a better fate than a long and lustrous winter

“When Chekhov saw the long winter, he saw a winter bleak and dark and bereft of hope. Yet we know that winter is just another step in the cycle of life. But standing here among the people of Punxsutawney and basking in the warmth of their hearths and hearts, I couldn’t imagine a better fate than a long and lustrous winter.”

Phil saw his shadow today; and Groundhog Day is ridiculously one of my all-time favorite movies. I subjected a friend to watching it with me last Thursday — and by watching it I mean trying and failing to restrain myself from quoting most every other line.  It gives me unmeasurable joy.

This song from new Barsuk Records signee Say Hi also gives me a shimmer of happiness in the dark of winter. Say Hi is Eric Elbogen, who hails from Brooklyn and Seattle, and records his music in a home studio. The new album Oohs & Aahs reminded me of elements of bands like Ra Ra Riot (in the synthesizers that add a frisson of electric energy to an oft-melancholy and gorgeous album) and Apostle of Hustle (in the brooding, creative percussion). His album is out March 3rd, and he’ll be on tour in the coming months with Fuel favorites Telekinesis!.

The appropriately wistful refrain in this first single is, “I’ll feel better when the winter’s gone, better when the winter’s gone….”

November Was White, December Was Grey – Say Hi

(GOSH, you’re an upbeat lady!)

Ben Kweller covers Neil Young + plays some new songs

Although he still looks eternally (and preternaturally) adolescent, 27 year-old Ben Kweller has been making music for fifteen years now, from catchy pop to punk rock and all shades in between. Recently returned to his home state to settle in Austin, Kweller’s bright new country-inflected album Changing Horses is out this week  on ATO Records.

“I wear my Texas roots on my sleeve,” Ben says on this interview from the BBC a few weeks ago. He’s apparently been writing these Southwestern songs for years (some hints broke through notably on 2006′s superb self-titled album and more recently on his How Ya Lookin’, Southbound? EP), and squirreling away the twang for the perfect time to gather them all into a slide-guitar + dusty heartbreak tour de force.

Kweller is comfortable letting his roots show. “I grew up bass-fishing, playing in creeks, and shooting BB guns,” Kweller says. “Country music was the soundtrack to my life. It’s still a big part of who I am. When Garth Brooks or Alan Jackson come on the radio, somethin’ happens inside. Brings me back to the trees, back to pushin’ cars out of the mud. Reminds me of my hometown.”

BEN KWELLER – Live on BBC2 (Dec 13, 2008)
Intro/Chat I
Sawdust Man (new)
Chat II
From Hank To Hendrix (Neil Young cover)
Chat III
Lizzy (from 2002′s Sha Sha)

ZIP: BEN KWELLER ON BBC

And also — man. I love that Neil Young song he covers (from 1992′s Harvest Moon), and just like everything Kweller does, the way he sings it is here is so purely unaffected and honest:

Sometime it’s distorted
Not clear to you
Sometimes the beauty of love
Just comes ringin’ through

New glass in the window
New leaf on the tree
New distance between us
You and me

Can we get it together?
Can we still walk side by side?
Can we make it last
Like a musical ride?

Changing Horses is out February 3rd in the U.S. (today in Europe!), and there’s a sweeeet Daytrotter session recently posted as well.

Snoop Dogg calls Johnny Cash a “real American gangster”

Johnny Cash Remixed (podcast, 13 minutes)

I found this podcast to be an interesting listen, detailing some of the history behind the new Johnny Cash Remixed album (Compadre Records). I’m not sure the originals needed remixing, but I was curious to hear the songs through a modern filter. Also, you can hear Snoop Dogg’s drawl on about Johnny being his “main man,” which  made me smile.

Twenty Johnny Cash classics (including “I Walk The Line”, “Folsom Prison Blues” and ‘Wide Open Road”) were licensed from legendary Sun Records, first record label home of Elvis, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Roy Orbison, among others. Top remixers and producers were recruited to bring the sensibility and technology of 2008 to recordings universally accepted as timeless, with the blessing and support of the custodians of Johnny Cash’s legacy. The original tracks, recorded with Cash’s band the Tennessee Two, were pure and stark, with only the essentials; guitar, light percussion and Johnny’s unmistakable voice and presence. The new mixes maintain this fantastic charm and personality while filing out the sound and creating bold re-interpretations.

CONTEST: I have either a limited edition vinyl or a CD copy of this album to give away. You can leave me a comment if you’d like it and I’ll pick a random winner next weekend.