Paul Schiernecker

Tag: Music jar

  • Music Jar – week 32

    Each week, I listen to an artist, someone I might have heard of but never took the opportunity to “get into”. This week was the turn of Detroit’s own, Melissa Viviane Jefferson, better known as Lizzo.

    What I Knew Before
    Lizzo is probably the artist on my list that I felt I was the closest to missing out on. I’d heard a number of her songs and knew that she was a woman with a powerful vocal range and a voice for topics. I had glimpsed her in the brilliant, Hustlers. I was also familiar with the line, “I just took a DNA test, turns out I’m 100% that bitch”. I’m sure we will all agree, highly relatable content there.

    What I Know Now
    Lizzo’s 2019 album, Cuz I Love You, is one of the most important albums to be delivered into the world in the last decade. Her songs have a dynamic range that is unlike anything else happening in modern music. She is an absolute force and I am thankful I’ve taken the time to educate myself on her.
    Lizzo released two more-hiphop focused albums earlier in her career, which were met with some critical acclaim but it was the arrival of the single Juice, and then her third album that brought her mainstream success.
    She is outspoken on body issues particularly for women in the public eye as well as being a supporter of the LGBTQ+ movement.
    She has played flute since she was a child. Her flute is named Sasha Flute.
    I could go on. She’s really something special.

    Favourite songs:
    It goes without saying that the songs of Lizzo’s that I was familiar with are the ones you would expect. They’ve gone viral through TikTok and they’re screamed in your face if you dare step into any club playing them. Feel free to correct me but I really like Good As Hell, Tempo, Juice and Truth Hurts. Cuz I Love You is a very strong opening track. When I first listened to the album, I felt my knees buckle at the absolute splendor of that track; it’s at once a 50’s bop and the best Bond theme you’ve never heard.

    Favourite album: It will come as no surprise that I am 100% that bitch. It’s got to be Cuz I Love You.

    Spotify my favourite songs from this project. 

  • Music Jar – week 27

    Each week, I listen to an artist I’ve never really got into. This week has only been slightly impaired by listening to the Hamilton soundtrack on repeat but my artist of choice was Mexico City’s very best, Mexrrissey.

    What I Knew Before
    Weirdly, I saw Mexrrissey a few years ago when they blessed Camden with their presence and performed at the Electric Ballroom. They combine the music of The Smiths with Latin beats and rhythms. The excellent part of this is that you can listen to The Smiths without having to think about the terrible person that Morrissey has become.

    What I Know Now
    Pretty much as above, but I’ve learnt that they only have one album; No Manchester, released in 2016.

    Favourite songs:
    El Primero del Gang, International Playgirl, Entré Más Me Ignoras, Más Cerca Estaré

    Favourite album:
    No Manchester

  • Music Jar – week 24

    At the start of 2020, when we had no idea what a horrific trash fire this year would become, I put the names of 52 musical artists into a pickle jar. They were all recommended to me by friends or musicians that I knew I should know more about but had never had the time to get into.
    Each Monday, I take out a name and listen to that band for the week.
    This week was the turn of Kettering-born psychedelic rockers, Temples.

    What I Knew Before:
    It is possible that I had heard some Temples songs before. I’m fairly sure that Sarah, who is responsible for them being on this list, told me to listen to them after she invited me to go and see them a few months ago. I am gutted that I didn’t take her up on the offer.

    What I Know Now:
    Temples are 100% my bag. I don’t know what I wasn’t listening to them before. My only excuse is that they rose to prominence, as an NME band, after my tenure. I used to know all of the cool new bands, then I got older and I couldn’t keep up. It hurts my little indie heart to know that music is moving on without me.
    Temples have three albums; Sun Structures, Volcano and Hot Motion. All three are excellent. I have also dipped into the Sun Restructured album (thanks for the tip-off Ben), a remix of their first that sounds even trippier.
    For those who haven’t heard Temples before; there’s elements of The Beatles and The Rolling Stones at their most experimental, alongside Empire of the Sun and MGMT, if you want something more recent and tangible to cling to.

    Favourite songs: Certainty, Sand Dance, Shelter Song, Hot Motion and You’re Either On Something.

    Favourite album: They are all worthy of your time, but Volcano clinches it. 

    Spotify my favourite songs from this project.

     

  • Music Jar – week 17

    Every week, I take a band or artist from the jar and listen to their back catalog in an attempt at widening my musical knowledge.
    This week was the turn of emo Jersey Boys, My Chemical Romance.

    What I Knew Before: I was very much aware of MCR prior to this project. At the height of their fame, I did what I could to avoid them, changing channels whenever the videos for Helena, I’m Not Okay (I Promise) or Ghost Of You came on Kerrang TV. I even saw them live, when they supported Muse at their Wembley gig in 2007. As memory serves me, I went with my then girlfriend and rolled my eyes through the entire set. I wasn’t an emo kid. I was put off of a number of bands by the people who were into them. I like to think that people’s tastes are a lot more rounded now but at the time I was an elitist indie kid who didn’t understand what it was that MCR were doing.
    What I Know Now: I missed out by being so short-sighted in my tastes. By lumping an entire genre of music together, I didn’t know one of the most important bands of the twenty-first century when they were right in front of my face.
    The things that MCR were doing are only now being rolled out on a wider scale. In their excellent documentary; Life On The Murder Scene, they call other bands and musicians out for abusing their positions of power to take advantage of young, female fans. The reason that rock music has grown tired and want to bring some of the fun and pantomime back to it. They celebrate their own soapbox by making powerful statements about isolation, addiction and mental health. I read that statement back and wonder what there isn’t to love about My Chemical Romance.
    The way Gerard Way approached songwriting and fronting a band remains unique. He thinks in comic book terms, his first love, and one that he has cemented through his incredible work creating The Umbrella Academy. He knew that he didn’t want to waste the opportunity that was his own life so pulled together a group of friends to form a band. His lyrics tell stories and his confident world-building is bombastic, crazed and colourful. You can feel his love and torture through his songs.
    This is combined with the wild thrashing of Frank Iero and Ray Toro, two of the best guitarists I’ve ever watched play. His kid brother, Mikey Way, plays bass and offers support in a way only a sibling can and their eventual drummer (they had previous), Bob Bryar, built something steady into their wild and wired world.
    What MCR did with each album is identify what they wanted and grow into it. They provided a voice and an outlet for a lot of disconnected kids. The value that they added is unfathomable.
    I have shared the name of my artist of the week on social media for seventeen weeks now. It speaks volumes that the biggest reaction to my announcement was for My Chemical Romance. I dedicate this week to the MCR-my and the Killjoys.
    Favourite song(s): Skylines and Turnstiles, Early Sunsets Over Monroeville, Helena, I’m Not Okay (I Promise), I Don’t Love You,  Mama, Teenagers and Blood.
    Favourite album: There’s no question about it, The Black Parade is not just their best album but one of the best concept albums I’ve ever had the pleasure of listening to.

    Spotify my favourite songs from this project.

  • Music Jar – week 16

    Like Groundhog Day, but every week, I take an artist’s name from a pickle jar and listen to their back catalogue. It’s better than facing the inevitability of the news.
    This week I had the exquisite pleasure of listening to British singer-songwriter, David Gray.

    What I Knew Before: I knew Babylon and therefore I knew White Ladder. I also knew “O” but this turned out to be by Damien Rice.
    What I Know Now: David Gray is from Sale, Cheshire. He has a lot of studio albums as well as a number of live performances available on his Spotify. I am fairly sure that if I ever got the opportunity to see him live then I would cry. I have no doubts that he will be an artist I continue to listen to and maybe I should have listened to certain people and got here sooner.
    Favourite song(s): This is difficult because there is so much material. The obvious ones are This Year’s Love, Babylon and Sail Away. I liked Shine and Birds Without Wings from A Century Ends and Faster, Sooner, Now from Sell, Sell, Sell. His cover of Buckets of Rain was lovely. Some of the tracks on Gold in a Brass Age reminds me of Bon Iver. I’m working on a theory that it was his reaction to 22, A Million.
    Favourite album: I’m going to do the obvious thing and not say White Ladder, and that’s because the way he sounds on A Thousand Miles Behind is raw and sublime.

    I’ve started a Spotify playlist where you can listen to my favourite songs across this project: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3vjalT7B0EFZOv0k3610CX?si=pI1ivFnORwGXKYW8jbjqjA

  • Music Jar – week 15

    At the start of 2020, not realising what a hotbed of disease it was going to be, I started a fun project inspired by The Larson House. I took the names of 52 musicians or bands that I didn’t know enough about, and I put their names in a pickle jar. Each week, I take a name out and listen to them as much as possible for that week. This week was the go of Canadian soothsayer and prophet, Leonard Cohen.

    What I Knew Before: My knowledge of Leonard Cohen was very much missing. I knew he had a song about the Chelsea Hotel, but only because it had come up when I was obsessed with the Chelsea. I also knew that I would probably really dig him. He very much felt like a musician’s musician.
    What I Know Now: It’s probably for the best that I’ve only hit upon Leonard Cohen now that I have grown slightly into my tastes and don’t cling to every word they’ve written like a lost fanboy of anything I can possibly find. If I had found Cohen ten years ago then I would have been an insufferable fan. The fact remains that listening to him this week has not had the impact that it once would have done but I am grateful for the opportunity. I struggle to think of anyone else who has written about the human condition in the way that Cohen was able to capture. The way he talks about religion or death or sex (my Starter For Ten in a lot of conversations) is so beautifully eloquent that it makes me sad to know he was taken in The Great Cultural Wipeout of 2016.
    Favourite song(s): Hallelujah (even if I prefer the Jeff Buckley version and will not apologise), So Long Marianne, Happens To The Heart and You Want It Darker.
    Favourite album(s): Well, it’s all of an uncompromising standard but there’s something Waits-esque about the latter day Cohen that I cling to. Give me You Want It Darker and Thanks For The Dance any day.

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  • Music Jar – week 13

    Each week, inspired by The Larson House, I put 52 artists in a jar. Each week, I take one name out and dig down into their discography. This week was the turn of North Shields cutie-patootie, Sam Fender.

    What I Knew Before: I saw Sam Fender last summer at a BST gig in Hyde Park. He opened for Neil Young and Bob Dylan. I was impressed with what I heard but didn’t take the time to listen afterwards. It was for this reason that he made the cut for the Music Jar.
    What I Know Now: Sam Fender is also an actor, having appeared in the first episode of the British drama series Vera as well as in season one, episode six of Wolfblood in 2012. This is pretty impressive considering he is still so young. Sam Fender’s debut album, Hypersonic Missiles, released in September 2019, reached number one in the UK.
    I really enjoyed having the time to listen to Sam Fender. It helped to distract from everything else going on in the world. On a couple of occasions I’ve got out the house for a run and it has been a welcome accompaniment. I can imagine this becoming a regular listen for me.
    Favourite song(s): Hypersonic Missiles, Call Me Lover, White Privilege.
    Favourite album: Hypersonic Missiles (his only album to date).

  • Music Jar – Week 5

    This week, I pulled LA rock duo, Best Coast from the pickle jar. I dedicated seven days to them, which as luck would have it, ended with the release of their new album, Always Tomorrow.

    What I Knew Before: I knew there were two of them. I knew that they were a band who were around when I had some idea about music, when I prided myself on it, in fact. They seemed cool and aloof and kind of surf music-y and I was there for that. I remembered there was a cat on the cover of their first album.
    What I Know Now: As advised by my good friend Luke Stephen, who recommended they be included in the project, they’re often overlooked but are a solid band with four albums (now) under their belt. There is a lot to dig into here, which has been a nice break from the last two weeks where it was a more intense listen to one or two albums.
    Favourite song(s): Boyfriend (because it’s track one on Crazy For You (the cat album)), Happy, Dreaming My Life Away, Heaven Sent (which has a Nirvana vibe), Jealousy and This Lonely Morning.
    Favourite album: Weirdly, the album I enjoyed the most was a seven track EP, Fade Away, released in 2013 and buried in their Spotify page. There’s something musically and cosmically urgent about the songs featured there and I was all for it.

  • Music Jar – Week 4

    No two weeks are the same, whether you work as a bailiff or if you’ve put fifty-two slips of paper in a pickle jar. This week, I am the latter, and I picked Kiwi goth kid sister, Lorde.

    What I Knew Before: I was familiar with Lorde. I had listened to Pure Heroine, seen her perform All Apologies with Kim Gordon, St Vincent, Pat Smear, Krist Novoselic and Dave Grohl and am well aware that she’s actually a character that Randy Marsh created.
    What I Know Now: Pretty much that, but also that she is fucking rad and I was definitely overlooking her as an artist. On top of the brilliant Pure Heroine, there is also Melodrama (2017) which may be even better.
    It also reminded me that several years ago, I was away on a tall ship for ten days and as a group we covered Royals. Every time I listen to it, I can hear the screeching teenagers I was trapped with.
    Favourite Song(s): Royals, White Teeth Teens, Homemade Dynamite, Liability (which has the same vocal melody as Welcome To The Black Parade) and Supercut.
    Favourite Album: This is tough. It’s like choosing a favourite child. I would have to say that my favourite one is the one who will look after me in my old age, and that’s likely to be Melodrama.

  • The Music Jar.

    I can’t claim this idea as my own, as much as I would like to. It originally came from The Larson House and even finding that can be placed at Jazmine’s feet. My Spotify artist of the decade was The Beatles. There’s nothing wrong with that but I know I am missing out on listening to a lot of other artists because I’m stuck in an indie rut where I loop through Arcade Fire, Father John Mistry, Bright Eyes, Arctic Monkeys etc.
    The aim is to select the names of 52 bands or artists I feel I should know more about, place them in a jar and pick out one a week to listen to.
    My list is:
    Temples, Blanhavon, No Doubt, Pearl Jam, Post Malone, Mexrissey, Nouvelle Vague, Van Morrison, Leonard Cohen, Madrugada, Tom Petty, Prince, Thin Lizzy, The Distillers, Fall Out Boy, Lizzo, Alanis Morrisette, Death Cab For Cutie, Joni Mitchell, Sara Bareilles, Kacey Musgraves, David Gray, Elbow, The Lumineers, Black Honey, The Big Moon, Wolf Alice, Anna Calvi, Jessie Ware, Warpaint, Sam Fender, St Thomas, Brockhampton, FKA Twigs, Childish Gambino, Lana Del Rey, Lorde, Charli XCX, St Vincent, Wilco, Clipping, Best Coast, My Chemical Romance, Tears For Fears, Weezer, Cigarettes After Sex, Aretha Franklin, Lord Huron, Talking Heads, Elvis Presley, Macklemore & INXS.

    Here’s to 2020. Listening to different artists and learning along the way.