Last month Justin Vernon of Bon Iver revealed that the band would be releasing his second album, the follow up to the bautiful “For Emma, Forever Ago”, in June. Earlier this week he released artwork, tracklisting and a little video teaser of what to expect….
It’s taken 3 years to make “Bon Iver, Bon Iver” and inbetween, the recording of the new stuff, Justin Vernon has been a very busy man. Always keeping himself on the go musically with not only his own material but guest spots with Kanye West, Anais Mitchell, All Tiny Creatures, The National etc etc. Add in his collaborative work with Gayngs and Volcano Choir and you have an insanely tight schedule. So it’s pretty fucking amazing to know that he’s put the time aside to release what is surely going to be another masterpiece under the Bon Iver name. I hope they tour this summer.
Bon Iver – Self Titled (Tracklist)
All the songs (apart from the closer Beth/Rest) are named after places.
I’m gonna do a post on the many musical adventures of Justin Vernon at some point this summer, you won’t want to miss it. Until then here’s a little reminder of THAT talent in the form of the delicate “Creature Fear”.
Tired of the same old boring Christmas songs year after year? The same songs in the same style every December? Fear no more…..
This is a Christmas mix with a little bit of a twist. Nothing too “out there” or but different enough to keep you from going insane with the sounds of X-Factor garbage or other annually released festive “songs” ringing in your ears.
The mix starts off with an epic track from Mew and goes into some Christmassy pop and funk then we head into Christmas cover territory and mix it in with some fuzz from the Crocodiles, Dum Dum Girls and a boy/girl cracker (pardon the pun) in the form of The Hives and Cyndi Lauper. After that the mood drops slightly with some more sombre and thoughtful numbers….but wait, we’re rescued by E from Eels telling everything’s gonna be cool! Then Maps serenades all the mistletoe lovers with his version of East 17’s “Stay Another Day”, Band of Horses make us glow like Christmas trees with “The First Song” then Jonah, Chino and Grady give us their take on the Band Aid classic. After that it’s time to test the ears. Can you recognise all the different versions of of “White Christmas” that Corporal Blossom has mashed together? We end with 65daysofstatic take on the same classic song. And if your brave auditory system can get through the joyous white noise you’ll be rewarded with the little Christmas bonus of Arcade Fire having fun doing a version of “Jingle Bell Rock”. Full tracklist below.
An Alternative Christmas
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1. Mew – She Came Home For Christmas
2. Best Coast and Wavves – Got Something For You
3. James Brown – Soulful Christmas
4. Summer Camp – Christmas Wrapping (The Waitresses cover)
5. Jimmy Eat World – Last Christmas (Wham cover)
6. Weezer – O’ Come All Ye Faithful (Christmas carol cover)
7. The Hives and Cyndi Lauper – A Christmas Duel
8. Death Cab For Cutie – Christmas (Baby, Please Come Home) (Darlene Love cover)
9. Crocodiles and The Dum Dum Girls – Merry Christmas (Baby, Please Don’t Die)
10. Asobi Seksu – Merry Christmas (I Don’t Wanna Fight) (The Ramones cover)
11. The Boy Least Likely To – Christmas Isn’t Christmas
12. Bon Iver – Blood Bank
13. Frightened Rabbit – It’s Christmas So We’ll Stop
14. E – Everything’s Gonna Be Cool This Christmas
15. Maps – Stay Another Day (East 17 cover)
16. Band Of Horses – The First Song
17. Far, Deftones and Will Haven – Do They Know It’s Christmas (Band Aid cover)
18. Corporal Blossom – White Christmas
19. 65daysofstatic – I’m Dreaming Of A White Noise Christmas
20. Arcade Fire – Jingle Bell Rock
or have a listen first on the Soundcloud link below and then head on over there and download it.
I made the mix 70 minutes long so that it will fit nice and snugly onto a CD and you can entertain/bore your family with it over Christmas dinner. I’ve already made a few CDs up for my friends and family.
S.I.T Wolf X
ps. I’ve had to hold off the “Are Friends….” interview with Santa till during the week. He was busy this weekend, said he was wrapping stuff up or some shit like that. Fucking amateur.
Sorry about the lack of posting over the weekend. I was away visiting my friend Keane in Dundee. I hadn’t seen him for what felt like months (in reality it was just over a month) so we spent the whole weekend catching up and going on a massive pub crawl of Dundee. When i arrived on the Friday i was greeted by Keane and his girlfriend at the bus station and then swiftly moved on to the pub then back to Keanes flat where we enjoyed the relaxation of some very smooth joints, a nearby 24 our bakery and some old classics on Spotify. On the Saturday it was just the two of us (his girlfriend was meeting a friend and staying in to watch the X-Factor) so we basically went back to what we used to do in Glasgow when we’re 18 (was that really 7 years ago?). Yep, we revisited our youth and went out to watch the early football game at half 12, played some pool, spent/lost a couple of quid in William Hills, watched all the rest of the football results come in and cursed our luck, had some food, pumped a tenner into the jukebox and simultaneously jived on the spot while propping up the bar until the small hours of the morning and then somehow managed to make a 20 minute walk back to the flat last about 2 hours! The Sunday was spent munching hangover food and then returning to the pub for a curer, a nice cold Kopparberg or two. Then it was a bus journey home for me and my iPod. I left for Dundee early on Friday afternoon and only got home to Glasgow pretty late last night so i’m still a bit tired just now, especially since i have a full week of 12 hour shifts to look forward to in work 😦
Tickety Boo’s was the pub that we frequented the most over the 3 days. It was definitely my favourite haunt of the weekend.
Dundee was a bit of a wild/blurry weekend but one that i enjoyed immensely……..even if my wallet and bank account hate me now. I’ll basically be under a self imposed house arrest until pay day now which isn’t a bad thing i suppose as it means i can get posting on here and download some new music as well. I haven’t downloaded/bought/discovered any new albums in like a week. That’s a long time for me.
On the bus journey home i finally managed to get a chance to listen to an album i got a fortnight or so ago. The album in question is “All We Grow” by S.Carey. Maybe better known as the drummer from Bon Iver to most people but not for long if he keeps providing gems like this wonderful debut. I can guarantee it’s gonna be in my end of year “Best of” list.
Also, any excuse to get Bon Iver into the post……….
I absolutely adore this track. It was the second ever song i heard by Bon Iver back in late 2007 (after Skinny Love) and it’s always had a special place in my ears. The fact that my late friend Ruari covered it a few years back gives it that extra special emotional link when i listen to it.
A few months back i randomly discovered a mash up of Bon Iver and Ellie Goulding. It’s different from most mash ups in that it’s not two different songs put together…..well kinda. It’s the original version of “Wolves Act I and II” by Bon Iver spliced together with the cover of the same song that Ellie Goulding did last year. I’ve let a few friends hear it and it seems to be quite popular so it’s about time i posted it.
I was a bit sceptical at first. I listened to both versions separately and then tried to imagine them together. To be honest i never thought it would come out anywhere near as perfect as it does when they’re matched up. I’m not Ellie Goulding’s biggest fan (i do like “Guns and Horses” though) but her vocals on the mash up version somehow bring an even more haunting dimension to the track. I mean i absolutely adore the original Bon Iver version and i prefer that to any cover or mash up but something about this particular combination of vocals is beautifully painful. Maybe they should get together and make a few albums a la Isobel Campbell and Mark Lanegan.
On the subject of Bon Iver, i think it’s about time i posted some of the remixes i have….
Most of his songs aren’t exactly ripe for remixing (i’ve tried and failed miserably) but there are a few folk out there who have made exceptional tracks.
One more thing, i read earlier tonight that Kanye West has asked Justin Vernon to contribute to his new album which is due to drop sometime this winter. Another interesting combination to say the least. I know that Vernon has dabbled with hip hop and dare i say R’n’B before, on GAYNGS creepy yet sexy debut album “Relayted”, even taking to a spot of rapping on the albums final track “Last Prom On Earth” but Kanye is a whole different prospect. I hope it works out.
The second part of the cover versions special is 60% Scottish. Mitchell Museum, WWPJ and Sons and Daughters make up the Scottish contributions, doing covers of M.I.A, Bon Iver and Adamski respectively. There is another Scottish element amongst the tracks in the form of Blue Boy, the track “Remember Me” was written by ex Shamen member Lex Blackmore and is covered here by Aussie rock troops Tame Impala. the final track is courtesy of Passion Pit, who do an outstanding version of The Cranberries hit “Dreams”.
ORIGINAL: Blue Boy – Remember Me
This is a messy yet steady cover of Blue Boy’s 97 huge pop hit. Loud and brash from the offset. The best thing i can say is that Tame Impala definitely make this song their own. That’s a compliment by the way.
MP3: Tame Impala – Remember Me
ORIGINAL: M.I.A – Paper Planes
Done for Radio 1 and Vic Galloway, this is an indie pop masterpiece. Mitchell Museum take the rhythms from the original and push them around, throw them out the window then drag them back in and in the process put their own stamp all over this. The naive, young Scottish vocals sit neatly on top of the repetitive backing beat. A strange choice as a cover but one that was carried off very uniquely and commendably. A must hear.
MP3: Mitchell Museum – Paper Planes
ORIGINAL: Adamski feat Seal – Killer
Wow. This version of the Adamski classic starts as it means to go on. It’s a sleazy, adrenaline fuelled sounding number that rumbles along nicely for the full duration of the track. It barely pauses for breath and when it does the vocals keep it going. Strong effort from the cult Scottish stars.
MP3: Sons and Daughters – Killer
ORIGINAL: Bon Iver – Blinsided
Yet another track done for Vic Galloway. There are many artists who cover Bon Iver but to be honest i never imagined We Were Promised Jetpacks would be one. When i heard about them covering this i must admit i wasn’t too confident that it’d be any good. How wrong was i? They’ve carried it off with aplomb. Showing that sometimes the unexpected can prove exciting and fresh sounding. After listening to this i could imagine it appearing on the Jetpacks debut album as one of their own tracks if i didn’t already know it was a cover.
MP3: We Were Promised Jetpacks – Blindsided
ORIGINAL: The Cranberries – Dreams
I absolutely adore this cover. The vocals of Michael Angelakos do more than justice to Dolores O’Riordans dreamy (no pun intended) work on the original. It’s more tinkly and electronic than the original but it keeps the main components together whilst adding that perfect pop factor that Passion Pit do so well. The breakdown sounds magical, i could imagine Passion Pit releasing this as a single and it doing really well. I’d love to see them make a video for it. One of the most perfect covers i’ve heard in a while. In fact i’d go as far to say that out of the 10 covers i’ve posted over the past two days this is the best by a mile.
MP3: Passion Pit – Dreams
Day 2 of Hoter Water Bottle week and i’ve splashed out on a nice new jacket for winter…..and yet another hat. I have waaaay to many hats. One thing i forgot to buy? Gloves.
Song 2/Tuesdays Song: Bon Iver – Blood Bank
Despite the song being stripped back to the bare minimum of acoustic guitar and the inimitable voice(s) of Justin Vernon it seems unbelievably full and thick and it glows with a certain feeling of Christmas style warmth. From the “ooooh”s over the intro to the lyrics about being stuck in the snow with a girl and the comforting chords. It was originally to be part of the album For Emma, Forever Ago but for what ever reason Vernon decided to leave it off and released the song officially in January this year, although if i’m honest i managed to find a leak (like most people on the blogosohere probably did) of the track in late Novemeber/early December last year and it became my un-official Christmas song of 2008. It’s the perfect song for an early winter night in with a bottle of Jack D and memories/hopes.
Pretty much everything about Bon Iver and Blood Bank points to the makings of a song to keep you warm. He seems to have an obsession with the cold right enough. For a start he recorded the debut album (and this track) in the winter in a cabin in Wisoconsin and even the name Bon Iver pretty much translates as good winter in French. But that voice is enough to warm up the coldest of winters.
Well I met you at the blood bank
We were looking at the bags
Wondering if any of the colours
Matched any of the names we knew on the tags
You said “See look at that, yours,
Stacked on top with your brothers”
“See how they resemble one anothers?
Even in their plastic little covers”
And I said “I know it well”
That secret that you know
That you don’t know how to tell
It fucks with your honor
And it teases your head
But you know that its good girl
Cause its running you with red.
Then the snow started falling
We were stuck out in your car
You were rubbing both my hands
Chewing on a candy bar
You said “Ain’t this just like the present
To be showing up like this?”
There’s a moon waning crescent
We started to kiss
And I said “I know it well”
That secret that we know
That we don’t know how to tell
I’m in love with your honor
I’m in love with your cheeks
What’s that noise up the stairs babe?
Is that Christmas morning?
Yesterday marked the first anniversary of the passing of a very dear friend of mine, Ruari McCarthy. He is greatly missed by many and left a huge gap in the lives of a lot of people. Fortunately for us he also left a huge impression and many happy memories.
I had planned to do this post last night but i had to be through in Stirling for 9pm and was rushing about after work, which reminds me, i’ll do a post on Sunday about how last nights DJ set at D.U.S.K went. I’m just not exactly in the mood for talking bout things like that tonight.
Ruari passed away on the 29th of October last year, he was just 3 weeks short of his 25th birthday. He had suffered from epilepsy and asthma from an early age and took frequent aggressive attacks from both. He always had the courage and strength to overcome these attacks, unfortunately on the night he died it was a combination of both illnesses that proved overwhelming.
Ruari was one of the most genuinely nice people you could ever wish to meet. I could go into a whole description about him and how much of a brilliant, caring person he was but to be honest i’d find it too hard to locate the words to use to describe him. I first met him in December 2006, we were introduced through a mutual friend and before you know it, by January of the following year myself and Chris had convinced him to join a music project we had (Racecar Kayak). Ruari was so much more talented at music than i first thought. I remember the first jamming session we had i had thought to myself “this guy is useless he can’t even keep in key with us”. How wrong was i?! Ruari had a unique and hidden talent that only his girlfriend Aiobfan knew about. His voice. Racecar Kayak was myself and Aiobfan on guitar, Chris on drums and Ruari on bass. We played post rock instrumental stuff, there was no singing, so little did we know what was lurking in that voice box of his. It wasn’t until summer 2007 when i went and seen him at an open mic night in Nice N Sleazys that i heard him singing for the first time. He had done two of his own songs and yes, i was impressed, really impressed, but it wasn’t until he did covers of “Lover, You Should’ve Come Over” by Jeff Buckley, “Here Comes Your Man” by The Pixies and “Glorious” by Andreas Johnson and made them his own that i thought “WOW”. I was in the midst of something special. He could go from high to baritone to whisper to scream to heartbroken to ecstatic and back again. But his voice was something that he rarely shared and like me he preferred playing instrumental music. There was a reason i liked just playing music though and not singing so much……….i can’t sing! Ruari’s decision however baffled me. Here was a guy with a truly unique voice who chose only to use it occasionally. I had tried to convince him to add vocals to a few of the Racecar Kayak demos but to no avail. We did however record a few tracks together. Sadly only two have seen the light of day. A cover we did with shared vocals and guitar of “So Real” by Jeff Buckley made a brief appearance on YouTube and an acoustic take of “Stay, I Missed You” was recorded as a birthday present for his fiancee Aiobfan in 2008 with Ruari singing and me on guitar duties.
I could go on forever with stories about Ruari and say how much i miss him and how much i miss trying to decipher his Southern Ireland accent but i won’t. Instead i’ll just say that it’s been a hard year since he died but myself and his friends and family have kept out hearts warm by reminiscing about good times we shared with him and telling stories about his Irish humour. Because of his health conditions Ruari didn’t drink much, he didn’t need to he was as fun loving and honest and open as they come but when he did drink he morphed into a stand up comedian! You couldn’t shut him and his filthy tongue up. But we all loved it that way and i wouldn’t have changed it for the world.
I’m going to post a few videos of some songs as a tribute…
The first one explains itself…
UNKLE – Heaven
Where’s the Seraphim?
Where’s the money that we made?
Where’s the open gate?
Where’s the fortune that we saved?
Heaven’s here for you and me
With every falling curl
Heaven’s here for you and me
We gained ourselves the world
Hit the Motorway
I can take it all at speed
I got everything
I got everything you need
Heaven’s here for me and you
Scattered out with pearls
Heaven’s here for me and you
We gained ourselves the world
Where’s the warrior of light?
The gates of solid gold?
Paranoia, in a fight
With dreams that never fold
Heaven’s here for me and you
Scattered out with pearls
Heaven’s here for me and you
We gained ourselves the world
Heaven’s here for me and you
We gave ourselves away..
The second video is of a song that Ruari and Aiobfan shared a mutual love for, there wasn’t much they agreed on musically!
Lighthouse Family – High
The third is a video of a band that Ruari and i discovered together by accident at a random gig one rainy night in October 2007…..the song’s called “For Jonathan” and The Album Leaf had recorded the song specifically for a family that had just lost their son. I can’t think of a better way to descibe this song than heartfelt and so i’m going to call it “For Ruari” this one time and dedicate it to him.
The Album Leaf – For Ruari
And lastly, as my own tribute to Ruari i’ve recorded a version of one his favourite songs. The last gig he ever played was in June last year at Nice N Sleazys and he played this song, i have the live recording of it from that night but for personal reasons i’m choosing not to post it. There’s only a dozen people at most who have heard it and it’s likely to stay that way cos it breaks my heart to hear it. I feel likes it the last memory i have of him and would like to keep it my own.
But anyway, here’s my version of it. I’m sorry for the quality of recording and excess noise, it was done in two 10 minute takes. I happen to be really nervous when singing and hold the microphone to close to my mouth, it’s a comfort thing but unfortunately it creates a buzzing sound. I recorded it guitar and vocal first and then tracked another vocal over the top of it. I feel more comfortable having my voice twice in songs i record, it makes me feel like i’m singing along with somebody else. Probably sounds weird to some i know but it’s the only way i can feel comfortable.
I know i’ve not exactly got the best voice but please don’t think of it as me trying to do a cover of a Bon Iver song, just listen to it for what it is, a tribute to a lost friend.
cronaím thú Ruari
S.I.T Wolf X
ps. i had planned to post a photo of Ruari but after consulting Aiobfan decided it’d be best not too.
This is a one off special post that i decided to do for my friend Emma who left to study in Aberdeen last month, i promised i would dedicate a special post to her….so after much delay and without further ado here goes…
and i couldn’t leave out one of your favourite artists, even if he does look overly sleazy in certain lingerie adverts….its the one and only Bobby Bob Bob, the Dylanator..
and two covers of that song, one which sticks reasonably close to the original by Monsters Of Folk (a supergroup of such which features Bright Eyes, M.Ward and Jim James) and another one which is very different and unique by the Secret Machines.
The college-y type sounds of a certain person that Emma has convinced me to like…
MP3: Tom Petty – Free Fallin’
A band that no matter how much Emma likes i’m afraid i never will but seeing as this post is for Emma i’m obliged to involve them..
Mp3: The Beatles – A Hard Days Night
I was having a random conversation over the weekend with a friend about the band Miike Snow and their song “Animal” and it kinda inspired me to make a list about animals and their involvement in music. Whether it be in song titles, band names or lyrics.
And i just came up with a list of Animal Related Song Titles from bands that i like. Feel free to download the songs. (remember to have patience when downloading and check the instructions on how to do it correctly!)
There’s certainly a “wolf” tone in the list but it’s not intentional, just ironic i suppose. If you can think of anymore please feel free to leave your suggestions.
Cat Power had decided to take her show a little too far
Next Monday i’m going to put up a top ten list of animal related bands. Example:- Eagles Of Death Metal.
To finish the post i thought i’d put up a video that puts a different spin on the now famous Cadburys advert featuring a Gorilla and the Phil Collins (*shivers*) song “In The Air Tonight”. I personally hated the advert but i like this version.
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Here’s the most enigmatic 51 seconds i’ve heard all year…
Someones In The Wolf 