Over the past few months I have purchased a few records* I could not immediately get my head around. Wherein, certain aspects of the music resonated with me but for the most part the content could best be termed as ‘difficult’. But, as is so often is the case, time has remedied these ‘difficulties’ and my opinions have been tempered, in some cases significantly. Thus emerging a common theme of this week’s Download Lowdown. - The Difficult Ones That Now Make a Great Deal of Sense (TDOTNMGDS).
First up, Scotland’s Frightened Rabbit deliver a passionate session on Daytrotter. Combining unique songwriting with distinctive delivery and the results will leave you hooked. Their brand of quirky folk/ rock so very suited to the Daytrotter mystique. It will make you laugh, it will make you cry and just about everything in between.
Next up from Syracuse, New York -Ra Ra Riot. You will love the rousing vocals of Wes Miles on this session, the music just as uplifting, at times even magnetic. What seemed contradictory at first now makes complete sense. This band is quickly becoming a favourite this year. This energetic Daytrotter set, a must.
Lastly, and the one that doesn’t quite fit the theme this week is a live concert recording from Radiohead’s recent North American jaunt. The Santa Barbara concert is the final show of the “In Rainbows” tour from August 28th (and was previously webcast by the band.) With more than a few pleasant surprises this one is well worth your bandwidth. Radiohead fire on every creative cylinder in concert and this is a pleasant reminder of that. Superb. Register with our friends at NPR to allow a permanent download to your favourite digital listening device.* For the record, all of my music purchases are generally referred to as ‘records’. This is a throwback to the gentle days of my youth as an ardent consumer of vinyl. Today my medium of choice is still the compact disc however music in any format is eagerly collected.
