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Nellie McKay releases her first album of new material in 13 years

Hey Guys Watch This is the New Yorker’s first album of new original material since 2010.

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Review – Women at the Royal Albert Arms, May 6 2009

okay, no such word
as melodicism, [I think there is-ed.]
i like the way it looks and sounds and sounds are important
to Women
the band
and! to women

the sound of this man’s
deeply poetic voice
low and rumbling
disarming
one and all,

Women
are men
from alberta,

they played an in-store
at music trader
last year
with Mt Royal
which i had completely
forgotten seeing (and enjoying)
and dancing
Music Trader, Osborne Village

Women’s drummer
with an eye/catching
abe vigoda t-shirt
recognized and remembered
this dancing man
the only one ever dancing
in music stores!
so he introduced himself

Oh! good,

i like these men called Women
and their experimental
brian eno
approach to sound and melody
and music
and beating drummmmm
tempo gear changes
(jazzy)

their most accessible song
kiss/smacked in the middle of the set
Black Rice
is brilliance
and sounds like
a 60s song of Brit wonder
and joy fulfillment

my legs and heart
moving
melded with the more experimental
background noise song
Woodbine

in those two songs,
you get the flavor
of Women

nothing is easy

listening is required
carefully so
daringly so

Dave,
(whose partner
the rock n roll glitter grl
Bobbi
won the six months
of a pair of tickets to all
shows at the royal albert arms
despite the fact that he had stuffed a 100
entries in the box to her
50?)
Loves
Women
his third time seeing them,
“one of my favorite current bands.”

and they’re canadian.

and all the employees of the Lo Pub
were in attendance
(except the two who were working
for the 45 minutes of Women’s set)
because they’ve hosted
Women
and love Women

devoted lovers
of the experiment
in sound and fury
and atonal
nasal drip
vocals
and purposely
off tunings

i like experiments in guitar tuning
in drum,bass,rhythm
sounds
(i love sonic youth)

i like songs deconstructed
and eventually
resurrected

Shaking Hand
is also accessible
(i made a point of noting
how much my pop
sensibilities were excited
by this melody)
there’s something of
The Meat Puppets here
the early songs

i’ll see them again
and again
and i won’t forget
these men
called Women

from calgary, alberta

songs in the set:
diamond boys and the dazzlers
spanish dazzlers
sedan dazzler
black rice/woodbine
upstairs
shaking hand
salt remains
new song (much conversation
on stage after the set as to what to call this new song,
unresolved, therefore “new song”)
robert starrett

weatherman underground blistered
their way through
a short sharp set
30 minutes
the audience stood back
and i didn’t dance
though i wanted to,
my shyness prevailed
it isn’t easy being the first one to dance
always,
and last night
i couldn’t
not at the albert
not last night

after, the albert
i drove to the bella vista and caught
‘the weekly wednesday night
scott nolan set
okay, i danced.
shy guy that i am
i felt the comforting eyes
and gaze
of friends
their accepting smiles
of my unutterable reverie

and when scott nolan and his comrades
finished up
i walked over to hooligans
for andrew neville and the poor choices
and yes
i danced again
truly dirty country
with the grit
of johnny cash
waylon jennings
merle haggard
willie nelson
when he’s rocking

i caught 5 sets of music,
last night,
not mentioning
the debut of another winnipeg band
it isn’t fair to review
to mention their band name
(although, i like Joel Plaskett’s
The Belted Trees name,
a very winnipeg thing
belted trees)
young and nervous
and who knows where
their journey will take them,
perhaps in a year
i’ll love them too
and proudly write their band name,
in my fave winnipeg list of bands

friday night,
Lay Low scintillating
bluegrass
from iceland
Lo Pub.

and Meatdraw
from Victoria
at Hooligans.

two can’t miss shows
in my winnipeg
on the same Friday night
please, not at the same time!

i need to dance,
with men
and Women.

Black Rice

Black Rice

Black Rice

About Eugene Osudar

“born, august 16, 1963. i’m 45, and yes, i’m getting too old for this. bring out the rocking chair. my first concert, november 1978, elvis costello and the attractions. i was 15. their blisteringly brilliant 65 minute set only served somebody to affirm my new direction in the musical parallel universes, new wave punk alternative, oh sanctity oh celebration (!Freedom!) college radio! i’m old, i’m used up and i’m free. i see 50something Full sets of music every month and dance most of them. and when i dance, i mean to say, I Dance and Celebrate, 2/3/4 hours a night. The Gaslight Anthem. The Boss. The Weber Brothers. The Wind Ups. i’ll dance with Los Campesinos. i’ll move to The Long Winters. The Replacements. Husker Du. The Pogues. oh elvis costello, oh Clash! i could go/go/go Gogol Bordello forever. L(eonard) Cohen. come, Dance With Me (Old 97s) wherever you may be, sincerely, eugene
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