Voxtrot should show up soon as one of my top artsts in the sidebar. (I think it updates on Sunday night.) I’ve been listening to them alot this week, wondering when we’re going to hear new material. Soon, I hope! You can find more mp3s on the Voxtrot website.
Voxtrot – Missing Pieces
The Hussy’s (shouldn’t it be the Hussies?) is a six-piece pop/ska band from Glascow. I’m not sure if they have a proper full-length LP, but they do have a number of great singles (Tiger, Napoleon). This song, Sister Mary Jo, is from Necklace.
Some good lyric-writing here too—it tells a funny story without getting too bogged down in it, you know?
Sister Mary Jo, it’s time to let the whole world know
That you’re actually a bloke and you like to drink and smoke
Oh sister Mary Jo are you a gangster on the run?
And if I slipped into your bed will you tell the other nuns?
The Hussy’s – Sister Mary Jo
Update 8/16: An OAP is an old age pensioner. Also the bassline is really intense so turn up the sub!
According to last.fm, Maps has recently beaten out The Roots to become my number two favorite band. Well, it’s not a band per se; it’s the Englishman pictured above: James Chapman. I think he has a band for touring. (There should be a name for that.)
This is one of my favorite songs (but they’re all good though, really). It’s from a split-EP he did with Blonde Redhead. I’m curious to know where the audio sample came from. It sounds like a movie—a wonderful/terrible b-movie from the late 90s/early 00s, hopefully? If you know, please post in comments.
I just love how serious they are. And how, at the end, he’s all like “Yeah, well, I don’t do safe?” Snap!
Maps – In Chemistry
#1 blog reader Georgia has alerted me to an amazing new single from The Grates, which, although is linked below, you should still support the artist AND get the higher quality version from the store above.
Sailor hats above both cute and appropriate; photo is from their recent surprise show on a boat in Australia. (They’re from Australia.) Also, they all went to art school and make their own cute posters.
The song is really stunning. They are so good at the under-2:30 pop song! Lyrics here. Video here. Very conducive to listening to over and over and over. Several of my top songs of all time are Grates songs, including #2!
The Grates – Burn Bridges
The Grates - 19-20-20
Update 8/16: Having multiple songs linked in the same post is interfering with the podcast—iTunes subscribers are seeing 19-20-20 instead of Burn Bridges. Unless I find a good solution, it’s going to be one song per post going forward!
photo by Lynt
There’s a beat drop at about 2:30 of this song that is just perfect. Highly recommended listening.
DJ Krush – Only the Strong Survive [Bon Mix]
There’s some fresh dancing (and cool hats) in this video.
Gnarls Barkley – Going On
YouTube, via StereoGum and BoingBoing
Wire is a mini revelation for me. I found out about their albums Pink Flag and Chairs Missing in Pitchfork Media’s 100 Best Albums of the 1970s.
Wire – Reuters
Wire – Mannequin
They have a wonderful minimal punk sound. It’s atmospheric but with attitude, not empty. It turns out they wrote The 15th, the Fischerspooner track that I posted about here.
The photographer above has a bunch of fantastic photos on this site, as well as a show at Etherea on Ave A which runs through next week.
Here is ultra-cute Glaswegian indiepop sextet The Royal We. And here is their first single, from the forthcomping LP on Geographic Records (Domino).
The Royal We – All the Rage
Here is their bio page on Geographic, which makes me think they might never come to the US to play. So sad! So if you’re in London on the 23rd of October, let me know how the show was.
Finally, here’s the video. There’s lots of fake blood and severed limbs and such. I’m just warning you. It makes sense (sort of) in the context of the song.
Last Friday night, I was told I was like “Adam Ant. You know, ‘don’t drink, don’t smoke, what do you do?’” Well, that got me started thinking about all the other ways I’m like Adam Ant, namely
The only difference between us, really, is that I didn’t write these amazing hit songs, and he did:
Adam & the Ants – Stand and Deliver
Adam & the Ants – Antmusic
Adam & the Ants – Kings of the Wild Frontier
I’m not sure why you don’t hear people trying this ‘Burundi beat’ more in their pop songs. Oh wait, you do:
Ok Go – Don’t Ask Me
