Originally published on Mon December 17, 2012 8:43 am
The three members of Leagues — singer Thad Cockrell, guitarist Tyler Burkum and drummer Jeremy Lutito — have been known to say that they're inspired not by artists, but by specific songs. That intense focus on individual tracks is clearly put to work on Leagues' debut album, You Belong Here. There's a cohesive sound to the record as a whole, but it sounds like the band deliberately pushed for each song to stand on its own. As a result, the album plays like a collection of singles, each track as catchy as the next.
Originally published on Tue January 15, 2013 7:00 am
It's hard to keep track of new artists these days. Anyone with a credit card can start a Bandcamp page, and there are only so many hours in the day you can listen to music.
In an effort to make it a littler easier on you, we asked some colleagues around the country to share their favorite new discoveries of 2012, bands that made a real dent in their communities. Here are the artists you should have known in 2012.
The dreamy cover image of The Smashing Pumpkins' landmark 1995 album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness is the work of illustrator John Craig.
Credit EMI
Craig's finished cover for Mellon Collie. Here, the Raphael body is pitched forward and sized to fit with the face of Greuze's girl. The result transforms Saint Catherine's erect posture into an enraptured swoon and makes the composite figure appear to coast through space.
Credit Wallace Collection, London / ArtResource
Jean-Baptiste Greuze's The Souvenir (Fidelity), 1787-1789. Yuriko Jackall, a curator at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., says Grueze's subject may be cluching her dog in fear of the storm behind her. "The viewer may, however, also imagine that she is portrayed in the throes of longing for an absent lover," Jackall adds.
Credit Wallace Collection, London/ArtResource
Jean-Baptiste Greuze's The Souvenir (Fidelity), 1787-1789. Yuriko Jackall, a curator at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., says Grueze's subject may be cluching her dog in fear of the storm behind her. "The viewer may, however, also imagine that she is portrayed in the throes of longing for an absent lover," Jackall adds.
Credit National Gallery, London / ArtResource
Raphael's Saint Catherine of Alexandria, circa 1507. NGA curator David Brown says, "His depiction adopts Catherine's traditional attribute — the wheel that broke during her martyrdom — but instead of stressing the horrific aspect of the event, Raphael has her leaning on the broken wheel in a relaxed classical pose."
Credit EMI
Craig's finished cover for Mellon Collie. Here, the Raphael body is pitched forward and sized to fit with the face of Greuze's girl. The result transforms Saint Catherine's erect posture into an enraptured swoon and makes the composite figure appear to coast through space.
Credit Wallace Collection, London/ArtResource
Jean-Baptiste Greuze's The Souvenir (Fidelity), 1787-1789. Yuriko Jackall, a curator at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., says Grueze's subject may be cluching her dog in fear of the storm gathering behind her. "The viewer may, however, also imagine that she is portrayed in the throes of longing for an absent lover," Jackall says.
Credit EMI
Craig's finished cover for Mellon Collie. Here, the Raphael body is pitched forward and sized to fit with the face of Greuze's girl. The result transforms Saint Catherine's erect posture into an enraptured swoon and makes the composite figure appear to coast through space.
Credit National Gallery, London/ArtResource
Raphael's Saint Catherine of Alexandria, circa 1507. NGA curator David Brown says, "His depiction adopts Catherine's traditional attribute — the wheel that broke during her martyrdom — but instead of stressing the horrific aspect of the event, Raphael has her leaning on the broken wheel in a relaxed classical pose."
Credit National Gallery, London / ArtResource
Raphael's Saint Catherine of Alexandria, circa 1507. NGA curator David Brown says, "His depiction adopts Catherine's traditional attribute — the wheel that broke during her martyrdom — but instead of stressing the horrific aspect of the event, Raphael has her leaning on the broken wheel in a relaxed classical pose."
Credit EMI
Each of John Craig's illustrations in the MellonCollie booklet was based on rough directions from Billy Corgan, often sent via fax.
Credit EMI
Corgan's concept art for the cover. The note in the margin reads, "I realize these images are very obtuse for such a specific need, but I'm open to what you might have. Also, it's hard for me to explain it all directly on paper."
Credit Album cover
Craig's cover art for the 2005 Augustana album All the Stars and Boulevards.
Originally published on Mon January 21, 2013 8:41 pm
Most young bands hope to get some kind of break or media exposure as soon as they possibly can. But as Django Django, a four-piece originally from Edinburgh, discovered, it's possible to get noticed a bit too early. In 2009, the group released its first single, "Storm," as a seven-inch through a friend's Glasgow-based record label. The song quickly stirred up buzz, but the group didn't have anything to release as a follow-up — "Storm" was truly the first thing they had ever done together.
Having the courage to break away from alt-pop cult favorite Stereolab seems to have given Laetitia Sadier a personal charge and social conviction that's on full display throughout her second solo album, Silencio. She casts a spell in this live performance, which places her gorgeous voice in the spotlight where it belongs.
We call them "buttons" and "deadrolls" — and, less cryptically, "breaks" — but most NPR listeners know them as the interstitial music spots that pepper NPR's newsmagazines. They add shading, mood, energy and other nonverbal context to our stories.
Lorenzo Cherubini, better known by his stage name Jovanotti, occupies a curious position on the pop landscape — that of the hugely successful international star who remains largely unknown to U.S. audiences. More than two decades have passed since he first broke out in his native Italy, though, and now he's making moves to do the same in the States.
Buddy Miller and Jim Lauderdale are two of the pioneers of Americana. Their solo recordings, songwriting, studio session work and live performances (as front men and musical directors) have made them treasures of the roots and country music scene. In an unexpected moment of inspiration, the two have collaborated to make a true duets record, trading licks and verses for one of the most inspired and fun albums of 2012.
KSUT will feature 'Buddy and Jim' Friday 12/7 at noon.
