I’ve been slacking on the music posts lately so I’m now trying to compensate. One of my new favorite albums is called “C’mon Miracle” by Mirah. I was sitting around studying and finally got around to giving this album a try. So, with headphones and laptop at the ready, I dumped all the tracks into Windows Media Player and listened.
During those thirty-five or so minutes, I did about three minutes of real, actual work. I was dumbfounded. Mirah is awesome. Her voice commands attention – it’s like she’s whispering thoughts into your ear that you’re sure you’ve thought at least once in your life. The songwriting is solid; there is no verse-chorus-verse-bridge-whatever humdrum repetition. She really gets creative with the song structures. And then there is the instrumentation: she goes from classical guitar, to piano, to a harp-sounding thing, to grungy guitar, and back again. And there is some Latin influence as well. There’s wasn’t a dull moment on the album.
If you’re looking for a musical reference, think PJ Harvey, Fiona Apple, Juliana Hatfield, and Tori Amos. Of course this really doesn’t do her justice, but it’s a start.
I really suggest you give this album a shot, and to convince you, I’m posting two of the tracks. Now, Mirah is on K Records. I don’t imagine K will throw a fit if a blogger posts two of their artist’s tracks for a few days, nor do I imagine Mirah will mind. But, should they, I’ll remove the tracks. After all, K posts quite a few songs on their own webpage presumably in an effort to attract fans.
With that little bit of legal reasoning out of the way, I suggest you listen to these with headphones vs on a stereo – it adds to the effect. Please save these directly to your computer as streaming will eat bandwidth.
mirah – the light
mirah – we’re both so sorry
an interview with Mirah
Much thanks to Aaron for the recommendation. Rebecca, one of these is going on your cd.
Comments (6)
URL: http://www.morninglightrecords.com
Just to give you the heads up, Morning Light Records is going to be releasing a live Mirah album entitled "College Park is Always Ready to Party" in mid-March. It's a limited edition 12" LP records, and CD is coming in the summer. Check it out at www.morninglightrecords.com.
Posted by Vinnie | February 10, 2007 8:15 PM
Posted on February 10, 2007 20:15
hey dood. glad you like.
Posted by p-man | February 10, 2007 8:15 PM
Posted on February 10, 2007 20:15
URL: http://
great songs, dood. thanks for the rec. someone had put a mirah song on the mix cds that some of the people in the jude discussion group exchanged with each other (myself and sophia included) but that song wasn't real impressive. i'm very glad to hear these and will give her another shot.
Posted by amanda | February 10, 2007 8:15 PM
Posted on February 10, 2007 20:15
URL: http://
glad you guys like it. be sure to get the Mark Ashworth song too. he was a student at UT Austin and recorded that song when he was a junior. not sure what he's up to now though.
Posted by p-man | February 10, 2007 8:15 PM
Posted on February 10, 2007 20:15
Hey, thanks for the email reply. Mirah is great. The two songs you posted are particularly good. Nice choices. I also went to her website and am enamored with "Cold Cold Water" (I keep thinking Damien Rice when I read out that title though). Her CDs definitely seem to be worthwhile purchases. Anyway, thanks for the re-introduction.
Posted by visualsimplicity | February 10, 2007 8:15 PM
Posted on February 10, 2007 20:15
URL: http://
YAY! Mirah actually broke the song line that was driving me nuts! (and it's good stuff, too!)
Posted by swandive00 | February 10, 2007 8:15 PM
Posted on February 10, 2007 20:15