Alright, legion of Spoon fans – here you go, another tasty treat from one of indie-rocks most beloved. You can pick it up instore, or for instant gratification, snag the digital download here!
Dinosaur then....
There is no timid opening note to Dino J’s new album, Farm. With the first strum and beat comes power and energy that some may not expect from the 9th studio album of a band that has been around for 24 years, mind you missing the bassist for 18 of them. At their last show at the Higher Ground a friend made the comment: “They are the fastest aging band…” (See picture example). This is true judging by their looks, but they’re only getting tighter. Though the members of Dinosaur play slack-rock, they are one of the hardest working bands I can think of, which has earned them a longevity that most bands these days just do not have.
The songs are epic, questioning and challenging. They don’t slow down, they all rock hard. The emotion is consistent from all three members. Of course, J’s singing and shredding go back in fourth dominating parts of the song, but they both sound just as good as they did 20 years ago- so turn it up loud! They surprisingly ended the album with a Lou song. His writing style is usually a lot more experimental and angry than gentle J’s, but this one seems to be the most in tune with the classic Dinosaur sound so far. I like it as the ending, the lyrics are positive and end the album on a high note: “We want to leave behind/ what can’t be held”. At this rate, Dinosaur is going to be around for a good long time.
Dinosaur Jr. now....
The following albums are all classics that belong in any serious music fan’s collection. Another thing they have in common is that only the most hopeful among us expected them to be as good as they are. Join us, as we consider five albums no one expected to be good that came out great.
Bob Dylan – Time Out of Mind Prior to the release of this album, Bob Dylan may have been popular, but he hadn’t been relevant in nearly two decades. His catalog throughout the 80’s and 90’s is a laundry list of underwhelming mediocrity, championed by only his most die-hard fans. With the release of Time Out of Mind, Dylan re-established himself as a first-rate song-writer and lyricist. Not only did it measure up to the best of his other works, it was one of the best albums of the decade. Dylan, whose voice had degraded to frog-throated rasps, had never sounded so vital.
New Order – Power, Corruption & Lies Movement, the first release by New Order, did little to dissuade people who were skeptical that Bernard Sumner, Peter Hook and Stephen Morris would be able to escape the shadow of their former group, Joy Division. The demise of Ian Curtis seemed to herald the death of his former bandmate’s music careers. Indeed, Movement, despite its exceptional moments, sounds like an attempt to rehash the Joy Division sound. With Power, Corruption & Lies, New Order were truly born. All the hallmarks of their sound are fully in place, and the album included perhaps their most enduring song, Blue Monday. To many, it represents the band at their peak.
George Harrison – All Things Must Pass After the Beatles break-up was made public in tandem with the announcement of Paul McCartney’s first solo album, all eyes were on Paul and John. How would the members of the greatest song-writing partnership in history fare on their own? While that’s fascinating topic its own right, the biggest surprise in the Beatles solo output is Harrison’s All Things Must Pass. Arguably the best of all Beatle solo records, ATMP is a double LP without an ounce of fat. Harrison delivered the best songs of his career in a single serving, a considerable accomplishment from a man who held his own in the company of the Lennon/McCartney colossus.
Portishead – Third Eleven years after their previous studio album and a decade after the genre of music they’d helped to define had become a memory, the idea of a new Portishead album was perplexing to say the least. Sure, it could have been a pleasant throw-back to days gone by, or a regrettable taint on a brief yet immaculate career, but Portishead defied expectation and delivered an instant classic. Without shedding the aesthetic that defined their sound, the band incorporated a variety of new influences and techniques to create a stunning, broad and cohesive piece of music that reminded us Portishead are, as they say, the shit.
Hank Williams III – Lovesick, Broke and Driftin’ Hank III’s first solo album, Risin’ Outlaw, was a huge disappointment to fans of the William’s Dynasty. Overproduced and undistinguished, it seemed as if the grandson of the legendary Hank Williams was capable of little more than exploiting his family name. With Lovesick, Broke and Driftin’, he made amends. True to the spirit of his grandfather, Hank III broke new ground and defined modern outlaw country music. Not only did he do right by his grandaddy, he cast a shadow over his father, Hank Williams Jr, whose music seems rather safe by comparison.
God Help the Girl – Stewart Murdoch (of Belle & Sebastian)
Belle and Sebastian’s Stuart Murdoch has always been attracted to the understated, to music that slowly draws listeners in rather than reaches out to grab them. This is never more apparent than on his forthcoming God Help the Girl project, which he started by posted advertisements asking for girl singers and hopes to eventually finish with a full musical film under his arm. For now, he’s still working on the screenplay to the film, but he’s completed quite a bit of music that he’s rolling out, with the help of members of Belle and Sebastian, Divine Comedy’s Neil Hannon, Smoosh’s Asya, and a quintet of singers that includes contest-winners Dina Bankole, Brittany Stallings, and Catherine Ireton - Read Full Interview
Dinosaur Jr – Farm
Beyond, the first album to feature the original Dinosaur Jr. lineup since their 1980s heyday, was so surprisingly good it was tempting to call it a fluke. Tempting, but wrong– two years after its release, it still sounds great, on par with the early, hallowed triumvirate of Dinosaur, You’re Living All Over Me, and Bug. For any cynics still chalking Beyond up to luck, Farm should blast the scales from your jaded eyes. Energetic, confident, and catchy, it’s even more compelling than Beyond. Read Full Article
Sunset Rubdown – Dragon Slayer
to talk about Sunset Rubdown and only talk about Krug would be an injustice – a fact that has never been more evident than on Sunset Rubdown’s fourth full-length release, Dragonslayer. Sure, Krug’s influence (and voice) can be heard everywhere on the album. But compare this album to Krug’s first solo release under the Sunset Rubdown moniker, 2005’s Snake’s Got a Leg, and you will find yourself doing math with apples and oranges. The band has developed, blossomed, gained some flesh, and distinguished itself enough from Krug’s solo work that the fact that I’ve gone this far into my review of Dragonslayer only talking about him makes me a bit embarrassed. So onto the rest. Read Full Article
Deer Tick – Born on Flag Day
The title of Deer Tick’s sophomore effort, Born On Flag Day, can be interpreted as either a loving hat-tip to Americana quirks or as an eye-rolling Big Buck Hunter-style ironic embrace of homeland lovin’. And here’s where you should say, “But no country is authentic!” (or “Who cares if Brian Williams adores Deer Tick, what matters is McCauley’s songwriting!”) But honestly, at this point, country rock is the most unobjectionable music one can make. Float a slide guitar over a crunchy rhythm guitar, brush those cymbals, rasp some beery wisdom (“It couldn’t be much fun bein’ a millionaire to one / Cuz a million’s just a million of one thing”), and if the chord progression works, the song will probably speak to the heart of at least one person who hears it after precisely the right number of drinks. Read Full Article
Tortoise – Beacons of Ancestorship
Tortoise’s output since 2001 has included just one proper album, 2004’s water-treading It’s All Around You, and a collaboration with Bonnie “Prince” Billy. Despite being as distinctively Tortoise as their ancestors, these efforts were spotty at best. Both the 2004 album and the collaboration saw Tortoise’s once-thrilling compositional style lapse into self-parody. On It’s All Around You, all of the eclectic pieces—the jazzy fills, the dub breaks, the tempo shifts—came in exactly where you’d expect them to. In some ways, the band was shoehorned by its own good taste. In search of a sound that betrayed neither its influences nor the band’s emotions, Tortoise ended up with songs that were also incapable of surprising listeners. Thankfully, Beacons makes it clear that Chicago’s avant-vets still have some spark left. Nearly all of the tracks shake up the band’s formula, and that special feeling that comes from hearing a team of talented players fuse their restless visions permeates the record. Read Full Article
Guided By Voices – Under the Buses Under the Stars
Originally released in 1996, Under The Bushes Under the Stars was the ninth release by GBV but at that point people had only been paying attention since Propellor (three albums earlier). In between those two, the band released what many considered to be their best albums, Bee Thousand and Alien Lanes. UTBUTS is a more sonically ambitious affair than its predecessors, but that’s not saying much considering they’d allegedly spent $600 recording the last one.
This is a truly fantastic album. Frontman Rob Pollard’s ambition is apparent. The album is overflowing with eccentric, brisk Beatle-esque anthems. Pollard’s songwriting is as unconventional and unpredicateble as ever, but the album has a previously absent cohesion due mostly to a consitency in production previous albums lacked.
Under the Bushes Under the Stars would be the last album featuring the band’s “classic” line-up. Pollard hired a new group in the hopes of realizing whatever he thought the band’s unrealized potential was. They would eventually sign to a major label, release a pair of washed-out, over-produced albums and return to the indies in the hopes of regaining their former lo-fi glory.
For all intents and purposes, Under the Bushes is a Swan Song, and a beautiful one at that. I’ve listent to it hundreds of times and will listen to it again hundreds of more times. Don’t hesitate to check it out.
Before I delve into the intricacies of this album, I should note that it was, “recorded over the course of a year in four different sessions with four different lineups” (as stated on the back of the promo). This rag-tag pack of artists is lead by Tim Kinsella, the only remaining original member. Some of you may remember Tim from the slew of other Midwestern indie projects he was involved with such as Cap’n Jazz and Owls.
The amount of albums that Tim has released over his musical career is almost astounding. Flowers is the tenth release from Joan of Arc, and it seems to be a bit of a celebration and amalgamation of every release this Kinsella brother has ever put out.
The album kicks off with an uncharacteriscally catchy song relying on electronic synthsizers. Only once you’re safely enveloped in Tim’s enchanted garden, where you have forgotten the weirdosity of Joan of Arc releases past, does he start to screw with you. In comes a volley of loosely orchestrated instruments from the rest of the band. Somewhere in the middle there’s a chain of soundclips of famous countdown intros that goes into an upbeat number that sounds like it was written by a hitchhiking, classically trained cowboy that grew up in Omaha. At one point, I’m pretty sure I heard the twang of rubberbands being plucked. The clean melodic guitar is just enough to chart a path through the playful confusion of the rest of the tracks. Listening to this album is kind of like seeing Tim’s life flash before your eyes, only you aren’t him, so some of it doesn’t make sense, but you’re voyeuristic so you enjoy the ride anyway.
-Amelia Devoid
My name’s Marcia and I’m the new full-time employee here at Pure Pop. I’ve only been here for three days and already I think this is the coolest job I’ve ever had. Can’t believe my luck! I love music and I’m looking forward to learning a lot and expanding my interests. My favorite album will probably always be Neutral Milk Hotel’s “In The Aeroplane Over The Sea.” I love everything from the E6 Collective intensely, especially Music Tapes, The Gerbils, and Nesey Gallons. I’m also a big fan of the Canadian band Rock Plaza Central and their album titled “Are We Not Horses.” Come say hi to me if you see me in the store. I’m a nice person.
Every once in a while a two dudes at a bar, bored, a little drunk, with a pencil, the back of a recipe, and more than a little raw artistic talent, create something that sees through the veneer of a man, into the very depth of his soul.
This, was not one of those times.
Ah, 1981. Ronald Reagan was president, Raiders of the Lost Ark was the top grossing film and MTV launched. It was also the year Tanner McCuin and his brother from another mother Herb van der Poll were born. In honor of that wonderful year and the fact we can’t think of anything else to write about, Tanner and Herb have decided to discuss the top 5 singles globally of 1981.
1. “Bette Davis Eyes” by Kim Carnes
Tanner McCuin -- Who the fuck is Kim Carnes? We’re gonna have to go to Youtube for this one.
Herb van der Poll - According to Wikipedia, it was sampled by Akon on “Angel Eyes”, and is featured in the movie Duets, where it’s performed by Gwyneth Paltrow.
***The guys listen to the song***
Tanner -- I kind of like it.
Herb -- Ugh. That sounds like a friend’s demo. A bad one.
Tanner -- There’s a Kathleen Turner thing going on. Makes me want to watch Romancing the Stone.
Herb -- I like the keyboard tone, but my mind is blown that this was any kind of success. Can we stop now?
Tanner -- She sounds like a female Rod Stewart.
Herb -- She sounds like a male Rod Stewart.
2. Soft Cell -- “Tainted Love”
***Long pause. Both sip coffee while loading video on l’internet***
Herb -- I prefer the original version.
Tanner - I like the addition of the shuffely beat. Also, that the guy in the video is a Virgo like me. Therefor, I give it two thumbs up.
Herb -- Do you remember towards the end of the Coneheads movie when Dan Akyroyd is singing this song?
Tanner -- I do not.
Herb -- What’s the Conehead patriarch’s name? Algar?
Tanner -- Nah, dog. That’s Garth’s last name in Wayne’s World.
Herb -- (looks it up) Beldar. Anyway, Beldar’s singing of the song is meant to convey how much he’s embraced our culture. I believe the film is saying to know Soft Cell is to know what it means to be human.
Tanner -- Yeah. That’s probably it.
3. Phil Collins -- “In The Air Tonight”
Herb -- Finally. An unequivocally great song. I happen to know that he showed this track to the guys in Genesis and they didn’t want to do it.
Tanner -- All I can think of when I listen to this song is David Copperfield. (shrugs)
Herb -- I suppose it does have a Dickensian quality. The sense of helplessness in random yet inevitably occuring tragedy.
Tanner - You have a Dick-headsian quality. I was talking about the magician.
Herb -- Erm…. How about that drum sound?
Tanner -- There are a lot of hilarious urban legends surrounding this song.
Herb -- …and they’re all true. Like how Phil Collins is singing about withnessing a murder, and then the murderer heard it at a Phil Collins show and was so riddled with guilt he killed himelf.
Tanner -- That was the first time he’d heard the song?
Herb -- Totally. The dude went because he loved Sussudio.
4. John Lennon “Woman”
Herb -- This was the first single issued after Lennon’s death. It’s crap. The only reason it was a success was because people were mourning.
Tanner -- Mention that you looked that up on wikipedia.
Herb -- Do I have to every time?
Tanner -- Yes. Anyway, you can tell why this isn’t one of his more revered songs.
Herb -- This compounds the tragedy of Lennon’s assassination. Seriously.
Tanner -- Was it technically an assassination?
Herb - Sure.
Tanner (looks up assassination) “The targeted murder of a high profile person.”
Herb - There you go.
Tanner -- It is really sweet how devoted he was to his wife.
Herb (rolls eyes)
5. Stars on 45 -- “Stars on 45″
Herb - Another one I have never heard of. This job takes me to really interesting places. Youtube it!
***Youtubed it***
Tanner -- Gosh.
Herb -- It’s sort of like the Girl Talk of the 80’s.
Tanner -- We’ve just discovered the proto-mashup.
Herb -- Hmmm…. A Dutch act doing novelty medleys of pop songs with a disco beat. I’m in heaven.
***Long Pause***
Herb -- Uhm. Let’s watch it again.
Tanner -- No one said this job was easy.
***Watched it again***
Herb - It’s a really interesting kind of awful. It’s out of place with what we conventionally think of the late 70’s or early 80’s being like aesthetically.
Mike Crandall - (Chimes in) The thing about Stars on 45 is there’s not really any artistic value to it whatsoever.
Tanner -- Concurred. Like modern mash-ups, they’re just throwing everyone’s favorite songs together with a beat so people can shake their ass and make out.
Herb - What are you trying to say?
Tanner - I’ve got some sugar-free cranberry juice and vodka in the fridge. How many Stars on 45 videos are on youtube?
Herb -- Dozens.
