ChordStrike

Lhasa De Sela: 1972-2010

This week brought the sad news that Montreal-based singer-songwriter Lhasa De Sela passed away on New Year's Day, after a 21-month battle with breast cancer. The American-born artist had a one-of-a-kind upbringing with her Mexican father and American mother, spending most of her childhood traveling between the two countries, developing her unique and decidedly pan-cultural artistic skills that led her to sing in English, Spanish, and French. From her official site:

    "Lhasa's unusual childhood was marked by long periods of nomadic wandering through Mexico and the U.S., with her parents and sisters in the school bus which was their home.  During this period the children improvised, both theatrically and musically, performing for their parents on a nightly basis.  Lhasa grew up in a world imbued with artistic discovery, far from conventional culture."

Lhasa released three albums in her short life, La Llorona, The Living Road, and one of my favorite albums of last year, and her first in English, the beautiful, simply titled, Lhasa. If you've never heard her stunning voice, do yourself a favor and watch the video for "Rising" below. Rest In Peace, Lhasa.

--Alan Wiley

Best of the Month: Draw the Line by David Gray

David Gray has come full circle back to his roots on his latest release, Draw the Line, which is significant given the fact that he could have easily succumb to the many distractions of success. Long-time fans of David Gray who gravitated to his earlier releases including A Century Ends, Flesh, and Sell, Sell, Sell will be happy to know he has not wandered far from the musical path he set out on nearly 20 years ago. The result is a humble album punctuated by his gritty baritone, layered acoustics, and a sobering thrush that comes across as an amped-up middle-aged confession half the time, and a sweet lullaby the rest.

After the overwhelming success he garnered from 2000’s White Ladder, followed by an introspective period that included more down tempo and ethereal albums, Gray returns with a bit of idyllic hope delivered with his own brand of cynicism and irony.

In my interview with him, David Gray was gracious with his time and quite conversational in talking about Draw The Line and the multiple journeys that inspired it. He admitted to being full of confidence following a long period where he was stuck in the “shock of success” that descended on him with the ubiquitous accolades and critical acclaim of White Ladder. Now liberated from that period that tested his personal demons, David Gray feels a new presence and sense of purpose as he reflects and bears his musical soul to us all, more content than ever with his life and his music.

Hear it all in the 14 minute interview, and enjoy.

--Lucas Hilbert

Touring: Not for the Faint of Heart

Leonard Cohen gave fans a scare Saturday night when he crumpled into a heap onstage in Spain following a stoic performance of "Bird on the Wire" (see video below). Cohen's publicist has since reported that he was battling a tough case of food poisoning, and music lovers everywhere are relieved to know that he is recovering well. But the news got me thinking about older artists who are still on the road bringing their music to the masses, despite the physical stresses involved.

Touring is a grueling experience, as any musician who has spent even a week living out of a tour bus will tell you. Artists follow late evening shows with a bumpy night's sleep in a bus bunk roughly the size of a casket, only to wake up the next day in time to soundcheck and repeat. Aggressively gigging bands book back-to-back shows for days on end, enjoying a truly restful night's sleep in a hotel room as seldom as once a week. And while older and more established musicians may have the luxury of forgoing bus sleep and retiring to a hotel each night, they are often back on the bus by early morning anyway, without the full eight hours of regeneration that many of us take for granted.

Add the perils of promoter-supplied meals, the stress of living out of a suitcase and showering in a different dressing room every day, and in some cases a tendency toward a partying lifestyle, and it becomes easier to understand how artists occasionally end up heaped on a stage, exhausted. (Those extravagant-sounding tour riders you hear about can also begin to seem like the least these hardworking musicians deserve.)

So let's take a moment to appreciate those musicians of a certain age who are still out there onstage, toughing it out to share their talent with the crowds who love them, for better or worse, after most in their cohort have observed the traditional retirement age of 65. I'll start the list - add yours in the comments!

Courtney's list: B.B. King, 84 Ornette Coleman, 79 Leonard Cohen, 75 Etta James, 71 Ringo Starr, 69 Charlie Watts and Ronnie James of the Rolling Stones, both 65 Bob Dylan, 68 Dr. John, 68 Paul McCartney, 67 Maceo Parker, 66 Jimmy Page, 65

Commenters' list: Pete Seeger, 90 Willie Nelson, 76 Buddy Guy, 73 Herbie Hancock, 69 Tina Turner, 69 Neil Diamond, 68 Eric Clapton, 64 Jimmy Buffett, 62 Stevie Knicks, 61

-- Courtney Powell

Monsters of Folk: Exclusive Video

An exclusive video from Monsters of Folk is now available for your viewing pleasure. We're also hosting a Streaming Listening Party of the full album a week before street date release. 

Monsters of Folk is the Alt/Indie super group comprised of Conor Oberst (singer for Bright Eyes), Yim Yames (singer for My Morning Jacket), M. Ward, and producer Mike Mogis.

In an era chock-full of super groups (see Audioslave, Velvet Revolver, and Chickenfoot just to name a few), now Indie Music fans of the world can rejoice, too!

--Lucas Hilbert

Mark Knopfler Getting Lucky

Ex-Dire Straits guitarist and front man Mark Knopfler has a new album, Get Lucky, and we talked to him about in this recent interview. Mark sounded pretty mellow, and so does the album. But fans of Dire Straits and his solo material should enjoy another fine offering from the Sultan of Swing.

And no, I did not ask him if he still wants his MTV. Damn, I wish I had thought of that one sooner. Then again, not.

Listen and enjoy.

--Lucas Hilbert

Best Living Songwriters?

I was just reading through No Depresssion, one the best online magazines (formerly in print) focused on americana music, and found their list of Five Best Living Songwriters to be an interesting read. It was also interesting to see that Bob Dylan made the number one spot, same as he did on our similar list of The 100 Greatest Singer-Songwriter Albums of All Time. It looks like all 5 of their artist picks made it somewhere onto our list as well.

I would love to know more about the author's apparently strong aversion to Nick Drake. It's also suspect to see the inclusion of Patty Griffin and Billy Joel (the guy wrote Uptown Girl after all) at the number 4 and 5 spots, which would not be my choice, but everyone's taste is their own. That's what's great about music.

Thanks, No Depression, for your best list. Any of you Chordstrike readers care to chime in with more of your passionate opinions and picks of the best songwriters out there? I'd especially love to hear about any under-the-radar artists that aren't the ubiquitous picks we normally see.

--Lucas Hilbert