Jamie Block | |
|---|---|
 performing in studio | |
| Background information | |
| Also known as | camsdad1974 |
| Born | 3-13-74 |
| Origin | Long Island, New York; resides New York City |
| Genres | Anti-folk, Rock, Indie rock, alternative rock |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, piano |
| Years active | 1996–present |
| Labels | SonaBLAST! Records, Capitol Records, Java Records, Zensor |
Jamie Block is a New York City-based musician, known for being a prominent member of New York's anti-folk movement.
Block has been considered one of the early participants in New York's anti-folk movement, a raw and subversive form of folk music that is inspired heavily by punk rock and indie rock. Block includes a multitude of instruments and sounds within each album, including elements of punk rock, electronica, jazz and hip hop. Lyrically, Block focuses heavily on personal experiences and observations living in New York City. [1] [2] [3]
Block grew up on Long Island, New York. He went to college to study English in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, but dropped out and relocated to New York City, where he began his music career as a subway busker. [4] [5] In 1996, Block self-released his debut album, Lead Me Not Into Penn Station, which was well received by critics. In reviewing the album, Laurel Bowman of Alternative Press wrote that Block "practices the alchemy of melodious discord: pretty enough to draw you in, rough enough to keep you listening." [6] The CD included CD-ROM content, including video clips, song lyrics, photos and a New York City guide. [6] Block released a music video for the album song "Rhinoceros," which was broadcast on cable network MTV2. [7]
The positive reception for Penn Station helped Block book tours opening for The Brian Setzer Orchestra, Bob Mould, and They Might Be Giants, garnering notice from producer Glen Ballard. In 1998, Ballard, (known for co-writing and producing Alanis Morissette's album Jagged Little Pill ) started the Capitol Records imprint Java, and chose Block to be the first signed artist. Java released Block's sophomore album, Timing is Everything, on October 6, 1998. [8] [9] The album was generally very well received by critics, with Karen Iris Tucker of Time Out New York calling the album "stellar" and Matthew S. Robinson of The Boston Globe stating that the album is "tight, important and definitely well-timed." [10] [11] Following the album's release, Block toured with a full band, including Mark Hutchins on drums and John Abbey on bass. [12]
Several songs from the album appeared in feature films. "Rhinoceros" was featured in the 1999 romantic comedy Blast from the Past , "I Used to Manage PM Dawn" was featured in the 1999 Mary Lambert film Clubland , and Block's cover of the Perry Como song "Catch a Falling Star" was used in the opening credits for the 1999 romantic comedy Never Been Kissed. [4]
Despite being well received critically, the album did not sell as much as expected, and Block was dropped from Java records. [13] He ended up pursuing a career on Wall Street, getting a job as a financial advisor at a Manhattan investment firm. In the mid-2000s, he reportedly got interested in making music again after hearing one of his songs on Fordham University's non-commercial radio station WFUV. He connected with and was interviewed by WFUV DJ Claudia Marshall, who inspired him to record new material. [14]
In March 2006, Block released this third album, The Last Single Guy, on indie label SonaBLAST! Records. Like his previous albums, it was critically well-received, with Jo-Ann Greene of Allmusic calling the album "enthralling" and noting that "like a bedside book, this album can be played in one sitting, but so much better to dip in and out of it over time, letting one's mood determine one's favorites for the day." [1] Claudia Marshall of New York-based noncommercial radio station WFUV included the album in her "Best of 2006" list. [15]
In February 2013, Block released his fourth full-length album Whitecaps on the Hudson. The album was produced by Dean Sharenow and was recorded at New York City recording studios Excello and Steel Cut Audio. Featured musicians include bassist Byron Isaacs of New York-based folk band Ollabelle, guitarist Erik Della Penna who has recorded with Natalie Merchant and Joan Baez, and bassist Jeff Hill who was recorded with Rufus Wainwright. [16]
The album has generally been praised by critics. In a positive review, critic Nick DeRiso stated that songs on the album "blend the brutal, hard-won spoken-word honesty of Lou Reed with a rootsy, rattling cadence" and said that Block is a "vocalist capable of subtle, deeply emotional complexity." [17] Journalist Steven P. Marsh noted the personal nature of the songwriting, stating that the songs on the album "are perfectly crafted stories of a man whose life has had some twists and turns." [18]
Block has announced a tour of the Northeastern United States to support the album's release. [18]
In 2015, Block starred in, and co-wrote the feature film, Abby Singer/Songwriter , in a collaboration with the independent filmmaker Onur Tukel. [19]
In "Abby Singer/Songwriter," Jamie Block plays himself, as a divorced stockbroker has-been who was once an indie-rock star signed to Capitol Records who meets Onur Tukel, a hapless middle-aged filmmaker who has just moved to Brooklyn. In this coming-of-middle-age story, Onur persuades Block to sink his money into a series of increasingly absurd music videos to promote his comeback as a musician. Desperate to impress his two beautiful, nonchalant teenaged daughters, Block casts them in the videos, which then play on multiple screens throughout this hallucinatory film. As tension mounts between director and musician Block's bank account and grip on reality dwindle. [20]
Bedford and Bowery called the film, a "No-Budget, Poor Man's Birdman," while The New York Times' and Brooklyn Magazine named Abby Singer/Songwriter as a "Highlight" and "Best Bet" for the 2015 Brooklyn Film Festival. [21]
The film premiered internationally at the 2015 CIMMFest, had its East Coast premiere at the 2015 Brooklyn Film Festival, and had an extended festival run at festivals including Northside Festival, Lighthouse International Film Festival, and Buffalo International Film Festival where it won Special Jury Prize for Festival Feature. [22]
| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Lead Me Not Into Penn Station |
|
| Timing Is Everything |
|
| The Last Single Guy |
|
| Whitecaps on the Hudson |
|
| Year | Film | Credited Producer | Credited Writer | Credited Actor | Credited Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Abby Singer/Songwriter | Yes | Yes | Yes | Jamie Block | |
| 2017 | Black Magic for White Boys | Yes | Yes | Magician's Assistant | ||
Christine Lavin is a New York City-based singer-songwriter and promoter of contemporary folk music. She has recorded numerous solo albums, and has also recorded with other female folk artists under the name Four Bitchin' Babes. She is known for her sense of humor, which is expressed in both her music and her onstage performances. Many of her songs alternate between comedy and emotional reflections on romance.
The Decemberists are an American indie rock band from Portland, Oregon. The band consists of Colin Meloy, Chris Funk, Jenny Conlee, Nate Query (bass), and John Moen (drums).
Kathleen Margaret Edwards is a Canadian singer-songwriter and musician. Her 2002 debut album, Failer, contained the singles "Six O'Clock News" and "Hockey Skates". Her next two albums – Back to Me and Asking for Flowers – both made the Billboard 200 list and reached the top 10 of Billboard's Top Heatseekers chart. In 2012, Edwards' fourth studio album, Voyageur, became Edwards' first album to crack the top 100 and top 40 in the U.S., peaking at #39 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and #2 in Canada. In 2012, Edwards' song "A Soft Place To Land" won the SOCAN Songwriting Prize, an annual competition that honours the best song written and released by 'emerging' songwriters over the past year, as voted by the public. Her musical sound has been compared to Suzanne Vega meets Neil Young.
Willy Mason is an American singer-songwriter.
WFUV is a non–commercial radio station licensed to New York, New York. The station is owned by Fordham University, with studios on its Bronx campus and its antenna atop nearby Montefiore Medical Center. WFUV first went on the air in 1947. It became a professional public radio station in 1990 and is one of three NPR member stations in New York City. Its on-air staff has included radio veterans Dennis Elsas, Vin Scelsa, Pete Fornatale, Rita Houston, and current disc jockey Darren DeVivo.
Mya Adriene Byrne is an American singer-songwriter whose works falls mostly in the Americana vein, a combination of folk, blues and country music. Based in New York for 13 years, Byrne currently resides in Brooklyn after 8 years in the Bay and performs solo or with various bands on both coasts. In 2014, Byrne publicly announced her transgender status and transition and has continued to work as a musician and performer.
Garland Jeffreys is an American singer and songwriter in rock and roll, reggae, blues, and soul music.
"Hand in My Pocket" is a song by Canadian recording artist and songwriter Alanis Morissette from her third studio album, Jagged Little Pill (1995). The song was written by Morissette and Glen Ballard and was released as the second single from the album on October 16, 1995, five months after the album release. The song received generally favorable reviews from music critics, who applauded Morissette's songwriting.
Eric Andersen is an American folk music singer-songwriter, who has written songs recorded by Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, Judy Collins, Linda Ronstadt, the Grateful Dead and many others. Early in his career, in the 1960s, he was part of the Greenwich Village folk scene. After two decades and sixteen albums of solo performance he became a member of the group Danko/Fjeld/Andersen.
Mark Lamar Stewart, known by his stage name Stew, is an American singer-songwriter and playwright from Los Angeles, California, United States.
Arthur Roy Traum was an American guitarist, songwriter, and producer. Traum's work appeared on more than 35 albums. He produced and recorded with The Band, Arlen Roth, Warren Bernhardt, Pat Alger, Tony Levin, John Sebastian, Richie Havens, Maria Muldaur, Eric Andersen, Paul Butterfield, Paul Siebel, Rory Block, James Taylor, Pete Seeger, David Grisman, Livingston Taylor, Michael Franks and Happy Traum, among others. Traum's songs were featured on PBS, BBC, ESPN, CBS, and The Weather Channel. He toured in Japan, Europe and the U.S.
Lee Julian Pockriss was an American songwriter who wrote many well-known popular songs and several scores for films and Broadway shows, mainly during the 1960s and 1970s.
Mumford & Sons are a British folk rock band formed in London in 2007. The band consists of Marcus Mumford, Ted Dwane, and Ben Lovett.
Findlay Brown is a Yorkshire-born, Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter and producer. His music is melodic, gentle and intimate, drawing on influences from the rural settings where he grew up. His songs are metaphoric, often using nature's imagery to illustrate the inner conflict in the search for a more truthful way of living.
Samuel Benjamin Cohen is an American rock vocalist, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, artist, and producer based in Brooklyn, New York. A founding member of the psychedelic rock and pop band Apollo Sunshine, he released several albums with the group in the early 2000s. In 2009 he formed the solo project Yellowbirds, releasing the debut album The Color in 2011. This release was followed by Songs from the Vanished Frontier in 2013. The first Sam Cohen record, Cool It, was released on April 28, 2015 on Easy Sound Records, and primary featured Cohen playing all of the instruments. It was then re-released on Danger Mouse's imprint of Columbia Records, 30th Century Records, on June 3, 2016. Cohen is also known for his original collages on the Yellowbirds album covers, and his collage animation videos.
Jennifer Prediger is New York City–based actress, writer, and director known for the films Uncle Kent (2011), Red Flag (2012), and Apartment Troubles (2014)—her directorial debut with collaborator Jess Weixler. Prediger also played and wrote Ask Umbra, the "world's most trusted eco advice columnist," on Grist.org.
Richard's Wedding is a 2012 comedy/drama film written, edited, and directed by Onur Tukel. Among the film's ensemble cast are actors Josephine Decker, Randy Gambill, Lawrence Michael Levine, Jennifer Prediger, and Tukel himself.
Summer of Blood is a 2014 horror comedy vampire film written, edited, and directed by Onur Tukel. The film stars Tukel, Anna Margaret Hollyman, Dakota Goldhor, Jason Selvig, and Dustin Guy Defa.
Onur Tukel is a Turkish-American actor, painter, and filmmaker. A notable figure in the New York City independent film community, Tukel's films often deal with issues of gender and relationships.
Applesauce is a 2015 black comedy film written and directed by Onur Tukel. The film stars Tukel, Max Casella, Trieste Kelly Dunn, Jennifer Prediger, and Dylan Baker.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)| International | |
|---|---|
| Artists | |
