Original photo by James Frost
Everybody got some favourite albums. Music that accompanied yourself through difficult times, records that acted like a friend when there was real one around. Whether it was the sound around the times of your first kiss or the starting point of your own attempts to take a deeper look into new musical territories. We all have this record somewhere in our hearts and private collections. In this category NOTHING BUT HOPE AND PASSION lets the artist’s do the writing as they share their personal stories and feelings on their most loved record with us.
Our latest contributors to the category are Barbara and Ethan Gruska aka THE BELLE BRIGADE. The Californian duo will release its debut LP ‘Just Because’ on the 1st of December via ATO Records, packed with strong singer/songwriter moments by the crafted brother/sister duo. For us, they open up about their favourite albums.
Ethan on: ELLIOTT SMITH – ‘XO’ (1998)
Do you remember the time when you bought that record?
Barbara actually gave me XO when I was around 13 or 14 and told me she thought it was something I would really like. At first I was skeptical because of ELLIOTT‘s voice. At the time I was only really listening to stuff that my parents had in their car or at home and I hadn’t really started doing any of my own musical exploring yet. They were listening to really classic songs with classic singers and I was used to things like that, so hearing this new kind of singing and songwriting was pretty new to me. Almost immediately I found the amazing beauty in his voice that still affects me so deeply today. It has become one of my favorite voices… XO was a really important record for me as a teenager and was a major influence on me when I started writing my first songs on the piano. Eventually I bought myself a copy and listened over and over AND OVER again, and I still haven’t gotten burnt out on it!
Was there a special trigger that initially made you buy the album?
At the time, all of the cool stuff that I was starting to listen to was coming from my sister Barbara. She was the person that inspired me to branch out. She knew I was a huge BEATLES fan and I think as my cool, older sister, she wanted to turn me onto something more modern and thought that XO would be a good place to start. It really was a perfect record for me and I remember driving around with her and starting to freak out about how good it was and it was a great bonding moment at the time.
Please explain in a few words why it is so special for you?
XO is so special to me because they were some of the first songs I had real emotional reactions to. It came to me at a time in my life when I was starting to think and feel in a different way than I ever had before, and being able to really connect with these somewhat esoteric and melancholy songs felt like I was advancing as a human being. It remains special to me now because of its nostalgia, but also because the songwriting is so unparalleled to me and it is so unique and haunting. It was my first ELLIOTT SMITH record and it led me to all of his other ones and there isn’t one that I don’t like. XO is actually not my favorite of his records, but because of how influential it was to me I have the strongest connection to it.
What’s your favourite song on the album and why?
I think there was a pretty substantial amount of time where Independence Day was all I listened to. It’s so brooding and mellow but has this amazing feel and groove… It’s so hypnotic which is something I really love in a recording. The guitar arrangements on the whole record are insane, but this one really stood out to me when I first heard it. His singing and the lyrics go perfectly together, and even when I listen now, I’m taken right back to adolescence without all the acne and anxiety.
Why should one listen to that record today? Anything about the album that speaks to the people today as well?
I personally believe that ELLIOTT SMITH is the best songwriter of his era, and his entire catalog is worth listening to. Melodically these songs are totally timeless in a BEATLES sort of way, and XO seems to be the first of his solo records where he really focused on making hi-fi recordings which is a really cool moment for any artist or band. The guitar playing on the record is mind blowing and lyrically, although sometimes hard to pin down, he is always interesting and highly personal. Anybody who likes music that is brutally honest will dig this record, although it’s been known to really bum people out because it can be pretty sad. That being said, XO has some of the more ‘happy’ and bright songs in his catalog so it’s a good one to start with. Obviously some people won’t connect at all, but I don’t really know anybody that hasn’t been moved by one of his songs.
Any other work by the artist you can recommend? Or any other album you’d like to give some credit right here?
My favorite ELLIOTT SMITH record is Either/Or. The recordings are absolutely magical and lo-fi and the songwriting is the most interesting to me. Highlights off that record for me are Alameda, Punch and Judy, Ballad of Big Nothing, Between the Bars and Angeles. It’s hard to choose those because every single song is AMAZING! I also love Figure 8 and his self titled record. It’s all amazing… I’m probably preaching to the choir here but if you don’t know his stuff please please do yourself a favor and listen NOW! I miss his presence in this world and I’m grateful for the music he left behind!
Barbara on: Sly and The Family Stone – ‘Fresh’ (1973)
Do you remember the time when you bought that record?
Yeah, I bought it in highschool in the late 90’s at the Tower Records on Ventura and Van Nuys in the valley.
Was there a special trigger that initially made you buy the album?
I was a junkie for James Brown, Stevie Wonder and 70’s Herbie Hancock records at that time because the drumming was so incredible. I played along to all those records constantly in my moms garage. I heard about SLY from a bass player at school so the next time I was at Tower I thumbed through all his albums and I was most drawn to the Fresh album cover where SLY is doing a flying jump kick in platform heels with studded leather pants and jacket, a bare chest and a massive smile. I was like, ‘I’ll start with this one.’
Please explain in a few words why it is so special for you?
Then and now this record lives up to its name. It’s Fresh. I had never heard anything like it then and I still haven’t. I just remember my first thought was, holy shit this sounds like a funky-ass freedom circus. I don’t know if that thought translates to people outside of my own brain. I don’t know how to describe him without sounding like I’m on mushrooms… Ok I’ll try – Everything he writes, sings and plays sound like his guts are made of rainbows. Dang, I did it again!
What’s your favourite song on the album and why?
I don’t have a favorite. They’re all perfect.
Why should one listen to that record today? Anything about the album that speaks to the people today as well?
There are too many people of today for me to have my finger on the pulse of what they like, but if we are talking about the lump of people who can’t get enough of soulful, unafraid, undeniably danceable and irresistibly fun music made by gifted human beings, then I would say this will speak to you! Fresh will not disappoint!
Any other work by the artist you can recommend? Or any other album you’d like to give some credit right here?
I love every SLY record but for a SLY virgin I’d say go with Stand! If you’re already a Sly fan and love all the classic hits, check out his first record A Whole New Thing. My favorite is track number 12, Dog.
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