Knock Yourselves Out!

Many of us are getting very excited for the upcoming New Years Eve bash featuring Jon Brion and Friends at The Harris Theatre here in Chicago. While many of you may not know the name, I guarantee you've heard his work, whether via his soundtracks for films such I Heart Huckabees, Magnolia,and Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind, or his production work for Aimee Mann, Elliot Smith, Rufus Wainwright, Kanye West, Fiona Apple, Spoon, and so on. Though often uncredited, he also played many of the instrument parts on several of these albums as well.

His live shows are simply astounding, as he jumps from guitar, to piano, to bass, to uke, to chamberlin, employing loops to build a multi-layered one-man sonic extravaganza. Nearly half of his show consists of spontaneous and often simultaneous requests from the audience. Look on youtube, for example and you can find him playing Radiohead's Creep AS Tom Waits after separate audience members called out the two requests at the same time.

His shows have everything I hope for in a concert setting, creating that feeling that something very special is happening in front of you for the first and last time ever. As he recently told the Onion " I think my life is a version of my show played out over a very long time. There are periods of structured things. There are periods of improvisation. There are periods that go better than expected and there are periods when you fall flat on your face, and you get back back up if you really love what you're doing..."

DOWNLOAD KNOCK YOURSELF OUT FROM I LOVE HUCKABEES

If you want to see the show, I happen to know that tickets are still available. Do it, you won't be disappointed.

Buy Tickets Here

Best of 2007 Fingerhut

Happy Holidays to you all! For the final sprint to the New Year, I've created two Best of 2007 mixes which I hope you will enjoy. The first (today's download) is of tracks actually released (i think) in 2007 The tracks are listed in no particular order. The second mix, coming next week, will be songs from the past that I either discovered or became obsessed with in 2007.

Love Comes to Me-Bonnie Prince Billy
What a Job- Devin the Dude
Our Hell- Emily Haines & Soft Skeleton
Down The Line- Jose Gonzales
The Opposite of Hallelujah-Jens Lekman
North American Scum-LCD Soundsystem
Headache City-Headache City
Wild Mountain Nation-Blitzen Trapper
Headphones-Illinois
Lucky Ones-Kevin Drew
I don't Feel Like Dancing-Scissor Sisters
The Equestrian- les Savy Fav
When I Say Go-The 1900's
88-Cool Kids
Silently-Blonde Readhead
1234-Feist
North American Scum-LCD Soundsystem
Intervention-Arcade Fire
Songs of National Freedom-Richard Swift
John Allyn Sails-Okkervil River
I am Waiting-Lindsey Buckingham
I don't Feel Like Dancing-Scissor Sisters


Download Fingerhut Best of 07

Cat Power-The Covers Album

This 2000 album features reinterpretations of songs by The Velvet Underground, The Rolling Stones, Smog, Bob Dylan, and Nina Simone, all performed with Chan Marshall's trademark hushed delivery and sparse arrangements. She has a second covers record, Jukebox, due out in January featuring works by Billie Holiday, James Brown, and Hank Williams!


DOWNLOAD SATISFACTION (I CAN'T GET NO)

Tropicalismo

The Tropicalia movement was an artistic response to the Brazilian coup of 1964 and the military dicatorship that followed. Passionately and intelligently articulated through music, poetry, and fashion, the movement was a brief explosion of cultural transformation and upheaval, spanning a period of five years, from 1967 to 1972.

Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil are considered the leaders of the movement, who, along with Os Mutantes, experimented with unusual time signatures and other means of unorthodox song structures in their music. In 1969, Veloso and Gil were jailed for about a month and, shortly after their release, exiled by the military government. (They relocated to London until 1972.)

For those interested, pick up Veloso's 2002 book Tropical Truth: A Story of Music and Revolution in Brazil

Heres a track from his second solo album "Caetano Veloso" (a.k.a. Álbum Branco, which means White Album, in Portuguese), released in Brazil in 1969. The album vocals and acoustic guitars were recorded in a small recording studio in Salvador, where Veloso was confined for defying the authoritarian Brazilian government of the time, after spent some time arrested in Rio de Janeiro. He recorded the vocals, and Gilberto Gil the acoustic guitar, which were sent to arranger and producer Rogério Duprat, who added layers of electric guitars, horns, bass, drums and other instruments in a more professional studio in São Paulo.

DOWNLOAD THE EMPTY BOAT BY CAETANO VELOSO

Buy the album here

Check out the book

My Real Life Started Tonight

Congratulations to David Singer, as the show he scored, August Osage County, has opened on broadway to unprecedented raves for a non-musical. Here's a song that the character Little Charles sings during the show, which also appears on David's latest album East of the Fault Line.

READ THE FULL REVIEW

DOWNLOAD LITTLE CHARLES

Only Julia Knows

In preparation for the first Chicago Ukelele Cabaret on February 17 at Silvies, I borrowed a sweet little Uke from DAS and set out to learn "God Only Knows". Turns out its a tough song to learn, so I did a search on youtube for help. I happened upon and found myself charmed by Julia's version, which appears below.

Folks, if Julia can do it, so can we, so grab your ukes and start brushing up for the cabaret. All are welcome to participate. Since it will be just after Valentines Day, the theme will be songs of love, lust, and heartbreak.

You Can Follow My Voice

Its been covered by everyone from The Breeders to Ben Kweller, but the original version of Wicked Little Town from Hedwig and The Angry Inch remains the definitive version.

DOWNLOAD WICKED LITTLE TOWN

Watch it here and check out Quang Yi on guitar!

Ike Turner RIP

too bad, he was such a swell guy

DOWNLOAD RIVER DEEP MOUNTAIN HIGH

Goin' to Acapulco

Cate Blanchett as Bob Dylan

Last night we saw I'm Not There, Todd Haynes'inventive and visually stunning Dylan Biopic, featuring performances by Cate Blanchett, Heath Ledger, Richard Gere, Christian Bale, and others as different incarnations of the bard. The soundtrack features cover versions from Sonic Youth, Antony, Sufjan Stevens, The Hold Steady, Jeff Tweedy, Cat Power, and others. This version of Goin' to Acapulco by My Morning Jacket's Jim James and Calexico provided one of the films greatest moments of emotional impact.

DOWNLOAD GOIN' TO ACAPULCO



check out the Soundtrack

El Perro Del Mar

El Perro Del Mar is the project of the unfortunately named Swedish songstress Sarah Assbring. Reminiscent of 60's French pop, the music is relaxed and the vocal delivery childlike, making it a nice Sunday morning sountrack.

Download Candy by El Perro Del Mar

Over The Garden Wall

The Musical Box-Black Show

Last Thursday, The Hitmaker took me to see the Musical Box at The Vic. Not your garden variety tribute band, this Montreal quintet, officially sanctioned by Genesis, creates a note-for-note musical and visual reproduction of specific vintage-era (1972-1974) tours, including the original sets, costumes, slides, and even the stage banter.

As a fan of early Genesis, I admit I was a bit skeptical going in, but from the opening notes of "Watcher of the Skies" through to the end of the show, I was mesmerized at the musical dexterity and visual splendor of the band. It was worlds better than the overblown Genesis reunion tour I saw with the Hitmaker earlier this year.

From the Sun-Times:

"Airy woodwinds, acoustic guitars and symphonic keyboards reinforced the narratives' pastoral themes. Surreal images, black-light illumination and vivid costumes underscored meaning and suggestion. Filling Gabriel's role, vocalist/flutist Denis Gagne donned an array of unusual get-ups. With his eyes highlighted by a day-glo mask, he pecked like a bird during "Watcher of the Skies." The opening song's churchy undercurrents and ominous moods were indicative of the evening's shifting dynamics. Devoid of simplicity and steeped in drama, compositions featured demanding tempo changes and odd time signatures"

Here, then, is "I Know What I Like (in your wardrobe)", an ode to a cosmic lawnmower, from the 1972 album Selling England By the Pound. Also, a video of a live performance from the original tour, which is virtually indistinguishable from the one I saw last week.

DOWNLOAD I KNOW WHAT I LIKE (IN YOUR WARDROBE)

The World's Fastest Banjo Picker

For FI's 101st post, we have a special guest post from the man himself, Mr. Benjamin Fingerhut

For those who don’t know, for the past two and a half years I’ve been shooting a documentary on world record breakers called Breaking and Entering… and by the time this is posted on the blog I'll be on a plane to Boston to shoot the last bit of footage before editing begins.

So to celebrate I thought it would be nice to have the world’s fastest banjo player Todd Taylor and his song El Cumanchero make an appearance on the Invitational. Todd is a 3 time Grammy nominee and a really nice guy to boot. Details need to be worked out, but it’s likely this song will be on the soundtrack.

DOWNLOAD EL CUMANCHERO

Watch him go!

With John Belushi and Lady Di Close by

I lost my Aunt Joanie yesterday, so in her honor I dedicate this song about heaven (i think) by Supergrass. (posted Monday night for Tuesday)

Download Prophet 15

Teardrop on the Fire

Brand New Music from Argentinian born Swedish acoustic Troubadour Jose Gonzalez. From the new album "In Our Nature" this track is a cover version of Massive Attack's "teardrop". The album is edgier and moodier than its predecessor "Veneer", and it benefits his overall sound.

DOWNLOAD TEARDROP

The Strangest of Supergroups

More of a loose collective than a band, the Golden Palominos featured a revolving line-up for each new record. 1985's "Visions of Excess", features Richard Thompson, Michael Stipe, Jack Bruce, John Lydon, Bernie Worell, Bill Laswell,and GP core members Anton Fier and Arto Lindsay. Here is the lead track Boy(go), with Michael Stipe on Lead Vocals.

DOWNLOAD BOY(GO)

Soul Country

If I ever do you wrong
If I ever leave you all alone
If I ever tell you a lie
If I ever make you cry

I hope a fly lands on my pie
I hope a bee stings me over my eye...
I love my pie,
I love my eye,
so you know I'll never do you wrong.

So sings soul balladeer Joe Tex on this smooth and playful ditty from his 1968 album "Soul Country", which features several versions of country pop songs, including Bobbie Gentry's Ode to Billie Joe.

DOWNLOAD IF I EVER DO YOU WRONG

I Fall in Love with The Light

Many months back, David Anthony Singer sent me a gorgeous song, The Orchids, from Califone. I knew it was a cover and that the original version was by Psychic TV, a band I vaguely remember hearing about freshman year in High School. Born out of earlier punk bands Alternative TV and Throbbing Gristle, Psychic TV began publishing a monthly series of 23 live albums in 1986, but stopped without explanation after 17.The tenth, a picture disk known as Album 10, could only be obtained by submitting tokens contained in each of the previous nine releases. The band subsequently earned an entry in the Guinness Book of World Records for most records released in one year.

I hunted down the original version of The Orchids and enjoyed it immensely. Whereas Califone's version is hushed and melancholic, the original has an innocent, naive quality to it. Its the kind of track I would expect to turn up in the next Wes Anderson Movie, as at the rate he's moving through the Kinks catalogue, he'll soon be up to the "Come Dancing" era.

DOWNLOAD THE ORCHIDS BY PSYCHIC TV

VIDEO BONUS!!!! I enjoyed "The Orchids" so much that I went searching for more from Psychic TV and happened upon "Godstar", a pop nugget that pays tribute to Brian Jones from the Rolling Stones, using the riff from Brown Sugar as its main motif. It sounds entirely unlike "The Orchids". Rather, it sounds to me a lot like Echo and the Bunnymen, Love and Rockets, and even the Pixies. Heres the video:

El Perro Del Mar

El Perro Del Mar is the project of the unfortunately named Swedish songstress Sarah Assbring. Reminiscent of 60's French pop, the music is relaxed and the vocal delivery childlike, making it a nice Sunday morning sountrack.

Download Candy by El Perro Del Mar

Rusted Guns of Milan

Art Brut's Impotence anthem was the highlight of their blistering set at Metro on Halloween. I happen to love this band, but if you're not a fan, I can understand why, especially if melody is important to you, even a little. For me their sheer exuberance, brutal simplicity, and great sense of humor make up for that little omission. Oh, also, their drummer, dressed like an extra from Starlight Express or Xanadu, played the entire show standing up. I'm not talking about some Stray Cats thing with just a snare and a ride either... this was a full-on ROCK, and he was fantastic.

DOWNLOAD THE RUSTED GUNS OF MILAN

PS. If you should ever want to create your own Art Brut song, just follow these easy steps-

1.Pick A Phrase, any phrase- Shout it 3-4 for times in a row- this will be your chorus, and in most cases, your song title.
(Leave the lights on, we formed a band, modern art makes me want to rock out, my little brother just discovered rock & roll, and I'm considering a move to LA have all worked for Art Brut)

2. Make up a story and tell it in a spoken, conversational tone. If possible, it should be confessional and make some reference to how lucky you your are to be getting laid, or how unlucky you are not to be getting laid, or in the case of this song, how bad you are at it. This will become your verse.

3. Come up with some irresistable monster riffage behind it and some group chanted oohs and ahhs

A Little Trip To Heaven

Before Tom Waits was the junkyard growler we've come to love on stellar albums such as Swordfish Trombones, Rain Dogs, and Frank's Wild Years, he was a beatnik Cabaret act and a piano balladeer. Here's a sweet little ditty from his early demos, recorded when he was 22 years of age.

Download Little Trip to Heaven