I am listening to Ash Grunwald's I Don't Believe, and it has, without doubt, the funkiest blues cover of Tom Waits' 'Going Out West' on it that I've ever heard. I love Waits' original version, too, but Grunwald has taken the song and made it his own, stripping it back to his guitar, beats in the background, and his voice belting out that he knows voodoo and karate, and is going to change his name to Hannibal. (I just love Tom Waits' lyrics.) The song fits the whole album, as I Don't Believe is Grunwald himself, using pots, pans, tambourines, claps, beats, and a foot controlled sampler to create the music that his voice howls through.
It's cool. Do the click thing, check the samples out.
It's cool. Do the click thing, check the samples out.
- Notes:Ash Grunwald - Cross Roads
Comments
i'm mighty glad i did though.
people have over-complicated music to some degree and it's great to see it being stripped right back down to to the raw basics of one instrument, the human voice and a couple of things that go 'thunk, thunk'.
Tom Waits on the other-hand is one of those musicians that i don't think i've ever sat down and listened to one of his whole albums, but i've been meaning to for years. there is no logical reason for this - probably just lazyness on my own part. after all: he is the voice of Tommy the cat on Primus' song by the same name.
i'd like to see grunwald play. i'll have to keep an eye out--i missed him by a month or two in sydney.
me thinks it be high time i hunt down some Tom Waites. yet another couple of albums that get added to my CD 'to do' list.
need i ask weather you are familar with the goodness that is Xavier Rudd?
have you heard tex perkins' solo stuff?
(your bit about grunwald reminded me of perkins. i saw him in a bar up in the blue mountains for fifteen bucks, and when someone abused him, he just stopped in the middle of his bit and abused back, then went back to it. class act.)
Rudds albums are pretty cool. but not even close to his live shows. i've seen him a couple of times now.
he's like the opposite of pop idols in a sense. where pop idols sound thier best at the hand of a lucrative producer - they usually struggle to live up to thier promise on stage (this is a crass generalisation of course).
Xavier Rudd's (for want of a better word) energy on the other hand doesn't seem to travel so well thru the microphone as it does when you're there in the flesh. it could be because he has a DIY attitude when it comes to recording. i dunno.
i find it interesting how some bands/musicians come across better either live or in the studio. it's very rare that you find a band/musician that is equally brilliant in both places.
i'll keep an eye out for rudd, live. is he expensive?
have you heard the john butler trio live? they do a fantastic live show, and it carries nicely into their studio work, too. the last album was just more of the same, and the band appears to be in bigger venues now, which is nice for them.
They are pretty damn good live.
incidently i heard his music through a friend of mine who met him in WA. the John buttler trio's music featured on a short film he made called "the Bunyip".
i don't know what Xavier Rudd costs to see. i've only ever seen him at festivals and stuff. probably about $30.
have heard of the Bird? they consist of a drummer (easily in the top 3 percussionist in OZ) and a keyboard player. they kind of play live techno. reguardless of ones opinion of electronic music, they are frickin awesome live. he (BEn, the drummer) appears to be looking directly into your eyes the whole time. Ben jammed with Xavier at woodford and i've seen him play with a handful of other other percusionists in byronbay. absoloutly mind-bendingly flat-out quality beats.