Elyse :: Houses
when i was living in columbus, i partied at the “cleveland house” everyday. actually we were a lot like an asshole frat house. we became the epitome of what we hated… dude in chicken suit, non stop chanting, blow-up doll on the wall, filling the interior stair with snow and sledding out the front door, blah blah blah, etc. this band i was in played a show at a party there once, filled with total debauchery. the entire floor was soaked because of the snow we had packed in the house. and i swear to god i saw a couple making-out and then she puked in a houseplant and they immediately went back to frenching.
when i left, i had a suitcase filled with guitar pedals. the suitcase was heavy and black with sharp metal trimmed edges. the guitar pedals made it even heavier. so yeah, i’m leaving the party with some friends and the stairs to the front porch are a solid block of ice. so i take a step down ever so gently placing my foot on the ice below about five feet from some parked cars. whoop! i slip on the ice feet in the air arms flailing like a jackass. in mid air, my suitcase swings in full circle like Pete Townshend’s power windmill all the way around from behind me to the front. my ass hits the ice below, my head hits the curb and my suitcase with all my pedals swings around and slams me in the nuts. i slide across the ice underneath a parked pickup truck and was laughing so hard i peed my pants.
yeah, so this song is for the upcoming spring. it sounds like the sun setting, wearing sunglasses and leather jackets with fringe. Elyse is canadian, which is why the crying, wailing guitar is played by the one and only Neil Young, and backed by the band soon to become Touch. she sings with pure feel and without precision, making it seem like the whole band is playing inside of a barn on a Sunday afternoon just rehearsing. she sings “I’ve got my ticket in my hand and I’m bound for the promised land” and goddamn she means it. not americana, but canadiana.
Houses
Elyse (label site)
More information (In Music We Trust site)
(Elyse’s self-titled debut was reissued in 2001 by Orange Twin, an elephant six non-profit to fund a small village of artists. the original vinyl does not have this song on it.)
joshua said on tuesday, march 11th, 2008
jenny said on tuesday, march 11th, 2008
oh my god. ditto, josh, i LOVE this. thanks, johnny.
hiram said on tuesday, march 11th, 2008
Oh man, this is really nice. Thanks for putting it up here. Now I’ve gotta go dig up her stuff.
markt said on tuesday, march 11th, 2008
Johnny—this song is tremendous!
Tonight, for dinner, I’ll have an egg, sunny-side-up, over rice, listen to this song, and think of you. But I won’t think about you in a chicken suit with pee pants, because that would make eggy rice come out my nose.
tina said on tuesday, march 11th, 2008
I love you man
Jason said on wednesday, march 12th, 2008
Ah… you nailed it.
Rob said on thursday, march 13th, 2008
Jeez. Just great.
Holy crow, there’s about a hundred things I love about this post. First the song, which is utterly amazing. The swerving vocals, the crazy timing, the bass line, Young’s cropped solo at 1:50, the moment at the very end where you can hear a drop-out in these ancient master tapes. Lovely, all of it.
Second, Elyse Weinberg’s story, which is so ordinary and beautiful and also remarkable. And third that the Elephant Six cats dug up this record at the thrift and went to lengths to re-issue it. I always feel great when musicians I admire are also doing great things.
And lastly, I can’t stop cracking up thinking about the Cleveland House: dude in a chicken suit and non-stop chanting. So damn funny.
Thanks Johnny.