FLECTON BIG SKY
Miche Jetté’s unique approach to capturing his songs to tape has always yielded interesting surprises: Find some collaborators. Play the song through for them once, maybe twice. Press record.
When it came time to record the followup to 2005’s Never Took a Wife, he didn’t have to think too hard about who those collaborators would be. Jetté turned once again to his pals in Califone, the Chicago-based group that have churned out a collection of wonderfully imaginative, heavily percussive records over the last ten years or so (and beyond, through the much-loved 1990’s outfit Red Red Meat). Califone use a variety of stringed things and unrecognizable noisemakers to paint vivid, filmic landscapes that serve as a perfect backdrop for Flecton Big Sky’s lyrical brushstrokes.
The Bright Side of Dying is Flecton Big Sky’s masterpiece, a focused effort that is quite comfortable in its shoes, thank you very much. Never Took a Wife got the ya-ya’s out, but The Bright Side is happy to just let it bleed.
Out of the gates, we are immersed in the loving gaze of “She’s Out of Sight”: a touching song resigned to see the glass half-full, made even more tender with the swoon of mariachi horns. “Cowboys & Indians” imagines Flecton’s end days, with a relaxed delivery that one can only have when they’re comfortable with the idea. A banjo-fied campfire round comes to life on “Strummed Out,” probably the biggest deviation from Jetté’s back catalogue. Heck, our Flecton even takes a crack at Merle Haggard’s “Workin’ Man Blues,” a beaten-down version complete with anvil sounds. You can almost smell the steam train’s exhaust.
The Bright Side of Dying shows the dark side too, but this journey is one that’ll leave you feeling sunnier than you started, I do guarantee.
I'll say again: Geez, I sure wish you could magic up and bodge together a wee bit of an East-Coast-of-the-US tour-ette. And If I can be of any help getting you into one of Central Pennsylvania's premier venues (xxxx:// www.chameleonclub.net/ ) just ask.
Still being inspired, and still passing you around like a cheap slut (and I mean that in the good way). My musician friends all seem to have taken a shine to what yer giving up!
Short songs are really hard. I need to go to Dayton and take some Bob Pollard lessons. Think he'd let me crash in his garage for a week or so?
Even though she hates loud noises, and my guitar playing in particular, I trust that Sunny the cat will help me get the whole process figured out.
This is, after all, a cat who was somehow smart enough to steal a brand new pack of guitar strings and carry them up to a hiding spot on the top of my kitchen cabinets. I didn't find them for over a year; I just figured I accidentally threw them away.
I may be the planet's most mediocre player (a badge I wear proudly) but, COME ON, SUNNY!—I'm not THAT bad!
Incredibly kind of you to pick me up- I too, must thank Tripp for tuning me in. I've already started to reFlecton your tunes and popped one into my fancy little profile player! Cheers to more hits to come! T.
Props go out to Tripp for posting a bulletin from his Dragoon page, directing me here. I'd seen FBS on their page but hadn't gotten around to visiting. But really, it was only a matter of time. Dragoon + Grifters shill the good stuff.
I've hijacked the four tunes already up for interim iPod listening until I get the full album. Of course that will be "The Next Time You're Famous." ...at least at my house ;^) My recommendation to visit here has already gone out to a dozen carefully chosen eclecticists of my very own acquaintance.
TL also clued me up to the fact that "Never Took a Wife" was the last recorded instance of Los Grifteros, so that's definitely on the short list too.
Thanks for the cool stuff. I felt inspired by it to get back to work on some of my own recordings, and look forward to more.
BEST DANCE OF MY LIFE!!! I always tell that story when I hear that song- no one can grasp the true magic of that night though, haha!! I'm in New Orleans and life is good!! Hope yr well too :)
Myspace does have a better music page in and of itself, but I find that publicizing and TARGETTING events to particular groups very slow and clunky on myspace.
On facebook there is an app called My Band (which is a link to Reverb Nation) which makes it very easy to send facebook messages containing up to four of your songs to whomever you want on facebook.
And, no, Jacques & the Shakey boys won't be making it to the Cape pow wow this year...demand it and it can happen, next year!!
Ok so Jonny (5th grade) just came home from a party and said our favorite internet slang is pwn.. and then we discussed it for awhile.. Michael (8th grade) said oh I've known of that since 5th grade. He also decided that pwn is internet slang of internet slang.
