Tag Archives: leonard cohen

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Watchlist vol. 6: Phantogram

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Once in a great while you hear music that just makes you feel cool.

Every time it comes on, you feel like you should be walking in slow motion, dark shades on, gliding into a room as all eyes fix on you. Maybe you’re wearing an old, black, leather jacket and flicking a cigarette as smoke billows from your mouth.

There are only a handful of groups in recent memory that have given me that feeling: Autolux, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, and Leonard Cohen, to name a few. And now, thanks to their new album, Eyelid Movies, Phantogram have joined those hallowed ranks. Continue reading…

interviews

Poetic Memory: Boomsnake (List)

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Gabriel Rodriguez of San Diego’s Boomsnake initially met our Poetic Memory request with skepticism. In his own words, “I naturally become enthralled or influenced by the artist more than a record…I like becoming immersed in the creator: to view the world from their perspective, whatever it may be.” He adds, “The major influences of my life are probably those of most music listeners. Yes, I delve deep into the obscure, but those are not ‘life’ influences.”

For Rodriguez, though, the bottom line is this: “I enjoy music. All forms of music. If you put on ‘Thriller’ at a party, I’ll be dancing; ‘War Pigs’ at the bar, I’ll be drinking happily; ‘Sex in the Kitchen’ while making out, I’ll get freaky.”

Rodriguez’s list chronicles records that “strike the very being of the listener; records that play as if they were written for you.” His Poetic Memory is below. Continue reading →

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Poetic Memory: Chris Hickey (List)

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Chris Hickey - Razzmatazz

Chris Hickey has recorded with musical luminaries like Joe Henry, Michael Penn, and Indigo Girls, and he’s a former member of the bands “Uma” and “Show of Hands”. Now, he’s released Razzmatazz, his third solo effort.

One highlight of Razzmatazz (among many) is Hickey’s tribute to Jack Kerouac. He says, “I’ve only recently discovered Kerouac and I agree with Allen Ginsberg when he said that Kerouac’s work is ‘The most sincere and holy writing I know of our age.'” Hickey does the man justice with “Kerouac” (MP3).

The album was written in song-a-day fashion over the course of three weeks, and the result is “16 songs, vocal & guitar, recorded on a hand-held voice recorder…so, for better or worse, it’s sketchy, low-fi, quirky…but it might be charming or something.” It’s been listed listed as a New and Noteworthy on release on iTunes. You can purchase it here (iTunes).

We recently sat down with him to talk Poetic Memory (below). He used his own formatting when he sent us his list, and we decided that it works best that way. Enjoy! Continue reading →

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Poetic Memory: Boy Without God (List)

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Boy Without God

Fact: there are more albums in existence today than ever before, and, as more albums are released in the future, that number will most likely increase. We, the intrepid writers for Owl&Bear, stand at the frothy frontline of this constant deluge of new music, bravely filling buckets with the good stuff and presenting it as sweet sustenance to our parched readers. We perpetually receive music from PR people, begging us to check out undiscovered artists, and a lot of it is, quite frankly, underwhelming. But once in a while we come across a diamond in the rough, something that grabs us by the ears and doesn’t let go. And so it happened that, mere seconds into hearing “If You” (MP3), I became a fan of Boy Without God.

Hailing from Massachusetts, famed home of the sassy Congressman, Boy Without God is the solo project of multi-instrumentalist Gabriel Birnbaum. His new album, Your Body Is Your Soul, which sounds like Neutral Milk Hotel if they’d been fronted by Johnny Cash, has been on constant rotation in the Owl&Bear offices lately and is shaping up to be one of the best albums of the year. Birnbaum was kind enough to share his influences with us for our newest installment of Poetic Memory.

Poetic Memory is a regular Owl and Bear feature in which musicians disclose their influences—whether it’s albums, songs, artists, or something random. If you’re interested in being featured here, send us an email. Continue reading →

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See Leonard Cohen in Concert for Free

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Leonard Cohen

If you missed out on Leonard Cohen’s stellar San Diego performance earlier this month, you’re probably not feeling too good about yourself. And if you blew your second chance to see Cohen this month—at last weekend’s Coachella festival—you probably feel downright awful. But don’t worry, because—even though you don’t deserve it—you now have yet another chance to experience Mr. Cohen in concert. Well, sort of.

For this week only, the nice folks at Pitchfork are streaming Cohen’s Live In London concert film for free. The concert film, included as a DVD companion piece to his recently released live album of the same name, proves that the remarkable Cohen is still at the top of his game.

So sit back, turn out the lights, set the video to full-screen mode, and pretend you’re enjoying the unmistakable crooning of the great Leonard Cohen in person. How many more chances do you need?

[Video has since been removed.]