Andrew W.K. fucking loves him some Bach.
The Post-Rockist is a rabid supporter of public radio, and it’s not just because it provides us an excuse to ponder the imponderable, like whether or not Carl Kasell could take Garrison Keillor in a cage match. NPR’s music coverage has been slagged off in the past for catering a little too much to the soft rock Sufjans and easy baked Wilcos of the world, but they still manage to churn out some solid gold nuggets when the time is right. Czech, for instance, the odd confluence of bloody-nosed power rocker Andrew W.K. discussing the brilliance of powder-wigged organist J.S. Bach in this special report. W.K. provides one of the most sincere, passionate, hyperbole-laden affirmations of all that is right and wonderful about music — Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 specifically — in a segment just shy of three minutes. I’d tease you with a quote, but it’s just too perfect and compact to break into little pieces.
Andrew W.K.: If you’re reading this, consider this an open invitation to be a guest blogger on the Post-Rockist any day. My e-mail’s in the sidebar.
Apropos of Andrew, here’s W.K. covering a Japanese song I’ve never heard of with a little, shall we say, classical piano intro:
“Kiseki”
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Meanwhile, NPR’s All Songs Considered hosted a “Tiny Desk Concert” with Bill Callahan, which can be viewed here. I’ve yet to write much of anything about Callahan’s latest record, Sometimes I Wish We Were an Eagle, but it’s without a doubt one of the most engaging I’ve heard all year — cynical, stout, and darkly humorous, Callahan and his sideways-facing baritone may be a little heady for some, but his songs manage to stop me dead in my tracks. I hesitate to fall into the cliché of calling this performance “intimate” just because its set at a tiny, crowded desk, but it’s hard not to notice how quietly reverent and eerily empathic all five musicians are in this all-too-brief three-song set.
Although, after writing those not unexpected adjectives, I wonder if that means this Tiny Desk Concert would fall under the category of all-too-predictable NPR music coverage? Oh well, this is no time to get self-conscious; it’s just music. Harrowing, beautiful music — enjoy it.
NPR puts us out of a job, again: Andrew W.K., J.S. Bach, & Bill Callahan
Andrew W.K. fucking loves him some Bach.
The Post-Rockist is a rabid supporter of public radio, and it’s not just because it provides us an excuse to ponder the imponderable, like whether or not Carl Kasell could take Garrison Keillor in a cage match. NPR’s music coverage has been slagged off in the past for catering a little too much to the soft rock Sufjans and easy baked Wilcos of the world, but they still manage to churn out some solid gold nuggets when the time is right. Czech, for instance, the odd confluence of bloody-nosed power rocker Andrew W.K. discussing the brilliance of powder-wigged organist J.S. Bach in this special report. W.K. provides one of the most sincere, passionate, hyperbole-laden affirmations of all that is right and wonderful about music — Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 specifically — in a segment just shy of three minutes. I’d tease you with a quote, but it’s just too perfect and compact to break into little pieces.
Andrew W.K.: If you’re reading this, consider this an open invitation to be a guest blogger on the Post-Rockist any day. My e-mail’s in the sidebar.
Apropos of Andrew, here’s W.K. covering a Japanese song I’ve never heard of with a little, shall we say, classical piano intro:
“Kiseki”
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Meanwhile, NPR’s All Songs Considered hosted a “Tiny Desk Concert” with Bill Callahan, which can be viewed here. I’ve yet to write much of anything about Callahan’s latest record, Sometimes I Wish We Were an Eagle, but it’s without a doubt one of the most engaging I’ve heard all year — cynical, stout, and darkly humorous, Callahan and his sideways-facing baritone may be a little heady for some, but his songs manage to stop me dead in my tracks. I hesitate to fall into the cliché of calling this performance “intimate” just because its set at a tiny, crowded desk, but it’s hard not to notice how quietly reverent and eerily empathic all five musicians are in this all-too-brief three-song set.
Although, after writing those not unexpected adjectives, I wonder if that means this Tiny Desk Concert would fall under the category of all-too-predictable NPR music coverage? Oh well, this is no time to get self-conscious; it’s just music. Harrowing, beautiful music — enjoy it.