Sea Lion Woman

I can hardly contain myself when it comes to Feist's new album "The Reminder" which came out officially in Canada this past Tuesday. I've been listening to the album since last weekend(when I bought it from Rotate This who had it prior to the release date) and it's the first album of 2007 that's bowled me over. When Feist's "Let It Die" came out in 2004, it was a breath of fresh air with Feist's shimmering vocals and the music's meticulously arranged jazzy pop instrumentation. It was an album of originals and covers, the singles(eg. "One Evening", "Inside And Out", "Mushaboom", "Gatekeeper") which were downright outstanding, but other songs were merely just ok in my opinion. Where the "Let It Die" material really excelled was in a live setting. I've always been disappointed with the meticulousness of the production on the album. Live, the songs were much looser, less anchored to technical proficiency and the imperfections in my opinion were what made the songs shine. Listen to Feist sing and play guitar on a live rendition of her cover of Ron Sexsmith's "Secret Heart" and I can guarantee it will slay the album version any day.

Recently Feist has bestowed on her fans her follow-up album "The Reminder". Where "Let It Die" meandered in terms of memorable pop melodies, the melodies on "The Reminder" are much more assured. The songs are given room to breathe also with looser performances and less clausterphobic production, resulting in a sound that more closely emulates her live sound and vibe. Songs range from playful pop romps like "1234"(complete with handclaps and horn arrangements) and "My Moon, My Man"(with it's simple, yet effective piano bass melody), the acoustic, demo-sounding "The Park"(which sounds like it was recorded outside with what sounds like birds chirping in the background), the soulful melancholy of lead-off track of "So Sorry", the effervescent pop of "Past In Present", the soul-meets-Bacharach pop of "Limit To Your Love", and the torchy "The Water". Resurrected from The Red Demos, the intimate spareness of "Intuition" is so, so lovely. One cover song appears on the album, Nina Simone's "Sea Lion Woman" - I haven't heard the original but Feist's take is an interesting vocal, percussive experiment. I would continue to gush, but I'm sure you get the picture.
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There's a torrent over at Dimeadozen of a recording(lossless format) of Feist's recent show in Schillertheater, Berlin, GER on April 23, 2007. Includes many of the new songs.

Thanks to Brooklyn Heathen for pointing me to the direction of The London Paper who have a video interview with Leslie which also includes clips of an outdoor performance.

Leslie's been doing some local promo and she appeared on MTV Live and MuchMusic's MuchOnDemand yesterday(March 2, 2007). Both appearances have already been archived on the respective websites, but I've linked them below for convenience(sorry, but I think only internet users from Canadian internet providers will be the only ones able to view the clips):

Video: Feist - "Sea Lion" (live on MTV Live - May 2, 2007)
Video: Feist - interview clip (live on MTV Live - May 2, 2007)
Video: Feist - "1234" (live on MTV Live - May 2, 2007)
Video: Feist - "Honey, Honey" (live on MTV Live - May 2, 2007)
Video: Feist - Interview (part 1/3) (live on MuchOnDemand - May 2, 2007)
Video: Feist - Interview (part 2/3) (live on MuchOnDemand - May 2, 2007)
Video: Feist - Interview (part 3/3) (live on MuchOnDemand - May 2, 2007)

MySpace: Feist

Feist will be performing in Toronto for two shows at Massey Hall on May 25 and 26(I'm going on the 26th) but before that she will be appearing on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on May 8(my b'day!).