Cutaway with Jonathan Brown (Debuts February 5)

On the next edition of Cutaway 3/12/10:

I'm pretty geeked about a couple of recent musical discoveries that I'll play on Cutaway this week.

The first is "Kandi" from the UK-based One eskimO. Lead singer Kristian Leontiou's voice mixes beautifully with the sampled voice of Candi Staton. It's a heartbreaker, too.

"You've been my queen longer than you've known…"

It's yet another song about unrequited love, but the lyrics are deeply personal:

"It hurts beyond hurt"

We've all been there:

"Does my love ever reach you?
It's never enough.
Why is it never enough?"

"Cath…" from Death Cab for Cutie stays with the unrequited theme, but shifts to a third person who tries so hard to be removed. The controlled brevity of the writing is almost clipped, as if the narrator is afraid to let too much out.

"Cath
She stands
With a well-intentioned man

"But she can't
Relax
With his hand
On the small
Of her back"

It's Cath's wedding day. Whispers that it won't last run up and down the pews. The overloaded electric guitar is in sharp contrast to Ben Gibbard's voice.

"But you said your vows
And you closed the door
On so many men
Who would've loved you more"

Some might lump these songs and these bands into well-known (and boring) categories. But One eskimO's "Kandi" verges on a rare soul sound and Death Cab gives "Cath…" a lasting feel that will make me glad, years from now, to find it once again in my iTunes.

Both songs are also good Friday night music and good storytelling. That's why I'm playing them on Cutaway. Tune in starting at 7:00.

And check out the video for "Kandi" at oneeskimo.com. It's very sweet, bordering on childish. But the guitar playing penguin is just so right on. S/He is like every guitarist I've known: just keep playing, man. And on the last note of the song, the bucket drops. This video is part of a larger movie that One eskimO calls its visual album. Very creative, these kids.

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About the Show

I come from a radio family, so I've known lots of DJs. My favorites always turned me on to new music. This is how our musical tastes (and libraries) expand.

This is one thing I'll try to do on Cutaway.

And I have to do it right. I remember riding in the car with my dad or brother and they'd point to the radio and say things like "nice segue." Really. Or they'd yell at the dash if the DJ played two songs back-to-back that just didn't go together.

The pressure's on, sort of. I have a legacy of good radio to live up to, but I have my horts (co- and otherwise) here at NCPR and, of course, you listeners to help me along.

And I have a bunch of great Friday music to play.

Tune in and let me know what you think--and what you want to hear next week.

Thanks-
Jonathan

Your comments and questions are always welcome!
E-mail Jonathan

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