One of the cool things about the way music works in 2011, is that bands can ape older bands' vibes without necessarily sounding like a pale imitation. "Blue Rose" by Speculator is a pretty great example of that. The initial thought here, in huge letters scanning across our brains, is JOY DIVISION. But it's less about what's going on in the actual track, and more about what is floating around it, which is a similar desperate coldness and a sense of erosion in music, in life, in thought. "Blue Rose" is exhausted music, but you can love it anyway. Get Speculator's album Nice, August 30th on Underwater Peoples.
Download: Speculator, "Blue Rose"