June 29, 2004

 
Be Kind To Me, Or Treat Me Mean

Fiona Apple "Extraordinary Machine" - I had been hoping that the new Fiona Apple record would be good, but this leaked track blows away even my best expectations. Apple seems far less depresso this time around, though no less self absorbed, but that's no big problem given that emotional exhibitionism has always been a big part of her appeal. Her talent for melody is even more developed now, and as ever, she manages to pull off cabaret and musical theatre stylings without coming off as deliberately anachronistic as a lesser talent like Nellie McKay, who even at her best seems like the musical equivalent of an NPR totebag.

Unfortunately, Sony has no immediate plans for releasing Apple's new album, apparently because they do not know how to market this music. Frankly, I think that if their marketing people believe that they cannot sell this record, they are fools who just aren't cut out for their jobs. Did they entirely miss the part when Norah Jones sold several million copies of two albums even more sedate and out of time than this? Were they taking a nap when careful marketing based on playing up the relative "difficulty" of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot and OK Computer helped push Wilco and Radiohead from modest sales to becoming popular cult acts with critical acclaim and high profile media coverage? Playing up snob appeal can sell records - there's a lot of casual record buyers out there who want to hear music which appeals to their sense of (safe) ecclecticism, and would like to buy into a narrative in which an "authentic" artist is "pushing the boundaries."

The way things are now, if Fiona Apple had made a super mainstream pop record, it probably wouldn't do as well as something like this, which takes what she was already doing one step further. For the most part, people don't want cult acts to change too drastically - people go to them for a specific sound and personality, and it's best to let them be who they are and let their audience snowball. Moving away from the essential appeal alienates the core audience, who are key to initial sales and word of mouth. Look at Liz Phair - if her last record was more like Exile In Guyville II, I'm sure it would've sold twice as many copies. Sony seems entirely misguided - Fiona Apple doesn't need a hit single, she just needs some clever marketing and PR people who will keep her from freaking out in public.

Sharkey (featuring Jean Grae) "Summer In The City (Lovin' It)" - This is taken from the debut LP by Washington, DC based producer Sharkey (not to be confused with Dizzee Rascal cohort Sharky Major), Sharkey's Machine. The record is a bit lacking in terms of consistency, but this track with Jean Grae is top notch. Grae's confident verses and Sharkey's retro-mid-90s DJ style is fine enough, but the real draw here is the chorus, which will make your head nod and stick to your brain like industrial strength adhesive. (Click here to buy it from Amazon, or subscribe to House Of Heavy and get it on the newest Sumosonic compilation cd.)