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February 21, 2009 | Filed Under Main, Music | 2 Comments

Happy birthday to me.

National Day is coming up next week, which means a four day weekend. So I’m celebrating the holiday and my birthday in Paris with Kerry. Winter rates are EXCELLENT in this economy. I must say, it will be nice to eat cooked Food again. I am living like a bachelor, after all.

Jeff Beck – “Performing The Week – Live at Ronnie Scott’s” This is a recent concert at the famed jazz club in London. He sounds pretty good for an old man and the backing band is great.
The Charlatans – “Melting Pot” A greatest hits collection that shows more sides than just the single (The Only One) and more chops than Oasis had on their best day.
Gun Club – “Miami” and “Death Party” One of my fave 80s bands. Voodoo punk blues.
Sigur Rós – “ ( ) “ That’s the title of the album. The tracks have no names – just numbers. But it’s beautiful music. Ambient folk techno prog – Isn’t the whole point of Sigur Rós to always be different? One reviewer I read claimed to wish that they would stop trying to reinvent the wheel with every record. I don’t listen to them a lot, but this record is worth the cash.
Scott Walker – “Tilt” Speaking of different… I decided to go into the only used CD store I can find in Kuwait. It’s been more than a few months, but you need to give them this time in the hopes that something new will show up. I think I freak them out a bit with my bin to bin searches – but I’m a professional. This is a mission I do not take lightly. For the most part, there was nothing really new (though I did snag the Charlatans CD and something by Duke Robillard). Then this showed up. I didn’t know anything about Scott Walker except the name and that he had been around since the 60s. This disc is from 1995 – it turns out one of three he has recorded in the past 25 years. Noel Scott Engel was born in Ohio, started a band in Los Angeles and it hit big in the UK. The Walker Brothers (none brothers, none named Walker) scored with The Sun Ain’t Gonna Shine Anymore and a number of other pop hits. Then Scott set out on his own with four critically acclaimed solo records. Most of the songs were covers – focusing on Jacques Brel tunes – but there were a number of self penned songs as well. Drugs and fame caused him to disappear a few times over the years – and he’s not doing pop tunes anymore.

“Tilt” is unique. Almost an operetta. Very serious stuff. The lyrics are fractured poems. The instrumentation diverse. And his voice is an amazing instrument. Warm and eerie at the same time. This isn’t a Tom Waits voice nor a Nick Cave voice. This is an epic voice – full and frightening. That may not be the right word, but I would imagine the voice of the angel Gabriel might be like this. The album is dark, but also beautiful. Songs like Farmer In The City and Rosary are the most accessible. The lyrics are wild with images. The song Bolivia 95 has a chorus that goes “Lemon Bloody Cola/Gonna sponge you down”. It’s not an easy listen because it demands your attention. I truly like the record, but if it came up randomly on the shuffle, I would have to skip it. You can’t do a quick swim in the deep end. Someone wrote that Walker’s music sounds like a Francis Bacon painting. A weird find in a strange place…

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2 comments so far
  1. jewaira March 1, 2009 8:29 am

    Where is the used CD shop in Kuwait?

  2. mburma March 1, 2009 1:45 pm

    Jewaira – The CD shop is on Salem Al Mobarak Street. I’m not great with directions but – it is in a white, open shopping complex almost directly across from the Eureka electronics shop. There’s a big empty lot next to it and further up is Al Fanar. The building has a Starbucks on the left corner and a sporting goods store on the right. But past them – in the far right corner – is a DVD/CD shop. The store also has some interesting DVDs.