Random Rules: 12/10/08

1. Broken Social Scene: “7/4 ((Shoreline))”

For a pretty steadfast consumer of “indie” music, I really took my sweet time coming around on BSS. Part of the problem is the inherent flaws of this age of digital music consumption; my first impressions of the collective were colored by the fact that I was trying to gauge whether or not I liked them based on 30-second soundclips, and while this is generally enough time to hear at least one verse, chorus, and a handful of hooks in the average Britney Spears single, regardless of at what point in the song the clip starts at, this model doesn’t really work for a more free-form group of musicians like BSS. So I finally took the opportunity to give whole songs a listen a little over a year ago after being pleasantly surprised by head BSS-er Kevin Drew’s solo album Spirit If… in my local record shop. While roughly 50-70% of the tracks on all BSS albums proper are still a little too meandering and amelodic for my tastes, they do have a handful of gems, including this one.

2. The Jesus & Mary Chain: “Walk And Crawl”

This track is one of the b-sides/rarities recently compiled on the box set The Power of Negative Thinking. Beyond that, there’s not much else to say; it’s a JaMC track. Lots of feedback, a simple, undeniable melody, and some vaguely sinister lyrics about drugs/sex/violence, buzzing by in under three minutes.

3. Wilco: “Pot Kettle Black”

A deep cut from their famously rejected Yankee Hotel Foxtrot album. It’s pretty straightforward, and relatively no-frills…could be justifiably mistaken for a Summerteeth b-side, but with less pristine production. Reminds me of The Cure’s “In-Between Days” for some reason.

4. Kaiser Chiefs: “Everyday I Love You Less and Less”

One of the two strongest tracks off debut disc Employment (the other being “I Predict a Riot”.) Big comparisons made between these guys and Blur when this album came out. I can definitely see the similarity, but this is 100% artifice (not that Blur were particularly “authentic”) and sounds like a deep cut off Parklife or The Great Escape; it’s inherently catchier than anything off of Modern Life is Rubbish, if only because Blur had grown more accomplished at their craft, but still not close to the level of an iconic track like “The Universal” or “Girls & Boys”. As much as I’d like to believe Kaiser Chiefs have a classic album, or even classic single in them, I just don’t feel like they do.

5. The Smiths: “Stretch Out and Wait”

A very flimsy, tossed-off b-side that somehow is still better than 99.999% of anything anyone else has ever produced in pop. It’s a lighthearted exhortation to forget one’s cares, because the end is nigh, but it’s presented in such a sprightly package that it’s hard not to want to hop in a hammock with a cup of tea and wait for the bomb to drop.

6. My Bloody Valentine: “When You Sleep”

Probably the most “accessible” track off of the epic Loveless album. Somewhere, in an alternate universe, this is held in the same regard as “I Want to Hold Your Hand”.

7. The Walkmen: “Long Time Ahead of Us”

This year’s You & Me album was a pleasant surprise. It’s a return to form after the flat and tuneless A Hundred Miles Off. There’s a lot of quaint romanticism on this album, perfectly reflected in the art that graces the sleeve, depicting the false innocence of a by-gone age that we all know was never innocent at all, but that we can’t help but feel wistfully nostalgic for.

8. Husker Du: “Everything Falls Apart”

As much as I love this (and many other) Husker Du songs, all I can hear usually is the lack of discernible low-end. These guys were post-punk White Stripes before the White Stripes even existed, but they actually had a bass player!

9. The Meeting Places: “Turned Over”

One of those perpetually unfashionable “nu-gaze” bands that never seems able to expand their fanbase beyond people waiting around for that Slowdive reunion that will never come. It’s dreamy pop, with lots of layered, effect-laden guitars, but you can actually tell what’s being sung!

10. The National: “Slow Show”

A great song from an album chock full of them. Every time I listen to these guys, all I seem to focus on is the drumming. It’s just so integral to the success of The National’s tunes, not merely setting the pace, but really coloring and adding depth to what are seemingly simple songs. And of course, Matt Berninger’s voice is up there in the phone book pantheon*.

*Meaning, I’d listen to him sing the phone book without complaint. Others include Richard Hawley, Evan Dando, Mark Lanegan.

An Embarrassment of Riches

I purchased an embarrassing amount of music in 2007. Seriously. Some old, some new. Here are my ten favorite releases from the last twelve months (in alphabetical order).

Augie March- Moo, You Bloody Choir

As much as I enjoyed AM’s last release, sophomore album Strange Bird, it had a scattershot, try-everything quality that sometimes made for a disorienting listen if you were in a more cohesive, measured mood. Moo…. focuses that sprawl for a warm, inviting record that is rustic in demeanor but polished in presentation. In other words, your vaguely hippie-ish buddy who’d rather camp out than sell-out has trimmed his beard, washed his hair, and thrown on a nice suit. Don’t worry, though. It’s for a wedding/funeral, not an interview.

Key tracks: One Crowded Hour, Mother Greer, Bottle Baby, There Is No Such Place

Gravenhurst-The Western Lands

This one kind of came out of nowhere for me. I’d heard of Gravenhurst, but for some reason thought that with a name like that, they must be some crappy emo mall-punk band, and therefore avoided them. Thank God for popmatters.com. A glowing review accompanied by the video for single ‘Trust’ was all I needed to send me out looking for this album. There may only be ten tracks here, but they’re a meaty ten tracks that split the running time between delicate folk and dreamy neo-psychedelia/shoegaze, occasionally even combining the two to great effect.

Key tracks: She Dances, Trust, Hourglass, The Collector

PJ Harvey-White Chalk

I’ll be honest: I don’t “get” a lot of PJ Harvey’s early stuff. The dissonance, the anger…must be something to do with me not owning a vulva. But I love the weird torch songs of To Bring You My Love, and the dense, noir-ish pop of Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea. As has been the case over the latter half of her career, it seems like I only truly enjoy every other album. I skipped Uh Huh Her, but here I am back again with White Chalk. I think it’s strange that adjectives like “creepy”, “unsettling” and “paranoid” got tossed around so much in reviews of the album; ultimately, it’s a very  consistent collection of pretty, melodic songs that may sound odd on first listen, but I think that stems more from PJ’s use of unorthodox instrumentation and sparse production. Admittedly, the lyrics are pretty bleak–but anyone who’s surprised by that after over fifteen years of the same is kidding themselves. In any event, I tend to treat PJ’s voice, especially in these songs, as just another instrument in the mix. I don’t focus so much on what she’s singing as how she’s singing it, and I really appreciate the vulnerability and fragility she’s able to convey after spending so much energy over the years demonstrating how tough and empowered she is. And the fact that she’s comfortable enough to do so is demonstrative of her empowerment in and of itself.

Key tracks: The Devil, Dear Darkness, When Under Ether, To Talk To You

Richard Hawley-Lady’s Bridge

It’s no Coles Corner. But it’s pretty damn good.

Key tracks: Valentine, Tonight The Streets Are Ours, Lady Solitude, The Sun Refused To Shine

Idlewild-Make Another World

My favorite Scots make the transitional album that probably should have followed The Remote Part before heading into the more Americana-heavy Warnings/Promises. It’s a pretty even synthesis of their post-punk roots and their more current trend toward grand folk-rock.

Key tracks: In Competition For The Worst Time, Everything (As It Moves), No Emotion, Future Works, A Ghost In The Arcade

Manic Street Preachers-Send Away The Tigers

Man, had I written off these guys. After each album getting successively more accomplished both lyrically and musically, the Manics squibbed it with 2001’s half-okay, half-god-awful Know Your Enemy. I was so disappointed that I didn’t even bother with 2004’s Lifeblood. But the duet single ‘Your Love Alone Is Not Enough’ (featuring Nina Persson of The Cardigans) was sprightly enough to pique my interest, and I was delighted to discover that the boys are back with a renewed sense of purpose. While there’s nothing new here, and it seems to musically be a retreat back to the Everything Must Go/This Is My Truth, Tell Me Yours era, there’s a lot of winning guitar-pop here to satisfy even the most jaded fan. If you’re a fan and you’ve missed the Manics of the 90s, check this out.

Key tracks: Send Away The Tigers, Your Love Alone Is Not Enough, Indian Summer, Autumnsong

The National-Boxer

I’ll admit it–I was late getting into The National. My friend Leslie burned me a copy of Alligator a couple years back, and I just could not get into it. I turned it off halfway through ‘Secret Meeting’. Not in 4/4? Circuitous melody? Subtle hook? Fuck that. I’ve got shit to do.

Then my other friend Gary emails me the mp3 of ‘Mistaken For Strangers’ last spring, raving about Boxer and how amazing it was. I didn’t even bother listening to it. I just went to the store and bought both Alligator and Boxer and called Gary, telling him that they better not suck.

Lo and behold, they did not. Boxer especially is one of the most consistently gratifying albums I own. It helps that Matt Berninger has the kind of voice I would listen to even if he was singing the phone book.  And the band’s musical backdrop is so engaging. Bryan Devendorf’s drumming is some of the most musical that I’ve ever heard, and the songs’ success is just as dependent on him as they are on the other instrumentalists. If I was actually ranking these, this might take the number one spot.

Key tracks: Fake Empire, Mistaken For Strangers, Green Gloves, Slow Show, Apartment Story

Patton Oswalt-Werewolves and Lollipops

No, it’s not musical. Yes, it is spoken word. Guess what? Doesn’t make a damn bit of difference. Werewolves is perhaps the most consistently rewarding comedy album I own. I can listen to it over and over again and still laugh just as hard as I did the first time I heard it. Am I a bit biased because I see myself in Patton? Sure. That doesn’t mean this album is less funny if you don’t perfectly identify with it.

Warning: If you think George W. Bush is a genius, this probably isn’t for you.

Key tracks: America Has Spoken, The Dukes Of Hazzard, The Gatekeepers Of Coolness, Death Bed

Radiohead-In Rainbows

The first two tracks are great. Unfortunately, they don’t quite fit the rest of the album. However, if you’re a brainy weirdo, the rest of In Rainbows might actually help you get laid. Because it’s damn sexy (to brainy weirdos).

Key tracks: Nude, All I Need, Videotape

The Rosebuds-Night of the Furies

Other than ‘The Lovers Rights’ and ‘Boxcar’, sophomore-slumping Birds Make Good Neighbors was pretty disappointing. Gone was the fun and new romance of Make Out, replaced by dour, hook-less meditations on post-honeymoon love. So it was pleasantly shocking to hear “comeback” single ‘Get Up, Get Out’ urge me to do just that in all its synth-tastic glory. It was even more pleasing to discover that the remainder of the album was just as good. I get the feeling Ivan was listening to a lot of New Order and Labrador/Sarah Records artists during the recording of this album. Pretty unimpeachable credentials, if you ask me.