SotD: "Shake That Devil" - Antony & The Johnsons (2008)

Antony Hegarty is a member of one of the most exclusive clubs in music...the "voice that will never be confused with another singer" club. That trembling falsetto- caught somewhere between Oberst, Pavarotti, and Kermit the Frog- is definitely the band's strongest weapon. Over his career, Antony's weakness seems to be his indulgence in sparse arrangements and that ever searching falsetto. "Shake that Devil," like his best work, has a sense of direction and a finely tuned vision. The atonal bed which Antony sings over slowly draws the listener in, before opening up to a shuffling rockabilly beat, saxophone, and a small group of backup singers. Like a defeated sinner saved by Rock n Roll, Antony comes to life in the second half, and ends triumphantly on the same words he unttered so meekly in the beginning: "That dog!" He shouts it with such conviction, you can almost see him pointing towards the creature.

Shake that pig out of the bush

Now lets give that pig a push
Shake that pig right out of me

SotD: "The Loco-Motion" - Little Eva (1962)

Eva Boyd, better known as Little Eva (after a character from Uncle Tom's Cabin), scored a #1 hit in 1962 with this Carole King/Gerry Goffin penned tune. And while King and Goffin were bonified Brill building songwriters, their relationship with Eva was alittle unsual. Eva was their babysitter, and when they caught her dancing around their house one night, they were so inspired by her moves they decided to write a song about it. "The Loco-Motion" was written, and they couldn't think of anyone better to demo it than Eva herself. That demo impressed Producer Don Kirshner so much, he wanted her to sing it for the single. She did and her career was launched.

King/Goffin also wrote a song "He Hit Me (It Felt Like A Kiss)" which was a hit for The Crystals, inspired by Eva's confession to King/Goffin that her boyfriend abused her. So, when listening to this delightfully groovy and gummy track, don't kid yourself that the 60s were in anyway more innocent then our society today. In fact, I think Eva would be more controversial in our society because we take everything at face value. It would be like Rhianna changing her name to Amistad and releasing a song called "Hit Me With Your Love" and having it go to #1.

Now that you can do it, let's make a chain, now.
(Come on baby, do The Loco-motion.)
A chug-a, chug-a motion like a railroad train, now.

SotD: "Do the Evolution" - Pearl Jam (1998)

I think I would have been a bigger Pearl Jam fan if I had actually grown up with them. You know, picked up Ten a couple months before Nevermind came out, and called the Nirvana the knock off band. Followed them on their never-ending tours, like a grunge Dead-head, telling my friends about the night Eddie Vedder's eyes rolled up into his head just as he got to the chorus of "Even Flow." But I didn't. I grew up with Pearl Jam's unfortunate legacy, bands like Nickelback (is it one word or two? I'd rather type this aside then look it up) and Creed. Those alt-rock crooners made me sick, and subsequently I avoided going into Pearl Jam's back pages. Then I heard Yield. It's Pearl Jam sounding only very slightly like Pearl Jam, and it still sticks out as their most creative and diverse record.

On "Evolution" Vedder is at his wildest, barking and howling like Johnny Rotten, atop a buzzsaw riff that wouldn't be out of place in a Metallica record or James Bond movie. All the while he's menacingly asking the listener to "do the evolution" as if its a hot new dance. 11 years later, Pearl Jam has never given Yield a proper follow-up, instead they've fulfilled the mainstream corporate prophecy Kurt Cobain bestowed upon them all those years ago. You can catch them on Target and V-cast commercials, they've got their own Rock Band game coming, and Fox's tighty-whitey sports commentator Joe Buck called their newest release album "awesome" during the World Series. Do the evomition.

I am ahead, I am advanced

I am the first mammal to make plans, yeah

SotD: "Lost in the Supermarket" - The Clash (1979)

There was a period in time when "the only band that mattered" was The Clash. Listening to London Calling now, it's easy to see who, exactly, lived by that mantra. There's the early 80s punk (Minor Threat, Husker Du), pop-punk of the 90s (Green Day, Foo Fighters) and they certain had alot to do with the afro-pop movement and its recent revival. What isn't always noted with The Clash is that they were punksters with more than political/rebelious snarls. Their lyrics we're often deep, social commentary, and I might even go as far as saying they are the most intelligent punk band ever. Who else could gets millions to cheer "rock the Casbah"?

I wasn't born so much as I fell out
Nobody seemed to notice me
We had a hedge back home in the suburbs
Over which I never could see

SotD: "Down There By The Train" - Johnny Cash (2003)

I've decided that since I don't have the time, motivation, and/or immediacy that I want went writing album reviews, i'm going to try discussing my favorite (and not so favorite) artists by means of "Song of the Day". This means everyday (well, mon - fri, this aint Russia!) I'll post a song, maybe two, and shed alittle light on how they came to be, why their so important, and many other tidbits. Yes, tidbits.

So, rather than start with a well known, Macy's Day Parade type number, i'm gonna go with a more somber one. "Down There By The Train" was written by Tom Waits specifically for Johnny Cash. Both men are fans of each others work (obviously) and like many artists, there was a great sense of urgency from Tom to contribute something to Cash's now well document run of recordings with Rick Rubin shortly before his death. Those sessions saw Cash doing old standards, duets with new/old friends, and slipping in a few original and commisioned works, such as this one. The heavy imagery of the afterlife being a train-yard, were life continues to be hard is part eulogy, part tribute for Cash. Waits later released his own version as part of 2006s 3CD comp Orphans, but it is Cash's tenderness that gives this song longevity.

There's no eye for an eye, there's no tooth for a tooth
I saw Judas Iscariot carrying John Wilkes Booth
He was down there by the train

Local Feature: Mike Romeo

In The End

There is nothing I love more than the end of summer. The days are just the right length, the temperature is perfect; its just open windows at night, warm drinks in the morning, and Meringue all day. So when I recently got a copy of Mike Romeo’s In The End LP, you can imagine how excited I was to have a soundtrack for my favorite transitional season. You see, dissonance and reverb are for winter, strummy acoustic guitars and harmonies are for summer, and Mike Romeo is for any day in-between.

Mike’s hazy take on what would otherwise be Britpop, also his debut LP, has a definitively DIY sound. The entire album was recorded and mixed at Mike’s home in Ridgewood, with some additional touches done by friend and sound engineer Thomas Surprenant, And though they are home recordings, the result is certainly not in line with the lo-fi sound that has become so popular in Brooklyn. Instead, Mike tends to drench the boyish charm in his voice (think Chris Conley minus the whine) with a smooth, languid reverb, making the tightly layered harmonies flow together effortlessly. Additionally, the strumming guitar that holds each track together is usually buried deep by mid-song, as layers of ambience, strings, or any of a multitude of instruments give these songs lasting life. Mike strives for a sound bigger than his recording capabilities can produce, but the effort is certainly there.

The record is aptly titled In The End (the title track boasts “You’re always last in the end”) as the songs regularly struggle with what’s right, what’s true…what’s sane. Mike admits that his lyrics are extremely personal, though its obvious he is more comfortable sharing those feelings with the world if they are somewhat obscured. For instance, take his image of the sun throughout the album. He awaits it’s arrival (“The Truth”), watches it bloom before him, and then, as it sets he chases after it (“Blow It Away”). Mike’s involvement with NYPIRG, NYs largest public interest group and a strong advocator of green solutions, could give his allusions a literal meaning. More likely, however, is that the end justifies the means, and the intangible feeling of Mike’s work is greater than any one line. Standout track, “The Sun,” best exemplifies this, building upon itself until it reaches its upward spirally chorus, preluded by the almost indecipherable mantra “I’ll communicate through this rhythm.”

A couple weeks ago I sat down with Mike at NE Kingdom, and was pleased to hear how passionate he was about this group of songs. He’s writing and recording for the right reasons, and he’s proving it by making the In The End LP available as a free download at SoundCloud. If you still aren’t sure if Mike Romeo is your kind of singer/songwriter, I highly recommend checking out “The Sun” posted on the music page here at BushwickBK.com, or heading to his MySpace. Also, Mike will be performing much of the LP with a full band tomorrow night (10/17) at Goodbye Blue Monday (1087 Broadway).

When The Devil's Loose - A.A. Bondy

Rating - 7.5

Since American Hearts, A.A. Bondy's 2007 solo debut, much has changed. Our country went through one of the most polarizing elections in its history, plunged deeper into economic turmoil, which along with other factors brought on a seemingly insurmountable recession. Bondy, however, has stayed the same. Call him a visionary, or just plain gloomy, but American Hearts somehow sounds more relevant today than it did upon initial release, and When The Devil's Loose (out now on Fat Possum) goes a long way in solidifying Bondy's place as one of America's most adequate songwriters.

Bondy is still enamored with the mysterious, and to his credit he is able to give even the darkest character's a touch of romance. On "Oh The Vampyre," it comes if the form of the chorus "and when I come I will come on like a dream/with a crimson moon a-shinin' down upon my devil's ring." But its not just the evil that's inside us that Bondy is so interested in, but also the wildness of the world which makes us that way. Or saves us. Sometimes its hard to tell. Take "A Slow Parade," which has him "going down/where the waves will surround" in a similar pace as "Of The Sea" from American Hearts. In "Of the Sea" he paints a detached but beautiful scenario of two lovers plunging to bottom of the sea just to give each one true and lasting moment; a kiss. But in "A Slow Parade" A.A. challenges the waters to find "another horse to break," making When the Devil's Loose feel more like a pessimistic break-up album, rather than a political statement. The only other major difference on this record is the absence of his trademark finger-picking acoustic and rustic harmonica, with the exception of "Mightiest of Guns." Instead, he plunks out the songs on a muddy, chunky electric guitar, backed on most songs with tasteful discretion by the Felice Brothers.

Its hard to find a weak track here, a testament to Bondy's thorough and honest songwriting. And while his predictability is still satisfying, the most enjoyable moment on the album is the perky Phil Spector daydream of "I Can See The Pines Are Dancing." Its two-tier chorus arrives just in time, and on the second refrain leads into a "La la laaa" fade out that would make Springsteen jealous. Its not until the album's closer, "The Coal Hits the Fire," that we get that kind of explosion of sound and energy again. That song, and the album, end shortly thereafter with a military marching band and old-timey whistle. Its reminiscent, like most of A. A. Bondy's work, to America's inability to make its present less like its past.

"I Can See the Pines are Dancing" is below. Download it free!