Interview

Bears are making the news this week. An angry mama bear attacked and killed two Palestinian militants taking a snack break in her den in Kashmir. In Eastern Germany, three bears in captivity are losing their hair–one is almost completely bald. And, of course, this morning, bears of a different sort–the Stearns kind–were taken to task in a Brooklyn courtroom.

What do bears have to do with music? Unclear, but it would be impossible not to notice the glut of bands with the word "bear" in their name. It's not quite as rampant as the use of "black" or "crystal" or, even worse, "wolf," but it's a bona fide trend. Of course, if the bears are taking over, it seems a better bet to join them, rather than fight:

The Dance Art Bears

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The retro-minded, multilingual, virtuosic musicians of Pink Martini gleefully trip across boundaries with each new album. Splendor in the Grass, their latest, is no different. Jam-packed with unlikely excavations, inspired collaborations, obscure covers, and lyrics in languages ranging from Japanese to Neapolitan, it's a gift to music magpies the world over. We asked Portland, Oregon-based bandleader (and walking music encyclopedia) Thomas Lauderdale for an insider's tour of the track list.

Ninna Nanna
Written by Alba Clemente and Massimo Audiello

I was amazed that in the nineties, Alba had four children and stayed out really late at Jackie 60 on Tuesday nights.  We flew her out with at least six drag queens from there, and they sort of scandalized Portland. We wrote "Una Notta in Napoli," her first foray into songwriting, and I asked her if she'd ever consider writing a lullaby, so she and Massimo came up with "Ninna Nanna." In the middle of the song, I thought it made sense to sample Hugo Alfvén's "Swedish Rhapsody #1," which comes from a music box from my childhood.  It kind of just goes along with my whole idea that it's best to collaborate with people who are not songwriters, because what comes out is unbelievably beautiful.

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For certain segments of the population, it was impossible to miss the report that Morrissey (now a half-century old) collapsed during a show this past weekend. Thankfully, he's since recovered and is continuing his tour. The incident reminds me of when, back in 2000, Bryan Ferry of Roxy Music was nearly killed on a commercial flight when a deranged passenger snuck into the cockpit, grabbed the controls, and threw the plane into a nosedive. At their age, both artists should be kicking back, getting tans, and enjoying themselves.

Besides wishing him the best, I've compiled a list of my five favorite Smiths songs, along with tracks from some oft-overlooked bands of the same era who share Morrissey's penchant for jangly guitars and wavering, literate vocals. And it's all great music for fall.

Girlfriend in a Coma The Smiths

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The first time I heard "In for the Kill" was in Paris during the Chanel couture show. If that weren't incentive enough to see them in New York (and it was!) my friend Richard Raymond, a film producer who has just worked on a film called Heartless (It's a thriller and a love story and a horror film—in one! And not yet out in America), was dying to go. The lead in Heartless is played by cutie pie-cum-heartthrob Jim Sturgess. Long story short, Jim's girlfriend is Mickey O'Brien,  keyboardist for La Roux.

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Cronyism aside, the La Roux show was amazing. La Roux (the lady) apologized for her lungs, and explained she'd been forced to cancel a bunch of sets on her tour. Every time she put the microphone out in front of her, it meant she was winded, and that the audience should sing for her. But she trudges onward: I watched the tour bus drive away to Boston.

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