Me encanta el guitarreo inicial y esta estrofa: “Take all the courage you have left wasted on fixing all the problems that you made in your own head“. Y es que como decía mi abuelo, lo más difícil en esta vida es llevarse bien con uno mismo y que nuestros propios demonios no nos machaquen.

Letra:

Weep for yourself, my man,
You’ll never be what is in your heart
Weep Little Lion Man,
You’re not as brave as you were at the start
Rate yourself and rake yourself,
Take all the courage you have left
Wasted on fixing all the problems
That you made in your own head

[estribillo]
But it was not your fault but mine
And it was your heart on the line
I really fucked it up this time
Didn’t I, my dear?
Didn’t I, my…

Tremble for yourself, my man,
You know that you have seen this all before
Tremble Little Lion Man,
You’ll never settle any of your scores
Your grace is wasted in your face,
Your boldness stands alone among the wreck
Now learn from your mother or else spend your days biting your own neck

[estribillo]

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Canciones relacionadas:

1. Metric – Help I’m Alive
2. The Coral – Dreaming of You
3. The Zutons – Valerie

Y Beirut, la banda liderada por Zach Condon, me recuerda enormemente a los de Denver. De su último álbum (The Rip Tide, 2011), me quedo con esta canción, la cara B de East Harlem. Yo prefiero Goshen a su cara A con diferencia .

No os perdáis esta actuación en directo:

Letra:

You’re on in five, it’s time you rise or fail.
They’ve gone before, stood by your door all day.
For what it’s worth, defend your kind from shame.
The lights are down, go on inside, they’ve paid.

You’re the face in stone,
through the land I own.
You never found it home.
You’re not the girl I used to know.

What would you hide from such a glow
If I had only told you so?

You’re on in five, it’s time you rise or fail.
They’ve gone before, stood by your door all day.

But you never found it home.
A fair price I’d pay to be alone.

What would you hide from such a glow
If I had only told you so?

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Canciones relacionadas:

1. Alexi Murdoch – Orange Sky
2. Ocean Colour Scene – Better Day
3. The Swell Season – Falling Slowly

Esta banda formada en Navarra (sí, ahí donde les oís ), se ha dado a conocer con su primer y único álbum (Star of Love, 2010) y algunas grandes canciones como Plage, At Home o este Champion Sound. Si algo les caracteriza es la alegría que transmiten en sus letras y ritmos.

Atención a esta interpretación en directo, con una mezcolanza de instrumentos muy interesante (con txalaparta incluida):

Letra:

Rejoice I could, rejoice I could
Could take a choice, the choice I took
To take the choices out of your hand
And put’em in my hand

And it’s all good, yeah it’s all good
I got the bag, got the books
Skip the town, goodbye
With no bad feelings
No heartbroke, I hit the road

And maybe one day we’ll go to rehab
Or back to Argentina, it’s not that far away
Any day now

Let’s hope that someday I play my concertina
To an arena full of people
Or dream my life away
Dreaming of the day

When you find that love inside of me
Deep within the heart of me
Deep within my, deep within my
Deep within the heart of me
[X2]

[estribillo]
I wanna find my girl, love will be amazing
Champion sound, champion sound
I wanna find my girl, love will be amazing
Champion sound, champion sound

And maybe one day we’ll go to rehab
Or back to Argentina, it’s not that far away
Any day now

Let’s hope that someday I play my concertina
To an arena full of people
Or dream my life away
Dreaming of the day I would

I found my love to be her
When I see her Imma say yeah
I’m on my hope she say yeah
I wanna try to say her this some day

[estribillo]

When you find that love inside of me
Deep within the heart of me
Deep within my, deep within my
Deep within the heart of me
[X2]

[estribillo]

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Canciones relacionadas:

1. Crystal Castles & Robert Smith – Not In Love
2. Foo Fighters – Walk
3. Foo Fighters – Best Of You

Sin embargo, dio un espectáculo interesante combinando sus baladas lentas con cosas más “movidas”. Y también me sorprendió su último disco, Fuerteventura (2011). De ahí saco hoy este “I Hate You But I Love You“, una historia muy “Perro del Hortelano”, que ni come, ni deja comer. Te odio, pero te quiero. Y por supuesto, con la melancolía y fragilidad ya característica de Lourdes. Ha comentado en diferentes medios que quizás se lance próximamente a cantar en castellano. Veremos…

Letra:

You were so high
above in the sky
I just keep feeling
like a little… child

[estribillo]
I hate you, but I love you
I just can’t take
how beautiful you are
I hate to say this
but my eyes go blind

I hate you, but I love you
My favorite sun
becomes a healing sign
I have to tell you this
‘cause my heart goes wild

Oh, you are so high
above in the sky
Every time I travel far I
think about you by my side
To any of those places
I cannot go by

[estribillo]

Da da da-da da-da…
Da da da-da da-da…
Da da da-da da-da…
Da da da-da da-da…
Da da… da-da da-da-da da-da

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Canciones relacionadas:

1. Mano Negra – Love & Hate
2. Russian Red – Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
3. Russian Red – Nice Thick Feathers

Los descubrí con su Funny Little Frog y desde entonces los uso como terapia cuando estoy bajita de moral. También cuando estoy alta, como es el caso de hoy. Y es que en dos días estoy de vacaciones y con el BBK Live a la espera (y el concierto de Arcade Fire la semana que viene).

Así que hoy quiero que el mundo se detenga y conserve mi buen humor por siempre .

Letra:

[estribillo]
I want the world to stop (I want the world to stop)
Give me the morning (give me the understanding)
I want the world to stop (I want the world to stop)
Give me the morning, give me the afternoon
The night, the night

Let me step out of my shell
I’m wrapped in sheets of milky winter disorder
Let me feel the air again, the talk of friends
The mind of someone my equal

[estribillo]

Tinseltown has followed me from tinseltown to
Grey adorable city by the docks
Girls will walk in moving air the sun hangs low the girls don’t care
As they paint themselves at dusk.

[estribillo]

Towns’ and cities’ populations up and grow
The workers move to the suburbs
In between I watch and go
I run along side rush hour traffic a prayer for every car

[estribillo]

I want to write a message to you
Everyday at 10 o’clock in the evening
Yellow pearl my city is
This is your art this is your Balzac your Brookside and your Bach

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Canciones relacionadas:

1. La semana de… Queen – Don’t Stop Me Now
2. Russian Red – Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
3. Oasis – Stop Crying Your Heart Out

No sé por qué extraña razón me parece que Ray lleva una eternidad componiendo y, sin embargo, su primer disco es de 2004. De hecho, ese álbum debut es homónimo a su single más exitoso y que hoy os traigo por aquí.

Esta canción va dedicada a todos/as aquellos/as que, aunque no quieran, andan siempre en problemas y con preocupaciones en su cabeza.

Letra:

Trouble…
Trouble, trouble, trouble, trouble
Trouble been doggin’ my soul since the day I was born

Worry…
Worry, worry, worry, worry
Worry just will not seem to leave my mind alone

[estribillo]
We’ll I’ve been…
saved by a woman
I’ve been…
saved by a woman
I’ve been…
saved by a woman
She won’t let me go
She won’t let me go now
She won’t let me go
She won’t let me go now

Trouble…
Oh, trouble, trouble, trouble, trouble
Feels like every time I get back on my feet
she come around and knock me down again

Worry…
Oh, worry, worry, worry, worry
Sometimes I swear it feels like this worry is my only friend

[estribillo]

She good to me now
She gave me love and affection
She good tell me now
She gave me love and affection

She’s good to me
She’s good to me

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Canciones relacionadas:

1. Jakob Dylan – Something Good This Way Comes
2. Israel Kamakawiwo’ole – Somewhere Over The Rainbow / What a Wonderful World

Por eso he vuelto a ver Once. Una película que me descubrió a dos artistazos como son Glen Hansard y Markéta Irglová. Ya en 2006 Glen había grabado un álbum denominado The Swell Season, donde Markéta colaboraba. Pero al año siguiente protagonizaron esta película, se llevaron el Oscar a la mejor canción y montaron su banda con el mismo nombre. De esta banda sonora me quedo también con el desgarrador grito “Say It To Me Now“.

Por cierto, ¿os habéis dado cuenta que en toda la película no dicen ni una vez cómo se llaman los protagonistas? Ni siquiera aparece en los títulos de crédito. Y sin embargo, sin necesidad de su nombre, tenemos un retrato personal bien definido.

Os dejo con la actuación en directo (que es donde más ganan) que hicieron en el show de David Letterman (me encanta la guitarra de Glen ):

Letra:

I don’t know you
But I want you
All the more for that
Words fall through me
And always fool me
And I can’t react

And games that never amount
To more than they’re meant
Will play themselves out

[estribillo]
Take this sinking boat and point it home
We’ve still got time
Raise your hopeful voice you have a choice
You’ve made it now

Falling slowly, eyes that know me
And I can’t go back
Moods that take me and erase me
And I’m painted black

You have suffered enough
And warred with yourself
It’s time that you won

[estribillo]

Falling slowly sing your melody
I’ll sing along

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Canciones relacionadas:

1. The Swell Season – The Rain
2. Boat Beam & Havalina – Falling Over
3. Beirut – Goshen

Así que tras esos polvos, aquí estamos con estos lodos. Y por mucho que no quiera invocar a la lluvia (es de agradecer que llevemos unos días secos por el norte…), me lanzo con este single del álbum Strick Joy (2009). Nos os perdáis la versión deluxe del disco con el Falling Slowly en directo.

Just before the rain came down, the sun came out at last.
And as for all assumptions made, questions never asked.
I know we’re not where I promised you we’d be by now,
but maybe it’s a question of who’d want it anyhow.

Even now the rainbow’s end seems closer to your hand
and is it knowing when to stop the measure of the man.

Ok we’re not what I promised you we would become,
but maybe it’s a question of how much you’d really want.

[estribillo]
Have you had enough?
Had enough?
There’s plenty more where that came from now.
Are you feeling bought?
Swallowed up?
We got hours on you now.

Just before the rain came down, the sun came out at last.
And as for all assumptions made. Questions never asked.

I know we’re not what I promised you we’d be by now.
Ok I’m not what I promised you I would become.

[estribillo]

You still on top?
Still crawling up?
We got hours on you now

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Canciones relacionadas:

1. The Swell Season – Falling Slowly
2. Boat Beam – The Rain Pauly
3. Boat Beam & Havalina – Falling Over

No os podéis perder el programa de Radio 3 en el que presentaron la canción (y donde además se escucha a Lourdes cantar en castellano ).

Letra:

You’ve lived in small apartments
In the biggest biggest cities of the world.
You like to shake all your fingers
whenever I sing a song.

We meet up in the weirdest places
like churches, bridges, lightstreets, pounds

[estribillo]
You always keep in mind
you always know the magic word
the perfect time
the proper voice
the perfect one you are

You have at least twenty hundred
colour pictures does a women on your wall
that keep your readings at night
oh lady, it’s knocking on your door.

Beauty waits for you
on every corner
and it would never ever let you alone… alone

[estribillo]

Canciones relacionadas:

1. Russian Red – I Hate You But I Love You
2. Russian Red – Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
3. Russian Red – Nice Thick Feathers

El comienzo de la melodía me transporta a un estado de paz y relajo… Y la melancolía se adueña de mí

Los arreglos de la canción son impresionantes (me comenta @iturri que son de Joserra Senperena) pero también podéis disfrutar del directo que hizo para los conciertos de Radio 3. Y no os perdáis esta versión que hace de Crazy junto a Templeton.

Letra:

Why do you think it’s time?
Your dreams are far behind
Lost details of the sky and soil

Rooms are full of those
Their dreams are warn as clothes
Will pureness stay unclassified?

Join my household tips
Tear money back to stripes
And use your deadly lips to say

[estribillo]
“Sun will still be there
When we, we don’t even care
And truth proving endlessly
While we cynic as can be
Can’t even smile.”

Join my household tips
Tear money back to stripes
And use your deadly lips to say

[estribillo]

MySpace

Canciones relacionadas:

1. Kate Nash – Foundations
2. Rachael Yamagata – Be Be Your Love
3. Lily Allen – The Fear