Just got the new Dirty Projectors album Bitte Orca.
It’s pretty wonderful. I have a feeling that it’s way cooler than I am, though, as if I should find something better to wear just to listen to it. That is to say, the R&B-like vocals are gorgeous and everything else is one step ahead of what you’re expecting. This was my introduction to the Dirty Projectors, and it has me interested to listen to their older work.
Also music-related, I saw Coraline (the musical) on Saturday! The production as a whole was delightful, and the music was extremely Stephin Merritt—plenty of fun rhyming, unusual instrumentation (oodles of toy pianos!), and just-right melodies. I left wishing that there had been one or two more “wow” moments, but if anything, the story was my least favorite part. (I know I should read the book before saying that though, so consider it unsaid.)
Coraline is only playing through July 5th, so if you are a Stephin Merritt or Magnetic Fields fan in NY get a ticket before it closes!
I really loved the book, but as far as I remember from reviews both the musical and movie don’t really match the story from the book that closely. Slightly more in the style of than a faithful retelling.
I enjoyed watching the movie, and only when I was thinking about it later did the differences between the book and the movie start to grate on me.