Young Marble Giants//Final Day

I've been thinking a lot lately about technology. And the endtimes. Haven't we all?

I've especially been thinking about how in all the old Sci Fi movies and tv shows, everyone had some kind of personal communication device. These sleek little gadgets are not unlike the actual gadgets we have today. In fact, it seems like the modern smartphone is practically modeled on something imagined as "the future" and thrown onto the props table.

As if to confirm this, a rerun of Star Trek: The Next Generation came on last night. Anika and I watched as members of the starship Enterprise tapped their Communicator Pins in order to call each other.

Here's where I think this gets really funny: whether it's a Communicator Pin or a more complicated device that can pull information out of the air, characters on these fictional imaginings of the future never overuse their gadgets. Sure, if Character A needs to get in touch with Character B, they call. If a space explorer needs some important information on the quick, they'll use their retro equivalent of Google, get the facts and get out. Texting and email never got written into the script. Sci Fi didn't think to account for Facebook and Foursquare and Twitter and Blogs and Social Media, which is hilarious, really. If we were so interested in getting these magical little gadgets in the first place, why wouldn't we have trouble ungluing our eyes/fingers from them once we got them? If these mind-blowing little guys open up all kinds of new ways to interact socially and gather obscure information, why wouldn't we treat them like any new toy? Why wouldn't we simply move all of our human ways of being into the technological realm, instead of letting the technology be a helpful addition to our daily lives in reality? Sci Fi fail.

Which brings me to the endtimes...

I don't know about you guys, but I feel like I can barely even remember anything anymore, having outsourced all my information to the long-term receptacles of the web. Shit, guys. AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO FEELS LIKE THIS?

But, I also don't want you to take away Angry Birds.

This song is about the apocalypse. It comes complete with a scary theremin, analog synth and eerie lyrics, mainly because of how relatable they are to right now.

Also, I've exhausted myself with this technology rant, but you should really know more about Young Marble Giants. There, I saved you the search.



Final Day.mp3

When the rich die last,
Like the rabbits
Running from a lucky past
Full of shallow cunning
And the world lights up
For the final day,
We will all be poor,
Having had our say.

Joy Division//They Walked in Line

Ok. I am going to admit it. I am overwhelmed. It's 75% good overwhelmed and 25% bad overwhelmed. I'm leaving New York in January and trying to tie up numerous creative, logistic and relationship loose ends. CRUNCH TIME.

Whenever I feel desperation start to set in, I just listen to Joy Division, because that shit is seriously depressing...and it can't be as bad as all that, can it?

The jams are, of course, also seriously awesome. This song is from 1978's Warsaw (which was also an early name for the band, along with Stiff Kittens, which sounds like a great name for a grunge band from the 90s). Warsaw, which is rough and raw and more solidly punk then most of what came after it, is an incredible album top to bottom. There's a story behind the record, which was never actually released. It was meant to be Joy Division's first album, but the band was unhappy with the post work done by RCA, so the whole thing was scrapped. Even before the internet, that didn't keep it from being circulated as bootlegs and that's what this is. It wasn't commercially released until 1994. And that's also why this track, and the others on the album, sound kinda rough. More about the album here.

As per usual, the subject matter's dark, and about the Nazis.

The weather that's been occurring over the last few days has been an exact replica of British winter. Grey, a little damp, a subtle chill in the air. If you close your eyes and sip some tea, you can almost convince yourself you're in Manchester. Do that, for me, whilst I run around like a chicken with its head cut off.



They Walked in Line.mp3

Wearing the shame of all their crimes,
With measured steps,
They walked in line.

The Smiths//There Is A Light That Never Goes Out

Recently, I realized that I have never posted a Smiths song here. To me, that’s almost unfathomable as I believe them to be one of the Best. Bands. Ever.

My biggest problem: which song? With the RARE exception of a few duds (ahem, the overdramatic vegan anthem “Meat is a Murder”), pretty much every Smiths song is perfect, amazing and beautiful. In a rare move, I went with this on the shear basis of numbers. Even though “How Soon Is Now?” was the band’s biggest single, this is clearly everybody’s favorite…and there’s a reason.

The song is about being so in love with someone and just not knowing how to tell them. It’s also about feeling utterly isolated from your home, your family, society in general. It’s about trying to find bright spots in a world that suddenly looks awfully dark. What I’m trying to say is that this song is about being a teenager—and that’s something everyone can remember and identify with.

Actually, a number of critics speculate that the song might be based on James Dean’s character in Rebel Without a Cause. Morrissey was known to lift dialog and plot from his favorite films. Lines from Rebel are directly copied in “Stretch Out and Wait” and the plot of a 60s British play/movie called A Taste of Honey is almost certainly referenced in “This Night Has Opened My Eyes.” Of course, there's also an element of teen angst in that one. Are you sensing a theme?

Finally, I really think you should watch this.



There Is A Light That Never Goes Out.mp3

To die by your side,
The pleasure, the privilege is mine.

Grass Widow//Shadow

Grass Widow: they might be your new favorite band...just sayin'... because I kind of think they might be mine. I'm hearing so many touches of things I already love in their sound. A little Breeders, a little classic 90s indie guitar sound, a little 70s proto riot grrrl/post punky stuff like Raincoats or Slits, a little Sleater-Kinney every now and then. And yet it's completely it's own thing. Yessssss.

I've been listening to their self-titled album basically on repeat for a week. It's so fucking good.

This song is from the SF-based group's new album, set to be released on KRS (duh) on August 24. If this is any hint of how sweet this album is going to be, it's going to mega-fucking-sweet.

WTF does Grass Widow mean anyway? Here's what.

Also, GW opens for Sonic Youth for $3 donation (aka free) THIS SATURDAY in Prospect Park for Celebrate Brooklyn. OMG AMIGONNA SEE YOU THERE!?



Shadow.mp3

Incapacity,
Walls that spoke to me

One Sweet Song//Northside Showcase

Local Music Showcase
What's up with Local Music Fridays?

I know what you're thinking: SLACKER!!! For once, it's not true! Au contraire, OSSers, I have been busting ass to organize something VERY COOL with Karl Sturk and today we are kicking if off with four, COUNT 'EM, FOUR sweet songs. Read on:

One Sweet Song and the ever-awesome Karl Sturk are curating a showcase for next week's Northside Music Festival. Guys, this is going to be a really, really good time. As FIPS says, you've gotten really good at this whole blog-reading thing--maybe it's time to try coming to a show. Shake hands, drink beer and hear awesome music. Oh, by the way, tomorrow's my birthday...this gives you the perfect opportunity to buy me a drink!

The Glorious Details:

One Sweet Song and Karl Sturk Showcase
Sunday 6/27
Public Assembly in Williamsburg
Doors 7:30, Music at 8
$7

Featuring the Amazing Sounds of:

11 PM :: Ribbons [Myspace]



Jenny Logan, Sam Roudman and Jeff Ciprioni tear it up with a sound that's fast and energetic while also retaining something dark and brooding. This is their last-ever NYC show, so catch them while you still can.

"...delightfully reminiscent of the golden age of that dark weird post-punk." - OSS

"...the stripped-down fever-shivers and uneasy fidget of classic post-punk--think Joy Division, Orange Juice, Durutti Column, etc. But these two Cali transplants can also play the shit out of their instruments." - The Village Voice

Mp3: Screens.mp3


10 PM :: Palmyra [Myspace] [Official]



The unlikely combination of a fuzzy acoustic guitar, a retro analog synth, a trumpet, a jazz drummer and a detroit-style garage rocker take on well-made rock and pop songs.

"100% shameless self-promotion" - OSS

"The City, On Repeat, is a gorgeous set of songs with a warm, homey feel. " - Tandem Shop

Quiet Color

Mp3: Suicidal Female Poets.mp3


9 PM :: The Long Eye [Myspace]



Karl Sturk and Patrice Scinta expertly combine finely crafted songs with a gritty, lofi garage sound.

"Karl’s songwriting talent, ear for arrangement and musical ability more than speak for themselves." - OSS

Mp3: Palisades.mp3 (Demo)



8 PM :: Drunken Barn Dance [Myspace]



Scott Sellwood's delightful sometimes solo, sometimes full band highlights his songwriting and always promises a rollicking good time.

"Scott Sellwood, in addition to being a truly sweet dude, is a master of melody." - One Sweet Song

"Drunken Barn Dance evolved from a solo folk project of Scott's into an epic multi-guitar attack band reminiscent of Television, Wilco and the Grateful Dead." - Metro Times

Mp3: A Winter's Tale.mp3

Also, look forward to Northside Week next week. I'll be counting down the days to the festival's start and giving you tips on which shows you HAVE to see.

Wave Machines//Keep The Lights On

You know what they say about a picture: Monday Mail
What is Monday Mail?

Austin from Eyes and Ears Entertainment didn’t send me anything except an mp3 and an album cover, but here’s what I could glean from the interwebs:

A mercurial Merseyside four piece, Wave Machines create instinctive art-pop; rhythms built of melodic ticks and bleeps, polka dots of sound drawn together beneath Tim Bruzon’s falsetto vocal, part Beck Hansen part Barry Gibb. With their English melancholia pricked by impudent promise… Wave Machines join that eccentric lineage of home grown musical adventurers; XTC, The Beta Band, Hot Chip.

Recorded in the bowels of the old organ room at St Brides Church in Liverpool, England, Wave Machines’ debut album Wave If You’re Really There owes much to the character of that formative space. The removal of old religious gowns from a small disused cupboard gave the band a vocal booth; the roof – or rather its view between Liverpool’s Cathedrals and out across the river – allowed the band a space to work things through; and at night the Nave became the bands live space, hosting the poetry, art, comedy and invited musical ‘competitors’ at the bands own night.

Although a remix was officially sent my way, I went and tracked down the original of this song, which I liked even more. This track sounds something like a macabre Hall and Oates song, with hints of electronic sounds that bring to mind that fantastic Erland Oye solo album, Unrest.

The song also appears to be about having trouble sleeping, which is something I can definitely relate to.

Stream the whole album from Wave Machines here.



Keep The Lights On.mp3

The night’s too long,
So when we sleep,
I keep the lights on.

James Brown//Get Up (I Feel Like Being A) Sex Machine, The Flying Lizards//Sex Machine

Dear OSS,

It's beautiful and I've got two very dear friends in town. Thus, I'm going to post a few tracks today and be done for the week. I hope you can forgive me. My girlfriend is bagging disgusting dead leaves in our backyard and I'm typing this! See how dedicated I am!

This is a classic James Brown funk song from the 70s. It's pretty self explanatory. It's about being a sex machine.

Here, also, is an amazing cover by the British post punk outfit The Flying Lizards (best known for another cover, of the song "Money"). Their take is, no doubt, a bit flatter.



Get Up (I Feel Like Being A) Sex Machine.mp3



Sex Machine.mp3

Get up,
Get on up!

Love,
G

Orange Juice//Blokes on 45

Orange Juice (not to be confused with Orange Drink, on plenty of levels) is a pretty hit or miss band for me, but when they hit they are dead on. Revisiting the band's unique brand of disco+post punk+campy lyrics actually makes me understand that Wild Beasts ripped them off quite directly. They really do have many, many similarities. Oh well, you could do worse.

The band started out as youths in Glasgow as The Nu-Sonics, which is funny, because a friend of mine named his band The Nu-Sonics in their honor.

In my opinion, the best part of Orange Juice are their electric guitar riffs, which are bright and catchy. This song came out on a 2005 comp reissue of songs that were meant to be released on Postcard Records (which also released a Go-Betweens album). It incorporates a few other OJ songs/lyrics.

Now, in honor of the word "bloke," I would like to tell you my
Top 3 "You're Speaking British and I'm Speaking American" Moments:

1. On my first visit to the UK, in roughly 1997, my parents and I went to Kew Gardens (not THAT Kew Gardens). There was a class of 7-8 year olds there as well. In the gift shop, I heard a small voice say, "I got a very fine rubber!" After a triple take, I finally realized that the kid was holding up an eraser.

2. On my second visit, circa 2000, I was hanging out with my friend Matt and some of his friends. We were in a stationary store when one of his friends asked if I would hold his fag for him. Hold your derogative term for a gay man? Hold your small bundle of twigs? Hold your something else? I just stared at him in complete confusion, until Matt zoomed in, grabbed the guy's smoke and said, "he means his cigarette!"

3. Finally, while living in London in 2004, I had gone out to a drag show with a friend. She was dressed in drag and we were running for the last train before the tube shut. An old beggar came up to her and started asking, somewhat incessantly, "ARE. YOU. A. GEEZER?!?!" My friend, in a faux English accent, replied, "What?! You think I'm an old bloke?!" I had to explain later that "geezer" is slang for "dude" or "man." And that, my friends, I learned from listening to The Streets.



Blokes on 45.mp3

You must think me very naive.
Taken as true,
I only see what I want to see.

Ribbons//Screens

Delay and Drums: Local Music Friday
What's up with Local Music Fridays?

There was a hot minute where I was going to play some songs with Ribbons, but then the general whirlwind of life got in the way, as it sometimes does. It kind of bummed me out, because I really enjoyed spending some time learning the band's songs, as singer/guitarist Jenny Logan (who also plays bass in World Atlas) did a great job writing them.

The guitar sound is delightfully reminiscent of the golden age of that dark weird post-punk (read: The Smiths, Joy Division, The Organ, the other bands that always seem to come up when critics talk about Ribbons, like Orange Juice, which I actually don't hear at all, etc). I'll go out on a thin limb and say I hear a touch of something that sounds like a much less sincere Chrissie Hynde in there too. Am I going to get in trouble? Are The Pretenders cool again? I can't keep track anymore. I should also add that Sam Roudman knows how to go really crazy on the drums, which kicks the energy of the songs up a notch.

On top of all of this, in case you were even considering not taking them seriously, they've got a Daytrotter Sesh, an L Mag 8 Bands Honorable Mention and a Village Voice Music Blog shout out.



Screens.mp3

Catch Ribbons live at Bruar Falls on April 22.

James//Laid

Manc, the hotbed of post-punk and post-industrial decay, also gave us James.

The band started out as Tribal Outlook and eventually changed their name (good move, guys) to James after bassist Jim Glennie. A gig at the Hacienda got them signed to Factory. They went on tour to support The Fall and The Smiths. Still, they didn't really break until the 90s with the release of their album, Gold Mother. A few albums later, Eno produced a double album, one of songs (Laid,) and one experimental (Wah-Wah).

This song, probably the band's biggest hit, is full of sex, gender-bending and pyscho-therapy. What's not to love?

James broke up in 2001, but they're back together again now and planning to release a new album in 2010.

Also, my friends over at The Party Store alerted me to the awesomeness of this video:



Laid.mp3

My therapist says not to see you no more,
She says you're like a disease without any cure.

Delta 5//Mind Your Own Business

SO here I am with another post, since two people told me what they wanted to be when they grew up in the last post (not a grown-up and a studier of dinosaurs). Thanks, guys.

Today I did a little free association to get here. Here's a rough sketch: Talking Heads->Tom Tom Club->Covered by Chicks on Speed->who also covered this song.

From Wikipedia:

Combining feminist politics with a two-bass funk-punk sound (much in the style of another, more famous Leeds band, Gang of Four), they released in 1979 their debut single, "Mind Your Own Business"...Delta 5 were also important figures in the Rock Against Racism movement, and were the subject of a highly-publicized assault at the hands of a right-wing group affiliated with rival movement Rock Against Communism.

Rock Against Racism and Rock Against Communism? Seriously? Apparently these were two opposing 70s-era UK music coalitions about ending racism and white power, respectively.

This song is a good way to kick off the weekend after a particularly annoying week for me. Is "mind your own business" just a slightly more polite way to say "fuck off"? Yeah, I think so.

I actually saw CoS play this at the Majestic in Detroit, which was pretty amazing. For some reason, they were throwing colorful sponges into the audience. I should also note that this was the same show where Kot and I actually bashed our heads into a table through the entirety of Peaches set--but that is a story for another post--most likely the inevitable upcoming post featuring Tracy and the Plastics. While the live version was pretty incredible (kitchen cleaning accessories and all), I don't think they have anything on this amazing original version.



Mind Your Own Business.mp3

Can I have a taste of your ice cream?
Can I lick the crumbs from your table?
Can I interfere in your crisis?

No, mind your own business!

The Fall//Fit and Working Again, American Analog Set//We're Computerizing And We Just Don't Need You Anymore

Two sweet songs to whistle while you work (or get downsized): get a job, kid.

So, a stomach flu put me in my girlfriend's (bless her heart) bed all day yesterday, alternately watching episodes of The L Word on her computer, vomiting into a pot (this is a horribly sad scene, isn't it?) and very much NOT working, which is why you get two songs about working today.

The Fall are punk/post-punk legends, having been around in some capacity since 1976, and now having released 27 studio albums. That is seriously putting in some work. This song comes from 1982's Slates.

The AmAnSet song is from one of my favorite albums, Known by Heart. I think the name of the song says it all. And sadly, in the current economy, might be the most relevant of all the songs this week.

Sorry this is short and sweet. I'm still not exactly fit and working again myself. Working on it. Work it, I need a glass of water. No, really.



Fit and Working Again.mp3




We're Computerizing And We Just Don't Need You Anymore.mp3

I saw the recession around Victoria Station.
I'm fit and working again.
Gimme the sun.
I'm fit and working again
And I feel like Alan Minter.
I just ate eight sheets of blotting paper
And I tripped out on the Alka Seltzer,
Cause I'm fit and working again.


Hope you've had a great work week. Enjoy the weekend and please, take it easy. Monday's just a few days away.

The Replacements//Bad Worker

Recession or not, work is lame. We’re celebrating/commiserating/job-hunting with you during this full Work Week on OSS.

I’m not sure if we were hanging out together back then, but if we were, you probably remember the moment when I got totally out-of-control obsessed with The Replacements. Yeah, that definitely happened.

Well, the buzz didn’t fade that quick, because I’m still real into them kinda bad. Also bad? Paul Westerberg’s work ethic, apparently.

This is a simple song about a simple concept: shit jobs. These are the jobs you get that suck the absolute most – summer jobs, high school jobs, service industry bottom-of-the-barrel that you end up in when you’re ambitionless and drunk all the time, or when the economy is so craptastical that you can’t find anything better. Some examples: the box office at the movie theater, a clerk at Blockbuster (I had both of these), the school janitor, the medical orderly, fast food anything, the grocery checkout or the barista. They often have something to do with cleaning or food or both, and they almost always involve people treating you like a second (or third, or fourth) class citizen. You barely ever get any kind of decent compensation, benefits or any real personal reward for this type of work—but the upside is that these jobs are almost always available and often do not stretch the brain much. If you’re Westerberg, this means you have more time to think about writing brilliant Replacements lyrics…or making it with a customer. Hot.

This breed of job blows way more than your average job, so if you happen to be stuck in one of these, I’d highly suggest downloading this one, memorizing the lyrics and signing them to yourself in particularly ridiculous situations…like when coffee spills on some lady’s dress and she threatens to sue you….or when your boss asks you to work your third double of the week. Up with OSS; damn the man.



Bad Worker.mp3

Get them fingerprints off of my neck.
I’m sure you haven't cleaned in the office yet.
Finish that cigarette on your own damn time.
Worked so hard I ain't got any,
Pocket full of dimes, quarters or a penny

Cause I'm a bad worker.
My father would be ashamed.
I'm a bad, bad worker.
I give you minimum effort for a minimum wage.


Labor Fact: According to the latest report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are currently 14.9 million people who are unemployed in the US, and the unemployment rate rose by 0.3 percentage point to 9.7 percent in August.

ESG//You're No Good

Remember it’s Chain Reaction Week!
Yesterday’s last word was: You.

ESG, which, without much explanation stands for Emerald, Sapphire and Gold, was a much-sampled no-wave/post-punk band from the South Bronx consisting mostly of the Scroggins sisters and occasionally of some of their friends.

Actually, Update: Trusty old All Music Guide explains the name:

The four Scroggins sisters -- Deborah (bass, vocals), Marie (congas, vocals), Renee (vocals, guitar), and Valerie (drums) -- formed a group with the support of their mother, who bought instruments to keep her daughters busy and away from trouble; at the time, each sibling was teenaged. Basing their sound on a mutual love for James Brown, Motown, and Latin music, the sisters went through a number of name changes before finally settling on ESG. "E" stood for emerald, Valerie's birthstone; "S" stood for sapphire, Renee's birthstone; and as for "G," well, neither Deborah nor Marie had a birthstone beginning with that letter, but they did want their records to go gold. After permanently adding non-relative Tito Libran to the lineup as a conga player (some male members came and went prior to this), ESG was officially born.

I think it must be cool to be a much-sampled no-wave band. You don’t get to say that every day. “Hi. My name’s Gina. I’m in an oft-sampled now-defunct (maybe) no-wave band. Yeah, you probably already heard some of my stuff in your favorite hip-hop hits. Yes, I said, ‘no-wave.’ Yeah, I meant that.”

There’s a reason everybody likes to sample ESG and that’s because they’re AWESOME. Started in the late 70s/early 80s, the sound has a lot of weird stuff going. Analog quality, rattle-y weirdly-rhythm-ed drum lines and heavy bass characterize the sound, in addition to a unique genre mix of funk, R+B and avant garde (not so unlike the man I saw last night, although a lot more low-energy).

There’s also this very funny story, via Wikipedia:

On May 9, 2007, ESG drummer Valerie Scroggins was indicted by a Brooklyn grand jury on charges of taking more than $13,000 in workers' compensation payments. Scroggins, then working as a bus driver for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (New York), told them that she suffered a shoulder injury in September 2006. In November 2006, Scroggins went on tour with ESG, where an MTA investigator filmed her playing "drums for an hour or more and on every song the band played, doing things very similar to actions she told her employers she could not perform," according to the Brooklyn DA's press release. Scroggins asserts that her injury is legitimate and that she could not safely drive a bus.

Maybe not the smartest thing to do on her part, but doesn’t this make you hate the MTA just a little bit more (I didn’t know this feeling was possible!)!?How many “investigators” are they paying to spy on former no-wave band members, instead of just running the fucking G train? The MTA, you’re no good.



You’re No Good.mp3

But you’re no good.
You’re no good.
You are no good.
You’re no good.


Chain Reaction is also an album by Canadian singer Luba, a song by Diana Ross, covered by Steps and a 1970s band.

The Slits//Heard It Through the Grapevine

When I first heard The Slits, my mind was blown. Ali played me some tracks of Cut and I was like, “WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE!!?” This was during the time when we were all making dozens and dozens of different AOL screen names (oh, early college). Most of them were “Heathers”-themed, but I immediately went out and claimed “ariupisgod.” I probably still have it…if only I could remember the password.

So who are The Slits? Let me tell you! The Slits really laid the groundwork for the riotgrrl movement. They were formed in 1976 as an all-girl punk/post-punk outfit in the UK (one of their members, Palmolive, later joined The Raincoats; other members went on to form The New Age Steppers). They supported punk-classic The Clash on tour, had their very own Peel Session and successfully mixed punk sounds with reggae/dub undertones, avant-garde sensibilities and feminism(!) to form a sound all their own. The have an AWESOME song called Typical Girls which is a pretty sweet third wave diatribe and also calls out my favorite East Coast salesman (and yours?), Crazy Eddie.

In 2005, the group had a reunion (sort of). I heard it wasn’t very good, but I’m still really sad I missed it. They just signed a new record deal, so we’ll see what comes of that.

You probably know this song already (in fact, I'm sure you do), but unless you have (a) a strong interest in post punk, (b) a strong interest in riotgrrl/proto-riotgrrl (c) a strong interest in rare vinyl and mp3s, you probably haven’t heard it like this before. Although you are reading a music blog written by a queer feminist-tinged nerdgirl, so maybe this isn’t new to you? And two covers in one week...what is OSS coming to!? Regardless, enjoy.



I Heard It Through the Grapevine.mp3

A little trivia: Did you know that the grapevine actually refered to a clandestine telegraph system used in the late 1800s? Ok. I really don’t think you knew that one. More here.

The Futureheads//Hounds of Love

I once saw The Futureheads in a tiny, crowded and sweaty pub in Bristol, UK with my dear friend Matt. It was 2004 and I was living in London and I was so fucking depressed. I missed my friends and strangely, my homeland. The whole experience actually gave me a much greater appreciation for America. It took me months to adjust to the idea that there weren’t any 24-hour establishments (not even grocery stores…oh…I guess there was that one shady Tesco out by Surrey Quay...) and that I had to literally beg waiters to make my Indian food spicy (and even then, they still didn’t).

Anyway, I heard The Futureheads on a comp and really liked them, so we checked them out. I was endeared by what I had read about the band (that two members had met working together with disadvantaged youth). Of course, the curiosity paid off--the show was great and the band was super tight. Within a year, I was seeing them everywhere.

Hopefully, this cover won’t offend any hardcore Kate Bush devotees or take away from the fact that The Futureheads write plenty of their own hyper-catchy great-fun material. I honestly think this particular track is very well done, especially in regards to the vocal arrangements and the instrumental builds.



Hounds of Love.mp3

The hounds of love are calling.
I've always been a coward
And I don't know what's good for me.

The Saints//(I'm) Stranded

Happy Saint Patrick’s Day! Or Happy Saint Omar’s Day, if you’re in the know (it’s a long story for a drunk night out, not for this blog).

That said, I thought maybe you could get your Irish drink on with some Australian Saints…THE Saints, that is.

I found out about The Saints from a really amazing Australian punk/post punk/garage comp called Do the Pop!. This band has quite a rep, championing the late 70s punk sound before all the names you know (Sex Pistols, Clash) and being one of the definitive torchbearers of Brisbane Punk. Of course, to tie it all back to Ireland, according to Wikipedia, Bob Geldof has been quoted as saying, "Rock music in the Seventies was changed by three bands — the Sex Pistols, the Ramones and The Saints."

As time progressed, the band got more straightforward, probably somewhat due to major label influence. Still, you can hear the style of The Saints in bands from REM to Green Day.

When this song came out in 1976, UK’s Sound Magazine declared it the “single of this and every week.” If that’s not one sweet song, I’m not sure what is.



(I’m) Stranded.mp3

If you’re already up on Do The Pop! and looking for more, I’ve heard good things about this as well.

I'm riding on a midnight train
And everybody looks just the same.
A subway light, it's dirty reflection;
I'm lost I don't have a direction
'Cause I'm stranded on my own,
Stranded far from home.

Now, buy me a (optionally green) beer!

The Pixies//I'm Amazed, Atom and His Package//I'm Downright Amazed...

Here's another double, to make up for my absence yesterday.

The word of the day is “amazed” for my amazingly intense (in more ways than one) weekend. Here are two short and sweet songs that tackle the subject in a distinctly different manner.

The first is a super jam from one of my favorite Pixies albums, Surfer Rosa. It leads with one of the most hilarious moments on the album—Kim Deal’s “They were so….quiet about it…”

It’s hard to tell exactly what Black Francis is amazed by—the subject matter is kind of all over the place (shock). That said, I’m amazed when I think about dancing in the halls of East Quad to this and other SR songs with a certain Michael Beauchamp.

The second song came off a sweet, sweet Mordam sampler I got in high school (height of punk era). Adam Goren AKA Atom and His Package was a friend of friends, which is how I came to know about him. Actually, his package (his electronic setup of synths and samplers) was pretty amazing.

It’s pretty obvious what he’s amazed about.



I'm Amazed.mp3



I'm Downright Amazed at What I Can Destroy With Just a Hammer.mp3

Before I died, I took my Honda,
And packed it up, up, up to Arizona!
I'm amazed!
I'm amazed!
I'm amazed!

Liquid Liquid//Optimo

Wow! Wow!
Double! Double!
Liquid! Liquid!

I believe my introduction to Liquid Liquid was on some comp. Perhaps a Rough Trade Post Punk thing, perhaps some kind of New York No Wave thing. I had kind of forgotton about their unique brand of minimalist funk until Travis put this song on the mix he made me around Christmastime.

Liquid Liquid, in addition to being a very influential early 80s NYC Avant Garde outfit, has seen its members do some pretty cool things. From Wikipedia:

Dennis Young is still active and producing music, and has been remixed by Hot Chip and Tussle. Richard McGuire is well-established graphic designer with frequent contributions to both The New Yorker magazine, and The New York Times Book Review. Salvatore Principato is active in various electronic music recording projects, as well as DJ'ing professionally around the world.



Optimo.mp3

Some things that have been named Double Trouble: a character in the animated television series She-Ra: Princess of Power, a game for the 1999 FIRST Robotics competition and a Hardy Boys novel.




Double your purpose, double your pleasure?

The Stranglers//Golden Brown

I love this song! Like, really, really love it. The vibe is totally unique and the harpsichord sound is unmatched in its awesomeness.

This song has been popping up on various mixes (my own and others) over the last 8 years or so for me. I’ve been reminded of it more often recently, as it makes a prominent appearance on an older mix that has been in heavy rotation for me lately.

I was under the impression that this was the only decent song by this pioneering UK punk/post-punk/new-wavey outfit (there have been a lot of genre innovations from the 70s to today!), but a quick scan of the internet proves me (mostly) wrong. While I’m not sure that any of the other tracks I’ve heard exactly measure up to this one, the rest of the canon is certainly not bad.

This 1981 song got some extra exposure from an inclusion on the Snatch soundtrack. Apparently The Stranglers are STILL touring, which is kind of amazing, considering their drummer is now 70 years old. Tuesday’s lesson: KEEP “ROCKING”!



Golden Brown.mp3

Every time, just like the last,
On her ship, tied to the mast.
To distant lands,
Takes both my hands,
Never a frown,
With golden brown.