Anatomy In Song

Yeah, yeah, yeah...I know. I'm late with this again. Story of my life. Seriously...THE story. I have the Brian Andreas StoryPeople print on my wall to prove it. Brian summed up my feelings best: "The clock is a conspiracy & a crime against humanity & I would not own one except I miss appointments without it." This, you see is not an appointment and furthers me very little in my attempts at world domination so it falls by the wayside and I update it as I see fit or as that pesky criminal clock permits. And...I'm not in as much of a hurry to talk about people I've already mentioned multiple times in previous posts either. The Weather Machines are the only group that weren't already on my radar so overall, pretty much old news. However, I do so love the opportunity to mention Ingrid Michaelson again because she is PHENOMENAL. So...without further adieu and almost a week late...


Amy Winehouse – “Wake Up Alone”

I’ve been talking about Amy Winehouse since last year and still haven’t grown tired of telling people how amazing she is. From the look of the internet, it appears everyone has finally caught on. She’s wild and self destructive but I don’t mind. Ordinarily I’d find her situation sad and her overindulgence outrageous but for some reason it’s endeared me to her more. Perhaps it’s because she actually OWNS her behavior; that’s difficult and I admire her for it. She will be the first to tell you that she’s a drunken junkie. She’ll go on to explain that she’ll never change and even went so far as to pen an entire song about it…one of her best known and beloved songs in fact…”Rehab”.

I think part of what makes her music so phenomenal and universally embraced is that she puts whatever is left over from her binges of excess into making the songs 100% believable. When she sings of heartache, loss, frustration and yes…even rehab…I believe her. And, when an artist has believability one can overlook a plethora of other flaws. If you don’t own any Amy Winehouse albums, for the love of all things excessive you MUST get your hands on some. This and all the other tracks that have been featured in stateside programming have come from Back to Black (that I couldn’t stop raving about last year) but for a real gem pick up her debut, Frank. Simply AMAZING.

Paolo Nutini – “Million Faces”

I gave away more copies of These Streets in 2006 than I did any other CD because it was just that damn good. Friends, family and even one relative stranger received the Nutini goodness straight from my hands. And…that pleases me. It pleases them too because I’ve yet to have anyone tell me they didn’t enjoy the album from start to finish. He just has that mass appeal I suppose.

I wouldn’t change anything that I said previously except to add that “New Shoes” has turned into one of my “go to” songs if I’m feeling lethargic or down. One cannot help but turn the mood around when you hear it. It’s infectious and brilliant. He might have deserved a higher spot than #4 on my list in retrospect but it is what it is. You’ll be hearing much more from Paolo in the future…of that I have no doubt.

Let’s Go Sailing – “This Rope Is Long”

There isn’t much to say about Let’s Go Sailing that hasn’t been said here already. Or, maybe I’m just too lazy to say more. Grab their album…it’s good stuff.

Ingrid Michaelson – “Corner of Your Heart”

I love Ingrid Michaelson. I love her in the way that I totally want to be her friend and hang out with her on weekends sharing odd observations about the world at large and interesting smells. She’s a fantastically quirky native New Yorker with talent to spare. I enjoy her pensive lyrics as much as her gentle voice and would encourage anyone who needs a break from the same old of the every day grind to take time out to sit down with her music. It will get you in places you didn’t know you had. I’m a big fan of her work and Grey’s is too. In fact, it’s just been announced that a new unreleased track of hers will close the season finale tomorrow night. SO EXCITED!!!

The Weather Machines – “Stains of Saints”

This South Dakota foursome calling themselves The Weather Machines is quite the Indie powerhouse…likening them to The Hold Steady, Ted Leo & The Pharmacists, Spoon and even The Strokes to some degree wouldn’t be too far off base. They’re eccentric and engaging and I like that in a band. Do not under any circumstances judge their body of work based on “Stains of Saints”…it’s the only downtrodden track on their album The Sound Of Pseudoscience. The other tracks are far more rock and less roll than that. It’s enjoyable and strong for a debut considering the front man is an electrical engineer by day. No word on whether or not he’s quit his day job but if this album is any indication of what’s to come for the group, I’d say it’s ok to think about a career transition to rock star whenever he’s ready.