Tunesday 15: Joel Plaskett
March 31st, 2009 at 11.15pm (Tunesday)
Last week East Coast favourite Joel Plaskett released an ambitious album called Three. As you might infer, the record is a triple, featuring 9 songs on each CD. It also has a somewhat annoying gimmick in which many of the song titles feature one word repeated three times (“Through & Through & Through,” “Wait, Wait, Wait,” etc).
Well, I’ve had it since it came out, and I’m still not convinced. So far it doesn’t strike me as being dynamic or interesting or having much variation — most of the 27 songs are hard to tell apart, and “Wishful Thinking” is still a huge disappointment when the first time I heard it was something like this. (OK, that was the second or third time, but you know how it goes.)
There are a few songs that have caught my ear enough for me to return to them, though, and one of them is nearly in the middle of the album: the third track on disc two, “Sailors Eyes”. It’s steeped in East Coast traditional style, featuring a whistle intro and a fabulously Maritime chord progression, and sounds like familiar Joel Plaskett. It gets stuck in my head a lot. I like it! Hope you do too.
Oh yeah, and I don’t really want to devote a whole post to the Juno Awards, but I do want to comment on one thing: The Stills for best new group? Seriously? A cursory glance around the Internet proves that they have been active since about 2000, and I personally remember them being a source of reasonably steady hype since at least 2006. This past summer they opened for Paul McCartney for Quebec City’s 400th anniversary, playing to a crowd of about a quarter of a million, and they have released three records. THIS IS NOT A NEW BAND!!!
All right, Ruhee out. Sorry for the negligent blogging lately — I have eight courses this semester. Eight. It’s a wonder I can still communicate in full sentences.
Tags: joel plaskett, juno awards, oh the controversy!, the stills
jamie said,
April 1, 2009 at 6.57am
umm wow, the stills got best new group? i remember listening to their album in 2003!!
but the grammys are the same way. giving out best new artist to groups that have actually been around for a while, but the mainstream decided to ignore them up until that point.
April said,
April 1, 2009 at 9.31am
I remember at SXSW 2006 they had this thing that was a glorified glass display case where bands would come in and do interviews. I watched The Stills being interviewed by someone who was also from Montreal. They drifted between French and English for a good ten minutes before I realized that everyone sitting by us not only understood everything (it’s weird to hear French in Texas), but that they were all friends of the band, each with some sort of private joke that was communicable miming through a twelve-foot tall box of glass. It probably would have been less awkward if everybody was naked.
Point being: if your band was part of the Canadian posse at SXSW three years ago, you’re not new.
Sean Wraight said,
April 1, 2009 at 3.03pm
Mr. Plaskett was ambitious to say the least with this release but I am firmly of the opinion that a little economy (and a good editor) would have gone a long way in improving the feel of the record. Its just lacks focus. I tried to like this one, I really did…
As for the Stills and the best new bad nod. I’m just glad they didn’t figure out a way to give that one to Nickelback too!
Oi.
Sean
barbara said,
April 1, 2009 at 10.31pm
Nobody has ever accused the Junos of being on the cutting edge.
Ruhee said,
April 1, 2009 at 10.50pm
Jamie — I guess that’s what it is, a sort of “Hey, we noticed you this year! Cool!” thing. It doesn’t make it any less insulting, though, I think.
April — that was my point!
Sean — Yeah, I tried to like it too. I’m still trying! It just hasn’t interested me enough that I want to listen to it much, so it’s sort of hard to get convinced. Too bad! I loved Ashtray.
Barbara — YA RLY.