Thursday, July 24, 2014

Shuffle Off to Buffalo (SNS 6/15-6/22/2014)


GOIN' PUBLIC:   This is my 4th "catch-up" blog as I atttempt to get to the present day.   I am writing this on July 24th, but this blog encompassed the middle of June.  I am getting there.    My three previous blogs have been brief; you can view them on my blog website.

This time around, I need to write more about the music I added, as there are stories behind these artists, many of them that I am into.     As many of you know, I started this blog back in August of 2010 as a series of Facebook notes; I did it as a way to appreciate and get into new music; something that I had been neglecting for quite awhile.     I made a playlist on my iPod of current stuff, not just new artists, but established, and in some cases, classic artists.     In addition, it would give me the opportunity to check out something new.  

One of those artists came to me just a few weeks after I started the blog; my friend Brian Sniatkowski, who was part of the inspiration when he posts his "song of the week" on his Facebook timeline, put up a new video by an L.A. outfit called Avi Buffalo.....four kids just out of high school, with somewhat of a very psychedelic pop song that their parents could have listened to.   The song was "What's In it For?".  I lvoed it, it debuted at #21 (still a record on SNS), spent five weeks at #1, and was my #2 song of 2010 (behind "Tighten Up" by The Black Keys).    Their self-titled album, on legendary label Sub Pop Records, was critically acclaimed and there were some comparisons to bands such as The Shins.   It looked like a cool future for these young talents.

Then it began to unravel.   Half of the band, including keyboardist/guitarist Rebecca Coleman, left to form another band, Pageants.      Leader Avigdor Zahner-Isenberg and Sheridan Riley remained, along with a revolving group of back-ups.   In 2011, they released a standalone single "How Come", a bit more rough and rawer than the initial song,   The song hit the SNS Top 5, but really didn't capture any more accolades.   A new album had been promised later that year, but nothing materialized.  Meanwhile, the revival of Beavis and Butt-head featured "What's In it For", with the cartoon duo lampooning it.

Well, it's 2014, and finally, we have a new album by them, At Best Cuckoid, with the lead single "So What", the to debut at another lofty position of #33.  So, how does the now-23 year old Zahner-Isenberg sound?   Well, probably somewhere in between the surreal pop of the first one and the stripped-down jaggedness of "How Come".    It is another winner, an uptempo, soulful tour-de-force, with the comparisions to bands like the Shins more realized here.   It's more guitar-driven, yet easy and laid back.     This band still has potential to get some airplay on one alternative rock station or another.     The concept of kids playing cool music is gone, and the band is basically a vehicle for him, but this is a winner.


But they are not the only SNS fave hitting my radar this week.    Fitz and the Tantrums' latest album has been out for well over a year but there have only been two singles released.  In between, I pulled out an album cut.   With a third single still not on the horizon, I am going with another track from More Than Just a Dream, "6 AM."  Another one of the more soulful cuts, the organ and bass back up Michael Fitzpatrick's (and at times, Noelle Scaggs') vocals that are reminiscent of mid-70's R&B.    A nice song.

Vampire Weekend's 2013 release, Modern Vampires of the City, hadn't impressed me too much; the two singles "Diane Young" and "Unbelievers" only topped out at #60 and #87 respectively on SNS.   But it appears the third single, the slow-going,  "Step" is going to do the trick.   It's sort of a cross between Coldplay and "Our House" by Crosby, Stills and Nash.  It pretty much tugs the heart.   It debuts at #50, already higher than the first two songs. 

Back in 2011, I wrote a blog about the unlikely music scene in Ridgewood, NJ, with bands such as Real Estate, Big Troubles, and Vivian Girls, among others.   The first two bands, I added back then, and resulted in top 10 hits on my blog chart.   As for the Vivian Girls, they fell through the cracks and were forgotten.  But wait, not so fast.    Recently, my friend Alan Corso invited a bunch of over for a "Roscoe Post-Mortem", a post camping event (remembering that we go camping every Memorial Day Weekend), and he has his usual eclectic mix of music.    Well, suddenly, this cool, retro-sounding song comes on, so I had to know what it was.    Kind of a cross between 60's girl group and 80's new wave.   Thanks to my SoundHound app on my phone, I noticed it was "Take It As It Comes' from the Vivian Girls, from back in 2011 at the heard of the Ridgewood movement.   Songs that are a few years old are still fair game; bands such as the Satelliters and Generationals have made my listen even though they are a few years old.     You haven't heard too much of the Ridgewood scene in the ensuing three years, but perhaps it's time once again to check back with it.

Finally, lost in the shuffle, not just with my new music, but apparently at Top 40 radio, too, is the new single from Maroon 5, "Maps".  The funk-rock hybrid, initially popular during the mid-2000's, enjoyed a resurgence in recent years, thanks in part to front man Adam Levine's participation as a coach in the hit series "The Voice".   It's been a couple of years since their last set, so they're due.. The tenor voice of Levine's is Front and Center.   It's one of their better effort, which probably means it won't be as successful in the pop world.   But the band has made my top 20 four times (with another just missing at #21).   Nothing groundbreaking (like their "Come Away to the Water" from the "Hunger Games" soundtrack), but an enjoyable listen.


Scenes 'n' Soundwaves 100

June 15 - 22, 2014






This Week

Last Week

ARTIST-Title

Weeks on List

1

1

NUMBER ONE:
 
 THE BLACK KEYS
"Fever"
Album: Turn Blue
(5 weeks at #1)

11

2

2

MS MR - Think of You

11

3

6

The Hounds of Winter - Amy's World

11

4

7

Junior Prom - Sheila Put the Knife Down

11

5

5

Kings of Leon - Temple

28

6

4

Pharrell Williams - Happy

17

7

8

Mac DeMarco - Chamber of Reflection

9

8

3

Foster the People - Coming of Age

22

9

10

Broken Bells - No Matter What You're Told

11

10

12

Jack White - Lazeretto

9

11

11

Lucius - Turn It Around

26

12

14

Lily Allen - Hard Out Here

7

13

17

Terraplane Sun - You Never Know

9

14

21

TOP 20 IMPACT OF THE WEEK:

 
SOMEKINDOFWONDERFUL
"Reverse"
Album: SomeKindaWonderful

7

15

9

Cage the Elephant - Take It or Leave It

15

16

28

Anna Calvi - Eliza

5

17

13

Young the Giant - Crystallized

11

18

25

Lykke Li - No Rest of the Wicked

7

19

16

Hospitality - Going Out

20

20

23

Boyce Avenue - I'll Be the One

9







21

34

Foster the People - Best Friend

5

22

37

Calvin Harris - Summer

5

23

20

Zedd f. Hayley Williams - Stay the Night

22

24

30

Arctic Monkeys - Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High

9

25

15

Fitz and the Tantrums - The Walker

32

26

27

Kongos - Come With Me Now

20

27

31

Lana Del Rey - West Coast

7

28

18

Rachel Allyn- Triggerman

20

29

22

Young the Giant - It's About Time

29

30

26

Temples - Shelter Song

21

31

39

Afghan Whigs - Algiers

13

32

19

Tired Pony - All Things All At Once

30

33
----
TOP DEBUT:
 
 AVI BUFFALO
"So What"
Album: At Best Cuckold

1

34

36

Silversun Pickups - Cannibal

21

35

63

 MOVER OF THE WEEK:

HOZIER
"Take Me To Church"
Album: Hozier

3

36

40

No - Leave the Door Wide Open

13

37

68

Tacocat - Bridge to Hawaii

3

38

24

Phantogram - Fall in Love

24

39

33

Sleeper Agent - Waves

15

40

35

Avicii - Hey Brother

21

41
----
Fitz and the Tantrums - 6Am

1

42

29

Haim - Forever

31

43

44

Kings of Leon - Wait For Me

7

44

41

Wild Club - Thunder Clatter

24

45

42

Bleachers - I Wanna Get Better

13

46

32

Caveman - Shut You Down

29

47

49

Chromeo - Jealous

11

48

54

Phantogram - Nothing But Trouble

5

49

55

Damien Jurado - Silver Timothy

11

50
----
Vampire Weekend - Step

1

51

51

Bear Hands - Giants

17

52

53

Paramore - Ain't It Fun

7

53

60

Man Man - Loot My Body

3

54

38

Wild Belle - It's Too Late

20

55

50

Band of Skulls - Hoochie Coochie

9

56
----
Vivian Girls - Take It As It Comes

1

57

45

Temples - Keep In the Dark

17

58
----
Maroon 5 - Maps

1

59

43

Hellogoodbye - Everything Is Debatable

24

60

73

Nico & Vinz - Am I Wrong

5

61

74

Dirty Heads - My Sweet Summer

3

62

79

Lorde - Glory and Gore

3

63

84

Ray LaMontagna - Supernova

3

64

52

Cherub - Doses and Mimosas

13

65

58

Brick + Mortar - Locked In A Cage

20

66

59

Haim - Falling

5

67
----
Caveman - In the City

1

68

83

Capital Cities - One Minute More

3

69

72

Katy Perry - Birthday

5

70

46

Shannon Marsyada Trio - What You Do To Me

31

71

48

Capital Cities - Kangaroo Court

27

72

70

Vance Joy - Riptide

22

73

78

Idina Menzel - Let It Go

7

74

90

The Orwells - Who Needs You

5

75
----
Rachel Allyn - Restless Times Call for Reckless Measures

1

76

88

The Neighbourhood - Let It Go

3

77

47

Birdy - Skinny Love

20

78

57

Hospitality - Rockets and Jets

17

79

71

Chvrches - Recover

7

80

77

Big Data - Dangerous

9

81

87

The War on Drugs - Red Eyes

7

82

94

The Head and the Heart - Another Story

3

83

81

Cloud Nothings - I'm Not Part of Me

13

84

92

Ingrid Michaelson - Girls Chase Boys

5

85

91

The Pretty Reckless - Heaven Knows

5

86
----
Phillip Phillips - Raging Fire

1

87

64

Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks - Lariat

22

88

62

Zedd f. Foxes - Clarity

39

89
----
Sam Smith - Stay With Me

1

90

82

Papa - Put Me to Work

17

91

86

Elbow - New York Morning

11

92

65

Bruce Springsteen - High Hopes

24

93

80

Sir Sly - Gold

11

94

89

Imagine Dragons - On Top of the World

22

95

93

Alt J - Tesselate

29

96

61

Broken Bells - Holding On For Life

28

97

75

Dum Dum Girls - Lost Boys and Girls Club

26

98

56

U2 - Invisible

17

99

66

Golden Void - Smiling Raven

15

100

69

Magic Man - Paris

13

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