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Dusted Features
Every Friday, Dusted Magazine publishes a series of music-related lists compiled by our favorite artists. This week: Vetiver and Michael Talbott.
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Listed: Vetiver + Michael Talbott
Vetiver
Vetiver is the vehicle of one Andy Cabic. Hailing from San Francisco, Cabic is known as one of the pivotal figures in the avant-folk revival, a title deemed in part because of his close association with Devendra Banhart. Cabic and Lindsay Lohan's favorite hairy hippie run a label together, Gnomonsong, and Banhart has played on many Vetiver recordings, with Cabic returning the favor during his friend's long tours.
Cabic just took a huge step forward, possibly even eclipsing Banhart for the time being, with To Find Me Gone, an addicitive new album on Dicristina Stair Builders that hits stores May 15. The album was recorded in San Francisco and Los Angeles with producer Thom Monahan and a lot of good friends, like Banhart (guitar, vocals), Kevin Barker (from Currituck County, on bass), Otto Hauser (of Espers, on drums) and Alissa Anderson (one hell of a cello player, not to mention photographer and fashion designer). Do take the time to seek out the album's opener, "Been So Long." It's one of the year's doozies.
If you're in Europe, you have the chance to catch Cabic next month. Here are the dates:
May 10 - London @ 93 Feet East
May 11 - Bristol @ Trinity Centre w/ Howie Gelb Gospel Singers
May 14 - Rye, UK @ ATP Festival
May 16 - Strasbourg, France @ La Laterie w/ Devendra Banhart
May 17 - Lyon, France @ Le Transbourdeur w/ Devendra Banhart
May 18 - Toulouse, France @ Le Ramier w/ Devendra Banhart
May 20 - Paris, France @ Le Bataclan w/ Devendra Banhart
May 21 - Nijmegen, NL @ Merlejin w/ Tom Brosseau
May 22 - Brussels, Belgium @ AB Club w/ Tom Brosseau
May 23 - Rotterdam, NL @ Rotown w/ Tom Brosseau
May 24 - Utrecht, NL @ Ekko w/ Tom Brosseau
May 25 - Copenhagen @ Loppen w/ Drowsy
May 26 - Stockholm @ Debasew w/ Merz & Drowsy
May 27 - Oslo @ Blaa w/ Drowsy
May 28 - Gothenburg, Sweden @ Sticky Finger w/ Drowsy
Andy participated in this week's Listed.
I'm not sure what it is of late, but it's a rare record that can hold my attention all the way through. There are many that do, to be sure, but... I can play certain songs over and over again, for the length an entire record might last, and never tire of them. These are 10 of those songs. I don't know much about any of the artists, unfortunately, but they shouldn't be too hard to find. Somehow, they found me...
1. Unicorn - "Ooh Mama!"
I've been told this band opened for everybody across the US in the 70's. I first heard this song as the opening salvo of my friend Zach's dj set at a raucous party in Chicago, and the moment my ears first heard it I believe i will never forget. Thanks Zach! I like having to wait for the chorus to enter and deliver the goods...even though I know by now what lies ahead, there's still that moment of anticipation.
2. The Wizards - "See You Tonight"
I don't know too much about this one. Apparently the group is originally from Norway but moved to Sweden in 1963. This is the b-side of their last single, and I heard it off a really great compilation called Who Will Buy These Wonderful Evils? that I found in Amsterdam. Perfectly doubled vocals and delightfully loose drumming ensure that I will love this song 4evah.
3. Roy St. John - "Gaudelia"
Who is this guy? I can't hang with the whole record, but man is this song the jam! I believe he left the states for England and may have been on the pub rock circuit there throughout the 70s. I wonder if how much I love a song is inversely related to how little I know about the person playing it? nah.
4. Michael Hurley - "The Vt. -Ore. Floor"
Really, I could pick just about any of Snoc's songs, but this one has been hitting hard lately. Kind of picks up where "Sweedeedee" left us, but moans even more lastingly, and with a yearning force I've yet to hear him deliver more powerfully on record. Off of "Long Journey"...don't miss Snoc when he rambles to a town near you in the coming months!
5. Kathy Heideman - "Sleep A Million Years"
Mostly when I go to record stores, I just go looking in the dollar bin. That's where the all the fun and discovery is, and where I can revisit my old friends, Joan Armatrading and Laura Nyro! They're always waiting there, hanging out with Boz and Gerry. I met this record at the fine Community Thrift Store in San Francisco, and it has regaled me time and time again with it's easy-going tunes. Kathy where are you? who are you? thank you for writing this lovely song!
6. Gerry Rafferty - "Don't Count Me Out"
It's hard to resist the smooth siren call that is saxophone line on "Baker St.", but Gerry's written and performed many other equally rewarding musical moments, including this one, off his first solo album, Can I Have My Money Back?...a question you won't be asking if you are fortunate enough to find this record in your dollar bin travels.
7. Kenny Vance - "Dirty Work"
Kenny's cover of the Becker-Fagan classic, off his 1975 solo album, Vance 32
I guess he helped give them a start in the biz or something, employing them as backup musicians with Jay and the Americans. His arrangement of this song is so lovely...really delicate, slow and beautiful, and though it might be sacrilege to say so, i enjoy it much more than the Dan's version.
8. Garland Jeffreys - "Eggs"
Good god this song is awesome! I don't know for certain, but I'm pretty sure the greatest musicians in the world all got together to back him up on this tune. I especially love whatever percussive instrument is making that repeated sound of a crushed egg at the start of the tune. Sounds like the funkiest, best Stones song they never recorded.
9. The Pioneers - "Cherie Cherie"
I am a sucker for great harmony groups, and The Pioneers are one of Jamaica's best. a sunny day, some good friends and this song playing..... what could be better?
10. Marcus Valle - "Vôo Cego"
If you woke me and told me I would be unable to listen to anything but Brazilian music all day, well, besides a request to possibly hear the above mentioned 9 songs first, I would not complain one bit! This song has the same floaty Nascimento/Club da Esquina/Lo Bôrges/Nelson Angelo and Joyce quality i can't get enough of, and it always seems to fit the fog rolling into SF in the afternoon. viva Brasil!!
Michael Talbott
While I'm not sold on the 'Brit Folk' unfluences claimed by others, there's certainly a mellow, proper charm to be found on his debut record, Freeze-Die-Come to Life (Antenna Farm). Shades of Beck trickle and whoosh (and sometimes twang) over sometimes sparse, sometimes lush instrumentation provided by members of like-mindeds The Court and Spark to create a slightly affected, slightly more memorable record of love and longing. His record release show was last night, so charge up your flux capacitors and check it out!
1. Buenos Aires, Argentina
The greatest city I’ve ever been to. I was lucky enough to spend a good amount of time there, and when I had to head home, I really didn’t want to leave. I could easily spend the rest of my days side-by-side with the Porteños, wandering the cobbled streets of Palermo Viejo and relaxing in the Plaza Cortazar sipping Fernet Branca or sharing a liter of Isenbeck, browsing the seemingly endless number of bookstores on Santa Fe and Corrientes, listening to vintage León Gieco LPs and enjoying an afternoon matte, feasting on asado, empanadas and a late-night delivery from the local heladeria.
2. Juana Molina
While the Argentineans have countless monuments to Borges, Cortazar and Gardel they have yet to uniformly recognize the brilliance of their greatest living artist. Go see her live: if you’re not impressed by her almost hypnotic layering of acoustic guitar loops, you’ll love her between-song comedy. She really knows how to work with the crowd, which is something I could use some pointers on.
3.. Tindersticks – Simple Pleasure
Hands down the best record I’ve ever heard. I’ve been listening to this at least once a week for quite a few years.
4. Luke Top – Unloading The Sun
Just go ahead and buy this album right now. Luke’s the best songwriter I know, possessed of a singular style that recalls hints of Gilberto Gil, Pink Floyd and Buffalo Springfield, yet remains truly unique. He’s got some big things on the horizon and in a year from now I’m sure his hand-screened self-released debut will be fetching ridiculous prices on Ebay.
5. Santiago Alvarez – He Who Hits First Hits Twice
Say what you will about the Cuban Revolution, but one of its undeniable achievements was the creation of a spectacular national cinema, with Santiago Alvarez as its key figure. Over his 40-year career he made nearly 700 films, almost all documentaries dealing with social and political crisis in the Americas and Asia. His style is inventive, yet free of pretention, as he seems totally emotionally committed to his point of view. His importance as a non-fiction filmmaker rivals Chris Marker’s and this new DVD set marks the first time his films have been readily available in the U.S.
6. Citay
The best new band in San Francisco. I got turned on to them after countless people started telling me I should set up a show with them and now I can’t stop listening to their CD. It’s Ezra Feinberg (from Piano Magic) and Tim Green (from The Fucking Champs/Nation Of Ulysses) and live they perform as part of an 8-piece band. I hate to fall into the trap of overly simple comparisons, but if you like the more acoustic tracks on Led Zeppelin’s albums, you’ll love this.
7. The Court and Spark – Hearts
My best friends and the best musicians I know. Everything I’ve learned about recording, performing and the general business of being a musician, I’ve learned from them. Throw out everything you think you might know about them and the type of music you think they might play and give this record your open mind.
8. Winter Flowers
I’m sure I’m a little biased since I used to play with them, but there will always be a special place in my heart for the Winter Flowers. Gavin’s got a voice that soars to the heavens, Christof can play circles around anybody and they’re genuinely unafraid to fly their freak flags high, singing songs about gypsy jalopies and macramé.
9. The Mission District
San Francisco’s Mission district is where I live and work, and it’s a pretty great place to do so, where almost everything I want is a quick walk from my front door: coffee at Philz, breakfast at Boogaloos, pastries at Tartine, Aquarius Records, clothes at Painted Bird, Adobe Books, buying little bones at Paxton Gate, the Roxie Cinema, fish and chips at The Liberties, running in to all your friends in Dolores Park, margaritas at Puerto Alegre, Club Neon and the Makeout Room, bringing your own beer into Pakwan, imported Argentine delicacies at Lucca Ravioli Co.
10. Melville
I am a devotee of both the author and the French filmmaker who adopted his moniker, but the Melville I’m talking about is my tail-less black cat. Last year I had to move out of my apartment suddenly and in the midst of my packing, my cat went out and never came back. It was pouring rain and I feared the worst. I plastered signs all over the neighborhood and rang every doorbell. I checked every animal shelter. There was no sign of him and eventually I got a new apartment and, well, moved on. Eight months later and out of the blue I got him back. He was skinny as hell and a little worse for wear, but we’re both happy again.
By Dusted Magazine
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