SONG OF THE DAY (#239)

'beatific,' by glass candy

i don't know about you all, but i'm going ape over this sexy, neodisco sound, or whatever you want to call it. it seems like sally shapiro kind of kickstarted it last year [i could be wrong, and probably am], or least gave it a bit of credibility. then you had chromatics get really favorable press, and rightfully so [their cover of kate bush's 'running up that hill' is still one my favorite things from this year]. then the other day i heard glass candy. at first listen i thought, 'wow, they sound a lot like chromatics.' [and i adore chromatics, so i was happy, to say the least]. so i did a little research and it turns out both chromatics and glass candy are from portland and glass candy member/producer johnny jewel also produces the chromatics. and not only that, they toured together. of course they came through salt lake city last june, but since i didn't know the first thing about either of them at the time, well...big bummer, to say the least.

from the opening notes, 'beatific,' is a worthy--and very sexy--addition to the neodisco canon. it's all acid-laced synths, undulating rhythms, pulsating beats, and ida no's detached, cool-as-ice vocals [i'm not usually a fan of vibratos, but ida's send chills down my spine]. 'beatific' is the kind of song you'd expect to hear in some sweaty italodisco, not something from a city known for its rose festival. but glass candy understands the paradox, as ida intones half way through 'beatific,' 'peoples' rules and what they do are often different things.' take that to heart [especially those of you who dismiss this kind of music sound unheard].

→ glass candy: beatific
→ glass candy: etheric device
→ glass candy: candy castle