PRESS
-
lisa germano / magic neighbor review
()
diary of musical thoughts blog / barry...a tribute to the strength of the songwriting, Germano's use of her voice as a simple yet powerful lead instrument, and light embellishments (echo or double-tracking on the vocals, using the piano pedals as subtle percussion as in "Snow")that give the album its other-worldly qualities...diaryofmusicalthoughts.blogspot.com http://diaryofmusicalthoughts.blogspot.com/2009/11/lisa-germano-magic-neighb or.html Posted by Barry Friday, November 20, 2009 Lisa Germano, "Magic Neighbor" It's shame that casual listeners and reviewers will hear this album and wave it away as just another Lisa Germano album. Every review will feature at least one Michael Gira reference and take note at Germano's signature talent for being simultaneously twee and glum. They'll tell you that it's a nice listen, and present a 7/10 rating to ensure that nobody other than her fans will get too excited about it. It's really a shame, because "Magic Neighbor" might be her best album. Sure, it's partly Germano's fault. She's long since settled into a comfort zone where she's comfortable playing for her small and devoted fan base and has no interest in taking new risks to get noticed, which is why you don't see her trying to expand into piano-led dubstep or anything. During the album's......
-
lisa germano recent press: denver thread; bbc.com; goodmorningcaptain.com; popmatters.com; the red alert; textura ; pittsburgh daily news
()
various publications / various authorsobservations on the nature of society and the ever expanding universe...http://www.denverthread.com/archives/708 Lisa Germano: “Magic Neighbor” Posted by Billy on 10/06/09 The first time I heard the ethereal, esoteric and often terrifying music of Lisa Germano on her CD “Happiness” in 1994 (through oversized headphones attached to my DiscMan), I was immediately addicted. Huge fans of anything 4AD, my friends and I were quick to grab up all we could as she released four fantastic records full of isolated, Kate Bush-meets-Ian Curtis-in-a-wooden-shack-in-Appalachia musical introspection on the British dream-pop label. Then Germano seemed to just disappear. I’d heard once in a while that she was popping up here & there with some self-released stuff, but nothing ever seemed to catch my attention the way her early oeuvre did, and I figured she’d retired. Thank God I was wrong. When I heard Lisa had been asked to join Michael Gira’s Young God Records (another label for which I have HUGE love and respect), I was ecstatic. And the first offering, 2006’s “In the Maybe World” seemed a beautiful launch back on the same genre-defying track Germano had forged earlier, but maybe even a little bit more isolated, childlike, while......
-
james blackshaw live review
()
ameliasmagazine.com (UK) / no author listedLondon-based 12-string guitarist, James Blackshaw, is known for his compositions possessing of a subtle complexity beyond his twenty something years.ameliasmagazine.com (UK) http://www.ameliasmagazine.com/music/james-blackshaw-a-live-review/2009/10/2 0/ James Blackshaw – A Live Review Hanbury Ballroom, Brighton Tuesday October 20th, 2009 12:46 pm London-based 12-string guitarist, James Blackshaw, is known for his compositions possessing of a subtle complexity beyond his twenty something years. The Hanbury Ballroom inspires a hushed reverence as you enter and provides the perfect setting to showcase Blackshaw’s talents. The Ballroom may be not as grand as it sounds but there’s certainly an aura of opulence that prevails. Fitting then for tonight’s solemnization of sound, although this transpires to be far from any freak-folk shindig you might expect. Both Blackshaw and Mat Sweet of Boduf Songs are Englishmen recording for revered American labels who both make music often tagged ‘folk’ but there’s a world of difference between them and it made for a compelling performance. Boduf Songs take the stage as the Ballroom begins to fill out nicely. The first time I heard Mat Sweet’s music was a few years ago on his debut for Kranky Records. A largely acoustic affair, interspersed with field recordings, which I......
-
lisa germano / magic neighbor review
()
dream magazine / george parsonsConfessional love songs that sound like lost outtakes from melancholic soundtrack to 1930s musicalDream Magazine / by George Parsons Lisa Germano Magic Neighbor (Young God) I love how Lisa has such a sweetly inviting voice that she draws you into some slightly nightmarish places without you noticing at first. The world seems to be quietly coming apart at the seams while outwardly looking much the same, but emotions and gravity seem to shift with the changing light. Confessional love songs that sound like lost outtakes from melancholic soundtrack to 1930s musical, a sadder Wizard of Oz with nothing over the rainbow except wishful thinking and dreams that evaporate in the light of day like phantoms. Codependent damned and blessed circles of blame and affection locked in an orbit of love and need. Finding a way to survive by dreaming up a better world, but finding it difficult to maintain. Musically this is sometimes like a lost chamber music group playing deep in a wintery forest to keep warm, piano, strings, and more, but there is a core of bliss here too, the sweetness of it all despite a world of woes. ...
-
lisa germano / magic neighbor review
()
wordpress.com / no authorit has that creepy oddness, that beauty, and all it’s magical melancholy that her albums exude (yes, even the grim morning after confusion of liquid pig) but magic neighbour has it in spades.wordpress.com http://cowsarejustfood.wordpress.com/2009/10/03/lisa-germano-magic-neighbor- young-god/ lisa germano: magic neighbor (young god) oct 12 2009 no author listed this is a strange one. in that it’s probably the most straightforwardly listenable of her aural offerings yet musically it drifts unexpectedly, ebbs sensually and flows unstructured and vaguely out of focus. none of this meant in the pejorative y’understand. it hangs together dreamlike and ephemeral. each song connected, yet not. michael gira alludes to disney in the release notes and i can kindof see where he’s coming from. but it strikes me more like jean cocteau’s la belle et la bête. it has that creepy oddness, that beauty, and all it’s magical melancholy that her albums exude (yes, even the grim morning after confusion of liquid pig) but magic neighbour has it in spades. it has less of the (occasionally terrifying) foosty murk of old and more of the curtains opened sunlight filtering through motes of dust feel. or as ms germano put it herself: it’s about trying to......