New Music - Melody Gardot

I am absolutely in love with Melody Gardot. They did a little promo on her on CBS Sunday morning this weekend. She is a Philly girl, which automatically scores points for me. The story on CBS can be found recapped at this link. Her story is a pretty striking one. She suffered very serious injuries in a crash with a Jeep Cheroke while she was on bike at a Philadelphia intersection. Music was a big part of her recovery and she still deals with constant pain, sensitivity to light and sound as well as additional symptoms of her brain injury. Her story is an amazing one, but so is her music. Her voice is just beautiful. You can see her music video here.

Chicks Rock Part II

All of the people that I work with must want to kill me by now. I first heard a snippet of the new single, “Mercy”, by Duffy on the radio last week. I rummaged through the sample bin at work and found the single (no full length just yet). I have played it at least 4 times a day for the past 4 days. I will not be surprised if I come in tomorrow and my player is hidden.

I am totally digging this girl! Duffy comes from the small coastal town of Nefyn, Wales. She has had much success in Europe and is set to release her album in the States on May 26th. When listening to her bio on the radio I became a bit irritated when the two DJs bantered back and forth announcing that she sounds like Amy Winehouse. Although I am a fan of Winehouse’s music (not her escapades), she did not originate this sound! I think of artists like Dusty Springfield, Etta James and the soul sounds of Aretha, when I hear this little blonde belt out her blues. Not silly Amy Winehouse.

One of the best music shows I’ve ever been to was a little known artist, Sharon Jones. Sharon performed with her band, The Dap Kings, in a small venue in Richmond, VA. She had the entire crowd moving and shaking the entire show. Her energy just takes a hold of you and you have no choice but to be moved by her funky soul sound. Sharon’s accompanying band, The Dap Kings have been touring with Winehouse and were featured in her video, Rehab. I almost felt like they were cheating the first time I saw them on MTV, but Sharon Jones still tours with the band, so I guess that is ok.

Another group I wanted to mention in my Part II of Chicks Rock is Paramore. This band is my guilty pleasure. They are totally a band for teenagers, but I just can’t help myself. I have the newest album, Riot, and it is my jam out in the car music. The lead singer looks like she is about 15 and has an adorable high school punk kind of style. Her voice is quite powerful and I just can’t help myself but to enjoy this “pop/alternative-girls are mean-I miss my boyfriend” music. I guess she kind of reminds me of Avril Lavigne with a band, but cooler.

Dengue Fever

I am not one to find amazing new music, but every once in a while I come across a gem like this. I heard about this band while listening to National Public Radio (NPR) on my way home from work. Dengue Fever was started by two brother musicians from California. The lead singer, Chhom Nimol, is from Cambodia and met the two brothers after she had recently moved to L.A. Their new album, Venus on Earth, is comprised of all new songs inspired by Cambodian pop music and does include songs in English. I know I have an older album, but to be quite honest, I don’t know what album I have. Evan downloaded some songs for me and burned them to a CD. Since the lyrics are not in English, it is impossible for me to tell what songs they are and figure out what album they are from.

Dengue Fever’s sound is a tribute to Cambodian pop music that was popularized after American music was broadcast in the East during the Vietnam War. The outcome was a mixture of psychedelic rock and Cambodian folk music that was popular in the late sixties and early seventies. During the NPR interview they described how this music was literally killed off when the dictator, Pol Pot, came to rule in Cambodia. His regime literally executed the musicians who were part of this music movement in addition to others that were deemed to have influence from the West. I am not familiar with Cambodian history and did not know anything about Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge who took over the country in 1975. I, of course, had to get online and start researching to learn more about the inspiration that this California based rock band used to recreate this sound. The story of this music and this band is so intriguing. It’s amazing to me how much I do not know about world history. This was only 30 years ago. How do I not know this?

I think it is just so great when art inspires people to learn about the world. I am amazed how musicians and artists can adapt something so unfamiliar and bring it to a new place and it becomes new again. Thank you Dengue Fever!

Chicks Rock!

I listen to all genres of music, but have a special place in my heart for female musicians. The Cranberries got me through my adolescence. Bands like Garbage and Veruca Salt inspired me to be tough in my teenage years. Fiona Apple got me through break-ups in college and I don’t know how I would have survived driving on I-95 without Heart’s Greatest Hits. I like all genres of “chick” music from country to pop to rock, but my special love is for “girl with piano” style music. I am forever a fan of artists like Tori Amos, Vanessa Carlton, Fiona Apple, Charlotte Martin and Regina Spektor. I have a new one to add to my list, Sara Bareilles. I heard her name mentioned on many a conference call at work and was surprised that I had no idea who she was. I got the album almost two weeks ago and it hasn’t left my player. I really like the story-like quality to the lyrics of all of her songs. Sara’s website is really cute, so I had fun reading more about her. Her single, “Love Song” is featured on a Rhapsody commercial, so you may have seen it. That’s not really my favorite track. It’s clearly the single. My favorites are “Vegas”, “Bottle it Up” and “Fairytale”. Here’s how she describes her music:

I write mostly on piano and I'm a girl, so lots of people say it's Norah Jones, or Fiona Apple. That's fine. I love Norah's subtlety and Fiona's fierce lyrical prowess. But I also have an affinity for the playful and intelligent-pop of people like Elton John and Ben Folds. And although I don't necessarily write like them, Radiohead, the Police and Bjork changed my musical consciousness. Ben Gibbard writes better lyrics than I can even imagine up. Etta James and Sam Cooke make me wish I lived 50 years ago. Counting Crows recorded an album that I consider to be perfect, and Bob Marley created music that makes me want to be a better human being.

I am also very excited to report that Dolly Parton’s new CD releases next week. She did an exclusive distribution deal with my company, so I got to sample it today. She did a cover of the 80’s song, Drives Me Crazy by Fine Young Cannibals. You know the song. It’s not a bad song in a Dolly Parton cheesy kind of way. I’ve only had a quick listen, but I really enjoyed the title track, Backwoods Barbie. She sort of has a laugh at herself by saying she wears too much make-up and has big hair. I love it and she looks amazing as always.

My Favorite Grammy Moments

I’m sure that everyone is excited to hear about the New York trip, but before it’s too late, I did want to post about the 50th Annual Grammy Awards. Being in the music biz, we weren’t expecting much from this years show, but I was pleasantly surprised. I have to admit that I missed the beginning of the televised event because we were out and about in snowy NYC, but I’ve perused through the highlights and I have to say that I think we saw the best of it. One of my favorite moments of the show was Vince Gill sticking it to Kanye West’s ego. I can’t say that I’m a fan of Vince’s music, but when he said, “I just received an award from a Beatle, you can’t say that Kanye!” I found a new respect for Mr. Gill. Everyone loves Amy Winehouse (myself included) and for good reason she took home a bunch of awards including Best Pop Album. I have been a fan of Amy Winehouse since her album released in the states, but I’ve almost had too much of her tabloid crazy ways. The best Grammy performance for me was the underrated, no drama, Feist. Click here for Youtube video. I thought she sounded incredible and did a great live performance of her hit, “1, 2, 3, 4”, known from the iPhone commercial, that didn’t sound like a recording off the album, but had good heart. I am happy to report that off camera my favorite song off my favorite album of 2007, Gone Gone Gone, from Raising Sand by Alison Krauss and Robert Plant was awarded a Grammy for Best Pop Collaboration. Now, everyone go and buy some CDs to keep my job secure for a few more months!

Raising Sand

Although I work in the music biz, it is rare that I am so excited about a new album. The collaboration of Alison Krauss and Robert Plant on the new record, Raising Sand, is absolutely amazing! I never would have imagined that Alison Krauss’ blue grass background and angelic voice would match so well with Robert Plant’s raw sound. My interpretation of the sound on this disc would be a mix of musical genres, from folk to surf rock to classic country ballad-like harmonies and a bunch of different places in between. I was told by a great musical mind that my favorite track, Gone gone gone is an Everly Brothers’ cover. I’ll have to pay more attention to the Everly Brothers. Where ever Krauss and Plant got their musical inspiration from, that must be a beautiful place. Definitely, my number one album of the year!