Ball of Wax 59 Songs: Annie Ford – “World’s Fair”

Posted on February 18, 2020 by Levi Fuller

For our next Ball of Wax cover, Annie Ford beautifully deconstructs Medejin’s “World’s Fair.” The original – released as a single last summer, and featured recently on Ball of Wax 57 – is a driving deluge of layered guitars, vocals, and drums, awash in melody.

Being a string player, Annie chose to break down all those guitars and rebuild them as a string quartet. The simple, shuffling drum beat keeps the forward momentum but takes a back seat to the gorgeously intertwining cello, viola, and violins. Vocally, Annie stays true to Jenn Taranto’s original melody, but the overall feel is utterly its own thing. To my ears Annie Ford’s”World’s Fair” has a peacefulness to it, a calm remove from the core loss of the song, while the original communicates a sharper, more urgent grief.

Lucky us, we get to hear both versions this Friday night at Lo-Fi. Annie has mentioned she’ll be doing some live looping – a first for her, I believe – so we’re in for a unique treat.

Posted in Ball of Wax, BoW Covers, Check Out This Song | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Ball of Wax 59 Songs: Julia Massey – “Ain’t No Place”

Posted on February 14, 2020 by Sam Russell

Annie Ford’s original recording of her song “Ain’t No Place” (which, it turns out, was written by drummer Matthew Manges) strikes that mythic sweet spot between the composed and the seemingly found; the song feels like it’s been around forever and you MUST have heard it a million times (like the way a Creedence song must have sounded when first released), while still bearing the personal stamp of its author.

By more or less not fucking with the actual song at all, Julia Massey’s cover version shows that modern pop/indie/electronica benefits greatly from incorporating certain traditional song structure. In this case, Julia’s version strikes a balance between the classic (using the folk musical language of the original song) and the modern (the production).

And whereas Annie sounds like she’s a little too deep in redneck territory (with the Bayou accompaniment seemingly a reference to where she feels she belongs instead of where she is), Julia’s version sounds like she’s at a bad art school party or a Manhattan sex dungeon, with (what sounds to me like) tubular bells in the arrangement reinforcing the horror-vibe undertone.

Arguably, Julia’s biggest departure from Annie’s original comes with how she sings the refrain. Whereas Annie sings her refrain as a declarative epiphany, Julia sings it with a seemingly self-aware smirk as if she should have known better than to hit this party up in the first place. And this, my friends, is one solid approach for covering a song: making it seem like a different person experiencing the same thoughts in a drastically varying setting.

Posted in Ball of Wax, BoW Covers, Check Out This Song | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Ball of Wax 59 Songs: Moe Provencher & Carrie Biell: “A Bit of a Hard Time”

Posted on February 13, 2020 by Levi Fuller

I don’t believe in magic or fate or astrology or pretty much anything along those lines (except jinxes), but I do love the wonderful coincidences and synchronicities that projects like this often serve up. Another bit of magic that my hat manifested as I drew names out of it to decide who would cover whom was to assign Moe Provencher the task of covering Julia Massey. In addition to being an accomplished songwriter, musician, and audio engineer (she’s mastered the majority of volumes of Ball of Wax over the past few years), Moe is also a podcast host and producer. Her podcast Grief/Relief, now in its second year, has the Julia Massey song “A Bit of a Hard Time” as its theme. See? Magic! Naturally, I wasn’t too surprised to see that this was the song Moe had chosen to cover, but I was very pleased to see she’d chosen to make it a collaboration with local treasure Carrie Biell. (Carrie may not know or remember this, but she was one of the first people in Seattle I played music with, many years ago.)

Julia Massey and the Five Finger Discount’s original is a driving, joyful rock tune, with Julia’s bright voice and bubbling keyboards offsetting the titular “hard time,” so you focus on the “bit.” We’ll be fine, it leaves you thinking, despite the hard time.

Moe and Carrie leave the lyrics untouched, but they bring it all way down – the tempo, the vocal range and timbre, even the positivity. You feel the hard time a bit more with this one, as if the singers are singing to comfort themselves in the middle of it, rather than rallying a friend. But it’s not a sad, dreary bumout-fest, either. Moe has beautifully arranged and produced a lush, subtle musical landscape featuring hushed harmony vocals, melodic guitar, and keyboards that bubble in their own understated way. We are fortunate to have these two recordings in our lives: Depending on where you stand in relation to your own hard time at any given moment, you will want both Julia’s original and Moe and Carrie’s version in your playlist arsenal at all times.

Posted in Ball of Wax, BoW Covers, Check Out This Song | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Ball of Wax 59 Songs: Nic Masangkay – “Like Moon River”

Posted on February 12, 2020 by Levi Fuller

I have not heard Moe Provencher’s original version of “Like Moon River.” You probably haven’t either. In fact, it may well be that only Moe and Nic Masangkay have had that pleasure. You see, Nic and Moe went the extra mile with this covers challenge, and got together so Moe could share some tunes with Nic and Nic could choose the song that most spoke to them – and then Moe recorded Nic! I could not have imagined this inspiring, collaborative outcome when I first selected this group of artists and then randomly picked their names out of a hat to decide who would cover whom, and I am just utterly delighted.

Since I have no reference points for “Like Moon River,” I do have the freedom of assessing it on its own merits, rather than as a cover – sort of like how we heard “Nothing Compares 2 U” as a Sinead song, and not a Prince cover, when it came out. And this is a beautiful, moving piece of music. The refrain “You’re like ‘Moon River’ from a golden throat” tells us this is a love song, but there is a strain of sadness that runs through the whole piece, tempered just a bit by a hopeful little synth melody. Thrumming synthesizers and sparse electronic beats provide a foundation for Nic’s voice, which does all the emotional heavy lifting. We hear – we feel – love, longing, heartache, and nostalgia, and when Nic goes high up in their range to sing “Moon . . . River,” it’s hard not to get chills.

Alas, Moe won’t be joining us at the Ball of Wax 59 show next Friday, so the original will remain a mystery, but you can hear Nic’s version live (as well as their version of “Forever,” which I was lucky enough to cover). Be there!

Posted in Ball of Wax, BoW Covers, Check Out This Song | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Ball of Wax 59 Songs: Levi Fuller and the Library – “Forever” (Feat. Amanda Winterhalter)

Posted on February 11, 2020 by Lattney B. Jones

Here’s the challenge: you want to cover an electro-R&B song with confessionally soulful vocals and gentle synth touches. Where to begin? How will you interpret it in a way that retains the elegance of the original but has your own inimitable mark?

The original song in question is Nic Masangkay’s “Forever,” with the earthy-and-yet-not-of-this-earth voice of Falon Sierra. It’s timeless in a way that infuses ’80s sonic ethos with ’00s sensibilities; it’s the kind of song whose aural imprint is one with its message and structure. It’s also the kind of song that Levi Fuller and the Library love enough to want to honor with their own rendition.

Let’s talk arrangement and sound: This is a band that has worked together long enough to move through a structure intuitively. When I listen to their material, I imagine a nod or a wink or a tilt of the head from one of them becomes a clear indicator to the others to pull back, slow down, or charge ahead on the next section. Bass lines on “Forever” alternate between root notes and fretboard gymnastics, the latter echoing the synth lines of the original and adding a sinister bent. The guitars move from terrific plucked/muted harmonics to clanging swipes and suddenly into growling wall-of-sound menace. The drums are a wonderful complement to the original’s programmed percussion and compliment to the direction of the stringed instruments—particularly nice is the hi-hat work, sneaking in triplets that foreshadow vocal rhythms that pop up later (one of the coolest and perfectly-executed marks of Falon Sierra’s work).

Levi could have sung the whole thing himself and that alone would have been “sufficient,” for lack of a better phrase—a lot of covers use the gender-flip vocal as their sole contrast attribute, and Levi’s voice here is unadorned by FX or double-tracking, just as Sierra’s in parts of the original—but it wouldn’t have quite been the stunning cover that it is. Cue secret weapon: Amanda Winterhalter, one of my favorite New Country/Americana artists. Levi and Amanda duet the lyrics in a way that takes the song’s message from internal to external dialogue. Levi follows his own vocal style to manipulate his portions of the lyrical melody with slight drawls and subtle downward movements, while Amanda does the same with her own style while wisely choosing to closely mirror the original in places and proving that no certain genre of music owns any melody.

All in all, “Forever” is a gorgeous cover and really raises the question: When will we see a next-level collaboration between Levi Fuller and the Library and Nic Masangkay with vocals from Falon Sierra and Amanda Winterhalter?

Posted in Ball of Wax, BoW Covers, Check Out This Song | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Ball of Wax 59 Songs: Frames in Motion – “Colossal”

Posted on February 10, 2020 by Lattney B. Jones

Do you remember the compilation put together by Elektra Records for their 40th anniversary back in 1990? It was called Rubáiyát and it had Elektra’s current roster covering songs by Elektra’s earlier artists. And it sucked. [I loved it. -ed.] Do you know why? Contractual obligation and money grabs, that’s why. And also The Cure’s bloodless rendition of “Hello, I Love You.”

For reasons diametrically opposite, the new volume of Ball of Wax—we’re at 59, now!—is everything that Rubáiyát wasn’t and could never be. The secret ingredient here is love, and I say that with tongue in neither cheek. These artist are doing what they’re doing out of love. Whether for Ball of Wax, for one another’s art, for the joy of interpretation, or for the sheer thrill of recording doesn’t matter. Listen to the eleven songs offered on this compilation and you will hear pleasure in every beat, tone, and nuance.

Let’s open, then, with Frames in Motion and their excellent take on Levi Fuller’s “Colossal.” Upon first hearing the album of the same name, “Colossal” was, for me, the perfect defining track: from its incessant pace, its upright bass chug, and its snare drive to Levi’s defiantly fragile solo vocals, the terrific guitar line, and the bring-your-friends-for-a-singalong chorus, the original version remains something to behold.

Frames in Motion (who captured my ears last summer with the perfect pop of “Behind the Face”) have chosen to move away entirely from the straight pace of the original and broken the song into miniature “movements.” With just a few changes in rhythm and backbeat, Frames in Motion alternate between gentle verses and energetic choruses, making “Colossal” entirely their own in bringing plenty of that instrumental playfulness that really drove their album, Euptablisses (be sure to stay tuned for a cover of ITS title track, too!).

The coolest trick here is that this cover could have been a chart-topper had it existed in the mid-’70s. I don’t know if it’s the subtle delayed reverb on the “we are” in the chorus, the elegantly understated electric piano, or the wonderful guitar-and-bass work (this seriously would have been an Al Stewart stomper!), but Frames in Motion does here what few if any bands in recent memory can pull off: they transport me to a time of innocence where nighttime drives were spent in the backseat of my parents’ Datsun, looking up at the stars and listening to AM radio. That’s actual magic and it’s a powerfully emotional way to kick off a compilation.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Ball of Wax 59: Covers! 2/21 at Lo-Fi

Posted on January 23, 2020 by Levi Fuller

Poster by Jon Rooney

Ball of Wax 59: Covers
with Frames in Motion, Amanda Winterhalter, Sam Russell, Medejin, Annie Ford, Nic Masangkay, and Levi Fuller & the Library
Friday, February 21, 8pm
Lo-Fi Performance Gallery, 429 Eastlake Ave. E
Ball of Wax 59 CD (11 local artists covering each other’s songs) included with entry

As you can probably tell from the above, there’s a lot going on with this volume of Ball of Wax. First, I hand-picked ten local musicians from the Ball of Wax community, in addition to myself, who gamely agreed to participate in this project. Then I randomly selected the order in which we would cover each other’s songs*, which we are all now in the process of finalizing. On February 21st this CD – 11 brand-new recordings of Seattle musicians interpreting each other’s work – will be released with great fanfare, along with a live performance by as many of the involved artists as possible.

We’ll start sharing the originals and covers here on the Blog of Wax soon, leading up to the release show. We’ll see you there. Continue reading →

Posted in Ball of Wax, BoW Covers | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Album Review: The Cupholders Present​ . . . “The Wisconsin Polka​!​”

Posted on January 16, 2020 by Jon Rooney

Yes, this is a supergroup. Promise.

Supergroups are strange beasts. Jann Wenner claims that Cream, with members from the Yardbirds, the Graham Bond Organization, and John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers, was rock’s first supergroup – soon to be followed by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young; Blind Faith; and Derek and the Dominos. More recently, the likes of the New Pornographers, Audioslave, and Swan Lake have played a similar role despite rock bands having considerably less cultural import than during the last century (imagine kids scrawling “Krug is God” on a subway wall somewhere circa 2006). Nevertheless, the idea of separately established musicians, especially songwriters, joining forces on a new project still toes the line between curiosity and genuine excitement in certain circles. In the Ball of Wax universe, largely bound by the Puget Sound but expanding to pockets of musical obscurists the world round, the Cupholders are a supergroup. Bart Cameron of the Foghorns, Sam Russell, and Casey Ruff are all established songwriters, performers, and musicians-about-town whose aesthetics overlap in a battered suitcase filled with Booker T, Waylon Jennings, and Bruce Springsteen records; unpretentious plaid shirts; un-ironic belt buckles with the logo of a Milwaukee minor-league hockey team or maybe the Sundowner casino in Reno; a VHS copy of Repo Man; guitar picks; a cheap overdrive pedal; and a dog-eared copy of Bob Dylan’s Chronicles that’s always on the verge of being deciphered. Can you smell the Rainer yet? Can you hear the guitars tuning onstage?  

After issuing 2018’s holiday single, “This Christmas Don’t Be a Dick”, the Cupholders have braved the inanity of modern indie music-making and try-anything marketing by putting out a series of digital-only EPs to promote local Seattle shows – namely the Tractor and Conor Byrne EPs. Both EPs are great, with songwriters and lead vocalists shifting from song to song bound by a certain American spirit of chaos and exhaustion. The Cupholders’ latest release is a collection of various versions of the song “Wisconsin Polka,” which was written by Cameron and first appeared on the Foghorns …on a Dog’s Ass Sometime release.

 

Also a supergroup.

The Cupholders Present​ . . . “The Wisconsin Polka​!​” is sort of a hyper-regional tone poem crumpled up in the pocket of a vintage vinyl jacket, opening up with a recording of the Reuther Central High Marching Band, which is kind of like Fleetwood Mac’s Tusk featuring the USC Marching Band recalibrated to the band’s relative hubris (no offense, Lindsey Buckingham). The Foghorns’ original version comes next, and it’s infused with the kind of punkish, barn-burning energy the band tends to run on as one of their sets at Conor Byrne’s rambles past 1am or so. Casey Ruff’s version, a duet with the talented Joy Mills, transforms the polka into a sad cowboy driving song, just voices and acoustic guitar – the kind of song Jay Farrar sings about in Son Volt’s “Windfall.”  Sam Russell and his Harborrats turn the song into something out of Dylan’s Desire period, pairing a martial waltz beat with sinewy fiddle and a massive chorus that seems to goad Sam on as he pushes his textbook rock and roll preacher voice to the brink. I recorded a version as Virgin of the Birds (as I’m apt to do), adding both lyrics and an extra beat per measure, thus undermining the structural premise of the polka – but Ken Nottingham’s fretless electric bass slides win the day (to these ears, anyway). Finally, the unified Cupholders take hold of the song – more like kidnap it. The performance breathlessly tries to keep up with itself, vocals are traded between Sam and Bart, things are yelled from the background by a chorus of lovable miscreants, a guitar solo attempts to squeeze its way in somewhere, and Lauren Trew’s baritone saxophone adds gravitas and some semblance of order. It’s a recording that has life – messy, crowded, generous life – which is the whole point of the song in the first place. 

By any account I am not, and cannot be, objective about the Cupholders and this project. Sam mentioned the idea of this EP countless months ago and I couldn’t have been more on board. Folk music is as much about interpreting and passing on songs as it is writing new ones (does the world need any more?), and Bart’s parochial anthem of aging, disappointment, and life-giving lust is well-worth exploring. I also did the artwork for the CD, with a sentimental Christmas sweater motif for the cover and a pair of crudely hand-drawn demon porpoises fornicating on the CD face because I’m a veritable mess.

I did this. I’m sorry.

On Saturday, January 18th, the Cupholders bring this project to life at the Tractor Tavern in Seattle. If you’ve read this far, you’ll probably be there if you can – how could you not?

Posted in Album Reviews, Ball of Wax, Bands You Should Know, Community | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Ball of Wax 58 Songs: Robert Deeble – “Veni Emmanuel”

Posted on November 29, 2019 by Sam Russell

Seattle-by-way-of-Long-Beach institution Robert Deeble has a deep discography containing multitudes (including collaborations with fellow Ball of Wax contributors Tomo Nakayama and Shenandoah Davis) and here offers a sinister gothic take on “Veni Emmanual” . . . or “O Come, O Come Emmanuel” for all you non-Latin reference heathens.

If you are prone to cynicism or are just plain weary about the impending holiday season and wish to trojan horse a more subversive selection onto your holiday playlists this year, this slow burn of an interpretation will do nicely. Falling somewhere (to this reviewer’s ears anyway) between the cinematic scores of Ennio Morricone and John Carpenter, this take sets its scene in a world where the prophesied savior may actually be humanity’s ultimate downfall. If that sounds awfully prescient and you want your relatives to contemplate the downward slide of our culture and climate under the mistletoe, then you’ve come to the right ghost town.

Posted in Ball of Wax, Check Out This Song | Tagged | Leave a comment

Ball of Wax 58 Songs: Laudatory Consortium – “Fine Wine”

Posted on November 29, 2019 by Levi Fuller

One thing about Ball of Wax that I will always be proud of – regardless of how many people in the world are even aware that this strange little endeavor exists – is the number of musical collaborations and friendships that have blossomed as a result of it. This, of course, wouldn’t be possible without a community of individuals who are open to such things, and Lattney B. Jones and Darryl Blood have to be two of the most creatively gregarious people I have the pleasure of knowing. Naturally it didn’t take them too long to collaborate musically, and we lucky listeners have the pleasure of enjoying the result right here, with Laudatory Consortium’s debut appearance on Ball of Wax.

It can be tough to pull off the musical subgenre of storytelling over music, but if you’re going to try, two of the finest sources of inspiration might be Slint and Tom Waits. “Fine Wine” unspools like an unholy collaboration between these greats, with Darryl’s guitar and Lattney’s bass and drums creating a subtly sinister, twining instrumental bed for Lattney’s unsettling winter tale of a man with a nice coat in the wrong place at the wrong time. Here’s wishing us all a happier winter than this poor fellow – and much more music from Laudatory Consortium.

Posted in Ball of Wax, Check Out This Song | Tagged , , | Leave a comment