Back at the end of the glorious 90's, 'round about the time mp3.com was an independent artist's best online bet for peddling their own wares, Aimee Mann decided she'd had it with labels. It wasn't without reason-- she'd spent time in artistic purgatory while battling with her former label, Imago, for freedom from the bankrupt imprint while they prevented her from releasing anything new. At the time, the idea of a musician taking control of his or her wn product and releasing it themselves was a novel one-- nothing new to unsigned and unestablished acts, of course, but a leap of faith at best for those with something to lose. Five albums and a much different looking music industry later, we might call Mann's path a success-- not only for herself, but for the trailblazing example she set for scores of artists down the road. On her latest, the tongue-in-cheek titled @#%&*! Smilers, she returns to what she does best: writing solid, smart folk-pop tunes with just enough atmospheric color to keep them falling into girl with guitar cliche. Aimee Mann plays the Aladdin Theater tonight with openers Blind Pilot.
MP3: Aimee Mann, from @#%&*! Smilers- "Thirty-One Today"
Speaking of Blind Pilot, the Portland-based duo hasn't been doing too bad for themselves as of late, have they? Based on the strength of their new 3 Rounds a Sound, the band was both handpicked by Mann to open tonight's show and chosen for a recent iTunes single of the week. Israel Nebeker and Ryan Dombrowski form the core of the band, whose spirit is nothing if not Portland-esque-- they embarked on a bicycle-bound west coast tour, fully gasoline-less and leg-powered, last year and plan to do the same again this year, beginning August 16th in Bellingham, WA. In the meantime, listen for them as part of an upcoming opbmusic in-studio session and next weekend's PDX Pop Now! festival.
More to come here throughout the night, of course, and we'd love some company. Questions? Comments? Requests? We're all ears....
July 19, 2008 at 3:36pm by inmemoryofjohnpeel
Well, as anyone who heard the opener to your show tonight can tell, Blind Pilot have a certain quality about them that raises them just above the rest. To Aimee Mann's credit she spotted this, and there's no quibbling with her approach to music, However, this is fame through comfort MOR, decidedly helped by ideal looks. Mann's music doesn't really go anywhere or break any ground, it's pleasant, she's interesting.
The PDX pop now 3-day event promises to be brilliant. How will they fit everyone in?
July 19, 2008 at 3:42pm by Jeremy Petersen
Ha, fast and furious from what I can tell from the set times. It'll be a like a Portland indie music battle royal (or something). Should be very interesting.
Aimee Mann has had her moments that certainly go beyond her fame and her looks. Besides you didn't even mention Til Tuesday or the fact that she's Michael Penn's wife and therefore Sean Penn's sister-in-law, which almost makes her related to Madonna through marriage.
July 19, 2008 at 4:20pm by inmemoryofjohnpeel
Yeah good points, unfortunately despite the real name association, no greenback connection. Will you be at PDX any of those days?
And could Y La Bomba, coffee shop girl, ever find that Kate Bush confidence? If she did...
July 19, 2008 at 4:26pm by inmemoryofjohnpeel
And there she is! I assume your playlist is preconfigured?
Y La Bomba - a fantasy alive! see her at PDX pop now on Friday I think?
July 19, 2008 at 4:30pm by Jeremy Petersen
Not necessarily preconfigured, no-- gotta roll with it where possible, you know? Y La Bamba's playing on Saturday, looks like 2:05 on the "inside".
Sorry to see your Herman Dune diss, afterall: "Swedish anti-folk band Herman Düne earned an international cult following that included the influential BBC radio personality John Peel, whose unfailing support earned the group enormous hipster cachet."
July 19, 2008 at 4:41pm by inmemoryofjohnpeel
Yep, never got to rate Peel's idiosyncratic choices like we do yours. I use the ratings this way 1- discourage, something false or far too commonplace about it. 2- Doesn't register but OK. 3- Worthy in some way. 4- Something about it that stands out from THE MASS of music I get to review. 5- Unanswerable, but also the very promising.
So 2 isn't a diss, it's a not registering.
The show is great fun, moving around, up & down - ta.
July 19, 2008 at 4:46pm by Jeremy Petersen
Ah, thanks for clearing that up.
I guess I'd see it as more as a comparison to the world of pop music at large (i.e. I don't play anything worthy of 1 star because I don't play... I don't know, Celine Dion [sorry, Celine] or somebody).....
Comments are now closed.