2007- Happy New Year

Just spent awhile online trying to find out when Josh Pyke's new album comes out. At this stage, March is the most specific answer I can find. I thought this would start off my entry about anticipated performances/musical events of 2007.

The Mountain Goats, 5th January, Corner Hotel
I discovered the Mountain Goats on Triple J a few years ago now, when I taped their song 'Letter From Belgium'. (Before the iPod age I used to tape songs from the radio. I have a huge pile of tapes in my wardrobe back in Traralgon which I have recently gone through to find out which of these songs I'd like to own in electronic form and have downloaded quite a few of them). I bought two of their albums on Amazon and a few more since. They seem quite prolific in their production of music. If I'm going to be keeping a blog about music I suppose I should practice describing it so here goes... In the case of the Mountain Goats, pop with clearly enunciated lyrics (sometimes odd), often autobiographical subject matter, piano sometimes, guitar (acoustic and electric). Their music has evolved over time, sometimes featuring electronicky distorted stuff as well. Anyway, have a look: http://www.mountain-goats.com (the list of albums is out of date but the rest of the stuff is recent). Recently the songs Game Shows Touch Our Lives and Alibi have been running through my head a bit.

Kaki King, 13th January, Northcote Social Club
I bought tickets to this show as a Christmas present for a couple of friends. We had been talking about seeing a performance at NSC for some time and had done nothing about it, because we have been sidetracked by work, stress, chronic injuries, house moving, house mate finding, personal relationships and other such issues, so I decided it was time to jump in and book something. A quick glance at the gig guide proved slightly fruitless, but I read through the list carefully and browsed a few web sites before making a choice. You can listen to her stuff online here: www.kakiking.com. Folky, lots of guitar, not many vocals, slow and quiet at times. Night After Sidewalk is the saddest song I've heard recently.

Madeleine Peyroux, 18th January, Norwood Town Hall
I'd never heard of her, not being much of a jazz aficionado, but apparently she sounds a lot like Billie Holiday. I listened to a bit of her music (almost her entire new album online, in fact, which I then bought) and decided it was worth the trip interstate, mostly because my friend Kat who I have not seen for ages asked me to come over to see her. I am looking forward to the Adelaide mini holiday as much as the gig. (http://www.madeleinepeyroux.com)

The Shins new album is released, 23rd January
All I can say is thank god it's the school holidays and I don't have to work so I can get up early to go and buy this CD. It probably comes out the day before in Australia. I don't know what it is about the Shins that makes me have this level of obsession with their music. Since I first saw the video clip for New Slang on Rage back in 2001 I've been hooked.

Scissor Sisters, 9th February, Vodafone Arena
Since first developing an obsession with this band in the middle of last year, attending one of their gigs has been high on my list of musical desires. I'd rather see them somewhere like the Corner but if they can sell out Vodafone Arena it should be quite a good show. A self-bought birthday present.