Nylon - October 2008 - (Page 112) bookmark: (warner bros records) elephAnts … teeth sinKing intO heArt rAchAel YAMAgAtA You’ve heard rachael Yamagata, even if you haven’t heard of her: the new Yorkbased folk chanteuse’s songs have been featured on the O.c., the l Word, and in the sisterhood of the traveling pants. but following 2004’s happenstance, Yamagata has improved upon the indie-pop balladry that first caught the attention fans of Mandy Moore, with whom she toured. elephants … teeth sinking into heart takes a stab at a more experimental framework: a two-part album. produced by Mike Mogis (bright eyes, rilo Kiley) and John Alagia (John Mayer, dave Matthews band), elephants drips with raspy pipes, plaintive pianos, and swooning strings. she sings about unrequited love with unique lyrics that sound as if they are being sung through tear-soaked lips, and teeth sinking into heart (which is five songs; elephant, 10) plays a grittier tune than her past work: surf guitars crackle and her vocals are more visceral. it’s when the two parts are taken as a whole, though, that the songwriter’s bittersweet yarns sound best. sAMAnthA gileWicZ even as our communication skills are in rapid decline (“OMg whr r ur lolz??”) the english language remains an endless source of subject matter and analysis. in Alphabet Juice (farrar, straus & giroux), roy blount Jr., a contributing editor to the Atlantic Monthly, traces the roots of used and abused words and letters with a thoroughly bemused attitude of acceptance. Alphabet Juice is an examination of contemporary lexicons set up dictionary-style, and even includes an entry about snakes on a plane, which the author calls “a perfect example of the selfish meme. except it tried too hard,” and he frequently references urbandictionary.com, to which he is a proud supporter and contributor. Our Magnificent bastard tongue: the untold history of english (gotham books) is linguistics professor John McWhorter’s take on english’s evolution into a language full of incomprehensible rules. McWhorter shows how everyone from the Welsh to the celtics and the Vikings have had their way with english, and that if there ever was an illegitimate language whose mother deserved to be shipped off to a home for wayward girls, what we’re speaking is it. KAte WilliAMs AlphAbet Juice And Our MAgnificent bAstArd tOngue marnie sternAnd i AM it this is it (kill rock stars) And YOu Are it And sO is thAt And he is it And she is it And it is it And thAt is thAt bookmark: not every author known for a dry sense of humor would begin a book by describing a sermon given in 1630, but sarah Vowell, a frequent this American life contributor, takes that risk here. the “shipmates” in the Wordy shipmates (riverhead books) aren’t the popular Mayflower pilgrims, either, but an arguably less trendy (infrequently referenced in elementary school plays, anyway) but more prolific group of puritans bound for the Massachusetts bay colony. Words from their sermons resonated with Vowell after the events of september 11th, 2001, and she now sees the u. s.A. as “haunted by the puritans’ vision of themselves.” it’s an odd subject for a pop history book, but then Vowell (who was also the voice of Violet in the incredibles) is a u.s. history buff and once devoted an entire tome, Assassination Vacation, to chronicling her visits to the sites of presidential assassinations. in shipmates, Vowell’s sweet-and-sour style breaks the ice, but she’s also you-bet-your-life serious about how the puritans’ fondness for writing about their ideas and beliefs—what she calls their “wordiness”—still illuminates current politics, social movements, and historical events. Jennette selig the WOrdY shipMAtes good on Marnie stern for cementing the idea of shredding as a womanly act with her 2007 debut in Advance of the broken Arm. this time around, the new York city fireball proves she’s more than a mere one hit wonder. On the new album—let’s just call it it—stern harnesses her astonishing axe skills in a set of songs that spin real emotion out of stunning technique. the fiona Apple-esque title and odd rhythms might come off as a bit pretentious, but follow her proggy runs and shots of screamo vocals and you’ll find less lofty sentiments like determination (“roads?”), nostalgia (“shea stadium”), and a whole lot of frustration. though she isn’t the first female to be good at playing a guitar, stern stands on the shoulders of the pJ harveys and carrie brownsteins of the world with such conviction, it’s as if women in rock had never been marginalized at all. cristinA blAcK AcK 112 http://www.urbandictionary.com
For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.