Music – Zachary Mule

KEEPING THE LEGACY ALIVE: SONS OF CREAM LIVE PREVIEW

SONS OF CREAM (KOFI BAKER) (uncredited publicity photo)

The terms “power trio” and “supergroup” were coined to describe Cream. Eric Clapton was already regarded as one of the best guitar players in the world (London’s walls would occasionally feature graffiti claiming “Clapton Is God” in the mid-1960s), while both mutli-instrumentalist Jack Bruce and drummer Ginger Baker both had formal training as Jazz musicians before joining Blues Incorporated in 1962. Baker and Bruce, though they argued and fought continually, somehow managed to end up playing together in a number of groups until they decided to meld their considerable Jazz chops with Clapton’s heavy Blues style to form the crushingly formidable group Cream in 1966. The band recorded four albums before breaking up in 1968, leaving an indelible mark on popular music that is as strong today as it was then.

CREAM Farewell Concert, Royal Albert Hall, 26 November 1968 (JACK BRUCE, GINGER BAKER, ERIC CLAPTON) (photo credit: RAY STEVENSON/SHUTTERSTOCK)

There are a lot of bands that could be considered as “sons of Cream,” power trios and other groups with bonafide chops that made Cream such a powerhouse musical entity; there is only one, however, who can call themselves Sons of Cream. And they have the pedigree to prove it: Kofi Baker, the son of Ginger and Malcolm Bruce, Jack’s son, have teamed up with guitarist Rob Johnson (keeping it all in the family, Rob is a grandnephew of Ginger Baker) to celebrate the music and the legacy of Cream. “With a name like Rob Johnson, you really can’t go wrong, right?,” Kofi quipped in reference to legendary Bluesman Robert Johnson who wrote “Crossroads,” during a recent interview to preview the trio’s upcoming tour stop at the iconic Wildey Theatre in Edwardsville, Illinois.

SONS OF CREAM (MALCOLM BRUCE, KOFI BAKER) (photo credit: ROGER BROOKS PHOTOGRAPHY)

We discussed how Ginger (and Jack, as well) was essentially a Jazz player who could articulate the music in a much different fashion than a standard-issue rock drummer and how that finesse plays an important role in his style, as well: “You’ve got to come check this band out because we’re playing the music the way they played it, but you’ve got better sound quality now so you can actually hear it better.” As Baker discussed the similarities (non-musical, as well as musical) between his Dad’s group and his band, mentioning how he and Malcolm argue and fight just like their fathers did throughout their careers, he added, “But, also, you gotta check this band out because I don’t know how long this band is gonna stay together.”

Kofi mentioned that aside from playing songs from the Cream catalog, he, Johnson and Bruce would also be playing some tunes from Blind Faith, the post-Cream band that features Ginger and Eric Clapton. He also wanted to point out that Sons of Cream were also writing new music. “The whole point of Sons of Cream was that we are writing original stuff. I mean, I actually wrote an original album with Rob Johnson, the guitar player, before Malcolm joined the band.” Additionally Baker discussed recording some music after the tour. “We are writing original music, as well, and we’re actually doing a record deal in England after this tour and we’re going to do an album. We’re going to do half and half. We’re going to do half Cream songs and half originals, which is basically what Cream did. Cream, you know, did originals and covers.” “The idea, as we progress, is we might start writing more new Cream songs… Keep the legacy going and keep that genre of music going where it’s a lot more improvised.”

He also wanted everyone to know that Sons of Cream is not a tribute band. “Like I say, it’s not a tribute band, it’s a legacy band called Sons of Cream and what we’re trying to do is keep that genre of music, that legacy… our legacy alive. We wanna play and do new stuff and mix it all up and, you know, keep the whole thing going… get it to the masses, to the young people. I just want the young people to experience music that’s not so contrived.”

SONS OF CREAM (KOFI BAKER, MALCOLM BRUCE, ROB JOHNSON) (photo credit: INDIA SCARLET/THE WATERFRONT NORWICH)

Kofi Baker and Sons of Cream roll into Edwardsville on Saturday, February 22 for what promises to be a fun and – possibly – volatile night of music, keeping the legend and the legacy of Ginger Baker, Jack Bruce and Eric Clapton alive. For more tour dates and more information about the band, go to their website; for ticket info and directions to the Wildey, please visit the venue’s site. See you there!

TAYLOR SWIFT: THE ERAS TOUR

(25 October, 2024; CAESARS SUPERDOME, New Orleans LA)

A JOURNEY THROUGH TIME, MUSIC AND CONNECTION WITH SARAHLINDA TWENTE

When I first heard that Taylor Swift was embarking on the ERAS TOUR, I was immediately transported back to childhood – riding in the back of my dad’s car, singing along to “Our Song” on a CD. At six years old, I had no idea how Taylor’s music would become a constant presence in my life, accompanying me through heartaches, losses, and moments of joy. As I grew, her music grew with me, providing a soundtrack for nearly every chapter of my journey. For younger fans, the way they experience Taylor’s music might look different – streaming songs on playlists instead of popping in CDs. But the connection remains the same. Her music has been a soundtrack for so many, spanning generations and providing a sense of shared experience across time and space.

TAYLOR SWIFT: THE ERAS TOUR (photo credit: SOPHIA GERMER/THE TIMES-PICAYUNE NOLA.COM)

The ERAS TOUR wasn’t just about hearing Taylor’s hits – it was an emotional journey. My first show, in Kansas City, was one of the best nights of my life, but the second time I saw her, in New Orleans, felt even more profound. As I looked out at the sea of fans, mostly women, I felt an overwhelming sense of unity. In a time of uncertainty, it was a powerful reminder of what we can do together – through music, through strength, and through shared experience. For many of us, Taylor Swift’s music has been a constant companion through the ups and downs of life. Her lyrics have helped us heal, inspired us to be brave, and given us the courage to keep going. But the ERAS TOUR brought something new – a sense of collective power. Inside the walls of Caesar’s Superdome, we were all ONE. It was one of those moments in life where you aren’t just surviving – you are living.

Author SARAHLINDA TWENTE with her Dad, MICHAEL, at the TAYLOR SWIFT show in New Orleans (uncredited photo)

Sharing the concert with my dad added another layer of emotion. As mentioned previously, he’d played Taylor’s music for me when I was a child and now, at 24, I was singing along beside him in the presence of Ms Swift herself. That moment – sitting together, as we had when I was young – reminded me that Taylor’s music isn’t just about the lyrics, it’s about time and the way it can pull us back to moments we thought we’d lost, but also carry us forward into new ones.

One of the most magical elements of the night in New Orleans was the light-up bracelets handed out at the start. As the music played, these bracelets flickered in sync with the beats, creating a visual display that made the whole arena feel connected. I found myself dancing along with my dad, who was grooving to “You Belong With Me” – a highlight I never saw coming and that will forever be etched into my memory. Each show, Taylor surprises fans with a couple of songs not typically on the set list. As a die-hard SPEAK NOW fan, hearing “Haunted” live was a dream come true. The notes of the song, paired with the crowd’s energy, turned it into a moment that felt almost otherworldly.

The ERAS TOUR was a celebration of togetherness. Taylor’s music has always been about resilience, and the energy in the arena provided proof of such. Thousands of fans, all singing, dancing, and celebrating together, felt like a collective statement: We are stronger when we stand together. In the midst of the upcoming election, anxiety and fear was no stranger. For me, the experience of attending this concert was a gentle reminder that no matter what life brings, there is power in community, and there is nothing we can’t do when we unite. The ERAS TOUR was a reflection of resilience, girlhood, and the incredible power of women. As I sang alongside thousands of others, I realized just how much Taylor’s music has given us – a shared space where we can heal, celebrate, and empower one another. It was more than just a concert; it was a reminder of the power of connection and the timeless impact of music. And right at the core of this impact, you have Taylor Alison Swift.

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI Live Music Reviews Music Features/Interviews | Sarahlinda Twente | January 13, 2025 | Community Country Music Experiences Live Music Music New Orleans Pop Music Pop Rock Rock and Roll Taylor Swift THE ERAS TOUR

A COMPLETE UNKNOWN

(SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES/WALT DISNEY STUDIOS/TSG ENTERTAINMENT/VERITAS ENTERTAINMENT/WHITE WATER/RANGE MEDIA PARTNERS/THE PICTURE COMPANY/TURNPIKE FILMS(141 minutes; Rated R); 2024)

Biopics are always fraught with possible problems, among them an army of fans and pundits waiting to pounce on every historical inaccuracy and to analyze the actors playing the key figures, judging whether or not they did an authentic enough job portraying those figures… an especially opinionated exercise when it comes to MUSICAL biopics. Sometimes there is general agreement that the film did a good job (recent biopics on Ray Charles, Elton John and Queen, for example). And sometimes a film in this category flames out so quickly, hardly anyone even bothers to see it (anyone remember that Bowie film a couple of years ago that couldn’t even get the rights to use most of Bowie’s music?). James Mangold, the director of the superb new Bob Dylan biopic A COMPLETE UNKNOWN, is clearly aware of the burden placed on him to credibly tell the story of a true musical icon… he’s braved these waters before with his Johnny Cash film, WALK THE LINE, which mostly won audiences and critics over, despite some liberties taken here and there with facts. Mangold had his two main stars in that film do their own singing, a challenging task for Joaquin Phoenix, who played the man in black, and Reese Witherspoon, who delivered an Oscar-winning performance as June Carter. But Mangold did an impressive job selecting the parts of that story he wanted audiences to see, and using the enduring collaboration and initially iffy romance between Cash and Carter as his cinematic throughline, an artistic decision that worked quite well.

A COMPLETE UNKNOWN (MONICA BARBARO, TIMOTHEE CHALAMET) (screenshot)

All of this is to say that Mangold had an even loftier task bringing the story of the legendary Bob Dylan to life; Dylan is one of the most important and influential singer/songwriters of all time, and every music fan in the world over a certain age knows SOMETHING about the performer and has impressions (and favorite periods) developed over more than a half century of pop culture evolution. How could you make a worthy film about a musician who meant so much to so many, and still does? Well, two key decisions pointed the way: one was to focus entirely on Dylan’s first five years, when he made the biggest splash as the Greenwich Village “folkie” inconoclast who changed the rules and forced a debate about Folk music versus Rock and Roll to come to the surface, most notably at the infamous Newport Folk Festival. The second decision was to find the right actor to play Mister Zimmerman (Timothee Chalamet, simply superb) and have a good part of the script deal with two key women in Dylan’s first phase: Joan Baez (played here by Monica Barbaro) and Sylvie Russo (a character based on the real-life Suze Rotolo, an artist and activist Dylan was romantically involved with for a while and is pictured with him on the cover of his debut, THE FREEWHEELIN’ BOB DYLAN). Elle Fanning plays that role in the film with charm and often heartbreaking vulnerability. Anyway, A COMPLETE UNKNOWN does an effective job alternating scenes of Dylan singing his powerhouse and emotive songs and building an awestruck following in the process, with scenes showing his interactions with the already established Joan Baez (who inevitably falls for him after seeing his charisma and obvious talent) and the slightly more angsty young artist who shares his bed. It’s hard to just concisely sum up how well this movie delivers on these things. Chalamet is an absolute marvel, able to capture enough of Dylan’s early originality and relentless drive to convince you that you’re really in the presence of this legendary (and often prickly) performer, who simply will NOT reveal all his secrets or willingly be told what to do. I was frankly in AWE much of the time of Chalamet’s singing and successful portrayal of the inscrutable personality quirks that history has shown Dylan to always have had. You get whole songs sometimes and partial performances at other times, but it ALWAYS sounds authentic, with a handful of moments truly standing out musically, among them “Song for Woody” (a tune Dylan wrote for Woody Guthrie, who is seen ailing in a hospital bed early on when the young Bob visits and encounters Woody and fellow folk icon Pete Seeger (Edward Norton), “Girl From the North Country,” “Blowin’ In the Wind,” “The Times They Are A-Changin’,” and at least the first portion of “Highway 61 Revisted,” which is killer and I wish the film HAD given us the full song. I was personally absolutely riveted by every single scene showing Dylan interacting with Joan Baez, as I have some knowledge of that part of the story, and Baez was an early favorite of my late brother. Baez tires of Dylan’s abrasiveness and self-centered manner, flatly stating in one scene, “You’re kind of an asshole, Bob.” It’s absolutely not in the cards for these two very serious musicians to truly gel romantically, but they can’t avoid or ignore each other during this period. When they duet on an absolutely stunning live performance of Dylan’s song “It Ain’t Me Babe” at Newport, the way it is filmed and the subtext of the lyrics results in one of the most singular and memorable musical performances ever put on film. Seriously, I got chills from this scene, and the way Barbaro looks at Chalamet’s Dylan with a combination of respect for his immense talent and knowing sadness that he is ultimately sort of “unreachable,” is cinema magic. I loved Barbaro’s performance, and I loved the script, truthfully. There are so MANY moments that felt right to me as both a musician myself and a longtime observer of pop culture and the ever-changing music industry. You get plenty of scenes dealing with the industry’s attempt to capitalize on Dylan’s talent, by the way, and to reign in his sometimes unruly ways, culminating in the widely known controversy when Dylan “went electric” at the Newport Festival. It’s all engrossing stuff. And I can’t leave out Edward Norton’s solid performance as Pete Seeger… he’s our guide to the role that folk music was playing in the culture in the early ‘60s, an admirer (and mentor at times) of the stunning young talent who quickly starts changing the musical landscape Seeger has been a part of for so long, and the wise veteran who knows how songs can unite people in uncertain times (made clear by scenes showing the nuclear confrontation between the US and Soviet Union and growing civil unrest, something the Sylvie character addresses), but is concerned that Dylan may DIVIDE, rather than unite the audience.

A COMPLETE UNKNOWN (CHARLIE TAHAN, TIMOTHEE CHALAMET, ELI BROWN ) (screenshot)

That actually DID happen for a short time, but it’s quite clear that Dylan was simply ahead of the curve, and was too important and effective a songwriting voice to be held back by ANYONE… whether established peers like Baez and Seeger, his manager Albert Grossman (Dan Fogler) and other industry types invested in him, or an audience sometimes not willing to initially go along with the “new sounds” and aesthetic that Dylan was determined to explore. The film ends with Dylan heading off down the road on his trusty motorcycle, and we all know that the musician was soon to have a serious accident that would lay him up for a significant period and result in significant changes in his music. But I absolutely found myself feeling that A COMPLETE UNKNOWN had made almost all the right decisions: WHEN to begin the story (there is nothing about Dylan’s childhood, for example, something I’ve read a bit of grumbling about), when to end it, and how his music – and personality – significantly affected both those around him and those in his audience. You’re plunked down, as a viewer, into the middle of a vibrant Greenwich Village scene, and you’re given enough of a legendary artist’s music, impact and mysteriously insular nature, to gain fresh insight into how Dylan changed things, as well as to feel like you’ve time traveled a bit. I was consistently riveted by A COMPLETE UNKNOWN, and truly emotionally stirred by most of its scenes. Yes, it’s a terrific musical biopic. But even more, it’s a significant piece of cinema and possibly the best film James Mangold has directed (kudos also to his co-screenwriter Jay Cocks). Offhand, I can’t think of a better and more significant cinematic tale of how a musician came to change the world and remained mysterious and unpredictable throughout. Look for some Oscar nominations and plenty of revived interest in this Dylan fellow… I hear he is still around and doing things that people still argue about to this day.

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI HEY, MA! WATCH THIS Movies | Kevin Renick | January 8, 2025 | A COMPLETE UNKNOWN Albert Grossman Biopic Blues Rock Bob Dylan Classic Rock Dan Fogler Edward Norton Elle Fanning Folk Music Greenwich Village James Mangold Jay Cocks Joan Baez Monica Barbaro Movie Music Newport Folk Festival Pete Seeger Rated R Rock and Roll Theatrical Release Timothee Chalamet Woody Guthrie

BECKY AND THE BIRDS: ONLY MUSIC MAKES ME CRY NOW

(4AD RECORDINGS; 2024)

Before I attempt to justify my opinion that this Swedish artist has made one of the absolute best albums of the year, let me provide some context. While I have been a music reviewer for a few decades now, the most magical period of doing so was roughly from 2002 to 2008. In that first decade of the new millennium, I was a co-editor of PLAYBACK STL (which had a print edition for half a dozen years), a contributing writer to fLUSH (the predecessor of ZACHARY MULE, which you are reading right now), and a contributor to an all-Scandinavian review zine called IT’S A TRAP. I became something of a Nordic obsessive, kicked off initially by my adoration for the Norwegian girl trio Ephemera and fueled by other singular artists such as Stina Nordenstam, Bol, Maria Solheim, Efterklang and too many others to mention. I developed a theory that something in the cultural DNA of the Scandinavian countries resulted in a music-making process and production aesthetic that was substantially different from what we’re used to in America. Intimate, close-mic’d vocals and emotive detail in both performance and overall arrangement were two of the stylistic traits, I felt, and album after album bore me out on that. I fell in love with the sound, and though the industry and music zines overall would take major hits in the millennium’s second decade, I would never forget the musical bliss I experienced for some wonderful years.

BECKY AND THE BIRDS (THEA GUSTAFSSON) (photo credit: OSCAR LINDQVIST)

Becky and the Birds, the artistic moniker of inventive Swedish “songbird” Thea Gustafsson, have just released their debut, ONLY MUSIC MAKES ME CRY NOW, and it is an absolute sonic tour de force. Had this album come out back in the IT’S A TRAP days, I would’ve raved about it and tried to find a few similar artists to compare it to. But here and now, in 2024, this thing strikes me as one of the most crazily original platters to come along in years. And it’s just what I needed in this post-election nightmare when nothing makes sense anymore, up is down and black is white. What we have here is an adventurous, largely electronica-based cut-and-paste surge of energetic short songs led by a creatively driven young woman who’s been honing her compositional skills and production techniques for some years, and is now ready to serve us this heaping platter of stunningly original gems to help lighten our load, as she’s clearly done for herself. A strong sense of melancholy runs through this thing, and it struck me at times as a dedicated attempt to explore the dream state, or perhaps remain IN it, during the aftermath of some kind of chaos or pain. Every song moves past quickly and is PACKED with musical details, such as the beautiful piano chord progression in “I Made My Baby Cry” (and first use of real harmonies on the disc) to the low-level pulse that precedes an actual beat in “Everything” (where you hear the word “Damn!” uttered twice and the title repeated multiple times), to the hypnotic totality of “When She Holds Me,” one of the album’s true gems, where the repeated simple guitar chords and ethereal rise of wordless vocals are truly mesmerizing. Gustafsson’s lyrics are not always genuinely clear, but I think I heard the line “The world is wishing me well” in this entrancing song, and it struck me as poignant.

BECKY AND THE BIRDS (THEA GUSTAFSSON) (uncredited photo)

I wrote down the phrase “skittering, erratic currents of electronic sound” to attempt to sum up the musical approach on this album. Loops are employed regularly but are sometimes interrupted by other loops or sounds or Gustafsson’s own vocals, which by nature of being distinctly airy, sweet and sometimes haunted-sounding, provide a memorable counterpoint to the often technology-driven arrangements here. “To Trust You” is a video available to follow lyrically on the Birds’ website… there’s some distortion here and there, but you can clearly hear Gustafsson singing “If it happened once/Why wouldn’t it happen twice?” and this is thematically one of a number of songs dealing with relationship fallout and heartache. In the track “I Look At the Choices I Made,” the weirdness of both the vocals and arrangement gave me the impression that our singer cannot actually ARTICULATE those choices in a normal “conversational” manner, so she’s letting the music convey how tough that is. And in “London Is Not the Same” (the second supercool song of the year to express a personal change because of the U.K’s biggest city, the other tune being Taylor Swift’s haunting “So Long London”), the soundscape is flat-out weird and genuinely melodic in equal measure, something I quite enjoyed. You won’t learn WHY London is different now according to Gustafsson, but no matter… everything about this track is utterly compelling. So is “Anymore,” with its five-tone sequence played at the lower end of the keyboard preceding Gustafsson’s buoyant vocal, “I Made My Baby Cry” (which hardly needs many other lyrics to drive its mournful point home), the almost normal-sounding “Elsa 4-Ever” with its uncharacteristically solitary guitar picking in the background and a clear upfront vocal, and the remarkable “Celebrity//Don’t Leave,” a song that really got to me and that I should have listened to several more times before writing this review. My lord, this is one of the most original compositions I’ve heard in a couple of years. And Gustafsson sings it with some of the most bracing, powerhouse vocals ever laid down in this modern era. In the early part of the song, some of her phrasing is vaguely reminiscent of FOLKLORE-era Taylor Swift, an impression heightened by a male vocal offering counterpoint in the song briefly. “Take some time,” Gustafsson starts to sing, with an uncertain follow-up after. We soon get almost a literal spigot of unusual musical ideas flowing, spreading, forming puddles of sound you are trying to let your ears maneuver through until it all ends, in devastating manner, with her singing “Don’t leave me like this” several times, with the final one being stark and somber. I’m not sure I have heard a minute on ANY recent album as overpowering as this; it’s right up there with Taylor’s “How much sad did you/Think I had?” on her TORTURED POETS… album.

Becky and the Birds, just wow. I am deeply grateful to Thea and her focused, self-aware musical exploration on this debut for giving me the sensation of getting IMMERSED in and haunted by a new album again; it hasn’t happened for a while. This is incredibly original music, my friends… while it has elements of electronica, old-school R&B and even Hip-Hop in a few places, I can safely say you’ve never heard anything like this before. It’s music made, I think, out of chaos and pain, with a sense that the biggest things we want to say in life… out of lost love, a sense of helplessness, a sense of extreme hurt and disbelief and more… perhaps can’t really be said completely. There are only FRAGMENTS of emotion possible, tossed-off comments, and the dream state, where deep wishes collide with nightmares and unendurable sorrows. I can’t know exactly what Thea Gustafsson has been through anymore than she can know the anguish I have felt for months, myself. But I can nod, knowingly at her declaration that “Only music can make me cry now.” And let me add that I have a feeling only THIS music will make me tear up for a while… it’s beautiful, unsettling, crazy, non-linear and deeply soothing all at the same time. Becky and the Birds have truly made one of the most distinctive albums of the year… it has helped me FIND a little something that I had lost in myself, and I am grateful.

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI Music Reviews | Kevin Renick | December 2, 2024 | Becky and the Birds Dance Music Electronica Music Pop Music Rock and Roll Streaming Video Sweden Swedish Pop Thea Gustafsson

TALKING HEADS: TALKING HEADS 77

(RHINO RECORDS/SIRE RECORDS; 2024 box set reissue)

Not many New Wave bands of the ‘70s and ‘80s have the sterling reputation and dedicated fan base of Talking Heads. There are reasons for that. The quartet – lead singer and guitarist David Byrne, ace rhythm section Chris Frantz on drums and wife Tina Weymouth on bass, and multi-instrumentalist (often keyboard player) Jerry Harrison – had uncommonly good instincts, just the right amount of quirky unpredictability in their music, and the good fortune to do their most significant collaborations with other master artists (Brian Eno and filmmaker Jonathan Demme among them). I can’t think of another band from their era whose first five albums are all brilliant, fresh and still intoxicating to listen to, and sealed their reputation by making what is likely the greatest concert film of all time (STOP MAKING SENSE, which Demme directed), a giddily thrilling piece of work that was recently reissued to universal acclaim. Many bemoan the fact that the group called it quits in the late ‘80s due to Byrne’s restlessness and desire to go it alone, but this ensured that they would never become a watered-down or compromised musical entity, and that the reverence for their eight studio albums and two superb live albums would endure. T Heads fans are DEVOTED, and only some inter-band sniping here and there about perfectly understandable differences, caused some to scratch their heads in dismay.

TALKING HEADS (JERRY HARRISON, CHRIS FRANTZ, TINA WEYMOUTH, DAVID BYRNE) (photo copyright: MICK ROCK ESTATE)

While the Heads have been anthologized a few different times, a proper box set reissue of their first album TTALKING HEADS 77 is a welcome and wondrous release. The four-disc set comes with a handsome book that features essays by each member about the early days and the circumstances behind the recording of this album, with Tina Weymouth’s lengthy piece being particularly detailed and illuminating. The original album has been remastered beautifully… the innovative arrangements on stunning songs like “New Feeling,” “Tentative Decisions,” the utterly peerless “No Compassion” (one of my personal favorite songs of their early period) and the completely original “First Week, Last Week… Carefree” sparkle with clarity and musical pizzazz. You can marvel all over again at Weymouth’s distinctive bass, the disciplined arrangements and, of course, David Byrne’s undeniable attention-getting vocals and lyrics. The guy was and remains a stunningly original creative visionary. And yes, it’s fun to imagine those early CBGB’s attendees getting to hear “Psycho Killer” in its infancy, though it sounds fa-fa-fa-fa better here.

TALKING HEADS Live at CBGB’s, 3 March 1977 (JERRY HARRISON, CHRIS FRANTZ, DAVID BYRNE, TINA WEYMOUTH) (photo credit: EBET ROBERTS/GETTY IMAGES)

But speaking of the famed Bowery venue where the Heads and other legendary artists got their start, there’s an entire disc here that captures the group’s final appearance at the club. It sounds marvelous, actually… not tinny or inferior in any way. Byrne energetically shouts out the name of most of the songs in his inimitable manner (“The name of this song is ‘Don’t Worry About the Government!’”) and yells “Thank you!” to the excited crowd afterwards. You can definitely feel the vibe of the tiny but historic locale. And the highlights are many from this performance: I particularly dug such numbers as “Take Me to the River,” the rare “A Clean Break,” “Thank You For Sending Me an Angel,” “Pulled Up” and “Stay Hungry.” The band were totally ON IT here, probably very well-rehearsed knowing this was for a radio broadcast. A third disc in this set is a welcome collection of rarities and alternate takes, including “Sugar On My Tongue,” “Love (Goes To) Building On Fire” (their first single), “I Wish You Wouldn’t Say That” and two alternate takes of “Psycho Killer” among other cool cuts. And the obligatory but still great 5.1 surround mix for Blu-Ray rounds things out.

TALKING HEADS (DAVID BYRNE, JERRY HARRISON, CHRIS FRANTZ, TINA WEYMOUTH on THE TONIGHT SHOW STARRING JIMMY FALLON, 13 June 2024) (photo credit: ROSALIND O’CONNOR/NBC via GETTY IMAGES)

Everything from the bright red cover and strikingly minimal green typeface, to the essays and diverse photos in the book, to the still intoxicating musicality of this powerhouse band, is memorable and more than worth your attention. As much as I played this album when it first came out, I must say that diving into this reissue was revelatory all over again, thoroughly capturing the emergence of one of the greatest and most original quartets of all time. Rumor has it there may be a box like this to come for each of their classic albums. Talking Heads are one of the few entities that deserve that kind of comprehensive approach.

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI DVD/Blu-Ray Music Reviews | Kevin Renick | November 25, 2024 | Alternative Rock Bonus Material Box Set Brian Eno CBGB's Chris Frantz David Byrne Demo Recordings DVD/Blu-Ray Jerry Harrison Jonathan Demme Live Recording Music New Wave Music Punk Rock Reissue Rock and Roll Rock and Roll Hall of Fame STOP MAKING SENSE Talking Heads Tina Weymouth

JON ANDERSON AND THE BAND GEEKS: TRUE

(Frontiers Records; 2024)

The advance word came quickly with this album: It sounded like a new Yes album, and Jon Anderson’s voice was in remarkable form. Could one dare hope that both those things were true? In a word, YES! When Anderson teamed up with some enthusiastic New York musicians to make an album that would reflect his renewed songwriting enthusiasm and belief in the lush electrifying sound he helped make famous in the ‘70s, you’d be forgiven for a little skepticism. His parent group had failed to recapture the proggy glory days of classics like CLOSE TO THE EDGE and GOING FOR THE ONE in their post-Anderson projects, and Anderson himself had been mostly inconsistent in his solo releases, though all had their moments. But wow, is this thing impressive! Close your eyes and listen to a few minutes each of epics “Counties and Countries” and “Once Upon a Dream,” and I guarantee you that you’ll be happily taken back to the bygone era when Jon, Chris Squire, Steve Howe, Rick Wakeman and Alan White (or Bill Bruford, if you prefer) powered the “classic lineup” to stratospheric prog heights that may never be surpassed for their overall impact. You’ll swear that some of the guitar lines could be Howe or that the pulsing bass in “Shine On” is not an imitation, but certainly a nod to the great Chris Squire. “Take me to this world of energy,” Anderson sings in that particular song, seemingly not just aware of his unmatched legacy but knowing that his listeners long for this kind of sound again. The ten-minute “Counties and Countries” has the tried and true musical changes Yes were known for, with an ear-pleasing main melody, insistent lyrics about “the truth yet to come” and “the love yet to come,” an ethereal section that starts at about the four-minute mark and a Wakeman-reminiscent keyboard part in the final third that precedes a stirring, soft Anderson vocal piece that is absolutely lovely, and familiar in the best possible way. “You Are Everyone” (a perfect starter), “Build Me An Ocean” and “Still a Friend” are remarkably economic songs that uncharacteristically stay around the five-minute mark or less, with Anderson showing amazing good taste in the arrangements and not getting too cosmic on us. “Make It Right” is an instantly likable song that features the practically iconic combo of a sparse acoustic guitar and Anderson’s clear voice, with Anderson winking at long-time Yes fans with a lyrical reference to “where the mountains touch the sky.” We all know the kind of sonic majesty that can occur when Anderson has mountains and the sky on his mind! And do you like Jon’s romantic side? How about the song “Thank God” here, which may be his most simple and direct love song since “Yesterday and Today” way back on the first Yes album. “Thank God I’m here, thank God I’m home, thank God you’re in my life,”” Anderson sings in the most touching ode to his partner imaginable. Bet this one will turn up in some couple-centric scenarios.

JON ANDERSON AND THE BAND GEEKS (CHRIS CLARKE, RICHIE CASTELLANO, ANDY GAZIANO, JON ANDERSON, ANDY ASCOLESE, ROB KIPP) (photo credit: STEVE SCHENCK)

But for old-school Yes aficionados, if “You Are Everyone,” “Shine On” and “Counties and Countries” haven’t already reeled you in fully, the 16-plus minute “Once Upon a Dream” oughta do the trick. This is an incredibly dynamic, chugging piece of Yes-ish glory that is truly majestic, featuring intricate overlapping vocals, a band playing with ABANDON, a stunning mood shift at about the 7-1/2 minute mark that is worthy of being mentioned in the same breath as a masterpiece like “Awaken” and even featuring another keyboard solo in its final portion that you could mistake for the great Rick Wakeman. “The dream is clear/Lifting you up higher and higher,” Anderson sings in his patented outward-looking lyrical aesthetic, absolutely succeeding in taking us “higher and higher.” And the simple phrase “the angel of your story” in the heavenly musical context here, ought to induce a few shivers. It has to be said that Anderson sounds absolutely warm, wise and WONDERFUL throughout this amazing album. Hard to believe the guy is 80; he sounds half that age! Anderson’s operating at a level of inspiration that I bet he himself would say he hasn’t felt in years. The nine songs here move quickly, with nary a dud, and with just enough genuine Yes stylistic elements of old to combine organically with a newfound economy of purpose displayed by Anderson and his merry band of totally sympatico geeks. This thing absolutely delivers on all fronts, honestly. In all but name, it’s genuinely a Yes album. “See it now ascending,” Anderson sings early on in the record, and later in the epic “Counties… ” you can hear him clearly sing the lyric “I said I would deliver.” That he does, in spades. TRUE is a good name for this record: It’s true to Anderson’s singular muse, true to a legacy that has endured for over half a century, and true to the wishes of Yes fans who might’ve doubted they would ever hear Anderson gifting us with music like this again.

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI Music Reviews | Kevin Renick | November 24, 2024 | Acoustic Music Andy Ascolese Andy Gaziano Chris Clarke Classic Rock Jon Anderson Jon Anderson and the Band Geeks Music Progressive Folk Rock Progressive Rock Richie Castellano Rob Kipp Rock and Roll Yes

SWING SET: LIFE SPEEDS UP (REMASTER)

(BLACKBERRY WAY RECORDS; 2024)

Mad genius Michael Owens is at it again! He has remixed Swing Set’s 1986 debut, LIFE SPEEDS UP, and then traveled to Abbey Road Studios (yeah… THAT Abbey Road Studios!) to oversee Andy Walter’s remastering of the 10-track masterpiece. Now, for all to enjoy (and the faithful who owned the original, to reminisce over), the album is available from Blackberry Way Records in all of its “purdied-up” grandeur. And… it only took nearly 40 years!

SWING SET, circa 1985 (DAN PROZINSKI, MICK WIRTZ, RIC STUDER, DAVE NUSSBAUM, MIKE NILLES) (publicity photo)

The Twin Cities’ Swing Set – formed in 1983 – were singers/guitarists Mike Nilles and Dan Prozinski, singer/bassist Ric Studer, keyboardist Dave Nussbaum and drummer Mick Wirtz. By the time they recorded LIFE SPEEDS UP two years later, they were a well-oiled Rock ‘n’ Roll machine and upon the record’s 1986 release, the band found their way onto the Top 50 college charts. Clearly, Swing Set were a group on the rise. Unfortunately, the success was short-lived and, though they released two more albums, the quintet went their separate ways in 1993. In recent years, there has been a mini-resurgence with several tunes showing up on the soundtracks to such hit television fare as STRANGER THINGS and YOUNG SHELDON. So, to quote the cunning linguist Bugs Bunny, “What’s all the hubbub, Bub?” Well, I’ma tell ya, Mister Bunny.

The album kicks off with the atmospheric “Blackout,” a mid-tempo rocker with a memorable, jangly guitar riff, haunting piano and some of the smoothest vocal work (with leads by Nilles) this side of Motown. The track was used in the second episode of Season Two of STRANGER THINGS. On “Laying Low,” Wirtz punches up his delivery with a more forceful approach behind the kit and the guitars take on a Cure-like feel while maintaining a fresh charm that appears to be Swing Set’s signature sound. Studer continues to impress on bass and his lead vocals are equally as solid. The vocalist merry-go-round is completed on “Runaway” as Dan Prozinski takes over those duties here, which offers a rather tribal backbeat and minimalist – but quite effective – instrumentation. “Victim” is pure New Wave Power Pop, hitting on all cylinders with a throbbing bass line, a couple of nice guitar solos and an emotive Mike Nilles vocal. This is the first lyric on the album to actually connect with me. The first of two “bonus” tracks is Dan Prozinski’s “Knock Knock,” recorded in 1988 with bassist Kevin Foley (Kevin, who played in Tommy Stinson’s post -Replacements band, Bash and Pop, passed away in 2011). The song features one of the best lines I’ve ever heard: “Knock me down/I’ve seen that fist before/Knock knock/Comin’ back for more.” If you’re a fan of the show YOUNG SHELDON, “Knock Knock” may sound familiar, as it appeared on the soundtrack. “Walking In the Night” closed out the first side of the original vinyl. It’s another Nilles-authored tune, with his vocals riding along the chugging, percolating bottom end supplied by Mick Wirtz and Ric Studer. There’s an unspoken danger in the lyrics… more implied than any literal threat of violence. It seems that this Swing Set is intent to up the ante just a little more with each song.

SWING SET today (DAN PROZINSKI, MICK WIRTZ, RIC STUDER, DAVE NUSSBAUM, MIKE NILLES) (photo credit: HUTCH)

Lyrically, “Lost Track” has a lot happening. With allusions and imagery of trains and railroads, the number also evokes a kind of mental anguish over a lost love (or love lost) and, maybe even a sense of hopelessness… or determination. Like I said, Dan’s lyrics, while powerful, are so (purposefully?) open-ended that the meaning may very well be dependent upon the listener’s mood. Or… you know, to paraphrase Freud, “Sometimes a train is just a train.” “The Dance,” with its odd, waltzy feel and pace, finds Ric back on lead vocal duties. Every instrument is played in exactly the proper way that a New Wave-Power Pop waltz should be played, from the understated (yet somehow powerful) stick-work of Mick Wirtz to Studer’s minimal approach to the bass, from the twin lead guitars of Prozinski and Nilles to Dave Nussbaum’s keyboard work underpinning it all before rising to the fore with a short, beautiful piano solo toward the tune’s end. Mixed only slightly louder than the instrumentation is Ric Studer’s voice, a virtual haunting from spirits past. The chorus adds to the forelorn, wispy feel: “And you know what I Know/And you see what I see/And I know what you know about me.” Next up is “I’m On Fire,” the hardest rocking number here; given that, it doesn’t abandon Swing Set’s Pop leaning. Mike’s vocals are not over-the-top aggressive, but Wirtz’s more adventurous drumming alongside Ric’s pumping bass lends that impression. And… was that an accordian back there somewhere in the mix or just a bit of Nussbaum keyboard trickery? Either way, it definitely works well within the confines of this track. “Sincerity” is the second and final bonus cut, with Dan on lead vocals and, once more, the late Kevin Foley on bass. It’s another hard-hitting rocker that somehow puts me in mind of U2, but without that annoying Bono guy (I must say, though, that I did like the stuff he did with Cher). The final Ric Studer vocal lead is “Rain On Our Parade,” a slow-simmering piece of Pop confection. While the tune evokes the feeling of a rainy Saturday, watching TV or playing games or… whatever one does to pass the time while waiting for the rain to stop and the sun to emerge from the clouds, it definitely is not the downer that the title implies. Last and certainly not least is “So Long.” The slowly-paced double entendre works, as any good double entendre should, on a couple of levels: “I’ve waited so long for you” or “So long, gonna miss you.” A fitting end to another solid release from Blackberry Way Records.

SWING SET, 2024 Abbey Road Studios mastering session (Michael Owens, Terri Owens, Andy Walter) (publicity photo)

The newly-remastered LIFE SPEEDS UP is available from Blackberry Way Records on CD or as a download.

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI Music Reviews Streaming Video | Darren Tracy | November 13, 2024 | Andy Walter Bonus Material Dan Prozinski Dave Nussbaum Kevin Foley Mick Wirtz Mike Nilles Mike Owens Minneapolis Music New Wave Music Pop Music Power Pop Reissue Ric Studer Rock and Roll Streaming Video Swing Set

NILUFER YANYA/ANGELICA GARCIA/LUTALO

(13 October, 2024; THE BOTTLENECK, Lawrence KS)

Sunday nights are supposed to be boring, right? A time to relax and re-energize for the coming work (or school) week. This particular Sunday night was anything but as Lawrence, Kansas became a melting pot of musical talent, featuring three compelling acts – Lutalo, Angelica Garcia, and headliner Nilüfer Yanya. Each brought a distinct sound and energy to the stage, making the night an unforgettable experience for the packed venue.

LUTALO (LILY SEABIRD, LUTALO JONES, MICAH RUBIN) (photo credit: KASEY LEHMKUHL)

Kicking off the evening was Vermont-based artist Lutalo Jones, an alternative singer whose music blended slow, moody rock with indie Blues. Lutalo was joined by Micah Rubin on drums and Lily Seabird on bass, creating a rich yet intimate sound. His set moved through a variety of vibes, with each song offering something different – ranging from introspective lyrics to more upbeat rhythms.

LUTALO (LUTALO JONES) (photo credit: KASEY LEHMKUHL)

Though Lutalo’s performance felt understated at first, it quickly gained momentum. His emotionally raw vocals connected deeply with the audience, who responded more and more as the set progressed. When a guitar string broke during the final song, Lutalo didn’t miss a beat, continuing the performance with the grace and professionalism of a seasoned artist. The diverse textures in his music showcased his versatility, leaving the audience with an appreciation for his evolving sound.

ANGELICA GARCIA (ANGELICA GARCIA, VAL SEPULVEDA) (photo credit: KASEY LEHMKUHL)

Angelica Garcia, from Los Angeles, brought an entirely different energy to the stage. With only Val Sepulveda on drums backing her up, Garcia’s voice took center stage, blending elements of Latin Punk and bilingual alternative electronic Pop. Her powerful, well-regulated vocals filled the room, captivating the crowd. Garcia’s vocal range is impressive, effortlessly moving from deep, rich tones to high, piercing notes – an indication of her natural talent and technical skill.

ANGELICA GARCIA (VAL SEPULVEDA, ANGELICA GARCIA) (photo credit: KASEY LEHMKUHL)

Garcia engaged the audience from start to finish, her bilingual lyrics resonating with many in the crowd. She described her second-to-last song, “Hey, Paloma,” as “cute” and invited the audience to join in, creating an interactive, fun moment. The final song was a fusion of electronic beats, drums, and her signature Spanish vocals, leaving a lasting impression. With only vocals and drums, Garcia proved that she didn’t need a full band to captivate the crowd – her voice and presence were more than enough. As her set concluded, a large portion of the audience immediately headed to her merch booth, eager to purchase her CDs and support her growing career. It’s clear that Angelica Garcia is an artist who knows how to leave a mark on her audience, and her upward trajectory seems inevitable.

NILUFER YANYA (photo credit: KASEY LEHMKUHL)

Headlining the evening was London-born Nilüfer Yanya, whose indie/alternative sound has been steadily gaining her a dedicated following. From the moment she stepped on stage, accompanied by a stellar band, the crowd was buzzing with anticipation. Nilüfer herself played guitar, alongside fellow guitarist Will Archer, Ellis Dupuy on drums, Beth O’Lenahan on bass and Jazzi Bobbi on saxophone, keys, and backup vocals. The chemistry between the band members was evident, their tight musical coordination enhancing the already polished performance.

NILUFER YANYA (JAZZI BOBBI, NILUFER YANYA, BETH O’LENAHAN) (photo credit: KASEY LEHMKUHL)

Nilüfer’s vocal delivery was hauntingly beautiful – her soft yet powerful voice combined with her band’s intricate sound created a mesmerizing atmosphere. Tracks from her latest album, MY METHOD ACTOR, were standouts, with “Run Away” eliciting particularly loud cheers from the audience. The live version of this hit showcased Nilüfer’s incredible vocal control, her voice soaring over the lush instrumentation.

NILUFER YANYA (NILUFER YANYA, WILL ARCHER) photo credit: KASEY LEHMKUHL)

As the show progressed, the audience moved closer to the stage, completely immersed in the performance. The mix of saxophone, layered guitar riffs, and atmospheric keys gave Nilüfer’s set a unique sound that felt both timeless and modern. Her music is difficult to categorize – at times, it recalls the soulfulness of Amy Winehouse, but with a more experimental, indie twist. The crowd swayed in unison, visibly moved by her hypnotic melodies and powerful stage presence.

NILUFER YANYA (BETH O’LENAHAN, NILUFER YANYA, WILL ARCHER) (photo credit: KASEY LEHMKUHL)

As the set came to a close, Nilüfer Yanya left the audience wanting more. With her US tour wrapping up in Los Angeles later this month, there’s no doubt that she’s on the verge of even greater success. Her sold-out vinyl and merch at previous venues, including hoodies and t-shirts, are a testament to her rising popularity. The support of her bandmates and manager Owen McAllister, who spoke fondly of their time touring across the US, only adds to the feeling that Nilüfer’s star is still on the rise.

This concert was a perfect blend of styles and genres, each artist bringing something unique to the night. The opening trio, Lutalo, set the tone with an introspective and evolving sound, while Angelica Garcia’s bilingual Punk-Pop performance, firmly supported by drummer Val Sepulveda, lit up the stage and Nilüfer Yanya closed the evening with a mesmerizing set that showed why she’s quickly becoming a major figure in the indie music scene. All three acts showcased raw talent and left a lasting impression on the Lawrence crowd. As these artists continue to tour and release new music, there’s no doubt that their names will only grow more familiar. This show was a reminder of the magic that happens when artists truly connect with their audience, and it’s safe to say Lawrence will be talking about this show for a long time.

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI Live Music Reviews | Kasey Lehmkuhl | October 18, 2024 | Alternative Rock Angelica Garcia Beth O'Lenahan Blues Rock Ellis Dupuy Jazzi Bobbi Lawrence Kansas Lily Seabird Live Music Lutalo Lutalo Jones Micah Rubin Music Nilufer Yanya Pop Punk Pop Rock Rock and Roll The Bottleneck Val Sepulveda Will Archer

DYER SHOTS, EPISODE ONE

SOUL ASYLUM: SLOWLY BUT SHIRLEY (BLUE ELAN RECORDS; 2024)

So, apparently Soul Asylum has a new album out called SLOWLY BUT SHIRLEY, their first since 2020’s HURRY UP AND WAIT. I have never understood this band and I still don’t. It was a period of music that I just couldn’t get into. Here we are at the end of 2024 and I don’t hear anything new, just a rehashing of the same sound that they have had since “Runaway Train.” Production on this seems a bit mono, but that could be because of the way they perform their music… there is really no punch in the recording, just a bland production. If you are a fan of their music from back in the day, then I suppose you will like this but… for the life of me, I don’t know why you would. 1 out 5 stars! It’s too bad that the “Runaway Train” didn’t take this with it!

CARNAGE ASADA: HEAD ON A PLATTER (HISTORICAL RECORDS; 2024)

Carnage Asada, a band out of LA, has been making noise since 1994. They have a heavy Punk influence and is similar in sound to Rage Against the Machine. Lead by founding members David Jones on bass and George Murillo on “words” (Murillo doesn’t sing, it’s more spoken word) alongside guitarist Tony Fate. The new album, HEAD ON A PLATTER, comes right out of the gate punching with LA Punk fury! Fate is relentless with his guitar sound. I like the production on this album as it works well with the style of the band. A few of the songs are in Spanish which adds to the coolness of Carnage Asada. I will give this a solid 3 out of 5 stars! It’s a fun album from a fun band, so give it a listen.

RON KEEL: KEELWORLD (RFK MEDIA; 2024

KEELWORLD is a newly recorded compilation album consisting of songs from Ron Keel in the many variations of himself, from his first recordings with Steeler in the early 1980s to the present incarnation of the Ron Keel Band. At first listen, I had to remind myself that I was listening to a Ron Keel record and not a new Bon Jovi album; I never realized how much they sound alike! Once I finished the album, I thought to myself, “Well, it’s not too bad, but not great. I probably won’t listen to it again.” I’ve listened to it over four times now. There is something about it that gets into your soul. The album starts with a track called “Hollywood,” which is a really good Country-style song from that period of his career, so it’s a good start and, by the time we get to track number four, we are treated to a Ron Keel Band song called “Five O’clock Shadows,” a banger of a tune that is very infectious. From there, it keeps going with rocker tracks like Steeler’s “Give Me Guitars (Or Give Me Death).” Later in the album, we get a version of Black Sabbath’s “Children of the Grave” performed by Keel and Emerald Sabbath (one of his many side projects), consisting (on various tunes) of at least ten ex-members of Black Sabbath (go figure, huh?). I will say that Ron has quite a voice and handles the track very well. The album ends with the song “The Last Bottle on Earth,” a slow, heavily Country-influenced number. On my scale, I will give this album a solid 4 out of 5 stars. Give this one a HARD listen. I think you will be surprised… I sure was!

My name is Dave and I love music!

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI Music Reviews | Dave Dyer | October 2, 2024 | Alternative Rock Carnage Asada Country Music Country Rock Emerald Sabbath Garage Rock Hard Rock Music Punk Rock Rock and Roll Ron Keel Ron Keel Band Soul Asylum Steeler

IN PRAISE OF EPHEMERA’S MONOLOVE, A CLASSIC NORWEGIAN POP GEM ON ITS 20TH ANNIVERSARY

KEVIN RENICK REFLECTS ON MUSICAL PERFECTION

“We live in a cynical world.” That famous line was uttered by Tom Cruise’s titular character in the movie JERRY MAGUIRE, and it pops into my head sometimes. There’s a lot of distrust, unhappiness and social division out there these days, and it’s hard to find your own personal “throughline” in a world that seems to be constantly struggling, with more and more individuals feeling trapped in some way, or just plain alienated.

EPHEMERA (Ingerlise Storksen, Christine Sandtorv, Jannicke Larsen Berglund) (photo credit BENT RENE SYNNEVAG)

“Only chaos/Only empty days/Only thin skin/Only tension/Only make-no-sense,” sings Ingerlise Storksen of the divinely talented Norwegian girl trio Ephemera at the beginning of their fifth album MONOLOVE. The irony behind these seemingly gloomy lyrics, which are just as apt as ever 20 years after the album first came out, is that they are sung in an absolutely GORGEOUS and riveting pop song, “Chaos,” which opens with one of the most deleriously chiming keyboard flurries I’ve ever heard on a modern pop album. Sheer sonic beauty was already a hallmark of Ephemera’s career when MONOLOVE was released in late 2004; members Christine Sandtorv, Ingerlise Storksen and Jannicke (Larsen) Berglund had established themselves as supremely gifted songwriters and rapturous three-part harmony singers through the course of four previous discs, including successful outings like BALLOONS AND CHAMPAGNE in 2001 and AIR in 2003. But their winning formula only locked into place when they teamed up with producer Yngve Leidulv Saetre for an album called SUN in 2000. I will be upfront and say that this “formula” (an inadequate word to convey the lush and organic purity of this music) soon became one of my favorite sounds in the entire musical universe. And by the time I fully absorbed the depth, variety and spine-tingling perfection of the 13 tracks on MONOLOVE (an album that had a tendency to SLAY me on long road trips in my car), it managed to become my favorite album of all time. Yes, it’s THAT good and THAT personally significant to me.

“It was a really fun album to record,” Jannicke told me via email correspondence this summer (I contacted all three women to get their feedback when I was planning this piece). “I loved all the songs that the other two had written at that time and it was very giving and exciting to record them. Harmonies and arrangements came easily and our producer (Yngve) understood really well what kind of sound we wanted to express.”

Of course MANY groups might say such things about the process of making an album they are justifiably proud of, but some kind of transcendent magic had to be taking place in the studio to result in songs like “On the Surface” and “Thank You,” two exquisite Ingerlise Storksen compositions that send shivers up my spine whenever I play them. Ingerlise’s vocal approach on these songs is “blue diamond” stuff in my book… breathy, intimate and heartfelt. Add the delicate string arrangement on “Thank You,” the enthralling three-part “mm mm” harmonies and the haunting lyrics about a person in the singer’s life who helped guide her journey (“You left your footprints in the snow/A guideline for me so I will know/The day I get lost/Which way to go… ”), and you’ve got yourself a positively transcendent art song. The harmony interlude that follows that first chorus is literally one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever heard on any record. And it affects me the same every single time I hear it. THAT’s magic!

But one of the notable things about MONOLOVE is how all three of the band members contribute peak, spellbinding songs to the mix. Jannicke gives us two of her very finest, “City Lights” and “Paint Your Sky,” stunningly arranged soft rockers that always change my mood for the better the instant either begins. And a secret, underlying component here – something I bring up in a songwriting class I teach – I would characterize as “aesthetic vagueness.” That’s when the listener gets the imagery and overall feel a songwriter is aiming for without knowing all the specific details of what the song is truly about, so you can insert YOURSELF into it. “I can put up a show, so simple and lame/It’s far from the same/But the line is thin/Between failure and success/There’s either more or less/You’re either out or in/The line is thin… ” Plenty to relate to here, especially when Jannicke sings the lyrics in a clear, plaintive voice and is soon joined by her two cohorts on a deceptively simple chorus: “Under the city lights I fail/Under the city lights I’m pale.” I have been positively transfixed by that chorus since the first time I heard it, and I am profoundly MOVED by the sonic blend the group and their genius producer achieve here.

“‘City Lights’ is a song about the very unfair differences in our world,” Jannicke told me. “The background sounds and voices in the intro were recorded in Tokyo or Osaka when we were on tour in Japan. I like how it sets the atmosphere in the song, both quiet and chaotic at the same time. What I mean to express in the song is that no one is better or more worthy than the other. We are all equally small and unimportant in this big universe, or big and important in this small world. The point is that no one should put themselves above others. Be a fellow human being instead, if you have the chance… ”

Jannicke plays evocative keyboards on this and many other Ephemera songs; in video clips of the band’s performances, she’s almost always behind the keys, playing something distinctive and resonant. You’ll also notice, when you hear this album a few times, that just a simple percussion bit here and there or the way the bassline comes in at just the right moment, reveal an ensemble with exquisite taste and a unified sense of purpose. Everything sounds just so clear and right… The trio seem to be brimming with confidence throughout, apparently paying close attention to literally every detail of every song.

EPHEMERA, 2004 (Christine Sandtorv, Ingerlise Storksen, Jannicke Larsen Berglund) (photo credit BENT RENE SYNNEVAG)

“This was a really busy time for Ephemera, with a lot of traveling abroad,” Ingerlise related. “So it was really nice to have a break from it all, and that we got to stay home for a couple of weeks recording MONOLOVE at Duper Studio. We were in a very creative and productive state, I remember – and we did a lot of live recording in the studio. Most of the songs were written on the road and in between, so many of the songs were quite fresh by the time we landed in the studio. This gave it all a new nerve and feel to the sessions. I remember it being like busy, calming and lovely, all at once.”

To read those descriptive words busy, calming and lovely all at once from one of the people who actually MADE this amazing music was enormously helpful to me, as I’ve struggled through the years to explain to the uninitiated why Ephemera are just so darn brilliant. While it’s always a subjective thing to evaluate pop music (or really ANY music) – as a songwriter myself and a guy who has been doing music journalism for nigh on 30 years now, I think I have a reasonably good idea of what constitutes “good” music. But very, very FEW things have transfixed me and soundtracked my very being the way Ephemera’s music has. And I’m certainly not alone.

EPHEMERA (Ingerlise Storksen, Jannicke Larsen Berglund, Christine Sandtorv) (uncredited photo)

“Your music is what reaffirmed my belief in the possibility that people have souls,” posted one enthusiastic fan on the trio’s original web site, from which I extracted as many opinions as I could before it went defunct. He was probably responding to the same sincere vulnerability, compassion and unquestioning LOVE for the human condition that I find so compelling, and that these remarkable women inject into every song. Think of any movie scene that once gripped your emotions or any powerful moment in your life that still fills you with aching nostalgia, and that’s the sort of feeling you’ll find in almost every Ephemera composition. And MONOLOVE has more of those than usual. Christine Sandtorv, commonly the most prolific songwriter in the band, contributes six songs to the record, and they are mostly of a stylish piece, dealing with the uncertainties of relationships, the whole “trust versus love” dilemma and the simple challenge of being a vulnerable human being. Her songs feature delicate, often masterful acoustic guitar picking, tasteful string arrangements and conversational-style lyrics that anchor her songs. Even titles like “Do’s and Dont’s,” “Leave It At That,” and “Put-On-Smile” hint at the reflective approach these songs contain. That latter song contains one of MONOLOVE’s most telling verses: “I’m not in the sky/I’m not on solid ground/I cannot lie/But I know how to pretend/I’m not in the mood/Don’t feel like jumping for joy/Though I should be happier than medium okay.” Medium okay, wow! I know that condition, Christine! The primary musical element here is rather jaunty, with even Christine’s memorable vocal delivery sounding almost upbeat. But a strongly melancholy acoustic guitar arpeggio later in the song and some solemn but beautiful three-part harmony from the band nails down the real mood here for any attentive listeners.

EPHEMERA onstage (Ingerlise Storksen, Christine Sandtorv, Jannicke Larsen Berglund) (photo credit TORE SAETRE)

“I think a lot was on my mind at the time, as it often is when you are on your way to becoming an adult,” Christine told me. “It was probably a rather dark time for me. I was starting to get tired of traveling a lot. I like being close to family the most. You can see it thematically on many of my songs on this album.”

Christine related how the sparse, haunting album closer “Long” was played at the funeral of her father in 2007. “It became too difficult to play it live,” she said. “Even though it wasn’t written directly for him, I felt that a lot of emotions in the song fit.”

The existential sadness and uncertainty expressed in tunes like this helps explain why MONOLOVE steadily ascended to the very top of my list of favorite albums. Every song focuses on something relatable and timeless, something your heart was aching to hear… though perhaps you didn’t know it yet. I’d lost many loved ones myself and was constantly pondering the meaning of it all, something I tended to do a lot on long car trips. And I found that there was no better music to provide the soundtrack for such contemplation than Ephemera’s. And they truly outdid themselves in that regard with MONOLOVE. You get a real sense, song after song, of self-aware fellow human beings creating ultimate musical portraits of what it means to be a tuned-in, caring person in the “cynical world” of today. Take Jannicke’s anthemic song “Paint Your Sky,” a tune that absolutely bowled me over the first time I heard it. The subtly beautiful, lilting arrangement provides a bed for Jannicke’s clear, almost matter-of-fact vocal addressing the subject of self-doubt. The spellbinding chorus soon kicks in and I have quoted it often through the years. It plays rather continually in my head: “Those you rely on/They seem to be pretending/You’re in denial/Go out and hold your banner high/Painting your own sky… ” It’s unutterably lovely, creating one of the group’s most distinctive lyrical manifestos in those last three lines.

“‘Paint Your Sky’ is a song that shows the mood I was in at that time; happy, self-confident and ready to express myself, without being shy or afraid,” said Jannicke. “I was tired of compromising (myself), which is revealed as a layer of vulnerability in the song. I love the playful bass and the deep electric guitar, and the light, insistent mandolin.” She’s right about the arrangement; it positively dazzles. The group’s harmonies are luminous, and this is sure to be one of the songs that’ll stick in your head upon a first listen to MONOLOVE. But in a stroke of conceptual and sequencing brilliance, it’s followed by an even more unforgettable song, which doesn’t seem possible at this point. “Dead Against the Plan,” oh my lord. Absolutely unbelievable how good this song is. To this very day, after countless listens, I become positively awestruck listening to this Christine and Ingerlise collaboration. I thought about pressing them on how this track came to be, then decided I wanted it to stay somewhat mysterious. Not everything needs an explanation; it’s enough to say this is a stone CLASSIC. I’m not sure I can think of a better example offhand of a giddily inventive arrangement, peerless vocals both in the lead by Ingerlise and in the group harmonies, and the truest form of aesthetic vagueness thematically in the service of a song about something that has gone wrong in an unknown relationship. “Something happened/You could surely have done without” is about all the songwriters are going to clue you into here. There are three or four SEPARATE earworms in this track, and I’m on record already as saying the recording should be taught in music classes at universities as an example of getting every single aspect of a song just about perfect. You know those music-related queries in social media where they ask you, “If you could only listen to one song for the rest of your life, what would it be?” If I wasn’t allowed to cheat and pick the entire ambient album of my choice, I would probably say “Dead Against the Plan” by Ephemera. Inside, I am laughing and crying at the same time when I hear this truly BRILLIANT piece of music making.

EPHEMERA (Christine Sandtorv, Jannicke Larsen Berglund, Ingerlise Storksen) (photo credit BENT RENE SYNNEVAG)

So at this point, I MUST take my hat off to Yngve Leidulv Saetre, the George Martin-like producer of Ephemera, who has shepherded every album of theirs since SUN at the turn of the millennium. He’s produced many other acts as well, including DumDum Boys and Kaizers Orchestra, and he was the lead singer of Barbie Bones in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s. But I’m here to say that Mister Saetre helped this trio conjure absolute magic in the studio, and if I ever met him I’d give him a bottle of fine champagne or something to show my appreciation of his wizardry.

“Yngve is the fourth member of Ephemera,” Ingerlise declared. “From early on, with our debut album GLUE (which he mixed and mastered), he understood what we were working on. Where we wanted to go with our music. Yngve is a very creative producer, creative in the same sense as the three of us in Ephemera. We think the same (at least most of the time), and he understands and catches the depth and the sense, as well as how he challenges us. With MONOLOVE we worked quite productive and fast, because we had such a busy schedule (in between touring). This was not an issue, because we were already on the same page, and knew where we wanted this album to go.”

The famed producer was tough for me to reach; I had tried twice before, most recently with Ephemera’s 2020 comeback album SEASONS, and wasn’t successful. But I got ahold of him this time and he spoke very highly of Ephemera, calling their previous collaborations “open, playful and inspired.” While mostly in sync with the group’s intentions, Saetre said that MONOLOVE posed a particular challenge overall. “It was in many ways a very ambitious project,” he said. “There were different ambitions from many angles, also from outside the trio. It was hard to try to unite all this into the wonderful tripod balance that to me is Ephemera.”

EPHEMERA (producer Yngve Leidulv Saetre) (photo credit CHRISTINE SANDTORV)

Certainly at this point in the trio’s career, pressure was coming from not only within as to what should happen next, but from the industry as well. The discussions must have been rather lively in the studio, but whatever tension may have occurred pushed the group to their highest creative levels yet. You don’t get a masterpiece like MONOLOVE without many, many factors coming together to influence the result. Other musicians have contributed to Ephemera albums in the past, but the sometimes more complex arrangements on their fifth full-length feature contributions from well-known Norwegian players Thomas Dahl and Julian Berntsen (for whom Ingerlise recorded a duet called “The Park 1920”), among others; both are credited on some of the lush strings that the album features, though it is difficult to read the tiny credits on the CD sleeve. My favorite credit reads “Bits and pieces of sound on just about every track,” which is how one of Yngve Saetre’s credits reads. And we also learn that “Long” was recorded live at the producer’s apartment, which helps explain the ambient birdsong and other outside sounds that effectively adorn that song, ending the album with a particularly evocative flourish. Not to mention revealing what a hands-on producer Yngve clearly was. Without making this article longer than it already is, I can only declare straight up that Yngve surely has something to do with the particularly evocative details in many of Ephemera’s catalog entries, two of my personal favorites being “Maple Tree” and “Bye.” To be able to listen to certain songs over and over and ALWAYS get lost in their beauty, takes a secret ingredient in the production, and as both Jannicke and Ingerlise pointed out earlier, Yngve simply has an intuitive understanding of what their songs are aiming for, and how a detail here and there can make them even more rapturous. I can’t know what “bits and pieces” throughout MONOLOVE were his doing, but I bet Yngve had something to do with the three-tiered descending harmonies on “Leave It At That,” or how in the next to concluding song “End,” in the lyric “I see us leaving hand in hand,” penned by Christine, the word hand is memorably repeated a few times in the last minute. And in songs that achieve actual perfection like “Thank You,” “Paint Your Sky” and “Dead Against the Plan,” the producer deserves some kind of award for sonic dazzling. I doubt that George Martin ever heard this album when he was alive, but had he done so, I bet he would have nodded and smiled.

“I’m happy to hear you appreciate this album so much,” Yngve told me. “It’s always a good feeling to hear from somebody who found something of value in something one contributed to. Music has this direct connection to your feelings and you can’t argue with it. When you listen to something, you immediately recognize the way you felt when you got to know it the first time. I have it like this with a couple of other albums that were hard to make.”

I got the sense that Yngve is a modest chap, with an obviously strong work ethic. I wish I could have told him about the many, many transcendent moments on Ephemera recordings that I know he was at least partially responsible for. And to just THANK him for serving the trio so well… “Yngve always has good thoughts behind the work he does,” Christine related. “He allows us to be creative and try things out, while at the same time managing it all in a steady manner. We have never wanted to collaborate with any other producer, because we think Yngve is the best both as a producer and as a person. He understands us in a respectful way, which may have been extra important as an all-girl band.”

EPHEMERA, 2020 (Christine Sandtorv, Ingerlise Storksen, Jannicke Larsen Berglund) (photo credit: MAGNE FONN HAFSKOR)

“We always put a lot of work, all our hearts and minds into the recording of an album,” said Ingerlise. “The devil and the angel are always in the details, and all three of us really love working with the minor details, the tiny twists and turns, sounds and feelings. I think we were all very happy with how MONOLOVE came out in the end.” She added that she thought it was “more mature than some of the other recordings. A more balanced album, from low and ‘heart hurt’ things to the more uptempo and feel good songs. We like it like that, some down, some up. And some songs in between. Like LIFE… ”

As a very dedicated fan of this amazing trio, I have often mused about their working process, i.e. how could they consistently come up with such beautiful music? Their ear for melody, the often subtle sonic detours in the songs, and, I must point out, the rather intoxicating precision of their singing in English… pure musical catnip for yours truly. It’s understood that most Scandinavian artists speak English rather fluently and can make music in that language as well as their own, depending on the audience. I absolutely ADORE hearing Christine, Ingerlise and Jannicke singing perfect words and well-constructed phrases in their soft, beguiling voices. There are many reasons why Ephemera’s music affects me like few other artists, and at least one ingredient is surely their natural, intimate vocal style, which is warm and comforting, eternally. I absolutely BELIEVE everything these ladies sing; there is never a false note of any kind. Listening to “Thank You,” “Do’s and Don’ts,” “Call Me Home,” “Long” or any other tune here is like having a special friend share something important and meaningful with you. Your ears perk up, constantly. The fact that the sentiments are couched in glistening, resonant pop tunes only makes the experience more potent. It’s easy to forget that human beings with their own personal issues and separate ambitions had to perhaps struggle a bit to record this stuff.

“It was a challenging recording,” Christine acknowledged. “I remember a bit of frustration, with different opinions about where we should end up, together with a very strong desire to make something really good. Not too poppy and not too quirky. In retrospect, I think the album turned out really well.”

EPHEMERA, 2024 (Ingerlise Storksen, Jannicke Larsen Berglund, Christine Sandtorv) (uncredited photo)

Speaking for myself as a listener, I’m often fascinated by what the intentions were of the artists I like. It has not always been the case with “Artist X or Y” that their enthusiasm in public statements about their work correlated with my own level of appreciation. In the case of Ephemera and their sublime MONOLOVE disc, I soon came to the conclusion that I probably loved every single thing about this album more than they did! The platter contains timeless melodies, remarkably economical lyrics couched in rich, sparkling arrangements, gorgeous vocals both in leads and textured harmonies (sometimes occurring lower in the mix waiting to be discovered upon the umpteenth listen), and moments of such unforgettable emotional intimacy that I sometimes ended a listening session wanting to just say “thank you” to the universe and this band for, well, the SONG “Thank You” and all twelve other gems on this masterpiece. After any full listen to MONOLOVE, I end up feeling changed, and grateful. I hold the CD in my hands like it is a piece of jewelry or something, gazing at the cover photo of the three lovely musicians posing in a triangle-configured closeup of their heads, and leafing through the minimally adorned but classy booklet, soaking up every detail. And as an aside here, I want to say I still bemoan the devaluing of the CD and the “artistic presentation” in recent years. Yes, yes, I KNOW that downloading and streaming are the way most people listen to stuff, and people just don’t want to pay for physical “product” anymore. Phooey! To me, you simply CANNOT get the full experience of an album like this with a few digital downloads. Or, God forbid, “sampling” it on a YouTube video. I’d say the same about other artists I love like Joni Mitchell, Paul Simon, Talking Heads and more. All of whom, by the way, are also featured in my “Top 10 list of all time.” A really good album/CD is a work of art, something to be savored, something to immerse yourself in.

And that is what I do with MONOLOVE, every time. I’m aware it represented the culmination of everything this Norwegian trio were striving for. They and their crack producer worked their butts off on this thing. They were all at a peak of inspiration, coming off a major burst of attention and ambition, and they gave the world this gem. But it was to be the end of an era. No more new music appeared for 15 years from Ephemera, and while 2020’s SEASONS was a welcome return for sure, and featured the genuinely surprising classic “When the Best Ones Are Gone,” which accidentally became a pandemic-era soundtrack, plenty had changed, including their own career trajectory. On a simple level, all three ladies were just involved in growing families and their regular careers. Is that anything to be sad about? But shucks, in my “dream alternative universe,” there would be a “20th anniversary reissue” of MONOLOVE the way so many bands today reissue deluxe editions of classic albums. There’d be a stunning new booklet with unseen before photos, alternate takes of album cuts and some rarities, and perhaps even a delightful live album of an Ephemera concert, all housed in a handsome, shiny box. What a great treasure that would be in my alternative universe!

EPHEMERA (Jannicke Larsen Berglund, Ingerlise Storksen, Christine Sandtorv) (photo credit: BENT RENE SYNNEVAG)

But back here in reality… I am writing these words not knowing if there will EVER be any new Ephemera music again (hope I’m wrong), knowing that most music fans have never heard of them (unfortunately there is a Swedish heavy metal band with the same name, making any casual search for “Ephemera songs” a problematic exercise), and knowing I am probably the only writer in the WORLD, at least in America, saluting the 20th anniversary of an album you can’t even GET as a physical product anymore except from sellers on Discogs (and I highly suggest you old schoolers who are intrigued by what I wrote here to get the original album that way). I’ll finish by saying I did not want to casually just share some “top 10” list in social media or elsewhere with the Ephemera entry at the top, and then have some people scratching their heads over my entry. “He’s putting this obscure group above the Beatles and Joni Mitchell? What’s up with this dude?” Well, it was a simple evolution over time, that’s all… an emotional connection deep and enduring and truly personal. Because yes, MONOLOVE, by the Norwegian trio EPHEMERA, is indeed my very favorite album of all time, I am proud to say that. And I salute it, for all it means to me, and for the potent and enduring quality of its contents. I’ll let Jannicke (Larsen) Berglund have the last word.

“Music brings us all together. And I love it… ”

For more about Ephemera, here are links to their social media: https://www.facebook.com/ephemeragirls, https://www.ephemera.no/

DO THE ARCHITECTURAL WATUSI Music Features/Interviews Music Reviews Streaming Video | Kevin Renick | September 29, 2024 | 20th Anniversary Acoustic Music Christine Sandtorv Ephemera Folk Music Ingerlise Storksen Jannicke Larsen Berglund MONOLOVE Music Norway Norwegian Pop Pop Music Pop Rock Progressive Folk Rock Rock and Roll Streaming Video Yngve Saetre

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