The Sad Bear

February 8, 2010

#005

A weekly sampler of what we're listening to (new and old), and what we think you might like, too.

{LISTEN TO THEM ALL}


CSS -- "Off The Hook"
I had another song that I was all ready to use. It was badass, but I've decided to save for another time. Instead, I'll go dancey on your asses. This song has been on loop for me lately. A few general observations:
1) Drumbeat + guitar riff = guaranteed "butt-shaking-in-office-chair" (a dance I am thinking about trademarking)
2) The way the lead singer pronounces "hook" (to rhyme with "spook" or "kook" rather than "cook") is sort of adorable.
3) She kind of reminds me of a nerdier Karen O who cares more about "being trendy." I don't care.
4) "The more I talk the more my bones get heavy"
5) If they were from New York or LA, there's no doubt I would hate them. But the fact that they are from Brazil makes the fact that they are hipsters somehow okay.
6) One of the band members has an "ironic" mustache that may or may not be so ironic, again due to the fact that he is not a hipster from America.
7) Don't forget their Death From Above 1979 shoutout as well as the song abut how much they suck.


BLIND MELON -- Three Is The Magic Number
Probably the best CD Katie has brought into my life is Schoolhouse Rocks Rocks!, a compilation by artists including Pavement, Moby and Daniel Johnston. Its awesomeness is tough to describe, its magnificence drills down to the most minute details. Might be the most enjoyable album ever compiled.
Bonus: The original song


CAPTAIN BEEFHEART -- "Diddy Wah Diddy"
Sometimes a song is best played alone, when you can move your body in weird ways in the comfort of your own home...plus I've been listening to a lot of Nuggets lately.


THE KINKS -- "Sweet Lady Genevieve"
For a long time, I was loath to give Preservation Acts 1 & 2 a chance, but Scribs helped me to put the albums into their proper context. For starters, I was ignorant of the fact that Preservation was supposed to be Davies' rock opera. Both Preservation albums were flops in every sense of the word, and it's taken them some time to claim their rightful places next to Ziggy Stardust, Tommy, and other commercially successful concept albums. At first, Preservation might seem like a reprise of Village Green minus the latter's authenticity and charm -- and to be fair, it does borrow some thematic material, not to mention part of its title. But Preservation is worldlier; its often devil-may-care temper contrasts with Village Green's bittersweet introspection.

Put the Kinks you know aside and run with it, and you’ll start to appreciate what it is. I think it's a paean to rock and roll, but it could be a lot of things. For the mix, I picked the song that allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine called the "real candidate for Davies' forgotten masterpiece". I chose "Sweet Lady Genevieve" not because it represents the album or because it's the best song, but because we all love Wes Anderson.


THE DARKNESS -- "Friday Night"
Jon's comment was "no comment", but Jack finds the way he sings "extra-curricular activities" at the beginning of the song particularly amusing.


BEACH HOUSE -- "Zebra"
Beach House is just fucking good. And from a music nerd standpoint, I'm a sucker for I-III-IV major chord progressions (see the intro passage to the Sunset Rubdown song "Silver Moons", which uses a similar progression).

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR: Nick Tabor
A college friend works as a cops and city government reporter in the Bluegrass State, this week's guest contributor is Nick Tabor, aka "The puppy who walks from Kentucky." He's got an ear for guitar, a funny bone for Arrested Development and the Simpsons and a nose for reading theology and really depressing books by Cormac McCarthy. And bourbon, beer and cigarettes. Enjoy.

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE -- "Awaken"
When you listen to Sonic Youth the first few times you depend on the conventional segments to anchor the album. Like “Kissability” on Daydream Nation. After you listen long enough the guitar harmonies start to sound harmonious, but if it all sounded like noise you’d stop listening before you got that far.
I think this song has the same role on “Dark Noontide,” the fourth album by Six Organs of Admittance.
Six Organs, which is essentially a solo project of Comets on Fire member Ben Chasny, sometimes sounds noisy like Sonic Youth. But Six Organs doesn’t alternate between noise and catchy rock. It alternates between noise and pretty guitar songs that sound a little like Fahey.
This one is pretty.

Labels: mid-week mixes, music

by JHitts at 5:30 PM |