Artists you need to experience

I recently did a top ten list featuring the movies I thought you ought to see. This was quite popular and I got a lot of positive feedback from that article. My buddy Søren over at Enter Crawack told me, that he would do a similar thing, but with music. I liked the idea, but I did not want to simple do a top ten list again, this time it had to be different, and for various reasons, which I will explain in the next section of the article.

You can never just get to the point huh?

Music is very different from movies, especially when it comes to taste. People often describe their taste in music as what they are “into”, which generally means genre or thematic artists. This differs from the way we review movies, as we enjoy all genres of films, and we judge the product for what it is, rather than what it represents. You all have some genres of music, which you simply refuse to listen to, just because you have heard samples of music which you hated. And that’s fine, I do it too, I am just illustrating the difference in reviewing movies and music. So is there a point to this? You bet there is, and it’s a simple one, that really didn’t need all that build up. My taste in music is very different from yours, or it isn’t. This might be a factor in how much you will enjoy this piece, but I implore you to be open minded and leave your comfort zone. Because it’s when we venture into unknown waters, that we find the greatest treasures. Or something like that.

Treasure!

So now that’s out of the way, let me present to you, my eight artists, that I really think deserves your attention. I will embed a song from each artist at the end of each entry, that you should give a listen to.

#1: Damien Rice

Irish singer Damien Rice is probably best known for his hit single “Cannonball” or the mixed version of it. He’s a bit of hippie if you look at him personally, but if I cared about the artists personally, then certain artists wouldn’t get any airtime at all. He released his debut album called “O” and another one in 2006 called “9”. I don’t know what his fascination with short titles is about, but I really like his music so far. Music gets better depending on your mood, and Rice definitely falls in the “not so chirpy” category. The songs all start slow and then proceeds to build towards an emotional explosion, which really pokes at your heart in the good way. If you don’t mind a couple of tears in your coffee, then I suggest giving this guy a good listening to. My pick for your enjoyment is the song titled “Grey Rooms” and it’s my favorite song of his at the moment.

#2: Jonna Lee

Jonna Lee is a Swedish singer-songwriter and also the mind behind the project “Iamamiwhoami”. Her solo stuff is mostly guitar compositions with her singing ballads and covers. She gained a bit of notoriety when she did an acoustic cover version of the song “Human” by The Killers. It became an underground hit, but it’s not among my favorite tracks of hers. Her big project “Iamamiwhoami” is an electronic experiment, which draws influences from many electronic artists, and is very different from her solo material. There is something about soft voices and electronic music, which just tickles my music bone, so I totally dig this. I especially like the long intros to her songs and the calmness they project. She knows what she wants to say, and she’s in no hurry to do so. The embedded video is called “John” and is the perfect example of her style and energy, which I have grown to love.

#3: Dangermouse

I haven’t been listening to Danger Mouse for very long, but I really like it. The man behind Danger Mouse is Brian Joseph Burton and he has produced some really great stuff. He’s responsible for Gnarls Barkley and he has produced for Gorillaz and U2. Besides that, the main reason he is on this list, is due to his latest album called “Rome”. On the album he collaborates with Jack White and Norah Jones on some really funky tunes. It’s hard to describe the genre, but it’s really great stuff and I was immediately hooked. He’s been compared to a musical Woody Allen, and I partly agree, as they each have taken a field and made their style decidedly their own. Just as you instantly know when you’re watching a Woody Allen movie, you know when it’s a Danger Mouse song. The video I embed is of the song “The rose with the broken neck” featuring Jack White and…..just give it a listen!

#4: Death Cab for Cutie

Death Cab for Cutie is a veteran rock band from Washington, who has seven albums on their record and five EP’s. If I should label them, then I guess it would be a form of indie rock with a very special vocal. It’s really easy to listen to, and your mood will definitely improve, unless you already are on cloud nine, then I’ll start envying you instead. They aren’t well known in Denmark, their biggest hit came from providing background music to a commercial, but I really cannot recall which product they endorsed. All I know is the song, which will be embedded at the end of this segment, and it is called “I will follow you into the dark”. Give them a chance, some of their songs will make your heart smile.

#5: Antony & The Johnsons

Antony Hegarty is the man behind this band, and they have become sort of known here in Europe over the last couple of years. Their most popular piece is their second album called “I am a bird now” which features guest appearances from Lou Reed, Rufus Wainwright and Boy George. The music is really special I think, as it’s really indescribable beautiful. Hegarty’s voice is just amazing and I still cannot believe he can squeeze such vocals out, they are simply fantastic. This is also one of these bands where you either totally love what they do, or you really dislike it. This is the case with most “special” acts, as they force you to really consider the positives and negatives before judging it. By this I mean that it isn’t just another generic record, that you can toss into your preconceptions pile. The embedded video is a collaboration with Rufus Wainwright called “What can I do?” and the song is just hauntingly mesmerizing.

#6:  Nujabes

Jun Seba was a japanese Dj, who died in 2010. Luckily for us, he made a bunch of fantastic music before that happened. This is really perfect music for the summer, as it’s in the genre called House and with Nujabes’ touch it really just makes you want to swim, dance and chill with your friends. He also made the soundtrack for the Japanese anime called Samurai Shamploo, so people who are familiar with that will know the style. He works together with various rappers on his records, and he really is a versatile artist, and he will be missed a lot. The embedded video is called “Arurian Dance” and is the first track I heard of his, and it instantly hit home with me. I hope you will feel the same.

#7: LCD Soundsystem

LCD Soundsystem was something as special as a dance-punk band based in New York City. They split up last year, but they left behind three great albums, that I can highly recommend. In my mind they embody cool music, which means, that you just want to move some part of your body when their funky tracks start playing. As every artist on my list, they are definitely not for everybody, but it’s hard not to smile when they first start playing some of their really cool songs. Funny enough I’ve decided to not embed one of their fast paced songs, but a slow one instead. You can go find the coolest tracks yourself (Dance yourself clean) without my help. The embedded video is called “New York I love you, but you’re bringing me down” and my words can’t do it justice, so just give it a whirl.

#8: Nick Cave

My favorite living artist by far, his skills just cannot be matched. Being  musician, actor, writer and screenwriter he’s a busy man and he’s in both “The bad seeds” and “Grinderman”. He is known for writing emotional texts about violence, religion and death and in my mind, he is without a doubt the most underappreciated artist in the world. He is probably known by many of you for his work together with Kylie Minogue on the song “Where the wild roses grow”, but that is just the tip of the iceberg. He is what I would call an album artist, as it does him disservice to just pluck a track or two from certain albums, as they really come together if you hear the whole thing. He also wrote the screenplay for the Australian western “The proposition” which is a great movie that I want to recommend as well. I can write for days about his genius, but it’s much easier to just embed a video and let that speak for itself. The video is called “Love Letter” which is my favorite Nick Cave song. Check it out.

What a pile of…..!

Now that I’ve given you some insight into my musical world, I hope that you actually listened to the songs, because the quest for new music to enjoy is a fantastic one, so do not let prejudice and pride stop you from becoming a happier and well versed (musically) person. Sorry for the delay on this article, I’ve been ill and had to recuperate before I could write something that made sense. If you have some artists that you feel I should give a go, then feel free to write a comment, and if you haven’t, do it anyway! See you next time, and thank you for reading.

My way of saying thank you for reading.