So, being a teenager myself, i have read quite a lot of YA fiction (though i still have rather a lot to read). The thing i have found is that though some of those massive bestselling series like The Hunger Games and The Fault In Our Stars are brilliant, there’s a lot of other teen fiction that’s awful, like Twilight. I was thinking about how some of the most amazing books i have read over the last few years are books no-one has heard of. So here are my top ten
13. Unlucky by name. Unlucky by nature. Here are my five albums that made 2013 bearable.
1. All Fall Down – Shawn Colvin
2. Once I Was An Eagle – Laura Marling
3. Matangi – MIA
4. Purgatory/Paradise – Throwing Muses
5. Warp & Weft – Laura Veirs
Yes I have realised that this list is highly female dominant. That was completely unintended. Also I think there are many other great albums released last year, but it takes me a while to digest albums so I haven’t quite got round to listening to them and probably will at some point in the next two years
Just a quick post this week; sorry, very busy at the moment. This sounds really cringey but this week’s playlist is Break Up songs. I’ve recently just been through a particularly nasty one, so here are my five songs that helped me through
1: Change Is On The Way – Shawn Colvin
2: If You Were There, Beware – Arctic Monkeys
3: Salvage A Smile – Laura Veirs
4: Love Bites – Halestorm
5: Stongehedge – Ylvis (It’s good to laugh)
I feel like i would like to start blogging again, but apologies if it’s not very good. Every week i will post one Viewpoint, one Playlist and one Spotlight (this is liable to change). So here’s my first one, and it’s one i touched on a long time ago. WOMEN IN MUSIC.
I am playing a local gig tomorrow, where many different local bands play, and my band is the only female-dominant band playing. This makes me sad. We’re a kind of rock/punk/alternative mix, with female lead, rhythm guitar and drums, and a male bassist. The closest thing to us is a few bands who have women singing and the men playing the instruments. Unfortunately, this is reflected a lot in the music business. When I read NME, most of the bands talked about are all male or male-dominated. This makes me sad, because as much as i love (some) of those bands, i want to see more women doing their thing, in all walks of life, not just music. Young girls have a tendency to think ‘i love music, but i’ll just stick with singing or following the bands around.’ Personally, i can’t sing without wanting to accompany myself. If i hear a song i love, i’ll want to know how to play it as well as listening to it over and over.
All too often, the fact the it is such a male industry makes it hard for women in the music business. Katie White, of The Ting Tings, said about her experiences with record labels:
“The first marketing meeting we had with our last label, I’d gone to all the effort of making a look book of all my favorite art and photographs, just to show them what I’m about. And I took it in and they said, ‘Oh, yeah, great…’ They didn’t even look at it, just pushed it to one side and asked if I was prepared to take my kit off for men’s magazines. And I was like, Aaargh! I would feel terrible doing that – I could never do it in a million years.”
This is one of the ways that women are put down in the industry. People want to use sex to sell things, and yes, this does happen with men, but it’s become the norm with females in the music industry. People think to sell you have to be sexual, good-looking and available. In reality it is not the case. Take the single cover for Burn by Ellie Goulding. This song was a number one, sold extremely well, because people liked the song, it’s a catchy pop number. Yet somehow there is still a need for Goulding to pose sexually in a revealing, can i call it, dress?
Finally, i’ll leave you with a quote from Sheila Chandra, which sums up what i am trying to say:
“There is this attitude of ‘sound pretty, be accessible and don’t be dangerous, or we wont call you dangerous we’ll call you mad, and that way we can say your work isn’t worth anything. You’re a woman, you’re not supposed to be like that!'”
“When did you start seeing black
Was it all the good you felt you lacked
Was it all the weight riding on your back
When did you start seeing black”
This is such a powerful song. I saw Lucinda Williams play this live with her band in November, and she was like a true rockstar. It just pulls something inside you.
“Did you feel your act was a final truth
A dramatic end to a misspent youth
Did you feel you had all the proof
Did you feel your act was a final truth”
And yes, it is about suicide
This book. Amazing. Colvin tells the story in such a straightforward, honest way that is actually truly addictive. She doesn’t dwell on things and you’ll find yourself on a completely different subject by the end of the chapter.
I’ve always loved Shawn Colvin, but this book just strengthened my affection for her. Many problems, situations and things that happen in her life are things I can completely relate to. She portrays a wonderful character, one I’m sure many people will begin to admire. But’s it’s her unorthodoxness, her struggles and the way she addresses them that does it for me
Has anyone else noticed a lack of punk girl bands around? As a fan of the original Slits line up, punk is something I love. I think it’s a really important part of music culture, especially female punk groups.
A few months ago, I went to a pussy riot fundraiser gig, and I saw a really good band called skinny girl diet. Ok, so it was very loud (But that’s what punk’s about!) and you could not hear a word they were singing (Well, mostly screaming), but all these things made the band more attractive to me. I then went home, followed them on soundcloud, and eventually downloaded their demo. Their tunes, such as dimethyltryptamine and Eyes That Paralyze are truly infectious. Some, like Homesick, just make your head jerk up and down like crazy, like true punk should. Sometimes people look at me funny, if I’m in a public place and listening to their demo, because I probably look like a demented maniac! Female music is so important and often so good! Bring back female punk, I say
You can buy skinny girl diet’s demo at http://www.milk-records.co.uk/index.php?/bands/skinny-girl-diet/
1.11.12
On Monday 22nd October, Shawn Colvin and Mary Chapin Carpenter performed at the Royal Festival Hall in London. I was very lucky that night, as I got to go and see them. While ‘Interested’ in Mary Chapin Carpenter’s performance, the person I really came to see, was Shawn Colvin, one of my heroes. It was amazing to finally see her in the flesh, and it was a stunning performance, as always. Trouble was mind-blowing. However, I feel there was too much of Mary Chapin Carpenter. I suppose if you came for her, you would probably be completely satisfied. But I didn’t, I came for Shawn Colvin. So it’s nobodies fault.
However, I still really enjoyed the evening. So good to finally see her.
Oh, and in case your wondering, this blog is not written by Nick Reynolds
Kristin Hersh and Emotions
“All girls cry
Like i said, I don’t know why”
Teeth, Hips and Makers
This week i’ve been listening to Kristin Hersh’s first solo album, Hips And Makers, and there are absolutely no words to describe it, so i’m going to use emotions instead.
Music makes people do crazy things, and this album (and Kristin Hersh in general) really makes me feel, well, Crazy. They make you feel kind of restless inside. Some songs lift you up, some bring you crashing down giddily, but not one of them is short of a crazy energy.
“Look at me cross-eyed and I don’t know what to do
No I don’t know what to do
Crazy loon”A Loon
They stir up something inside me, love and hate and every emotion resonating through every note, every beat. Only true music does this.
“I am turning up in circles
And i’m spinning on my knuckles”
The Letter
When I listen to these songs, it’s as if there’s something that wants to be unleashed. The only way i can free this wild spirit is if I pick up the guitar and play. Be taken away by the music. This is truly love.
“When I kiss the angel
I have a taste of you”
Me And My Charms
I find it hard to express these feelings. That’s why I have this blog. I don’t really know anyone who loves music like this, let alone know who Kristin Hersh is. But the feeling is too strong to be contained.
“You can’t let any more skin show
You can’t let any thing in your eyes showOh no no no”
Sundrops
When I hear the beginning of Sundrops, I can’t stop myself from smiling. It just triggers that feeling again. There’s no point fighting.
“Oh no, don’t you put me in that box
You know what you can do with those locks
Bet your life I’ll come crawling out again
You’ll have to deal with me then”
Houndini Blues
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PS Kristin Hersh’s amazing book, Paradoxical Undressing has been optioned for filmaking! I could not take my eyes off the book, but depends who makes the film, it could go either way
PPS. You can hear my covers of songs from this album and other Kristin Hersh/Throwing Muses songs at http://soundcloud.com/ilovethesound
” If only for a minute or two
I wanna see what it feels like to be without you
I wanna know the touch of my own skin
Against the sun, Against the wind
Side Of The Road
This week’s lyric is from Lucinda Williams self-titled album. Side Of The Road is a beautiful song, and one I’ve always felt related to everyone. It’s also incredibly catchy.
“It only means I need a little time
To follow that unbroken line
To a place where the wild things grow
To a place where I used to always go”
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