I've had a few requests in the past week that I start posting more. I agree, and would love to post here every day, but the logistics of my schedule just won't allow for that right now. I'm definitely shooting to post more than once a week, but sometimes when I think I'm shortchanging my readership, I remember "Oh, that first Jeff Tweedy post was 17 songs deep." There aren't a lot of blogs out there that slip you an entire CD of material over the course of a week, let alone in a single post.
Tonight's post will not fill a CD, but it will be a nice 12 minute distraction for you. Here are a few songs I've been obsessing over this week:
"Our Swords" by BAND OF HORSES: Sometimes I don't know how some bands have the self control to make a short little song out of a melody that I could listen to on repeat for hours. If you remember my post about the Talking Heads' "Thank You for Sending Me an Angel," you'll remember how I said that song loops almost seamlessly when you set your crossfade for a few seconds. This song by Seattle's Band of Horses works the same way. I can't speak for the rest of the album (I'm getting it later this afternoon from my local indie store), but the mixture of My Morning Jacket and Interpol gets under my skin.
"It Overtakes Me / The Stars Are So Big, I Am So Small. . . Do I Stand a Chance?" by THE FLAMING LIPS: The new Flaming Lips record is set for release in one week, and if you haven't already heard it, it is absolutely insane and brilliant. I'm so glad the band hasn't decided to ride the Soft Bulletin sound into the ground. Here, they're trying out all kinds of new sonic tricks, and leaving a few behind. The record sounds like a perfect mixture of the band's acid-casualty psychedelic rock with the more technological aspects of their later records. I chose "It Overtakes Me. . ." tonight because it's almost a microcosm of the entire record: fat, fuzzy guitars interrupted by moments of serenity. I just got tickets to this year's Lollapalooza festival, and I'm really looking forward to seeing this new material performed live.
"The Train From Kansas City" by THE SHANGRI-LAS: I was just reading someone's blog entry where they dissected an Interpol song and pointed out a precise moment that made the song genius. When thinking about this Shangri-Las song, that brilliant moment for me comes when one of the backing vocalists simulates a train whisle right before the group breaks into the chorus. The Shangri-Las are easily one of my favorite "girl groups" from the 60s, mostly because their songs combine that epic sound with such dark and sad subjet matter. "Kansas City" tells the story of a girl dreading the arrival of her boyfriend (via train, of course) because she has to dump him for another man. Other brilliant Shangri-Las songs include "Remember (Walking in the Sand)," "Out in the Streets" and "Leader of the Pack."
FOR MORE ON TONIGHT'S POST:
- Follow this Sub-Pop link for another Band of Horses download.
- Here's a great informative page about the Shangri-Las
- You could probably kill an hour of your life over at the Flaming Lips home page
3 comments:
I don't know why, but there's a rule in this world that if you ever find yourself at a place called Shangrila (motel, resort, etc) its guaranteed to be a shithole.
I'd only previously heard Neko Case's spectacular cover of "Train From Kansas City" but this original version you've posted is great also...little less rocking, more Phil Spector-ish, girl group-y....but great nonetheless. Thanks!
Also looking forward to the continuation of your Top 100 Jeff Tweedy songs!
I'd love to hear that Neko version of "Train." Now that you've mentioned it, I can totally imagine her covering that one.
Post a Comment