Songs For A Hopeless Apology (VII)

The National – Slow Show

Speaking about screwing up, seldom have musicians better described the kind of pathetic attitude I tend to repeat than the Ohioan indie-rock masters. Berninger’s voice and original singing style, both melancholic and energetic, always makes the best performance as the hopeless ordinary loser.

“I made a mistake in my life today
everything I love gets lost in drawers
I want to start over, I want to be winning
way out of sync from the beginning.”

Written by Axialbis one year before.

Songs For a Hopeless Apology (VI)

Mumford & Sons – Little Lion Man

This young English band has quickly become one of the most popular and critically acclaimed folk-rock players, not only for their masterfully written and performed melodies, but also for their honest and heartbreaking lyrics. This song is a great depiction of a (too) usual challenge: trying to put things right when everything seems to be too fucked up already.

“Rate yourself and rake yourself,
Take all the courage you have left
Wasted on fixing all the problems
That you made in your own head.”



Written by Axialbis one year before.

Songs For a Hopeless Apology (V)

El Columpio Asesino – Perlas 

This interesting and unique Spanish indie-pop band speaks about love, hatred and emotions in a raw and unapologetic way. This song is a desperate call to find some shelter in forgiveness. Sometimes a little chance can make a lot.

“Sé que no lo hice bien
ahora sé que mal
es lo mejor que lo puedo hacer
no pretendo arreglar
el daño que está hecho ya
pero por favor
abréme la puerta hoy
por favor
concedeme tregua hoy...”

“I know I didn’t do it well
now I know that wrong
is the best I can do
I don’t intend to fix
all the harm I already did
but please
open your door (just) today
give me a break (just) today.”



Written by Axialbis one year before.

Songs For a Hopeless Apology (IV)

Mogwai – I’m Jim Morrison, I’m Dead

My favorite post-rock band (arguably the biggest name of the subgenre) created this powerful instrumental song adding over layers of touching melodies, from a sad and calm opening to a noisy (and full of anger) ending. Its name makes a clear statement: what’s done is done.

Written by Axialbis one year before.

Songs For A Hopeless Apology (III)

Johnny Cash – Hurt

Another case of a music legend turning another band’s hit (Nine Inch Nails') into an instant jewel. One year before he died in his early eighties, enfant terrible Cash recorded this sad and at the time peaceful tune that, helped by an stunning music video, ended symbolizing his legacy. 

“What have I become 

My sweetest friend
Everyone I know
goes away
In the end
And you could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt”

Written by Axialbis one year before.

Songs For A Hopeless Apology (II)

Willie Nelson – The Scientist

79 year-old country legend Willie Nelson performed and undoubtfully upgraded Coldplay’s hit. His deep and torn-up voice gives the song just the proper melancholic touch a great remorse song needed.

“Nobody said it was easy
It's such a shame for us to part
Nobody said it was easy
No one ever said it would be this hard
Oh, take me back to the start.”



Written by Axialbis one year before.

Songs For A Hopeless Apology (I)

I’m a person who tends to fail. A lot. Thus, I find myself in the need for apologizing more often than I should. Friends, family and loved ones have suffered from my poor decision-making skills and lack of empathy. Some may say failing is natural and necessary in life. So I think, despite being aware that it is always far more effective to think twice before acting and preventing other people (and myself) from being harmed. Of course, a firm and deeply felt apology is always better than nothing.

Ok, sometimes it’s just too late for an apology to fix anything. I made some huge mistakes lately; I kept hurting a wonderful person that I cared a lot about, even though it seemed the opposite. I screwed up big time, stepped on a pile of dirt so deeply, that I don’t think I will have any chance to regain her affection, not even her friendship. However, I’ve been obsessed about saying sorry, since I realized setting her apart from my life had been the biggest mistake I’ve ever made in my life.

I’ve come out with many ways of apologizing. I could try to write an inspiring story, send a touching letter or flowers to her, or knock on her doorstep and give her a Hollywood-like speech. All that wouldn’t do much I’m afraid. Above all, I wish I could write and play songs, because I’d write the most beautiful sad tune about how much I miss/need her and how ashamed I feel. That’d definitely be the best way to send the proper message; we both share a passion for music (as we share so many tastes and points of view in life). 

Many other skilled people made great songs about regret and apology. Here’s my current top 6. I’m sure there are many better ones, but these mean a lot to me as they accompany my sorrow these days, as I keep missing her (so much it hurts).

Written by Axialbis one year before.

Weepy Whale

Gosh, how much alike is this tune to the sound of a crying whale! Aweee!!

Modest Mouse - Whale Song

Birds & Something Else

The Bird & The Bee

                                               My Love                                            Meteor

Diamond Dave                                Birthday   

Birds & Arrows

     Starmaker                                     Garden Shed

   Woodgrain Heart                         Pride Of Lions

Birds & Batteries

                The Villain                               Strange Kind Of Mirror  

                         After A Flood                          I'll Never Sleep Again              

Birds

Pájaro Sunrise

(NB: "Pájaro" means "bird" in Spanish)

                                          Lil Gunner                                          Kinda Fantastic 

                                         Beggar Lover                                      Hungry Heart     

Blackbird Blackbird

                                         Sunspray                                             Hawaii

 

                                         I'm Feeling Hazy                              Pure

Bowerbirds

                                          Northern Lights                                  Crooked Lust    

                                          Beneath Your Tree                           Teeth 

Memories & Memoirs

September ends and we know that Autumn may get us a bit gloomy with the weather starting to chill and the leaves starting to fall. It seems that Summer has gone by so fast and we already long for it, like an old home video containing our past so full of good times.

Alex Turner - Piledriver Waltz

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Clarification

Those who follow me on a daily basis will have noticed that I really have been having a hard time coming up with deadlines for my blog entries during this month. And even though I'm pretty busy lately I don't let a day pass without a post. However, sometimes I don't get the time I need to write an article the way I'd like to do it.

OMFG! I'm absobloodylutely happy and enthusiastic since someone can be interested in reading my notes and I'll try to keep doing it daily whenever I can. 

Thank you very very much for all your S's & C's (support, suggestions, complaints, corrections and compliments).

CU soon!

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(Es)sex & Love

September is always a big month for album releases and as you can see, this week is loaded with new launches. Yay! 

Today I want to encourage you to check out the latest stuff from a minimalist indie-pop trio under the name of Love Inks, comprising husband-and-wife team Sherry LeBlanc (vocals) and Kevin Dehan (bass) and guitarist Adam Linnell. They named their band after some ancient voodoo involving writing magical new love letters in ink created from the burning of old ones. 

For their debut album E.S.P. (ten tracks dropped earlier this year), they worked under the idea of keeping each guitar, bass and drums sound as pure and unadorned as possible. They're also completely self-financed and recorded the EP on a reel-to-reel tape recorder in their bedroom (the musical equivalent of commuting to work by horse and cart). The less digitized, the better!

Leather Glove

Now they also have a 7-inch simply titled, Rock On, with a physical release date scheduled for September 9. Indeed, this is a lo-fi, sweet vibed, pop rendition of a Dave Essex  70s classic hit.

 Rock On

In addition, the B-side contains Be Brave, another catchy song with a graceful beauty. When I did listen, what struck me was the amazing warmth that they've captured.

Be Brave

Happiness Is A Lie

Are you ready? Grouplove is about to hit your ears for the first time with plenty of harmonies and catchy beats to keep you smiling. They are a band from L.A. whose inception sounds like a plot-line straight out of a Hollywood indie flick: Frontman Christian Zucconi met keyboardist and singer Hannah Hooper in Brooklyn. The pair stayed up until dawn listening to mixtapes filled with some bands in common. A week later, Christian opted to go with Hannah on a trip to Greece where they came across Londoner guitarist Sean Gadd and Californian pro surfer and bassist Andrew Wessen. Drummer and producer Ryan Rabin (studying in Prague at the time) was soon convinced to join in the adventure... and Grouplove was born.

The band built up to the release of their eagerly anticipated debut album, Never Trust A Happy Song, next September 13, touring dates with Joy Formidable, Foster the People and Florence + the Machine. The upcoming LP comes on the heels of their acclaimed, self-titled EP dropped earlier this year. Really, you have to wonder whose bright idea it was not to release this LP until now. This timing is appalling, given that Grouplove's debut album is in essence the perfect summer record. 

For such a young band, these guys sound like they have been playing together for years. Most of the songs are firmly steeped in that classic 80s-90s indie scene and aren't too far from something The Pixies would do, luring you in with hints of tinged keyboards and lead singer's unique voice.

Here you have a snippet from a radio program where they talk about their imminent record:

Itchin' on a Photograph

Colours

Tongue Tied

Among the tunes, my favorite one is Colours, their get noticed single, followed closely by Don't Say Oh Well, whose lyrics hint at the roots of the band. If you aren't impressed by these melodies, you are missing out my friends! My least fav track is Get Away Car. It's a slower song and just not as easy to sing along to. 

C'mon! It's your turn now, thus do not hesitate to get into their glorious EP! You'll be sad come winter when you discover these tracks too late! However, the full-length album could not exactly meet your expectations. Don't get me wrong, but this isn't a flawless album by any means and for me there's a definite slip in quality towards the mid-latter section, resulting in tracks which sadly act as little other than filler. 

The Piano Man

I discovered Billy Joel some time ago, although I don't know why I had always associated him with the romantic ballad. Indeed, most of you have been surely captivated by one of his best known songs, She's Always A Woman, which has even appeared on some ads soundtrack (at least in Italy and Spain - click here -).

She's Always A Woman

It was my friend Juan (AGAIN) who, knowing my passion for the sound of teh banjo, sent me this song that remains in my head for some months now and doesn't want to leave.

Travelin' Prayer

This is the live version, which differs slightly from the previous one. For me the banjo on the album version works much better than the sax. What do you think? Ahhh, there's just one more thing: How can he talk so fast with gum in his mouth?

SeptemVersion

I bet you'll start shaking a leg after pressing button for playing next video. This great song by Earth, Wind & Fire was released as a single in 1978 and reached number one on the U.S. R&B chart, number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 and number three on the UK singles chart.

Lurking the interwebs, I've found this version by Pomplamoose. It's much more sweet, slow and melodic. That's the characteristic style of irrelephant's music. Tell me what you think! BTW, Jack's grandma's got rhythm, right?

Earth, Wind & Fire - September

Pomplamoose - September

In Their Pockets

Pocketbooks are a delightful five-piece indie-pop band from London who popped up on my horizon some time ago with their track Footsteps, a joyous slice of uplifting, summer-tinged charm.

 

Their latest album entitled Carousel, which was released four days ago, is markedly different to its predecessor. If Flight Paths was snotty and  charmingly naive, then Carousel is their autumn record and sounds a bit more mellow. 

It's all about introspection and feeling a little bit lost with life. Throughout there's a desire to break free of life's little obstacles and celebrate a little. Mnmnmn... I think that's something a lot of us can relate to in one way or another. Sound of the carnival  is particularly knowing.

 

If you want to force me to pick a favourite, then it'd have to be Promises, Promises, a flurry of bright harmonies and fast pacing set by the sweeping violins, singer Emma Halls' lovely shining vocals and bittersweet lyrics about casual promises that never materialize.

 

But, hey, let's not get too deep, chumps. What, essentially, you've got in Carousel is a gem of a pop album. They're streaming a few of the songs over on their Bandcamp page, in case you fancy a listen:

magnif-ICE-nt LAND

Yesterday I met with my friend Marc after his return from a vacation in Iceland. Wow! What a wonderful land! I felt a twinge of jealousy while watching some pics he took there. Eye pleasing landscapes, lush green surroundings, spouting geysers, splendid glaciers, dawn breaking on the moors, sunset along the sea's horizon and crystal clear waterfalls. Words fail to portray the immense beauty of the astonishing natural wonders beautifully preserved in this territory. Iceland might not be the first country that springs to mind when it comes to my ideal travel location. Nevertheless, it has now become one of the top destinations on my list of outstanding journeys and I've got to glut the wanderlust again.

During our long chat over the wonders of Iceland, I couldn't help thinking of the many artists and bands born in these lands, like Jónsi, Seabear, Emiliana Torrini, Jóhann Jóhannsson and Björk, among others. This is a particularly interesting fact taking into account that the whole country has a population of about 320,000 (there're very few, right?). 

Now you may wonder if Irrelephant has become a travel blog or something similar. Hehe. Indeed, this speech serves as an introduction to the new project carried out by Sigur Rós, Inni, a DVD and double CD of the band's live performances in London, which will be released next November 7.

Although singer Jónsí has been touring his solo project, Sigur Rós is on "indefinite hiatus". The band has only played two gigs (both in Reykjavik) since November 2008 and scrapped their nearly completed sixth album last year.

Inni is Sigur Rós' second live film following 2007′s hugely-celebrated tour documentary Heima. Where Heima was lush and colorfully expansive, Inni is spare and near-monochromatic in its tunnel vision, focusing purely on the band's performance. Filmed in a manner that invites both intimacy and claustrophobia, it cocoons the viewer in a one-on-one relationship with the band.

Just two days ago, the clips for the songs Festival and Klippan were made available to watch online. This is part of what we will see in less than two months, so does nothing but make us biting our nails in times of excitement!

Festival (Live)

Klippa

Trendy Clothes

This is a video with the coolest outfits and the latest key trends of the moment. Get an idea about how to mix and match awsome designs all set to be the darlings of the fashion world. You'll see disturbing costumes, meat garments, post-its, toilet seats, bacon, fat suits, tires, gaping wounds and light sabers. No, it's not a Lady Gaga spread. It's Aeroplane's clip for his second single, Superstar, from the album We Can't Fly.

Superstar

Rabbits & Whales

Dunno why there are lots of bands whose names and their song titles are related to those animals. Let's examplify it!

Whole Rabbits Playlist

Pepper Rabbit - Older Brother 
White Rabbits - Percussion Gun 
Frightened Rabbit - The Modern Leper

Whole Whales Playlist

Freelance Whales - Hannah

Noah & The Whale - Five Years Time
Or, The Whale - Call and Response

Oh My Ghost!

Starting August AuGHOST off today!
40 cool songs that contain the word  " Ghost ".

Catchy Katachi

[Knock-knock]

May I come in? Yep, it's meeee! How you doin'? It's been six months now since I wrote my last post here and I was wondering if someone was still reading my blog. I'm not going to get into the details, but basically I've stayed away too long for personal reasons. I had to focus on hella important issues in my life and, trying to be as honest as possible with you, writing about me, my preferred songs, my memories... in short, about my life, obliged ​​me to dig deeper through experiences that made me feel kinda blueish.

Nevertheless, in all this time I've been keeping in touch with my dearest inseparable pal: MUSIC (those who follow me on social media are aware of it). I haven't stop listening, discovering, exploring, reviving, dreaming, enjoying and getting a thrill thanx to an endless stream of wondrous melodies.

I have often been tempted to write. I wanted to share with you my musical world, trying that we all, somehow, experienced the same feelings and emotions, that our bodies were scourged by shared rhythms, that stories and surprising long-awaited videos invaded our brains through this magical door: irrelephant. In any case, dudes, I wasn't able to do it and my blog remained inactive. And from that moment, the great show of support I received gave me a boost: bands who sent me emails asking me to check out their music and write a review, 53 average pageviews per day (again! there was no new entry since more than 200 days), 417 followers on Spotify subscribed to any of my tracklists, 162 faithful likes on Facebook (I don't know the vast majority of you personally, so thanks!), and 658 followers on Twitter (woooow) have made me realize that a blog like this should go ahead. Okey, this is not a return, but I promise to stop by here from time to time.

What I bring you today is an orchestral psychedelic song from the Japanese avant-popper Shugo Tokumaru. I found it yesterday and it has me purring like a love-sick kitten. 

Shugo is a multi-instrumentalist creating childlike, beautiful melodies on a variety of instruments ranging from bells to bongos, glokenspiels to guitars. AFAIK, he owns more than 100 instruments! Though the vocals are sung solely in his native language, his universal tunes transcend the lack of lyrical familiarity to Western ears. Trust me, the language barrier doesn't deter his fans from discovering and falling head over heels with his music. 

The video for Katachi  is a delightfully hypnotic thing, entirely stop-motion animated with 2,000 cut-out paper shapes (yeah, I counted them all out, LOL). That's super awesome, but the anthem is the real star here.  It's wacky, disorienting, very foreign and very fun. Watch it below! I bet he's gonna wow you as well.

Mondayness

Mondays are the most hated days on the planet. Of course, if you love your job, this doesn't have to be the case, but unfortunately, a sizable chunk of the workforce does in fact, detest their tasks. This simple truth has given rise to a plethora of Monday songs, most of which speak negatively about the day. For this playlist I have taken a shot at collecting what I feel are the very best songs ever recorded about Monday. Let me know which songs you would add and which you would remove.

And if you hate Mondays, give this list a spin, it may just help you make it through until Tuesday.

A Breed Of Feline Humans

Hi docs! Toooday we travel to Spain, my native country, where we run into CatPeople. They actually sing majorly in English, but I felt like mentioning them anyway cuz they are often an underrated outfit in terms of our own radars.

In spite of the youth of its members (the oldest one is still far from thirty), they sound like a very mature band with songs filled from beginning to end with dark pop melodies and nasty post-punk climaxes, starting off closer to bands such as Interpol and Editors, and turning themselves into a strange mutation of Joy Division and The Chameleons.

The group, formerly known as Magic Noise, took their current name from the classic horror film "The Panther Woman" (Jacques Tourneur, 1942). 

Some of their videos were made possible with the help of all the fans who contributed to finance the projects.

In Silence

Behind

Sister

Sex Change

By now, all of us already know about My Girls by Animal Collective, included in their last album, Merriweather Post Pavilion. It goes without saying, it's a masterpiece.

All right then, today I bring you a cover by Taken By Trees entitled My Boys. The fusion makes the song interesting in a new way and the lyrics are changed a bit to suit to songs title. FMPOV, I do like this version better cos it’s catchier and gentler than the original and makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

Merriweather Post Pavilion
Domino USA 2009

East Of Eden

Rough Trade 2009

Here Comes The Sun

Fifteen amazing songs about the sun and warm weather to mark the beginning of the hottest month of the year (in Spain).

Drawing Lyrics (VI)

Thriller  has often been referred to as the greatest music video ever and also been voted the most influential pop clip of all time. So it had to appear on this blog sooner or later, right?

Michael Jackson - Thriller

Click to button to (re-re-re)watch the extended version of this awsome short film!

There are a wide range of artists who have been performing this theme tune in recent years. I bring you some examples which have drawn my attention significantly:

Emily Elbert. With a guitar and her own voice, this girl from Boston performs a simple, but quite interesting cover.

The widely known Vitamin String Quartet with one of their classical music versions.

The wondrous ukulele tune by the Hawaiian Jake Shimabukuro. 

The cover carried out by the Spanish band Speak Low is a cool funky instrumental version. 

Drawing Lyrics (V)

It's obvious that you have heard and super-duper-heard Crazy, Gnarls Barkley's big hit. But surely, unless you're a hack laptop DJ who spends too much time trolling webs for hot new remixes, you may not be familiar with the theme tune Nel Cimitero Di Tucson, which is essentially an instrumental Crazy. It really seems like Gnarls Barkley had sampled it! It's wicked interesting to hear the original version and see how it has been modified till becoming the song we all know. Despite the trumpets were replaced by strings, the baseline practically remains the same.

Gnarls Barkley - Crazy

Here you have the original version. Listen to it and keep reading.

Nel Cimetero Di Tucson

In addition, we can not talk about this tune without mentioning its covers. Here are four versions:

The Kooks - Crazy
Ray Lamontagne - Crazy
Nelly Furtado - Crazy
The Twilight Singers - Crazy

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Updated Info

Thanx to We're Covering The Original, another cool version track can be included in the list:

Violent Femmes - Crazy

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