Plus this Spring hasn’t been very, well, spring-y. So, like the Winter before it, so long, and don’t let the Summer door hit you on the ass on your way out.
Sweden:
And, again I find myself traveling, thanks to what amazon.com throws my way. This time, north to Sweden!
Fox News keeps telling me how it’s a Socialist nightmare. And since they’re so fact-based, out of concern, I decided to go beyond the meatballs and check out their music.
Robyn: Body Talk (2010)
“I’m surprised you got this”.
This is Mrs. Jaybee code for this sucks. And what sucks exactly, Mrs. Jaybee?
Maybe the sight of a 60-year-old enjoying girly-voiced dance pop.
I'll admit, it’s not my go-to genre by any means, but unlike so much other stuff in this category, it’s not vacuous, superficially sexual and all production. I hear some great melodies, sung with real passion and with words to back it up (usually). So, along with thoughts and emotions, there’s even some - god forbid - empathy here.
It may be that Robyn was 31 when she released this. So she’s been around for a while and while she can be impetuous like your average young person, she’s also capable of a little wisdom. Which appeals to my 60-year-old ears.
In other words, she's someone I wouldn’t mind talking to.
She's not perfect. After a great start, there are a couple of silly ones, but then she's back with her heart on her sleeve.
So there's about a fifty-fifty split between the standard but well-done dance tracks and the really melodic emotional - but not slow - ones. If it tilted to the latter a little more it would be great.
So Sweden seems to be doing okay. Whatever problems they have, they seem to deal with them by dancing. Recent developments have shown that this is not at all the worst course of action.
B+
"In My Eyes"
Jamaica:
But it is cold up there! So I head southwest. And back in time about 45 years. (Did I not mention time travel?)
Bob Marley:Catch a Fire (1973)
I love how this begins. You get to hear the band (guitars, bass, drums, etc. - a very rock n' roll sounding band) slowly kick in before Bob starts singing. And not too fast. Just a nice, rocking rhythm. They're not taking on the world just yet. Just doing what they do best. Kind of a relief from the hits, actually.
So I'm far more likely to do a deep dive with this than the to put on the no doubt excellent Legend.
And the deluxe version contains both the original Jamaican versions of the songs and the ones on the American release. Peter Tosh sings on a couple on the former while it’s all Bob on the latter. Which is just as well. Peter’s great but a little scary. When he sings “400 Hundred Years”, he sounds it.
Definitely worthwhile.
A-
"Concrete Jungle"
And since we didn't get much heat this Spring I decided to stay in a tropical climate, and go even further back in time.
Brazil:
Os Mutantes (1968)
What was it like to be in Brazil in 1967? Did rock and rock and psychedelia penetrate beyond America and Europe? The answer is an emphatic Yes!!!
Like thousands of others all over the world, this trio was inspired by everything going on up north. This is less their version of Sgt Pepper (which is more “concept” to me than psychedelic) than say Forever Changes. Okay, that's a stretch, but it's the sound of yet another group of young people with limited means trying to find the aural equivalent of bliss.
And not understanding what they're saying is almost a relief. If they were from California, you’d understand the words, but have no idea what they meant.
They have a kitchen sink approach to their music, adding background noise and sudden cuts to something completely different. The guitar playing is pretty standard for the time. The riffs are fast but not very original. The singing is more engaging and melodic, since there's both a male and female vocalist. She usually does the slow ones, which, after the abovementioned sink, come at the right time. So do the changes in tempo (nice drumming by the way!).
This one reminds me how pretty psychedelia could be.
And it all comes together on "Trem Fatansma".
B+
So now let's all break out our parkas for summer!
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