i'd love to stay here and be normal, but it's just so overrated...

SONG OF THE DAY [#403]

2009-03-29T17:23:00.003-07:00

'dare' | the mary onettes

hi, kids. the mary onettes have a new e.p. coming out next month called 'dare.' this is the title track. it's rocks mightily. therefore you should buy the e.p. when it comes out. if you don't, you will die a horrible and unpleasant death.

→ the mary onettes: dare
→ the mary onettes: make me last

SONG OF THE DAY [#402]

2009-03-25T20:05:00.005-07:00

'a change of heart' | el perro del mar

today's good news is brought to you by sarah assbring, a.k.a. el perro del mar: el perro del mar's new album, 'love is not pop,' is set to drop on april 1 in the scandinavian territories. no release date for the US, so far as i can tell. but given the usual delays in releasing stuff stateside, you'll probably be able to buy your own copy about the time the sixth and final season of 'lost' wraps up about a year from now. until then, enjoy 'a change of heart,' probably the best song she's done yet. remarkable stuff, this.

→ el perro del mar: a change of heart
→ el perro del mar: a change of heart [what kind of breeze do you blow? remix] -- link corrected

SONG OF THE DAY [#400]

2009-02-16T11:27:00.008-07:00

'hysteric' | yeah yeah yeahs

i'm back! but i don't know for how long. at least long enough to heap tons of praise on the yeah yeah yeahs new album, 'it's blitz!'

holy &%$@! i'm so completely blown away by this album. funny thing is that i never really listened to them before because i instinctively reject so-called 'art rock.' [at least i admit to my biases, right?] it drives me nuts because it's usually just code for really crappy and really, really pretentious--or in other words, no talent. i'm just sayin'.

so imagine complete and utter joy to find 'it's blitz!' so blindingly and undeniably brilliant. trust me, the 'critics' are going to peeing themselves over this one. and you know what, they should. i'll spare you the play-by-play and excessive superlatives because i want you to listen to it and find out for yourself.

congrats, yeah yeah yeahs, the album of the year award is yours to lose. for real.

→ yeah yeah yeahs: hysteric [link fixed!]
→ yeah yeah yeahs: heads will roll

i'm still alive...

2009-01-04T13:54:00.001-07:00

i admit i've lost a bit of enthusiasm for updating the blog of late, but i will be back to writing about music and the occasional book or movie i enjoyed, or even my latest hopeless crush on monday.

until then, we all know who the REAL national champion is. suck it, trebek, er BCS! [hint: it's the big U to the left!]

SONG OF THE DAY [#399]

2008-12-29T20:14:00.003-07:00

'autumn story' | firekites

sorry for the lack of updates lately. what with christmas, family in town, my new 46" samsung lcd and playstation 3, i've been rather occupied the last week. i've been shopping that tv for the better part of six months and i finally pulled the trigger on my birthday, so happy birthday to me from me with best regards. you're a swell fellow, matt.

here's some nice new music from down unduh! i knew there was more to aussie music besides midnight oil, inxs, and men at work [i'm kidding, i'm kidding]. i don't know that much about firekites, but a friend of mine suggest i check them out and so i did. and i have to say, i was pleasantly surprised. not that i thought they'd be lousy or anything like that, but with the gajillions of bands out there these days, it's always nice to find a little nugget that warms the heart. i particularly like listening to these guys on headphones because you can really here all the little nuances floating throughout the songs. and i also like that it sounds like it was recorded in a warehouse. that's not to say it's lousy recording quality, but rather you can here the faint traces of echos. it gives the songs a really nice quality that seems lacking from a lot of studio produced stuff. good stuff.

you can find out more about firekites here and here, so go check 'em out.

final thought for the day: is it just me or is anyone else wondering where the bleep 2008 went?

→ firekites: autumn story
→ firekites: same suburb different park

SONG OF THE DAY [#398]

2008-12-22T21:07:00.003-07:00

'the end of summer on bookbinder road' | cocoanut grove

'i was born to tell the story...' begins the lead track from cocoanut grove's album, 'madeleine street.' well, first of all, dood looks like he's fourteen, so i was a bit suspect at exactly what kind of a story someone so young could possibly tell. and after having listened to 'madeleine street' a number of times this week, the story mr. grove has told is this: this might be the best debut album of the year! [imagine had the clientele grown up in sweden instead of the uk and you'll have an idea of the sound. yeah, i don't make clientele references lightly because they are one of my favorite bands of all-time, so it's heady praise, indeed!]

as per usual, when i find something i really like i do a little internet research. and yeah, you know exactly where this is going. i don't even have to say it because you already know. he's from a place that rhymes with wedon and starts with 's.' that's really all you need to know because we all know by now that sweden has a disproportionate number of quality musicians. so add 'cocoanut grove' to the list. if he keeps this up, i'm only sure it's a matter of time before he's at the top.

trust me, kids, this is one album that you'll be glad you spent a couple of kronas on.

→ cocoanut grove: the end of the summer on bookbinder road
→ cocoanut grove: the castle

SONG OF THE DAY [#397]

2008-12-21T16:33:00.002-07:00

'once is not enough' | the bicycles

i knew my pepsi points would come in handy sooner or later. actually, since they expire at the end of the year, i had to use them or lose them. so, i checked the amazon.com pepsi points website and the only 'goodies' i could still get was a pepsi tote bag, which if you figure each pepsi point equals approximately 1 dollar, cost me about 50 bucks. but there was nothing else to get, so i'm now the proud owner of a striped pepsi tote bag. great.

well, i still had some pepsi points, so i cruised on over to amazon.com to see what mp3s i could buy with all my pepsi points. i had happened to hear that the bicycles new album, 'oh no it's love!' had been released digitally. lucky for me, i was available via pepsi points. here's how it works--you get 1 mp3 point for five pepsi points. remembering our ratios, and given that 'oh no, it's love!' cost me about 95 bucks. awesome. that's a lot of pepsi for one album, but it was either that or spend 50 pepsi points to get a jump drive that you can buy on amazon for three bucks. hm, three bucks vs. fifty bucks. is it me or are pepsi points a rip off? i love me the diet pepsi [it is the nectar of the gods and i drink far more than i should, but c'mon]. ok, now i'm just getting angry. i refuse to support pepsi points from this day forward, but i will still drink the diet pepsi for it is very tasty.

at any rate, i loved the bicycles first album, 'the good the bad and the cuddly,' and i happy to report that 'oh no, it's love!' is just as great. its 19 songs come in at a mere 39 minutes [all but two songs come in under three minutes], but each song is a little treasure of feel-good pop. i highly recommend it you check it out. digital downloads are available now and the hard copy comes out tuesday.

→ the bicycles: once is not enough
→ the bicycles: i'll wait for you

SONG OF THE DAY [#396]

2008-12-16T22:11:00.004-07:00

'the shoe that fits [thomas white mix]' | the pipettes

i guess this is the current pipettes lineup. honestly, keeping track of that revolving door lineup is a bit like...keeping track of something that changes a lot. i was trying to come up with a clever metaphor there like 'elizabeth taylor's husbands' or 'sybil's personalties' but i got nuthin'. blame it on the 12-hour work day and 2.5 hour commute this snowy morning. ugh.

anyway, the pipettes. yeah, in what may be the most egregious example of self-indulgence in these many years, the pipettes have recently released a remix album containing twenty remixes of the same song. you know, it actually doesn't bother me as much as it should. if it were like five for fighting or some crap band like that, i'd probably feel different. but this, after all, is the pipettes, purveyors of all things retro-cute, so hey, more power to 'em, right? what's more, it's interesting to see how the same song can be interpreted twenty different ways.

my favorite of said twenty mixes is thomas white's remix. i think because a) it's the truest to the pipettes sound, b) it's very, very saint etienne-esque [and y'all know how much i love saint etienne. favorite. band. ever]. it's got such a great chorus -- could this be it? the shoe that fits. i've been waiting in this queue for a while...[queue, for we yanks, is the same as 'line.'] oh, you clever pipettes, use a shoe as a metaphor for love. or is it a metaphor something else entirely? hmmm....

→ the pipettes: the shoe that fits [thomas white mix]
→ the pipettes: the shoe that fits [actress hands mix]
→ the pipettes: pull shapes [rac remix] | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#395]

2008-12-14T22:15:00.003-07:00

'try telling that to my baby' | the heavy blinkers

this is another one of those songs i sent out when this was an e-mail list, but it's such a great song [and even greater video], that i decided to post it again in hopes that if you haven't already beheld the heavy blinkers greatness, that you would now have the chance.

the heavy blinkers--from halifax, nova scotia--released four albums between 1998-2004, but have been relatively quiet ever since. jason, apparently, has been working on the fourth long player ['health'] for the last couple of years, but two founding band members have left since 'the night and i are still so young,' so maybe that has something to do with. here's hoping 'health' sees the light of day sooner rather than later because the world desperately needs a new heavy blinkers album--at least i do. the three tracks below are all from their most recent album, 'the night and i are still so young,' which is an amazing album. go buy it.

and here's the vid for 'try telling that to my baby.' it's genius, i tell you.

you simply can't beat a cupcake surfing down a river a syrup. trust me, i've tried and it was a spectacular failure.

→ the heavy blinkers: try telling that to my baby | video
→ the heavy blinkers: the night and i are still so young | video
→ the heavy blinkers: gentle strength

SONG OF THE DAY [#394]

2008-12-13T10:34:00.002-07:00

'winter wonderland' | goldfrapp

i can't believe christmas is only two weeks away. where the bleep did the last year go? i tell you, the older i get [and i'm getting old], the faster time flies and it's kind of alarming, to tell you the truth.

you know, for some reason i haven't felt the spirit of the ye olde christmas season too much. i think that it's partly due to the fact i got a massive head cold my last day in l.a. and here i am a week later and it's still hanging around. maybe because work's so busy that i've been working late every night [not complaining though--i'm very fortunate to have one of the most secure jobs in the country these days]. my goal for today is to feel some christmas season. maybe i just need to eat a candy cane and watch 'a christmas story 14 times on tbs. yeah, that's what i'll do.

→ goldfrapp: winter wonderland

SONG OF THE DAY [#393]

2008-12-10T20:46:00.003-07:00

'come saturday' | the pains of being young at heart

so, imagine, if you will, bob wratten joined my bloody valentine or the jesus and mary chain circa 1990. yeaaaaah. that's right kids, the pains of being young at heart are so very mighty and kick copious amounts of backside. i was super impressed with their earlier e.p. [i think i might've posted a song or two off it before], and i relieved to report the album surpasses all expectations. it really does!

their self-titled [i've put a moratorium on 'eponymous'] debut l.p. doesn't officially drop until february 3, but i'm glad i got to give it a listen this year 'cos it's definitely making my top 10 favorite albums--and maybe the top 5--of 2008. who knows, it might even make next years list, too! oh, such fortuitous timing, pains of being pure at heart. and durn you for being so very awesome.

now check out these songs and prepare yourself for joining the, ahem, ranks of the pure at heart.

→ the pains of being pure at heart: come saturday
→ the pains of being pure at heart: young adult friction

SONG OF THE DAY [#392]

2008-12-07T21:55:00.006-07:00

'fool for you' | duffy

i made it back to utah this afternoon after ten glorious days in the land of my birth. it's always hard coming back to utah, especially when henry and kate are back in l.a.. seriously the cutest kids ever. i know everyone says that, but they really are. if you don't agree, i will fight you. and i will win. consider yourselves warned.

so, duffy is going to release a 'deluxe' version of 'rockferry' here in the states on 12/23. that sounds like a mighty nice christmas present, if you ask me. the deluxe version comes with a bonus disc of b-sides and such, and wow, those are some great songs. it's another one of those cases of 'how did these songs not make the final cut?' not only is it a testament to duffy's prodigious vocal talents, but bernard butler's knob-twiddling skills as well. i think it's safe to assume the former suede axe-man will be in even more demand than he currently is. good on ya, bernie.

my favorite track on the 2nd disc is 'fool for you.' it's got a pretty sweet bee gees-esque vibe going on. duffy has repeatedly said she's not the next dusty, but good grief woman, you are! and i mean that as a compliment! embrace it. and for the rest of you, be sure to hit your local shop on the 23rd for more duffy--deluxe style.

as for the trip, it was awesome. my first saturday there we drove down to torrance and took a picture of me in front of buffy summer's house. this is that picture:

yep, it's true. i'm about the most un-photogenic person that's ever lived, but who cares. the house itself is actually a really beautiful home. i would be more than happy with a home like that! i can see why the joss whedon and co. used this house. in case you're ever down that way, the actual address is 1313 cota street, torrance, ca. it's super easy to find. just take the crenshaw exit off the 405 and you'll run right into cota. and if you just head south down the street, you'll run into torrance high school which doubled as sunnydale high. i didn't know that until after we got back to my sister's house, but i will definitely check it out next time.

the other best part of the trip, aside from spending time with the family, of course, was a tour of dodger stadium. they do tours every day of the offseason at 10 a.m. and 11.30 a.m. turns out that chris, henry and i were the only folks who showed up for the 11.3o tour the day we went, so we had the tour guide all to ourselves. it was pretty neat to see all the places you never get to see as regular fan -- the training room, the press box, the organ, the umpires clubhouse, the martini lounge, the suites, the two world series trophies, and coolest of all -- the dugout! here's a picture of the boys in the dodgers dugout. very cool, indeed. right here i was just about to get on the phone and make a call to the bullpen and tell jonathan broxton to start warming up. ;)

i tell you, i could have stayed there all day. since we were the only three on the tour [which will run you $15], we got to spend an extra little time on the field. it was great. seriously, i love the dodgers almost more than i love music. it's my first love. i've been bleeding dodger blue since i was about five years old. i can so vividly remember listening to vin scully call dodger games during the summer on my little white radio with the radial dial. there wasn't a night that went by where vin scully didn't talk me to sleep. they are very sweet memories and can't help but get a little misty eyed every time i hear vin scully's voice. i think next year will be his 59th year calling dodger games. i hope he lives to be 300 years old. i bloody love that man.

anyway, i'll probably post some more photos later in the week. until then, enjoy some duffy.

→ duffy: fool for you
→ duffy: enough love

SONG OF THE DAY [#391]

2008-11-30T09:37:00.007-07:00

'around the bend' | asteroids galaxy tour

hey! it's that new ipod song! it's a pretty great song, too.

sorry for the lack of updates lately. i flew down to my sister/brother-in-law's house on thanksgiving morning and i've been doing pretty much nothing but playing trains with my three year old nephew, henry. during the course of the trip, however, we did make it down to torrance to pay a visit to the buffy the vampire slayer house. it was pretty cool. i snapped some photos that i'll probably post here when i get back to utah. we're going to hit disneyland on wednesday, do a dodger stadium tour on monday or thursday [super stoked about that] and maybe hit some local comic shops. but mostly it's about spending time with the family. it's a lot of fun to have nieces and nephews. i highly recommend it!

in the meantime, enjoy asteroid's galaxy tour latest and greatest...

→ asteroids galaxy tour: around the bend | video
→ asteroids galaxy tour: the sun ain't shining no more

SONG OF THE DAY [#390]

2008-11-23T23:13:00.006-07:00

'rock me in' britney spears

what can i say? people love the britney. i love the britney, too. i've been spinning the album quite a bit this week and i gotta say, it's very good. it's actually better than very good. it is mighty!

now, apparently there are some bonus tracks on the international version of 'circus,' among them are 'trouble' and 'quicksand,' both of which are fantastic. it's kind of surprising they didn't make the final track list. then again, with the two 'bonus tracks' on the u.s. version of the album, 'circus' comes in at 15 tracks. add three and that's a monumental 18 tracks [who said i wasn't good the maths?]. in other words, way too long. didn't any learn from the mess that was 'mellon collie and the infinite sadness?' more isn't always better. sometimes it's just...more.

at any rate, one of the bonus tracks on the u.s. version is 'rock me in.' it is super. and mighty. i really love this song, especially the chorus where the britney's vocals go all airy. a less pouty britney is a good thing, i think. hey, it looks like britney is all growed up. it brings a tear to the eye and warms the cockles of the heart.

circus' drops next tuesday.

→ britney spears: rock me in
→ britney spears: trouble
→ britney spears: quicksand

SONG OF THE DAY [#389]

2008-11-22T12:42:00.004-07:00

'nothing good about this goodbye' | rachel stevens

for as much as i like britney and mandy, rachel will mop the floor with both of them [well, you know, when britney has hair. otherwise it might be kind of squeaky...and difficult]. of all the pop royalty, i think only kylie minogue could take rachel--but it'd be a good fight. i dunno about you, but i'd pay top dollar for a front row seat to that donnybrook.

it's pretty amazing that here 2005 album, 'come and get it,' [her 2nd solo album] didn't catapult her into superstardom. it's a mystery right up there with where's amelia earhart, who built the sphinx, who killed laura palmer, who's behind the dharma initiative, and why can't i get a date. but that's another story.

i say this in all seriousness: 'come and get it' is one of the best, if not the best, pure pop albums released this century. it's quite remarkable, really. no s club 7 alumnus has any right making a record this impeccable. but she did. and we're all very grateful. hey, i'll be honest. i need some more rachel stevens in my life. and so do you, for life is exponentially better when rachel's involved. that's a true story.

'come and get it' was never officially released stateside, but you can find import copies pretty readily and inexpensively. i think i paid about 16 clams for my copy.

now, ms. stevens, about that 3rd album...

→ rachel stevens: nothing good about this goodbye | video
→ rachel stevens: negotiate with love | video
→ rachel stevens: some girls | video
→ rachel stevens: dumb dumb [album bonus track]

SONG OF THE DAY [#388]

2008-11-19T21:27:00.004-07:00

'unusual you' | britney spears

so the new britney spears hits december 2nd. confession: i like britney. always have. sure, she's a complete disaster, but she's done some brilliant pop songs in her day. it seems like just yesterday that '...baby one more time' and 'oops...i did it again' were everywhere. was that really ten years ago? wow.

so i gave the new album, 'circus,' a couple of spins this week and i have to confess again: it ain't half bad. in fact, it's pretty darn good. for someone who's life has had more ups and downs than a game of whack-a-mole, it's amazing she's even managed to record a new album.

the song that struck me most first time through was this one, 'unusual you.' it's actually a really, really sad song and perfectly captures what it must be like to be britney spears. to wit: 'hey baby, you're so unusual. didn't anyone tell you you're supposed to break my heart? i expect you to. so why haven't you? maybe you're not even human 'cos only a angel could be so unusual. a sweet surprise i could get used to. unusual you.' man, that's just sad. but i also love it musically. most britney songs fall into one of two categories: syrupy ballad or hi-nrg dance floor stomper. 'unusual you,' on the other hand is a much more mature recording. surprisingly enough, it's mid-tempo track, neither aggressive, bombastic or sentimental, and appropriately subdued [and very under-produced for a britney song, and it's all the better for it. in fact, it reminded me of the stuff off mandy moore's excellent debut]. it's a fine example of when the music matches the sentiment. i haven't seen the liner notes yet, so i don't know who produced it, but hats off to you, mr./mrs. producer. nice job.

people can say what they want about britney, and i'll be the first to admit she hasn't done herself a lot of favors, but who among us, put in her situation, wouldn't have jumped on the turnip truck about five years ago? hats off to you, ms spears.

→ britney spears: unusual you
→ britney spears: out from under
→ travis: ...baby one more time [live acoustic]

SONG OF THE DAY [#387]

2008-11-18T22:02:00.003-07:00

'birthday' | bon voyage

it's official. i hate jason martin. i've done nothing but listen to starflyer that last 24 hours. i must've listened to 'leave here a stranger' about 10 times today at work. the thing is a masterwork. it actually drove me to tears. i was sitting in my cell, er, at my desk for 12 hours today. i was listening to the 'give up the war' and the blasted thing made tears well up in my eyes. da-yum you, jason martin! why must you be so bloody brilliant?

and if that's not enough, he's married to this beautiful lady. and she sings in his other band. good goo. charmed life, my friends.

bon voyage sounds a bit more like his brother's band, joy electric. lots of poppy synths and julie's airy vocals. it's kind of like micki from lush singing for the 'holiday'-era magnetic fields. only with more minor chords. or something like that.

anyway, bon voyage has released three albums to date, the most recent being 'lies' which came out in june. as with all things jason martin, i highly recommend it. you can buy it here. and you better because you're just isn't complete without it. aaaand i will beat you up if you don't. check out a couple of songs, including a tasty cover of the smiths' 'girlfriend in coma.'

i'm going to go sulk now while i let my jealousy get the best of me.

→ bon voyage: birthday
→ bon voyage: girlfriend in a coma

p.s. i've switched from using googlegroups to mediafire as my file host. just click on the song and the download should automatically start. this way i can see how many times a song is downloaded and decide whether or not i want to keep this blog going.

SONG OF THE DAY [#386]

2008-11-17T22:15:00.003-07:00

'm23' | starflyer 59

coming in at no. 2 in my useless favorite albums of the year list [at least for right now], is starflyer 59's latest, 'dial m.' [is that as in 'dial martin?' is this an open invitation to join the good ship starflyer?] and with its release, i pose this question: is jason martin the single most underrated songwriter in america? answer: yes.

how did i arrive at that conclusion, you ask? well, the consistent quality of starflyer 59 albums is mind-boggling and staggering. what's even more staggering, is that jason doesn't wait 3-4 years between albums. since 1993, he's released 12 albums. 12 albums in 15 years. this doesn't even take into account side projects with his brother [the brothers martin] or his wife [bon voyage]. adding it all up, i count 16 albums in 15 years. six-freaking-teen. that's just stupid silly [not bad for a guy who still drives a truck for his late father's company]. yet, for all his accomplishments, how many people actually know who you are talking about when you mention starflyer 59? not too many.

well, amigos, if you've not heard starflyer 59 yet, here's your chance to discover their majesty. whether its the thick and heavy shoegaze-inspired guitar of the first two albums, the brian wilson-esque pop of 'leave here a stranger,' or the instantly addictive melodies of 'dial m,' starflyer 59, it seems can do no wrong. bands aren't supposed to last this long and they certainly aren't supposed to make their best album after releasing 11 previous albums. yep, i said it.

jason martin, i salute you! way to represent the 909 area code.

now go buy 'dial m.' it'll be the best ten clams you spend all week. i guarantee it.

→ starflyer 59: m23
→ starflyer 59: minor keys
→ starflyer 59: i drive a lot
→ starflyer 59: no new kind of story

SONG OF THE DAY [#385]

2008-11-16T12:19:00.003-07:00

'happy hour' | the housemartins

like the smiths before them, the housemartins racked up a very impressive discography over a very short career. obviously they never even came close to achieving the smiths' popularity [particularly stateside], but one could make the argument that the housemartins are one of the of old blighty's most important bands of the 80s.

simply put, they wrote amazing songs. they were generally short snippets [most songs run between two and tree minutes] jam packed with exquisite melodies and paul heaton's alternately hilarious and scathing lyrics [he's every bit the mozfather's equal, and in many cases his superior. though some would accuse heaton of being to clever for his own good]. musically the band drew heavily on 60s motown and soul music and married it with quintessentially british jangle pop. the results were unquestionable magical.

but all good things must come to an end. heaton and drummer dave hemmingway would go on to form the beautiful south a year later [one of my favorite bands...ever], bassist norman cook would become fatboy slim, and nobody knows what happened to stan cullimore. that's probably not true, but i'm too lazy to look it up.

so, we have two studio albums ['london 0 hull 2' and 'the people who grinned themselves to death'], a 'best of/rarities' album ['now that's what i call quite good'], a b-sides album ['raise the flag'], a bbc album, and a scattered assortment of gems that will forever live on my cd collection, er, itunes.

→ the housemartins: happy hour | video
→ the housemartins: build | video
→ the housemartins: me and the farmer | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#384]

2008-11-11T21:53:00.003-07:00

'beatific' | glass candy

this song was, hands down, one of my favorite songs of the 2007. good goo, i listened to it so much. i had glass candy on the brain for like two straight months.

i wanted to throw up here because glass candy has just released a collection of singles, b-sides, and rarities called 'deep gems,' which is 325 kinds of awesome. maybe even 326. i ain't lyin. go check it out. and while you're at it, i highly recommend 'beat box,' because it's so mighty.

i dunno that you'd find a more distinctive vocalist working today than ida no [oh, i'm so punny]. seriously, that's her name. or at least that's the name she goes by. the first time i heard her sing i was like 'ohmifreakingheck.' and dood, girl is a foxy lady. add that voice to equation and holy cha cha. welcome to seduction city. population: you and glass candy. just check this awesome live performance. check out this, too. man, these guys must be so great live.

i hope i get to see them sometime. i just want to hear ida sing 'hey, bring it back. alright, that sounds good. hey d.j. can you turn it up? that's better.' i'll probably melt on the spot.

word on the street is that they're releasing something new next year. if it's even remotely good as 'beat box,' it will rock at previously unknown levels. true story.

→ glass candy: beatific
→ glass candy: candy castles

SONG OF THE DAY [#383]

2008-11-09T15:40:00.005-07:00

'black metallic' | catherine wheel

i love, love, love, love catherine wheel. if i could pick one band to get back together, i had have a hard time choosing between catherine wheel and pulp. can i choose both?

at any rate, i dated this girl many years ago who loved catherine wheel, and while i enjoyed several songs ['black metallic,' 'i want to touch you'], i couldn't, for reasons now unknown, fully embrace the band. it all seems silly now, but looking back most of 20's seem pretty silly.

it was their 4th l.p., 'adam & eve' that the lights went on and i began to fully understand and appreciate catherine wheel for what they really were: one helluva rock and roll band fronted by rob dickinson--easily one of the most dynamic frontmen in the history of rock. after three albums that ranged from fizzy shoegazing to 'siamese dream'-inspired rock, 'adam & eve' found catherine wheel finally comfortable in their own skins, delicately balancing chest-thumping power chords and a new-found inclination to the pastoral. from beginning to end, its consistency is almost alarming and it should have, by right, catapulted catherine wheel into the mainstream. alas, it was not be and after one more studio album, the unfairly maligned 'wishville,' catherine wheel disbanded in 2000. rob dickinson later released a solo album called 'fresh wine for the horses,' which is very mighty.

'adam & eve' is now out of print, unfortunately; but click here and you'll get a little treat. oh, the glory of the internet. i highly suggest you also seek out 'ferment,' 'chrome,' and 'happy days,' too. they rock so hard and whenever i want to listen to them i want to plug my guitar and turn up amp up to eleven.

and here's something for you gee whiz collection: rob dicknson is cousin to, yes, the bruce dickinson. rob did more than simply follow in his cousin's footprints. just like bruce's iron maiden, rob, too named his band after a medieval torture device. you just don't learn that kind of the stuff on the t.v.

→ catherine wheel: black metallic | video
→ catherine wheel: i want to touch you | video
→ catherine wheel: waydown | video
→ catherine wheel: judy staring at the sun | video
→ catherine wheel: sparks are gonna fly | video
→ catherine wheel: wish you were here [pink floyd cover]

some thoughts on 'lars and the real girl.'

2008-11-05T18:17:00.005-07:00

a few months ago my cousin gwen asked me if i'd seen 'lars and the real girl.' 'no,' i said. 'it looks kind of silly.' she agreed it did look silly, but she said it was really good and recommended i check it out. i trust gwen, so i added it to my netflix last week just in time for it arrive in the mail on saturday.

the premise of the movie, in case you've not already heard or don't know anything about the movie is this: lars, while generally a functional member of society [he has a few friends, he's politeto people, he has a job], suffers from social anxiety, tactile emotion, and suffers from mental illness which makes him delusion.

one day a co-worker tells lars about life-size, customizable 'love dolls,' and i'm not talking about the wholesome variety, if you know what i mean. lars, fortunately, doesn't see it in that light and ends up getting one simply for companionship and the love he has to offer.

naturally things get a little awkward when 'bianca' arrives at the house, much to horror of lars' brother gus and gus' very pregnant wife, karin [played by paul schneider and emily mortimer, respectively]. as lars explains at their first dinner together, bianca is a brazilian missionary with danish blood raised by nuns and currently on sabbatical to experience the 'real world.' she also went to nursing school. oh yeah, she's also in a wheelchair. gus, of course, blames himself [you'll have to watch to find out why], while karin, on the other hand, accepts 'bianca' as part of the family as she, maybe more than anyone else, has seen lars gradually withdraw further and further into his loneliness and she'll do anything to help him.

the movie's real beauty comes from the way lars' friends and family treat him in the middle of his helpless delusion, including margot [played by a terrific kelli garner], the cute office girl who clearly has a crush on lars. i don't really want to say anymore than that because it would rob you of some of the enjoyment that comes from watching this film. i know it sounds quirky and odd and strange, and to a degree it is. but the writing is so genuinely honest, the acting so subtly superb, the direction artfully constructed, the score appropriately subdued, and film so beautifully shot, that as roger ebert said, 'only after the movie is over do you realize what a balancing act it was, what risks it took, what rewards it contains. a character says at one point that she has grown to like bianca. so, heaven help us, have we.' well said, that.

i have to say something about ryan gosling. he further cements his status as the best of his generation. he's incredible as the titular lars. he so exquisitely balances the humor and pathos of lars' unique situation, never once letting the audience feel sorry for him, but rather encouraging them to accept lars for who he is and gently rooting for him to overcome what can be such a terrible and debilitating illness. he's great, mustache and all.

in the end, 'lars and the real girl' is about treating others as they deserved to be treated, even those we see as different, odd, or strange; and that's with love, respect, and most of all, dignity.

i absolutely loved this movie. i went out and bought in monday and i'm going to beg my one or two friends to watch it with me. and a word of advice: before you sit down to watch it, make sure you have a box of kleenex handy. you'll need. i sure did.

spitcake verdict: buy it. and then watch it again. and again.

SONG OF THE DAY [#382]

2008-11-03T20:36:00.004-07:00

'telegraph' | orchestral manoeuvres in the dark

i got my new omd compilation, 'messages,' in the mail today [darn those import prices!]. of all the omd compilations out there ['the best of omd,' 'omd: the singles,' etc], i think 'messages' probably represents the band best because it's not limited to singles [those most of them were--in fact, as i look at the track list, i think they all were] or the most popular omd songs. case in point--'messages' contains what are, in my opinion, two of the band's better songs: 'telegraph' and 'genetic engineering,' both from the criminally underrated album, 'dazzle ships.' it's puzzling that those two songs were left off the original 'best of omd' that came out back in 1988. holy craps, i just realized that was 20 years ago. what happened to my life?

'dazzle ships' was, and still kind of is, something of enigma in the band's outstanding career. it was very experimental, very techy, and very mechanical with its use of sonar blips, old radio broadcasts, looped vocals, and all manner of weirdness. consequently, a lot of folks balked at it, and to a degree i get it. up to that point, omd had fashioned themselves a pop band. sure they utilized still-emerging technology, but at their core, andy mcclusky and paul humphries were classic pop songwriters. they had an uncanny knack of churning out quality pop songs with memorable synthlines and instantly memorable sing along choruses.

omd, of course, had a pretty expansive catalogue before they ever broke big in the US of A with 'if you leave.' i think it's a shame more people don't know about their early stuff, albums like the aforementioned 'dazzle ships,' 'architecture and morality,' 'organization,' 'omd,' and 'junk culture.' you could probably even throw in 'the pacific age' and 'crush' [these two, while boasting some of omd's finest moments, simply don't match the overall consistency of the earlier work]. they were all incredible albums. i encourage you search them out, particularly 'junk culture' and 'architecture and morality.' i think they are probably omd's two consistently great albums.

at any rate, the main reason i bought 'messages' was for the bonus disc of 27 videos! i'd seen quite a few omd videos in my day, but there were plenty i'd never seen, and well, let's face it, a few i don't want to see again. andy mcclusky, i love you, but dood, you cannot dance. you write a mean tune, but you cannot dance. thankfully there were only a few awful vids. in fact, most of the videos were quite good. omd actually tried to tell a story and there's definitely a narrative thread holding a lot of the videos together. so good job, omd.

i'm in a bit omd mood right now, so be expecting some lesser known and rare omd tracks here in the near future. i also read in the 'messages' liner notes that the band is planning a new album soon. hopefully a tour will follow. i saw them back in 1990 at kingsbury hall during the 'sugar tax' tour and it was a blast. paul had left the band by that point, but they are back together and i, for one, am stoked.

on a personal note, i can't listen to omd without remembering how i used to listen to them on my walkman during those long drives from utah to california or vice-versa. i can't listen to 'so in love' or 'secret' and not picture the nevada desert or the california high desert; and 'hold on' is still the soundtrack to my summer of a thousand broken hearts circa 1992. of course there are dozens more, but those stand out. thanks guys! hope to see you stateside soon.

→ orchestral manoeuvres in the dark: telegraph | video
→ orchestral manoeuvres in the dark: genetic engineering | video
→ orchestral manoeveres in the dark: of all the things we've made [also from 'dazzle ships']

MY 1.32 SECONDS OF FAME [SO FAR...]

2008-11-02T19:52:00.013-07:00

the following is a true story:

i was once in a movie. sure, it was only about 1.32 seconds, but hey, i'll take it. who wouldn't right? the movie? 1986's disaster movie, 'ACCEPTABLE RISKS.'

how did this all come to be? well, before we moved to utah back in january of 1986, we did some work as 'extras.' i only did this one movie, but the twins, if i remember correctly, had a brief appearance in the rob lowe/demi moore classic, 'about last night.' i think they might have done some print work, too. i'm not quite sure [remember, this was 1984-85. the old memory ain't workin' as well as it used to].

easily the best part of being an extra was getting out of school for the day. i think we might have even gotten out of school two days. i even got a free t-shirt. and yeah, there was free food. tinsel town definitely has some awesome perks! especially when you are eleven years old.

believe it or not, i vividly remember this day of filming. what's funny is that not only am i running up the stairs to safety, but i'm also in the bus that rushes away right before i hustle up the stairs. oh, the magic of television. what's also cool is that three of my four sisters are also in the same shot [see photos below]. unfortunately, megan was only three years old at the time, so no movie for her. sorry, megs!

the movie itself is pretty darn awful. a mustachioed brian dennehy plays a boss-guy of a nuclear power plant, cicely tyson plays a city council member, and christine ebersol plays a mom who works at the power plant. as you can tell by the movie's tagline ['the government says yes....one man says no!'], it's one melodramatic feast. the basic plot: the government doesn't heed warnings of a nuclear meltdown! oh, that nasty bureaucracy. no one ever heeds a warning, do they? being a 'movie of the week' [do they even do made-for-tv movies anymore??], of course the nuclear meltdown eventually happens and people start dying left and right. looking back at it now, it's borderline laughable. actually, there's no borderline about it. it's down right hysterical. people fall down stairs, fall of bikes, get in car accidents, they cough and hack, and they all die. check out the paper boy trying to hack up a lung! good times! but they person in the car with his/her head on the steering wheel is a high point.

anyway, here a couple of screen shots so you can see where all are [the actual video is right after the photos]. my sister morgan absolutely kills me. this is nuclear meltdown morgs! look terrified! let's see some panic! she's just chillaxin' like it's no big deal. she's laid back like that. you also get a quick shot of twins right before the scene changes. being twins, they are, of course, dressed identically. way to go, mom!

SONG OF THE DAY [#381]

2008-11-02T17:44:00.005-07:00

'glitter song' | a band called quinn

i'm not really sure why quinn changed their name to a band called quinn. quinn seems like a perfectly suitable name, but what do i know? i'm just a kid.

i mentioned before that this blog used to be an email list. when people started emailed about some hot new song they wanted me to hear--a song that i had previously sent out via the email list--i knew it was time to ditch the list because it was pretty clear they were just hitting 'delete' upon getting the email in their inbox. but it's all good. i get it. i figure it's better to let the people come to me if they so desire instead of sending them something they didn't necessarily want.

at any rate, quinn [as i once knew them], where one of the first bands i sent out via that list. there were two songs from their first album, 'luss,' that i fell for head-over-heels: 'dressed like a girl' [the best song-from-a-john-hughes'-film-to-never-appear-in-a-john-hughes'-film] and 'astronauts.' i thought they were both really outstanding pop songs! but then i really didn't hear much more from them for awhile. oh, mighty quinn--where had you gone?

it wasn't until a friend of mine over on the other side of the pond tipped me off that quinn, now 'a band called quinn,' had released their second, 'sun moon stars,' back in may. i guess the real question is 'where i have i been, oh, mighty matt?' [yes, i am mighty. might at what, i don't really know, but mighty nonetheless.] the good news is that the new album is every bit as enjoyable as the previous. they got some production assistance from the very mighty kid loco and some dood who worked with echo & the bunnymen. that's always a good thing.

'glitter song' is a great intro to the band -- louise invokes a little bit of the alison goldfrapp, but as someone who worships at the alter of goldfrapp, i don't really care. that's not to say, however, that louise is a goldfrapp wannabee. hardly. she's great in her own right. as is the band. here's hoping they make some bigger waves because i really enjoy them. i think you will too. aside from the songs below, you can check out another video here -- 'the light night i saw,' which is also on the new album.

you can find more on a band called quinn here and here.

→ a band called quinn: the glitter song
→ a band called quinn: dressed like a girl
→ a band called quinn: astronauts | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#380]

2008-11-01T21:59:00.005-07:00

'my delirium' | ladyhawke

weeeeee! a new ladyhawke single! i have to admit, i was a bit surprised that 'my delirium' is to follow 'back of the van,' 'paris is burning,' and 'dusk till dawn.' i thought the 4th [4th! who releases four singles off the same album anymore?] single would be 'better than sunday' [or even 'another runaway'], which has moved up right behind 'dusk till dawn' as my favorite ladyhawke song. but hey, i'll take anything. hopefully the single will some killer b-sides, too. of course they'll be awesome. she's frakkin' ladyhawke.

the great thing is about new singles, of course, is new videos. other than sophie ellis-bextor or rachel stevens, i don't know i get more excited for new videos by anyone else these days. the only thing better, of course, would be a tour, and since the album is being released stateside on november 18th, i've got my fingers crossed that she'll be playing some dates over here. if she doesn't come to SLC, i propose renting a fun bus and taking everyone down to vegas or l.a. to see the show. who's in?

check the video for 'my delirium':

→ ladyhawke: my delirium [fan death remix]
→ ladyhawke: my delirium [chateau marmont remix]

SONG OF THE DAY [#379]

2008-10-30T20:39:00.002-07:00

'half asleep' | school of seven bells

i totally got rear-ended today while on my lunch break. i was sitting in stopped traffic when this girl slammed in to the back of me. thankfully, my car was unscathed. there are a few scuff marks, but nothing i can polish out myself pretty quickly. no need to get insurance companies involved. even the police officer who came over was very nice. all in all, it was a very pleasant accident.

let me just add that when ford says 'ford tough,' man, they are not kidding. my ford focus handed that honda's rear end on plate with a side of cookies and a glass of strawberry quick. i had a few scuffs and honda's hood was bent pretty badly. i could see the engine just by tilting my head. so eat it, honda.

this has nothing to do with the school of seven bells, but it was part of my day, so i thought i'd share. not that anyone really cares or anything [my own family doesn't read this blog], but hey, the three of you who do might be interested. or not.

anyway, school of seven bells is the new project from former secret machines member benjamin curtis and twins alejandra and claudia deheza, formerly of on! air! radio! i've never heard of on! air! radio!, but now i wish i had because i really enjoy their voices. 'half asleep' is another song i heard on the xm radio the other day and you guessed it, it was sitting in the itunes and i didn't even know it. but i'm glad it is. it is very excellent!

here's something for your gee-whiz collection: the band is named for the legendary pickpocket academy. 1] i didn't know there was ever a pickpocket academy; 2] ok, i only have one. i thought i might've had two, but i got ahead of myself.

school of seven bells is opening for M83 down in LA at the end of november. i will down there on the day they play. i might have to go.

the school of seven bells debut, 'alpinisms,' is out now.

→ school of seven bells: half asleep
→ school of seven bells: chain

SONG OF THE DAY [#378]

2008-10-29T20:34:00.004-07:00

'sleepyhead' | passion pit

so i was driving home from work this afternoon, er, evening, and i heard this groovy song on the xm radio. the cool thing about the xm is that they show you the artist and song title on the little display. i caught this song about halfway home that i found a pen in my driver's side pocket-thingy and wrote 'passion pit' on my hand. thankfully i had a pen handy! [i usually have to repeat to myself a band's name i see on the xm ten times in attempt to commit it to memory only to forget it the second i get home and start thinking about food].

so, with 'passion pit' on my hand i sat down at the computer after watching the phillies down the rays in game 5 [i fully expect to wake up, turn on the news, and discover philadelphia has burned to the ground] and watching the last half of 'modern marvels' on the history channel and learning that bees wax, after going through some processes i can't remember for the life of me [nor could i understand them even if i did remember them], can actually absorb oil spills, grime, grease, etc, and make it disappear completely. it was truly fascinating. this discovery, for me, is right up there with the guy or gal who sat down one day and thought, 'i wonder what will happen if i sit down and whip some egg whites really fast.' voila! meringue! [not to be confused with merengue, the spicy dance, which i often do.] brilliant, that.

anyway, i started searching online to see what i could find out about passion pit [they're from beantown --chowdah!--and they are very awesome. then i decided i should check my itunes 'cos i've always got hidden gems on there that i never knew i had. well, lo and behold, there it was--passion pit's debut e.p., 'chunk of change.' more like 'chunk of awesome!' sure, they owe more than a small debt to acts like MGMT and the postal service, but who cares?

check it out. now.

→ passion pit: sleepyhead | video
→ passion pit: sleepyhead [landau walk-up remix]

SONG OF THE DAY [#377]

2008-10-28T18:29:00.003-07:00

'better by far' | ofrin

i like american idol as much as the next person i suppose. the tryouts/auditions are always good for a laugh even though i'd guess about half of 'em are intentionally bad and are just trying to get on the television. hey, i don't begrudge anyone his or her five minutes of fame, even if comes via making a horses a** out of yourself.

the one problem i DO have with american idol is that it seems to have created a new genre of singer: the screaming vibrato singer. this is curious evolutionary development in music! i think it's mostly christina aguilera's fault. i can see christina sitting in front of mirror and saying, 'i look like an oompa loompa, i vibrato scream when i sing, and i sell millions of recahds!' actually, you're just a tramp. deal with it. but i digress. my big question is this: since when did wailing like a banshee qualify as singing? jumping from note to note like you've bit hit with a bolt of lightning while singing does not equate to good singing. you're not a 'vocalist' if you force your vibrato like you're forcing out a turd. just take some metamucil and relax. know what i mean?

what does this have to do with ofrin? well, it's always refreshing when i hear a natural vibrato that's not overstated and forced [nina persson also comes to mind!]. i don't know the first thing about ofrin. i think she/they are from berlin. i could be wrong. i'm too lazy and tired to look it up. [sorry, ofrin. i expended too much energy talking about the oompa loompa]. what i do know the new album, 'on shore remain,' hits the UK on november 11. dunno about a US release date yet. for the sake of reference, imagine a bit jazzier and minimalistic the bird and the bee. that's about the best i can come up with right now, but i think it is sufficient. and listen up, class, this is a good example of a properly utilized vibrato. good on ya, ofrin.

→ ofrin: better by now
→ ofrin: nothing comes to mind

i heart asobi seksu

2008-10-26T14:48:00.007-07:00

so the asobi seksu show last was a-may-zing! it was just as great as i hoped it would be. not only did they rock mightily, but they also unveiled some new tracks, as well as the new album title ['hush']. they played pretty much everything i hoped to hear [strawberries, thursday, new years, pink cloud tracing tiger, i'm happy but you don't like me, me & mary], but highlight was definitely 'red sea.' as expected, it was the set closer before the encore and it was downright euphoric. now i knew yuki was freaking rad already, but about five minutes into the song, she ditched the keyboards, jumped on the drum kit, and proceeded to beat holy craps out it for the next three minutes. i swear, it was the hottest thing i've experienced up to this point in my life. i nearly passed out on the spot.

the best part, however, was after the show when my friend kevin asked he could take a picture of me and yuki [this was after a i gloriously failed to ask myself]. naturally, i was super nervous so i pulled my friend chris into the picture with me. chris speaks japanese so he rapped a little bit with yuki while i was dry-heaving in the background. chris, being the cool cat his is, casually threw up the thumbs up while i stood in the background with a goofy smile and tried, unsuccessfully, not to look like a five-star clod. oh well. hopefully they will come back and i can actually drum up conversation with them.

now, i know it looks like yuki was superimposed in the photograph, i can assure you she is really that little. she can't weigh more than 90 lbs in steel-toed boots. girl is tiny! but you kind of have to to hit the notes on the upper register!

i don't know that i've fully come down from the asobi seksu high, and that's quite all right with me. thankfully i have a new album to look forward to. when it's due for release i don't know. but i do know this: asobi seksu has permanently cracked my 'favorite bands of all-time' list.

amazing stuff. thanks, gang!

SONG OF THE DAY [#376]

2008-10-18T11:29:00.003-07:00

'me & mary' | asobi seksu

DAYUM! yuki, you are smokin'! i can't wait to see you [and the band] on saturday night.

yes, yes, here's the new asobi seksu single [along with its b-side!!]. it is, as expected, very mighty and excellent. hopefully we'll be getting a new album before too much longer!

if anyone is going to the show @ kilby saturday night, give me a holler.

→ asobi seksu: me & mary
→ asobi seksu: breathe into glass

also, sorry for the lack of posts this last week. my sister is in town from l.a. with nephew henry and my niece kate. henry and i have been getting plenty of thomas the tank engine time in and kate has a grand old time stuffing anything she can get into her mouth. they're both little champs and we love them to pieces. i'll be sad when they leave on sunday. it was fun having you here!!

SONG OF THE DAY [#375]

2008-10-15T21:27:00.002-07:00

'enjoy the silence [live in mexico, 2006]' | depeche mode

as i'm sitting here wallowing in my own depression over the dodgers losing the NLCS in five games to the f'ing phillies, i'm comforted by the news that depeche mode is currently in the studio with uber-producer ben hillier [the man responsible for the tremendous 'playing the angel'] working on their latest album, scheduled for release in the spring and to be followed by another worldwide tour appropriately titled, 'tour of the universe.'
if you want to watch the press conference, you can check out the highlights here.

you know, little could i imagine as a kid of fourteen, seriously infatuated with depeche begging his grandma to take him to tower records in west covina to buy the 'construction time again' cassette tape in 1987, that they would still be churning out quality tunes and be universally regarded as one of the biggest bands on the planet. man, i used to take so much crap in high school before 'enjoy the silence' turned the football team into depeche fans. i clearly remember wearing the depeche t-shirt i bought at the violator gig to a high school football [i think it was the only one i went too] and i swear on all that is holy that some stupid girl saw me walking up the stairs and said, 'oh, depeche mode! i love them! have you heard that song 'enjoy the silence?' i LOVE that song.' i almost punched her in the face right then and there. idiot.

anyway, i thing 'enjoy the silence' will definitely go down as depeche's greatest moment. and well it should. what a lot people don't seem to realize is that 'enjoy the silence' was originally written as a ballad. it was only when floor and alan wilder got the crazy idea to turn it into a dance floor stomper during the violator sessions that depeche mode's fortunes would be irrevocably changed. i, too, remember hearing it only little portable radio late one sunday night on a radio show called 'rock over london,' or something to that effect. i had a blank tape in the player and i the second i heard 'new depeche mode' i hit the record button. needless to say, i played it over and over and over and a couple of months later, depeche was the biggest band in the world. what a great memory. i once even try to do the martin gore hairdo. thankfully no photographic of said hairdo exists.

at any rate, i've got something like 45 different version/remixes of the song in my itunes. one of my favorites is the live in mexico version. there's so much raw energy and emotion. it gives me goosebumps every time i listen to it. it makes me excited to see depeche again next fall. and special thanks to the folks over at T.U.B.E. for collecting all that great stuff and making it available to the masses. hats off to you.

→ depeche mode: enjoy the silence [live in mexico] | promo video
→ depeche mode: home [live in mexico] | promo video
→ depeche mode: enjoy the silence [reinterpreted by mike shinoda]
→ depeche mode: enjoy the silence [live acoustic/ballad version]
→ depeche mode: enjoy the silence [original home demo]

SONG OF THE DAY [#374]

2008-10-12T12:00:00.004-07:00

'walking on a dream' | empire of the sun

just when i wondered what luke steele [the sleepy jackson] was up to these days, i happened to accidentally stumble upon his new project, empire of the sun, with nick littlemore from pnau.

i hadn't heard of empire of the sun before i heard this song, but as soon as i heard the vocals i knew it was luke steele. he's got a pretty identifiable voice, after all. and in empire of the sun, he's sporting some highly awesome eye makeup!

i really dig this song. it's got some nice, slightly 80s action going on. add to it luke's golden falsetto and you have the recipe for audio ecstasy. for real. y'all know i'm a sucker for dance/pop music and this is as good as i've heard all year. it makes me with i had smooth dance moves. if i did, i would utilize them to this song.

empire of the sun's debut album, 'walking on a dream,' drops either today or tomorrow in various parts of the world. i dunno about a US release date [amazon.com is showing it as an import-only], but hopefully we'll get some info soon. in the meantime, check out these awesome tunes! [i didn't even know how this pnau song with ladyhawke. it must be fate, for she and i are destined to be together].

→ empire of the sun: walking on a dream | video
→ empire of the sun: walking on a dream [van she remix]
→ the sleepy jackson: i understand what you want but i just don't agree | video
→ pnau f. ladyhawke: embrace [fred falke & miami horror mix]

SONG OF THE DAY [#373]

2008-10-09T20:30:00.003-07:00

'the new kid revival' | xoxo, panda

when i heard 'the new kid revival' the other day i was so certain it was some lost beulah song that i went directly to my copy of 'the coast is never clear' looking for confirmation of some king that xoxo, panda guy was the same guy as beulah singer guy, miles kurosky. that might be the most confusing sentence i've ever written. if that made sense, good for you. you're smarter than i.

anyway, turns out xoxo, panda guy is marc bianchi, who, incidentally, is also in the great band, her space holiday. tell me, where do these guys get off fronting multiple bands that rock? it's so not fair. then again, you've got that whole 'i need another creative outlet because i can write multiple genres of music.' yeah, must be nice. so, marc bianchi formed xoxo, panda [i'm still not entirely sold it's not miles kurosky doing an emotionally stable isaac brock shtick] and released a highly excellent album on october 7th. though you might have to search for it under 'her space holiday' [at least amazon.com has under 'her space holiday.'] kind of confusing. at least for me.

in the meantime, check out a couple of choice tracks by xoxo, panda and one by her space holiday.

→ xoxo, panda: the new kid revival | video
→ xoxo, panda: the heartbreak moment
→ her space holiday: you and me

SONG OF THE DAY [#372]

2008-10-07T20:31:00.002-07:00

'questions' | dark captain light captain

i can barely keep my eyes open right now [rough night's sleep, or rather lack of sleep, last night], so i apologize for the brevity of this post. and i apologize to whoever took this picture i stole from someone's flickr account.

i really like these guys. it's surprising 'cos i don't normally dig this kind of music; but 'questions' is such a beautiful song that i could help but love it. i also don't know much about these kids except that their album, 'miracle kicker,' hits stores at the end of the month. it's really quite a remarkable and beautiful album. i highly recommend it!

oh, and just by way of disclosure, there are a couple of potty words in the song, just in case, you know, you have an aversion to potty words. ;)

→ dark captain: questions
→ dark captain: jealous enemies

by the way, you can find a great remix of 'questions' here. it's part of a free 4-part compilation with songs approved by the bands themselves. kudos to eardrummusic.com for making it happen.

SONG OF THE DAY [#371]

2008-10-05T18:58:00.004-07:00

'i adore you' | melpo mene

they're from sweden. yeah, i know. i know.

i dunno about you, but this song makes we want to wear a burberry and dive into a pile of leaves on a brisk october evening. yeah. watch this. and this.

→ melpo mene: i adore you |
→ melpo mene: don't save me
→ melpo mene: jedi

SONG OF THE DAY [#370]

2008-10-04T10:21:00.004-07:00

'thursday [the twelves remix]' | asobi seksu

dateline october 25. asobi seksu finally plays salt lake city! about two years ago the band was supposed to play here, but the day of the show they couldn't reach the promoter, didn't know where they were supposed to be playing, where they were supposed to be going, so they had to cancel. can't really 'em, but boy was i bummed! after all, their second album, 'citrus,' remains one of my all-time favorites. man, it's so good it's just plain stupid.

i first heard 'thursday' on the xm radio while driving to work one day. my ears immediately perked up when i heard the swirly guitars and angelic voice [and the obvious shoegazy atmospheres]. 'what is this mighty song!?' i wondered. i wrote down the bands name with the first thing i could find, which was probably an old tube of chapstick or a crayon or something. anyway, i got to work, looked 'em up, and beheld the glory that is ms. yuki [to your left]. 'man,' i said. 'mighty tunes and a stone cold fox at the helm!' that was a good, good day. [check out this video, too]

that night i went home, bought 'citrus' off itunes, and fell head over heels. i still listen to it on an almost weekly basis. and they're finally coming. the only bummer is that they're playing kilby court, which is probably the single worst venue in salt lake city [i know, my band played there twice. it's a dive]. it's only redeeming quality is the proximity to the band. at the high violets show i was about 3 feet from the band and got to speak with them afterwards. yes, i'm taking a camera and sharpie. hopefully i can snag some pics of me and my future wife and get a john hancock or two. mighty.

→ asobi seksu: thursday [the twelves remix]
→ asobi seksu: strawberries [cassettes won't listen remix]
→ asobi seksu: all through the day [bonus track off UK version of 'citrus']

SONG OF THE DAY [#369]

2008-10-01T20:02:00.004-07:00

'ghost' | gregory & the hawk

here's some lovely stuff for you on this first october eve. ladies and gents, gregory and the hawk. [i guess she's the hawk 'cos dood has to be gregory, right?]

i don't know much about these kiddos, but after hearing their new album, 'moenie and kitchi,' [october 9] i'm finding myself searching out all sorts of info. i'm kind of obsessive-compulsive like that sometimes. ok, all the time.

i really like them 'cos instead of taking the easy, weepie guitar approach that y'all know by now drives me bat crap crazy, gregory and the hawk manage to inject just the right amount of mayhem to keep the music interesting. 'hey, hawk, let's throw some thunderous percussion on this weepy guitar track.' 'right-o, gregory!' i'm sure it went down just like that.

so, kudos to you, gregory and the hawk for making groovy music. may you forever soar blue skies and dive bomb at defenseless prairie critters at mach 3.

→ gregory and the hawk: ghost
→ gregory and the hawk: wild west

SONG OF THE DAY [#368]

2008-09-30T21:09:00.006-07:00

'dusk till dawn' | ladyhawke

i can't help it. i'm in love with ladyhawke.

i see a restraining order in my near future.

'dusk till dawn' is the new single and the video is 346 kinds of awesome. bang, bang, bang on the wall from dusk till dawn. for real.

ladyhawke '08.

trust.

→ ladyhawke: dusk till dawn | video
→ ladyhawke: dusk till dawn [the shoes remix]

SONG OF THE DAY [#367]

2008-09-25T18:19:00.004-07:00

'run run' | those dancing days

chalk up another for sweden. this time it's all-girl super funster band, those dancing days. i guess these gals have been around for a while now, but i'd never heard them until this past week. where have i been? these be some super great and fun songs.

my gosh, sweden. what up??

'run run' and 'hitten' [the first two singles] are right up there as two of my favorite songs this year. i really love them both. it's pretty easy to hear the northern soul/motown influences. and let's be honest, the musicianship leaves a bit to be desired; but the songs are so wonderfully upbeat and melodic that's it really pretty easy to overlook the minor flaws [i think it actually adds to the charm]. after all, from what i've read, 1/2 the band barely graduated high school. geez. i didn't even know my right hand from ear when i was 18.

the real star of the dancing days show, and what sets them apart from their contemporaries, is vocalist linnea jonsson's vocals. she quite a gifted vocalist who actually knows how to use her vibrato [she also gives beth rowley a run for her money in the 'poofiest hair of the year' contest']. trust me, kiddos, a couple doses of her voice and you'll need a&e to come do an intervention. [me, i wouldn't accept treatment. i love me some linnea jonsson. isn't she about the cutest thing you've ever seen?]

those dancing days' debut album, 'in our space hero suits,' drops october 8th. run [or click], don't walk, to your local store [physical or digital] and buy it! highly recommended.

→ those dancing days: run run | video
→ those dancing days: hitten | video

all for a good cause

2008-09-22T19:36:00.004-07:00

my sister morgan has spent the last couple of weeks organizing a charity sale for christian and stephanie jackson, a couple from arizona who were recently in a plane crash and critically injured. the co-pilot on the flight was killed and christian and stephanie remain in medically induced comas while their bodies try to heal from the extensive burns and injuries they sustained. i hear skin grafts and months of recovery are in their mutual future. meanwhile, their children are staying with family while mom and dad work on getting better.

always one to volunteer her time and talents, morgan put out the message on her blog that she was going to organize a charity sale on an etsy site. the call was answered and amazingly so. packages began pouring in from all over the country, and even all over the world. today, the day before the sale is to begin, she's still getting dozens upon dozens of packages from people who just want to help. i sometimes get pretty cynical about the world and selfish we, as human beings, can be; so, it's refreshing and humbling to see just how many good and sincere people there are in the world. with all that's going on in the world right now, these great people have given their time and talents [everything for sale is handmade, i believe] for someone they don't even know. way to go, people from all over the world. you inspire me!

i suggest you check out the site first thing tomorrow and if you see something you like, buy it! the hot ticket item is a hand made doll modeled after stephanie and crafted by the ridiculously talented christine. my sister has received so many inquiries about the doll that she and christine decided to auction it off. may the highest bidder win! [i have a feeling it will fetch a pretty penny or two.]

all the proceeds go to christian and stephanie's recovery and every purchase comes with a free CD by rachelle call. so, if you feel like you want to do something good and get something cool in return, be there tomorrow morning and buy with confidence!

SONG OF THE DAY [#366]

2008-09-21T19:59:00.003-07:00

'paper planes' | i'm from barcelona

not to be confused that other song of the same name, sweden's answer to the reindeer section, i'm from barcelona, is set to release 'who killed harry houdini' on october 14. i think the first single is this one here.

wow, talk about one catchy song! i know i sound like a broken record, but those swedes know a thing about catchy songwriting. and not only that, but lead singer guy emanual lundgren rocks a seriously mighty mustache! catchy songs and horrible mustaches are always cool, so i'm from barcelona is double cool. check 'em out.

→ i'm from barcelona: paper planes | video
→ i'm from barcelona: oversleeping | video
→ i'm from barcelona: britney [yes, it's exactly what you think it is]

SONG OF THE DAY [#365]

2008-09-20T23:21:00.004-07:00

'paris is burning' | ladyhawke

i'm still not quite convinced this song was recorded in 2008, 2007, 2005, or even 2000. i'm fairly certain it was recorded in 1988. it's just far too 80s to have been recorded on the north side of the turn of the century.

actually, i'm sure it was recorded about the same time as the movie of the same name starring matthew broderick and michelle pfeiffer was playing in theatres. that was a good movie. at least it was the last time i saw it. i was probably 14 or 15 and the apex of cinema was 'goonie' and 'explorers.' all i remember about the movie is matthew broderick running around in brown clothes and people calling him mouse or pip or some other diminutive nickname, rutger hauer transforming into a wolf, michelle pfeiffer transforming into a hawk and lots of snow and ice. i'm not even sure i have that right, but that's how i remember it.

richard donner films aside, ladyhawke, the singer, is actually a kiwi who became an aussie who became a londoner. her debut, 'ladyhawke,' [september 23 in the US] is a positively tasty blend of retro 80s pop. it's like bananarama or kim wilde had a wild party with gary numan, or something. oh hey, wait -- ladyhawke's real name is pip brown. what a crazyrandomhappenstance! maybe i got pip brown and matthew broderick confused. [it's nearly one a.m. can you tell?]. at any rate, she's great. i spy a phenomenon, so check her out.

i really need to go to bed. lohrke out.

→ ladyhawke: paris is burning | video
→ ladyhawke: paris is burning [cut copy remix]
→ ladyhawke: paris is burning [paris senflamme mix/french version]

SONG OF THE DAY [#364]

2008-09-16T19:42:00.004-07:00

'everything is borrowed' | the streets

warning: you WILL need a hanky when listening to this song and watching this video.

it's always amazed me how a kid [well, he's no longer a kid] like mike skinner can sing about video games and fine ladies one second can absolutely devastate you with his emotional honestly the next. it's either a great cosmic goof or a testament to mike skinner's prodigious songwriting skills. yeah, i'm inclined to believe the latter, too.

i didn't really jump on board the streets bandwagon until 'a grand don't come from free.' to me, that album is still one of the seminal albums of the decade and every bit the equal, if not superior, to 'original pirate material.' concept albums are usually disastrous affairs, but 'a grand don't come for free' manages, quite easily, to wrestle free from any preconceived notions or biases towards or against the so-called concept album. it's a massive album. absolutely massive. of course, for me, like most people, the highlight was 'dry your eyes.' if you've not heard it yet, well, you're in for a treat.

after a bit of a misstep on his third album, mike skinner returns with 'everything is borrowed.' rumor has it this is the last streets album. i sincerely hope it's not the case 'cos there's absolutely no one in music today like the streets. we need him. he keeps things interesting and exciting. just take a listen to 'everything is borrowed' [video below]. not only does it feature the fantastically pretty and #3 on matt's hottie hall of fame, amelia warner, it's another example of mike skinner's unpredictability. just when you think you've got him figured, he throws you a knee-buckling curveball. mike skinner making a video about being foreclosed and kicked out of his. ouch. maybe mike skinner, the perpetual adolescent has finally grown up. if he keeps making music like this, i could care less 'cos as the man says, 'just when i discovered the meaning of life they changed it.' embrace unpredictability. it makes like grand.

→ the streets: everything is borrowed | video
→ the streets: dry your eyes | video
→ the streets: it's too late

SONG OF THE DAY [#363]

2008-09-15T19:39:00.004-07:00

'more than you know' | the coral sea

well, i survived las vegas. just barely, though. yesterday was one of the longest days of life [no transportation of my own, lugging a suitcase around fremont street for a couple of hours, losing my phone for about an hour and a half and canvassing the golden nugget and plaza hotel for it and then convincing the maid at the nugget to double check my room after i'd checked out, three and a half hours at the airport listening to the wheel of fortune slot machine over and over and over, etc]. and i gotta say, i'm really glad that what happens in vegas stays in vegas. place kind of gives me the heebie jeebies. but enough of that...

on to the music! the coral sea are back at it. boy am i glad. their second album, 'firelight,' was released on august 8th and much like its predecessor, 'volcano and heart,' it inhabits that place somewhere between the shins and mercury rev. yep, you read that correctly. it's kind of interesting because those those bands are, of course, american and so is the coral sea [they call santa barbara home]. i don't know why it's interesting. it just is. hooray for good american bands. there just aren't enough. so check out both their albums for they are mighty.

→ the coral sea: more than you know
→ the coral sea: look at her face | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#362]

2008-09-11T20:45:00.004-07:00

'metropolis' | faded paper figures

i should be packing for las vegas right now as i'm heading straight from to sin city tomorrow after noon. i'm not all that excited about, to tell you truth. at least the business part of it. i don't gamble. i don't club. i could care less about the blue man group. i could really care less about celine dion. i do kind of want to see the thunder from down under. ]just kidding!] but most of all, i hate schmoozing. i really dislike the phoniness of it--or at least the perceived phoniness. but i shouldn't really complain. my airfare is paid for. my meals will all be paid for. i have a per diem, allegedly. but i don't know what it is. if nothing else, it will be a chance to get out from behind the zion curtain for a couple of days.

the best part of the whole trip is that my bff's cecilia and barbie are meeting me there. that i'm VERY excited about [that and i got a cool light grey, pinstripped suit, new shoes, and pastel blue tie! hot!]. cecilia is driving up from l.a. and barbie is driving down from the s.l.c. [barbie and cecilia are sisters, incidentally]. i have r-a-d friends. i really do. i'd rather sit on my hotel bed with those two and watch episodes of the office and eat popcorn and drink diet pepsi. that's way more entertaining that yukking it up with a bunch of suits. but what can i do? duty calls. i guess. maybe i will eat my weight in steak at some buffet a while i'm down there. that'd be fun.

anyway, here's some great music for you. i've been enjoying these kids for the last couple of days. they are faded paper figures from irvine, ca [where, god willing, i will be one year from now]. my friend tyson summed up their debut album, 'dynamo,' best: it's the album death cab desperately wanted to make when the set out to record 'narrow stairs.' i think that's a pretty fair statement. 'narrow stairs' wasn't a bad album by any means. i'm just sayin'. actually, tyson was just sayin', so if you're gonna flame someone, flame him.

i'm sure some critics will cry 'derivative!', but i think it's a fine little album. better than fine, actually. 'dynamo' has plenty of hooks, plenty of wide-eyed optimism, and most importantly, a sense of fun and good times while keeping it emotionally real. i'm really, really digging these kids. i hope you will too. check 'em out 'cos they are mighty! you can buy the album here. so go do it. now.

→ faded paper figures: metropolis
→ faded paper figures: being there

SONG OF THE DAY [#361]

2008-09-08T20:07:00.005-07:00

'at least' | baby dayliner

'the end of the line is lonely, like a heart with a homey, like a star without a galaxy, like a star without a movie.' so begins 'at least,' baby dayliner's opening salvo from his criminally underrated and under appreciated sophomore record, 'critics pass away.'

in the oddest event in the annals of recorded history, baby dayliner actually played provo, utah a couple of years ago. when i first heard he was coming, i was sure it would be immediately by the sound hoofs clopping against concrete and the four horsemen of the apocalypse came strolling through town. fortunately, it wasn't the end of the word, for baby dayliner rocked the house! i think my sister vanessa, my friend jeff, and i were the only ones there to actually see baby dayliner. we were surrounded by a bunch of kids who seemed to have been plucked off some bizarre indie-wannabee fruit tree. i think i'm just getting old...

at any rate, baby dayliner stepped on stage, i whooped and hollared while the rest of the crowd stood in disbelief, quite unsure what to make of the unnaturally tall, kevin bacon/buster poindexter love child standing before them in a suit, hair slicked back, and accompanied only by what appeared to be some sort of karaoke machine. me, i was all smiles. i knew what was about to happen.

needless to say, baby dayliner immediately won the crowd over and had the place a-rockin' by the end of his set. i heard more than a few people ask him after the show, 'so, what's your name again?' a little while later vanessa, jeff, and i were standing at the back of the venue when i perchance turned around and saw baby dayliner himself [real name: ethan marunas]. my first thought: dood, you are tall. second thought: dood, you rule! he was very cool, very down to earth and was geniunely surprised that we were there to see him and not the starlight mints.

listen to these few songs here and he'll bring down your house, too. [and check out this video, and this video! rad.]

→ baby dayliner: at least
→ baby dayliner: house and confusion
→ baby dayliner: nature's clause

SONG OF THE DAY [#360]

2008-09-06T11:28:00.007-07:00

'baby you got me wrong' | florian horwath featuring nina persson

put nina persson a tube of chapstick, i'll buy it. put nina persson on a box of cheese product, i'll buy it and make mac & cheese. put nina persson on a yo-yo, i'll learn to walk the dog. put nina persson on your song, i will play it over and over and over.

of all the voices out there, i really don't think there's a one that gets me more than nina persson. the natural vibrato, the ever-so-slight rasp that always sounds two notes away from collapse. sigh. the fact she's a superfox only makes things better. but that's another story for another day. let's get back to our pal, florian...

ok, let's not. back to nina. nina, will you marry me? i love you. er, um, yeah. i know she's married already and all, but hey, i fellow can always fantasize, er, dream, right? [i threw in some additional nina persson from her solo album under the name a camp because i can].

anyway, check out this awesome little song. in all seriousness, it's a near-miraculous deut between the two. you can find out more about florian here and here. so go check it out.

florian's second album, 'sleepyhead,' hit last april.

→ florian horwath & nina persson: baby you got me wrong | video
→ a camp: i can buy you | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#359]

2008-09-04T20:39:00.004-07:00

'the cutter' | echo & the bunnymen

true story: i used to have a poster identical to the poster on the left. it was a great poster. it even had the words to 'lips like sugar' on it. i have no idea what happened to it. i wish i did.

another true story: last night as i was driving home, i was listening to echo & the bunnymen. the bunnymen, much like new order, is a band that i've always loved, but a band that i've come to appreciate more and more in recent years. these days i listen to the bunnymen just as much as i listen to any contemporary bands. and i gotta say, the bunnymen smoke every last one of 'em.

anyway, when i got home i popped in gilmore girls season one -- yes, you heard that correctly. what can i say? i love quality tv and gilmore girls is quality tv. in one scene, a distraught rory plops down on her mother's bed in said mother's childhood bedroom. what, perchance, did i see hanging just above the headboard? an echo & the bunnymen poster. no lie. it was one of those little providential moments that make me smile.

true story part 3: when i was living down in l.a. back in the late nineties, the bunnymen were going through their renaissance. i was lucky to see them twice--once in l.a. and once at the spreckles theatre in san diego. those were fantastic shows! my only other bunnymen experience had been in 1989 when ian mcculloch played the paladium in salt lake city. what a nutty show that was! brilliant, but nutty.

it's funny to me how many youngins associate echo & the bunnymen with donnie darko, as if 'the killing moon' is the bunnymen's sole claim to fame [the same could be said for 'lips like sugar']. 'the killing moon' is only the tip of the iceberg, my friends. if nothing else, i hope that movie inspired a lot of people to go back and discover, or revisit, the vast echo & the bunnymen catalogue.

with so many incredible bunnymen tunes choose from, it was hard to choose any favorites; but i'd be hard pressed to choose any songs i love more than these...

→ echo & the bunnymen: the cutter | video
→ echo & the bunnymen: silver | video
→ echo & the bunnymen: seven seas | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#358]

2008-08-31T22:19:00.006-07:00

'give a little love' | noah and the whale

you know when you hear a song and you have a completely visceral reaction to it? it happened to me when i heard 'redwings' by guillemots, 'i know it's over' by the smiths, 'the funeral' by band of horses, 'only you' by yazoo, 'to build a home' by the cinematic orchestra, and oh so many, many more.

well, it happened again today when i heard 'give a little love' by noah and the whale. what a beautiful song. it's jumped right in the completely irrelevant 'spitcake song of the year' sweepstakes. i'd not heard of these kids kids before, but apparently they are blowing up on the other side of the pond. their debut, 'peaceful, i lay me down' drops on our shores september 16. check it out. it's quite an album amazing stuff.

→ noah and the whale: give a little love
→ noah and the whale: 5 years time | video
→ noah and the whale: girlfriend in a coma [the smiths cover]

SONG OF THE DAY [#357]

2008-08-31T18:50:00.005-07:00

'summer chill' | this is ivy league

i'm still basking in the glow of utah's glorious defeat of the wolverines yesterday. utah did its best to give the game to michigan, but in the end they held on for a two-point win. unfortunately, BYU won, too. drats.

at any rate, here are a couple of groovy tracks by new york-based this is ivy league. i've always been a huge fan of the twee scene [and i make no apologies for it], so this stuff is right up my alley. like most twee stuff, it's just this side of too cute for it's own good; but the guys keep it real. nice melodies and harmonies. think kings of convenience meets belle & sebastian. good stuff. check 'em out here.

→ this is ivy league: a summer chill
→ this is ivy league: don't waste your love on me

FOOTBALL! RARRR!

2008-08-30T10:38:00.001-07:00

man, i love college football.

the utes are in playing michigan in the big house today. kick off is two hours. let's hope were celebrating a utah victory about five and a half hours.

SONG OF THE DAY [#356]

2008-08-26T20:33:00.006-07:00

'retiro park' | the clientele

there's a new clientele e.p. out and it's called 'that night, a forest grew.' i'm sure you could probably dissect that title and extrapolate all sorts of weird symbolism [not all of them wholesome, mind you], but heck, i just love the music! the four tracks on said e.p. are just like every other clientele effort, which is, of course, mighty!

there was a time many moons ago when i used to work a lot of late hours [i mean the time before the current time] and 'suburban light' was my ever faithful friend during those long, dark nights in sub-prime mortgage servicer hell, er, land [yes, i worked for the enemy, only i didn't know it at the time]. whenever i reached the end, i just hit the play button again and imagined myself in the never-ending land of golden afternoons, turtlenecks, tweed jackets and adriana lima in go-go boots walking next to me. oh yeah. in all seriousness, 'suburban light' ranks in my all-time top ten favorites.

i once even swapped a few email with alasdair. they published an email in the 'suburban lights' liner notes, so i thought, 'hey, i'm gonna email the band!' so i did. sure enough, alasdair replied! very cool. i tried to convince the band to stop in salt lake city, but i guess i didn't beg enough. they've yet to grace us with a show. i've not entirely given up home, however. my gut tells me they will be here someday.

here's a new track as well as some lesser known tracks. i highly suggest the new e.p. and the back catalogue. there be mighty songs in them there albums.

→ the clientele: retiro park [from the 'that night, a forest grew' e.p.]
→ the clientele: emptily through halloway [from the 'lost weekend' e.p.]
→ the clientele: breathing soft and low [from the 'house on fire' single]

SONG OF THE DAY [#355]

2008-08-22T22:30:00.004-07:00

'drowned' | halloween alaska

well, this is the song that started this whole 'song of the day' business a couple of years ago [it was an email list for a while]. yep, this was song #1. it's such a great song that i thought those of you haven't heard it before, might might like to give it a listen because halloween alaska is very mighty and very awesome.

i'm forever indebted to my friend, honora, for first introducing me to halloween alaska on her 2006 mix, 'i fold in half so easily.' she's from minneapolis and so is halloween alaska. apparently the band has a big following there and i'm doing my best to give them a bigger following from new york to, well, alaska.

the first time i heard 'drowned' i about flipped. literally. halloween alaska, as the guy over at allmusic.com, is one of the rare bands that backs the claim that they don't sound like anyone else and don't fit into any pre-existing musical 'genre.' in this day where most bands either point directly to their influences and their influences are readily apparent in the music, halloween alaska has no absolutely no frame of reference. the only way you can answer the question, 'who do they sound like? is to honestly answer, 'no one.' what a colossal achievement.

well, i've been awaiting a new halloween alaska album for a couple o' years now. i keep hearing little rumours here and there that they are close to releasing something [this year, according to their website] and every time i do my heart flutters just a bit in anticipation. but alas, nothing new...yet. here's hoping they guys finish up their third album soon because their first two are on my desert island album list.

and by the way, the 2:30 mark will launch you into outer space. you have been warned.

→ halloween alaska: drowned
→ halloween alaska: you're it
→ halloween alaska: telling me

SONG OF THE DAY [#354]

2008-08-21T19:56:00.007-07:00

'fm' | junior boys

the first time i heard junior boys' 'so this is goodbye' it was the proverbial revelation. it was an instant favorite and one of those albums that just gives me a lot of joy every time i listen to it. why? i dunno really know. i try not to think about it and just enjoy for it is. sometimes i like to do that.

'fm' is the last track off the album. what a beautiful song. and what a perfect ending to a perfect album. so, johnny and jeremy, will you please hurry up and make another album already?? ;)

→ junior boys: fm
→ junior boys: so this is goodbye

SONG OF THE DAY [#353]

2008-08-16T22:35:00.005-07:00

'spiralling' | keane

so, keane's new album, 'perfect symmetry,' hits shelves october 23 in the uk.

'spiralling' is the first single.

i feel so confused.

→ keane: spiralling
→ erasure: spiralling
→ antony & the johnsons: spiralling

SONG OF THE DAY [#352]

2008-08-15T20:53:00.009-07:00

'the step and the walk' | the duke spirit

as i was listening to the xm radio this morning i heard the duke spirit's 'the step and the walk.' all it took was three seconds and i was completely smitten, both with leila moss' dead sexy vocals and the band's serious songwriting chops. i'm telling you, kids, 'the step and the walk' is a monster. it will absolutely eat you alive. imagine motown meets sonic youth meets my bloody valentine meets blondie. yeah. that's what i said.

the duke spirit's sophomore album, 'neptune,' dropped last january [yet another one of those albums i didn't even know i had in ye olde tunes, but boy am i glad i did!!], and i gotta say, 'the step and the walk' is the duke spirit's 'single of the year' title to lose. it's just that good. check it out:

→ the duke spirit: the step and the walk

→ the duke spirit: send a little token

SONG OF THE DAY [#351]

2008-08-09T21:53:00.004-07:00

'i miss you, someone' | cloetta paris

i'll swear on a stack of anything you want me to swear on that i had no frakkin' clue cloetta paris were sweden. that's the honest truth, kids. i had no idea. it wasn't until i google-searched cloetta paris that i found their/her [i dunno if they're a band or a solo act yet] myspace page indicating they're/she's from sweden. so there you go. i think we can now scientifically prove that swedes make the best music in the world. i mean, honestly, can anyone seriously make an contradictory argument?? you cannot.

anyway, cloetta paris make some pretty groovy sally-shapiro-meets-pet-shop-boys-meets-vince-clarke-style-keyboardadry music. i dig it it immensely! it's pretty darn awesome, so make sure you check it out and go buy their/her debut, 'secret eyes,' available at, well, just about everywhere you can find an internet connection. how can you not love anyone who does an erasure-esque cover of the classic john parr 80's anthem, 'st elmo's fire?' answer: you cannot.

*** ok, i just listened to 'i miss you, someone,' again and yeah, it's an almost note-for-note copy of erasure's 'breath of life.' funny, that. i still love it!**

→ cloetta paris: i miss you, someone
→ cloetta paris: did we collide?
→ cloetta paris: st elmo's fire [john parr cover]

SONG OF THE DAY [#350]

2008-08-08T22:26:00.006-07:00

'gravity' | embrace

true story: i spent $30 [$30!!] on embrace's debut album, 'the good will out.' this was in the days when you had to rely on the the british fishwraps [vox, Q, the NME, melody maker, etc] for information about new bands and albums. and of course the only place you could really find those mags was at the virgin megastore or the occasional local cd store. man, that's when CD shopping was adventure! i miss those days!

one of the bands i started hearing about in said magazines was a band called embrace. from what i read, they sounded like a band i would really like. according to the the band, they 'were bigger than the verve!' [heresy if there was, but hey, you gotta admire the chutzpah]. well, no, they weren't bigger than the verve, but they were pretty darn good. 'the good will out' was a really great album. it was that perfect mix of arena-sized rockers and weepy ballads. 'all you good good people,' 'my weakness is none of your business,' 'higher sights,' and 'come back to what you know' were all highly mighty songs that found their way on to the pretty much every mixtape from the era. all signs pointed to a bright future.

well, their second album was a huge flop. [i don't think i've ever even heard it.] the critics had a field day with lots of 'pride before the fall' talk and what not [critics--who needs 'em?]. but honestly, it wasn't a very good album and i thought i'd heard the last of them.

a few years past and by some weird fluke, divine intervention, serendipitous moment, or a good old tap on the shoulder by god's knuckle, my best buddy chris paltrow co-wrote a little song called 'gravity' with embrace and embrace recorded it. well, being as chris paltrow has the paltrow touch, 'gravity' was a massive hit back in the UK and embrace, once nearly deleted from the collective british memory, was back in the game. for me it was great news! i had been hoping to hear more from them. but as with pretty much any band who finds sudden fame for the second time, embrace's success brought a whole new group of music virgins with an under-developed knowledge of music history, clamoring out of the darkness. inevitably, those who had not heard embrace before 'gravity' immediately accused embrace of coldplay thievery [as if anyone would want to steal coldplay's sound] and all sorts of silly nonsense. truth is, 'the good will out' preceded 'parachutes' by a couple of years, so i don't really get how anyone could accuse embrace of theft when embrace was doing it first. if anything, mr. stubbly stole from embrace. yeah.

i love embrace. always have, always will. if you've not heard them before, i hope you love them too.

→ embrace: gravity | video
→ embrace: ashes | video
→ embrace: free ride [from the 'all you good good people' e.p.]
→ embrace: my weakness is none of your business
→ embrace: nature's law | video
→ embrace: target

THE DAY THAT TWILIGHT DIED

2008-08-02T20:04:00.007-07:00

so the end of the 'twilight' 'saga' ended today. i honestly had completely forgotten that the fourth and final installment of stephanie meyer's abysmal vampire quadriology hit stores at 12:01 a.m. this morning, much to the delight of all the sad and lonely girls all across the country. this can only mean one thing: the senseless death of hundreds of trees.

now yes, i did graduate with an english degree, but i really don't consider myself an literary elitist or snob. i don't think 'ulysses' is the greatest. book. ever. i thought 'the kite runner' was just silly silly. and i maintain that 'white oleander' is possibly the single most offensive book i've ever read, maybe the most offensive book ever written. i love sci-fi books. i enjoy pulp. i adore douglas coupland. i'm not off the belief i have to love whatever the 'critics' tell is me 'literature.' i'm all about a enjoyable reading experience, regardless of genre of subject. so i'll try to read anything.

so i did try to read 'twilight' last winter [i wrote about it here]. what a dreadful, horrible book. i'm still to this day nonplussed at its popularity. i'm even more nonplussed those self-professed feminists who eat this stuff up. that's an insult to feminists. but i digress. so, i got about 200 pages into 'twilight' before i couldn't read another word of meyer's clunky, painful, and woefully edited prose [and talk about unintentionally funny! that was its only redeeming value.] i've read more elegant writing on bathroom stalls. i'm so not kidding. i pointed out some of meyer's more egregious passages to some friends who ultimately had to agree with me that meyer's has no clue what she's doing. plot? who needs it. characterization? an afterthought. depth? puh-leeze. it was all about hot people, fantasies, and wish-fulfillment. in other words, a massive, stinky turd.

well, when i hoped on the computer this morning, one of my local yahoo news headlines was about what was surely a cadre of sad and lonely girls camped out at the BYU bookstore, dressed in vampire garb, i'm sure, eagerly counting down the minutes until 12:01 so they could read all about bella swan [i'm not making that up] and the perfect-in-every-way edward cullen [did i mention he's also abusive? 'he hits me because he loves me!' yeah. sure.].

being the curious fellow i am, i went over to amazon.com to see what the fangirls were saying about 'breaking dawn.' imagine my glee when much to surprise the book was being absolutely massacred. i've never seen so many 1-star reviews for anything on amazon before. i read a lot of passages like, 'what the hell were you thinking, stephanie?' 'this is the worst book i've ever read,' 'the day that twilight died,' 'the kingdom has crumbled,' 'meyer destroyer her characters,' 'the twilight haters have been vindicated,' 'trash,' 'horrible,' 'disappointed,' and 'i want my money back.' someone so far as to create a myspace page called 'burning dawn.' from the looks of things, the CULT OF MEYER will be taking their torches and pitchforks and making a march on the meyer complex at any moment now. hey, fangirls, i could've have told you six months ago that 'breaking dawn' would suck doughnut holes. all you have to do is look at the cover. it has all the symbolic subtlety of an atomic bomb. why's the Big White King so prominent on the cover? why is the little red pawn in the background? c'mon girlies, think about it. what does it mean? think really hard and you'll get it. your head ain't just a hat rack. use it for petey's sake.

now the rest of the world is finally starting to figure out what i've been saying for almost a year: 'twilight' is a con, a fraud, and most of all, a big, fat, smelly turd. and no matter how hard you try, you just can't polish a turd.

FAIL.

SONG OF THE DAY [#349]

2008-08-01T21:53:00.004-07:00

'map ref. 41 degrees n 93 degrees w' | my bloody valentine

first of all, i can't get over how young kevin shields is that picture. he looks like he's 15. geez. secondly, i'm in such a my bloody valentine mood tonight. i put in 12 hours at work today. it was a long day.

i got home and flipped on the valentines and basked in the sonic glory of it all. then i remembered they're playing the US this fall. so i just checked ticketmassah, and yeah, i can get tickets for l.a. oh man. i'm so tempted to pull the trigger on this one. i've never once made a trip just to see a band. there are only a handful of bands i'd spend hundreds of dollars in travel money to see [pulp, pizzicato five, saint etienne, the smiths, the stone roses, and my bloody valentine. i'm still kicking myself for not ponying up to see yazoo, and i hate regret, so maybe i should just do it. i dunno.]. part of me believes this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. do you have any idea how long i've waited to see this, and this, and this live? stop it. sure, there's allegedly new valentines stuff coming out sometime in the not-too-distant future, but who knows if there will be a tour to support it.

one of the problems of going is that i don't have anyone to go with. not that i mind going to a concert by myself [i've done it before], it'd just be a heckuva lot more fun to see them with someone, and preferably someone who really gets the valentines. most of friends don't get the valentines. then again, most of friends listed to weepy, whispery guitar doods. boring with a capital bore. do i go? do i not go? where's a flower when you need one.

→ my bloody valentine: map ref. 41 degrees n 93 degrees w [wire cover]
→ my bloody valentine: never say goodbye [from the strawberry wine ep]
→ my bloody valentine: drive it all over you [from the 'you made me realize' single]

SONG OF THE DAY [#348]

2008-07-30T20:27:00.006-07:00

'pictures [to big to fit in a sight] | mockingbird, wish me luck

belle and sebastian-esque album cover? check. chintzy brass section? check. lots of acoustic guitars and strings? borderline twee pop songs? check.

ladies and gents, the latest entry in the 'i-worship-stuart-murdoch' sweepstakes, the eight-piece pop orchestra, mockingbird, wish me luck [name courtesy of the novel of the same name by charles bukowski].

ok, so maybe that sounded a bit harsh. i didn't mean for it to because M,WML are pretty fine little band from, wait for it......sweden! as, yes, the swedes strike yet again. it's getting kind of stupid isn't? well, i, for one, am not complaining so long as the great tunes keep on coming.

do these kids a favor and check our their awesome tunes.

→ mockingbird, wish me luck: pictures [pictures too big to fit in a sight]
→ mockingbird, wish me luck: you've got a friend to lean on

SONG OF THE DAY [#347]

2008-07-29T19:41:00.006-07:00

'all the times i cried' | sharleen spiteri

while duffy, candie payne, and amy winehouse were playing barbies and hopscotch, sharleen spiteri was already mastering blue-eyed soul with her band texas. [ok, ok, i know she has brown eyes. work with me, people.]

i really, really, really loved texas. they were hugely underrated and nearly broke through in the US a few times in the mid-to-late nineties with a couple of minor hits including 'say what you want.' what a great song that was. for sure. i was fully anticipating a texas-sized texas invasion. but instead it was more like a little-island-at-the-tip-of-alaska-almost-in-russia sized invasion. oh well, not everyone can be a winner. i wish they had, though. that'd have swell.

i kind of lost track of them after 'the hush,' but i recently found out that sharleen was about to release a solo album called 'melody.' very good news indeed. well, i got to listen to it and it's very mighty and very, very excellent. it dropped in the uk on july 14. [of course, no US release date yet, but stay tuned.] i can see all the hipster kids slamming it already for being a duffy knockoff, but listen up hipster kids: sharleen is the godmother [ok, dusty is the godmother, but you know what i'm sayin']. duffy, candie and amy should be bowing down before her.

welcome back, sharleen. i missed you [and not just 'cos you're a stone cold foxy lady with stone cold foxy glaswegian accent].

→ sharleen spiteri: all the times i cried | video
→ sharleen spiteri: don't keep me waiting
→ texas: say what you want | video
→ texas: black eyed boy | video
→ texas: put your arms around me | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#346]

2008-07-27T11:33:00.008-07:00

'sailor' | hem

a couple of years ago i saw hem's debut, 'rabbit songs,' on a border's listening station. i didn't know the first thing about them, but the cover looked interesting and different so i slapped the headphones on and pushed 'play.'

what happened next was nothing short of transcendental. i stood there mesmerized as i listened to track after track, completely taken with sally's voice, the impeccably arranged songs [and the band's obvious song writing skills], and the way 'sailor' [and particularly the french horn that comes in mid-way] completely took me to another place i had never planned on going to [warning: you many need a kleenex or two after listening to it]. i think i went back and listened to 'rabbit songs' five or six times during the next couple of weeks. i finally did pick up a used copy at amoeba records [i know, i know -- it's terrible. way to support the band, matt] a year or two later.

it's odd, though, 'cos this isn't the kind of stuff i normally listen to. at all. but a beautiful song is a beautiful song, regardless of any preconceived notions of 'genre.' but that's maybe that's what makes hem so beguiling -- they don't fit into any genre. great music, in my opinion, shouldn't. it should speak for itself, be free from tags, labels, assignations, and pigeonholing. that's precisely what hem does and what hem is. and that's why they're not merely good, but great.

go buy 'rabbit songs.' now. you'll be glad you did.

→ hem: sailor
→ hem: half acre
→ hem: leave me here

SONG OF THE DAY [#345]

2008-07-26T22:51:00.005-07:00

'emotional champ' | new buffalo

in all honesty, i really think this is one of my favorite songs of the last five years or so. ok, i don't just think so, i know so. why? well...

...first of all, the song's title is fantastic. for me it just evokes all kinds of rad imagery; secondly, it's a deceptively simple song: sally seltmann's heavenly vocals, tinkly piano, a little brass and nothing else [ah, the beauty of simplicity!]; thirdly, it'll kick you square in the heart [this song has the exact same affect as slowdive's '40 days.' depending on my mood it will uplift me or completely destroy me. and i love that]. lastly, it's just a really, really gorgeous song.

and you've probably heard at least one of her songs without even realizing. sally originally wrote '1, 2, 3, 4' for feist. when i first heard that it wasn't really too surprising. '1, 2, 3, 4' could've very easily appeared on either of sally's albums.

speaking of albums, so far she's released two and i can't recommend either of them enough. it's pretty magical stuff. both of them. there's really something to be said for such simple songs packing such a wallop [and completely avoiding gimmicks or cheap tricks]. it's really refreshing, y'know? so if you find yourself with a couple of extra pennies, head on over to your local store and pick up 'somewhere, anywhere.' just don't listen to it after a breakup. it will set back your recovery a good year.

→ new buffalo: emotional champ
→ new buffalo: cheer me up thank you | video
→ new buffalo: i've got you and you've got me [song of contentment] | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#344]

2008-07-26T11:14:00.008-07:00

'snowflake in a hot world' | mercury rev

mercury rev is another one of those bands that should be more well-known and appreciated than they are. it's a mystery why they aren't. maybe they're one of those rare bands that are simply too good, too creative, too inventive. but then again, i'm not really sure that's it because they're often mentioned in the same breath as the flaming lips [probably because both bands have worked with dave fridmann. fridmann's not only produced some of their stuff, he also played bass for the band], but they don't get near the pub the lips get. so, yeah, i don't really have a theory as to why they aren't more popular. i just wish they were 'cos they are a mighty and awesome.

the band's new one, 'snowflake midnight,' hits stores 9/29. it's another terrific album in a series of terrific albums. in fact, i think it's a step up from 'the secret migration.' be sure to check it out.

→ mercury rev: snowflake in a hot world
→ mercury rev: nite and fog | video
→ mercury rev: chains

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BLOG

2008-07-24T21:03:00.005-07:00

never underestimate the sheer level of awesomeness in giving a one year old baby a piece of shiny cutlery to cut his own cake on his first birthday. [yes, that's me--what where my parents thinking? the knife is like the length of my arm, for pete's sake.] hey, nothing says 'happy 1st birthday, son,' like dressing your kid in lederhosen and letting him decapitate winnie the pooh.

ah, yes. in case you haven't already guessed, it was one year ago today that i staked my little claim on the information superhighway. it seems like it was jut...well, a year ago.

it's pioneer day today if you happen to live in utah. unfortunately i had to work and i was so tired by the end of the day that i didn't even want to watch fireworks. not that i really would have anyway. [instead i've been passing the evening with my US copy of 'spaced' that arrived in the mail today. amazon.com is already sold out of it, if you can believe that. good on ya, nick, simon, jessica, and co.]

so anyway, one year down. i originally planned to kill this blog after one year. i realize how inherently presumptuous to even publish a blog. i mean, geez, who really wants to know all about my life or what i'm listening to or what i'm reading. it's all a bit silly, innit? maybe i'll still kill the blog. maybe i won't. i still haven't decided. anyway...

SPACED! AT LAST!

2008-07-23T20:00:00.002-07:00

when i first heard about 'spaced,' i feared it would be like all those lame british comedies you usually see on PBS -- set in a department store of some kind, a really bad laugh track, stuffy humor, etc. i really had no idea what to expect, but i bought in anyway because a trusted friend couldn't stop talking about it. 'what?! you haven't seen 'spaced?' it's the best british comedy ever!!' she said. so, i tool a leap of faith and bought it off amazon UK. [nerd alert] i even bought a region-free dvd player just so i could watch it. about three minutes into episode 1, i was hooked. all i can say is that my friend was not wrong. now, after seven years, 'spaced' finally got a proper US release on tuesday, july 22. hooray!

the premise is fairly simple [two twenty-somethings posing as a professional working couple in order to rent out a flat], but big kudos to simon pegg, jessica stevenson and edgar wright for finding the madness, insanity, and hilarity in the mundane routine of every day life. the laughs come pretty fast and furious, thanks the sharp dialogue, rapid-fire exchanges, frenetic editing and zooms, and unique camera angles. all that is well and good, but it's pegg's and stevenson's charisma and charm that keep you coming back for more and more.

if you're a fan of so-called pop culture, 'spaced' is a dream [they make a hack like diablo cody look like a cheap tijuana knockoff]. simon pegg's tim drops more references than you can shake a stick at--some you don't even catch until a second and third viewings. you get odes to baywatch, the a-team, close encounters of the 3rd kind, the x-files, various comic book heroes [the flash, batman, etc], and, of course, plenty of homages to star wars -- including an hilarious dog rescue episode in which our heroes adopt the code names han, leia, luke, chewie and jabba.

the supporting cast is uniformly excellent, too. twist, the fashionista who works at a dry cleaners; brian, the tortured artist who lives downstairs; marsha, the alcoholic landlady; and mike, the 'territorial army' reject and tim's best friend who once stole a tank and tried to invade paris. tim and mike's scenes together are priceless, as is the entire paintball episode [#4, 'battles.'].

but ultimately what sets it apart from other pop-culture wannabees is its heart [you'll want to have a hanky with you during the final episode]. if you're not fully in love iwth tim, daisy and the rest of the gang, you just don't have a heart. that's all there is to it.

my favorite scene of the entire run is episode 5 of season two, 'chaos.' watch and behold the genius:

i think i gave myself a hernia i was laughing so hard. i must have watched this scene a couple dozen times. it never gets old.

pegg and director edgar wright would go on to create 'shaun of the dead' and 'hot fuzz' [two of my favorite movies ever]. stevenson made a cameo in 'shaun,' but was sadly absent from 'hot fuzz.' nick frost, who plays mike in 'spaced,' also starred in 'hot fuzz' and 'shawn of the dead.' rumor has it that edgar wright is currently working on the big screen adaption of 'ant-man' for marvel comics.

it's a shame 'spaced' lasted fourteen episodes. however, given each episode's singular brilliance, you can't really blame them for going out on top. so check out the entire first episode below. you'll love it.

how's that for a slice of fried gold?

SONG OF THE DAY [#343]

2008-07-21T19:20:00.002-07:00

'west coast' | coconut records

yes, that'd be erstwhile phantom planet drummer and 'rushmore' thespian jason schwartzman and his fine 'coconut records' tote bag.

it's funny 'cos i had two folks email me within hours of each other asking if i'd heard coconut records. 'coconut records?' i said. 'can't say i've heard of them.' but, ah, wait! a look at my itunes reveals that indeed i had many coconut record songs--i just did not that it. silly me.

anyway, these be some mighty fine tunes. i certainly like coconut records more than i liked phantom planet. maybe that's 'cos coconut records owes more than a tiny debt to the olivia tremor control, cotton mather, neutral milk hotel and all the other elephant six alum. but that's a good thing. i'm definitely drinking the coconut juice and feeling the urge to go to tahiti.

coconut records debut album, 'nighttiming,' dropped march 20, 2007. nice job, mr. schwartzman.

→ coconut records: west coast | video
→ coconut records: easy girl

SONG OF THE DAY [#342]

2008-07-19T22:34:00.006-07:00

'heavy water/i'd rather be sleeping' | grouper

i happened to stumble across grouper today purely by accident. but boy am i glad i did. i'd never heard of the one-woman, portland, oregon based band before, so i had to do a little research.

and, well, i didn't find much other than what i just mentioned. but you know, that's ok, because music this beautiful probably deserves more than a modicum of ambiguity. to be honest, i don't think i've heard anything quite like grouper before. and i really like that i haven't.

and i really like that liz harris avoids all the normal cliches and trappings of the girl-with-a-guitar genre of music. in face, she just may have created a new genre: acoustic shoegazing. imagine the cocteau twins stripped of the studio effects, slowdive if rachel goswell did all the singing over neil halstead's mojave 3 style guitar playing. yeah, ok, enough of the comparisons. just take it for what it is: a swift, melancholic kick to the soul. i adore this album. i listened to it for about four straight hours last night.

'i'm dragging a dead deer up the hill' dropped july 10. it's a tough one to find, but your diligence in searching it out will be justly rewarded.

→ grouper: heavy water/i'd rather be sleeping
→ grouper: we've all gone to sleep

SONG OF THE DAY [#341]

2008-07-19T10:00:00.002-07:00

'what i have done to deserve this' | west end girls

nothing makes more sense than a band named after a pet shop boy song covering a pet shop boys song. brilliant.

in this case it's those swedish funsters covering the PSB's/dusty springfield classic, 'what i have done to deserve this.' [and just for your 'gee whiz' collection, WEG's debut, released in 2006, is comprised entirely of PSB songs.] and just as PSB enlisted the cleopatra-eyed springfield for their call-and-response ode to dysfunctional relationships, west end girls enlisted a little help from their countryman, magnus carlson. [more for you gee whiz collection: magnus carlson has also guested with the acid house kings and the sweptaways. there, you gee whiz tank has been topped off.]

in all honesty, WEG's version doesn't really deviate from the original other than the gender vocal switch. is it disposable? you betcha. is it completely unnecessary? absolutely. is it a ton of fun regardless? most definitely. time to boogie.

→ west end girls: what have i done to deserve this? | video
→ west end girls: what have i done to deserve this? [nathan heinze club mix]
→ west end girls: suburbia [extended mix] | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#340]

2008-07-16T18:22:00.006-07:00

'the beauty of the way we're living' | club 8

word of the new legends album coming out this fall once again threw me into the world of johan angergard. it still amazes me that this one guy is in three of my favorite bands--at the same time! [that'd be club 8, acid house kings, and the legends for those you playing at home.] forget james brown [rest his funky soul], johan angergard is the hardest working man in twee pop. [now that i think about it, i'm not entirely sure there's a new legends album coming out. maybe it's wishful thinking. i dunno.]

i first heard club 8 on one of those little listening stations at barnes and noble back in 2002. it was shortly after 'spring came, rain fell' was released and it was love at first listen. club 8 was, and is, the epitome of perfect pop--at least to me. i absolutely love them. why? maybe it's the underlying bossa nova present in so many of their songs [what can i say, i love me some diminished and augmented chords. and i really love me some major 7ths!]; maybe it's karolina's barely-there vocals; maybe it's their awesome videos and awesomer publicity shots [see picture above]; but it's most assuredly johan's impeccable pop chops. they guy could probably write a pop song from his coffin. and i'm sure he probably will. and i'm sure it will be super rad. the guy has a gift. that's all i'm sayin'.

so enjoy some of johan's greatest hits below.

→ club 8: the beauty of the way we're living
→ club 8: spring came, rain fell
→ club 8: jesus, walk with me [the sound of arrows remix]
→ club 8: missing you | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#339]

2008-07-13T11:30:00.009-07:00

'caravan girl' [live choral version] | goldfrapp

i've said it before, i'll say it again: we all need more alison goldfrapp in our lives. i know i'm always in a better mood when i've had my daily dose of the good stuff.

this live choral version of 'caravan girl,' which is quite lovely, comes from the single of the same name. i think children's choirs are sometimes overused, or are, at the very least, used in the wrong places. but it just seems to fit on 'caravan girl,' despite the fact that choirs don't necessarily evoke images of caravans. i usually envision circus freaks or vw's full of hippies smokin' the hippy lettuce whenever i think about caravans. maybe that's just me. but the fact that i've even devoted an entire paragraph to caravan imagery is frightening. **link corrected!*

→ goldfrapp: caravan girl [live choral version] | video
→ goldfrapp: monster love [live acoustic version]

SONG OF THE DAY [#338]

2008-07-12T12:29:00.004-07:00

'can't stop movin' | sonny j

a measure into this song i was 100% certain it was a go! team or avalanches song. but nay! it's sonny j. and i gotta tell ya', sonny j is more like sonny delight, know what i mean?

i don't much about sonny j, but honestly, i don't really need to 'cos his prodigiously awesome tunes speak for themselves. but just so you know, his album, 'disastro,' dropped march 25 and i highly recommend it.

'can't stop moving' is an epic number, instantly catch and instantly awesome. to me, it's kind of like the avalanches' 'since i left you' on happy pills. it's just that good and that much fun. and true to the song's title, whenever i listen to it i can't stop moving. check it out.

→ sonny j: can't stop movin' | video
→ sonny j: handsfree [if you hold my hand] | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#337]

2008-07-11T22:06:00.003-07:00

'untouchable' | rialto

ah, rialto. look up 'britpop casualities' in the dictionary and you'll see that picture to your left. sure, there were a load of bands during that four explosion and some, like the terrible menswe@r, deserved to be forgotten and/or banished to musical purgatory.

others, like rialto, just got lost in the shuffle. maybe it was their blatantly theatric, slightly melodramatic [dare i say pretentious. pretension is kind of hard to avoid when you have two drummers], but undeniably infectious brand of fuzzy pop. maybe the world wasn't ready for a lead singer as stupidly good looking--and as perfectly named--as louis eliot. who knows. it's a mystery for the ages.

whatever the case may have been, rialto disappeared almost as quickly as they appeared like the proverbial bolt of lightning. oh, but what a bolt it was. 'untouchable' is undoubtedly one of my favorite songs of the era. it's what i imagine barry manilow singing over a john berry-penned james bond theme song might sound like. i know you are thinking that sounds like an awesome description and you'd be right in thinking so. rialto's a great band. i wish they hadn't faded so quickly, or at the very least got their dues. oh well. if nothing else, we have a terrific, self-titled album. cheers, fellas!

→ rialto: untouchable | video
→ rialto: hard candy
→ rialto: lucky number
→ rialto: monday morning 5:19 | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#336]

2008-07-10T19:19:00.003-07:00

'air painter' | cansei de ser sexy

sometimes i get tired of being sexy too. it's rough business, but someone's gotta do it, right?

well, cansei de ser sexy shows no sign of tiring from their sexiness. their new album, 'donkey,' drops next tuesday. the good news is they've managed to complete avoid the sophomore slump. it's not much of stylistic departure from their other stuff, but when you do so well what you do, why change the ingredients? i make some kick a** cookies and i make the same kick a** cookies every time. if it ain't broke...

now, is it just me or does lovefoxxx's vocal bear more than a passing similarity to louise wener's? hm, food for though.

so don't be an a**. save your pennies and head on over to your local download store on july 22nd and buy 'donkey.'

→ cansei de ser sexy: air painter [from the upcoming 'donkey.']
→ cansei de ser sexy: left behind [from the upcoming 'donkey.']
→ cansei de ser sexy: music is my hot, hot sex [kill the noise remix] | video
→ cansei de ser sexy: alala [baron von luxury's lovefoxxx + bvl = bff remix] | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#335]

2008-07-07T19:04:00.004-07:00

'i'm not going to teach your boyfriend how to dance with you' | black kids

here's your party band for the summer of 2008, kids, and yet another testament to the power of the internet.

black kids blew up after they posted some songs on their myspace page. the bloggers all went ga-gag nutty as they are often want to do, the labels noticed, they got signed. easy peasy. ah, it's the american dream, innit?

despite the inevitable endless cries of 'best. band. ever!!!!!!!! LOL!' that are sure to follow the release of their debut, 'partie traumatic' on july 22, black kids really know how to have some fun their music. they remind me quite a bit of new young pony club, which is probably why i like 'em as much as i do. of course, black kids don't have lou hayter, but hey, not everyone can. i really shouldn't be so picky, i suppose.

enough talk. strap on your seatbelt 'cos black kids are about to launch you in to the fun zone.

→ black kids: i'm not gonna teach your boyfriend how to dance with you | video
→ black kids: i'm not gonna teach your boyfriend how to dance with you [the twelves remix]
→ black kids: hurricane jane | video
→ black kids: hurricane jane [beige remix]
→ black kids: hurricane jane [sqzmylmns mix]

SONG OF THE DAY [#334]

2008-07-06T14:02:00.004-07:00

'little bit' | lykke li

for as much as i loved 'i'm good. i'm gone,' i have to say i love 'little bit' even more. and i like the remixes even more than the original, and that's saying something 'cos the original is superb. if you've not heard her debut, 'youth novels,' yet, it hits US shores august 19. it's a superb album entirely worthy of all the hype it's getting. so be sure to buy it.

she's also playing a handful of US dates in the fall, so be sure to check her out if she comes your way [no salt lake city stop, of course. $#%&!. i might have to head out to SF].

→ lykke li: little bit [album version] | video
→ lykke li: little bit [matas berlin remix]
→ lykke li: little bit [css remix]
→ lykke li: little bit [diego chavez remix]

SONG OF THE DAY [#333]

2008-07-05T10:16:00.003-07:00

'love is noise' | the verve

it's amazing a decade has passed since the verve's seminal album, 'urban hymns.' what's also amazing is how many people seem to have forgotten just how massive the verve really was. and not only were the massive, they were massively brilliant. richard ashcroft made good on his promise: they were the biggest band in the world in 1998.

is was kind of fun, if not a little infuriating, watching the whole legal battle over 'bittersweet symphony' [the band ultimately had to fork over every single last penny they made from the single to the suits who own the publishing rights to the rolling stones back catalogue, or some nonsense like that ]. i remember the incredible video featuring a cadaverous richard ashcroft owning a street somewhere in dear old blighty. i remember the giddiness i felt when i got to see them live down in l.a. verve concerts are, well, a mind-bend. needless to say they did not disappoint. 'urban hymns' [which i still listen to regularly and remains to this day one of my favorite albums of all-time] was kind of the last big anthemic britpop album. and it was brilliant.

well, richard ashcroft and nick mccabe had their 'artistic differences' issues and the band split up not too long after. richard ashcroft went off and did some solo albums [the first being absolutely essential listening, the other two merely ok]. nick mccabe probably went off and did some guitar noodling. i have no idea what simon and pete did, though.

but since their break up, i've been hoping for a verve reunion. see, kids, what happens if you wish hard enough? [i'm kidding, of course]. your favorite bands get back together!! yes, yes. it's not really news anymore, but in case you hadn't heard, the verve are back together, playing festivals over on the other side of the pond and finishing up a new album. two songs, so far, have made it out in to the public: 'love is noise' and 'mover.' in a word: brilliant. 'love is noise' is a shot of adrenaline straight into the bloodstream. i think i've listened to it about 30 times in the last three days. it's incredible.

here's hoping they'll hit our shores next fall. i doubt they'd play salt lake, but i sure wish they would. i'd like nothing more than to see nick, richard, pete and simon up on stage once again because, let's face it, their return will be volcanic.

→ the verve: love is noise
→ the verve: mover
→ the verve: on your own | video
→ the verve: sonnet | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#332]

2008-07-03T22:44:00.004-07:00

'before it gets better' | earlimart

wow. i cracked earlimart's new one, 'hymn and her,' [release date 7/1] last night i was completely blown away! i've always kind of moderately interested in them as a band. their song, 'hold on, slow down,' kicked off my 2005 compilation. it's as perfect an opening song as there is. i loved it. but for some reason i was just never fully enlisted in the earlimart army.

that, however, changed when i heard that glory that is 'hymn and her.' you're not likely to hear more effortless and gorgeous melodies the rest of this year. and that song is just the tip of ye olde iceberg. 'hymn and her' is packed with some seriously artillery. i don't know what's up the military references today. oh well. seriously, kids, check this one out. it's on my short list for favorite albums of the year.

→ earlimart: before it gets better
→ earlimart: for the birds
→ earlimart: hold on, slow down

SONG OF THE DAY [#331]

2008-07-01T20:44:00.000-07:00

'paint a face' | neil halstead

i might have been the last person to know it, but neil halstead is gonna release a new album pretty soon! this is just the best news i've heard all day. any time we get any neil halstead music of any kind, be it mojave3 or solo stuff [or the secret hope there will be some new slowdive someday], it's a cause for celebration.

over the last 15 years or so neil halstead has very quietly amassed a very impressive catalogue of tunes. i really wish he'd get more dues then he currently does 'cos he awesome. the only reason i can come up with as that to why he doesn't is that some folks suppose brits aren't supposed to write mellow acousticky, folky/country-ish tunes. oh, those provincial fools. nick drake ring a bell?

anyway, just put on comfy genes, get a cold beverage and let mr. halstead take you away...

→ neil halstead: paint a face
→ neil halstead: high hopes
→ neil halstead: seasons [surf style]

SONG OF THE DAY [#330]

2008-06-26T21:37:00.004-07:00

'six different ways' [the cure cover] | the postmarks

from the get go the postmarks drew comparisons to saint etienne. this, of course, made me notice them because depending on the day, my favorite bands of all-time are depeche mode and saint etienne.

after hearing the postmarks debut album a year or two ago, however, i wasn't really buying the comparison. sure, the two bands were fairly similar, but the postmarks sounded more like a couple of saint etienne songs rather saint etienne the band.

that all changed, however, when i heard the postmarks' cover of the cure's classic, 'six different ways.' it's 110% saint etienne. [that's not a slight, but a good, old-fashioned pat on the back. good on ya, postmarks]. their version of 'six different ways' sounds like it belongs with those absolutely classic 'he's on the phone' b-sides 'groveley road,' 'the process,' and 'is it true.' those three songs are three of my fav saint etienne songs, so, you know...

aside from the fact that the postmarks' version of 'six different ways' sound terrific, it bears not a single resemblance to the original. in fact, were it not for the lyrics, i might not of known it was the cure they were covering. it's refreshing because in this day and age of vapid and banal cover songs [which usually consist of some dood or chick with willowy, wispy vocals and a guitar basically just playing an acoustic version of the song. in my opinion that's not really a cover, but rather a gimmick and an attention-grabber], the postmarks manage to make 'six different ways' completely their own. it's no small feat and it's gutsy because they didn't take the easy way out like so many bands do.

so enjoy some postmarks, some cure, and some mighty saint etienne... and have a great weekend!

→ the postmarks: six different ways
→ the postmarks: goodbye [tahiti 80 remix]
→ the cure: six different ways
→ saint etienne: groveley road
→ saint etienne: the process
→ saint etienne: is it true

SONG OF THE DAY [#329]

2008-06-24T21:41:00.004-07:00

'forever' | walter meego

i remember the time i heard 'way you walk' by papas fritas on that dentyne ice commercial about four or five years ago. i loved the song the second i heard it, but i didn't know who sang it. thanks heavens for the internet. after a cursory search, i found that it was the papas fritas. 'hey, i'm just gonna check my itunes and see what i gots.' sure enough, i had it. i didn't even know i had it! that's just crazy sauce.

well, last week while i was down visiting the holy land, er, los angeles, i heard this killer song on a heinekin commercial. it was highly groovy and ridiculously catchy. 'i gotta have this song!' i said. when i got home on sunday i started searching and discovered it was walter meego. 'hey, i'm gonna check my itunes and see what i gots.' yep. paydirt. i really should have a better knowledge of what i have.

'forever' is about as kick a** a summer song as there can possibly be. like i said, it's so catchy it's stupid. and i just love that squealing guitar lick. highly, highly awesome. trust me, kids, one listen and you'll have it in your head for days.

you can check out walter meego here and here. so go do it.

→ walter meego: forever
→ walter meego: girls
→ papas fritas: way you walk | video [just to, you know, stay with the theme.]

SONG OF THE DAY [#328]

2008-06-23T19:12:00.004-07:00

'repetition kills you' | the black ghosts

this has to be one of the most awkward band promo shots ever taken. something just doesn't look right. i don't really know what it is or why it's mildly creeping me out. maybe 'cos they look like they belong in a wax museum? i dunno. i can say this, though: 'the black ghosts' is perhaps the most accurately self-reflexive band name in the history of band names. i can hear the conversation now: 'hey, we're a couple of pasty white doods wearing black. let's call ourselves the black ghosts.' genius. pure genius.

'repetition ' i believe, will be the first single, or already is the first single, from black ghosts debut album, 'the black ghosts' [i wonder how long it took to come up with that one.] which drops july 8. at first listen, 'repetition' sounds like something hot chip recorded about three years ago. but it's a pretty cool song. i've had it on repeat all day. it's even got erstwhile head gorilla[z] and blur frontman damon albarn doing some guesty vocals. sometimes i wish damon would ditch the side projects and just get on that next blur album.

→ the black ghosts: repetition kills you | video
→ the black ghosts: something new [galactic version feat. i feel space]
→ the black ghosts: let's get physical [yes, you read that correctly.]

SONG OF THE DAY [#327]

2008-06-13T12:05:00.000-07:00

'heartbreak make me a dancer' sophie ellis-bextor

any day i can do a sophie ellis-bextor post is a very good day, indeed.

turns out sophie has released a couple of new tracks to her myspace page [can a new album be too terribly far behind? i've got my fingers, toes and eyes crossed--maybe that's why i'm not seeing so well today]. all i can say is god bless her for it. we all need more sophie in our lives. and if you don't, i'll gladly take yours.

the first, and the superior track in my opinion, is 'heartbreak make me a dancer.' it's another glammed up, silky, seductive dance track. the other, 'off and on,' was originally recorded by roisin murphy, but never officially released.

ok, excuse me while end this post and stare at sophie's picture. :::swoon:::

→ sophie ellis-bextor: heartbreak make me a dancer
→ sophie ellis-bextor: off and on

p.s. i'm leaving for the motherland tonight and i'll be out of town all next week, so no songs for bit...

SONG OF THE DAY [#326]

2008-06-11T19:26:00.003-07:00

'never never' | the warm jets

the warm jets were one of the more unfortunate casualties of the britpop explosion of the mid-90s. though if you were a fan of music back then, it's really pretty easy to see why: three words in their name. in the age of suede, pulp, blur, oasis, sleeper, echobelly, elastica, gene, supergrass, radiohead, and countless others one-named bands, a band with two words in their name, much less three, really didn't stand a chance. what a shame.

in all seriousness, the warm jets were a really fantastic band. ten years on since their first--and only--album, 'future signs,' hardly a month goes by where i don't listen to 'never never' or 'hurricane.' they're still great songs and stick rock just as mightily back then as they do today. the album is long since out of print [i'm sure you could find it used on amazon], but if you want to give it a listen, you can download it here. [and i highly suggest you do!] there, you can't say i never did anything for you.

→ the warm jets: never never | video
→ the warm jets: hurricane

SONG OF THE DAY [#325]

2008-06-10T19:24:00.003-07:00

'bitchin' camaro' | the dead milkmen

during today's 'mandatory fun/work lunch' at sugarhouse park in salt lake city, my friend dustin and i shared a couple of fond laughs over the dead milkmen. one look at the picture to your left tells you pretty much everything you need to know about the band: men-children/frat boys who probably think flatulence jokes are still uproariously hilarious even when you're twenty five years old--and probably even more so.

the milkmen enjoyed their three months of fame in the late 80s when 'punk rock girl' became a staple on late-night MTV the dead milkmen harnessed all that silliness and wrote some really snappy tunes and made fun of everyone in sight. the dead milkmen's very un-p.c. deliveries skewered anyone and everyone. and good for them. among the many salvos: 'you'll dance to anything by any bunch of stupid europeans who come over here with their big hairdos intent on taking our money instead of giving your cash where it belongs to a decent american artist like myself.' comedy gold.

for me, the milkmen's magnum opus is 'bitchin' camaro.' it's probably one of the funniest songs every written. don't believe me? listen to joe jack talcum explains to rodney anonymous that his parents drove his new car up from the bahamas. when rodney, in disbelief states, 'you're kidding!' joe jack talcum quickly responds, 'i must be. the bahamas are islands.' comedy gold redux.

but you know, the next time someone asks me what i'm going to do, i dunno, ever, i'm going to utter rodney's immortal words: 'uh, i dunno. play some video games, buy some def leppard t-shirts.'

man, that is just an awesome way to spend an afternoon.

→ the dead milkmen: bitchin' camaro
→ the dead milkmen: instant club hit [you'll dance to anything]

SONG OF THE DAY [#324]

2008-06-08T00:12:00.003-07:00

'no more running away' | air traffic

funny story: these guys opened for elbow. i had never heard a single thing by them before they took the stage at the depot a few weeks back. opening bands generally stink [that's why they're opening], so my expectations were, needless to say and as they usually are, slim to none.

when they finally did take the stage, my initial thought was 'wow, isn't a school night?' they look like they're about fourteen years old and should be on their way to math class with a book under their arms instead of guitars and basses. yes, that's my envy shining through...

at any rate, after a couple of songs into their forty minute set, i leaned over to my friends barbie and cassandra and said, 'say, don't they kind of sound like keane, and muse, starsailor, supergrass, and coldplay?' they both nodded in the affirmative. about five minutes later i got a text from my sister who was also at the show: 'matt, don't they sound like keane, muse, stairsailor, supergrass, and coldplay?' yep. they do. though it's not necessarily a bad thing. [i like/love all those bands, even coldplay--the exception being the craptacular turdfest that was 'x&y']. and if you like any of those aforementioned bands, you're bound to dig air traffic, too.

the highlight of the set was 'never even told me her name' in which bassist jim maddock and guitarist tom pritchard each got to pound of their own snare drums for the duration of the song. it's a nice counter point to chris wall's high-flying vocals and lilting piano. for as good as it sounds on the album, it was definitely shiver-inducing live. so here's hoping they swing by utah again in the future. in the meantime, enjoy 'no more running away' and 'never even told me her name.' good times, noodle salad...

→ air traffic: no more running away | video
→ air traffic: never even told me her name | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#323]

2008-06-05T21:06:00.005-07:00

'making music' | chungking

i listened to these guys today for the first time in a couple of months and i was immediately reminded of 1) how awesome they are, and 2) i'm an idiot for going that long without listening to them.

i'm sure you've heard of the great chungking before, but in case you haven't, as you can see they are a hot chick and a bloke. i think there used to be an additional bloke, but he seems to have disappeared. too bad for him. i stay in the band solely for the eye candy, er, artistic expression.

their first album was called 'we travel fast.' it was later cleaned up, remastered, resequenced, and re-released as 'the hungry years.' some folks prefer the former. i prefer the latter. in 2006 they released 'stay up forever,' which was like a intravenous shot of jolt cola after the pastoral 'hungry years.' 'stay up forever' was all glam, all the time. here a couple tracks from those albums. enjoy!

→ chungking: making music | video
→ chungking: come with me
→ chungking: love is here to stay | video
→ chungking: slow it down

SONG OF THE DAY [#322]

2008-06-03T19:18:00.007-07:00

'antique bull' | brendan canning

ok people. brendan canning's [broken social scene] debut album, 'something for all of us,' [a.k.a. 'the album death cab would kill to record'] is massive. i've listened to it twice tonight already and all i can say is wow. the songs are so uniformly solid that it almost plays as a greatest hits album, not a solo debut. it's pretty obvious mr. canning knows how to write a song. there's something interesting and damned-near revelatory in every track. sure, they styles vary from acousticky ballads, to some shoegazy dronings, to straight up pop/rock; yet despite the disparate sounds, the album is definitely a cohesive whole. and i'm just now getting that album's title refers to that very fact. you can't slip anything past me. [actually, i'm the most gullible person alive.]

i'm sure when this hits record stores next month everyone's going to batsh*t crazy over it--and they should. you should, too. so add it to your list of july purchases. you'll be glad you did.

→ brendan canning: antique bull
→ brendan canning: hit the wall

SONG OF THE DAY [#321]

2008-06-02T17:56:00.011-07:00

'dirty dancing' | parker lewis

how many of year remember fox's tv show, 'parker lewis can't lose?' i think i was a high school junior or senior when it aired. i remember it getting moderate amounts of hype, but i don't remember actually ever watching it. maybe it was something to do with the the lead's real name: corky nemec. corky is never a good name. ever.

at any rate, the reclusive parker lewis [the musician] adopted the name and then released a song named after a movie in which patrick swayze dances. as far as i'm concerned, it's all marketing genius. thankfully the song is super great and i'm sure you'll totally dig it. oh yeah, he swedish. shocking.

→ parker lewis: dirty dancing
→ parker lewis: wasting time

SONG OF THE DAY [#320]

2008-05-31T08:36:00.002-07:00

'oh my life' | beth rowley

so my beth rowley obsession continues. i'm now on day four. i think she's just great. i'm pretty sure i've listened to her album about twenty times now and i'm just not getting tired of it.

'oh my life' is the new single and it's a great one. it's got 'top ten' written all over it. i think you'll wholeheartedly agree once you hear it. i want to take a nap in her hair. it must be like falling asleep in a cloud.

darn you and your darn dimples, beth. i love you...

→ beth rowley: oh my life

SONG OF THE DAY [#319]

2008-05-28T20:16:00.005-07:00

'so sublime' | beth rowley

oh, beth rowley, you impossibly cute, poodle-haired purveyor of poppy piano songs. why must you write such glorious songs that remind of cruising down pacific coast highway with the top down and listening to AM gold radio in 1979? [ok, i would've only been 5 going on 6 in 1979, but a kid can imagine, right?] you make me feel a nostalgia for a time i don't even remember and therefore have no reason to feel nostalgic for it. but alas, i do...

born in lima, peru and reared in the motherland, er, england, beth rowley is quite a talent. her debut, 'little dreamer,' has been floating around for awhile, but i just barely got to hear it today and it is super duper fantastic. it's part pop, part jazz, part r&b, part phil spector. add it all up and it's whole lots of awesome. think carole king meets duffy [even though beth's been around longer than duffy]. i highly recommend you pick it up and enjoy the super duper fantastickness. and while you do that, check out this video clip, too. ***Update*** i totally lied -- her album just came out may 20 of THIS year, not last year. it even cracked the top ten in the u.k. good on her!

i'd just like to get lost in her hair. that'd be r. a. d.

→ beth rowley: so sublime | video
→ beth rowley: you never called me tonight

SONG OF THE DAY [#318]

2008-05-25T09:52:00.006-07:00

'it doesn't get much better than this' | helicopter girl

after a mercury-nominated debut album in 2000, and a groovy follow up, 'voodoo chic,' in 2005, scottish artist helicopter girll [a.k.a jackie joyce] is releasing her new one, 'metropolitan,' this month [next month here in the states]. it was preceded by the most excellent 'it doesn't get much better than this,' which itself was a top 10 club hit. y'all know how much i love dance music, and these cuts are some primo examples. and if you're thinking she sounds an awful like eatha kitt, you'd be right. she does. talk about dead sexy.

→ helicopter girl: it doesn't get much better than this | video
→ helicopter girl: ghosts in the machine
→ helicopter girl: white revolving circles

SONG OF THE DAY [#317]

2008-05-22T20:02:00.006-07:00

'profit in your poetry' | butcher boy

my first though upon hearing butcher was this: wow, they sounds like they're from glasgow. so i hopped ye olde internet and lo and behold, my predictive powers prove to be very awesome and predictive. that doesn't even make sense.

anyway, i've had this one playing pretty regularly over the last year or so. it's a really great album, which makes me wonder why butcher boy isn't more well known. sure, bands are a dime a dozen these days, but surely the cream rises to the top, don't it? i think it eventually does. it's hard to keep true talent down and butcher boy gots lots of talent, so you can't keep them down.

the facts: butcher boy are seven piece band and they are great. that's all you need to know. i heartily suggest you check 'em out. you can even buy the album here [it'll set you back a bit, but it's totally worth it]. imagine matt johnson from the the fronting belle & sebastian [c'mon, you know i couldn't take about glasgow without mention B&S], only a more melancholy b&s. yeah. their debut, 'profit in your poetry,' is a sublime piece of pastoral pop pie ['i could be in love with anyone' is particularly gorgeous]. hey, that's an alliteration. i love me an alliteration, especially the unintentional ones. i love me some butcher boy, too. check out the songs below and you'll love them, too. that's the spitcake guarantee.

→ butcher boy: profit in your poetry
→ butcher boy: girls make me sick
→ butcher boy: i could be in love with anyone

SONG OF THE DAY [#316]

2008-05-18T20:58:00.004-07:00

a bunch of covers | a bunch of artists

not too much time today, but here are a couple of fun covers for your listening enjoyment.

→ the cure: world in my eyes
→ badly drawn boy: come on eileen
→ the shout out louds: man on the moon
→ the oliver north boy's choir: enola gay

for more fun with covers visit here: the covers project

SONG OF THE DAY [#315]

2008-05-17T13:29:00.004-07:00

'to be loved' | joan as policewoman

here's another one of the original 'song of the day' artists from about two years ago: joan as policewoman. i really liked some of the songs on her first album [particularly 'eternal flame.' and no, it's not a cover of the bangles 'classic.'] , so i was naturally really excited to learn her new one, 'to survive,' drops the first week of june. it's what you've come to expect from joan--beautiful, piano-driven pop with a hint of the blues. yeah, it's as good as it sounds.

if you don't already know joan as policewoman, here's what you need to know: her name is joan wasser. she's from maine. she's played and sung with lou reed, rufus wainwright, sparklehorse, david gahan, antony and the johnsons, and well, countless others. she even played in the university of boston symphony. girl's got mad skills. check out 'to survive' when it drops. you'll be glad you did.

→ joan as policewoman: to be loved
→ joan as policewoman: eternal flame | video

SONG OF THE DAY [#314]

2008-05-14T18:42:00.002-07:00

'help help' | mates of state

it looks like mates of state's winning streak will continue. after the great 'bring it back,' the band is set to release their new album, 're-arrange us,' next tuesday. indeed, it is super. lots of sharp hooks, keen melodies and lovely harmonies. what is it about married couples making great music? alan & mimi, natasha and murray, those kids from the rosebuds, and last but not least, mates of state's very own kori and jason. it's almost enough to make me want to get married...but not quite.

as an added attraction to today's song, i offer you their version of phantom planet's 'california' from one of those OC mixes and 'fraud in the 80s' from the previously mentioned 'bring it back.'

→ mates of state: help help
→ mates of state: fraud in the 80s | video
→ mates of state: california [phantom planet cover]

SONG OF THE DAY [#313]

2008-05-12T19:14:00.005-07:00

'institutionalized' | suicidal tendencies & black velvet flag

i was mildly amused to hear suicidal tendencies 'institutionalized' on the iron man soundtrack. [great movie, by the way. and while you're at, check out marvel's new ongoing series, 'invincible iron man.' awesome.] i remember hearing this song back in high school and thinking it was pretty rad even though i didn't really listen to punk or hard and heavy stuff. i think they might have even played it at the ivy tower on occasion. it was always a fun song to go nuts to.

hearing it again for the first time in, like, fifteen years reminded me of black velvet flag's lounge version of the same song. now if you've not heard black velvet flag, they were richard cheese before there was richard cheese. richard cheese basically stole black velvet flag's entire gag. but whatever. that's another story for another day. anyway, i black velvet flag [which just has to be a play on black flag] might have been responsible for the whole loungy cover version craze. i don't really know of anyone else doing it before them, do you? and to think all i wanted was a pepsi.

so put your hands in the air and sing, 'i'm not crazy, you're the one who's crazy....'

→ suicidal tendencies: institutionalized | video
→ black velvet flag: institutionalized

SONG OF THE DAY [#312]

2008-05-12T08:00:00.004-07:00

'freddie and the trojan horse' | the radio dept

speaking of the radio dept., here's their new one.

it's been a while since i've posted any swedish, which is kind of strange given that for a while there the swedes had a monopoly on spitcake since, like, the beginning. so welcome back, swedes. you were missed.

the new album, 'clinging to a scheme,' will hit digital shelves on september 10th. 'freddie and the trojan horse' is the lead single. so be sure to check out the album. i'm certain it will be great. after all, they're swedes.

→ the radio dept: freddie and the trojan horse
→ the radio dept: the worst taste in music | video [from 'lesser matters']