Posts tagged ‘Dead Man’s Bones’
10 favorite albums of 2009
It just occurred to me that I never got around to making this post. Whoops? We’re a month and a half (ish) through the new year and it kind of seems pointless to do it now, but it makes my last post about “albums I quite liked” seem super awkward all on its own. I’m going to post my favorite albums of the year FOR REAL now.
As I was writing the first little paragraph about Phrazes for the Young (SPOILER ALERT), I realized my babbling would be too time consuming considering how late in the game I’m coming around to this task. By now, who really cares right? So of course the obvious solution to my too-long-to-write conundrum was writing…….HAIKUS! Oh my gaawwddd. That’s just how my brain works, don’t ask. So yeah anyway, I wrote a crappy little haiku about each album on my top ten for your (and my) amusement. I don’t claim to be an artsy poet, I’m just a girl who hasn’t been sleeping much and comes up with stupid ideas that seem funny at the time. Let’s do this.
I’ve decided to play favorites this time around, with No. 1 being my personal “album of the year” or whatever. In a way, this list is almost as arbitrary as the last because, if I’m being perfectly honest, I spent most of the year listening to the same three or four albums on loop and squeezed in some of the lower-ranked numbers every now and then. It’s not like I love them that much less, it’s just that some own my soul more than others. That’s just how my heart works.
Just a heads up, there is no Animal Collective or Yeah Yeah Yeahs or Grizzly Bear or whatever on my list. Guess I missed the boat on that stuff.
#10: Julian Casablancas – Phrazes for the Young
Love not there at first.
Words and synth sounds found my heart.
I wait for The Strokes.
#9: Fanfarlo – Reservoir
A long time coming.
Magnificent collection.
Feel it in your heart.
#8: Mumford & Sons – Sigh No More
Awesome musicians.
Pastoral feelings evoked.
Love the mandolin.
#7: Generationals – Con Law
A random listen.
Sounds are nice, feels like sunshine.
Everyone should love.
#6: The Fiery Furnaces – I’m Going Away
Like Gallowbird’s Bark.
Still crazy but not like Choir.
So misunderstood.
#5: Dead Man’s Bones – Dead Man’s Bones
Love lives, ghost children.
Some actors make real music.
Surprised? Yeah me too.
#4: Jamie T – Kings & Queens
Epic excitement.
A genius lyricist.
Need album three please.
#3: Noah and the Whale – The First Days of Spring
Brokenhearted man.
Maturing musicianship.
Beautiful release.
#2: The Maccabees – Wall of Arms
Changes were coming.
Bigger, bolder sounds. Growing.
Always be there, love.
#1: Regina Spektor – Far
Would there be new songs?
Ruler of the universe.
Never disappoints.
How about some songs instead of chocolate?
Today, my roommate gave me her advent calendar chocolate and I ran into Santa and Mrs. Claus at Panera (State St). Oh yes, the magic of Christmas is upon us. And I’ve got an idea!
Advent Calendar-style posts counting down my favorite 25 songs of 2009. Oh snap. Alright, so it’s not exactly the most original idea ever. And yeah, I know I’ve already missed six days of December, but whatevs it just means this post (the first one!) will include six songs instead of one.
The songs I’ve chosen for this 2009 Musical Advent Calendar were the first 25 that came to mind as this whole idea popped into my head, after all it’s a list of “favorite” not “best” songs of the year. I mean I don’t know if you’ve ever tried making a “best of” list, but it’s way more difficult than it seems. How in the world could a person really take inventory of every song they heard this year and decide on the absolute 25 best?? Impossible. Incorporating any type of ranking system would have also proved very time consuming and time is not on my side right now (it’s exam week for this particular blogger), so the songs will be posted daily in no particular order (thank you list randomizer!). However, I have decided there’s a certain song I want to share on the last day of this project, since it’s a song I have honestly listened to at least once everyday since I first heard it this year. Don’t be surprised if I end up posting more than 25 songs, I have a feeling some gems may have slipped my mind as I originally compiled this list.
On the final day of my 2009 Musical Advent Calendar, I will also post the final list of my favorite albums of the year (which I’m still working on).
Whatever, let’s get to the fun stuff, yeah?
December 1st: Phoenix – Lisztomania
You couldn’t really escape Phoenix this year, but it was okay by me. I mean, who would be opposed to happy pop songs written by French fellas? Their sound has obviously evolved since their debut United, but not in a bad way. “Sometimes in the Fall” has always had a tendency to get stuck in my head for days, “Lisztomania” gave it a run for its money this year. For more Phoenix: http://www.myspace.com/wearephoenix
December 2nd: Dead Man’s Bones – Pa Pa Power
Dead Man’s Bones are proof that not all “actors-turned-musicians” are shit and some concept albums can in fact work. “Pa Pa Power” is my favorite song from their self-titled debut and YEAH MAYBE IT DOES HAVE SOMETHING TO DO WITH THAT SYNTH. Sue me. For more DMB: http://www.myspace.com/deadmansbones
December 3rd: Kid Harpoon – Buried Alive
Absolutely beautiful. Just reminds me of the many reasons I love this man. (More: http://www.myspace.com/kidharpoon)
December 4th: Planet Earth – Bergman Movies
I love Planet Earth. I don’t think the line “in life it’s easy to forget all the things you never wanted to say, like a jumper that you don’t like you just put it away” has escaped my brain since I first heard it. Anyway, you should love Planet Earth too. Seriously:
December 5th: Julian Casablancas – 11th Dimension
Deep down inside, I am still that 13 year old girl who fell in love with this random band from NYC called The Strokes and never looked back.
December 6th: Fanfarlo – Drowning Men (BBC 6Music Session)
It seems impossible not to love and appreciate Fanfarlo. If you don’t, maybe you have no soul. Just sayin’.
PHOTOS: Dead Man’s Bones @ Schubas, Chicago
I caught Dead Man’s Bones last night at Schubas. Great, great show. Sadly I’ve got no time for a proper review, but here are some photos + video. BUY/LISTEN to their album and see them live if you can!
You can view the complete set on FLICKR
Dead Man’s Bones release an album and go on tour
Ryan Gosling and Zach Shields are actors. Ryan Gosling and Zach Shields decided they wanted to make music together. Ryan Gosling and Zach Shields decided they wanted to write an album about love and the undead. Ryan Gosling and Zach Shields decided they wanted help from the Silverlake Conservatory of Music Children’s Choir. Ryan Gosling and Zach Shields released their self-titled debut album Dead Man’s Bones. And you know what? It’s pretty damn good.
Actors-turned-musicians are hit and miss, as are concept albums, so one would expect combining the two would most likely yield a steaming pile of pretentious garbage. But Dead Man’s Bones have somehow managed to make this combination work. Just in time for Halloween, the concept of their album sounds simple enough: love and death. Dead Man’s Bones sample everything from howling winds to shattering glass over ghoulish declarations of love. The small, high-pitched voices of the Silverlake Conservatory of Music Children’s Choir paired with Gosling’s low, Nick Cave-esque grumbles add an extra dose of eeriness to songs already morbid in their subject matter (“Buried in Water”, “Lose Your Soul”).
Though the lyrics may be dark, the albums’ overall sound isn’t necessarily all gloom and doom. “My Body’s a Zombie For You” and “Flowers Grow Out of My Grave” prove doo-wop love ballads about the undead can not only be done but they can be pretty damn touching to boot! A synthesizer graces “Pa Pa Power,” a mellower, poppy number that finds Shields taking the lead on vocals and the children sounding more confident than creepy. “Dead Man’s Bones,” the album’s title track, is Gosling and Shields’ raucous party jam. They let loose as they warn of a world surrounded by the dead: “You should know/ What’s really going down below/ Dressed in their best clothes/ There are rows and rows and rows of dead man’s bones!” Sure the anguished cries of a woman are featured midway through the track, but by the time you reach this point on the album you’re no longer phased by such grisly sounds. You’ve been desensitized and you’ve accepted their world of love, pain, zombies, and ghost children. Hell, you expect the anguished cries!
DOWNLOAD AND LISTEN Dead Man’s Bones – My Body’s a Zombie For You
BUY DEAD MAN’S BONES amazon | amazon digital | insound | insound digital
Dead Man’s Bones start their first U.S. tour today in Cambridge, MA. They made this video to remind everyone of the dates:
“>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Drccx8_CIHE&feature=player_profilepage]
Most dates are sold out, but catch them if you can. Local children’s choirs will be joining them on stage in each city and “talent shows” will serve as support. I’ll be seeing them in Chicago next Wednesday. It’s gonna be good times.
Dead Man’s Bones “Dead Hearts” video
Featuring a moving sculpture by Arthur Ganson and directed by Dead Man’s Bones
