The title track, "wHole," in its third-place position on the album, serves to define the entire tone of the album. The song "wHole," itself, is a play on words, and the songs you will find here are the stories of individuals who are anything but "whole." The songs collected on this sophomoric CD from Little Palace are all searching for those missing pieces to complete the self, the situation, the search. "Is this me under my skin?" The journey to find the self begins with this idea.
The most stand-out song is "Tourniquet," with its infectious bass line, superior percussion, and guitar solos that compel you to sit up and take notice. Combine this with melodic harmonies and the easy way that the lyrics spill from Brunnock's generous store of brilliant material and lines which seem plucked from the Theatre of the Absurd, and you have a song of unmatched caliber.
"End Game" finds Brunnock's usually tender voice stripped and raw. His voice digs its heels in the dirt and launches at you, quelled only when joined by Ann-Louise Mulvaney's chilling harmony. The strings which intro this song mirror Brunnock's voice, simultaneously course and refined. This piece is an instant favorite.
"Soft White and Indigo" is an earnest offering which on the surface seems so simple, but it is an exercise of both vocal and string feats of excellence.
It is clear from songs such as "Tourniquet," "My Way," and "wHole" that Brunnock is comfortable with language and that language is equally comfortable to pour forth from Brunnock like a stream running swiftly down a mountain, taking the curves where needed without missing a beat.
Percussion is a definite strong point on this album and its employment serves as the mortar the binds the ballads to the rockers.
One does not need to understand Gaelic to recognize the incompleteness expressive in the lonesome vocal strains of the beautiful elegy, "An Buan".
Invoking gems of wisdom ("Every path is the one when walked by companions," and the deliciously dual-meaninged, "pride is enough to bring a nation to its knees"), posing thought-provoking ideas with no explanatory redundancy ("Happiness was born a twin"), and lamenting the inevitable situations when "sympathy is a luxury," this is a thinking person's compilation.
Despite the excellent musical talents that contribute to make this album, the vocals of the three members of Little Palace are what really define this band. Their voices rise together, pass through one another, become one, and just as easily return to themselves like beams of colored light crossing and changing and separating again. Occasionally, a guitar will sneak itself into the trio to become the fourth vocalist.
Unfortunately, Little Palace disbanded in 2000, but Brunnock has continued as a solo artist, releasing his solo debut, the brilliant So I Do, in June of 2007. It is a slight departure from his work with Little Palace, but continues in the same vein of imaginative and intelligent songwriting found on Whole. On one point, Brunnock hits the nail on the head: he is, indeed, on his way.
Buy wHole at CDBaby
Buy wHole on iTunes
http://www.myspace.com/michaelbrunnock
Monday, December 31, 2007
Thursday, December 20, 2007
That voice can melt the ice
STAND performs on BalconyTV 12/19/07
What a song and what a voice, right? Amiright? I'm right.
And the beautiful thing is that Michael Brunnock (I knew you were waiting for me to mention him) is playing to support them at the Bowery Ballroom on 2/23/08. (The Blue Jackets are also support)
Because there is no excuse for not giving a damn
Bad customer service makes Baby Jesus cry
Reposted from: http://ken-jennings.com/blog/?p=671
This is a post about the true meaning of Christmas: revenge.
Back in October, Mindy ordered a rocking horse from BackToBasicsToys.com (their plush spring horse) for Caitlin’s birthday. As the weeks went by, the estimated delivery date slipped three times, and the horse never showed up.
Caitlin’s birthday passed, with no horse. When the third delivery date passed with no horse, Mindy called Back to Basics Toys. “Yes, we canceled that order. There must have been some issue with your credit card.”
“And you didn’t tell me or note the cancellation on your website, which still lists the order as active?” Mindy wasn’t happy with the screwup (needless to say, the credit card was just fine) but the guy reassured her that he could replace the order and the horse would make it here in time for Christmas.
One week later, no horse. Mindy notices the new order isn’t even showing up on-line at backtobasicstoys.com and calls Back to Basics Toys, er, back. They can’t find any trace of the second order, and now they can’t get us the horse by Christmas, because they’re sold out. They also came to our house wearing boots and kicked our kids in the head.
Mindy was pissed. “So that’s it? After screwing up twice, there’s nothing else you’re willing to do to try and keep me as a customer?”
“Uh, well, I guess we could give you 15% off in January when the item’s back in stock.”
So that’s exactly what my customerness is worth to them. That’s also their idea of the fair-market value of a little girl’s ruined birthday and Christmas. The 15%-off coupon that they probably e-mail out to “We Want You Back” onetime customers anyway.
Hey, their call. I looked around online and found other horror stories from scarred BackToBasicsToys customers. These guy may sell nice toys, but they have no clue what they’re doing when they sell them, and try very hard to give the impression that they don’t care. At all.
As a consumer, I don’t have very many options. In a perfectly elastic market, people would immediately figure out that Back to Basics Toys sucks and they would either have to fix the problems or go under. But capitalism isn’t nearly that efficient, sadly.
I do have one thing Back to Basics Toys doesn’t: a blog that gets read by tens of thousands of people and Googles up fairly readily. So the least I can do for you this holiday season, Back to Basics Toys, is try to make sure everyone knows how incompetent you are. Hey, this wasn’t my choice. We asked what it was worth to you to keep us as a customer and the answer was “Almost nothing.”
So I’ll mention their name a lot here and maybe this will be a prominent result in future when someone searches on-line for “Back to Basics Toys” or wants to buy a plush spring horse. (From backtobasicstoys.com. Which allegedly sells plush spring horses. Got that, Google?) And they’ll know to stay far, far away.
Tell your friends. Back to Basics Toys sucks. Maybe this can be the Hot New Internet Thing. Spread it around. “Petty Jeopardy! guy declares war on rocking-horse company” isn’t really as memorable a Christmas meme as “OfficeMax will make you dance like an elf” but it has a certain charm.
Reposted from: http://ken-jennings.com/blog/?p=671
This is a post about the true meaning of Christmas: revenge.
Back in October, Mindy ordered a rocking horse from BackToBasicsToys.com (their plush spring horse) for Caitlin’s birthday. As the weeks went by, the estimated delivery date slipped three times, and the horse never showed up.
Caitlin’s birthday passed, with no horse. When the third delivery date passed with no horse, Mindy called Back to Basics Toys. “Yes, we canceled that order. There must have been some issue with your credit card.”
“And you didn’t tell me or note the cancellation on your website, which still lists the order as active?” Mindy wasn’t happy with the screwup (needless to say, the credit card was just fine) but the guy reassured her that he could replace the order and the horse would make it here in time for Christmas.
One week later, no horse. Mindy notices the new order isn’t even showing up on-line at backtobasicstoys.com and calls Back to Basics Toys, er, back. They can’t find any trace of the second order, and now they can’t get us the horse by Christmas, because they’re sold out. They also came to our house wearing boots and kicked our kids in the head.
Mindy was pissed. “So that’s it? After screwing up twice, there’s nothing else you’re willing to do to try and keep me as a customer?”
“Uh, well, I guess we could give you 15% off in January when the item’s back in stock.”
So that’s exactly what my customerness is worth to them. That’s also their idea of the fair-market value of a little girl’s ruined birthday and Christmas. The 15%-off coupon that they probably e-mail out to “We Want You Back” onetime customers anyway.
Hey, their call. I looked around online and found other horror stories from scarred BackToBasicsToys customers. These guy may sell nice toys, but they have no clue what they’re doing when they sell them, and try very hard to give the impression that they don’t care. At all.
As a consumer, I don’t have very many options. In a perfectly elastic market, people would immediately figure out that Back to Basics Toys sucks and they would either have to fix the problems or go under. But capitalism isn’t nearly that efficient, sadly.
I do have one thing Back to Basics Toys doesn’t: a blog that gets read by tens of thousands of people and Googles up fairly readily. So the least I can do for you this holiday season, Back to Basics Toys, is try to make sure everyone knows how incompetent you are. Hey, this wasn’t my choice. We asked what it was worth to you to keep us as a customer and the answer was “Almost nothing.”
So I’ll mention their name a lot here and maybe this will be a prominent result in future when someone searches on-line for “Back to Basics Toys” or wants to buy a plush spring horse. (From backtobasicstoys.com. Which allegedly sells plush spring horses. Got that, Google?) And they’ll know to stay far, far away.
Tell your friends. Back to Basics Toys sucks. Maybe this can be the Hot New Internet Thing. Spread it around. “Petty Jeopardy! guy declares war on rocking-horse company” isn’t really as memorable a Christmas meme as “OfficeMax will make you dance like an elf” but it has a certain charm.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Brendan O'Shea - "No Mystery"
Brendan O' Shea "No Mystery"
What an incredible video and a beautiful song. What a great time to be in Ireland.
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
AlexCuba On Bravo Television On December 18th
I am writing it down so I don't miss it.
And you, too, should check it out, even if you don't speak Spanish. Music defies language barriers.
Bravo television is airing a documentary entitled "The Making Of AlexCuba" on December 18th at 7:30 pm ET. The Documentary is part of an exciting new Canadian-Caribbean musician profile series called HEART BEAT, and produced by LEDA SERENE FILMS & CARIBBEANTALES in association with Bravo and Gayelle The Channel (Trinidad)
For more information, see:
AlexCuba and
http://www.myspace.com/thealexcubaband
And you, too, should check it out, even if you don't speak Spanish. Music defies language barriers.
Bravo television is airing a documentary entitled "The Making Of AlexCuba" on December 18th at 7:30 pm ET. The Documentary is part of an exciting new Canadian-Caribbean musician profile series called HEART BEAT, and produced by LEDA SERENE FILMS & CARIBBEANTALES in association with Bravo and Gayelle The Channel (Trinidad)
For more information, see:
AlexCuba and
http://www.myspace.com/thealexcubaband
Jenna Nicholls new music and show
A smokey room, a beautiful songstress in a slinky black floor-length dress with elbow-length gloves . . .
A WWII dancehall with a lone spotlight on the darkened stage . . .
A black-and-white film where the heroine walks away, glancing once over her shoulder before the film ends. . .
These are the images that are conjured up by Jenna Nicholls's beautiful new songs; her debut album in the works.
Sneak peek it here. Pay attention for the delicious tenor sax on "Winter." Close your eyes and let it envelop you. She manages to combine sultry and sweet in a seamless fashion.
And if you are in the New York area, go see her perform live tomorrow night.
Dec 13 2007 10:00P
The Living Room NYC New York, New York
A WWII dancehall with a lone spotlight on the darkened stage . . .
A black-and-white film where the heroine walks away, glancing once over her shoulder before the film ends. . .
These are the images that are conjured up by Jenna Nicholls's beautiful new songs; her debut album in the works.
Sneak peek it here. Pay attention for the delicious tenor sax on "Winter." Close your eyes and let it envelop you. She manages to combine sultry and sweet in a seamless fashion.
And if you are in the New York area, go see her perform live tomorrow night.
Dec 13 2007 10:00P
The Living Room NYC New York, New York
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
So I Do
One does not simply listen to a Michael Brunnock song – one experiences it. Michael Brunnock's songs, while pleasingly smooth and unobtrusive, somehow refuse to remain "background music," and they pull the listener in to their ephemeral existence. So it is with So I Do.
Mournful without being sad. Emotional without being "emo". Evocative without being self-indulgent.
I first heard "Fallen Leaves," about four months ago, and before the song was even complete, I knew that I had to become familiar with the entire music catalog of this artist whose name I did not yet know. More than a hundred listens later, "Fallen Leaves" is both completely ingrained in my mind and brand-new simultaneously. Each listen is as the first; the string solo employed in lieu of a bridge held me captive, and when the drums returned with brilliant force, I found myself struggling to catch the breath that I didn't even realize I was holding for the past four measures.
Michael Brunnock's performance is straight-forward and unassuming. However, don't be fool enough to dismiss this artist as a simple countryman; his lyrics reveal an intelligent and well-educated man behind his gentle melodies. Listen carefully and you will hear literary allusions, complex metaphors, and well-placed puns along with political commentary and disdain for mindless militancy.
"Little Boy Blue," perhaps the most political song in his repertoire, is also the most evocative. It employs strong imagery both lyrically and musically – one can almost picture the small orchestra backing him as he sings his complex simplicities.
"Dance to the Wind" is a beautiful piece which displays both Brunnock's impressive vocal diversity and his imaginative lyric writing; the anthropomorphic song is told from the point of view of a wise old tree in a tale reminiscent of Dr. Seuss's The Lorax.
Not to be dismissed as a minstrel, Brunnock pulls "Born Again" and "Niagara Falls" from up his sleeve, showing that he can rock with the best of them.
Jenna Nicholls's backing vocals on "Man Overboard" and "Breastplate" both blend with and complement Brunnock's voice seamlessly. Nicholls's airy vocals at the end of the penultimate of the original tunes somehow punctuate the mood of the album.
Michael Brunnock revamps "Secret," a powerful song from his days with Little Palace, to round out the CD, convincingly evidencing that he is fully capable as a solo artist.
One would be hard-pressed to find a more well-pieced collection of songs that satisfy both the spirit and the intellect. So I Do does so both humbly and almost with a shrug. Brunnock is not out to please anyone with his offering – it is clearly a labour of love.
For more information, see:
http://www.myspace.com/michaelbrunnock
http://ww.cdbaby.com/michaelbrunnock
Little Palace - Whole
Little Palace - Beekeeper
http://www.myspace.com/jennanicholls
Mournful without being sad. Emotional without being "emo". Evocative without being self-indulgent.
I first heard "Fallen Leaves," about four months ago, and before the song was even complete, I knew that I had to become familiar with the entire music catalog of this artist whose name I did not yet know. More than a hundred listens later, "Fallen Leaves" is both completely ingrained in my mind and brand-new simultaneously. Each listen is as the first; the string solo employed in lieu of a bridge held me captive, and when the drums returned with brilliant force, I found myself struggling to catch the breath that I didn't even realize I was holding for the past four measures.
Michael Brunnock's performance is straight-forward and unassuming. However, don't be fool enough to dismiss this artist as a simple countryman; his lyrics reveal an intelligent and well-educated man behind his gentle melodies. Listen carefully and you will hear literary allusions, complex metaphors, and well-placed puns along with political commentary and disdain for mindless militancy.
"Little Boy Blue," perhaps the most political song in his repertoire, is also the most evocative. It employs strong imagery both lyrically and musically – one can almost picture the small orchestra backing him as he sings his complex simplicities.
"Dance to the Wind" is a beautiful piece which displays both Brunnock's impressive vocal diversity and his imaginative lyric writing; the anthropomorphic song is told from the point of view of a wise old tree in a tale reminiscent of Dr. Seuss's The Lorax.
Not to be dismissed as a minstrel, Brunnock pulls "Born Again" and "Niagara Falls" from up his sleeve, showing that he can rock with the best of them.
Jenna Nicholls's backing vocals on "Man Overboard" and "Breastplate" both blend with and complement Brunnock's voice seamlessly. Nicholls's airy vocals at the end of the penultimate of the original tunes somehow punctuate the mood of the album.
Michael Brunnock revamps "Secret," a powerful song from his days with Little Palace, to round out the CD, convincingly evidencing that he is fully capable as a solo artist.
One would be hard-pressed to find a more well-pieced collection of songs that satisfy both the spirit and the intellect. So I Do does so both humbly and almost with a shrug. Brunnock is not out to please anyone with his offering – it is clearly a labour of love.
For more information, see:
http://www.myspace.com/michaelbrunnock
http://ww.cdbaby.com/michaelbrunnock
Little Palace - Whole
Little Palace - Beekeeper
http://www.myspace.com/jennanicholls
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
I, Covet
Rick Springfield (the Ricky in my Baby) has a new book out.
WANT.
Look at the lovely. Baby-faced thing.
(I like him better now.)
I still want the book. GIMME.
WANT.
Look at the lovely. Baby-faced thing.
(I like him better now.)
I still want the book. GIMME.
Sunday, December 2, 2007
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