grotendeels in zijn uppie en dat hoor je. Het geluid op The Loves Of Your Life klinkt af en toe wat rommelig en de songs op het album schieten alle kanten op. Een producer van naam en faam had de muziek van Hamilton Leithauser ongetwijfeld wat kunnen stroomlijnen, maar ik hou persoonlijk wel van dit soort huisvlijt.
 
Wat bij beluistering direct opvalt is dat Hamilton Leithauser een opvallend veelzijdig zanger is. Hier en daar klinkt hij als een crooner uit lang vervlogen tijden, maar de Amerikaanse muzikant kan ook uit de voeten als 70s countryzanger of als eigenzinnige singer-songwriter uit het heden. The Loves Of Your Life roept bij mij hetzelfde gevoel op als het vooral verguisde maar door mij gekoesterde derde album van The Lumineers. Ook Hamilton Leithauser brengt verhalen met muziek tot leven.
 
Het is muziek die zoals gezegd alle kanten op schiet, want hoe vaak hoor je een album dat binnen een paar minuten associaties oproept met doo-wop helden en crooners uit de jaren 50, de muziek van The Police en Sting uit de jaren 80 en de eerder genoemde bands uit het heden, met hier en daar een vleugje Coldplay.
 
Al die associaties roept Hamilton Leithauser vooral met zijn stem op, maar ook in muzikaal opzicht weet de muzikant uit New York je steeds weer te verrassen. The Loves Of Your Life loopt met zevenmijlslaarzen door de geschiedenis van de popmuziek. Van 70s singer-songwriter muziek, soul en country tot de indie-rock van dit moment. Hamilton Leithauser blijft je verrassen op zijn nieuwe album en overtuigt keer op keer met nieuwe invalshoeken en vooral met aansprekende songs en uitstekende zang (hier en daar ondersteunt door zijn vrouw en dochters).
 
Hoewel de klanken soms wat weemoedig zijn is The Loves Of Your Life een album dat vooral passie en plezier uitstraalt. Het levert het soort album dat vrijwel geen enkele muzikant meer durft te maken, maar wat ben ik blij dat Hamilton Leithauser het wel heeft gedaan.

Erwin Zijleman


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World On The Ground. Sarah Jarosz

This review simply has to start with a comment on the artwork. On her previous albums I am familiar with is photo of Sarah Jarosz. Not so with World On The Ground. It holds a beautiful painting. Just take a moment to look at it before reading on, as it is worth every second of your attention.






Yes, the white space is deliberate.


With World On The Ground Sarah Jarosz sets a new step in her career as singer-songwriter. Her alt.americana/roots have not disappeared totally, but there's no denying that she has moved towards an alternative form of pop songs. Not unlike The Secret Sisters on their last album. It is a change I welcome I notice. Ms. Jarosz shows a side to her music that is instantly pleasing.

The soft often somewhat melancholy sounding songs flow softly and free. The (acoustic) guitar is more prominent than the other snare instruments heard more prominently on her older albums. They are still there but often more in the background. Yes, I know that solo's are played on them but that is creating an atmosphere not laying down the fundaments of an album.

There are a million albums like World On The Ground. A woman singing soft singer-songwriter songs. That makes it hard to extinguish yourself in any way. Fact is that most of these albums do not touch me in a serious way. To some of them I can't even listen to. So what sets this album apart? That starts with Sarah Jarosz' voice. It is a voice of the soothing kind. Like a mother singing her distraught baby to sleep. And I mean this in an extremely positive way. The music behind this voice is created to make it shine. The two seem to become one at the right moments. In 'Johnny' Sarah Jarosz sings with a little more effort and in comes a solid drum to drive the song forward. All else around the drums is serving the voice, just like the perfect harmonies do. A song that comes close to 'Drive', my favourite song by Hazeldine.

World On The Ground is an album to truly listen to. From that moment onwards all the small details reach me. The subtle instrumentation, where silence and emptiness in the accompaniment is almost as important as what is played, like in 'Orange And Blue', a song that comes more alive every time I listen to it. That makes this album an easy listening one, without the negative connotations sticking to that term from my youth. An easy going album that incorporates singer-songwriter, pop and americana in all the right ways. That makes it an album that multitudes should find their way with and not just purists of americana music.

As I wrote there are thousands and thousands of artists making music like this but not many do it at this level. Sarah Jarosz is an artist that I already liked but with World On The Ground she made a giant step as far as I'm concerned. This is her ALBUM and deserving of every single capitol letter typed here.

Wo.

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.NoWordsNeedeD, 22-6-2020

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zl-1ZqTIkA

.No

To Love Is To Live. Jehnny Beth

Reading up on my post on Savages' last album 'Adore Life', I notice the ambivalence I have with the album, just like I had with the debute album of the band. Both albums fell into the background of my daily music routines. Almost certain I can predict the same will happen with To Love Is To Live. Great title though as I can certainly testify for it.

But just like the two Savage's albums, I have to admit that Jehnny Beth's first solo album intrigues me. She decided to explore her music down all sorts of highways, byways, lanes and alleys. She's not afraid to experiment and present very different sides to her writing and producing of music.

The result is so diverse. Rough, musical explosions, without a nice melody in earshot or electronic noise can be followed by a soft piano ballad. Her voice can either be soft and (almost) pure or slowed down as if a inebriated man, trying to sing a song, in vain and a lot in between. The result is that To Love Is To Live is a musical adventure and adventures are not to be taken lightly. One can get lost or worse. Fact is, it is quite easy to get lost on this album. It's not an easy album, it doesn't aim to please. Jehnny Beth chose to be fully confrontational and by way of an exception purr like a cat on your lap, only to claw her nails into your thigh quite soon.

It may be that if I invest more time on To Love Is To Live a full relationship starts blooming but even after several listening session I am still not sure whether I dare to come closer. The album is as tough as Jehnny Beth presents herself on the cover of the album. Take 'How Could You'. It's a song that is so rough and on edge. It's clear she is severely mad at someone, but do I want to listen to the rage? 'The French Countryside' shows a different side once again. Soft, piano, atmosphere. This album is a musical version of Mr. Jeckell and Dr. Hyde. So extreme is the music on it.

What To Love Is To Live shows is the many sides to Jehnny Beth. Musically she is able to show sides that Savages could never show. Whether the band is a past station or will come together again, I do not know. As I wrote, I'm intrigued by this album. Jehnny Beth sure made me curious with everything going on on her new album. Is it enough? I'm still in doubt after all these listening session, but not without me sharing my thoughts with you and that is telling you something.

Wo.

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7 Singles

Hegemony. Chalk Horse Music
An unknown act reached out to me if I fancied to write on its new single. The answer is always maybe, depending on the music. It only took one listen for me to find out the answer was yes.

Chalk Horse Music can be found in the folk segment of music. It has elements of classic English folk, not unlike its contemporary Modern Studies. Also not unlike Modern Studies Chalk Horse Music is not afraid of using developments of the 50 years since the hey day of Fairport Convention and Sandy Denny. So some electronics can be found in the songs and a rhythm that is more modern. This mix comes forward best in the b-side 'The Devil & The Farmer'. Acoustic guitars and voice is the basis of the song but don't be surprise when something electronic flies through the sound spectrum.

'The Devil And The Farmer' certainly is the more interesting song of the two but the nicest one is the A-side 'Hegemony'. Also here some electronic sounds come by that remind me of the electronics used on 'Who's Next' by The Who. 'Hegemony' is clearly a folk song, but so much more is going on on the side of the folk part. This is extremely elementary and bare music. My ears are stimulated to pay real attention for the whole of the ride because of that rest. To make all the great little extra's come out.

Singer Liz Pearson and her four band members manage to take music that can be called classic by now and present it as something fresh and new without losing the tradition. I am certainly interested to hear more in the future.

Tiptoe. Luka ft. Yori
If I remember correctly Yori Swart featured on this blog some years back. Luka only recently together with a previous bunch of other singles. Again she is on a very edge of modern music as far as this blog is concerned. Not unlike Belgian singer Lizzy who has featured in this single series as well.

The rhythm is modern, the music mostly electronic. Why it does appeal to me, is that Luka never overdoes anything. Her singing is closer to whispering than singing. Snowstar Records other female fronted band Donna Blue certainly comes to mind in this context, also because of the little lead organ solo. From there differences only. To come back to Luka, Tiptoe is an example of restraint. Everything seems to be down to bare necessities, except that some synth sounds just cannot be detained. They slip in and out of the song with these little melodies or sounds. (Read back above, speaking about similarities while the music is totally different, again.) Tiptoe simply is a pleasant song to listen to and Luka has a pleasing voice. And Lizzy has just dropped a new song last night, so will she be on here as well?

80's Carry This Tune! Kloothommel
What to make of this title and band name? I had no idea what to expect from the music before listening for the first time. I expected a lot but not the alternative rock with indie as well as avant garde elements with it. Everything from Fatal Flowers to Clinic and back via a detour or two is incorporated into 80's Carry This Tune! So expect a soft beginning, a storm in the middle and a soft, delicate coda bringing the song to its end. The singing is always soft, almost hesitant, but also not unlike many bands from Belgium have within it. Zita Swoon, The LVE, I Drove A Tank, dEUS, there are elements from all in here. Beauty and madness combined in 4"46. Nervous tension and tranquillity. Harmony and dissonance. All these contrast come together here. Almost as if two ideas were glued together. It makes Kloothommel an interesting band to listen.


I See You. Phoebe Bridgers
There's a lot ado about Phoebe Bridgers in the recent years. On this blog e.g. through observations of Erwin Zijleman. Now recently a new single was released, I decided to tap my big toe into the water and see if I can hear what the fuzz is all about.

'I See You' is a title bringing good memories as it one of my favourite songs on Yes' debut album. The songs are totally incompatible. Phoebe Bridgers may feel something when seeing the person she sings about. The mood of the song makes it kind of hang in the balance what those feelings are. Not one of butterflies in the belly for sure. But that is feeling a lot and not something. Moodwise the song is darkish and musically it is not the obvious choices that are made. Despite of this, I See You certainly has something that makes me want to listen, but like that something in the song, it is somewhat complex. I See You is a three song single. The Second song 'Kyoto' is certainly more straightforward and immediately likeable in an alternative way. The trumpet solo is elementary but nice. Summing up, the songs make me interested to hear more in the future.

Rose Devoid Of Form. The Academy of Sun
This single has two very distinct sides. The A-side is totally in line with what I heard on The Academy Of Sun's album, 'The Parts That Need Replacing', I will not be reviewing. Like Rose Devoid Of Form it is a strange hybrid between rock singing, albeit fully holding back, and electronic, atmospheric music. Not my cup of tea for a whole album. No, it is the b-side that caught my attention and that I will focus on here. 'Everything At Once Forever'.

In this song the band kicks in a great alternative and punky rocker. Fully in an post-punk early 80s rock kind of way or like Clinic can do when totally letting go. Electronics are a part of this song as well but in a serving way and not dominating. What strikes me is the fierce tempo of 'Everything at Once Forever'. The band set off in time to catch the last bus and managed to catch the one before that. The guitars rock, the drums and bass pound, and the keyboards provide the little melodies. All said, I'm reminded of 'The End Of The World As We Know It (But I Feel Fine)'. A darker version where the I feel fine part is skipped. Less variation in the melody as well, except for the little oh, oh part, making it haunting, a hellhound on my trail kind of experience and a little exciting as well.

Play Games. Garlands
A single a month. Surely something to look out for in these times of crisis. Especially by a band like Garlands, a band that I yet have to hear a song of that I do not like. Listening to Play Games I wonder whether Rum Bar Records would be interested in this Scottish act? Listening to the new song, short, sweet, I can't help but wonder how aptly the song is titled. The song is so playful, despite being extremely tight. A perfect blend of power rock of the late 70s, Green Day and Britpop. In other words solid rock music with a fun melody to sing along to. Within three minutes it's all over and all has been said and done. From the fun, extremely recognisable intro, to the one line chorus with the obvious two words. Garlands captures a whole lot of energy in those 2"54. If Green Day has millions of fans around the globe Play Games ought to be attractive to 100s of thousands of those fans. Open your ears folks because this song is so much nicer than any of tracks released in the last decade by that, by now dinosaur of 90s punk band (no matter how nice). Garlands is the new thing. Let's play this game for a while.

Nothing But Time. Lizzy
Listening to Nothing But Time I can't escape the idea that Lise Reyners and Joes Brands are working together in an extremely experimental way and learning their new ropes together. The song is playful, slightly jazzy and moving into modern pop during the song. At the same time an 80s feeling comes back to me and to be more specific, Sade. The way the song develops makes it a modern Sade song, a little faster, without the distinct accents in the rhythm. The result is that, despite there is some effect on her voice(s), Lizzy sings more freely it seems to me.

Listening more closely there is even more to Nothing But Time. There is the song that presents itself at first listen. By taking more time, what's in a word here, all sorts of little details come forward, electronic sounds in the background, the stop start effect in the rhythm, the double tracked vocals of Lizzy.

In the lyrics it seems the Covid-19 crisis is reflected. "We should live like we could die", and "No tomorrow, do what we like". If there is a time to live like that, it's now alright. Carpe Diem. The fact that the song was made and written by Reyners and Brands in isolation may have inspired the lyrics.

Another nice single for Lizzy. It is putting her personal score on my side at 2 - 2. Already I'm looking forward to her next single, as no matter what, I always like to hear her voice.

Wo.

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Tragas O Escupes. Jarabe de Palo

In the summer of 1997 I visited Spain for a marriage of a friend together with other friends. In the discotheques of Salamanca three songs were played over and over: 'La Macarena', something by The Spice Girls and a Spanish song that was so incredibly good. I found out that it was called 'La Flaca'. The next day I bought the album. In fact that record shop, just off the Plaza Mayor, may be the only one abroad I bought an album twice over the years. Both by Jarabe de Palo. Ever since I remained a fan of Jarabe de Palo. Even got to see the band play live a few times in Amsterdam. Since 'Somos' in 2014, then my album of the year, things remained silent. In 2020 a thin looking Pau Donés returns with his band on Tragas O Escupes.

The album kicks off with the drums and a nice up tempo song, ''Vuelvo'. The music is immediately likeable. It has that upbeat atmosphere Jarabe de Palo has in this upbeat songs. The voice of Pau Donés is different though. It sounds older and thinner, more tired than in 2014 and before. Something has changed for sure here. Being in his early 50s is not necessarily an explanation.

That said, musically the album certainly grows on me. Again the band mixes southern European, Latin and western rock elements in a mix that makes it hard not to like it and not to move the body along to the music. It seems so effortless to swing like this, as swing it does. The music fully allows someone to live in the moment. Surrender to it and the outside world no longer exists. Of course that goes for all music, but for me Jarabe de Palo makes me feel good immediately as well. I do not understand anything he sings about, some words apart, but it doesn't matter one thing. This band plays feel good music with a slightly exotic touch. It doesn't take more for me.

Playing the album for the first time a few weeks ago, I was hit by the oh, yeah, I heard this before feeling, that I sometimes have when hearing a new album by a favourite artist of years if not decades. Sometimes it is correct but not with Tragas O Escupes. The album came more alive with each spin and started to show her secrets slowly. The clean sound in which so many great details come forward as the mix is well done. Attention was clearly given to details when recording and mixing. It gives each song on the album its own characteristics. Whether a dry percussion, a hi-hat, saxophone or guitar line, they all come forward nicely next to the prominent voice of Pau Donés.

It is such a nice thing to hear, a favourite artist who delivers with his new album. With Tragas O Escupes Jarabe de Palo delivers alright. Although it is instantly recognisable as Jarabe de Palo the band does experiment with its sound as well. 'Hombrecitos' has a new sound to it, very 70s, I think, reggae of the 'Dreadlock Holiday' kind, with a surf(guitar) sound that is even older. It makes 'Hombrecitos' a song that attracts attention immediately, without overdoing anything.

There's more of that, where the Spanish/Mexican tradition enters the album. 'Me Flechaste Ingrata' is really something different, the trumpet is used so melancholically, underscoring the whole of the song. It holds a yearning for things past that will never returns. A beautiful song. To discover this beauty it is a necessity to truly get to know the album. I am glad I have and have started to discover all the things that passed me by when being introduced to it. Never give up after one go, is a wise walk in life.

It seems Jarabe de Palo has released another great album.

And then I open Wikipedia and sit shocked behind my screen. My hunch feeling seeing his picture and the weaker voice proved only too true. Pau Donés died on 9 June, two weeks after the release of Tragas O Escupes. News that did not reach my country or at least me. Jarabe de Palo and I have reached the end of our road, except that I am allowed to walk it some more, with the music the band has given me, the memories of Salamanca and the shows I saw in the Melkweg in Amsterdam in the 00s. I notice the news truly affects me deeply. Time to write some more. (You can read that writing here: http://wonomagazine.blogspot.com/2020/06/pau-dones-of-jarabe-de-palo-1966-2020.html).

Wo.

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Homegrown. Neil Young

"The one that got away", Neil Young said about his "new" album, Homegrown. Now I was under the impression that we had already been let in on that secret with 'Hitchhiker', released late in 2017, but I am mistaken.

Homegrown should have been released in 1975, a period in time Young had a prolific output. My absolute favourite 'On The Beach', 'Tonight's The Night', 'Zuma', all great albums in their own right. And now there's Homegrown, the one that got away.

Musically it partly matches 'On The Beach', but more strongly shows his strength as a singer-songwriter with mild country influences. So more 'Harvest Moon' than 'Comes A Time'. Yes, there is a limited amount of filler to make it a whole album, a few songs found their place on other, later albums with leftovers, 'American Stars 'N' Bars' (1977) and 'Hawks & Doves (1980). So what's new and what to make of the whole?

As starters, I still think it's great Neil Young is self-releasing his legacy. Through the live series as with unreleased albums. That thought shows that Homegrown is more than welcome. The way it starts with 'Separate Ways', sets the tone. It is Young, his unique voice, an acoustic guitar and his whining way of playing the harmonica. The late Levon Helms on drums (and on 'Try'). All instantly definable as Neil Young when he puts on his straw hat and holds a long grass straw in the corner of his mouth. Faintly I remember a drawing in Muziek Express of the 70s by Peter Pontiac. It's all a bit blurry so don't pin me down on the correctness of the memory.

Listening to 'Try', I wonder if this song was ever meant to be released at the time. The recording has a looseness that makes it sound informal. A demo recording before the real thing that never happened (or never became better. That's another option). This description says nothing about the song being nice.

Overlooking the album as a whole I start getting the inkling why Homegrown was not released at the time. Many of the songs sound like something Neil Young had done before and better or more serious. 'Mexico' can't possibly compete with 'After The Goldrush'. At the time he never repeated himself easily. Perhaps as a whole album but not like the songs on Homegrown. With 'After The Goldrush', 'Harvest' (never my favourite though) and 'On The Beach' he had set his standard. In a way with 'Tonight's The Night' as well, as a standard in musical anger management. Seen from that angle Homegrown is not a standard. According to Wikipedia Homegrown was not released because the lyrics became too close for comfort, '"Homegrown was just a very down album". Oh, is my response, have you ever listened to 'On The Beach'?

With the title song things stand different. I always sort of hated the version on 'American Stars 'N' Bars' version. Here it sounds, again, like a loose jam, suggested by the beginning even more so, but also a typical Neil Young mild rocking song of which he wrote so many more. The central riff/guitar melody here is just fun somehow.

'Florida' is all filler, a drunk or high and if not that a very incoherent story of what ever. This should never be on an album in my opinion and draws the album down. Something that will always be skipped. That is the only true critique on Homegrown possible. The only reason I can find that it relates to the phrase "Gliding through the air" in 'Kansas'.


This song could have been on 'On The Beach' easily. Young and his acoustic guitar, singing in the dark (of his mind) all alone. But also, it is a song that seems unfinished. One with great potential surely but not finished it seems. 'We Don't 'Smoke It No More' is a nice jam, not more but certainly not less. It shows what a nice bunch of musicians Neil Young had with him in the studio.

The songs on the album stem from a host of sessions, with CSNY, former The Band members and his other band including Ben Keith, Karl Himmel and Tim Drummond. Some songs have surfaced over the years in other formats. A few have not. Of those I truly like the rocking 'Vacancy' the best. 'Separate Ways' and 'Kansas' come close. 'Star Of Bethlehem' with Emmylou Harris on backing vocals is a great track of course. The country Neil at his best.

So even if I can understand why Neil Young did not release Homegrown in 1975, releasing 'Tonight's The Night', recorded in 1973, in its stead, what a present it is in 2020. As a whole the album totally works and brings his fans a host of "new" tracks very much worthwhile listening to. Not so long ago I wrote that I had not bought a new Neil Young album for well over a decade. I think that is going to change soon.

Wo.

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