Category: Pop (Page 34 of 216)

Me, Myself, and iPod 7/21/10: Elefants with guitars, robots with out holes

July 21, 2010 /

esd ipod

Hesta Prynn – Can We Go Wrong
Formerly of “female Beastie Boys” Northern State – and the author of this great couplet: “If you got a sweat suit and you’re dripping in diamonds / Tell me, are you a rapper, or a mom from Long Island?” – the girl her mom calls Julie Potash goes the indie pop route on her debut EP of the same name as this song.

Yacht – Nausea
Their 2009 song “Afterlife” beat every other synth-pinking wannabe act all to hell, and as they prepare to make their next record, they’ve recorded an X song, just in case we didn’t already know that they get the ’80s in ways that most other bands only dare to dream.

Diego Garcia – You Were Never There
Forsaking the full-blown glam of his previous day job Elefant for something closer to his heritage, Garcia delivers a gorgeous acoustic gem that sounds like a modern-day “Walk Away Renee.” Man, we hope the rest of his first full-length album, due next year, is on par with this.

PVT – Window
We will confess to being new to the band formerly known as Pivot, but if their new material has the drive and flair of this song, we’re in.

Radio FreQ – Where You Been
New York ’80s synth pop with a bit more…fabulousness, if you catch our drift. And look, more silly capitalization. We get it, Eq, blah blah blah, but still, enough already. Just spell the damn name in a manner that doesn’t give people splitting headaches. And while we’re on the subject of band names…

Shit Robot – I Found Love (TBD Remix)
Naming your band is a lot harder than people think. It’s your invisible handshake, the first impression that makes people decide whether or not they wish to get to know you better. The name needs to be something catchy but not annoying, and no matter what kind of music you play, the name should still maintain a sense of accessibility.

Which is why we laughed out loud when we learned that someone concluded that the best possible name for his band was Shit Robot. Well played, sir.

'60s, Adult Contemporary, Alternative, Artists, CD Reviews, Dance, Downloads, Hip Hop, Hipster, Me Myself and iPod, Pop, Rock, Steal This Song

The Coral: Butterfly House

July 20, 2010 /


RIYL: The Zutons, Super Furry Animals, The Moody Blues

One can’t help but feel a little bad for the Coral. Once tabbed as England’s best new band, their profile of late on the other side of the pond has been so far below the radar that even the Anglophiles on the staff had not thought of them in a good six or seven years. Look for that to change with Butterfly House, the band’s sixth album and first in three years. Singer James Skelly has traded in the Burdon-esque bluesy growl from the band’s debut for a smooth, harmony-drenched crispness that could serve as the backing track to your neighbor’s home movies of a fall weekend in the late ’60s. Lead single “1000 Years” offers a little bit of everything you can expect from Butterfly House as a whole – effects-heavy vocals (a watery flange in this case), a catchy mid-tempo groove, and a sudden burst of guitar, all tastefully played and expertly recorded by UK music legend John Leckie. There is an admitted sameness to the material, but the mood of the album strikes such a strong emotional chord that it’s difficult to complain. One of the biggest, and best, surprises of the year. (Indie Europe 2010)

The Coral MySpace page
Click to buy Disconnect from Desire from Amazon

'60s, Alternative, Artists, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Pop

School of Seven Bells: Disconnect from Desire

July 20, 2010 /


RIYL: My Bloody Valentine, Ride, Chapterhouse

Neil Hannon recently quipped in his song “At the Indie Disco” about how “we’re dancing to the beat, and staring at each other’s feet.” One wonders if the indie disco in question was playing School of Seven Bells, because their sophomore album, Disconnect from Desire, is one of the finer shoegazer records from this or any other era (which is to say the only other era, the early ’90s). The drum tracks recall the 808/909 period while maintaining a modern feel, and the harmonies of twin singers Alejandra and Claudia Deheza create the ultimate siren’s call, an ethereal bliss that makes the most crushing one-liner feel like a soft kiss goodnight. “I L U” is the album’s crown jewel, reimagining My Bloody Valentine’s “Soon” as a tender breakup song (bonus points for its dead simple three-note chorus), while the jangly “Babelonia” sends a knowing wink to Jesus Jones’ “International Bright Young Thing” with Deheza’s wavering vocal.

School_of_Seven_Bells_01

It’s curious that a shoegazer renaissance would take hold in today’s climate, especially when it was only marginally successful the first time around. Ah, but nostalgia is a powerful thing, and there are few periods as beloved by music hounds as the go-go modern rock scene of the early ’90s, when grunge and baggy still coexisted peacefully. Disconnect from Desire distills the ecstasy-fueled elements of those early shoegazer records with a healthy dose of pop songcraft. The end result, at the risk of sounding cliche, is dreamy. (Vagrant/Ghostly International 2010)

School of Seven Bells MySpace page
Click to buy Disconnect from Desire from Amazon

Alternative, Ambient, Artists, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Dance, Pop, Rock

Marc Cohn: Listening Booth: 1970

July 16, 2010 /


RIYL: Eric Clapton, Sting, Jackson Browne

Will everyone who feels like they need to hear another version of “Maybe I’m Amazed,” “After Midnight,” or – God help you – “Make It With You,” please raise your hand? Thank you. The rest of you may be excused.

As covers projects go, Marc Cohn’s Listening Booth: 1970 has an admittedly nifty concept; it focuses strictly on songs from the year of its title. But the minus in this equation is that any song popular enough to survive the last 40 years has been played to death. There’s no doubt that Cohn really loves “Wild World” and “Long As I Can See the Light,” but so do millions of other people, which is why you’ve been able to hear the originals (as well as not a few covers of the songs on this album) on classic rock radio every day for at least the last 20 years. If you aren’t going to add something new to add to these songs, why bother?

It’s a question Cohn never really provides a satisfactory answer to here, aside from the obvious one: Because people from Cohn’s generation are suckers for nostalgia, and if they aren’t going to purchase his generally excellent original material — which, incidentally, does a far better job of synthesizing his influences than anything here — then he might as well cash a check and cut a slowed-down version of “No Matter What,” suitable for the next time Adam Sandler or John Cusack decides to film a romantic comedy.

Thoughts this cynical are depressing when you’re listening to classic songs like “Into the Mystic” and “The Tears of a Clown,” but they are, sadly, more interesting than anything that happens during Listening Booth: 1970. The performances are tasteful, the production is finely burnished, and Cohn’s voice remains a marvelously soulful instrument, but this is a hollow exercise. Like a musical Slanket, it’ll put your mother-in-law to sleep with a smile on her face. If you want more, look to Cohn’s albums of original material — or, better yet, the original recordings of these songs. (Saguaro Road 2010)

Marc Cohn MySpace page

CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Pop

Elogy: One

July 15, 2010 /


RIYL: Coldplay, Aqualung, Passion Pit

Not everyone can lead. It’s just a fact of life. Some will lead, and the rest will follow, and you will find no greater place to observe this behavior in action than in the world of music, where every band who scores even a sliver of attention inadvertently gives birth to a gaggle of copycats. Most of which, naturally, suck hard.

However, just because someone is a follower does not mean that they’re not bringing something new to the table, and California trio Elogy is a good example. From the first breath that singer Derek Cannavo takes on One, the band’s debut album, it’s clear that he really, really likes the way Chris Martin sings, executing both of Martin’s trademark moves (the aching baritone, followed by the aching falsetto) in a matter of seconds. And yet, for all the tricks the band may have stolen from other bands’ playbooks, One is a consistently engaging listen, stuffed to the gills with anthemic choruses and slice & dice programming that will make Passion Pit green with envy. The soaring “Eager We Are” will surely land in a CW show in the next six months, while “Welcome to Inertia” out-Aqualung’s Aqualung, skillfully blending major keys with full-blown melancholia. The band’s true star, though, is drummer Nick Lyman, who positively bashes his set when he’s not unleashing drum samples that sound like Everything but the Girl’s Walking Wounded set on puree.

If they can stay away from overblown power ballads like “Rest Your Senses” (think Staind’s “It’s Been Awhile” for the bedroom pop set), there should be little preventing Elogy from jumping to the next level. It may not be the most unique first step a band’s ever taken, but it would not be at all surprising to see Elogy evolve into a band that others want to copy. (Elogy 2010)

Elogy MySpace page
Click to buy One from Amazon

Ambient, Artists, CD Reviews, Electronica, Emo, Melodramatic, Pop

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