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08/28/08 Koolhaus Toronto, ON
Solo Discography
08/29/08 Royal Oak Music Theatre Royal Oak,MI 08/31/08 Ravinia Festival Highland Park, IL 09/02/08 The Pageant St Louis, MO 09/03/08 Ryman Auditorium Nashville, TN 09/04/08 Bama Theatre Tuscaloosa, AL 09/05/08 Variety Playhouse Atlanta, GA 09/06/08 Carolina Theatre Greensboro, NC 09/08/08 The National Richmond, VA 09/09/08 Recher Theatre Towson, MD 09/14/08 Westhampton Beach PAC NY
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You must have remembered "Voices Carry" by 'Til Tuesday in the early 80s, don't you? What I know about the song is that it was inspired by a breakup between singer Aimee Mann and then-boyfriend Michael Hausman, also in the band (both were previously in another band called The Young Snakes).
The video, like all music videos from the 80s, was pretty cheesy, with a 80s new wave hairstyle... it's definitely one of the best MTV videos, very unforgettable, like "Take On Me" by A-Ha.
'Til Tuesday broke up after releasing three albums between '85-88, and shortly Mann declared her solo music career. By this time, "alternative" was just making its way to MTV's 120 Minutes, a show that I actually remember seeing her music video for "I Should've Known" on for her debut album, Whatever. I just remember liking her hair in the video.
By the way, I love the cover art to this album. I remember how cool her Dr Martens were, that a year later, I bought my first pair when I was on holiday in London.
Anyway, her latest album is called @#%&*! Smilers (if you're not familar with 'comic book' symbols, the "@#%&*!" stands for "Fucking"), inspired by a thread on the newsgroup alt.bitter. The lyric book is all 50s-style pop artwork, all original artwork by a famed artist Gary Taxali, who lends a very distinctive style to the overall package. You can watch the video where she talks about her album artwork on Face Culture.
There are two version of this album, I only have the standard edition for reference, but I have seen the very nice limited edition, which looks like it was hardcover book with two holes (see amazon). Although it's slightly more expensive, I do always recommend getting the limited version.
The album starts off with "Freeway", a song about a guy who has a lot of money, but can't even drive on the freeway (probably because the law enforcement would pull him over for the lack of paying his tickets).
There are a few songs that caught my attention on the record. I liked the toned down "Stranger into Starman" song. The song shows off Mann's easy-to-listen to voice, backed by just a piano and a splash of violins at the end. I also really enjoyed the duet with Sean Hayes on "Ballantines". There's a point in the song that Hayes sounds like he's playing trumpet with his lips.
The big single from this record is "31 Today". I thought it was interesting to note that if that song was really about Aimee Mann, then that would've meant she wrote that song in 1991, just a little after 'Til Tuesday broke up.
Also, be sure to check out my favorite off the album, the foot-tapper "Borrowing Time".
With nearly thirty years in the music industry, Mann shows us that she's still going strong... and well-traveled since her days in 'Til Tuesday. @#%&*! Smilers is available now at all retail locations, and at the moment there is a promotion at Target to sell it for $11.98.
