Websites / Lenka’s Secret Playlist
by Australian singer-songwriter, Lenka, responsible for the catchiest song of 2008, has written a Secret Playlist for us which cites a disparate range of musical influences, from She and Him, to Goldfrapp, The Beatles and The Stranglers. It makes for a fun read, even if we do say ourselves. Listen to Lenka’s debut single, The Show.
Tagged: Australian singer-songwriters, pop music
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Lenka Kripac talks about her single, The Show
We featured the Secret Playlist of Australian-born, Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Lenka Kripac recently. Well, here’s the scoop: she just happens to have written the catchiest damn song of 2008. The Show is a bouncy, jaunty, almost nursery rhyme-like paean to the joys of showbiz. And it’s been splashed across every TV show that knows what’s good for it. Ugly Betty, any one? We checked in with Lenka while she was on the road [right before a performance in Seattle to be exact], and asked her about the songwriting process behind her debut hit: ‘I wrote The Show with a singer-songwriter called Jason Reeves. We’re both with the same publisher so we sat down together in their writer’s room with piano and guitar and played around with some ideas. The metaphor of life being a show came about because we were both feeling a bit overwhelmed by our lives at the time. We wanted to write something jolly to cheer ourselves up. It’s one of those things where a spontanious energy just takes over and you go along for the ride. An hour and a half and the song was complete! Hasn’t changed at all since that day’.
Paul Steel makes our top twenty musicians of 2008
Paul Steel has slipped into my top twenty artists for 2008, right at the bottom of the final innings. I heard one of his songs, In a Coma, via BBC radio, and I am still in paralytic shock. With all the absolute sludge being released over the last twelve months, it’s so refreshing to hear music that is colourful, melodic and challenging to listen to. Forget Vampire Weekend and Fleet Foxes, this album has come from a 20 year-old Brighton native, who has taken the best elements of Brian Wilson, Elvis Costello and XTC, and transformed his album into a world of delightful tunes and animated wonders. This is what one of Brian Wilson’s band members said when he heard In a coma: ‘It just @$%^&* freaked me out! Holy @$%^&* bananas!’ What’s so upsetting is that Steel was subsequently dropped from his major label after releasing this album, but that’s ok. He’s now a truly independent genius in music.
In 1974, journalist and film-maker Tony Palmer set out to make the definitive documentary of pop music. Seventeen episodes later, All You Need Is Love (broadcast between 1976-80) endows any music devotee with more then they could ask for: fifteen hours of historical music anthems, interviews and cultural gospel. From the first glance of Glitter Rock icon David Bowie, to the experience of being ‘altered’ by Pink Floyd, this box set is beyond worthy. For those of us who were mere zygotes when Angus first graced the stage with his backwards jig, this gives Generation X’ers a first glance at all that we missed out on. Spending a rainy Sunday afternoon watching Keith Emerson destroy a Hammond Organ on stage could be considered one of life’s little delights.
Also by ZOLTON
Samantha Everton’s Vintage Dolls
Samantha Everton’s latest exhibition, Vintage Dolls, explores ‘history, race and culture through magic realism’. Of the series, Everton says: ‘I was inspired by the innocent act of children playing dress ups and the way they re-enact adult behaviour, concepts and themes, without preconceptions or judgement’. The show runs at the Dickerson Gallery, Melbourne, between March 4-22 and at the Dickerson Gallery in Sydney between April 1-19.
From an artist selection of t-shirts comes this limited edition David Bray illustrated silkscreened tee, distributed in a vinyl sleeve with a biography of the artist on the back of the sleeve. Every t-shirt is numbered and signed by the artist, and comes in organic American Apparel cotton. We like! Read more
We have a new track by Oregon songwriter Boy Eats Drum Machine available for free download in the Music Download section of Lost At E Minor (pssst, it’s in third column of the site), along with a stack of new tracks by artists such as Gang Gang Dance, Jihae, and The Black Keys live in concert. The tracks are all DRM free and have been given to us for you to download by the record labels and band management companies that we work with. We add new MP3 downloads to this section most days, so check in, discover some new music, and build up your iTunes library at the same time.
YOU'RE SAYING (3)
Rebecca B said | 10 October, 2008
Lenka’s music is cute, but she seems like she’s acting or something. I love the new crop of female artists that are coming out these days, like Brandi Carlisle and Meiko - have you heard her music? http://www.myspace.com/meiko - have a listen — sooooo good!
curiousmoth said | 12 October, 2008
I agree with Rebecca B; only I couldn’t define it until she said it. But it is difficult to make music this whimsical and not act, a little bit! Because it’s very nostalgic and cheery.
All the same, I would love to hear what she does in future!
HAVE YOUR SAY
We asked New York illustrator Christopher Neal about the inspirations behind his work: ‘Each job is different. Sometimes looking through old books and artist monographs will spark something. Other times, its just putting pen to paper until I get an idea. Things like music videos, movies, trips to the museum all seep in and resurface later in my work. For my personal work, a lot of it comes from my sketchbooks’. Read more
Finnish folk band Gjallarhorn is named for the horn that the Norse god Heimdall blows to announce Ragnarock — the end of the world. The bands music is far from dark, however: their brand of Scandinavian folk music incorporates mouth harps, fiddles, flutes, and even didgeridoo in a melange of cheerful, but ethereally beautiful tunes sung in Swedish.
Argentinean artist Benito Laren’s illustrations roll through the mind like a restless childhood memory. They remind me of building blocks — solid, inviting and always full of potential.
It’s all about juxtaposition for the fashion duo Anzevino & Florence. With William Anzevino hailing from the East Coast and Richard Florence from West, they find inspiration in opposing forces. Who else could find commonality between Warhol and Thoreau? Read more
Mexican architecture firm Senosiain Arquitectos recently designed a shell-shaped dwelling for a Mexico City couple. The owners are already living in their new abode with their two very happy children. The structure is maintenance-free and earthquake proof, and is full of soothing greenery and smooth, rounded surfaces. Read more
I spent the formative first six years of my life in Wellington, New Zealand, a beautiful windswept city framed by a magnificent harbour in one direction and a stunning collection of green, rolling hills in the other. It was here, on a return visit many years later and deep amongst the clipped accents and ruddy faces of the weather-beaten locals, that I stumbled upon the vast catalogue of the then Dunedin based record label Flying Nun. And what a roster of acts they housed — The Chills, The Bats, The Clean, Tall Dwarfs, The Verlaines, and my favourite guitar-pop band, Straitjacket Fits. Read more
DJ Spooky — That Subliminal Kid — is just about the deepest crate digger around, trawling the barrels of long-lost record stores for choice vinyl to spin in his wickedly dubby sets. He gave us the inside word last week on his eight favourite songs right now via our sister website, My Secret Playlist. This is what he had to say about Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry’s Panic in Babylon: ‘If there’s anything that the twenty-first century has told us, it’s that dub is the real original hip-hop. Lee Scratch even had to make it clear in 1965 by adding “Scratch” to his middle name. Take that, Grandmaster Flash!’ Read the rest of DJ Spooky’s Secret Playlist.
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These stylish hoops of bronze have a profound effect on me. I’m seriously left singing If I Were A Boy Beyonce-style whenever I see them. Made by Stannard Inc, William the Brave bronze rings are stunning and the raw look exudes an air of individuality. But the cool thing is that you can actually get away with wearing them if you’re a chick, too. They’re made uni-sex in various sizes.
Adult Hotel opens in Nanning, China
State-controlled news outlet Xinhua reports that a new ‘adult hotel‘ is opening in Nanning, the capital of Guangxi Province in southern China. Apparently state censors think homosexuals and tattoo parlors sully their nation’s image, but not establishments aimed at facilitating heterosexual unions. The owner is apparently worried his business will be perceived as a brothel. Hmmm. In any case, the photos of a staff member demonstrating the, uh, equipment is caption-worthy for sure.
David Holmes’ The Holy Pictures
David Holmes’ fourth solo album has been a long time in the making. The man who is best known for his scoring of films such as Ocean’s 11, 12 and 13, and remixing for bands like U2 and The Manic Street Preachers, took just over ten years to make his latest album. Read more
Freelance designer Alex Trochut uses typography, illustration and a solid idea to create works that communicate to each brief. He states that he doesn’t want to choose a particular style but instead enjoys ‘expressing himself and communicating though the needs of every project’. And his formula has worked: his clients include The Guardian G2, Nike Football, and my pencil-case favourite, Faber and Faber.
James Jean on the work of Rob Sato
We asked Californian artist, James Jean, to tell us about an emerging illustrator whose work he loves right now. This is what he had to say: ‘Rob Sato offends me. Read more
We have a stack of CDs and DVDs to give away to a lucky new subscriber who signs up to receive our free weekly email publication between now and New Year’s Day. There’s 50 new CDs in the pile, along with a handful of DVDs. So sign up now and leave a message here telling us what album you hope will be in the pile!
Cassettes Won’t Listen is the brainchild of New York-based, multi-instrumentalist and producer Jason Drake and is the latest of an abundance of musical monikers he has realised over the years. Small-Time Machine is Cassettes Wont Listen’s first-ever physical release and is available for US$23.70.
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Rebecca B said | 10 October, 2008
Lenka’s music is cute, but not real. She seems like she’s acting or something. I love the new crop of female artists that are coming out these days, like Brandi Carlisle and Meiko - have you heard her music? http://www.myspace.com/meiko - have a listen — sooooo good!