Tag: music

Categories
Created Narrated

Tracing “Cain”

Ted Leo - Blurry Hands

“We literally wrote this this morning.”

August 26th of 2005: a crowd of us gathered at the South Street Seaport watched as [Ted Leo and the Pharmacists](http://www.tedleo.com/) played the one song of the night no one knew. No one sung along, no one lipped the words – we just listened. And I, in a moment of lucky forethought, held my camera aloft and [captured the whole thing](http://timorousme.org/movies/tedleonewsong.mov).

The [MP3](https://vjarmy.com/junkbin/newtedleosong.mp3) was at first labeled just “Untitled Ted Leo Song” – but soon [renamed](http://mligon08.blogspot.com/2005_08_01_mligon08_archive.html#112527994739896106) to the best guess off the set list, “The Sons Of Cain”. After getting heckled by a fellow fan, I asked Ted for his (albeit late) permission to distribute; he was kind enough to grant it.

A few months later, the song was again performed on KEXP; the considerably better audio quality led to an MP3 of that making the rounds as well.

Both of the TL/Rx shows I went to after that featured Sons Of Cain on the setlist, and it was an odd feeling to hear it played live again – not only because I had played a role in people recognizing it, but because every new performance was a little more refined than the one I had heard prior.

It’s weird (and a bit possessive) to think about, but Sons Of Cain is the first new song Ted wrote for an album since I started listening to him. There’s a strong attachment there, as each new playing gets it closer to being “done”.

Skipping to the end: Pitchfork, in conjunction with Touch & Go, have released The Sons Of Cain as a free MP3, in preparation for the release of *Living With The Living* on March 20th.

All four versions I’ve come across on MP3 are below. So compare, contrast, and listen as the song evolves:

* [The Sons Of Cain: South Street Seaport, August 26th 2005](https://vjarmy.com/junkbin/newtedleosong.mp3) (self-recorded)
* [The Sons Of Cain: KEXP, September 27th 2005](https://vjarmy.com/junkbin/sonsofcain/kexp.mp3) ([source](http://content.digitalwell.washington.edu/isilon/1/8/39/39398ebd-e00c-4dca-8110-5c9be51c4187.mp3))
* [The Sons Of Cain: South Street Seaport, August 25th 2006](https://vjarmy.com/junkbin/sonsofcain/seaport06.mp3) ([source](http://www.archive.org/details/tedleo2006-08-25.flac16))
* [The Sons Of Cain: Album Version](https://vjarmy.com/junkbin/sonsofcain/album.mp3) ([source](http://www.touchandgorecords.com/media/3739.mp3))

As a special bonus option: I’ve mixed the four songs together, each version getting about a minute. Most of the difference in feel comes from the various recording methods, but you can still listen as the song evolves.

[Download The Sons Of Cain (Four Ways Mix)](https://vjarmy.com/junkbin/sonsofcain/fourways.mp3)

(thanks to [Alan Williamson](http://sixeyes.blogspot.com/2007/01/ted-leo-sons-of-cain-first-live.html) for the inspiration for this post)

Categories
Narrated

Musical Evolution

The first piece of musical software I remember sparking my interest was [Rebirth 1.0](http://www.rebirthmuseum.com/). I didn’t have a MIDI keyboard, and I barely had a lick of musical inspiration, but setting up drum loops and turning the knobs on the virtual synth just made me feel…I don’t know, I guess the proper word is *empowered*.

To the best of my memory, my discovery of Rebirth was also right around the time I found myself listening to electronic music. Rebirth came out in early 1997, and the span from 1996 to 1997 was when the US had that big HOLY SHIT **ELECTRONICA** moment. And even if it amounted to little more than press hype, it started me down the musical tinkering slope.

June of 2000: I discover [Igor Engraver](https://vjarmy.com/archives/2000/06/for_the_musicia.php) – a then-free piece of music notation software. I tinker, I toy, I play. Nothing comes of it, but that creative spirit blooms again briefly.

Early 2002: I find my way into Beatmania. I never recover.

Christmas 2003: I receive both a copy of [Traktor DJ Studio](http://www.native-instruments.com/index.php?id=traktor3_us) and an [Oxygen8](http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/Oxygen8-main.html) keyboard. I put together a few mashups, and end up putting a few musical blips together to be used in some games.

In the time since, I’ve taken up photography, and as an immediate-feedback outlet, it’s hard to top. But that desire to screw around and craft music has never really disappeared.

Which leads us to today. Today is the day where I acquired [Ableton Live 5.2](http://www.ableton.com/index/live).
I list the software I’ve gone through because of the massive rate of growth the industry has seen. In 10 years, we’ve come from a simple synth and drum machine to something through which [beatboxers can reach new heights](http://www.ableton.com/_common/downloads/pages2/artist_kid_beyond/kid-beyond.mov), [loops can be made out of common household goods](http://www.ableton.com/_common/downloads/pages2/artists/shawn_pelton/down_and_dirty_loops.mov), and [music can be made while traveling](http://www.ableton.com/_common/downloads/pages2/artist_telefon_tel_aviv/telefon_tel_aviv.mov). (Seriously, folks, **watch these movies.**)

I don’t know if anything worthwhile will come out of me having Live. It may just be another plaything, another toy I end up growing tired of. But once again, I feel that grand empowerment that comes from having a magical tool that almost begs to be bent to my will – and bend it I shall.

Categories
Found

Covers Make Everything Better

Confession time: I have, since her first album came out, enjoyed Nelly Furtado’s music. It has a nice folk-y pop feeling, she had nice vocal range…I had no complaints. *Folklore* was also quite enjoyable, save a couple of tracks. I didn’t pursue her albums, but I didn’t mind if stuff came on the radio.

But when I recently heard her new single, *Promiscuous*, I had only one thought: *who on earth told her it was a good idea to dump everything she had and do an impersonation of the worst of the Black Eyed Peas?*

One of the great things about the music industry is that the right cover can heal all wounds. To give the most classic example from last year, [Ted Leo’s cover of Since U Been Gone](http://a.wholelottanothing.org/2005/03/this_weeks_best.html) made the original song considerably more tolerable for me.

So with that said, [via brooklynvegan](http://www.brooklynvegan.com/archives/2006/06/gnarls_barkley_5.html): [Nelly Furtado covering Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy”](http://this.bigstereo.net/2006/05/31/nelly-furtado-gnarls-barkley/).

The wounds are healed – at least for now.

(If Nelly’s not your style, it’s also been covered by [Ray Lamontagne](http://www.ezarchive.com/moteldemoka/AlbumSpace/26HBX6IZH4/ray+lamontagne+-+crazy.mp3) and [The Kooks](http://www.ezarchive.com/moteldemoka/AlbumSpace/26HBX6IZH4/The_Kooks_-_Crazy.mp3).)