Joanna Newsom - Have One On Me (RIP blogs)

There has to be more than technical skill. Do people lose their minds over her for any other reason than she plays the harp and is very cute? The voice is a bit strange and inaccessible for the mainstream, the songs are kind of obtuse and nontraditional... I'm not saying these are bad things but I am wondering if she is more of an aesthetic self-fulfilling choice for fans.

No one listens to her because she's the Yngwie Malmsteen of the harp -- she's isn't! There's no unnecessary display of technical prowess going on in any of her songs; they're all carefully, and painstakingly, composed pieces, and I personally don't hear anything "extraneous" in any of them. In addition to her precise and evocative lyrics, which are only Ren faire bullshit to people who either actively want to dislike her or don't know what close reading is, I love her because her music really is really idiosyncratic, but not in a way that grates, despite what others say. If you can find a way in to the songs that works for you, I think there's always a possibility that the world she's creating will open up to you in a way you might find really compelling and affecting.

Thanks man, no one has ever taken the time to explain any of this to me. Honestly I haven't listened extensively, so I plan to spend some time with the new one. But the most reasoning to listen I ever get from the trendsters is "she's amazing", with little to no elaboration or points.

She is extremely technically proficient, and I think that contributes to the fullness of melody you might hear otherwise in two talented dueling guitars. Point is that it isn't show-offery, the ambitious compositions serve the song and the melody, as apposed to most jam-bands that have it exactly opposite.

Hey man, no problem! If you decide to listen to her first LP, Milk-Eyed Mender, first, it's a good idea to keep in mind that it's far more of a scattered and erratically pleasurable affair than Ys. Some songs, like "Sadie," are really compelling mini-narratives backed by the harp, but there's also harpsichord ("Peach, Plumb, Pear") and piano(?) ("Three Little Babes"). It's kind of all over the place, but it has its own charm, and when it hits its stride (the aforementioned "Sadie," "Book of Right-On," and "Sprout and the Bean"), it's awesome. Ys, in my opinion, is great all the way through, so I can only recommend listening to it closely a few times through, then perhaps a few times with the lyric sheet in front of you, and then another time after reading Erik Davis's piece on Ys from Arthur Magazine (http://www.arthurmag.com/2006/12/23/nearer-the-heart-of-things-erik-davis-on-joanna-newsom-from-arthur-no-25winter-02006/). That's just one possible way of trying to approach her music, of course, but I think it could work. Still, some people won't like her stuff no matter how they listen to it, and that's fine too.

Holy f. I watched that Sawdust & Diamonds clip through to the end. I think a certain kind of artist has a kind of singular song that might not be a good jumping off point for a newcomer looking for their way in, but is a perfect summation of their aesthetic/what they're reaching for. Something like Voodoo Child (Slight Return) for Jimi Hendrix or Lover You Should've Come Over for Jeff Buckley. Those are probably bad examples for a lot of people here, but I do think she fits into a kind of capable rockist auteur thing. I mean, a lot of critical narrative hovers around "Well, they could barely [do x] but they overcome [] to interesting effect". What happens when they can execute whatever they want? So it's all back on concept? Not sure if I'm explaining this right. I'm just not articulate enough to, um, articulate what I'm getting at.

Her new look and celebrity stizz isn't vibing with me hard, that said I like her new song much more than anything on Ys so hmmmmmm

I've liked her since the Cair Paravel reference on MEM. Haven't listened to Ys more than a few times after an initial enjoyment of it. Her voice doesn't *SQUEAK* before every line on the new single like it does on Ys. That's good at least.

She has another new track up on http://www.dragcity.com/

Piano and drums!

wow, based on those 2 songs previewed on drag city i might buy this

She sounds like shes conciously trying not to sing as over the top as he has previously. Maybe shes as bored with freak-folk quirks as most of us are.

she has*

http://pitchfork.com/news/37767-another-new-joanna-newsom-song/

Ah, Evan already posted the link. Cool! (I'm not going to listen to any of these until I get the full record.)

She didn't sound over the top on Ys and I doubt she was ever reaching for any 'freak folk' voice.
These songs are a little different and I like both a lot.

She was a bit over the top, as everything was on that album (I really like it by the way!). And those vocal quirks have been associated with freak-folk, and so has she. I like her, so please don't feel defensive.

Okay, really really loving "Good Intentions Paving Company".

I do believe this song has signalled the coming of the messiah.

by which I mean, it's pretty great.

She sounded great in concert last night. It was really great hearing her voice surrounded by quite a few different instruments and great to see her jump on the piano a couple of times.

the leaked songs are my least favorite of what I've heard from the new stuff tbh

jim o'rourke produced this, right?

He did? Again? Oh man.

He only mixed Ys. :)

would ppl who are repping hard for jn's harp chops please list four or five of their other favorite harpists, please

(sorry)

my favorite harpists are Ann Hobson-Pilot and Elizabeth Remy

alice coltrane

Little Walter

oops I meant Elisabeth Remy Johnson

gotta get it right if I'm gonna pimp friends

that chick from owt

http://tejiendoelmundo.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/harpo_marx.jpg

http://www.elisabethremy.com/grandjany.mp3

^^^ ftr, also runs marathons

would ppl who are repping hard for jn's harp chops please list four or five of their other favorite harpists, please

― Lee Dorrian Gray (J0hn D.), Tuesday, February 2, 2010 5:05 PM (3 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

think youre misreading some people? i dont think anyone is repping 4 her chops.

This is what I said upthread:

No one listens to her because she's the Yngwie Malmsteen of the harp -- she's isn't! There's no unnecessary display of technical prowess going on in any of her songs; they're all carefully, and painstakingly, composed pieces, and I personally don't hear anything "extraneous" in any of them.

I'm with max.

ksh highway what do you think of sonny boy williamson's harp playing

man, i'm impressed by anyone who can play a harmonica. i've tried. shit's hard.

(i used Wikipedia, btw.)

:-)

that chick from owt

zeena parkins, totally blanked on her name for a second there

Rhodri Davies, Xavier de Maistre, Alice Coltrane, Nicanor Zabaleta

i've heard her harp playing described as very idiosyncratic and sorta self-taught? it's all plinky plink plink to me.

not sure that anyone was repping that hard for the chops? Besides Evan's "extremely technically proficient", which isn't the most mindblowing of praise. (eesh many xposts, learn to type quickly.)

This song, I realise, kinda reminds me of Song Cycle, a kind of miniature excursion into the relatively-unmined-by-modern-pop-music side of the American vernacular.

no, her playing is equally influenced by trad classical training and african kora music

xp

i've heard her harp playing described as very idiosyncratic and sorta self-taught? it's all plinky plink plink to me.

― velko, Tuesday, February 2, 2010 11:14 PM (1 minute ago)

she's classicaly trainwd

yeah, like i said, i'm not sure i could tell the diff (i was probably remembering someone describing her vocals lol)

"classically trained" is kind of like "went to college"

I'm sure she's fine but yeah it was even's "extremely technically proficient" line I was thinkin abt

lol @ the JN opinion police

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FuYpme0Cm4

I saw her on the YS tour, she played some pretty intricate stuff for 1+ hour and I didn't hear an off note so I'd put her in the beyond proficient category