My favourite articles are the following:
- Allmusic.com's album review
- Rolling Stone interview with Fiona
- FreeFiona.com
It turns out there are two different versions of the album - the first was produced by Jon Brion (who also did When the Pawn) and the second by Mike Elizondo (who's known for his work with Eminem, 50 and many more). The CD you'll find in a music store is produced by Elizondo. But with a little effort you might be able to tickle the Brion version out of Mr. Interweb.
I downloaded the Brion version early this year and wasn't too excited at first. I liked the concept (lots of classical instruments and a fair share of dissonant tones) but it didn't strike me as something refreshingly new. Now recently when I heard the album was actually being released I started to listen to it again. And proving my inability to judge the quality of someone's work, I began to realize it was the some of the best music I've ever heard. People tell me they like beer because of the taste. I don't enjoy beer because I can't get over the taste which I interpret as bitter. But I agree that if I drank more beer I would probably learn to love it. It's not really "bitter" it just has a very strong unique character. It appears bitter to those unfamiliar with it. I think I've ranted about this before on this blog (oh right - Joanna Newsom!), but there's a lot to be said about things that give huge payoffs after investing some time in understanding them. Be it Joanna Newsom's voice, Jazz, beer, or Brion's version of Extraordinary Machine.
(Dear people with writing skills: I'm trying hard to impress you, but writing is not one of my talents. I hope I'm not appearing like an elephant in a tutu to you. If so, let me know and I'll take off the tutu and just write as the elephant that I am)
Elizondo's version of Extraordinary Machine is quite different. He uses less exotic instruments and comparably straightforward percussion, making the album more "accessible" to listeners - and quite frankly I think it sucks in comparison to Brion's version. At least for now. As I've learned, my opinion of albums changes over time. So I'm giving Elizondo's mix a second and probably even a third chance. Being the elitist snob that I am I doubt his work will satisfy my fine tastes. Mu ha ha ha...
Lyrics: I like them. She's good at writing stuff. I like listening to stuff that is well written. It is good. She's also funny.
...I don't understand about
Diamonds and why men buy them
What's so impressive about a diamond
Except the mining...
Or how about
I opened my eyes
While you were kissing me once more than once
And you looked as sincere as a dog
Just as sincere as a dog does,
When it's the food on your lips with which it's in love...
Hehehe... The remaining 90% is probably completely lost on me as an illiterate engineer/computer geek. Some of the words have more than 7 letters! What does she expect of me?
Final verdict: Go out and buy this album if you enjoyed her last two. If I can get myself to enjoy the Elizondo version (the one sold in stores) I might even do so myself.
Also - go to fiona-apple.com - click on Video - and check out all the clips available. I especially like the NYC Virgin Megastore live performances.
2 comments:
Please, for goodness sake, keep your tutu on. I believe it's best not to display your elephant on the Internet. As to your obvious and natural writing talent, I'm sure anyone able to recognize good writing will indeed be impressed.
Thanks for the comments on Fiona. I'm still getting a bit of a mixed message, however. Should I actually buy the Elizondo album or hope that somebody somewhere can hook me up with the original Brion version? There may be a hint somewhere in that question.
Now, after enjoying so much of your fine musical advice, I feel inclined to hold up my end of the conversation. Unfortunately, I have so little musical suphistication. So I'm going to blatantly plagairize.
A few weeks ago Maclean's back-page columnist, and jazz enthusiast, mentioned on his blog that he'd put together a collection of essential Blue Note albums for a charity event. I asked him to post the list. Here it is: http://weblogs.macleans.ca/paulwells/archives/week_2005_09_04-2005_09_10.asp.
I then asked for any classical recommendations, and he initially declined, noting that he's knows quite a bit about jazz, but not so much about classical. But then he gave in and nodded to John Adams' Violin Concerto.
And lastly: here's a link Wells put up to bootlegs from BC jazz trumpeter Ingrid Jensen: http://www.ingridjensen.com/media.aspx. I'm listening to it right now. It's pretty darn good.
Nathan you have excellent writing skills. You have nothing to be worried or emberassed about alright? :)
Post a Comment