Cold winters call for even cooler music
Some records I've rediscovered this week that have been getting me through the wintry days of February:
Sufjan Stevens - Michigan
Though more melancholy than its younger brother, Illinois, 2003’s Michigan is one of Sufjan's more ambitious records, combining his mournful acoustic odes to his home state with lengthy, intricately composed songs of midwestern nostalgia. Awash with sleighbells, tinkling pianos, and Sufjan's signature banjo, Michigan is a perfect album for late-night drives through the wintry countryside.
Nico - Chelsea Girl
Upon buying this record, I was told by a cashier that when Nico's producer added the album's now-famous baroque strings to her original demos, Nico hated the final recording. But somehow Nico's unpolished, nasal tenor and the album’s sometimes nauseatingly saccharine violin section, neither of which make for terribly enjoyable listens on their own, work surprisingly well together on Chelsea Girl, especially when accompanying a midday stroll down a snow-covered sidewalk.
Grizzly Bear – Yellow House
Somewhat like Animal Collective on 2004’s Sung Tongs, Grizzly Bear sound on Yellow House like they’re recording in the bedroom of an empty house, trying carefully to play their guitars without waking the neighbors. Though its ethereal, minimal sound isn't always immediately accessible, it still makes a pleasant soundtrack for late-night, blanket-bundled evenings at home with hot tea in hand.
Sufjan Stevens - Michigan
Though more melancholy than its younger brother, Illinois, 2003’s Michigan is one of Sufjan's more ambitious records, combining his mournful acoustic odes to his home state with lengthy, intricately composed songs of midwestern nostalgia. Awash with sleighbells, tinkling pianos, and Sufjan's signature banjo, Michigan is a perfect album for late-night drives through the wintry countryside.
Nico - Chelsea Girl
Upon buying this record, I was told by a cashier that when Nico's producer added the album's now-famous baroque strings to her original demos, Nico hated the final recording. But somehow Nico's unpolished, nasal tenor and the album’s sometimes nauseatingly saccharine violin section, neither of which make for terribly enjoyable listens on their own, work surprisingly well together on Chelsea Girl, especially when accompanying a midday stroll down a snow-covered sidewalk.
Grizzly Bear – Yellow House
Somewhat like Animal Collective on 2004’s Sung Tongs, Grizzly Bear sound on Yellow House like they’re recording in the bedroom of an empty house, trying carefully to play their guitars without waking the neighbors. Though its ethereal, minimal sound isn't always immediately accessible, it still makes a pleasant soundtrack for late-night, blanket-bundled evenings at home with hot tea in hand.
