Holiday Shores, “Your Motion Says” (Arthur Russell Cover) MP3
- story Sam Hockley-Smith
This is not an invitation for every band to cover the immensely coverable Arthur Russell, but we will say that the majority of reworks we’ve heard lately have been pretty solid. Next in line is Holiday Shores‘ cover of “Your Motion Says,” which actually benefits from the fact that it originally came from a super limited cassette. Tape hiss is prevalent, it’s intimate and sparse and singer Nathan Pemberton turns Russell’s hushed vocal quiver into an imperfect gauzy moan. Catch the band on tour and pick up Through the Thin Cloud if they still have them and if you still have a tape player.
(via RCRD LBL)
Chief, “Mighty Proud” MP3
- story Matthew Schnipper
Every once in a while, Levon Helm of The Band opens his upstate New York home to friends and family (and those with about a hundred bucks) and has a Midnight Ramble, an open group session of riffs and trills. We have not been, unfortunately, but friends who’ve attended describe the communal twang as universally transcendent. We want to go to both relive the ’60s blowing-in-the-wind freedom, and to celebrate the fact that the era’s unwieldy creativity still breathes. Chief, new signings to Domino, have clearly felt similar pangs, as evidenced by “Mighty Proud,” from their 7-inch released earlier this week. They’re long-haired flannel and denim wearing dudes like many of us, but they’ve earned their stripes (or patterns), with smoky hooks and group singalongs of tracks tailor-made for union rallies. We’d say they were born in the wrong era but then we’d have no peers.
Download: Chief, “Mighty Proud”
Human Tetris, “People” MP3
As a goth and/or existentialist band names go Human Tetris is up there with Crash Worship and Sisters of Mercy, the latter of which is clearly some kind of influence, as Tetris vocalist Arvid Kriger has a long-faced Andrew Eldritch crow. They’ve also got that perfect goth forlorn futility steez whilst singing an apocalyptic tale that may or may not have anything to do with their hometown of Moscow. Yes it is that serious. And just for kicks, watch the awesome video for Sisters of Mercy’s “Lucretia, My Reflection” after the jump.
Download: Human Tetris, “People” (via Weekly Tapedeck)
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posted on Nov 19, 2009 in MP3 / STREAMS tags Crash Worship, goth, Human Tetris, rock, Sisters of Mercy
Premiere: Weekend, “Youth Haunts” MP3
- story Sam Hockley-Smith
Weekend’s “Youth Haunts” is what happens if No Age traded in good vibes and instead got real angry from the depths of a muffled cavern. It’s about four minutes of build up, windy moans and plodding drums giving way to a balls to the wall freakout as the whole song collapses on itself. Kinda like watching a dog get exhausted chasing its own tail, but, you know, in a good way. “Youth Haunts” is from Weekend’s upcoming 10-inch on Mexican Summer.
Download: Weekend, “Youth Haunts”
Vampire Weekend, “Cousins”
- story Peter Macia
Just judging by their previous videography, you could’ve guessed Hammer & Tongs would become the Winston Churchill to Vampire Weekend’s Franklin Roosevelt (they were bros, right?). After a decade of directing high concept videos for erudite Anglos such as Pulp, Blur, Badly Drawn Boy, Radiohead and Hot Chip, and adapting A Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy to the big screen, the director/producer duo consisting of Garth Jennings and Nick Goldsmith made their way back to the colonies for last year’s twitchy “A-Punk”. For their reunion, H&T put VW on a dolly track a million times. What does it mean? Nothing!
Harlem, “Sometimes” MP3
- story Sam Hockley-Smith
Harlem’s “Sometimes” wins our new “Cover of the Month” award, a song which was originally by Gene Thomas, then Paul Revere and the Raiders, then The Kingsmen, before finally landing at the Flamin’ Groovies version. Okay! Harlem changed this from a pretty sweet love song into something darker, just by virtue of being so messy and sloppy it seems the band barely held it together long enough to actually record it. At some point, hopefully soon, Harlem will be releasing a new album on Matador.
Download: Harlem, “Sometimes”
Premiere: Alex Bleeker and The Freaks, “Animal Tracks” MP3
- story Peter Macia
Alex Bleeker and The Freaks are undeniably indebted to a certain shakey-voiced, chord-slamming Canadian on this first single from their self-titled debut LP, but instead of doing impersonations it’s like they’ve extracted dopamine from his brain and dripped it into their beers, the sonic tension numbed by Bleeker’s simple short tale about drinking soda on a summer porch. We’ve met these dudes, and we would rather drink sodas on a porch with them than Neil Young about a thousand times over. That dude seems like he doesn’t even drink soda. With Bleeker, there’s no hand-wringing over how much certain things might suck—everyone knows—just relax and deal with it. The rest of the album is similarly raucously at ease, like the band’s native New Jersey has delusions that it is actually the deep, green woods (For a visual of what that might look like, watch them play “Never Going Back” in a gentrified shithouse). Alex Bleeker and The Freaks will be out on November 27th on Underwater Peoples. Make sure to pick it up.
Download: Alex Bleeker and The Freaks, “Animal Tracks”
Video: Charlotte Gainsbourg f. Beck, “Heaven Can Wait”
In a way, the waify offspring of Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin is a perfect match for the vagabond scientologist Beck, and this video shows why: they can have lazing-around Boho slumber parties where they muse about philosophy, art and making love while cuddling; or they can meet odd new people doing extraordinary things, like holding a WWII bomb graffiti’d with the word “Nachos.” Hey man, we wanna play shirtless guitar when our parents are arguing, too. However, we have to draw the line at doing our make-up with a life-sized dino-man in the bathroom. It’s just too intimate. (via Spinner)
Gil Scott-Heron, “Where Did the Night Go” MP3
- story Matthew Schnipper
The beat for this track by the legendary (check the Wiki) Gil Scott-Heron sounds like a collaboration with Burial. Not that it’s actually Burial (XL head Richard Russell produced the forthcoming album), but it has the same night flair and downtrodden synth buzz. We experienced some shock when XL nonchalantly put up clips from Scott-Heron’s new album, including a cover of Smog’s “I’m New Here” (which they didn’t mention was a Smog cover). Russell later explained he’d played the song for Scott-Heron who wanted to cover it. We’re still surprised by this, and now by the hyperfuture tone he’s taking on “Where Did the Night Go.” This is sure to be a confusing album, a meta listen, but hopefully that self-conscious “What the fuck? Gil Scott-Heron?” thing will fade.
Download: Gil Scott-Heron, “Where Did the Night Go” (email not required, but they’d love it if you gave it)
Small Black, “Pleasant Experience” MP3
- story Peter Macia
If you don’t yet know who Small Black is, first go here, let that be your favorite song for a few minutes, then come back and listen to this song, maybe take a power nap while it glides through your synapses and then go buy the new EP from whence both songs come. After that, don’t know, maybe eat a grilled cheese and some tomato soup and wonder how two kinda scrawny dudes from Brooklyn make Duran Duran sound like babies.
Download: Small Black, “Pleasant Experience” (via Transparent)
