Said the Gramophone: DANCINGS

DANCINGS

by Sean

Please note: MP3s are only kept online for a short time, and if this entry is from more than a couple of weeks ago, the music probably won't be available to download any more.

Owen Pallett ft Shara Worden - "The Great Elsewhere [Export version]".

I won my job, dancing. I stepped onto the polished floor and straightened my tie and then moved like a jackrabbit, white and black, loose and flying. Robert hired my on the spot. I won my love, dancing. I stepped onto the polished floor and tied my shoes and then moved like a dragonfly, green and black, sure and darting. L.N. came to my room that night. I won my pride, dancing. I won my life, my fortune, my notion of myself. I kicked and swerved. But I did not win my god. I have spent twenty-five years under the vast weather, among thunderclaps, stepping & pivoting & showing the sky the palms of my hands. The universe has not answered. My steps have left ten thousand illuminations, and it has not answered.

[taken from Owen Palett's new free EP, Export; a different version of "The Great Elsewhere", with Owen singing, appears on Heartland. Shara Worden sings with My Brightest Diamond.]

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Lots of elsewhere things to look at:

Back to the World have done an extraordinary, inspiring, thoughtful, three-pron ged 2010 round-up. My favourite bits include Carl Wilson on "Autotune the News", Destroyer, Boardwalk Empire, Joanna Newsom/Tonetta and Bernie Sanders, and Chris Randle on Batman, drone, Scott Pilgrim and Nicki Minaj's "Monster" verse.

After posting his favourite albums of 2010, Matt Skatterbrain has now posted his favourite songs. The best of indie-pop, noise-pop and jangle.

I also really enjoyed Ami's Best of 2010 post at I Was Young When I Left Home. Love the way his favourite songs are flashed to memories of place & time.

The exquisite music-blog Juan and Only have done a silly thing and posted their favourite Said the Gramophone tracks of 2010 - at least the ones which weren't on my Best Of list last week. They're also holding a contest which could net you the collected 2010 postings of one of my favourite pairs of ears on the net.

Midnight Poutine has finally revealed its Best Montreal Albums of the Decade list (intro/#25-#21/#20-#16/#15-#11/#10-#6/#5-#1), assembled through a critic's poll. Although the #1 spot isn't a big surprise, it's a wonderful rearview mirror - I moved to Montreal in 2000.

(photo source)

Posted by Sean at December 20, 2010 3:44 PM

Comments

This song hit me unexpectedly. I know I shouldn't listen to the songs you post on shuffle, but read and appreciate your stories while stunning music is playing. But that's not what I did. I had all the songs you posted in the last month on shuffle. I wasn't even paying full attention. But this song. From the first word Shara is singing I was haunted. Stunned. Captivated. She really is one of the exceptional singers of our times.

And she is incredibly accessible. She contributed a beautifully written piece titled "Thoughs on Singing and on Nina Simone" to my long dead (it only lasted three months) music blog back in 2006. Incredibly it's still available in the graveyard of the internet. http://myvoicerising.blogspot.com/2006/07/thoughts-on-singing-and-on-nina-simone_29.html

Posted by Tom at January 11, 2011 3:32 PM

And I should add. The writing of your post is just as amazing. It fits the music so well. Thank you.

Posted by Tom at January 11, 2011 3:36 PM

reading this a year late! thanks for this track
and I agree with Tom; that's a wonderful and fitting piece of prose

Posted by Trevor at January 17, 2012 10:35 AM