LCD Soundsystem Keeps On Giving
Posted by BrokenSilence | Filed under LCD Soundsystem
Four posts down I talked about two leaked tracks from LCD Soundsystem’s upcoming album, ‘This Is Happening’. I’ve heard the entire album, which you can do so on the band’s website. I’m also in receipt of the entire album as I’ll be reviewing it for a magazine. But sorry, I won’t be able to share any of the songs that haven’t leaked or been released until the album itself is released.
Either way, in the previous LCD post I mentioned how I didn’t think ‘Dance Yrself Clean’ was that much of an improvement over ‘Drunk Girls’. I couldn’t have been more wrong. I didn’t give it a chance, I heard the first two minutes and thought ‘This is mediocrity at its best’. Patience would’ve been a virtue and early enlightenment if I was in possession of it. Because this song pretty much kicks ass. You just have to wait till 3:08 into it and it becomes a jamming dance tune of splashing rock guitars, filthy percussion and madly pressed synthesizers, surrounded by a wall of fuzz, all falling amongst James Murphy’s yelping, scratched up ‘I just woke up from a boozy night’ vocals. Best track on the album by far.
Also, today LCD released the video for ‘Drunk Girls’. And though not a fan of the song, I think the video is pretty hilarious, mainly when a group of people dressed up in pseudo panda outfits throw eggs at Nancy Wang and tackle Murphy to the floor. And while I’m posting about LCD, I thought I’d throw a cover of theirs I just stumbled upon. It’s a cover of Joy Division’s track, ‘No Love Lost’, one of my favorites. The original is also used in a great cinematic scene from the movie, ‘Control’, which I’ve linked below.
LCD Soundsystem - Dance Yrself Clean
LCD Soundsystem - No Love Lost (Joy Division Cover)
Tags: Control, Dance Yrself Clean, Joy Division, LCD Soundsytem, Music Video, No Love Lost
VEGA’s No Reasons
Posted by BrokenSilence | Filed under VEGA
I absolutely love VEGA’s track, ‘No Reasons’. This thing is solid, on repeat for the past few days, my song for the upcoming summer. I think it’s just fantastic. I love when you come across that one track that just stands out from all the others, it has that little extra umph from the regular sounds you’re chunneling through your ears. And now I’ve built this track up for disappointment. But don’t let that be so!
Regardless, VEGA is Alan Palomo, as I briefly discussed in my Miami Horror post. He used to be the front man for the ever awesome Ghosthustler (that ended way too soon) and he’s gone solo under the name VEGA. He is also the main man in Neon Indian, a group which is fairly new but the one that has gotten the most attention of all of his projects. I myself am not a huge Neon Indian fan, find it a little too dreamy. Regardless, the work Palomo has done in Ghosthuslter and as VEGA has been some of my favorite. And I can’t get over his voice; the youthful tinged, achey crooning.
VEGA released his debut EP, ‘Well Known Pleasures’, (a reference to Joy Division’s debut album ‘Unknown Pleasures’) last year. The sound is pretty similar to a lot of stuff on this blog, summery, disco infused house with a side of dreamy electro drifts. Palomo just does it better. Fun fact was that Ghosthustler was always Nintendo orientated, seen by their video for ‘Parking Lot Nights’ and some of their marketing material. But VEGA designs his name like Sega as seen on the above album cover. He’s moved on.
Tags: Alan Palomo, Ghosthustler, Joy Division, Neon Indian, Nintendo, Sega, Unknown Pleasures, Well Known Pleasures
Hot Chip’s Transmission
Posted by BrokenSilence | Filed under Hot Chip, Joy Division
Joy Divison; one of my favorite bands. Hot Chip; one of my favorite bands. Put them together, well, that’s pretty great. A while back Hot Chip covered Joy Division’s song ‘Transmission’. I like it a lot. Hot Chip keeps the same melody as the original but makes it their own by converting it into an electro, disco-esque tune. I’ve always loved Alexis Taylor’s vocals and that’s no different here. They’re softer and soothing when compared to Ian Curtis’, who sings with grit, anger and depression. But Taylors’ are better matched to the new melody. Looking forward to their new album next year.
Tags: Cover, Hot Chip, Joy Division, Transmission
White Lies
Posted by BrokenSilence | Filed under White Lies
When I was in London a few weeks ago I saw the album cover for ‘To Lose My Life’ by the White Lies plastered on all the walls of the city streets. It wasn’t until I returned state side that I had a chance to listen to the record. And I have to say that it’s the best release I’ve heard this year. Granted we’re only three and a half months in, but this will be a tough one to beat.
The band is rooted in the city of London and though their sound is by no means unique and unparalled, they grasp it firmly and mold it into their own. They easily take their place amongst the members of the dark rock goth genre, birthed by none other than the late, great, Ian Curtis of Joy Division. Ever since his death, many have attempted to capture what he would have delivered, some have achieved greatness and others have failed; The Killers, Interpol, Echo & The Bunnymen all heed this sound, and now so do White Lies. Yet they bring a light to the darkness that so many imitators have failed to do. Harry McVeigh’s thundering baritone empowers the music and lyrics. He sounds like a fervent pastor dispelling his words with a God like gospel to charge and ignite his listeners.
The lyrics are filled with dark prose that Edgar Allen Poe would’ve been proud of. My favorite track on the album is one that has a different sound from the rest; ‘Death’. At first it seems like a Cars-esque, new wave, sunny song with upbeat melodies and romantic lyrics. However, the words describe McVeigh’s fear of death. ‘Unfinished Business’ is an eerie, melancholic tale with an equally melancholic stadium sound that discusses death and murder between lovers. See if you can figure out what the song is about. Hint: The singer is dead. I’ll let the tracks speak for themselves. All I find to be amazing.
White Lies - Unfinished Business
White Lies - Farewell To The Fairground
Tags: Echo & The Bunnymen, Edgar Allen Poe, Ian Curtis, Interpol, Joy Division, London, The Killers
500 Days of Summer
Posted by BrokenSilence | Filed under Beck, Hall & Oates, Regina Spektor, The Smiths, The Temper Trap, Wolfmother
There are a lot of great movies coming out this year (Terminator Salvation, The Limits of Control, Star Trek, Mancora, The Brothers Bloom, Transformers, Where The Wild Things Are, Public Enemies, Inglorious Basterds, 2012 and the list goes on). But one of the movies I am most looking forward to is ‘500 Days of Summer’. Boy meets girl. Boy falls in love. Girl doesn’t. Hey, what can I say? I like romantic comedies/dramas. And also because I really like Zooey Deschanel (though Olivia Thirlby is taking over the spot for my favorite indie actress) and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and because from the trailer the movie is definitely going to have music as a central point. Thus far there are some good references…por ejemplo:
1. When they first meet in the elevator, Levitt’s character is listening to The Smiths on his headphones, where upon Deschanel’s character tells him she loves The Smiths (from that band and Morrisey’s words, heartbreak has already begun). She then proceeds to sing the song, which is ‘There Is A Light That Never Goes Out’, awesome, since that is by far my favorite Smiths song. What I like best is how after she leaves the elevator he is stunned that she likes The Smiths saying ‘Holy Shit’. Us guys all know how great it is when a girl likes the same music as you.
2. They’re both lying down on a bed and Levitt’s character has a t-shirt on, of which the print is the album cover to Joy Division’s first album ‘Unknown Pleasures’. I actually bought that t-shirt once, though it never came in the mail.
3. Upon ending the relationship, Deschanel’s character compares their relationship to Sid & Nancy (Sid Vicious of the Sex Pistols and the couple’s fame as Nancy was possibly murdered by Sid (no one knows) in the Chelsea Hotel). She amusingly dubs herself as Sid and Levitt as Nancy.
The teaser and the trailer feature some great music in their own right, which I have posted below. One standout is ‘Sweet Disposition’ by The Temper Trap. It’s a really soft, yet power driven heartfelt track that builds quite nicely. It’s a pretty beautiful song. Another favorite in the trailer is Hall & Oates’ 80s pop classic ‘You Make My Dreams’.
Worth noting is that the teaser was inspired by the French New Wave flick, ‘Le Mepris’ (’Contempt’) by none other than the great Jean-Luc Godard starring the sultry Brigitte Bardot. Links to everything below.
The Temper Trap - Sweet Disposition
Hall & Oates - You Make My Dreams
The Smiths - There Is A Light That Never Goes Out
The Teaser
Full Length Trailer
Trailer for Le Mepris
Below is the entire soundtrack for the movie and here is a link to the director’s explanation for using the songs he did. I’m pretty interested to see how they use Simon & Garfunkel’s ‘Bookends’, that is one haunting, melancholy and nostalgic song.
Regina Spektor - “Us”
The Smiths - “There Is A Light That Never Goes Out”
Belle & Sebastian - “The Boy With The Arab Strap”
Black Lips - “Bad Kids”
The Smiths - “Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want.”
Patrick Swayze - “She’s Like The Wind.”
Jack Penate - “Have I Been a Fool? ”
The Doves - “There Goes the Fear”
Hall & Oates - “You Make My Dreams”
Knight Rider Theme
Temper Trap - “Sweet Disposition”
Carla Bruni - “Quelqu’un M’a Dit”
Black Lips - “Veni, Vidi, Vici”
Paper Route - “The Music”
Feist - “Mushaboom”
Regina Spektor - “Hero”
Spoon - “Infinite Pet”
Simon & Garfunkel - “Bookends”
Wolfmother - “Vagabond”
Mumm-Rah - “She’s Got You High”
Karaoke Selections:
Poison “Every Rose Has Its Thorn”
Nancy Sinatra/Lee Hazlewood as performed by Zooey Deschanel “Sugar Town”
The Pixies “Here Comes Your Man”
Tags: 500 Days of Summer, Brigitte Bardot, Chelsea Hotel, Contempt, French, Jean-Luc Godard, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Joy Division, Le Mepris, Morrisey, New Wave, Sex Pistols, Sid & Nancy, Sid Vicious, Soundtrack, The Smiths, There Is A Light That Never Goes Out, Trailer, Unknown Pleasures, Zooey Deschanel
Death Cab For Cutie
Posted by BrokenSilence | Filed under Death Cab For Cutie
Originally posted on May 14, 2008
A moment of great excitement for many as Death Cab For Cutie released their new album, Narrow Stairs, three days ago. How dearly loved this band is, and rightly they should be. The lyrics are as wonderful as they always are. And they have such a greater impact on a variety of feelings; nostalgia, sadness, wonder, all due to Ben Gibbard’s vibrato-less, innocent, boyish voice.
The words in these songs continue with Gibbard’s tales of heartbreak, failed relationships and memories of ex-loves. However, the individuals and stories in these songs are much more darker and in despair than anything we’ve heard before. There are no exceptional tracks that I would say are brilliant, as we’ve seen on previous records, but the album is still a great listen.
Though the lyrics are much darker than any of their previous work, the music on the earlier part of the album still has an upbeat flair, almost perfect music for the summer; sounds that evoke the typical image of driving down an open, abandoned, single lane highway in a top down convertible; sort of Kerouac-esque. And of course it would be Kerouac-esque, given that Ben Gibbard is heavily influenced by him. Their song ‘Lowell, MA’ is the birth place of Kerouac, Gibbard stayed in and wrote Narrow Stairs in the same cabin where Kerouac wrote Big Sur.
Big Sur in a way parallels Gibbard’s current state of mind and influences the darker aspect of the album. Big Sur is a dark book, dealing with Kerouac’s later period in life, the depression, isolation, alcoholism; a contrast to the fun and exciting times of On The Road. Gibbard relates this to his current state of mind, realizing that life gets harder as you get older and there are more difficulties and regrets one deals with as they mature. He comes to terms with the darker aspect of his own personality, which he admits himself.
My favorite track is ‘Bixby Canyon Bridge’. The song is written to Kerouac, describing Gibbard’s experience and hopes by going to Big Sur and being inspired by his idol, but eventually realizing that nothing changed in him, as he believes was probably the case with Jack.
Another point of the album worth mentioning is the album cover. Another one of my dream jobs would be to design album covers. My favorite ones have always been New Order covers designed by Peter Saville. In fact, I’ve always really liked the art work done for Factory Records (the Manchester based record label that started Joy Division, New Order, Durutti Column, Happy Mondays, etc). I have this great coffee table book I recommend picking up, Factory Records: The Complete Graphic Album, which has every piece of art ever created for the label from it’s birth to it’s demise, including album covers, fliers, invitations and more. The cover for Narrow Stairs was designed by EE Storey. It reminds me of the clothes that the women wear in the paintings of Gustav Klimt.
Death Cab For Cutie - Bixby Canyon Bridge
Death Cab For Cutie - No Sunlight
Tags: Album Cover, Ben Gibbard, Big Sur, Durutti Column, EE Storey, Factory Records, Graphic Album, Gustav Klimt, Happy Mondays, Jack Kerouac, Joy Division, New Order, On The Road, Peter Saville
