ear candy: lana del rey's "paradise"

 

   we all know who lana del rey is. whether it's because of her H & M campaign, that horrid SNL appearance, or just by becoming obsessed with her after the resurgence of her self-made, and albeit choppy, viral videos, miss lana del rey is somewhat of a household name.

 

i first fell in love with her in college. my friend put me on to her "born to die" album and it has stuck with me ever since. when i heard she was coming out with a second record, i knew it was something that couldn't be missed.

 

 

"paradise," named after a google-worthy unreleased track of hers, isn't of cult status as her first album, but it possess some songs with great lyricism and nerve.

 

 

 

with themes circling around america, cherry pie, lust, obsession, freedom, and the open road, "paradise" is def a hollywood record from one of the most hollywood artists out right now. mostly, down tempo, the record highlights del rey's famous girlish ad libs and deep crooning.

"paradise" is the type of record you put on when you want something pretty to listen to. not as angsty as "born to die," "paradise" is mature and honest and less of a caricature of her celebrity.

 

 

some of my faves are

 

ride (reminiscent of late-elvis)

body electric (sensual, with themes of celebrity and the thrill of stardom)

bel air (haunting and ballad-esque)

gods and monsters ( rock-fueled, and lyrical)

 

try it on for size and tell me what you think

 

jas

ear candy: "little dragon"

 

 

 

sigh. i honestly dont remember how i found out about this band. but, man, i'm so glad i did. little dragon, is a quartet featuring singer yukimi nagano and her bandmates fred, erik and hagan. together the four of them create magic. a mix of hip hop, neo soul, reggae, indie pop and straight up glorified my favorite of all genres, trip hop, their debut album "little dragon" is one for the record books. definitely one of those albums you head straight to the record store to buy and play over and over again whether your drug of choice is analog or digital.

 

 

 

it's yukimi's vocals that take the cake for me. who sounds, on occassion, like a mix of missy elliot and amel larrieux (of groove theory fame). the comparisons don't even make up for what she brings to album.

 

 

 

my personal faves:

 

twice

recommendation

after the rain

wink

 

try it on for size and tell me what you think

 

jas

song to download: beirut's "postcards from italy"

 

 

 

 

 

the great thing about indie music is that it's so diverse. no, really it is. take the band beirut. headed by the glorious zach condon, santa fe native and jazz music enthusiast (see him with his trumpet above), beirut, fuses world, folk, indie, and jazz music together to form a lushly melodic (is lushly a word?) sounding project for the ages to consume. listening to it, i find myself hearing marachi bands and italian tarantella's, especially in their song, "postcards from italy." i guess this comes from the fact that zach travelled to europe as young lad and became enamored with the culture.

 

"postcards from italy" is a genre-bending song with aching vocals and driving instrumentals.

 

in fact, it's only right that i'm listening to it right now

 

enjoy

 

jas