Ariel Pink

vudi from american music club is in this band now. which is weird. maybe I already said that upthread

there is some staggering kaleidoscopic talent lurking beneath the temporal hipster trappings IMHO

-- duke due, Thursday, September 2, 2004 6:45 PM (2 years ago) Bookmark Link

not that i mind the hipster trappings too much per se, but this is entirely OTM

Vudi?! No wonder he sounds so good now.

it's too bad about this bullshit "hipster" stigma surrounding him, because he's by far the best songwriter out of any pop/rock/indie/whitebread variety these days and he's actually pretty funky too.

i mean, if wilco or whoever were to record an album of ariel pink songs, it'd be the unanimous critic-wide rock album of the year, no doubt.

but less psychedelic and closer to reality therefore would prob. be dud

what are we coming to

now playing: "Jules Lost His Jewels"

Come on baby, let's dance!

new track is so good ("Can't Hear My Eyes")

keepin it smoooooth

Which one doesn't belong? - Lilly Allen, Pink Elln, Ellen Allien

revisited the doldrums lately and realized that i enjoyed their live show much more than that album. interested in hearing that new track tho ^^

revisited the doldrums lately? bleh. recently

flash player down at the bottom of this

http://space15twenty.com/ariel_pinks_haunted_graffiti

thanks!

1520: What are you thinking about how you want your next album to be like?
AP: The record will essentially be a formal reintroduction; me saying "hello friend. My name is Ariel Pink. You've probably read my name online somewhere, maybe your best friend burned you some of my older records, or perhaps you even think we've met at some time in the past. Baloney! Everything you think you know is WRONG- DEAD WRONG. THIS is me, naked, without the buffer of awful tape noise drowning out any lack of vision.

I dunno... That last sentence in particular sounds horrific. The noise must stay, damnit! Been listening to him alot again lately, so this smooth - it's what it is, indeed - sound comes as a surprise. It's a good song, but not as good as the best songs on this years Oddities Sodomies, I think.

does he sound more 'professional' live (could be in a good or bad way)? or does he still sound a bit shambolic, like on the album?

getting some fleetwood mac vibes, pretty cool. also sorta reminds me of gary wilson but a lot more listenable

fairly shambly, but in a unified sort of way. shamble tamble. they sang through some cheap reverbs, so it had some of the lo-fi vibe on their albums. played w/ 2 basses for a few of the songs too

I get the Gary Wilson comparison yeah, which is a good thing

Hey, wait a second! This new song doesn't have any farty-sounding beat boxing. WTF?!?

But seriously, this is a pretty great track. I don't think having a real studio recording hurts his sound at all.

Now this is starting to sound interesting...love Ariel but he needs to take it the next level...imagine Todd Rundgren producing...

^^^yeah you right

I have a horse in this race kinda but imo sooner or later he's going to have to just let the songs stand on their own. I think his songs are terrific so I think it'll be pretty great though, the only q for me is how his voice will go over unmodulated/unfiltered. Listening now, just on first hearing, I think it'll be just fine - the great sensibility that makes him interesting, that 70s-blender cinematic feeling, is intact.

I agree John. To me it's not a either/or question between modulated and naked songs, and letting the songs stand on it's own could get him moving again. But it's just that everything he's done, to me, is already of such utter beauty, I hopes he moves to the next level rather slow. That said, I'm really starting to dig this new song.

The song he did with John Maus "Written All Over Your Face" was a signpost of what could be achieved...love that new song as well

Best thing was I saw him do a tour a few years go where he played with a new band backing him up in each city. That was actually kind of dull but after doing a set with them he just brought out his 4-track, plugged in his mic, and mixed the songs live. It was brilliant!

Yeah this is excellent. If he keeps this balance of clear but lo-fi his fingerprint will stay on the material. It's like a more sophisticated weathered sound. Well done.

The keyboardist and the drummer from Lilys are in the Haunted Grafitti now? Wow.

By the way I've been trying to get into John Maus for the last two days. Talk about a poor man's Ariel Pink. It's like he's trying to copy every aspect of Ariel Pink and just blowing it. That's got to be a bummer to shoot for crappy and fail.

i think maus might be a rich man's ariel pink actually, but i like him too

Really? Yeah he seems to have his own following in his own right... Ariel Pink is very "new sincerity," with a keen sense of irony, but very genuine. The songs are well constructed, there's a process and a method, and he makes pretty well fleshed-out pop songs. John Maus just sounds to me like, "Hey I can do that! Synthesizers on tape with stupid joke lyrics!"

By the way one's from beverly hills and the other's a colege professor. That would make them both a rich man's R. Stevie Moore, wouldn't it?

Ariel Pink's recording an album with the guys from Vas Deferens Organization. They also did a side project called Shits & Giggles. Dunno who will release these things, but somebody really should.

Whoa, I'm really interested to hear this. I scrolled up the thread looking for any old posts I'd made on the subject but didn't find any, surprisingly. My favorite Ariel Pink songs - like "New Trumpets of Time" - were the ones where he played it straight, and I'd love to hear more in that vein.

John Maus rules.

That new "Can't Here My Eyes" is quite good, very straight and sober pop. Someone mentioned Fleetwood Mac upthread, it's pretty apt.

http://kimag.es/share/14770623.jpg

if that is a press photo, I consider it awesome

wtf that p4k review

Yeah I don't get that review, at all.

And I'm trying to explain why, but I keep ending up baffled.

Whoah... if the great Can't Hear My Eyes and the new single Flashback are any indication, the new album of Ariel Pink will be the best album in the history of music. Ever.

Flashback, on the 'Reminiscenses' (tour) EP, is fan-tas-tic. It starts out a cappela, and when the guitars (with crazy solo's) kick in, Ariel sings and scream and the song is a an 80s rocker. It's not hard to imagine this in an 80s episode of Miami Vice, during the part when Crocket & Tubbs are after the bad guys, when the race is on. Or something. The production is very clear (the sound equals that of 'Can't Hear My Eyes'). Then, at 3/4th there's a huge guitarsolo and the song ends with a euphoric crossing of hair metal and a jam out, it goes quiet for half a second and then FLASHBACK! It gets another round. So fucking great!
Rama Ya is a singalong punkrocker, and the title song is a gorgeous wobbly synthy instrumental. Pick this up on his tour or order it rom his website!

Is it only available on vinyl? I have had "Flashback" stuck in my head after hearing it only once!

xpost

But The Doldrums is already the best album in the history of music. Ever. I prefer my Ariel Pink murky.

I know Kevin, I prefer my Ariel murky as well, but have have you heard Can't Hear My Eyes? And this new one? They both can be the best album in the world! Ever.

@Metro, yeah it's a 7" ltd. to 1000. Mine came with the tour goody bag. But, y'know, there's always mp3's and stuff floating around.

http://pitchfork.com/tv/#/episode/1966-ariel-pink

^ Flashback

Thanks NickB!! They're cool as cats man.

I know Kevin, I prefer my Ariel murky as well, but have have you heard Can't Hear My Eyes? And this new one?

The latter only. I like it. But for me, the murk places a burden on his music that makes it ache more. See also other best album in the world ever candidate Belong: Colorloss Record.

I will try that album, haven't hear it!

And I totally know where you're coming from. I'm madly in love with the aesthetic of 'The Doldrums', it indeed aches and feels weird and unbalanced in a glorious way, golden harmonies from outer space.
Lately he's polishing his sound, it seems. I was at first a tad dissapointed (read earlier on in this thread), but have grown very fond of 'Can't Hear My Eyes' especially. But yes, he'll probably never top The Doldrums. I'm just mad excited 's all :)

I prefer the one that has Jools lost his jewels since that's the first one I ever heard

yeah me too. the opener, 'Trepanated Earth', is breezy, massive and totally desperate at the same time. For such a 70's "golden harmonies" type of songwriter he often comes up with the type of minor-key bleakness that could nicely fit on a Cure album.

was kinda let down by "can't hear my eyes" because while it was produced more 'cleanly', it wasn't really produced well. kinda like if you took out the reverb and blew the dust off those gas records. or watching ugly people on big screen hi-def

NickB, I kiss you! I can't believe that I simply missed that Belong EP. It is brilliant! Ariel Pink on downers, golden harmony onder a thick clutter of ambient noise. I like it very, very much indeed. Is their album equally good?