This new Okkervil River song is simply divine. Will Sheff played a rendition of "Lay of the Last Survivor" last week at a solo show. I can't wait to hear how it will sound fleshed out by the full band, but in the meantime the core melody sounds great stripped down as do most of Okkervil's songs.
So I just got back from a whirlwind trip to London. I was technically there for educational purposes (I was taking a course on e-publishing), but between the tours of libraries, museums and other antiquities I managed to squeeze in a some time for music and music-oriented musings. Here are the highlights:
-I finally saw the Avett Brothers live. Of course it's only logical that my friends and I see a band that excels at crafting twangy Americana when travelling across the pond. This totally ruled for several reasons... A) the crowd was epically friendly and polite (a massive departure from the typical Brooklyn hipster scene I've apparently grown immune to) B) it only cost 10 pounds! (that's like 14 American dollars, a fraction of the price I'd pay to see them in the States, which is like over 30 bucks) C) in a venue a fraction of the size I'd see them here (they're scheduled to play the cavernous Radio City in October). Oh and naturally they sounded great, bounding with energy dressed to the nines in their vests and ties.
-Speaking of vests and ties, Harrods (while terribly overrated in my book) was having a 25% off sale on Etro clothing. For those of you who don't know, that's Mountain Goats' bassist Peter Peter Hughes favorite brand for tour wardrobing. And we can't really blame him despite the high price, the designs are so intricate and the fabric so sumptuous. In other words, I'll take any excuse to post this photo of his vest:
-Being able to identify Tube stops from song, i.e. Mornington Crescent and Waterloo Station. Shout out to Belle & Sebastian and the Kinks!
-Hearing Okkervil River's The Stage Names its ENTIRETY being played in an airport gift shop at Heathrow. Instead of waiting at the gate for my flight, I just loitered in the store and enjoyed hearing one of my favorite album's of 2008 being played in the most random of public spaces. I finally got up the nerve to thank the clerk behind the counter for playing it. We chatted about music for about 10 minutes and he even showed me The Hold Steady tattoo on his index finger, (basically just the words "the hold steady" in lowercase typewriter font). If you happen to find yourself in the HMV in Heathrow's terminal 4, tell the man behind the counter I say hi.
And now the only song I know that references both London AND Libraries:
Swinging London - The Magnetic Fields
It was quite refreshing to see Okkervil River in a space as intimate and cozy as Brooklyn's Bell House, especially after seeing them at the less-than-stellar Webster Hall the last time they played in town. Will spewed sweat and spit, giving his all, as always and the band raged on and on for nearly two hours. Highlights included "Get Big" in which Will dueted with his girlfriend Beth (of the band Bird of Youth) and a solo rendition of "Red" Here's the complete setlist.
Plus Ones
Singer-Songwriter
A Hand to Take Hold…
Black
Starry Stairs
John Allyn Smith
The Latest Toughs
Red (Will solo)
Get Big (Will + singer from Bird if Youth + Lauren, Justin, Travis (tambourine))
Blue Tulip
Pop Lie (song they’ll do on Letterman)
Lost Coastlines
Black Sheep Boy >
For Real (loud)
Our Life is Not a Movie
Unless It’s Kicks
——–
Bruce Wayne Campbell (Will, Lauren, Justin)
Girl in Port
Another Radio Song
A Girl In Port
Singer Songwriter
A Hand To Take Hold Of The Scene
Black
The Latest Toughs
On Tour With Zykos
Blue Tulip
John Allyn Smith Sails
Pop Lie
Maine Island Lovers
Lost Coastlines
Our Life Is Not A Movie Or Maybe >
For Real
Unless It's Kicks
Encore:
Okkervil River Song
Westfall
I got to the venue nearly an hour before doors opened, but this adorable black cat, lets call him Linguine (because he looks like he must be related to Spaghetti Cat), had already beaten me to being first on line. I'm assuming the cat wasn't a stray because it was immaculately groomed with a shiny, shiny coat and wasn't the least bit skittish. In fact we even cuddled and everyone assumed it was mine. We bonded. Nevermind what they say about black cats bringing bad luck, Linguine was a most auspicious start of the night. 
OK, OK, so now on to the actual show. IT ROCKED! Will Sheff dripped sweat and spit and being in the front row, I reveled in it. Never, never have I seen a band pour that much of themselves, quite literally on stage. AND they continued for more than two hours playing song after song after song. Howling in hysterics, so shambolically melodic!
...And Okkervil River said it best with this one.
Calling and Not Calling My Ex - Okkervil River
We'll have a more in-depth review of The Stand-Ins (It's the yang to The Stage Names yin) closer to its release next month. Because right now we're still too busy marveling at said track's titular dilemma.
Oh and here's bonus video of an acoustic rendition of "Lost Coastlines" via the Norwegian Broadcasting System (off all places, heh!)
Jens Lekman: Night Falls over Kortedala (26.8)Every song on Kortedala joyously unfolds like the start of a newfound love affair, replete with all the smitten excitement, endearing awkwardness and the good kind of nervousness that any worthwhile relationship naturally entails. With its swirling retro-pop samples seamlessly integrated into the Swedish troubadour’s distinctly contemporary tales of romantic melancholy, it’s hard not to be won over by his lyrical wit, aw-shucks charm and total lack of irony. Whether he’s slicing up avocados, getting a haircut or flirting with a deaf girl, Jens effortlessly transforms those mundane little moments into the stuff that magical glockenspiel-laden epiphanies are made of. Doing what few albums this year (or any year) could accomplish: Kortedala inspires, reaffirming life and restoring faith in that crazy little thing called love, for even the most cynical. Don’t let anyone stand in your way.
Of Montreal: Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? (10.3)So I'm away for the week, visiting the grandfolks and accessing these new-fangled internets via their old-school AOL server. The connection is slooooow (with a hundred "o's"). Also their computer lacks sound?! So here I am providing you with a clip of what I would be watching (and listening to) if I wasn't in the presence of the technologically impaired.
It's Okkervil River's Will Sheff performing "A Girl in Port" solo acoustically on a beach in Italy. It looks great. I'm betting it sounds great too.
How adorable did the boys of Okkervil River look on Conan last night? See for yourself:
The crazy and epic Sloop John B breakdown that is the end of the last song on Okkervil River's lastest album is, without any doubt, my favourite musical moment of the year so far.
It's an amazingly good album, I recomend you all buy it.
Download John Allyn Smith Sails
Buy 'The Stage Names'
