Friday, January 30, 2009

Swervedriver - "Planes Over The Skyline"

Swervedriver - "Planes Over The Skyline": "An excellent Swervedriver non-album track finally surfaces on the new re-issue of Mezcal Head. Not sure why this didn't come out when they did their reunited tour last year, but glad to have it now."

Thursday, January 29, 2009

Guv'ner - "Wounded Birds And Vampires Own The Edge"

Guv'ner - "Wounded Birds And Vampires Own The Edge": "Creative anarchy! This song is one of the most infuriating and most amazing songs I know. It sounds like someone took four (or more!) catchy indie rock tunes and threw them into a blender - once you start getting into one hook or other element, it completely switches gears, every couple of seconds at that. It frustrated me terribly in the beginning, much like a repeatedly interrupted conversation, but over time it grew on me. I began to love the different elements on their own, fractured though they were, adding up to a greater sum, largely because the love had to be earned. It also helps that most of the chaos is held together with handclaps, always musical magic to me."

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

The Ting Tings - "That's Not My Name (L.A. Riots Remix)"

The Ting Tings - "That's Not My Name (L.A. Riots Remix)": "The Ting Tings' playful tune takes on a tougher edge in this remix. Plus, I know I'm a easy mark, but I do like how things get more electroclashy in some parts."

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Rocket From The Crypt - "Born in '69"

Rocket From The Crypt - "Born in '69": "The long-overdue RFTC album missing from digital finally comes through - awesome! This song is a particularly rockin' cut...as if any of their songs weren't, really."

Monday, January 26, 2009

Q-Tip - "Breathe And Stop"

Q-Tip - "Breathe And Stop": "It's been so long, I kind of forgot how much fun the first Q-Tip solo record is - and how sad it took almost a decade for the follow-up! (Not counting all the records he recorded that somehow never saw the light of day.)"

Friday, January 23, 2009

Blondie - "Youth Nabbed As Sniper"

Blondie - "Youth Nabbed As Sniper": "Between the party tracks like 'Rapture' and 'Heart of Glass', it's tempting to think of Blondie as all fun and games - but that's forgetting this odd dark undercurrent that appears in many songs across all their records. From the second Blondie release (Plastic Letters), we get this paranoid tale of what sounds like teen espionage and romance - but no matter what it really is about, this song is not your standard pop fare."

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

The Breeders - "Do You Love Me Now Jr?"

The Breeders - "Do You Love Me Now Jr?": "Sorry, another Breeders song for you - I couldn't help myself. This is the third version of this track that the Breeders released, but for good reason. Originally appearing on the Safari EP, the band re-recorded an equally solid version for the Last Splash LP - which, in turn, got remixed by Dinosaur Jr.'s J Mascis and released on the Divine Hammer single. Here, J takes the studio version of the track and adds his own vocals to it, creating a somewhat awkward and touching indie rock duet out of Kim Deal's yearning original."

Thursday, January 08, 2009

Beck - "Chemtrails"

Beck - "Chemtrails": "Initially, this song didn't do much for me - it seemed too restrained, too muted. Now, after time, its eerie quality is oddly catchy, plus the quiet sections remind me of some Aislers Set songs, which is usually the last thing I'd associate with Beck."

Wednesday, January 07, 2009

Vanessa Daou - "Near the Black Forest"

Vanessa Daou - "Near the Black Forest": "I remember how semi-daring this was intended to be in `95, when it came out. The video was all pan-sexual writhing bodies and the album's lyrics were all based on the 'erotic works' of Erica Jong (or perhaps it was 'erotic poetry', I forget). All that aside, this is still a sultry little down-tempo number that captured the sexy vibe that holds up better than the rest of this project."

Tuesday, January 06, 2009

Tragedy - "Shadow Dancing"

Tragedy - "Shadow Dancing": "I just have to point out that Tragedy is an "all-metal tribute to the Bee Gees" (ignoring, obviously, that this is an Andy Gibb song) and the name of their album is "We Rock Sweet Balls and Can Do No Wrong". Seriously. At least they fulfill expectations by putting cowbell in the chorus."

Monday, January 05, 2009

The Broken West - "House of Lies"

The Broken West - "House of Lies":
"At first, I was a little surprised by The Broken West's turn to new wave stylings, following their Byrds-y debut, but when the surprise wore off, I could see the quality songs - like this one - were still there."

Thursday, January 01, 2009

The Breeders - "New Year"

The Breeders - "New Year": "Yes! Just in time for New Years! Thanks to Adam from Beggars from getting tired of my nagging and getting this album into the system :)"