It All Got Worse

I feared I wouldn't make it in time (AKA before February ended), but here I am with my last favourite song of 2011 - 'It All Got Worse' by Destry!



According to many sources, Destry is headed by Michelle DaRosa and she collaborates with Shaun Cooper, Sam Means, Nico Childrey, Tyler Odom - all musician who are a part of other bands. Strangely, Destry's official facebook page only mentions Michelle DaRosa and Tyler Odom (who are pictured above). They're usually the only two present when acoustic sets are played on the streets or something so... alright. I'm still slightly befuddled, but that's okay.

So far, Destry has released two albums: their second, Waiting on an Island, was released last May, and their first album, It Goes On, was released in 2009.
For me, It Goes On grabbed my ears instantly. Waiting on an Island, which has a quieter mood, grew on me more slowly. Both albums have a dreamy 60s vibe. Not psychedelic 60s, mind you - earlier than that. Both have a very basking-in-the-sun feeling, but Waiting on an Island has more moments of rain. Nowhere is this more evident than in the my selection today: 'It All Got Worse'.

Admittedly, it was a hard contest between the song 'Alabama' and 'It All Got Worse', but I chose the latter because it has deeper meaning for me. This year I often found myself listening to this song; it offered solidarity, and I loved how Michelle's vocals are so full of the weight of the song's emotion. Perhaps I should have tried to end this "favourite songs thingy" on a happier note, but what can I say? I had a rough year.

Listen:




(Supplements: Listen to their albums on bandcamp!)

Mire Kay

"We were all very thankful to tear off JANUARY from our calenders and to look hopefully at FEBRUARY."

-Miss Read, Changes at Fairacre

That quote sums up January for me. But while I was certainly thankful, I was hardly prepared! February has been speeding by, much to my distress. It doesn't help we've had houseguests since Monday. My concentration levels are frighteningly low....


...But not low enough to not want to (at last) bring you February's artist of the month, Mire Kay!

Mire Kay is the duo of Emelie Molin and Victoria Skoglund. They are two lovely, Swedish girls who were originally members of the band Audrey (which is hibernating for the time being).
I swear, there must be something in the Scandinavian water because the acts coming out of there make ridiculously amazing music. Mire Kay is, of course, no exception.
I'm stealing the description of the group from their site because I like it and it's much better than anything I could come up with at the moment:

"When closing your eyes you will never know where you will end up. Maybe somewhere between the roar of a capital city or beneath a bridge where you can hear the water murmur. You will maybe find a link to your home or to the continent, or you might just find the world of Mire Kay. It is a place where things are simple, where fragile sounds whisper in the spruce tops of trees and memories become as real as you remembered them to be. Adorned by luminous and vivid colors, this place is where you will find the presence of our music. Don’t expect to find answers but instead an urge to start asking."

Their debut EP, Fortress, came out last year, and according to their facebook page, they are busy recording their first album. I'm chuffed to bits, as their EP is what I call Good Music. One thing I have to mention that I love about Mire Kay is that their two core instruments are the cello and guitar. (Emelie on the former, Victoria on the latter.) I do adore the cello, and it's not prevalent in many acts.
Anyhow, the song I'm posting today is 'Sea Monster': their first single and the opening track on Fortress. This is also my penultimate "favourite song of 2011". (Yes, that's still going on.)

Listen to 'Sea Monster':



{Supplements: I have some exciting links! You can download their single 'Sea Monster' for free on their bandcamp! And you can watch their beautifully foliaceous music video for their song 'So You Learned' here, and then download the track for free on their soundcloud. Then you can head back over to bandcamp and listen to the whole EP. Okay. C'est tout.}

The Almond Tree

I'm doing these favourite songs rather slowly this year. This partially has to do with the fact I keep changing the list of songs. Shameful, innit? But not atypical, I have to say. I thought I was finally done vacillating, but last night I remembered a song that I knew I could not leave out: 'The Almond Tree' by Hannah Peel.

Photo credit: Hiro Hirata

I don't know much about Hannah Peel or her music. 'The Almond Tree' is the only song of hers I'm familiar with, and I don't even remember how I happened across it. I do know that this song is off her debut album Broken Waves which came out last January and was recorded in three (!) weeks. And interestingly, for live performances, Hannah Peel often collaborates with one of my favourite artists, Blue Roses!

I am working on amending the fact I don't know much about her or the rest of her music; even as I type this, I am listening to more of her album. But anyway, allow me to go back to the reason why I started this post in the first place: 'The Almond Tree'. This song is beautiful, and a bit of a surprise. Its melody and lyrics sound like they could be straight from a traditional folk ballad, and the opening arrangement is suitable to that thought... but then the song takes a strange and sublime turn into less straightforward territory.
This is one of those songs I instantly liked, and I am sorry I forgot about it for so long! (And I'm sorry it took me this long to listen to more of her music, as I am very much enjoying it!)

Listen:



(Supplements: Download the second song off Broken Waves, 'You Call This Your Home', on Hannah's bandcamp!)

Fallen Angel

Alright, let's forget for a moment that my favourite band is The Beatles.

Let's also forget that my most favourite famous couple ever is Paul and Linda McCartney.

Now that all that's out of the way, may I introduce my second favourite song of 2011: 'Fallen Angel' by James McCartney.



That's right: The youngest child and only son of Paul and Linda. But remember, we're forgetting how much I adore those two right now.

He's been a musician for a while, playing guitar on various projects of his father's and on his mother's one album; but it wasn't until 2010 he released his first EP, Available Light. I listened to his music an infinitesimal bit, but it wasn't until his second EP, Close At Hand, came out in 2011 that I sat up and took notice. Something about the more personal nature of the music on Close At Hand struck a chord with me. (Pardon - wasn't trying to make a pun. :P) This was actually his intention, according to this quote from his site: "I wanted to follow Available Light with something that showed a progression...that had an even deeper meaning, both spiritually and musically." He has certainly succeeded! My favourite song off Close At Hand is, without doubt, the beautiful track 'Fallen Angel' which offers an interesting contrast to the upbeat song 'Angel': the opening track on Available Light. Interestingly enough, James's two EPs are only available in digital form, but at the moment he is working on bringing them out in tangible form in a two-disc collection that will include new music!

Listen to 'Fallen Angel':

Matrimony

Well, it's that time of year again! Meaning, time for my 5 favourite songs of 2011!

Alright, one thing I must explain about this (which I haven't in years past) is that quite a few artists I really like released music this year, but since I don't always buy the albums or whatever right away the "favourite songs of 2011" is really a random assortment of songs I loved and bought that happened to be released this year. Oftentimes they are by artists I love, but it's not that I'm surpassing any other artists I really love - I probably just haven't gotten around to listening to their new music yet.

Oh, gosh. That was horribly explained. I have a cold, okay?!? Let's blame it all on that.

And don't forget! It's also time to pick the artist of the month! I am starting off the new year with Matrimony. The band, that is.



What started in 2009 as the husband and wife duo of Ashlee Hardee Brown and Jimmy Brown, has in 2011 grown to include three more members: C J Hardee, Jordan Hardee, and Alex Watson.

Matrimony released their first EP in 2010, The Storm & the Eye and it has been favourite listening for months now. Though upbeat folk/indie pop/Americana for 6 of the 8 songs, it ends on a pleasingly intense note with the rough vocals of Jimmy's 'One Last Dance' as the penultimate song followed by the passionate emotion of Ashlee's 'Who Is Your God' as a glorious end. 'Who Is Your God' is about 6 1/2 minutes, but if it went twice that length I don't think I'd complain; I'd say it's my favourite song on the EP.

If what I've read is correct, the band is currently making new music which I am quite chuffed about! So far they've released one single: a song called 'Obey Your Guns' which is what I'm choosing for a favourite song of 2011. They were offering a free download of it for a while, but they aren't anymore, sadly.
You can still listen to it, though! It's a really fun song and has made me impatient to hear more of their new music.


{Supplements - head over to their bandcamp to listen to their EP The Storm & The Eye!}

That's all for now. This post isn't what it should be, but neither am I - so there you go. Happy New Year, everyone! :)