A New Music Playlist with a Bit of Country Twang to Honor My Father

A recent favorite photo with my dad, Wallace B. Jansen

I've taken a month-long publishing break as my father's health declined and his final days were spent in a hospice facility, after being under the organization's care since his hospitalization last fall right after my mother died. (At the time, I put together my own funeral songs playlist as I loaded my laptop with her favorite Broadway shows and classical masterpieces.)  I brought a few of his CDs along with me, listening to the country music he loved so much as I sat by his bedside. My dad discovered this genre during his time in the U.S. Army at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds, quite a culture shock for the private school boy from suburban Connecticut. How strange it was to listen to George Jones, Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard without him chiming in at full volume, emphasizing the twang in the vocals.

There's a joke that if you play a country record backwards you get your wife back, your job back, your truck etc. Of course the fact that we can all relate to loss and heartbreak is part of the appeal. As I returned home with files of paperwork and boxes from my parents' house, I thought about creating a new music playlist with a big of country twang in his honor. Digging in my own archives since 2009, I pulled seventeen songs that had some down home flavor, or at least attitude. Here's the result at the link here or listen below, proving that everybody is just a little bit country when you look hard enough.

YouTube Playlist of Winter 2014 New Music Playlist Songs

In this YouTube playlist of my latest collection, there were few actual videos produced by the artists.  New music is now just being slapped up on the site as simple promotional previews, but I wish we'd be able to glimpse the band in action instead (whether hanging out or performing?)  In a basic fan to band marketing tool, it'd allow another connection to the people checking out the new tune and wouldn't even cost much by using found footage spliced together.  Ah well.

Link to listen and watch the montage here or click video below.

Winter 2014 New Music Playlist

The ground hog seems to have definitely gotten things right – winter continues with a vengeance for those who are accustomed to such weather or not (looking at you Southeast!)  Why not use the time indoors to check out new bands like Temples, Big Data and Jamestown Revival, along with new releases from Fanfarlo, Cut Copy, Gardens & Villa, Bombay Bicycle Club and more.  As always, the playlist ends in a chill out mode thanks to tracks from Caspian and Hammock.  

Link to listen here, enjoy!

1. "Free Your Mind" – Cut Copy

Australian synth pop quartet Cut Copy has released its fourth album since 2001, with songs promoting the concept of individual freedom. “Free Your Mind” is the title track and single for the collection, using swirling layers to connect the power of positivity embedded in this dance tune.

2. "Colony Glen" – Gardens & Villa

Santa Barbara indie rock quintet Gardens & Villa is back with a sophomore album, Dunes.  Working with DFA producer, Tim Goldsworthy, the song “Colony Glen” relies on a solid synth backbone for a more extroverted sound.

3. “Shelter Song” – Temples
English pysch rock band Temples was formed in 2012 by singer-guitarist James Edward Bagshaw and bassist Thomas Edison Warmsley.  The “Shelter Song” shows this new group’s taste for heavy reverb with a tuneful take on songwriting.

4. "Dangerous"  – Big Data
Big Data is an electronic pop duo (Daniel Armbruster and Alan Wilkis) that uses music as a message to rail against user privacy and other perils of the internet age.  “Dangerous” is a solid pop single from the debut EP, I.O. – EP.

5. “Landlocked” – Fanfarlo
London based indie pop quintet Fanfarlo released its third album since 2006, Let’s Go Extinct. With influences of folk, indie rock and post-punk, the song “Landlocked” highlights Swedish musician Simon Balthazar’s warm baritone over a busy mix of electronic and acoustic instruments.

6. "Tourniquet" – Jeremy Messersmith
Messersmith is a prolific singer/songwriter based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. With an unusual analogy for a love song, “Tourniquet” is a quirky but catchy tune off Murmurs, his fifth album since 
2006.

7. "Shake" – The Head and the Heart
Seattle indie folk rock band The Head and the Heart recently released its second album, Let’s Be Still. The single “Shake” is emblematic of the group’s aesthetic of sunny male/female harmonies over acoustic guitars.

8. "Red Eyes"  – The War On Drugs 
“Red Eyes” is the single off the third album since 2005, Lost In the Dream, by Philly indie rock quintet The War On Drugs. The band’s signature wall of sound via guitars brings an epic jam, for almost five minutes of group swagger.

9. "Forever" – Painted Palms

San Francisco based cousins Reese Donohue and Christopher Prudhomme recently released their debut full album as Painted Palms.  “Forever” is the title track, a multi-sectioned paean to 60s psych pop utilizing the tools of modern electronic production.

10. "Giants"  – Bear Hands

This Brooklyn indie electro quartet released “Giants” as a stand alone single. With the wavering synths, melodic guitar lines and punchy vocal delivery, the song is instantly memorable yet ready for many a replay.

11. "The Letterbomb"  – Milagres

Brooklyn’s indie rock band Milagres relies on the sweeping, artistic vision of singer and songwriter Kyle Wilson.  “The Letterbomb” combines explosive percussion and Wilson’s storytelling vocals as a teaser single for the upcoming sophomore album, Violent Light.

12. "Step Out" – José González

José González of the Swedish band Junip contributed three songs to the soundtrack of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.  For “Step Out” he embraces a cinematic approach to his indie folk songwriting, expanding the music palette with orchestral instrumentation and multi-generational vocals.

13. "Luna" – Bombay Bicycle Club

“Luna” is the single from So Long, See You Tomorrow, the fourth album by England’s indie rock band Bombay Bicycle Club since 2005.  The song features singer Rae Morris as a female counterpoint to Jack Steadman’s vocals, amid a swirling soundscape over tabla and mallets in a worldview of percussion.

14. "California (Cast Iron Soul)" – Jamestown Revival

New band Jamestown Revival joins childhood friends Jonathan Clay and Zach Chance flaunting their Texan roots in this song about moving to L.A. Their harmonies and acoustic instruments blend in an easy jam, clearly demonstrating that all ties to home clearly remain intact.

15. "Pulaski at Night" – Andrew Bird

Singer and multi-instrumentalist Andrew Bird recently released a seven song EP, I Want To See, based on this wistful tune referencing his home base of Chicago.  His distinctive, laid back vocals float easily over the eclectic musical arrangement.

16. "Hymn for the Greatest Generation" – Caspian

Caspian, an instrumental post-rock band since 2004 from Beverly, Massachusetts, had to regroup after the sudden, unexpected death of bass player Chris Friedrich last summer. The group went on with the tour in supporting a new EP, Hymn for the Greatest Generation. This title track opens the collection that now has even more depths of emotion.

17. "Then the Quiet Explosion" – Hammock

Hammock is an ambient post-rock band from Nashville, Tennessee, formed by two guitarists in 2005, Marc Byrd and Andrew Thompson.  They craft larger-than-life songs with live instruments, electronic beats and haunting electric guitar lines, such in “Then the Quiet Explosion” from a sixth album, Oblivion Hymns.

New Bands to Update Any Musical Collection for 2014

Popmatters has posted "The Best Hopes to Break Out in 2014," including my write up for pick The Wild Feathers. I also wrote a bog post about this band after catching them in Austin at the ACL Music Festival, embracing a classic country rock that appeared on the 70s music scene. Since I suggested that the New Year is also a great time for people to update and organize their own music collection, I thought I'd offer suggestions some new bands to satisfy fans across the genres.  I may still favor the indie pop sound, but as my playlists will attest,  I also enjoy more mellow musical moments along with the kick-ass dance tunes.  

So check out the suggestions below and dig into some tunes, while supporting current bands that welcome new fans.  The groupings are for reference only -- not to make any kind of statement but more as a guide for those willing to experiment. Some bands here have been around awhile, but that doesn't mean their new music isn't fresh for a listen.

Country folk rock leanings: The Wild Feathers, Jamestown Revival, The Head & The Heart, White Denim, Okkervil River, Band of Horses

Solid rockers: Divine Fits, Dr. Dog, The Dandy Warhols, The Black Keys, Arctic Monkeys

Harder edged rockers: Augustines, Superhumanoids, Jack White, TV on the Radio

Contemplative indie rockers: The National, Junip, Yo La Tengo, Grizzly Bear, The Shins, Travis

Epic soulful rock: Portugal. The Man, Phosphorescent, Spiritualized, Frightened Rabbit

Electronic indie pop: Painted Palms, Ra Ra Riot, Phoenix, Jagwar Ma, Youth Lagoon, Washed Out, Broken Bells, The Go! Team

Mellow tunes: Low, Devendra Banhardt, Earlimart, Mazzy Star, Nada Surf, Jim James, The Olms

Psych rock leanings: MGMT, Tame Impala, The Flaming Lips, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Deerhunter, Animal Collective, Wampire, STRFKR

Punk rock leanings: Parquet Courts, Franz Ferdinand, Superchunk, Palma Violets, Matt and Kim

Motown sound leanings: Vintage Trouble, Mayor Hawthorne, Har Mar Superstar, Fitz & The Tantrums, Nick Waterhouse

Gal groups indie pop/rock: Haim, Lucius, Frankie Rose, Santigold, Dum Dum Girls, Warpaint

Guy groups indie pop/rock: Bombay Bicycle Club, Foals, Vampire Weekend, Django Django, Telekinesis, Cayucas, Generationals, Caveman, Dan Croll, Smith Westerns, Cage the Elephant

Gal/guy groups indie pop/rock: Tennis, Cults, Phantogram, MS MR, The Naked and Famous

Electronic zone out: Boards of Canada, Caspian, Hammock, Beach House, M83, Moderat, Moby (instrumentals)

Dance tunes galore: YACHT, Hot Chip, Passion Pit, Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr., Cut Copy, Daft Punk, Empire of the Sun, Holy Ghost!, Arcade Fire (new)

Experimental Electronica: The Octopus Project, Jon Hopkins, Beck, Bibio, Toro Y Moi, Atoms for Peace, Panda Bear, Four Tet, Major Lazor, Pretty Lights, Trentemoller, Porcelain Raft, Black Moth Super Rainbow