Tried again last night on the train to get through Tom Waits and Bjork. Tom is just too out there for me – I can’t focus on the music due to all the other noises on the track. “Going out West” is a classic, but the rest are just not me. Too disruptive.
Bjork is good in parts, but a bit too squeeky to listen to in it’s entirety. I think I will playlist some tracks (e.g. LOVE Hyperballad, love the sentiment of ‘doing things to cope with choices we make’) but won’t consider myself a Bjork fan.
Have also tried AGAIN to appreciate Belle and Sebastian. My friend Betty Sue (not her real name) seems to like these guys, but even this new album, which is getting OK reviews, I just don’t get. It’s very self-conscious, to the point of pretension, far to wordy, and lacking in a basic underlying passion that I like to have in the music I listen to. It’s almost like you are listening to a year 12 homework assignment.
But, in good news, I am enjoying “Van Lear Rose” (Loretta Lynn) and I am having some success in working through Ben Harper’s back catalog. Especially like “Mama’s got a girlfriend now!” Catchy. And “Less” – an excellent song about lowering your relationship expectations.
