Bluestone - Cousin Tony's Brand New Firebird

Bluestone - Cousin Tony's Brand New Firebird

3:38

Smiles Of Earth, 2022

Written by Lachlan Rose

Singer Lachlan Rose's warm, flexible baritone strikes you first, but that great ascending horn line gives the song its power.  Rose's sparkling synths, the horns, and a chorus of voices all blend into a gospel-like swell, reminding me a little of the Polyphonic Spree.  The lyrics are impressionistic: "Just one grain of your sugar / Would sweeten the ocean / Then the rain on my window / Would sweeten my day," but the chorus sets a scene.  Someone important to the narrator is leaving, but the narrator is stoic about it, even proud of the difficult step.  The group's cumbersome name is taken from that amazing opening monologue in American Beauty.  

Sloop John B - The Real McKenzies

Sloop John B - The Real McKenzies

3:51

Songs Of the Highlands, Songs Of the Sea, 2022

traditional

Paul McKenzie sings this straight, using the same verses as the famed Beach Boys version, with minimal accompaniment, just a guitar and some soft harmonica.  It's a nice version, but I can't help but wondering why the band didn't go full Celtic punk with bagpipes to give it their own whiskey-soaked spin.  Oh well.  "For of all sad words of tongue or pen / The saddest are these: 'It might have been!'"

Gypsy Songman - Steve Earle & the Dukes

Gypsy Songman - Steve Earle & the Dukes

2:37

Jerry Jeff, 2022

Written by Jerry Jeff Walker, 1987

Earle sings this statement of purpose with gusto, keeping it uptempo and brisk.  It's the proclamation of an itinerate musician, always moving on and getting by on tips.  "I got a stage on every corner, hall on every street / My hat is my coin box, this song is what you need."  It's a classic musician on the road song, up there with Willie's "On the Road Again" and "Devil in a Sleepin' Bag."  Earle and the Dukes meld fiddle and pedal steel to create a rollicking Cajun sound, with Earle's growl here smoothed out considerably.

Too Much Time - Televisionaries

Too Much Time - Televisionaries

2:08

Mad About You, 2022

Written by Austin Lake, Brendan Lake, Trevor Lake, and Aaron Mika

A jangly, late 1960s-style power pop song, heavy on the guitar and showy percussion, with splashes of surf rock and Merseybeat.  The narrator bemoans the lack of love in his life, interspersed with lyrics that are shallow hippie-inspired ramblings "Every war that's waged makes me cry / Every bird that goes by gets me high").  So the Lake brothers aren't exactly poets, but this is a catchy retro rock that gets your toes tapping.

Big River - The Old 97's

Big River - The Old 97's

2:55
One More Ride: Old 97's Perform The Songs Of Johnny Cash, 2022

Written by Johnny Cash, 1958

It's Cover Time! 

Probably no one could hope to match the bass-baritone of Cash, an instrument that could be suave, commanding, earnest, and even humble.  But the 97's do a terrific job with this homage, playing to their own strengths.  Rhett Miller reins in his typically yelping vocal and brings forth a full-throated rockin' scream, and the band delivers a fuller sound, a driving backbeat, a modern rock guitar line, instilling in the song a propulsive power that grabs the listener.

Wahnsinn - Die Hektischen Flecken

Wahnsinn - Die Hektischen Flecken

2:54

Korrekturen, 2022

Written by Cornelius Quabeck

The song title translates to "Madness."  With a spoken male vocal and alternately hiss-whispered or sung female backing vocals, over a repetitive, slow-building, bass-driven indie rock beat, it creates an ominous vibe.  I can't find the lyrics and can only make out a few phrases, like the repeated "Hast keine Angst / Ich habe keine Angst" and ""Das ist der Horror / So dass ich weiter gehen."  It's minimal in construction; no flashy solos, just bass, drums, and guitar simmering at low heat.  But that restraint is what makes it effective. The effect is closer to post-punk or art-rock than standard indie, with shades of Einstürzende Neubauten’s menace or early Nick Cave's theatrical dread.  The question is, do these guys take it seriously?  From what I've read, no.

This Must Be the Place - Wild Hands

This Must Be the Place - Wild Hands

3:21

I Want To See Some Color, 2022

Written by Max Patzner

I thought this might be a Talking Heads cover (and what a great juxtaposition of band names that would be!), but no.  It's quiet, restrained folk-pop, mellow with almost a rocksteady beat.  The vocals have a faint echo as Patzner sings about some object of his affections — a partner, a place, someplace that feels right.  "I saw you in my dreams / Well, goodbye, lonesome / I see home every time I close my eyes."  A terrific laid back pop paean.

Stick Season - Noah Kahan

Stick Season - Noah Kahan

3:02

Stick Season, 2022

Written by Noah Kahan

There are over 1.7 billion plays on Spotify for this track, but I'm only vaguely familiar with it; it was my teenage stepdaughter that introduced it to me.   The title refers to a regionalism for late fall, the time after Halloween and before snow starts and the trees look like bare sticks stretching into a grey sky.  It's an introspective, plaintive cri de coeur over masterful acoustic guitar.  It disguises its melancholy behind an almost cheerful folk-pop bounce. With a slightly frayed, high-register voice, Kahan delivers lines that feel conversational rather than poetic ("You must've had yourself a change of heart like halfway through the drive / Because your voice trailed off exactly as you passed my exit sign / Kept on drivin' straight and left our future to the right") yet the imagery lands with precision. Kahan sings about small-town roads, awkward run-ins with an ex's family ("I saw your mom, but she forgot that I existed"), and the peculiar loneliness of staying behind while everyone else seems to move on.  The details are hyperlocal, yet the feeling is universal.

Profit - Sam Burchfield

Profit - Sam Burchfield

3:13

Scoundrel, 2022

Written by Sam Burchfield

This is a Steve Earle-style roots-folk-country protest song built on a steady, driving beat of bluesy acoustic guitar, percussion, and echoed vocals.   Burchfield’s weathered but earnest vocals carry the weight of disillusionment without bitterness, but without much hope either.  It's sort of a modern spiritual with teeth, calling out the greedy, fear-mongering, and divisive.  "We built a wall to keep heathens out / So we don't hear their wretched weeping."  It's quietly righteous, with just a hint of retribution.  "I'm digging a grave for the empty souls / Who chase greed and fear and destruction."  It's a "Masters of War" for the Trump era.

Give and Take - Wiley Post

Give and Take - Wiley Post

3:13

single, 2022

Written by Wiley Post

Wiley Post is an Alaskan rock band named after the one-eyed pilot who was the first to fly solo around the world, and whose 1935 crash killed himself and Will Rogers.  I think they only have a few extant songs.  This one is bouncy folk-rock with staccato guitar riffs and lots of crashing percussion.  Sadie Arneson's vocals whisper, belt, and yell.  The lyrics are about finding the right one, despite any bumps in the road: "That's my give and take / My mistake to make... My hold me tight at night / My with you I feel just right."

Alles Egal - Die Hektischen Flecken

Alles Egal - Die Hektischen Flecken

2:54

Korrekturen, 2022

Written by Die Hektischen Flecken

This band is pretty obscure, even in their native Germany.  I found one review of the album that revealed nothing.  Do I know what they're singing about, other than the title ("it's all the same" or "nothing matters")?  No, I don't, but they sure sound confident singing it.  I hope it's not something nasty!  Whatever it is, it's catchy post-punk rock.  I like the singer's nasal voice.

Anti-Hero, Taylor Swift

Anti-Hero, Taylor Swift

3:21

Midnights, 2022

Written by Taylor Swift & Jack Antonoff

I'm pretty much everything that might make up an anti-Swiftie, yet here I am having Taylor be the first artist I repeat on the blog.  But I love this song!  Catchy, bouncy, the kind of bubbling tumbling internally-rhyming vocals I like, with introspective lyrics, self-critical and insecure.  I always said that if Taylor used her not insignificant talents to write songs about something, anything other than boys and heartbreak, she'd be a star not just with the teens but with the old folks too (not that we matter).  This song is amazing.