Friday, November 04, 2005
The End of 2005
Ok, so it's only November. I'm early, I guess. I also haven't posted anything on the non-blog portion of this site in months, so I figure if I want something done by new years', I ought to start it now. It's not been a good year for Unfound Bloom - most of the "usual suspects" wound up putting out CDs that let me down, and my lack of writing means that I haven't really had a chance to discuss the concert experiences that made the musical year's highlights for me. So here's what we're doing for the end of 2005 - make up some other lists that aren't as relevant, and let visitors tell us who should be on the top.
Here's what you can do: send us a list of your top 5 favorite albums released this year. If you want to do more or less than that, that's cool too. If you give reasons why, we'll even post your list (if you don't mind) alongside ours (to be blunt, most of "our favorites" don't match the "right answers" for great albums this year - so we're going to print our favorites, and not just what the actual best albums are). We'll be taking favorites-lists in the comments section to this post and at unfoundbloom@gmail.com . Actually, now that I think of it...that e-mail address is good for whatever spam, news, gossip, chit-chat, etc you want to send in, so feel free to use it (even though it's not properly listed on the sidebar or on the other part of the site yet).
Wednesday, September 28, 2005
"Stripped" video and audio
A cool little site for live footage (and audio) that you can stream and download: http://www.strippedmusic.com/ . Switchfoot, Kanye West, Gavin DeGraw and more. I like how they end each session with a cover - it's a nice way of making sure they have content that the other sites don't.
Sunday, September 11, 2005
Recent Buys, Leslie (Sam) Phillips, Sigur Ros
Ok, so it's time to post about some new music I've been getting into lately. Well, some new and some older stuff that's new to me, anyway. Let me catch you up to speed. A few weeks back I bought a good-sized box 'o' CD's from Joel over at The Unscene, and I've been exploring that for most of the time while the blog's been out of commision. Some great new music for me by Velour 100, Sixpence, Sarah McLachlan, Fleming and John and more. I haven't even had a chance to listen to half of it yet. I figure that ought to keep me from trying to buy too many more CDs this year.
...or maybe not. The other day, while killing time before I had to pick up my mother from an appointment she had, I decided to see what exactly the "Family Christian Store" had in stock for CDs. I was expecting to see a pitiful selection of crappy and overpriced Christian pop artists - to my surprise, the selection wasn't too bad and some of the prices were pretty good. I mean, I still had to chuckle when I noticed the second Jars of Clay album missing from the shelf full of their albums (that's the one that most CCM fans consider to be "of the devil" or "secular" or whatever), but I also found some items I actually wanted. I actually found myself walking past the latest titles from better Christian bands like metalcore act Living Sacrifice and the experimental Starflyer 59 in favor of the clearance section - where I still spent just as much money! I picked up a copy of the highly recommended (and out of print) Chasing Furies album for $4.95. I picked up a copy of the new Kevin Max EP for 6 bucks, and I even spotted a solo project from The Choir's Steve Hindalong for just $1.97! To top it off, I found an old copy of the last Sam Phillips album she released before leaving the Christian music market for $4.95 - and when I got to the register, I found out that the out-of-print little gem was only going to cost me $1.97. Not too bad.
You're probably wondering if the CDs are any good. So far, yes. Steve Hindalong's Skinny has quite a few high-profile guest appearances by some of CCM's best - Matt Slocum, Jason Martin, Andy Prickett....you get the idea. Chasing Furies will have to grow on me a bit, but I like the sounds on that album. None of the songs stick out at me too much, but that atmospheric pop-rock sound has a way of sucking me in. The Sam Phillips album (technically a Leslie Phillips album - see, before she was a critically-acclaimed acid-pop singer-songwriter famous for composing the score for Gilmore Girls, she was a Christian rock star....then she changed her name and renounced all of her previous work, with the exception of 1987's The Turning, which is largely considered one of the most influential CCM albums of all time) is pretty strong, but it sounds a bit dated. In a weird way, I wish that "Carry You" wasn't the only song from that album to have been remade (by Sixpence None the Richer, no less!) - I think some of the other songs on the album would benefit from more modern sounding production. I can see how it was an influential album and I can appreciate it for that, but to be honest I doubt I'll listen to it too often. My favorite album from her will probably be The Fan Dance for a while yet.
...but feel free to call me off-base there. It is a bit weird for me to disregard an album that well-respected this quickly. You can listen to most of the album here, in a radio special promoting it. It's mixed in with interview clips and I think it's missing a song or two, but it's still most of the album. Just so that I get the page I got that link from plugged on here (since I doubt I'll plug that page again - I don't know too much about classic Christian rock), here's a link to Servantsheart.net.
I have another streaming album for you to listen to though! That's right, three in one week! Go to the Sigur Ros MySpace Page to have a listen to their new album. This is really my first exposure to the band, but I'm falling in love with their sound. So lush, so beautiful. Who needs intelligible lyrics when you can have soundscapes this gorgeous?
Friday, September 09, 2005
Nothing Is Sound
Have a listen to the new Switchfoot album over at VH1's website. It's not too bad, but I was expecting a bit more from them. In spite of it being more of a rock album, the softer songs are the ones grabbing me the most so far. Let us know what you think of it!
Tuesday, August 09, 2005
Leigh Nash, Astronaut Pushers (Sixpence revisited)
OK, so if you've been reading this (or Unfound Bloom proper, not that it's updated much anymore) for any amount of time, you know that I'm a huge fan of Sixpence None the Richer. Well, I've heard from four former band members in the past three months, and I'm ready for some of their new projects. OK, so you've already heard me profess my love for Tess Wiley's latest album, but I'm guessing you haven't heard the new Astronaut Pushers EP. You can download two songs at that link though. AP is the band that Matt Slocum (guitarist/cellist/lyricist for Sixpence) is in now. Sam Ashworth (Yeah, that guy I meant to review the concert of that I saw last June) is also in Astronaut Pushers, alongside Lindsey Jamieson and Superdrag's John Davis. It's a cute little supergroup. I know though, most people around here remember Sixpence's vocals more than anything - well, I happen to know where you can listen to solo material for Leigh Nash's upcoming (early '06) album.
Just because I can, I feel like bragging that I got an e-mail from The Fatherless and the Widow-era Sixpence bassist T.J. Behling the other day. That's in addition to the Sixpence mailing list getting a visit from Leigh and of course, our buddy Dale Baker is always over there.
I guess it's time to mention that I'm going to be moving to a place not too far from where Dale lives soon. I'm planning on doing the whole "groupie" thing. I'm sure that'll help keep this blog (and possibly the regular part of the site too) exciting for the months to come. Heck, maybe I'll even get around to writing something about it sometime too.
Thursday, August 04, 2005
Schizophreniac
I recently came upon treasure trove of rarities by the band Earthsuit. You've probably never heard of them - they're a little-known genre-hybrid that many people just can't handle. They were discovered at the Cornerstone festival several years back - when a guy from a then-unknown band called P.O.D. decided to announce to his fans that he loved these guys and would make an appearance during their set. Shortly afterwards, they were signed to the normally-boring Christian pop record label Sparrow, where they released one hell of an album - Kaleidoscope Superior. The album was a bizarre mix of rap, pop, rock, techno, and a few other genres on some of the songs (hints of trance, hip-hop, jazz, folk, celtic music, and other unexpected twists were in several of the songs). It's almost funny to think that the album came out in 2000 - before Linkin Park and P.O.D. made their take on the rap/pop/rock sound famous. These guys are better than either of those bands - but they only released one proper album. To be fair, there are two newer bands that were started by Earthsuit's old members - MuteMath and Macrosick. Anyway, you can listen to a good deal of Earthsuit live material, indie material, and rare material at this site. Share the love, buy their CD. |
Thursday, July 07, 2005
Sufjan Stevens, Havalina Rail Co., and Arcade Fire News
Sufjan Stevens has recorded a new song called "The Lord God Bird" for NPR. Don't be fooled by the title, this isn't one of his Christian-themed tunes - it's about a bird that was thought to be extinct that reappeared in Arkansas recently. Some more details (and the exclusive download) are available at NPR's website.
Apparently, Havalina Rail Co. broke up and didn't tell anyone. Their message board has an announcement of sorts. I just got this news from Buzzgringer earlier today, but apparently it's not new news. If you haven't legally downloaded their Russian Lullabies album yet, you really should get to that soon.
Oh, and Arcade Fire did a new song for some soundtrack. It's not as strong as anything on Funeral, but it's not bad either. Details (and stream!) at NPR's site
Saturday, July 02, 2005
Live 8!
The day came and went when I wasn't looking. Fortunately, they've made video available here. I might post some setlists here later if I get around to watching a few of these.
Thursday, June 30, 2005
Lifehouse, Switchfoot, and summer fests, oh my!
I decided at the last minute to spring over to the Lifehouse show in Seattle the other day. Surprisingly, they weren't sold out and I was able to grab a nice spot in the front row. Knowing where the band had been since "Hanging By A Moment" stopped climbing the charts, I was expecting to bump into some screaming teeny-boppers, religious fanatics, and fans of the TV show "Smallville". Well, apparently the teeny-bopper type is more of Lifehouse's fans than I thought. Oh well, I had a fun time even if I did have to hear a few more "OMG JASON WE LOVE YOU YOU'RE SO HOTT!"'s than I would like to. Opening act Rocco DeLuca put Lifehouse to shame, being both the more talented band and the band with the better stage presence. Seriously, this guy comes on stage with a dobro, a bassist, and two drummers and rocks out with a middle-eastern vibe. Lifehouse played most of my favorites by them and brought back some great memories of when I used to enjoy them much more than I do now. Their back-up guitarist stole the show, but they still put on a solid performance. Here's a rough set list, a song or two may be out of order:
Come Back Down
Blind
Days Go By
Take Me Away
The End Has Only Begun
Sick Cycle Carousel
Breathing
Only One
You and Me
Just Another Name
Am I Ever Gonna Find Out
Better Luck Next Time
Undone
Spin
Everything
Somewhere in Between
Hanging By A Moment
Also, I've got some news from the Switchfoot camp. They've delayed their album again (September 13th now), but a tracklist (complete with track lengths!) is now available:
1. Lonely Nation 3:45
2. Stars 4:20
3. Happy Is A Yuppie Word 4:51
4. The Shadow Proves The Sunshine 5:04
5. Easier Than Love 4:29
6. The Blues 5:17
7. The Setting Sun 4:24
8. Politicians 3:28
9. Golden 3:36
10. The Fatal Wound 2:44
11. We Are One Tonight 4:42
12. Daisy 4:18
Oh, and if you haven't heard their latest radio single, "Stars", you can stream it here.
I've been trying to keep up with live coverage of both Cornerstone and Creation East this week. I'm pissed that they cut out all of Switchfoot's show again, but what did you really expect from CMRadio? I've been recording the stream, but what I listened to yesterday from Relient K's show sounded pretty sweet. I've dug up some great news on Cornerstone on Technorati. They have WiFi at the fest this year, and you know what that means - bloggers! Here are some blogs providing good live coverage of the event: What's On My Mind, static on the radio, Confessions of a Flabby Ironman. If you really want to check out the official (read: crappy and far from live) live coverage, they're doing a podcast and posting some pictures. Rumor has it they'll have videos too, but "live videos" in JPUSA-speak is "60 second video clips in a crappy format several weeks later". Let's hope they post clips of all the "cool" bands soon.
Saturday, June 25, 2005
Festival Time!
Some news from the tollbooth that caught my attention: Both Cornerstone festival and the Creation East festival will be featuring "live" coverage online this year. For those of us nerds who actually enjoy listening to music festivals (yes, even CCM-fests) online, this is great news. CMRadio.net will be broadcasting "Creation Radio", which is a mix of prerecorded music, speakers/preachers, interviews, news and concerts. Last year they cut a few of the more well known bands (Not airing shows from Jars of Clay or Switchfoot was not a good idea), but I'm hoping they'll air more this year. Some bands playing this year that my readers might be interested in include Switchfoot, Taylor Sorenson, Caedmon's Call, Relient K, David Crowder, and Phil Keaggy. For a full schedule and more details on the festival (which begins next week) click here.
Cornerstone festival's approach is based on podcasting. I'm assuming they'll run pictures and short video clips afterwards like they've done in the past as well. They have more bands than they know what to do with showing up, but who knows what'll actually make the podcasts? The page for the "live" podcast coverage is at http://www.cornerstonefestival.com/podcast/ .
On a lighter note, here's a list of the albums I rated for the "Second Guess the Critic" game along with what I rated them (ordered by which album was rated each week we played):
Jars of Clay - Redemption Songs ***
W0rmSiGn - Big In Japan ***
Arcade Fire - Funeral *****
Low -The Great Destroyer ****
Lifehouse - Lifehouse **
Pedro the Lion - It's Hard to Find a Friend ***
Zilch - Platinum **
Michael Miller - When We Come To ****
Portishead - Dummy ****
Bill Mallonee - Perfumed Letter ****
Tess Wiley - Not Quite Me ****
tobyMac - Momentum **
...and on a personal note, I picked up the Sundays' debut album and Whatever and Ever Amen by Ben Folds Five this morning.
Wednesday, June 22, 2005
Computer troubles, An article, and Steve Taylor
Well, expect to hear less around here. I'm experiencing some computer troubles, and last I heard from the other two people who allegedly can post here, one's looking for a new laptop and the other's out-of-state for a bit. Actually, rumor has it Kari's gotten engaged. I guess that's big enough news to mention here even if it is off-topic. Oddly enough, wanting to spend more time with her boyfriend is the main reason she said she's not up for attending press conferences at Creation East this year. Well, not good for us I guess, but great for them! Enough of my whining. I'm probably going to get a new e-mail address here, in addition to trying to finish the file transfer to the new server when we all get back from our computer issues/summer plans.
Considering how much Christian music gets covered here, I thought this was a noteworthy article. It's called "Why On Earth (Or Elsewhere) Am I Enjoying Christian Rock?" It's really fascinating how diverse the people behind "Christian" music are, and how they're beginnning to attract more people out of the stereotypical-young-evangelical crowd.
Speaking of Christian music and stereotypes about it.... I feel a need to plug Steve Taylor. Some of you probably recognize as a CCM pioneer who's put out quite a bit of material. Some of you probably are more familiar with his production work (See Sixpence None the Richer) or his writing for the Newsboys. In addition to that, I'm happy that someone opened up Christian music to good satire (Would we have been able to have Five Iron Frenzy or Relient K without Steve? I doubt it). Of course, now that I check on the site with his mp3s that I usually use, I see that the song I was thinking of (the 1982 classic "I Want To Be a Clone") is not available as a free download anymore because iTunes is selling it now. Dangit, I know I'm not the only nerd who's introduced some younger CCM-fans to Steve through that song. Well, rather than try to pick a second favorite, I'll just post the link to the main download page for Steve Taylor's music. Those of you who're Sixpence nuts like myself will want to make sure to stop by the page with the tribute album to Steve on it. Man, I forgot that Starflyer 59 and Fleming and John are on that too. Good stuff. I always have a good chuckle at the medley that DigHayZoose put together for that album. I have no idea who the heck they are, but any band that can make a random chunk of a song by Mortal feel like it belongs in a larger medley is cool in my book.
Wednesday, June 15, 2005
CW04-Beta (Return of the Creation West reviews)
Well, it's not quite the whole site yet, but we have most of the Creation West 2004 coverage up again. It's kind of a "beta" version, since I need to work out a few kinks yet (some pictures make the layout stretch, some links are broken, and a few pictures are broken). I figured something is better than nothing. I'll be re-posting some of the other album reviews and concert reviews soon, and then there'll be some reviews of more recent CDs and events. If you find any specific problems with the Creation coverage, leave a comment on this entry about it. (There is one mp3 link in there too, if you can dig it up.) You can read the Creation West 2004 coverage (featuring Switchfoot, Cool Hand Luke, Jars of Clay, and more) here.
On a more personal note, I've picked up a few new CDs recently besides that Sam Ashworth album I mentioned the other day.
- 77s - Tom Tom Blues
- Caedmon's Call - self-titled
- Steve Taylor - Liver
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