Gray Days and Gold, March 2020
Hello, friends! Gray Days and Gold is here to keep you company in these bizarre days of COVID19–enforced seclusion (and, for some, idleness and boredom). If you’re just discovering Gray Days and Gold, here’s an introduction that explains the show’s raison d’être.
First, a little housekeeping: my previous post featured a download giveaway of the new A Girl Called Eddy album. The winner, randomly drawn from eligible entries, was Graham Cleaver from Ipswich, UK, director and presenter at his local station Ipswich Community Radio. Thanks for listening, Graham!
Also, obviously we’re at an unprecedented moment in our lifetimes, unsure how long or fundamentally COVID19 will change society and our daily lives. What’s immediately obvious is that independent musicians—for whom live performance might be the only meaningful source of revenue—will be greatly affected by forced cancellations of events and gatherings. If you’re in a position to help them out by purchasing some music, now’s the time.
And since this show is intended to be a respite from societal woes, that’s the last you’ll hear from me this month regarding the pandemic. Without further ado, here’s the sound of March.
You can listen via the embedded player just below in this post—if you don’t see it, try turning off your ad-blocker then reloading the page—or on the Mixcloud website, via the Mixcloud mobile app, on your Sonos system, etc.
For those who prefer Spotify, there’s also a more bare-bones iteration of this episode’s playlist here (minus my commentary, as well as any songs that are missing from Spotify’s library).
Gray Days and Gold, March 2020
- LAKE, “She Plays One Chord” (2020) • BUY
- Léo Ferré, “Ecoutez la Chanson Bien Douce” (1964) • BUY
- Mamomo, “かえるレイン” (2020) • BUY
- Rejoicer, “Pre Memory Circle” (2020) • BUY
- Cabane feat. Kate Stables, “Until the Summer Comes” (2020) • BUY
- Mellotron Variations, “Dulcimer Bill” (2019) • BUY
- Giles, Giles & Fripp, “Digging My Lawn” (1968) • BUY
- Hélène Renaut, “In Time” (2020) • BUY
- Astral Brain, “From Above” (2019) • BUY
- Ryuichi Sakamoto, “Fotografia #2” (2005) • BUY
- Ilous & Decuyper, “L’Elu” (1972) • BUY
- Quincey May Brown, “Tight” (2020) • BUY
- Alabaster Deplume, “I Hope” (2020) • BUY
- Mappe Of, “Estuary II” (2019) • BUY
- M.E. Netzke, “If I Ever Disappear” (2019) • BUY
Appendix
There are a couple of artists in this episode about whom I know absolutely nothing—either they don’t seem to have left much of an online trail, or I’m simply unable to detect/interpret it. To help shed slightly more light on them, here are a couple of video supplements.
First, Mamomo giving a solo keyboard performance in his home studio.
And here’s M.E. Netzke with an acoustic rendition of his song “Cut and Run,” courtesy of the Common Room Music Collective in BC, Canada.
Lastly, since I gave his epic album somewhat short shrift by only including a brief instrumental (which doesn’t necessarily do justice to the scope of the record), here’s an interview with Mappe Of about The Isle of Ailynn, courtesy of CBC’s Q.
Thanks for listening and, at the risk of sounding like Jerry Springer, please take care of yourselves and each other. Keep in touch. And if you’d like to receive these posts via email, you can sign up below.
