A band defying the tradition which dictates that groups with the word “electric” in their names shall perish when they’re young (see “Electric Flag” for a good example), “Ovejas Eléctricas” [Electric Sheep] up the ante with the release of a new promotional video.
It revolves around the song “Ser Astronauta Hoy” [To Be A Spaceman Today], and it has been extracted from their album “Pueblo de Fantasmas” [Ghost Town], which you can download for free on their own site.
A Spanish-language album which sounds noticeably English, “Pueblo de Fantasmas” is made up of ten songs – the CD was actually started as an EP that got expanded along the way, becoming a full work on its own right. At least half the numbers are A-side quality – the physical opener “Larga Distancia” [Long Distance] with its clinging guitars and defeatist lyrics that still speak of fulfillment, the broody, Radiohead-esque “Un Pie En La Tierra” [One Foot In The Earth], “Entre Máquinas” [Between Machines] with vocals and melodies that soar as much as the lyrics demand… My personal favorite is “El Sol y Otras Mentiras” [The Sun and Other Lies], mainly on strength of the lyrics, which recapitulate the one conversation I had with the band in person not so long ago, and their stance as regards the contemporary music scene. And the seesawing fade (from minute 3:50 onwards) is also a good example of the attention they pay to detail when crafting their songs.
Some physical copies of “Pueblo de Fantasmas” were pressed in 2012, and the band was kind-enough to hand me the last one in existence that day we met in person. That’s what they said to me, at least. I know that people lie all the time. Elton John told me so:
Anyway, they seemed very nice chaps – drummer Federico Moleda, guitarist Pablo Balmelli and vocalist/guitarist Federico Tabaj.
And they bought me a coffee and a bacon sandwich, so I guess all should remain quiet on the Western front.
Plus, they all autographed it:
Besides, the day we met I managed to buy “Something For The Rest Of Us”, by the Goo Goo Dolls – an album I’ve got quite an elusive history with. And I also sighted the deluxe edition of Taylor Swfit’s “Speak Now”, which I bought some time later (IE, the next day at 9 AM).
I am not a fan or a devout follower of her music or anything like that, you know. I just have a fleeting interest in her discography.
The deluxe edition of “Speak Now” has an additional CD with some acoustic sides (“Back To December” is the stand-out tune, as it mimics the live version played during the 2012 tour), and the American mixes of some singles – “Mine” has much better-defined backing vocals whereas “The Story Of Us” features a more prominent mandolin, specially during the second and third choruses.
There is also a mini-documentary affixed at the end which chronicles the recording process of the “Mine” music video, which to this day stands as the best-selling single of Tay Tay’s career. It was also the second song she played on stage night after night during the “Speak Now” tour, right after the incendiary “Sparks Fly”.
Incidentally, does anybody know when tickets for the South American leg of her 2014 tour will go on sale?
I mean, a friend wants to go. Badly. It’s a life-or-death matter.
I am not a fan myself, you know.
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