Apr 02, 2008 By Matt Fink Jim Noir

Despite his fairly flamboyant appearance and press statements—such as wearing dapper bowler hats and claiming to have recorded his newest album at Abbey Road—Jim Noir is almost painfully shy in conversation. Sipping tea and ending every few sentences with an obligatory “I don’t know…yeah,” he’s soft-spoken and articulate, the kind of man who you would figure prefers to write and record his albums in the privacy of his bedroom. “I’m not a very big talker,” he admits. More

Apr 02, 2008 By Matt Fink Jamie Lidell

As the creative process tends to be an intensely private and solitary endeavor, it’s no wonder that many artists simply don’t have the ego strength or interpersonal skills to effectively communicate their vision without freaking out every time someone else leaves their fingerprints on it. Being a songwriter is one thing, but being a bandleader is something else altogether, and it’s up to every artist to strike the balance between stomping on every suggestion and letting collaborators run the show. More

Apr 02, 2008 By Matt Fink Spring 2008 - Flight of the Conchords

For any songwriter who spends hours slaving over chord progressions and notebooks full of crossed-out scribbles and half-baked ideas, the thought of an artist who is so prolific that even dreams give birth to new creations is an infuriating concept. Consider “Yesterday,” arguably Paul McCartney’s crowning achievement as a pop balladeer, a song whose melody was composed while Sir Paul slept. Or take Townes Van Zandt’s classic “If I Needed You,” a bittersweet promise of fidelity that was written—lyrics and all—while the late troubadour was unconscious. Add to that list Seventh Tree, the latest album from Goldfrapp, an appropriately somnambulant exploration of warmly enveloping textures and half-remembered dreams. More

Apr 02, 2008 By John Motley Fuck Buttons

“When the band first started, we were both really excited by the concept of ‘noise’ music as a confrontational tool,” recalls Benjamin John Power, who, along with Andrew Hung, formed Bristol, England’s Fuck Buttons in 2004. “Over time, the sound has developed into something more embracing. It wasn’t a conscious decision on our part to head in this direction. It kind of happened along the way and just seemed right. We still have the same sonic sensibilities as when we first started, but we now tend to try and focus on the more positive side of things when experimenting with sound.” More