onfocus

Last night Portland Cello Project played here in Corvallis and I got to hear them play Danse Macabre by Saint-Saens. Even with Halloween over it feels like the perfect soundtrack to the world right now.

The Awl recently had a great article about this song: What’s Spookier Than Saint-Saëns's 'Danse Macabre'? That opening dissonant tritone sounds like the devil. Hopefully playing and hearing that diabolus in musica has exorcised some of the evil in the world and we can get to a new soundtrack soon.

I just found out this devastating song by Big Thief exists and I can't go through it alone. So I'm sharing it here. You can switch to the full version for a bit of distance.

Margaret Glaspy is my current musical obsession. I've had her album in constant rotation for weeks and I'm still not tired of it. I've been trying to figure out why and I think it's just the simple guitar hooks she weaves in with her singing. That light, crunchy tone she gets with a telecaster pairs perfectly with her light, gravely voice. Pop needs guitars!