In Yr. Head...The Acorn

Those who have the honor (or curse....more likely curse) to hear my rants on a somewhat daily basis know that I can be prone to hyperbole when I describe things I like. I know this and they know this so it works. They just block out about half the adjectives I dispense and everything is alright. With this in mind, one would be hesitant to take my word when I say what I am going to say about The Acorn but honestly, I swear, I'm not exaggerating. Not much at least.

This story starts in September of 2007. Heady times full of mirth and innocence. Ahh, glory days. I had heard a few good things about on this internet thing about this band called Vampire Weekend so I made a note to check them out live. Conveniently they were playing a free show Vassar College (5 minutes from my apartment) three days from when I made a note to check them out. Really, it doesn't get much more convenient than that. So I went with not much in terms of expectations, having only heard a couple songs.....and was promptly blown away. I remarked to my friend at the show that this band, Vampire Weekend, would soon be playing on a much later stage. Much much larger. Well, here we are about 10 months, a Spin cover, and a SNL appearance later and I think it's fair to say that my prediction was pretty much on target (admittedly it was pretty obvious).

The first time I saw The Acorn was under similar circumstances. I'd heard a couple songs and really liked one. I'd heard some good rumblings on the internet about them. So I checked them out after work in May at the Mercury Lounge. I had low expectations. I was blown away. Once again I found myself telling a friend that this is a band that you're going to see playing much larger stages and soon.

Not that The Acorn is Vampire Weekend. They are obviously not. They don't have the same commercial appeal nor the same ability to write a great 3 minute pop song. No, on record they remind me more of early (EP) Arcade Fire, or maybe Arcade Fire with Vampire Weekend's sense of rhythm (technically wouldn't that be Paul Simon's sense of rhythm?). They play folk music with a world beat and that aspires to be grand and great without trying to be epic. Unlike so many other bands, The Acorn are not self-consciously hip. Maybe it's a Canadian thing?

Did I mention they're are from Ottawa? Not quite Montreal but you can see a similarity with many of those bands. They certainly are an interesting band to watch. The lead singer is half Honduran half Swiss. Their lead guitarist is asian. They have two drummers. Their latest album is a concept album about the lead singer/songwriter's mother. Not exactly your typical indie rock band (though the concept album about your mother sounds sort of like a Jeff Mangum/Fiery Furnaces collaboration...).

The record is good. Not great. Good. Interesting at times. Sort of boring at other. But live, they are fantastic. Live, these folk songs take on a grandeur and scale that brought to mind (and I hate to say this since I'm not really a fan of this band) U2. Yes, I just said it. The Acorn are the new U2. Lets hope Rolf is less insufferable than Bono.

Check this band out live and tell me if you agree.

Here is the band at City Sol on June 28th: Crooked Legs

Here are some links to some other videos I shot of the band in early May at the Mercury Lounge: Low Gravity, Crooked Legs, Flood

10,000 Words About No Age

Taken at Bard College and the Bowery Ballroom in early May of 2008

Don't Call It A Comeback

I'm back.  With power power?  No.  Just back.  Where have I been?  I've been hustlin'?  No, I've been busying graduating (Can I graduate?! Yes....yes I can) and looking for jobs (um.....no snarky songs to quote here) and looking for a new apartment.  Yes, I felt being a 20 something unemployed blogger wasn't cliched enough so I'm moving to Brooklyn, hopefully in a few weeks.  

But now that the horror/whore that was capping is over with, I can re-focus some attention here.  

So for my triumphant return, a list.  Mainly because I don't really have an videos or photos to post as of yet.  Shush.  Don't hate.

So a list.  What manner of list?  Well, it was going to be a Top X Albums.  But then, that's so arbitrary and limiting.    So I'm going to pick a method just as arbitrary but more suitable for my use.  So, without further ado, here is my Top 10 Favorite Arbitrary Collections of Music...

10 - Arcade Fire - Funeral > cause it's the best album of the 00's.  

9 - Animal Collective - an album consisting of 3 songs each from Sung Tongs, Feels, and Strawberry Jam > because AC singles - atmospheric filler = perfection

8 - Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin - Broom > cause I love the last 30 seconds of "Gwyneth"more than I should.

7 - Pixies - first 6 songs from Surfer Rosa > lets be honest, it goes downhill steeply after that....but the first 6 songs were their best.

6 - Ra Ra Riot - not their debut album but an album of my own creation featuring, in this order, A Manner To Act, Each Year, Can You Tell, Suspended in Gaffa, St. Peter's Day Festival, Oh La, Everest, Too Too Too Fast, Run My Mouth Off, Ghost Under Rocks, Dying Is Fine.  

5 (tie) Tokyo Police Club - Tesselate > where Dave Monks sings "running barefoot, you and I"

Yeasayer - 2080 Live on Conan O'Brian > when they do the "YEAH YEAH" chant towards the end of the song

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - The entire first album is underrated and over hated.  It's crazy pop music sung by a crazy bob dylan impersonator and I adore it.

4- The Beatles - Abbey Road, side two > if I have to explain this then you don't love music.

3 - Mission Of Burma - An album that is mostly Signals Calls and Marches but also with Peking Spring, Max Ernst, Academy Fight Song, The Ballad of Johnny Burma, and That's How I Escaped My Certain Fate

2 - Neural Milk Hotel - In The Aeroplane Over The Sea > As is because it's completely perfect as it is.

1 - The National -  Alligator + Boxer (but more realistically, most of Alligator but plus Fake Empire, Slow Show, Apartment Story, Squalor Victoria, and Mistaken For Strangers)