The Streets are easily one of the most polarizing artists out there. I personally believe that Mike Skinner, who produces music under the name The Streets, is brilliant. There are, however, many who would tell you that his music is horrendous; a hodge-podge of obnoxious cockney talking, singing, and rapping all on top of bizarre sound effects, grating samples, and dissonant synth lines. But of course there’s no way to know what side of this debate you’ll be on until you listen to The Streets yourself. Luckily we’ve got two of his albums in the record library, ready and waiting for you to experience them.
First is The Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living, The Streets’ third album. Skinner’s emotions run the gamut from sadness, joy, anger, and compassion, all told with his sharp wit and knack for words (and British slang). As on the first two albums, we are treated to stories about life as a twenty-something in lower-middle class London, but THWTMAEL adds to this Mike’s struggles with his newfound celebrity. Some of The Streets’ funniest and most personal material can be found on this album with “Can’t Con an Honest John”, when Skinner explains how to con someone who is conning you and “All Goes Out the Window” in which Skinner contends with lying and trust in relationships.
Second is The Streets’ most recent album Everything is Borrowed. This album sees a change in The Streets’ sound, as Skinner perfects his pop songwriting form. Because of this it would be easy to say that The Streets have finally sold out and diluted their music, but it’s just as lyrically dense anything before it only in a more accessible guise. I view the album as a resolution and a maturing of Skinner as a songwriter and a person after three albums of drug abuse and selfish immaturity. The title track of the album gives an excellent picture of where Skinner has gone with the album, containing a catchy melody and more romanticized and introspective lyrics.
If these albums haven’t impressed you, then I suggest two things: give them some time and a few listens, Skinner’s music is so idiosyncratic that it can take some time to really appreciate it; and check out his debut Original Pirate Material and his story concept album A Grand Don’t Come for Free, both of which feature the artist at the peak of his abilities. Having done this I hope you’ve found The Streets to be as fun, challenging, and inspiring as I have.
To all the ladies who will be spending hours getting primped for Midwinter Ball tomorrow:
this mash-up is the perfect lead-in to a night you surely won't forget. Cyndi Lauper's timeless ebullience fuses perfectly with Ke$ha's unabashed party girl anthem for a universal celebration of femininity and fun!
Steve Jones of Jonesy's Jukebox hosts Jonah Hill and the Duplass Brothers to discuss their upcoming film “Cyrus”. John C. Reilly plays John, a lonely divorcé who meets Molly, the woman of his dreams. It seems there is only room for one man in Molly’s life and her son Cyrus, played by Jonah Hill, is not going to give up the top spot without a fight. John and Cyrus have met their match in this comical struggle for power written and directed by Jay and Mark Duplass. May the best man win! Check out this, and many more of Jonesy’s Jukebox full length interviews with Bob Saget, Wilmer Vilerrama, Billy Corgan, Zeina Durra, Michael Chiklis to name a few at IAMROGUE.com.
This Austin, TX punk band has been receiving a lot of critical attention in the months leading up to their sophomore LP, "Be Brave." Below is the music video for the title track/single, which sounds a bit like Georgia's Black Lips meets early Rolling Stones. See them on tour with Spoon and Deerhunter this year!
I don’t say this lightly: Mountains and Tape at the Cave on Saturday night is going to be one of the most beautiful shows ever. Both bands make music that is simply drop-dead, stunningly beautiful. Honestly, it’s some of the most gorgeous, incredible and interesting music I’ve heard in years.
Tape: First off, these guys are from Sweden. Yes, that’s right: Stockholm, Sweden. They don’t tour in the US very often, so this is actually one of the few chances to see them. Their songs sound like perfect lullabies composed of Brian Eno’s minimalism, droney guitar and piano melodies, and just the right amount of electronic twitches. It’s highly composed and thoroughly mesmerizing. Take the time to do this, go to their myspace (www.myspace.com/tapesthlm) and listen to all their songs (and I recommend closing your eyes to zone out our world). It’s lovely in headphones, and I’m sure it’s going to be epic live. Plus, we have to show our Swedish brothers some love.
Mountains: This duo is one of the most exciting new bands on Thrill Jockey from Chicago. They present layer upon layer of melody, guitar, and sometimes field recordings. It’s pastoral music that keeps you on the edge of your seat wondering what’s going to happen next. Mountains create such a vivid and compelling musical soundscape, that it is really less like hearing songs, and more akin to entering an entirely new auditory universe.
THE CAVE. This Saturday Jan 30. Music starts at 9:30, come early and you can challenge me to chess or go.
As cliché as it is to say this about a band, the Books, whose albums The Lemon of Pink and Lost and Safe are in the record library, are very difficult to classify. They get samples from everywhere, frequently using recordings of people speaking, and set those samples to all sorts of instruments, though there is usually some acoustic guitar in their songs. While there are clear parallels to mid-20th century classical music, they are overwhelmed by the whimsical, relaxed nature of the music. I find that I can't help but enjoy it.
The Lemon of Pink is the stronger of the two albums; a few of the highlights include the gorgeous crescendo of “Take Time” and the syncopated joy of “The Future, Wouldn't That Be Nice?” The best part of the album, though, is what seems to be a musical chronicle of a trip to East Asia, with the joyous and flight-attendant-sampling “Tokyo” being the plane ride and arrival and the time on the ground being “S Is For Evrysing,” parts of which could be on the soundtrack to Hero.
Lost and Safe is, as its title suggests, is not quite as confident or joyous as its predecessor, and its tracks are a little harder to get a handle on, but the basic approach is the same. The album features more original vocals and the instrumentation is spacier, but tracks like “Be Good To Them Always” and “Vogt Dig For Kloppervok” are as good as any in the band's catalog.
At its best, the Books' music induces a state of contentment, and though their samples and near-complete lack of singing makes the music seem distant at times, it's well worth the effort to reach out to these enchantingly original musicians.
KRLX-FM 88.1 * 507-222-4102 (office / record libe) * 507-222-4127 (request / live)
300 North College Street, Northfield, MN 55057-4000
KRLX is a service of Carleton College in Northfield, MN
As cliché as it is to say this about a band, the Books, whose albums The Lemon of Pink and Lost and Safe are in the record library, are very difficult to classify. They get samples from everywhere, frequently using recordings of people speaking, and set those samples to all sorts of instruments, though there is usually some acoustic guitar in their songs. While there are clear parallels to mid-20th century classical music, they are overwhelmed by the whimsical, relaxed nature of the music. I find that I can't help but enjoy it.
WOOOOOOO