Alex Greenwald, Yo

GreenwaldYo

INTERNETS. NESSIE HAS SURFACED.

Alex Greenwald has put his solo record out – it is called Yo – and mysteriously not said anything about it. In the event this is because he’s conducting some sort of marketing experiment, I offer my data-point, which is that it took the Tumblr-tide three weeks to bring the news to my door.

Anyway, I have now listened to it four times in a row, and my reaction is: Mmm. Hmm. Interesting. It’s pop music with some echo and wubble-bubble, and for all one of the songs is a love song about a knife, there’s none of the fuzzy rage and jagged aggression that showed up in Phantom Planet’s sound. Lest that make it sound like a weightless, disposable confection, know also that lyrics have razor-sharp edges, sometimes in unexpected places. It is very much the kind of thing that becomes richer with repeated listening.

Simulacre and Still Too Soon: The first two tracks are, in order, a 13 second sample of something I didn’t recognize and a song about how all the sunshine in Los Angeles can really mess with your head. This was something I wondered about when I visited, actually, if all the perfect weather eventually makes it feel like you’re living in a weightless summer camp dream all the time. I mean, say what you want about New York, but when the December wind comes whipping down the skyscraper-canyons and through your bones, you have to be real with yourself about if you have to live here. Because there are definitely easier places to struggle.

Movin’ On: Some people break up with their friends and lovers quickly; others take a little longer. I guess it comes down to whether you want a quick pain, or an extended unraveling.

Track03: Actually track four; I thought this was a labeling mistake and made a mental note to figure out the real title and fix it, and then it turned out to be meta-commentary about the placement and role of songs on mix cds.

Balisong: The aforementioned love song about a knife; one of my favorite songs on the record. Also the only one I can currently find on the internet in a relatively easy-to-share location. That said, those of you who have Spotify, you can listen to this song and the rest of the record there.

On My Own: A really bouncy song about being crushed by the city and your dreams and the disappointment of your loved ones. I imagine I will find myself dancing around my kitchen to this in the future.

Bitch Sinister Bitch: Perhaps a tiny hint of a reggae rhythm amid the shimmer and swirl; mostly about being an irritatant, and choosing the times you are an irritant wisely? I think? I wish I had the lyrics for this one.

R.O.T.K.: My other (current) favorite song on the record, mainly because it drops into the same dark register as Balisong.

You Found Each Other: A song about believing in romance, but only because it keeps happening to people who are not you. It’s cheerful and encouraging but in a slightly manic and cynical way.

Video: Alex Greenwald and Phriends, Balisong (She Told Me So)

It has been well over a year since this song surfaced as a teaser for Alex Greenwald‘s solo record and I must confess, I was beginning to wonder if the project had been abandoned.

But lo, a video has appeared! Hopefully this means the record will emerge soon too.

Without further chatter, here is Mr. Greenwald (looking very professorial) along with Darren Robinson and Jeff Conrad from Phantom Planet and Stuart Zender from Jamiroquai (?!) with a live version of the song performed at a live variety show put on by The Kennedy Administration in Echo Park, in Los Angeles.
 

Alex Greenwald & Phriends (Members of Phantom Planet) perform Balisong at The Kennedy Administration

2012: A Year In Pictures, October and December

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Johnny Hallyday, Beacon Theater, Oct. 7, 2012
 
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Blake Mills, Terminal 5, New York, NY, Oct. 16, 2012
 
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Fiona Apple, Terminal 5, New York, NY, 0ct. 16, 2012
 
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Fiona Apple, Terminal 5, Oct. 16, 2012
 
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Beast Patrol, The Studio at Webster Hall, October 19, 2012
 
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Alex Greenwald and Z Berg, JJAMZ, The Studio at Webster Hall, Oct. 19, 2012
 
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Alex Greenwald and Michael Runion, JJAMZ, The Studio at Webster Hall, Oct. 19, 2012
 
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Sweatheart, Terminal 5, New York, NY, Oct. 22, 2012
 
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The Dirty Pearls, Terminal 5, New York, NY, Oct. 22, 2012.
 
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Justin Hawkins / The Darkness, Terminal 5, New York, NY, Oct. 22, 2012
 
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Jeffertitti’s Nile w/ Father John Misty, Bowery Ballroom, New York, NY, Oct. 24, 2012
 
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Katy Goodman, La Sera, Bowery Ballroom, New York, NY, Oct. 24, 2012
 
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Father John Misty, w/ Jeffertitti, Bowery Ballroom, New York, NY, Oct. 24, 2012
 
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Lindi Ortega, Roseland Ballroom, New York, NY, Oct. 26, 2012
 
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Mike Ness, Social Distortion, Roseland Ballroom, New York, NY, Oct. 26, 2012
 
Apparently I didn’t go to any shows in November, either.
 
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Sheena Ozzella, Lemuria, Webster Hall, New York, NY, Dec. 2, 2012
 
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Ceremony and stage diver going in to the pit, Webster Hall, New York, NY, Dec. 2, 2012
 
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Titus Andronicus, Webster Hall, New York, NY, Dec. 2, 2012
 
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Animal Collective, Terminal 5, Dec. 5, 2012
 
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Casey Neill, 68 Jay Street Bar, Brooklyn, NY, Dec. 8, 2012
 
IMG_8261 A small fraction – there are nine of them! – of Industries of the Blind, Knitting Factory, Brooklyn, NY, Dec. 21, 2012

2012: A Year In Pictures: July – September

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Alex Greenwald and Z Berg, JJAMZ, Webster Hall, New York, NY, July 10, 2012
 
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Michael Runion, JJAMZ, Webster Hall, New York, NY, July 10, 2012
 
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JJAMZ, Webster Hall, New York, NY, July 10, 2012
 
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Lita Ford, Nikon at Jones Beach Theater, July 13, 2012
 
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Bret Michaels, Poison, Nikon at Jones Beach Theater, July 13, 2012
 
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C.C. DeVille, Poison, Nikon at Jones Beach Theater, July 13, 2012
 
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Bobby Dall, Poison, Nikon at Joes Beach Theater, July 13, 2012
 
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Ricki Rockett, Poison, Nikon at Jones Beach Theater, July 13, 2012
 
IMG_6354Poison, Nikon at Jones Beach Theater, July 13, 2012
 
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Rick Allen, Def Leppard, Nikon at Jones Beach Theater, July 13, 2012
 
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Rick Savage and Joe Elliot, Def Leppard, Nikon at Jones Beach Theater, July 13, 2012
 
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Phil Collen, Def Leppard, Nikon at Jones Beach Theater, July 13, 2012
 
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Def Leppard, Nikon at Jones Beach Theater, July 13, 2012
 
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Marcy Playground, Bank of America Pavilion, Boston, MA, July 28, 2012
 
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A. Jay Popoff, Lit, Bank of America Pavilion, Boston, MA, July 28, 2012
 
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Mark McGrath, Sugar Ray, Bank of America Pavilion, Boston, MA, July 28, 2012
 
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Art Alexakis, Everclear, Bank of America Pavilion, Boston, MA, July 28, 2012
 
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Art Alexakis (Everclear) and Mark McGrath (Sugar Ray), Bank of America Pavilion, July 28, 2012
 
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David Kuckhermann, Beacon Theater, New York, NY, Aug. 30, 2012
 
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Dead Can Dance, Beacon Theater, New York, NY, Aug. 30, 2012
 
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Larry & his Flask, Webster Hall, Sept. 29, 2012
 
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Frank Turner, Webster Hall, September 29, 2012

Alex Greenwald: Balisong (She Told Me So)

Balisong (She Told Me So) is a teaser from Alex Greenwald’s as-yet-untitled (and unreleased) solo record, which – and I say this with bemused affection – I have been referring to as “Nessie”, since I do sometimes feel like I’m sitting on the edge of a dark Highland loch with a toy radio, waiting for static-filled fin sightings.

And, too, when (if?) I do ever get to write about it, there will be a certain amount of myth and legend (i.e. out-of-date Wikipedia notes) to untangle.

But until such time as it glides to the surface, there is this song, which is a love song for a knife, and is made of many dark, shimmery layers:

BALISONG (SHE TOLD ME SO) by ALECKSU

Rock ‘n’ Roll Photog: A Few of My Favorite Things: Nerds and Novelty Songs

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This is Jonathan Coulton performing at the High Line this past April. He is the uncrowned king of the nerdy novelty song. My iTunes informs me that his genre is “Unclassifiable” which I think is an unusual misspelling of “Awesome.” My personal favorites are Code Monkey, a love song for J. Alfred Programmer; Skullcrusher Mountain, in which a lovelorn mad scientist asks isn’t it enough that I ruined a pony, making a gift for you?; and Shop Vac, a tale of suburban disaffection and despair with a catchy sing-along chorus. I’m also really very fond of his cover of Sir Mix-a-Lot’s Baby Got Back. Those last two might not be all that nerdy but they are a whole lot of fun.

The next song on my list of favorites, MMO RPG by Alex Greenwald (Mark Ronson and the Business Intl., Phantom Planet) – truly a piece of digital ephemera, as it is, for now, only available on YouTube – explores some of the philosophical complexities of on-line gaming:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hv8HJ_mB2Nw?fs=1]

I will confess I’m not actually all that into computer games – the graphics tend to give me vertigo, and I prefer the low-tech joys of running around in the woods with capes and fake swords and the adrenaline rush when the elves come out of hiding in the middle of an otherwise routine trade conversation – but the song still fills me with glee. I am only sad that the “P” in the middle defeats my attempts to chair-dance to it YMCA-style.

Finally, there’s the song made by a band full of nerds that, on first hearing, I thought was a novelty song, but wasn’t: Teenagers , by My Chemical Romance. The video won’t embed, but you can listen to it here:

http://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F2936031%3Fsecret_token%3Ds-v5nxZ&secret_url=false My Chemical Romance – Teenagers by spatzkiersten

A breather amid the heavier themes of the The Black Parade, this one is for anyone who has ever been baffled or a little scared by their high-schooler, or had the urge to tell anyone to shut up, get off their lawn, and pull up their pants. I enjoy it tremendously, and all y’all should check it out.

— Jennifer