http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview All about the world inside our heads, and outside Thu, 22 Dec 2011 19:10:38 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.3 Copyright © 2012 The Pseudobook Review pbreview@pseudobook.com () pbreview@pseudobook.com () posts 1440 All about the world inside our heads, and outside pbreview@pseudobook.com No no http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/wp-content/plugins/podpress/images/powered_by_podpress.jpg http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview 144 144 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2010/08/brian-wilson-reimagines-gershwin/ http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2010/08/brian-wilson-reimagines-gershwin/#comments Fri, 20 Aug 2010 08:30:20 +0000 Bruce Edwards http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/?p=535 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2010/08/brian-wilson-reimagines-gershwin/feed/ 0 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2010/01/fanfario/ http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2010/01/fanfario/#comments Wed, 27 Jan 2010 14:03:11 +0000 Bruce Edwards http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/?p=402 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2010/01/fanfario/feed/ 1 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2010/01/midlakes-the-courage-of-others-streamed-on-npr/ http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2010/01/midlakes-the-courage-of-others-streamed-on-npr/#comments Tue, 26 Jan 2010 01:03:22 +0000 Bruce Edwards http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/?p=398 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2010/01/midlakes-the-courage-of-others-streamed-on-npr/feed/ 0 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2010/01/beach-house-teen-dream-streamed-on-npr/ http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2010/01/beach-house-teen-dream-streamed-on-npr/#comments Fri, 22 Jan 2010 13:41:43 +0000 Bruce Edwards http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/?p=396 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2010/01/beach-house-teen-dream-streamed-on-npr/feed/ 1 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2009/11/john-stewart-remembers/ http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2009/11/john-stewart-remembers/#comments Sat, 21 Nov 2009 06:52:41 +0000 Bruce Edwards http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/?p=333 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2009/11/john-stewart-remembers/feed/ 0 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2009/10/dead-mans-bones-a-review/ http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2009/10/dead-mans-bones-a-review/#comments Wed, 21 Oct 2009 12:48:53 +0000 Megan http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/?p=317 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2009/10/dead-mans-bones-a-review/feed/ 0 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2008/06/mobius-band-heaven/ http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2008/06/mobius-band-heaven/#comments Tue, 17 Jun 2008 07:37:46 +0000 Justin http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/?p=259 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2008/06/mobius-band-heaven/feed/ 4 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2008/05/the-notwist-the-devil-you-me/ http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2008/05/the-notwist-the-devil-you-me/#comments Fri, 09 May 2008 00:51:30 +0000 Joel http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/?p=246 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2008/05/the-notwist-the-devil-you-me/feed/ 2 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2008/01/year-end-reviews/ http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2008/01/year-end-reviews/#comments Wed, 02 Jan 2008 21:35:19 +0000 Justin http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/?p=222 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2008/01/year-end-reviews/feed/ 4 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2007/12/the-a-sides-evangelism-time/ http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2007/12/the-a-sides-evangelism-time/#comments Sat, 08 Dec 2007 01:53:26 +0000 Justin http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/?p=210 http://www.pseudobook.com/thepseudobookreview/2007/12/the-a-sides-evangelism-time/feed/ 1 4:23 I have spent the past 2 weeks with Silver Storms by The A-Sides playing on every media machine I own. It's shot up my charts ... I have spent the past 2 weeks with Silver Storms by The A-Sides playing on every media machine I own. It's shot up my charts to become the Most Played Album of the Year, if indeed such stats were available. The A-Sides provide the modern indie rock styling of the Beach Boys, to keep it simple, with sounds that fans of Lassie Foundation, The Shins, Sounds Like Sunset, Weezer, Band of Horses, Elefant, Cush, and the like will come to adore. They have an incredible knack for melody, with super catchy guitar riffs and hooks galore. I just can't get enough, to say the least. But my favorite part about these guys is their lack of fear in letting a song breathe. As a writer, both of movies and music, there comes a point where a song or a character get a life of their own and begin to communicate what they want and where they would like to go. The writer would be smart to listen to these suggestions. The A-Sides are unashamed of letting their songs have a life of their own, often with songs ending up in the 5 and 6 minute length. Listening to them they don't feel long, though. Their songwriting lets listeners get caught up in the life and story of the song, with plot points, twists, hooks, and surprise endings. I am referring to the story of the music here metaphorically, as opposed to the lyrics actually telling a story. The lyrics serve the story of the music as another character, you might say. My favorite juxtaposition to the A-Sides songwriting is Eisley songwriting. If you know anything about Eisley, you quickly realize they are the queens of cutting a song short into tidy, 3-minute, radio-friendly packages. Without writing a review of Eisley albums, I can sum up my feelings for them as such: "Ah, man, what a promising start! That part is so cool -- What? It's the chorus already? Oh gosh, that's over, and a bit contrived. Hmm, here's a 2-measure verse with a 1-measure pre-chorus. And we're back to the chorus yet again! All this in the first 45 seconds! Whatever happened to that cool beginning? What the crap? Now here's some 1-measure bridge, back to the chorus for 4 more times to end. We never even got back to that cool first part! Surely this song wanted to be more than this..." (For the most heart-breaking version of this, listen to their song Taking Control) For an example of allowing a song to live and breathe, I am going to let you have a listen here to A Florida Grove by the A-Sides, my current favorite: Take note of the different places the song takes you, wrapping around you, dancing with that lead guitar line. Where are you going? Ah! A Florida grove! A Florida grove! Whooooaaa! "Down the map we dove," just like the melody. There are new takes on previous parts of the song, viewing them in a different light, and when most radio songs would end, they introduce their version of "the bridge" to carry the song to a new level: I never heard of a hurricane You know I don't nothing about the tidal wave When the winter comes again We'll be warm until the end Sounds like they want to do for Florida what the Beach Boys did for southern California. Maybe cheesy on the surface reading it now, but listen how it serves the story of the song and works with the melody, drums, and shifts the song to one last gear to drive home those feelings of sun and warmth. Through the Ocean, Great American Novelist, Cinematic, and Amazing Grace would be my other favorites, in general, though the whole disc plays through and I never complain. I attribute that to feeling that these songwriters probably listen to their songs as they create them, and we get the very best version of what each song wants to be. It shows in the final product. If they had some cranky record label producer guy on their toes, he would chop them up to pieces and leave the life and story of these songs at the door in favor of the 3 Minute Target. That would make me sad. I'm glad they are on Vagrant Records (the Music pbreview@pseudobook.com no No