Adam Salsman [dot] com

What an absolutely oddball, yet wonderful surprise it has been to stumble upon Joanna Newsom.

The album, as simultaneously discovered in Uncut and from some interwebs blogs, has been a favourite at both work and on the iPod. With it’s folk undertones and ethereal, fluttering, almost mystical feel, Ys takes it’s time (and then some) to play out each of it’s 5 tracks.

That’s right. Ys (which, by the way, is pronounced ‘Ees’) is 5 tracks weighing in just under an hour.

The tracks don’t drag, though. Rather, they build upon themselves to create a vivid musical mosaic. With songs constructed mostly by harp, Newsom pulls us through such an amazing journey that even Tommy would be wowed.

In the end: This is different from much of what I listen to, but you can’t help but enjoy, appreciate, and get lost in the tales that Newsom composes on Ys.

On the web: Hellooooooooooo Hype Machine. Also, here’s a bootleg from a performance of hers last year:
2005-04-14 - Academy 2

Technorati tagged: Joanna Newsom | Folk | 2006

Something happened in 2001 to Bob Dylan. It’s called Love and Theft.

Bobby’s fans all cried, and many, like myself, thought “Hmmm, this could be it for Mr. Dylan,” and then went back to looping Blonde on Blonde and Highway 61 Revisited so we could remember Bob in a good way.

This year, however, we were surprised. A blog post somewhere had audio from this disc (specifically, Thunder on the Mountain) and I took a listen. Bob has died. Bob has risen. Bob is come again.

Rising from the ashes of Love and Theft, Modern Times is the Dylan-Phoenix. 10 tracks, coming in just over an hour, Times has already cracked into my unorganized Top 10 of the year.

The moment you hear Thunder on the Mountain, the lead off track, you know Bob “Visions of Johanna” Dylan is back; Spirit on the Water is musically and lyrically beautiful; Rollin’ and Tumblin’ just screams half of the tracks of Highway 61 Revisited, which may make it his least original track on Times, but it’s so damn good; the last track, Ain’t Talkin’ ends the album on a down note, but it’s still an amazing track.

In the end: Dylan’s back, folks. He may have lost his touch live, but hot damn, he’s proven a) why you show respect to Dylan and b) why you can’t keep good musician down. Do yourself a favour and get this album.

On the Web: The Hype Machine has so much Dylan, it hurts.

Technorati Tagged: Bob Dylan | Top 10 | Folk Rock | 2006