Try Everything Once

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121: Double Take

Ian Jay

on Nov. 27, 2007

Hey there, TEO fans! I'm attempting to pick up momentum again here. This page I'm pleased with. Yeah.

Not much to report this week. I've gotta start drawing more often– I keep letting things get in the way of comics. It's a little like the issue I have with playing the guitar: I'll go for long stretches without thinking about it, but once I start, I always end up really getting into it and wondering, "Man, why haven't I been doing this more often?". I don't know why I'm like this. I swore to myself that I would kick it up a notch during winter break and hone both my drawing skills and my work ethic by putting out material at a faster pace. So far, despite the comic progressing along smoothly, I still feel as if I'm personally struggling. (I'd do that "Two Hundred Bad Comics" thing, but I don't know if that'd be biting off more than I can chew right now. Plus I'm absolutely crap at three-panel gag comics. Seriously.)

Music-wise, I finally got my hands on Beirut's new CD, The Flying Club Cup. It's equally as wonderful as the last one, though this time the songs have more of a French flavor rather than an Eastern European one (apparently Zach Croydon and company were going to go back to Bulgaria or whatever, but ran out of money at the last minute, and decided to stay in Paris to record the album instead– true story). Because of that, I think this one might be a tad more accessible to first time listeners. While some fans might be disappointed by Cup's lack of creaky, borscht-drenched Soviet bloc funk that defined Gulag Orkestar, I think it's for the better– if they had just made Gulag II, then their unique sound would have been catalogued as just a superficial shtick by critics. On Cup, Beirut displays a little more sonic flexibility. And that's cool.

I've also been getting into the Magnetic Fields' album "I" increasingly recently. Stephen Merritt's songwriting skills are truly ace, with wit and erudition to spare, and his synth-and-string-section songs are pop-catchy without sounding machine produced. I'm thinking of asking for the "69 Love Songs" box set for Christmas (along with a cheap-ass acoustic guitar and Jim Woodring's Frank anthology). Give them a look next time you're at your local record store.

In conclusion… Cornelius's "Fit Song". Here's a Japanese band that does sound machine produced. They take great pains to achieve that sound, even at live shows. Fun, though.

Dang, what's with me rambling on about music this week?

Sincerely,

Ian Jay