1. 20th Century Tokyo Princess
there's this thing about me that lets me know immediately what music i'm into, and what music i'm not. this thing is called my waist. and then my hips. and it starts to sway, starts moving side to side, the hips bounce in, and suddenly my shoulders show up to the party, and i'm dancing. that's how i know i've got something going on with a beat, a rythm. 20th Century Tokyo Princess starts immediately with a strong beat. Rustic Rock, i call them. makes me think of all kinds of nostalgia-filled rock, exposed plumbing, maybe they have long hair. the beats are steady. all three songs I listened to kept the same pace, so maybe it gets commonplace after awhile, music that fades into the background while you decide that now is actually a good time to learn a little bit more about your dance partner and refill your drink. a safe bet.
Magic and 99 Years sound pretty similar, i can't even remember what the two were about now yet, but "Come Over" kicks it UP with a VERY different intro, and a VERY different grunge feel. snap. do you guys remember that movie ummm.....the football one....not "we are marshall," the BIG one before that with racial tension and a qb named sunshine? snap what was that? OH! "REMEMBER THE TITANS!" yeah. this music fits right in with all that. Remember-the-titans-esque, if you will. "come over," leads with "why don't you come over?" which is absolutely one of my favorite things a guy can say to me. not because of any SEXUAL SUBTEXT, DAD (stop freaking out,) but because of the excitement that comes with meeting a new person. "Why don't you come over?" "Why don't I?" BAM. Flirting. Too fun.
on my player, all available immediately from their myspace, which is obviously where i found them:
"Magic"
"99 Years"
"Come Over"
2. 500 Miles to Memphis
oooooh, i love a good contrast. OOOOH i love this! 500 Miles to Memphis sounds a little bit like a lonely version of Tennessee, which, of course, is a happier version of Texas. a little rockabilly, a LOTTA dancehall (which rocks!), a good take on a sad song. Sad songs with a twist--they're not actually sad. Dealing with content to make a grown man weep, but in a fun way, sooo...devilish. Enough to light my fire, for sure. Yeahh man, they sound great. Actually, in "Barfly," they get a little sk8terboi on me, which is okay. sk8terboi sometimes = dancehall, and that's definitely 500 Mile's forte. Oh man, I've gotta find this group. "Barfly" also hits home by reaching a really great tempo change right before hitting their final-ish refrain. One of those ones that, in the midst of dancing, makes me drop my hips and sway a little lower, a little longer.
Also, SNAP, there's a freaking FIDDLE in "All My Friends are Crazy." Amazing.
Actually, the more I listen to 500 Miles to Memphis, the more I'm a little bit struck from its similarity to the Texas-famed "Eli Young Band." Here's my deal with the Eli Young Band; they've kinda, almost got it going on. Same here. obviously, 500 Miles has more polish, more focus than Eli Young (i imagine Eli is much younger than 500 Miles,) but they're similar. Excellent beats for moving a body, nice play on lyrics, even if it journeys a second over into Youngtown, which to me, has a little bit to do with playing cliche' without effect. Sometimes, 500 Miles does that, and as long as it's sometimes, I'm gonna be okay with it.
"Darlin" is GREAT. A duet matched perfectly with a sexy, bouncy, rodeo-d, spicy female vocalist who's a little bit crazy because she loves a little too LOT. Totally no love songs from this group. All "woman done me wrong" themed, and it's kinda fun. :D Those damn wimmen.
Props to 500 Miles for having eight songs available on their myspace page.
on my player:
"Six Foot Hole"
"Barfly"
"It's Alright"
"All My Friends are Crazy"
"Let it Rain"
"Don't Mislead"
"The Regret"
"Darlin'"
3. A Lull
YIKES. "A Lull" has this quiet CRASH, BOOM energy that's verrry progressive right in the beginning of their tunes. One song on myspace, "Weapons for War," that they create with imposing beats, excellently sophisticated vocal use, and a nice repetition of rumbling, crashing, parallels to rain which are solid throughout the song.
I'd definitely use this song for modern dance. It's the kind of thing that makes me feel weirdly artistic, in the good way, :P like i need to be wearing a nude onesie and spacing out in the middle of pointed lights and fog. :D A Lull is gonna be good for the raving crowd, maybe young teenagers just coming to musical revolutions, and a few weirdos. They're totally rad, just not where I'd spend my precious Midpoint time!
4. Adam Arcuragi and the Lupine Chorale Society
HOLY COW! BLUES AND SOUL AND SWEET, SWEET, MUSIC OF LOVE.
oh crap, they're soo oo oooo oo o o o good.
oh shoot, such blues! like gospel, but quieter. soooulful. nice and strummed and light. breezy and airy and completely unobtrusive. feel good. reminiscent of keb mo' in attitude, much more poignant than keb mo' (he gets a little sleepy and dreamy.)
all in all, pretty good dancing and swaying music. beats and rythms that excite, in a happy kinda-pleasantly-drunk state. things that make you hold on to your dance partner and sing in his ear. <3
on my player, from their myspace:
"People and Private Music"
"Broken Throat"
"She Comes to Me" <--so good
"Sin is Just an Old Archery Term"
"Almost Always"
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