a small lesson of the difficult type

So I made the mistake today of going back through my published reviews on RELEVANT. I didn't think it was a mistake when I made that choice. And I suppose it wasn't really a mistake until I decided to go all the way and read the responses to the albums. Turns out, I don't think the same things other people think. Lots of people got upset with my reviews and thoughts. Especially the one for Florence + the Machine. Whooee! And even though that one seems to garner the most negative feedback, I am pretty sure I still stand by my take on it. And I'm proud of that. I just hope I stand by it because I actually do and not just as a defense mechanism. I think it's because Florence fans tend to be pretty die hard, and the same for my most recent review of the new Miike Snow album.

The specifics aren't particularly important at this point though. What is important is the overall lesson I am learning here. You really can't please everyone. Sometimes you really can't even seem to please anyone. But if you (and when I say "you" what I am really trying to say is "me" or "I") do things with an intent to please people and not out of your own personal conviction, you open yourself up for all sorts of emotional attack - even when people aren't actually attacking you, but daring to disagree. Even if you do things with personal conviction, contrasting opinions can rock your conviction enough. I suppose this is why Shakespeare (it was him, right?) said "To thine own self be true." If you are true to your own self, even if no one else is on your side, at least you have yourself. But if even you betray yourself, you will find yourself quite alone ... even if other people do find themselves on your side. You are not even on your own side! Ack!

So as a lesson to myself I am telling myself that I am allowed to say whatever I want in my reviews - I can gush about its brilliance or lament its shortcomings - but the most important thing is that I believe what it is I am saying.

I'm hoping that's what I have done already, but I am now making a note to myself to be sure to do that intentionally every time from here on out.

Have any of you had to learn this lesson yet? How have you dealt with it? Thought about it? Approached it? Effectively implemented it into your life? What other hard lessons have you had to learn?

Loud Old-School Rock from Indiana to Nashville

*Obligtory sincere apology: It’s embarrassing, really, how many times I’ve intended to write this post about this band. Sometimes, for whatever reason or array of reasons, your greatest intentions don’t quite come to fruition and this is one of those cases. Until right now. My apologies for the delay – to you, readers, and to Kyle and Modoc.*

I only associate myself with cool people. Maybe that’s not entirely true, but I really like to think it is. Isn’t that sort of the tendency of all of us? To align ourselves with the people who are doing things we respect? This post is about a gutsy adventure one of my oldest friends has been on for several years now.

My old buddy, Kyle (the dapper gelled fellow in the photo), is an outstanding musician. Although he is of a very different vent than myself, I respect, admire and am insanely jealous of what he does. Back in high school, he used to be in a band of other friends of mine called Father Blue Eyes. I was maybe their biggest non-related, non-dating fan. I went to every show imaginable (distance notwithstanding) and brought brownies with me. They were great guys, a good band and wicked fun times. After FBE, Kyle joined a group called Modoc – so named for a small town in East Central Indiana. This is his current adventure. The four boys that make up Modoc and their families made a bold move, picked up their comfortable lives in Indiana and moved down to the bustling music center that is Nashville, TN. It’s my impression that they’re doing very well – at least that’s the vibe I get from their latest album.

Last September, the quartet released a second serious album called Fortune & Fame. I could hardly be more proud of them. And that’s not even just because I know the guys – I’m oftentimes harder on my friends than strangers. Fortune & Fame is a solid old-school rock and roll album. My first thought when I put this album in my car was “They still make music like this? It still exists?” It’s an aggressive album with loud, distorted guitar, serious bass, edgy vocals and lots of cymbals.

The opening track is the ballsiest for sure, with an acappela quartet chorus – and it probably falls the shortest for me. Tough to start an album with the weakest track – and that’s the sort of decision that I think comes with experience – but to attempt it is a move I respect. It moves seamlessly into “Giving In” – a solid, loud, garage band tune with a great back-of-the-beat groove.

The third track on an album is almost always my favorite track. It’s uncanny how often this happens and “Mother Mary” is indeed the track that strikes my ear the most every time. It opens up with a Red Hot Chili Peppers darkness and guitar sound, but has a great feel to the chorus, almost late-Beatles-esque in its feel. It’s a tune I wouldn’t mind getting stuck in my head, or being caught singing walking down the sidewalk.

Several of the tracks have that dual identity – they begin with one feel and have a point where they switch or break in the middle. The band does it well and quite convincingly – it shows a lot of ability and repertoire for different styles and sounds. “Coward” is another one that stands out in this respect. It’s got a little Charlie Daniels Band to it, but then breaks into something a little softer, too. I would caution the group against doing this for every track. It will eventually lose its charm. Part of why it works is because they go to some pretty unexpected places.

The title track is another serious rock tune. Great guitar licks that builds well. Almost formulaic, but it works. Really well, too. The lyrics are hard and reflect the life of the normal musician – hours spent on the road, away from family, toiling for something that seems to give so little back, one has to take joy in the labor of one’s sunk. The album's closer, "Penance" is a beautiful anthem to a broken relationship.

Overall the sound and songwriting is still young, but the band shows a lot of potential – they have all the basics down solid, the style is great, the balance on Fortune & Fame is brilliant and as individual musicians they have it all together. What lacks is a little bit of solidity and sense of settling into their identity that comes with age, experience and time. Modoc has a smart respect for solid musical influences. What they need to find now is the balance between creating their own sound and stealing what works from other artists. It’s going to take time and a lot of experimentation trial-and-error style. But I’m going to tell you this – I won’t be surprised if you hear about them from somewhere other than me. Rumor has it they just recorded a track for Twilight soundtrack consideration.

Their website is: http://www.modocmusic.com. Check it out, spin some of their tunes and keep up with these guys. If you can see them live, DO IT. I remember when they were a baby group, they put on one of the most enjoyable, high energy shows I’ve been to. Live, loud performance is where they excel. And they’ve got families, so support them.

*Photo taken from band's website.*

Got a Smile in my Heart and it Spread to my Face

This week’s spotlight band has been on my radar for a long time, actually; but only recently did I break down, purchase their album and fall in love. I can’t tell you exactly when I first heard of Vampire Weekend because they seemed to blow up everywhere all at once, and now they're a college/young adult musical staple. If you know only one of their songs, it’s probably “Holiday” featured on a Christmas-time Target commercial, if I remember correctly, and frequently heard over the Muzak of Starbucks, Abercrombie and other such fine commercial establishments. It may have been this association with the college crowd (especially the fraternity scene) and the commercial explosion of the band that gave me such cause for hesitation, but I tell you what: they are a quirky bundle of fun, and that is not limited only to clean, drunken white collar delinquents as I had previously thought. Their songs are ridiculous with lots of “bloops and bleeps” in the background, as one of my friends complains and have predictable, but peppy beats. I never really know exactly what they’re saying in their lyrics; it could be Spanish for all I can tell, but I never really care either. It’s just plain fun, guaranteed to put a smile on your face. I took them with me when I ran my first half-marathon the other weekend (like how I just dropped that in there?) and if asked, I would give them a good deal of the credit for my successful crossing of the finish line.

Despite the mumbling and generally carefree spirit of their music, a song called "Oxford Comma" from their self-titled debut album, betrays the band's Ivy League roots. The four members of Vampire Weekend met and formed the group in 2006 while students at Columbia University. Things progressed rather speedily after that, signing to a label in 2007, releasing their first album in 2008 and a chart-topping follow-up album in 2010.

I’m listening to their second album Contra right now, as there’s a great fall rain happening outside; and the album still seems appropriate. I almost feel like there’s a private joke between my iPod and me that we are not letting the weather in on. There’s a smile growing warm in my heart and it’s thanks to Vampire Weekend. Have a long drive ahead? Not looking forward to a weekend of cleaning the house? Need to do some working out? Take these kids with you.



Photo credit: Søren Solkær Starbird