Sunday, May 24, 2009

Your Saturday Amanda Palmer Mention

I've been listening to a quite a bit of Dresden Dolls and Amanda Palmer of late (mixed with some Dan Deacon, and, the last week, Neutral Milk Hotel. Sorry, Randy.).

Apparently there's an entire album's worth of videos from "Who Killed Amanda Palmer?" online. And, wisely, I think, they've made it possible to embed the videos into your own site. I never understand why they don't want for you to do that.

Here's "Leeds United".



It's an ambitious project to have videos for your entire first solo album, but I'd guess Palmer has friends in good places from her time with Dresden Dolls. For example: Neil Gaiman recently penned the words to the book associated with the album.

I also recommend:

Guitar Hero

and, for our less sensitive viewers "Oasis".

and for that same audience, "What's the Use of Won'drin'?"

It's a short video. Watch until the end.

4 comments:

mrshl said...

I'd heard her name several times, but never checked it out. My quick video ratings:

Leeds United: C+
Guitar Hero: C
Oasis: A
What's the Use of Won'drin: Ick

The League said...

I completely get that Palmer isn't going to have universal A+ appeal (but who does in this day and age?). I suspect that what she's up to either grows on you like a fungus or isn't going to work.

I enjoy the narrative structure she's employing in her lyrics and song writing,and refusal to position herself as the mopey look-what-a-poet-I-am artists a la Tori Amos, three-chords-and-the-truth singer/songwriter or some ridiculous pop diva (although I am curious what Palmer at 40 will decide she is).

She absolutely has a tendency to get lost in high school histrionics, and I expect that's going to draw a certain fawning crowd. But I love a dame whose willing to put on a good show, especially one with as little or no filter for song subject choice as Palmer.

mrshl said...

Your explanation totally makes sense to me. And I agree that her aversion to the whispery confessional mode is a huge plus.

For me, her voice would take some getting used to. But my biggest immediate objection is that her arrangements and instrumentation are a bit too conventional / showtune-y for me.

Compare with St. Vincent. I need a little something else besides voice and lyrics going on.

But yeah, who agrees on these things anymore? I say thanks for giving me some easy links to someone I've been meaning to check out.

The League said...

Interesting. I liked the St. Vincent clips I watched/ listened to just now. I'd never heard of her before. At first I thought her voice was like a less-hysterical Jenny Lewis, but I think other songs show more range. Haven't listened to enough to get a real feel for what she's up to quite yet.

Interesting arrangements.

I actually quite like what Palmer does with the theatricality of the show-tune sourcing for her stuff. Its sort of her ability to use that form for her own function that I dig, and given how Dresden Dolls pitched themselves as "Brechtian Punk Cabaret", it was certainly the intention.