Music to Create To - Imogen Heap :: Ellipse

The time has come, my friends. The long awaited, much anticipated album "Ellipse" from Imogen Heap has arrived. And since Monday when I got my pre-release mp3 album it hasn't stopped playing in my car, on my iPod or iMac depending on where I am physically. Not that this is actually possible, but if I had to use one word to describe this album musically it would be "stacatto" (a music term meaning "short detached notes"). Every song is filled with these short bits of melody and layered ambient noise and sound. Even the more sweeping and legato (opposite of stacatto) songs seem like they are created by knitting together small pieces of sound and space to create the illusion of continual sound. What's amazing is that there isn't a feeling of it being choppy or detached or unrelated. It all works together and it's beautiful. Lyrically it's a masterpiece as well. Some songs like "Canvas" I'm still processing. Wondering if there is one interpretation or if I'm supposed to discover my own. Others like "Bad Body Double" are hilarious, straight forward slices of everyday life put to melody, rhythm and rhyme. Truthfully, I could go on and on about this album. I love it. It was well worth the four year wait and I'm hoping and praying that her tour comes within a 5 hour drive of Phoenix. But I'll leave you with her website www.imogenheap.com where you can purchase the album and a little teaser with her first video for the song "Canvas". Enjoy!

Music to Create To - Upcomming new releases that I just can't wait for!

Ask my who my top 5 musical artists are on any given day and you will probably get a different mix every time. However, there's no doubt that there are two ladies that are mainstays in that group (though their numbered positions may move a bit). And lucky for me, they both have new albums releasing this summer.
Not to be dramatic, but the music of Imogen Heap may have changed my life. I think I played her last album "Speak for Yourself" for six months straight. Then, when I saw her in concert I couldn't believe that she sounded just as good if not better, live. To this day I maintain that her concert is the best I've ever been to. It's been a long four years since that album debuted, but the wait is almost over for some new Imogen tunes. August 4th her new album "Ellipse" will be released, and I'm thinking about making a paper chain to count down the days. Keep up to speed with single and video releases at her website www.imogenheap.co.uk

The second of the "ladies" is Regina Spektor, whose new album "Far" is due to release in just a few short weeks on June 23rd. It took a while for Regina to grow on me...she has got to be one of the most quirky song writers around. But once she did, I was addicted. Sometimes I think it would be a fun creativity inducing project to try and visually interpret her songs, but then I get a headache thinking about it. Head to her myspace page here to listen to new tracks and see the video for her first single "Laughing With".
So, those are the two albums I'm eagerly anticipating this summer. I hope you'll pick them up on iTunes or wherever they're available and do something incredibly creative while listening to them!