My own quick post with lots of songs.

As participation in this revival here, and to show my brotherhood, I'm copping the style of the previous post (and also because I'm a bit lazy). So here are a whole bunch of songs I've been into lately.



CHROMATICS - IN THE CITY

Chromatics and Glass Candy have always sounded almost too much alike, but they both do the icey, detatched italo-disco thing really well. Here is perhaps the best song they've ever put out:



DON CABALLERO - FIRE BACK ABOUT YOUR NEW BABY'S SEX

I'm in a bit of a post-rock revival these days, listening to a lot Trans Am and Do Make Say Think, but this song really stands out among that stuff mostly because of the first 30 seconds. If you've never heard 'American Don', keep in mind that this is one guitar + loop pedals. As well, Ian Williams, the guitarist, is now in Battles which is one more reason I've been digging up the Don Cab stuff lately.



DEERHUNTER - LIKE NEW

Cryptograms is one of my favourite albums of 2007, although this isn't technically on it. It's on the Fluorescent Grey EP which comes attached to the album - still, it seems as though it would have a perfect place between Cryptogram's 'pop' songs and their ambient ones. Like New strikes a quiet balance between the two, and is my favourite song of theirs.



THE WHO - OUT IN THE STREETS

Well, I've renamed myself "thekidsarealright" because I've also been listening to The Who's My Generation LP a lot these days as well. In high school, my favourite band was The Jam, and I'd always read about Paul Weller's devotion and self proclaimed mimicry of The Who, and listening to Happy Jack I just didn't get it. It didn't have the punch or the loud R&B kick that The Jam were all about. Luckily, I discovered My Generation and now it all makes sense. Here is the first song on that record.




Alright, well that wasn't "lots" of songs, but 4. Only because I have to run out now. Comment on these and I'll definitely be posting more later.

Songs I Can't Get Out of My Head Lately - Quick Post With Lots of Songs

This is just a quick post to put up some songs to share what i've been listening to, and what I can't stop listening to in my head. I'm making up for lack of content with more songs and a funny picture

This first song kills me. It's the way I wish Bob Dylan was always like. I've gotten to like him more recently but nothing approaches this song:
Bob Dylan - Don't Think Twice, It's Alright

Next up is a song by Cut Copy that I think about a lot, it may not always be in my head, but it's always in my thoughts:
Cut Copy - Saturdays

Next up is a band I remember as being one of the most derivative of all bands, basically a San Fran version of Belle and Sebastian, with songs named after B&S lines. This is a song that's been floating in and out of my head for the past 4 years:
The Aislers Set - Languor on the Balcony

This one is a staple for whenever I do some laptop DJing. I first heard it when my boy Graeme found the single at a thrift store around the corner. It's a disco version of a little number from Annie Get Your Gun, and sure, it's racist, but it's so catchy most people don't know what to do except dance. There's really no other option:
Don Armando - I'm an Indian Too

Let's end with two songs that I have more of a long-standing relationship with. First up is a song I had stuck in my head for a whole summer, one where certain lines got so stuck up in there that I had to exorcise these lines by writing them on t-shirts, which I lost soon after:
Dag Nasty - Can I Say
And next is a chorus that I just can't get over and a band that I love all over:
The Clash - Gates of the West

There's something about the band Dog Day that I can't quite put my finger on. The sound is very familiar, kind of an early 90s indie rock and alternative (Lemondheads, Smudge, if Pavement was power pop), and also a bit like the first Treble Charger. The lyrics are good, the songwriting is also good, but nothing on this stands out to me as being amazing and for some reason I love it. I can't stop listening to it,I've listened to the album Night Group nearly everyday for the past month and I am in no way sick of it. So what is it that I find so appealing? I can't say, but I do find them very appealing. I, as well, am heavy into their back story, though I don't know much I do know this: At least two of them are from Cape Breton and are recently married, they reside in Halifax, the album was possibly recorded and mixed in Germany, and they are on Tomlab outside of Canada, and on a label I've never heard of(Black Mountain), and
I bought their album for $12 at Chapters in Edmonton. I also may have seen one of them while in Halifax seeing Special Noise and Play Guitar (label mates I just learned thanks to the www) in Halifax this summer.
The opening track on the album Night Group, Lydia, is a standout for me and not just because I love short songs. The song hits with a suddenness and energy that makes me excited each time I hear it. The introduction to the song is good in the way that it gives no preparation for what is about to come: a noisy, high energy, wonderfully melodic minute and a half that leaves you satisfied but at the same time eager for more. It's nearly a perfect opener as it introduces the best parts of their sound from fuzzy bass to bored, beautiful, catchy vocal lines. The album continues like this, slowing down slightly on songs, cranking up the pop on others, all the while remaining accessible but interesting. The vocals are mostly male with back-ups being female, which makes for a nice mix as the two vocals are quite similar. Perhaps the vocals are what I enjoy so much; they're at least a large part of my enjoyment. Full of a kind of ennui but still catchy with familiar melodies that you could never place (you know that kind of song, it happens sometimes with Joanna Newsom's first album, where you swear you've heard the hook before but it's un-placeable) and stick in your head for days.
The next song I'd like to discuss, Sleeping, Waiting, evinces the height of pop that Dog Day can reach, as well as the height of early 90s that they can reach. It's quite similar to Lydia, so maybe I should post another song to show their range, but this song has really caught my attention recently and has become my new fave. It's a like a more bored and less lame version of Winnipeg's The Salteens, but the bubble gum is replaced with Vanilla Skoal chewing tobacco, still sweet but there's something more mature and sinister about it. It's also a bit of a love song without being too over-the-top, and that's a sweet spot for me.
Here They Be:
LYDIA
SLEEPING, WAITING

Hope y'all like it as much as I do, though I doubt anyone could like it as much as their number one superfan. Also, coming soon will be songs from my brother's and my new band which is yet entitled, possibly to be called Deanes, Deane Brothers, or Phil's suggestion is Operation Hot Brother.

Mesmerizing.

-Mike.L.