MP3: “I Walked” by Sufjan Stevens

Sufjan Stevens surprised us all with an EP release last week. And now there’s the news of another LP to be released in October, his first proper album in five years. A lot of fans will be pissed off by the electronic direction of the first song to surface of the new record, The Age of Adz, but this is one of the best tracks of the year so far. You can download “I Walked” by Sufjan Stevens here or stream it below (via Gorilla vs. Bear):

The Taking Under: An Interview With Elf Power

The last time Elephant 6 veterans Elf Power hit the road, it was a co-headlining gig with Athens, Georgia legend Vic Chestnutt. The band also collaborated with Chestnutt on the critically-acclaimed Dark Developments in 2009. This Fall, the band will tour with the long-awaited Elephant 6 film, Major Organ and the Adding Machine, in which lead singer Andrew Rieger plays one of the principal characters. The film is the visual counterpart to the 2001 album by the same name and is set for release along with Elf Power’s tenth and self-titled release on September 14. We got a chance to speak with lead singer and songwriter Andrew Rieger about their latest record, the influence of Vic Chestnutt, and the bonus material on the Major Organ DVD.

Fishpork: I read the notes you guys wrote about Vic Chestnutt on your web site. It wasn’t hard to tell that you guys really embraced your time him. What was it like working with Vic in the studio and on tour?

FP: What influence has your relationship with Vic had on the band moving forward?

FP: Are there any unreleased tracks from the Dark Developments sessions that may ever see the light of day?

FP: I’m such a big fan of your last album, In A Cave. We’ve only just received the review copy of your new self-titled record. Did you guys take a similar approach for the new record?

FP: Did you guys work with a producer or did you self-produce the record?

FP: Are there any guest collaborations on the record beyond the usual suspects in and around Athens?

FP: The Major Organ and the Adding Machine DVD finally gets a proper release on the same day your new album comes out. What were your contributions to the album and film?

FP: The release notes for the DVD say there is some rare unreleased Elf Power videos on the DVD. Is there anything you can share about those?

FP: We’re happy to see a supporting tour scheduled this Fall to support the new album. Are you bringing anyone on the road with you?

FP: We were lucky enough to see Jeff perform at the Chris Knox Benefit show in May. What was your reaction to his performance?

Elf Power have dedicated the new album to Vic Chestnutt, who committed suicide last Christmas. You can download their first single off the new record, “Stranger In the Window,” here or stream it below:

Faith No More @ Williamsburg Waterfront

Mike Patton is one of the biggest assholes around. He once taunted a New York crowd while wearing his Laker’s jersey post-9/11. He stopped an interview mid-sentence at a festival to bash Wolfmother. On July 5th at the Williamsburg Waterfront in Brooklyn, Patton and a reunited Faith No More mocked the crowd between each song, joking about broken down subway service, the dirty East River, and all the dirty hipsters in the crowd. The band even did a tongue-in-cheek cover of Michael Jackson’s “Ben” just days after the one-year anniversary of his death. Whether you are offended by Patton’s insults and condescending behavior or not, there is no denying his prolific career. With nearly 30 albums with over a dozen music projects, the 42-year old Patton may be the most diverse musician of our generation. He’s worked with avant-guard legend John Zorn, Bjork, Rahzel from the Roots, Massive Attack, Norah Jones, Melvins, Sepultura, Buckethead, Dan the Automator, Handsome Boy Modeling School, The Dillinger Escape Plan, The X-Ecutioners, John Kaada, John Stanier, Dave Lombardo and dozens of others. He’s even sung Italian opera on several solo albums and voiced the howls and screams of the sick, vampire-like monsters in I Am Legend. Patton joined Faith No More in 1989 partly as a way to promote his high school band, Mr. Bungle (see Patton’s Mr. Bungle t-shirt in the music video for “Epic;” they really hate playing it).

Faith No More played a flawless set in Brooklyn, and Patton’s voice was better than ever. I’m not sure there is anyone else out there that can scream for 20 minutes and seamlessly segue into a cover of Lionel Richie’s “Easy” while hitting every note perfectly. An immediate highlight for me was the antagonistic performance of my favorite FNM track, “The Gentle Art of Making Enemies”:

The crowd of 7,500 or so fans that collected at the Waterfront on a 100 degree day were unsurprisingly lame: a mix between 30- and 40-somethings who have yet to move on from the 80s and a sea of hipsters who were there just because the show was in Brooklyn. The alcoholics were cordoned-off behind a barricaded area that employed a beer-for-tickets system. That crowd seemed slightly more motivated. One individual even started a one-man mosh pit with himself, spilling beer on hoards of fans, including myself. In an effort to avoid a confrontation that I might regret, we moved to the “tame” side, which featured local stands selling art and other “hipster” paraphenelia. Smart marketing it was not.

The band invited Rahzel on stage to beatbox during several tracks, which worked generally well. The second encore featured another favorite track of mine off of the band’s Album of the Year record. Although the band’s performance surpassed all expectations, the heat wave, the festival-like atmosphere, and the disingenuous and annoying crowd interfered with all intended nostalgia we may have been seeking. As usual, we’ll look for Patton’s “asshole” tactics and next project in an underground club in the city sometime soon. Jim Morrison or Kurt Cobain would have to come back from the dead for me to attend another Waterfront show.

Album Review: Delta Spirit’s History from Below

While listening to Delta Spirit’s new album, History From Below, my first impressions where these verbatim, “Well this is no Ode to Sunshine.” But you know what, I really like this album. I was in love with their debut album. Seriously, I listened to it for about a month straight. Just like their previous effort, Delta Spirit opens the album with two very strong track, the latter of which is just plain danceable. “Salt in the Wound” is a slower song with a nice acoustic and vocal lead throughout. But “White Table” is just perfect; the way the guitar and vocals harmonize really makes the track standout. The persistent drum beat induces toe tapping until the song turns heavier around the halfway point. Everything then goes quiet save the drums but all kicks back in for a final crescendo.

The album tends to quiet down a bit after that; the next two songs are slower songs that are still worth the listen. When I first heard “Vivian,” I thought I was listening to a previous release. The use of harmonica gives the track a nice bluesy feel that I’m glad they decided to keep on this record. The eight-minute outro, “Ballad of Vitality,” is a terrific closer. The last two minutes are just ambient, but good, noise. Everyone seems to try to end albums dramatically and sometimes it works, but sometimes it doesn’t. In this case, the former is true. The band is currently touring the U.S. I was lucky enough to catch the July 2 show in Philly.

Jeff Mangum @ Le Poisson Rouge

Woke up today and remembered this incredible dream from last night. Jeff Mangum came out of 9+ years of hiding to perform five songs at a benefit show to a small crowd in NYC for his close friend and stroke victim, Chris Knox. He even opened up with “Oh Comely.” Amazingly, for the 500+ in attendance last night, that show did take place. It was real! It happened! So many were worried that Mangum wouldn’t show up. If he did, we would have been more than satisfied with his playing of the two songs that most knowledgeable fans expected, the Chris Knox cover “Sign The Dotted Line” and Neutral Milk Hotel rarity “Engine.” Instead, he did what no one would have ever fathomed by opening up with an extraordinary performance of the eight-minute epic, “Oh Comely”!

We were surrounded by fans in tears and hysterics. He played the song flawlessly, and his voice sounded identical to the incantations we remember from years past. The moment the song ended, the crowd erupted to give Mangum the loudest ovation we’ve ever heard at a live show. Keep in mind this was only the end of the first song in his set. To selfishly attempt to decipher the meaning of “Oh Comely,” my favorite Neutral Milk Hotel track, is to disrespect Jeff’s wishes to leave the meaning ambiguous. Around the time  NMH began to get noticed by mainstream audiences in the late 90s, Mangum slowly began to separate himself from impending fame. He shrugged off interview after interview and refused to answer questions mostly concerned with the meanings of his songs. Mangum has previously revealed that In An Aeroplane Over The Sea deals with his obsession with Anne Frank. And lines from “Oh Comely” hint at that fixation. His live version of the track was mesmerizing, and fans struggled to compose themselves.

As the thunderous applause finally subsided, Mangum went right into “A Baby For Pree/Where You’ll Find Me Now” off of NMH’s 1996 debut On Avery Island followed by “Two-Headed Boy Pt. 2.” As the sincerity of Jeff ’s grin grew wider with the crowd’s deafening clamor of adoration, he looked more comfortable as he adjusted his posture and took a sip of water.  Already feeling more fulfilled than I could ever of imagined, without the slightest sign of hesitation he strummed the opening jittery chord that I have heard hundreds of times in my car, in my apartment, and in my dreams, becoming more familiar than any nursery rhyme long forgotten. As he began to sing “Daddy please hear this song that I sing,” my heart sank with disbelief.   I asked myself, “Is he really playing ‘Two-Headed Boy Part Two’”? Still punch-drunk after hearing my favorite song off Aeroplane, I looked around to make sure I was not living in some silly dream fantasy. I quickly recovered from the initial shock to avoid missing one second of a song filled with words and sounds almost impossible to describe.

I rarely use the word “flawless” to describe any piece of music, as nothing is perfect. Yet Mangum’s voice, which has grown  inconceivable stronger with the passage of time, was indeed flawless.   His vocals, ripe with imperfections and subtle moments that drift off key create an irreproachable style no one has or will likely ever surpass in my lifetime.  The passion bleeds from each word he belts from some inner sanctum no one will ever find.  My legs trembled, and my eyes stared with adoration as he fittingly sang “In my dreams you’re alive and you’re crying.” While many eyes welled with tears, thankfully we were not dreaming.

The song slowed down and concluded with the final line “but don’t hate her when she gets up to leave,” I would of walked away more than fulfilled to have heard these three songs.  After all, “Two-Headed Boy Part 2″ was the last song on Aeroplane, and as the song concludes you can literally hear Jeff put down his guitar and walk away from a creaking stool in the final moments of studio silence on the record.  As the crowd screamed and the applause exploded, we all waited to see if he was going to stand up and walk back into his private world, perhaps never to be heard from again. He raised his hand slightly with a half wave and said a quiet “thank you,” but he did not get up.  This could not possibility get any better, could it?  Oh, yes it could, and it did.  The next song was another moment, which was becoming the theme of the night, when I thought, “Are you fucking serious!?”

It was the title track off In An Aeroplane Over The Sea, which is easily our collective favorite album of all-time. The song was definitely a crowd favorite, and probably the most popular song the band ever released. Mangum looked nervous throughout but seemed appreciative of the enthusiastic reaction. At one point he responded to a “we missed you” shouted from the crowd, reciprocating the love with a heartfelt “I’ve missed you, too. Don’t think I haven’t.” One got the sense that Jeff really does want to write and play more music but just isn’t capable of doing so anymore due to the emotional strain. Some from the front reported that he was physically shaking on stage before his performance but calmed once he began strumming his guitar.

“In An Aeroplane  Over The Sea” ended the set, and Jeff exited stage right. The crowd applause that would follow was deafening and shifted into a call for an encore. I’ve never heard anything like it and worried that the next band would be drowned out by the crowd or even booed off the stage if Mangum didn’t respond to the audience, who begged for one more song. And that’s what we got! Jeff walked back to center stage, sat back down on his chair and concluded an amazing performance with “Engine.” Watching YouTube videos of his surprise performances of “Engine” during the Elephant Six Holiday Surprise Tour was  a painful tease. To see him in the flesh was a revelation that we will brag to our grandchildren about.

Friends of Mangum say he’s been gradually getting better since the days of his night terrors and nervous breakdown around the turn of century that transformed him into the recluse he is today. For at least one night Jeff was able to find the strength to present the music that has haunted him for all these years. And the crowd was beyond appreciative, as you could hear the non-stop muttering of “thank you” after and even during each song he played. We all knew what a special opportunity this was and that it may never happen again. Something we’ve dreamt about for so long came to fruition, and we were happy to just be a part of it.

Above The Influence: An Interview With Count From Inu

With the release of their Monster EP, Inu is a band to watch in 2010. The group consists of producer/drummer/vocalist Count, guitarist Tim Hingston, and cellist Zoe Keating. Fishpork got a chance to talk with Count about the band’s upcoming full album release, the lack of influences on the songwriting process, and some potential live shows for 2010.

How did you hook up with the other band members to form Inu?

When you guys write songs, what’s that process like?

I wrote a raving review of your Monster EP a few weeks ago. I called it “one of the best of the year so far.” What can we expect on this new album?

What kind of music are you guys listening to right now?

Did you have a favorite album of 2009?

What can we expect from your live shows?

What’s in store for the band in 2010?

http://www.myspace.com/inuband

Fishpork’s 10 Favorite Shows of 2009

It was another full year of remarkable live shows in 2009, which was also not immune to a few train wrecks (Enon, Dan Deacon). Whether it was a cold and rainy night in Philly to see White Lies overcome a historically shitty venue to play a show for the ages or a late night train ride to the East Village to see Karin Dreijer Andersson’s Fever Ray outfit put on a visually stunning performance, this past year reinforced our music fandom. Here’s a list of our favorite shows of 2009:

1. White Lies @ First Unitarian Church
2. Grizzly Bear @ Trocadero
3. Fever Ray @ Webster Hall
4. Tapes N’ Tapes @ Johnny Brenda’s
5. Animal Collective @ Bowery Ballroom
6. Morrissey @ Carnegie Hall
7. Vic Chestnutt & Elf Power @ Bowery Ballroom
8. Autolux @ Johnny Brenda’s
9. Built to Spill @ SIREN Festival
10. Monsters of Folk @ United Palace
    

Least Favorite:

• Enon @ Johnny Brenda’s
• Dan Deacon/Deerhunter/No Age @ Fly W Airport
• NIN/JA @ PNC Bank Arts Center

Fishpork’s 50 Favorite Tracks of 2009

This year really didn’t end up being that “greatest of the decade” as January-March may have suggested. With that said, our favorite tracks list became very album-heavy as it evolved throughout the year. With seven tracks from Animal Collective and Grizzly Bear in the top 20, you kinda get the point. Here is our very biased list of favorite tracks from 2009:

1. HEALTH - “Die Slow”
2. Grizzly Bear - “While You Wait for the Others“
3. Animal Collective - “Summertime Clothes”
4. Fuck Buttons - “Olympians”
5. Built to Spill - “Things Fall Apart”
6. Animal Collective - “My Girls”
7. Fever Ray - “Concrete Walls”
8. Grizzly Bear - “Ready, Able“
9. White Lies - “Farewell to the Foreground”
10. Moderat - “New Error”
11. Atlas Sound - “Attic Lights”
12. Grizzly Bear - “Two Weeks“
13. Animal Collective - “Guy’s Eyes”
14. Fuck Buttons - “The Lisbon Maru”
15. Atlas Sound - “Walkabout”
16. Animal Collective - “What Would I Want? Sky”
17. Dredg - “Information”
18. White Lies - “Death”
19. Fever Ray - “Coconut”
20. Animal Collective - “Brothersport”
21. Built to Spill - “Good Ol’ Boredom”
22. MC Rut - “I Don’t Really Know”
23. The Mars Volta - “Since We’ve Been Wrong”
24. Modest Mouse - “The Whale Song”
25. Dirty Projectors - “Cannibal Resource”
26. Deerhunter - “Game of Diamonds”
27. Morrissey - “It’s Not Your Birthday Anymore”
28. Animal Collective - “I Think I Can”
29. HEALTH - “We Are Water”
30. Dredg - “Mourning This Morning”
31. Sufjan Stevens - “You Are the Blood”
32. Fuck Buttons - “Surf Solar”
33. Phoenix - “Girlfriend”
34. The Flaming Lips - “Silver Trembling Hands”
35. White Rabbits - “Rudie Fails”
36. The Mars Volta - “With Twilight As Our Guide”
37. Radiohead - “These Are My Twisted Words”
38. Great Northern - “Fingers”
39. Royksopp - “Tricky, Tricky”
40. Dirty Projectors - “Useful Chamber”
41. St. Vincent - “The Party”
42. YACHT - “Ring The Bell”
43. Bat For Lashes - “Sleep Alone”
44. Atlas Sound - “Sheila”
45. Washed Out - “Feel It All Around”
46. Das Racist - “Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell”
47. Dirty Projectors - “Stillness Is The Move”
48. Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs - “Skeletons”
49. Great Northern - “Driveway”
50. Morrissey - “I’m OK By Myself”

The Fishpork 20: Favorite Albums of 2009

2009 started off as one of the strongest years for music in the decade but then slipped into a summer that left us scratching our heads and yearning for more. An impressive set of Fall releases surprised their way onto our Favorites List and cemented 2009 as a year that will impress music lovers in retrospect. These are our favorite albums from the past year:

1. Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest

2. Fever Ray - Fever Ray

3. Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion

4. Fuck Buttons - Tarot Sport

5. Built to Spill - There Is No Enemy

6. Atlas Sound - Logos

7. Morrissey - Years of Refusal

8. Dredg - The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion

9. White Lies - To Lose Your Life

10. Moderat - Moderat

11. The Mars Volta - Octahedron

12. MC Rut - Middle Class Rut

13. Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca

14. Great Northern - Remind Me Where The Light Is

15. HEALTH - Get Color

16. Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix

17. The Flaming Lips - Embyronic

18. Bat For Lashes - Two Suns

19. Isis - Wavering Radiant

20. Royksopp - Junior

Most Disappointing Albums:

• Lotus Plaza - The Floodlight Collective
• Wilco - Wilco (The Album)

Fishpork’s 100 Favorite Tracks of the 2000s

This is an attempt at the impossible. Here are our 100 favorite songs of the past decade (featuring multiple tracks from Animal Collective, The Knife, Radiohead, and Elliott Smith). Our top two choices are more like 1a and 1b. Be patient, as the page needs to load the embedded songs.

1. Panda Bear - “Bros” (2007)

2. The Knife - “We Share Our Mother’s Health” (2006)

3. Animal Collective - “For Reverend Green” (2007)

4. Grizzly Bear - “While You Wait For The Others” (2009)

5. The Knife - “Heartbeats” (2003)

6. Grizzly Bear - “The Knife” (2005)

7. LCD Soundsystem - “Someone Great” (2007)

8. TV on the Radio - “Staring at the Sun” (2003)

9. Crystal Castles - “Crimewave” (2008)

10. Beirut - “Ciloqut” (2007)

11. Thom Yorke - “Harrowdown Hill

12. Animal Collective - “Derek” (2007)

13. Nine Inch Nails - “Me, I’m Not” (2007)

14. Beck - “Lonesome Tears” (2002)

15. At The Drive-in - “One Armed Scissor” (2004)

16. Animal Collective - “Grass” (2005)

17. Deerhunter - “Nothing Ever Happened” (2008)

18. Atlas Sound - “Recent Bedroom” (2008)

19. Panda Bear - “Comfy in Nautica” (2007)

20. System of a Down - “Chop Suey” (2001)

21. Animal Collective - “Peacebone” (2007)

22. Battles - “Atlas” (2007)

23. Error - “Jack the Ripper” (2004)

24. Enon - “Pleasure and the Privilege”

25. Elliott Smith - “Son of Sam” (2000)

26. Animal Collective - “Did You See the Words” (2005)

27. The Knife - “Marble House” (2006)

28. LCD Soundsystem - “All My Friends” (2007)

29. Thom Yorke - “Analyse” (2006)

30. The Flaming Lips - “Ego Tripping at the Gates of Hell” (2002)

31. Girl Talk - “Smash Your Head” (2006)
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32. A Perfect Circle - “Judith” (2000)

33. Radiohead - “Idioteque” (2000)

34. Tapes N’ Tapes - “Manitoba” (2006)

35. TV On The Radio - “I Was A Lover” (2006)

36. Radiohead - “Reckoner” (2007)

37. Fever Ray - “Coconut” (2009)

38. Animal Collective - “My Girls” (2009)

39. Built to Spill - “Things Fall Apart” (2009)

40. Wilco - “I’m Trying to Break Your Heart” (2002)

41. Modest Mouse - “Tiny Cities Made of Ashes” (2000)

42. Animal Collective - “Leaf House” (2004)

43. Modeselektor - “Happy Birthday” (2007)

44. Arcade Fire - “Wake Up” (2004)

45. Autolux - “Blanket” (2004)

46. MGMT - “Time to Pretend” (2007)

47.  Built to Spill - “Conventional Wisdom” (2006)

48. Wilco - “Side With the Seeds” (2007)

49. Elliott Smith - “Happiness/The Gondola Man” (2000)

50. Avey Tare - “I’m Your Eagle Kisser” (2007)

51. Department of Eagles - “Waves of Rye” (2008)

52. Animal Collective - “Summertime Clothes” (2009)

53. Radiohead - “2+2 = 5″ (2003)

54. Dredg - “Sang Real” (2005)

55. While Lies - “Farewell to the Fairground” (2009)

56. Grizzly Bear - “Ready, Able” (2009)

57. Matisyahu - “King Without a Crown” (2005)

58. Modest Mouse - “Paper Thin Walls” (2000)

59. Dillinger Escape Plan - “When Good Dogs Do Bad Things” (2002)

60. Elliott Smith - “Twilight” (2004)

61. Deerhunter - “Flourescent Grey” (2007)

62. Holy Fuck - “Lovely Allen” (2007)

63. LCD Soundsystem - “Never As Tired As When I’m Waking Up” (2006)

64. The Notwist - “Boneless (Panda Bear Remix)” (2008)

65. Liars - “Nothing Is Ever Lost or Can Be Lost My Science Friend” (2004)

66. The Mars Volta - “Inertiatic E.S.P.” (2003)

67. The Notwist - “Solitaire” (2002)

68. Of Montreal - “The Past is a Grotesque Animal” (2007)

69. Queens of the Stone Age - “Tangled Up in Plaid” (2005)

70. Radiohead - “Jigsaw Falling Into Place” (2007)

71. Saul Williams - “Raised To Be Lowered” (2007)

72. Autolux - “Great Days for the Passenger Element” (2004)

73. Sigur Ros - “Untitled 8″ (2002)

74. Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs - “Maps” (2003)

75. Portishead - “Threads” (2008)

76. Sufjan Stevens - “Chicago” (2005)

77. Ugly Casanova - “Things I Don’t Remember” (2002)

78. Animal Collective - “Brothersport” (2009)

79. Radiohead - “Pyramid Song” (2001)

80. Nine Inch Nails - “Only” (2005)

81. El-P - “Flyentology” (2007)

82. Queens of the Stone Age - “No One Knows” (2002)

83. Ghostface Killah - “Shakey Dog” (2006)

84. Modest Mouse - “Missed the Boat” (2007)

85. UNKLE - “Persons and Machinery” (2007)

86. Amon Tobin - “Verbal” (2002)

87. The White Stripes - “Denial Twist” (2005)
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88. Tomahawk - “Captain Midnight” (2003)

89. Modest Mouse - “Bukowski” (2004)

90. Sigur Ros - “Hoppipolia” (2005)

92. Fuck Buttons - “Sweet Love For Planet Earth” (2008)

93. Bon Iver - “Skinny Love” (2008)

94. Built to Spill - “In Your Mind” (2001)

95. The White Stripes - “Icky Thump” (2007)

96. Does It Offend You, Yeah? - “We Are Rockstars” (2008)

97. Dub Trio - “Not Alone” (2006)

98. Modest Mouse - “The World At Large”

99. The Walkmen - “In the New Year” (2008)

100. Nine Inch Nails - “The Great Destroyer (Modwheelmood Remix)” (2007)

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