Little Triggers (and Wikis)

Lately, I've been listening to a lot of Elvis Costello. Like I do with many artists I like, I go through phases of liking his music a lot. What is it about him that brings me such joy? Well, his incredibly literate, sarcastic and sometimes even poetic lyrics are a good place to start.

"Sometimes I almost feel like a human being."

"Women would slap you if you knew any."

"She's filing her nails while they're dragging the lake."

See what I mean?

I also like the passion with which he sings his songs. He can sing very beautifully at times, but most of the time he's yelling, screaming, sounding like he's in pain, or sounding completely bored. His voice is a fine instrument, and it can often express a lot more than even his lyrics can.

I also like how great his former band, the Attractions, were. Most rock bands use the electric guitar as the centerpiece, but not the Attractions. They used bass, drums and keyboards as the main instruments and let Elvis support them with his never-overdone guitar playing. Some tracks have very little lead guitar on them, leaving Bruce Thomas' bass guitar to play the main melody. Not your usual setup! Also, they could just plain rock.

During my Elvis Costello mood this past weekend, I found a couple good links for fans and those wanting to learn more:

The Elvis Costello Wiki

Elvis Costello Fan Forum

The next album I'm going to buy will probably be Elvis' debut, My Aim Is True. I could wait until the new Deluxe version is released, but I'll probably buy the Rhino version instead. I hardly ever listen to bonus discs anyway. The Deluxe version does sound awfully tempting (it includes an entire Attractions concert), but I think the previous two-disc version will suit me well.