I Want to Die - Mark Rebillet, or in my household, the naked man, is an artist, personality, and certified groover that took mine and my brother's interest by storm. Utilizing minimal equipment, his voice, and his body Marc creates all his music in one take with the help of his trusty loop station. It's incredible to watch as a musician and interesting to see the reaction from others who don't quite understand how he's doing what he's doing. To me it's easy (in theory,) but takes immense talent to execute.
A good family friend was the first to introduce me to Marc with a video filled with NSFW materiel. It's safe to say we couldn't stop laughing once I shared with my brother and the rest of my friends. What a fantastic and hilarious way to get into an artist. But that's the way Marc Rebillet, playing sets at local breweries where he made beats and made inappropriate noises just to get laughs, did it. The antics are there and they are authentic, but that's not the only reason this man has blown up over the past five years. Hard work and dedication to his music, to his craft and instrument playing, and to his knowledge. He's worked to create a catalog of funky breaks, grooves, and bops that get his audiences shakin' their booties (much like he prefers.)
"I Want to Die" was an immediate standout performance and one I sent to my brother the second I finished the video. It has all the best Marc moments and it fucking slaps. The thing, though, was that most of Marc's work lives in live recordings on Youtube and aren't necessarily on streaming platforms. As he's grown in popularity and with immense pressure from fans he's started to release some music as singles simply because they are too good to live in the depths of Youtube.
That's where "I Want to Die" comes into play. Just the other day I sat around looking through my saved Instagram posts, having a laugh. I came across Marc's post for this track and wondered whether it may or may not have been added to Spotify. In a stroke of luck, my needs were met and a single, seemingly wrapped up specifically for me, was the first thing that came up and immediately it went into this week's playlist. This shit needs to be shared and you need to listen to it. Break out your robe and dance around the house to this certified banger.
It Never Rains In Southern California - Within the first five listens I was singing along with a majority of the lyrics to this paradoxical track about finding the struggle of showbiz and wanting to go home. It's another happy, upbeat tune with underlining lyrics touching on low topics. Maybe these blogs are getting me to pay more attention but I'm here for the new focus on lyrics and meanings behind songs that I would have otherwise skipped right over.
One hit wonder types of tracks like this one always seem to sneak up on me. Obviously, I wasn't around when this was released, but I find myself a bit bummed when it seems like others knew it before me. The neighborhood dads gave me one of those moments when I asked about this specific track in a powwow we were having, exchanging song titles and queuing up tracks on the stereo. Immediately one of the dads started singing the main hook and reassured me I had found a good one.
With part of the title set aside this track screams Southern California in its structure, its feeling, and its production. A good ole pop/rock track that has that good feeling, that right beat that gets the hips swaying. I love it for what it is. In our music appreciation session I professed to one of the neighbors how I felt about good music - "If I have to think about it it's usually not that good of a song." Good music allows me to turn my brain off and feel the rhythms. I think if your attention is spiked then you have something, if it falls into the weigh side then it's most likely going to wither away into the air never to be revisited again.
Always A Friend - Playing before an arena filled with fans not of yours but of the artist bringing you on stage; that's some scary stuff. I give Alejandro Escovedo all the credit for his guest appearance on stage with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. But with such a great song as "Always A Friend" Escovedo was able to walk up there with enormous confidence and rip through a killer track with the Boss.
If it weren't for Bruce showcasing Alejandro Escovedo I would have never found his music. I am thankful for my favorite artists doing things like this to get the names of those musicians out there who do great work but aren't superstars in their own right. Escovedo isn't a household name, but after Bruce's show in Houston all Boss fans new about the Texan axe slinger.
"Always A Friend" brings together the ass kicking that rock and roll brings with the ass kicking Texas brings to the table. It's cowboy boots and cowboy hat wearing music, but it's not country it just has some flares. The amalgamation of a wide range of genres is always what gets me. It's not a pigeonholing nor is it anything flamboyantly experimental. There's a formula down there and Escovedo found it with this track. Makes me want to get a pair of snake skin boots and find me a lady who I love so much that even if she buried them where I couldn't find 'em I'd still love her.
20210216 Goodnight Baby - We got a Mac attack two weeks in a row now and I'm not apologizing for it. Mac Demarco has slowly fallen into my category of musicians I really like, but one's that rarely get played until I have a moment of inspiration and wear out the tape deck. With last week's addition Mac jumped to the top of the list, peaked my interest, and found himself getting played more and more over the week.
The monumentous (by stature, maybe not by quality) release of 199 songs in one album, covering over nine hours of music is one of Demarco's wildest productions. One Wayne G, an album recorded over five years, contains demos, ideas, and half written songs that in the words of Mac just needed to get out of his head. A unique and intense release, but one that I love, One Wayne G makes me giggle and appreciate weird but talented artists.
"These aren't very happy songs" said my mother as I listened to some music while doing the dishes. I never really thought about it or paid attention to the lyrics of those specific tracks that came on. I was just in a mood feeling out what I was hearing. But then I listened to this track this week at work. With my headphone in and a quiet-enough space to work in I found myself realizing just what Mac was saying. Me, being a naive idiot most times, thought this song about Momma and Poppa and the rest of the family to be something nice, something wholesome. That would be a no - Mac tricked me with how easy these tracks are to listen to.
Turns out "Goodnight Baby" depicts the killings of the narrators family. Who woulda thunk it? Me? No, I'm just hanging around. And now as I write this it makes me think about another macabre song I love that gives me feelings of comfort...because of the music not the lyrics. "Goodnight Baby" has the same sentiments as The Door's "The End." Maybe I'm the weirdo, who knows? Their both a bit eerie, but nice to listen to. It's just a story after all, hopefully.
Sandusky - Uncle Tupelo has bounced its way around my circle whispering it's name here and there but never giving itself a proper introduction. That mistake was all mine. In not extending the pleasantries I've gone thirty years without hearing the music of ole Tupelo even though they appear anywhere and everywhere around the music I do enjoy. Finally Spotify, again with its infinite guidance, found a way to put these boys in my direct line of sight. I can not recall who, but a certain artist's page lured me to the bottom of their page and to where I could see those other artists people thought were similar.
"Sandusky" is the band's number one listened to song and probably their most famous. While I usually try to fill these playlists with deep cuts or one offs, songs that aren't going to be popping up in people's every day discographies, I couldn't help but add this track. It was all so new to me and with less time to fully dive into Tupelo's catalog I chose the track that got me interested.
An instrumental tune that utilizes all good things bluegrass and country, "Sandusky" opens up with a ray of sunshine, a bit of despair in the air, but a feeling of hope. The track builds over its three plus minutes and showcases the talent and instrumentation in the band. Halfway through we are introduced to the steady back beat, a tasteful banjo, and new excitement. It feels like yet another track that begs for the repeat button. Falling in and out of a cyclical groove letting your emotions flare, but keeping them from flying away.
Roundabout - Today is my father's 61'st birthday and what good son would omit some of his ole pop's favorite music from his day's playlist? I'm not gonna be that guy, so here we have two oddballs both from two of the biggest prog-rock groups in the world. Yes and ELP always grab the attention of my father and warrant his responses always in the vein of "ooo, good tune" or "great band!"
Tactfully excluding his number one, his absolute favorite, Bruce Springsteen gets a break from and some of Walter's other interests get the shine they so rarely do when he has the aux. Sometimes I think I have to remind him that he likes other music. There is more to rock and roll than Springsteen (a very sacrilegious statement I know.)
"Roundabout" stands as a personal favorite of mine as well and a track that explodes through the speakers. YES thank god YES created such a masterpiece of a song and of an album.
Karn Evil 9 on the other hand is a perfect fit intertwining fingers and joining in on the prog-rock handshake. ELP never gets by my father without some sort of protestation of how he saw them back in the 70's and how incredible they really are/were. I even took him to see the last remaining member of the group and we left with eyes wide and nerves stimulated. Walter cant stop talking about "how cool" the performance was, recapping to those who haven't heard about how the drummer, Carl Palmer, played along side live recordings of the other two members, depicted on two massive screens, and put together the band again for one last run.
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