Music to drink tea by
Archive for January, 2011
Chalk and Numbers – He Knew
01 year ago
in MP3s
There’s a very fine line between throwing back to an older style and just purely mimicking it, and it’s one that causes me to struggle with a lot of 50s or 60s “inspired” pop. I can appreciate bands like Lucky Soul, but only in reasonably small quantities as I find the novelty wears off pretty quickly. So I have absolutely no idea what my long-term feelings toward Chalk and Numbers will turn out to be. At the moment though, He Knew is a perfect little slice of nostalgia pop.
He Knew is taken from the EP of the same name, which you can download absolutely free from Bandcamp.
Johnny Foreigner – Harriet, by Proxy
01 year ago
in Videos
Johnny Foreigner continue their trend of cutting out the middleman by releasing their latest video to “us” (fans to do with whatever they please) before any “proper” publications. Not quite sure how this differs from what so many small bands do these days, but no matter. It’s the thought that counts and all that. Still, the video for Harriet, by Proxy may be the most well produced one they’ve put out yet. The single itself is pretty much JoFo by the numbers, which is fine by me, but the latest EP does show that they are capable of rather more interesting things.
You Thought You Saw A Shooting Star But Yr Eyes Were Blurred With Tears And That Lighthouse Can Be Pretty Deceiving With The Sky So Clear And Sea So Calm is out now on Alcopop!
Bear Pilot – Do You Know Where Your Heart Is?
0I can’t really tell you very much about Bear Pilot beyond the fact that they are Swedish. Hell, I don’t even know if they are a ‘they’ or just one guy, and their website and Myspace aren’t proving too helpful when it comes to clues. It doesn’t really matter though, as this is lovely regardless. A nice little electronic vibe to it, while still remaining incredibly gentle. I also adore the video too. Exactly why don’t we have drive-in bingo in this country?
You can download a whole bunch of Bear Pilot songs, all of which are great, for free from their website.
The Lovely Eggs – Don’t Look at Me (I Don’t Like It)
11 year ago
in Videos
Two weeks into January and The Lovely Eggs have already put in a strong contender for single of the year. I suspect this is the kind of thing that will divide people pretty much down the middle. It’s very rough and ready, and singer Holly’s heavily accented vocals are an acquired taste to put it mildly. If The Lovely Eggs formula works for you though, Don’t Look at Me (I Don’t Like It) is very likely the best thing they have ever recorded. That it doesn’t make the slightest bit of sense is part of the charm. But then what did you expect from the band that brought you I Like Birds But I Like Other Animals Too and Have You Ever Heard A Digital Accordian?
Don’t Look at Me (I Don’t Like It) will be released as a single on January 31. Their new album, Cob Dominos will follow on February 14. I presume that both will be self-released.
Darren Hayman – January Songs
0Darren Hayman (who I’m legally obliged to point out was the front man of Hefner) is writing, recording, and releasing a new song every day throughout January. Each day, you’re able to track exactly what he is up to through the process, with his notes, video diaries and all sorts of extras being made available throughout. At the end of the day, each song is released for free for a limited time, before being offered as a paid download later on.
It’s a fascinating project, if only for the way it provides a nice little insight into Hayman’s process, and his continuing exploration at new ways of putting music out. Over the course of the month, he’s being joined by a number of collaborators, including Gordon from Ballboy, The Hillfields, Monster Bobby, and Jack Hayter, who I’m legally obliged to point out has a nice little EP coming out soon on Audio Antihero.
The song below (and above for that matter) is the song from day ten of the project, and features Elizabeth Morris, whom all of you should know from Allo Darlin’. It contains a lot of bad words. Yay!
MP3 Darren Hayman feat. Elizabeth Morris – I Know I Fucked Up
Death From Above 1979 – Dead Womb
21 year ago
in MP3s
Yes, this is from 2002, and no, I couldn’t really care less. It’s my blog and I’ll post whatever the hell I like, thank you very much. Death From Above 1979 never did very much for me. At least in album form, I find it all a bit of a struggle. Loud and fast is one thing. Being assaulted in such a way for half an hour is pushing it. In short bursts though, little tops things like Romantic Rights, or the chronically misplaced You’re Lovely (But You’ve Got Lots Of Problems). Somehow today I ended up on their website and discovered Dead Womb, a song I hadn’t heard before. If you’re familiar with the band, you know what to expect. If you’re not, prepare for a bit of a shock.
Dead Womb is taken from the Heads Up! EP, which was released via Ache Records. The band broke up in 2006.
Be Like Pablo – Julianne
01 year ago
in Videos
One of the most pleasant surprises of last year’s Indietracks was Be Like Pablo. I’d actually been put off of them from their contribution to the Indietracks CD, which alarmed me with it’s use of rapping. Not that the song itself was inherently bad. If I’m honest, I only went to see them because they were on early on Sunday when little else was around. Not knowing quite what to expect, it was rather nice to be treated to some catchy 90s US power-pop style sounds. Julianne plants itself as something of a hybrid between the earlier works of Weezer and Ben Folds Five, which was the ideal thing to ease me into the final day of the festival.
My Little Pony – Hard to be Good
01 year ago
in Videos
Some indiepop goes to great lengths to disassociate itself from the seemingly dreaded “twee” tag. Then there is some that completely embrace it. Which would you expect a Norwegian band called My Little Pony to go for? If you’re still not sure, a quick glance at the video above should answer the question. Balloons, animal costumes, party hats and dancing. What more could one possibly ask for?
Mixtapes
11 year ago
in MP3s
..and now for something completely different.
While the majority of what I listen to tends to fall under the indiepop banner these days, it’s my dirty little secret that I have a soft spot for loud, fast, shouty emo type stuff. I don’t listen to such things as much as I used to, but Saves the Day’s Through Being Cool remains one of my favourite albums and I’ll fight anyone who has a problem with that.
Which should give you an idea of what to expect from Mixtapes. They like to make a lot of noise, and they like to do it as a furious pace. So furious in fact that their ten song album is over in eighteen minutes. Nor are we dealing with particularly vital issues either. Nothing Can Kill The Grimace is about shunning the social life to write songs in your room. “Fuck the world, now I feel a little better” is the kind of epiphany we’re dealing with here. All of which is fine, because it’s all so damn catchy.
Nothing Can Kill The Grimace is taken from Maps, which is available as a free download from Death to False Hope Records. A hat tip the lovely Heartache With Hard Work for including Mixtapes on his end of year lists, otherwise I’d likely have never found them.
Top 24 Songs of 2010
1The song list this year has a lot of crossover with the records list from yesterday. I suppose that is to be expected to a certain degree, but I get it’s a little repetitive for me to be banging on about the same bands over and over again. Still, that’s the nature of these lists, and I’m not going to throw in other things for the sake of it.
1. Los Campesinos! – A Heat Rash in the Shape of the Show Me State, or, Letters from Me to Charlotte
Los Campesinos! manage to win the double, taking both best record and song of the year. If I’m perfectly honest, the song choice is pretty arbitrary. Letters from Me to Charlotte just about stands out in front to me, but it could have just as easily been The Sea Is A Good Place To Think Of The Future or In Medias Res. Or about half of the album to be honest.
2. Superman Revenge Squad – Fairweather Friends
Another one where I spent a fair bit of time trying to decide exactly which song from the record to go with, before settling on Fairweather Friends. It’s probably best represents the EP, as well as the Superman Revenge Squad project as a whole. The usual topics are on the agenda here: death, looking back on past relationships and irritating people at gigs. All topped off with some beautiful strings.
MP3 Superman Revenge Squad – Fairweather Friends
3. Standard Fare – Dancing
Dancing is probably the most personal song on the Standard Fare album, yet it still sums up the band perfectly. You’ve got heart on sleeve verses about breakups and getting back together interspersed with rapid sections about how dancing will make everything okay. If any band could sum up the state of the current indiepop scene, it’s this.
4. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart – Say No to Love
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart just bring good feelings. I was slower to warm to them than most, but in the past year, I’ve fallen for them completely. Say No to Love is a lovely little bridge between the first and second albums, and while it doesn’t mess with the formula too much, it’s just too wonderful for me to complain about that. Quite possibly my favourite current band for videos too.
MP3 The Pains of Being Pure at Heart – Say No to Love
5. Antarctica Takes It! – Try Try Try
This song pretty much hit me out of nowhere in the summer when I saw Antarctica Takes It! live twice in a couple of days. I was only familiar with their first album at that point, so Try Try Try was quite a surprise as there’s nothing like it on there. The vocals on it might not be as strong as some of their others, but the lyrics and the way it’s constructed more than make up for that.
6. Shrag – Rabbit Kids
I love pretty much everything on Life! Death! Prizes! so you get Rabbit Kids pretty much entirely because I love the video so much.
7. Johnny Foreigner – Harriet, by Proxy
It’d be easy to dismiss Johnny Foreigner at this point. Two albums in and they haven’t achieved the success they rightly deserve, but hopefully a shift to the plucky Alcopop! will give them a new boost. The brilliantly titled new EP You Thought You Saw A Shooting Star But Yr Eyes Were Blurred With Tears And That Lighthouse Can Be Pretty Deceiving With The Sky So Clear And Sea So Calm shows the band exploring newer territory too. Harriet, by Proxy is the most obviously JoFo song on there, and reminds us exactly why we were so excited about the band in 2007.
8. Allo Darlin’ – Dreaming
Allo Darlin’ could do no wrong this year, and Dreaming was the pinnacle of their work. The song features the guest vocals of Monster Bobby that gives this a rather Heavenly-ish vibe, which is no bad thing. The video was shot during London Popfest last year and is just lovely. Wandering around London late at night has never looked so enjoyable.
9. Kid Canaveral – Smash Hits
Quite possibly the oldest song to be included here, but I only discovered it this year, and it was on Kid Canaveral’s debut album this year, so I’m going with it. A brilliantly snobbish tale of the horrors of dating a girl whose “music taste’s shite” that’s just great fun.
10. The Singing Adams – I Need Your Mind
I came late to The Broken Family Band party, so I’m jumping in early with Singing Adams, the new band of BFB front man Steven Adams. If you’re already familiar with his former band, you know what to expect here. The alt-country leanings may have been toned down considerably, but there’s more than enough of the same catchy pop sensibilities and witty lyrics to go around. As a debut single, I Need Your Mind is remarkably self-assured and firmly cements the band as one to go to big things this year.
11. Betty and the Werewolves – Euston Station
12. Belle & Sebastian – I Want the World to Stop
One of the few bright lights from a horrendously disappointing album.
13. Acid House Kings – Are We Lovers or Are We Friends?
Playful enough to be a nice easy listen, while also resonating a little more for those who have been in such a situation. Exactly what any good pop record should be doing then.
MP3 Acid House Kings – Are We Lovers or Are We Friends?
14. This Many Boyfriends – I Don’t Like You (‘Cos You Don’t Like The Pastels)
This Many Boyfriends continue the long indiepop tradition of entirely songs based around references to other bands. Not just the Pastels either. Springsteen, The Go-Betweens and if I’m not mishearing, The Cribs all manage to get themselves mentioned in the song. There’s not much more to it beyond these references, but it still has a rather endearing charm to it. It sounds rough and ready, which is about the only style you can go with when your spending three minutes comparing music tastes with a loved one.
MP3 This Many Boyfriends – I Don’t Like You (‘Cos You Don’t Like The Pastels)
15. The Felt Tips – Boyfriend Devoted
16. Stagecoach – Not Even Giles Would Say We’ll Be OK
Not Even Giles Would Say We’ll Be OK (which the nerd in me really hopes is a Buffy reference) may be their finest release yet, striking the perfect balance between 90s US indie rock throwback and their own sound. If any band has a chance of making it big in 2011, it’s Stagecoach.
17. The Just Joans – Stuart’s Got a Dirty Book
A glorious tale that manages to combine two somewhat conflicting topics: religion and masturbation. It’s hard to imagine many bands that could get away with lyrics like “struggling with the word of god / a hand on my bible, a hand on my knob”, putting The Just Joans into a rather unique position.
MP3 The Just Joans – Stuart’s Got a Dirty Book
18. World Atlas – The Winter Stories
19. The National – Afraid of Everyone
20. Tigercats – Whitechapel Boys
21. Soda Fountain Rag – Are Philosophers Lonely?
Short and to the point, Are Philosophers Lonely? addresses exactly what the title suggests. Are philosophers destined to be by themselves? Moving between wryly comic images (philosophers eating tv dinners) and something rather more melancholy (“even their sweethearts don’t know what they’re talking about”).
MP3 Soda Fountain Rag – Are Philosophers Lonely?
22. Love Ends Disaster! – There’s Room In My Tardis For Two
City of Glass, the debut album by Love Ends Disaster! was a favourite of the year, and while there’s some stunning songs on it, it’s this one that stands out. Conventional wisdom would suggest I was swayed by a Doctor Who reference, but there’s more to it than that. That might have got my attention in the first place, but it’s just a really good song regardless. There’s the kind of melancholy vibe that always works for me, but it also has the “this should really be a hit anthem” quality to it too. Throw in some actual TARDIS sounds as well and you’re on to a winner.
MP3 Love Ends Disaster! – There’s Room In My Tardis For Two (live)
23. Roadside Poppies – I’ve Just Been Told That a Woman Fancies Me
I’ve Just Been Told That a Woman Fancies Me is literally what it sounds like, a joyous celebration of the fact that a woman seems to like our narrator, despite the fact he knows absolutely nothing about her. Why let pesky details like that get in the way? That we end up with lines like “I can’t wait to tell my girlfriend” makes it all the more perfect.
MP3 Roadside Poppies – I’ve Just Been Told That A Woman Fancies Me
24. The Grave Architects – The Bike Song
The Grave Architects really don’t sound like anything I’d expect a band (presumably) named after a Pavement song to sound like. The first part of the song might just get away with it. A little on the quaint side perhaps, but what do you expect for a song that starts “the first love of my life was not a girl, it was my very first bike”? It tells a fun little story of learning how to ride a bike and falling in love with cycling. Then about a minute in, it turns into, of all things, a rap epic. Yes, rap. And somehow it gets away with it. Nothing I can say here is going to do justice to a terribly white man with his fluorescent shirt and cycle helmet rapping about evil motorists cutting him up. Of course, that’s not it. It then decides to just rock out a bit, proclaiming, with full earnestness “I love my bike!” over and over. It’s all utterly stupid, but every time I watch the video above I find myself grinning from ear to ear. I think my favourite part of it is actually watching the people biking in the background and their reaction to the singer’s antics. Brilliant stuff.
