Once again we’ve got some dandy giveaways to give away…
Grab a copy of Dawes “Nothing is Wrong”
and you’ll get a free copy of their “Suitcase EP”
With Arctic Monkeys “Suck It and See” CD $11.99 LP $ 18.97
you’ll get a nifty, numbered, letterpress poster
With Depeche Mode “Remixes 2: ’81-’11″ 3-CD $29.96
you shall receive an indie store exclusive 12″ vinyl
And with Bob Marley’s “Live Forever” CD $16.99 (his LAST recorded concert in 1980)
score a three pack of Marley pins
and a free puppy!!! tonight only!
(child and ice cream not included) …but we’ve got oodles of the other stuff come and see!!
It’s been known since, well, at least the start of the postmodern era that cultural trends tend to repeat themselves and come in circles. One thing that I don’t think is often explored though is the size of those circles (in terms of length of time between trend and re-trend) and the reasons why. My very non-scientific calculation: about 25 years. Why, you may ask? Well, for several reasons. Here are a couple.
1) Popular culture is defined by 15-25 year olds.
It’s well known that the 15-25 year old demographic is huge when it comes to consumption of creative culture. They’re also key to defining it as well, as youth is marketed to young and the young-at-heart alike. There has always been this strange desire by people in this age range to embrace the popular culture that existed right before they were born. The 25th anniversary of Woodstock had kids in my high school wearing bell bottoms and tie-dyes and listening to Jimi Hendrix back in ’94, just like the high school kids of today are wearing neon pink leg-warmers, boxy, oversized sunglasses and listening to Depeche Mode ripoff groups.
2) The groups that established the initial trends as 15-19 year olds have become nostalgic.
As a 30-something myself working the corporate grind, I understand the power of nostalgia more and more these days. While I’ve tried to keep myself relatively hip and current, I still realized that my days of free youthful rebellion are beyond me and that it’s kids half my age who will be defining the culture. The 25 year trend circle works well in that old fogeys like myself can say, in a condescending and patronizing tone, “oh you kids think you’re so original; we were dressing like that 25 years ago”. And beyond the simple snark, it’s also a way for the older generation to feel their youthful cultural contributions appreciated and re-evaluated.
I think a good example of this phenomenon is the film Dazed and Confused. Released in 1993, it captured the styles, sounds and imagery of the spring of 1976. This film was a hit for not only the demographic that lived through that era, but also high school kids twenty years later, who found themselves both intrigued by the era’s difference, as well as the similarities, to their own. I can remembered more than a few kids in my high school who looked a heck of a lot like clones of Randall “Pink” Floyd, Slater or Jodi. There may have even been a Wooderson or two riding around the parking lot…
"Fixin' to be a lot better, man!"
From a musical perspective the film was a hit too, with two soundtracks that were both huge sellers, introducing a whole new audience to songs like Aerosmith’s “Sweet Emotion”, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Tuesday’s Gone” and War’s “Low Rider”. These CD’s were probably the most frequently played albums at parties during the ’94-’95 school year, more so than albums of many of the new groups that were popular at the time.
Which brings me to the present day: we’re obviously on the tail end of the 80’s revival (much to the dismay of American Apparel, I’m sure), so what comes next? Early 90’s hip hop and R&B revisitations? Possibly; I think we’re starting to see that already. A return to early twee pop? Maybe, if this video is any indication of where the trends are heading. My personal theory—a revised version of grunge. Guitar based music hasn’t been hip for about a decade now (everyone’s “axe” these days seems to be a Casio keytar or MiniMoog), and I think that with the recent angst brought on by the economic downturn, a return to angsty lyrics, pounding drums and fuzz guitars might be in order right about now.
In that spirit, here is a rarity—footage of the first ever “music video” shot of the band Nirvana. It reminds me of local basement noise shows that I’ve been to around here, and is a nice reminder of the classic phrase, “plus ca change, plus c’est la même chose”. Enjoy!
We’ve all seen those annoying “Before They Were Famous” bits on tv and in print. Well, here at the Pure Pop Blog we’re not above indulging in cliches. The truth is a lot of you have probably seen this stuff before. However, those that haven’t need to. We must never forget that these beloved artists are fallible.
Phil Collins – Flaming Youth
Claim to Fame - Phil Collins is currently shorthand for soulless mainstream garbage but he used to be pretty cool. He’s a first rate drummer who’s elevated many classic albums with his contributions and he revolutionized the way we feel about things coming in the air at night. His first high-profile gig was drumming for Genesis, a band he would go on to lead into the upper stratosphere of musical success.
Before All That - Collins was the drummer for Flaming Youth, a pastoral rock quartet who to be fair weren’t all that bad. They never really went anywhere, prompting the young and eager musician to pursue other projects. How much does this video remind you of Spinal Tap playing “Gimme Some Money?”
Read the rest of this entry »
This past weekend fellow Pure Popper Amelia and I went to UVM to check out Of Montreal. As usual, they played their songs well, offering a bizarre and entertaining visual component, complete with psychedelic animations and costumed dancers. I really enjoyed a moment towards the end of the show when one of the dancers, dressed as Death, set up a chess board and proceeded to play with Kevin Barnes as he sang.
Unfortunately, the performance was at a gym. Every two years or so, I go to a gym concert just to remind myself to avoid them. Everything ends up sounding blown-out and muddy. Even with a great band like Of Montreal, I just don’t think shows in that kind of setting are worth it. I’m frankly baffled it’s standard practice to host music at gymnasiums. It’s analogous to playing baseball in an opera house.
The crowd seemed to really enjoy the show. They danced in that inept-but-charming New England college student way. (No offense to New England college students. You could all “serve” me.) As anything that takes place outside the confines of my bedroom usually does, the show made me feel old and out-of-touch. What is the relationship undergrads have with Of Montreal? Did their older siblings show them Satanic Panic in the Attic when they were in middle school? Do they love the Outback version of “Wraith Pinned to the Mist and Other Games“?
Over the course of the show, I observed someone wearing a tie-dyed Depeche Mode shirt, which is ridiculous. There were two gentlemen dressed identically down to their shoes, the most interesting thing about that being how innocuously bland they were dressed, like bankers on casual Friday. Someone threw an apple with one bite taken out of it by our feet. A girl wearing just a bit too little circled our area like a satellite, dancing for a few minutes as she looked around, seemingly yearning for someone to notice. (I did, sweetie.)
I look forward to seeing them again at a proper venue that will do them justice.
When a band has been around for nearly three decades, as Depeche Mode have, they are treading a slippery slope. In addition to the near impossibility of matching the vitality of their youth, older bands have to work within their genres at the risk of sounding anachronistic. For guys like Dylan, this isn’t much of a problem. His genre is timeless. Depeche Mode, however, have been in danger of sounding dated since 1990. Fortunately, their most recent album incorporates modern elements into the classic Depeche Mode sound. The result sounds like Depeche Mode while being unmistakably contemporary.
Sounds of the Universe may be a little grandiose for the title of a Depeche Mode album. “Sounds of 1980′s Alienated White Middle Class Youth” might be more apropos, but that wouldn’t read so well on the press release. For most of their career, Depeche Mode’s lyrics have straddled the bleak and sinister. On Sounds of the Universe, the trio sounds much more positive and affirmative. They haven’t done a thematic 180, but on songs like “Peace” it seems like the torment the band has been exorcising through there music for the last 25 years has subsided a bit. I dare say they sound content.
Sounds of the Universe probably won’t make a lot of “best-of 2009″ lists, but it’s a testament to the skill and talent of these elder-statesmen of morbid synth-pop. The songs, as always, are immaculately constructed, the production is excellent and the lyrics, while occasionally eye-rollingly overwrought or simplistic, are exactly what you’d hope for from these guys.
So here’s the final list. We tried to go with titles that we’re both amongst the best releases of the year and reflective of the discriminating Pure Pop clientele. Remember, next year the voting will be open to the public, and all Picks are currently on sale in the store!
1980. The Clash - London Calling While it came out in the UK in December of ’79, London Calling was released here the following year. A milestone album whose reputation only grows as the years go by, it’s a perfect album to kick off this list.
1981. Black Flag - Damaged Many albums from SST Records incomparable catalog were considered for this list (Husker Du’s Zen Arcade, Dinosaur Jr’s You’re Living All Over Me), but we ultimately had to go with this release from Black Flag. It’s a searing album whose principled tone would inspire legions of bands and individuals.
1982. Richard & Linda Thompson - Shoot Out the Lights Released at a time when the critically-adored Thompson’s were struggling to sell albums and find record deals, Shoot Out the lights would serve as both a commercial peak and a swan song for the pair. The couple’s tumultuous relationship finally caved, leaving a wake of brilliant albums.
1983. U2 – War It’s hard to remember the band U2 were 25 years ago given their current output, but they were great. War embodies all the qualities the Irish quartet used to earn their legendary status and emerge as one of the biggest bands of the world.
1984. Talking Heads - Stop Making Sense This is the only live album on this list. 1984 was a rich year for fantastic albums. We had to pick this one over the stiff competition because of its enduring popularity amongst our staff and customers and the fact that it’s uniquely amazing.
1985. The Pogues - Rum, Sodomy & the Lash This album is as great as Shane MacGowan’s teeth are revolting. Blending the immediacy and intensity of punk with traditional Celtic music, the Pogues made a number of great albums, creating a niche that would evolve into a genre.
1986. The Smiths - The Queen is Dead What do you get when you combine a musical visionary, a charismatic vocalist with a razor-sharp wit and insatiable addiction to morbid introspection and one of the greatest rhythm sections of all time?
1987. Guns N Roses - Appetite for Destruction Axel Rose is a big dick with delusions of grandeur, but it’s okay. Appetite for Destruction is the rock album of the 80′s. It’s a decadent, nihilistic and excessive tour de force. Lightning in a bottle.
1988. Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation In stark contrast to this list’s previous entry, 1988 gives us Sonic Youth’s Daydream Nation. A stunning collection of songs with incredibly inventive guitar arrangements. Anyone with any ambition to experiment with melody and distortion would do well to study this album carefully.
1989. Beastie Boys – Paul’s Boutique After establishing themselves as a tongue-in-cheek party band with Licence to Ill, the Beastie Boys reinvented themselves on their follow-up. Paul’s Boutique brought hip-hop production forward and established the Beastie Boys as one of the great groups of their generation.
1990. Depeche Mode – Violator A band so emotionally overwrought they make The Smiths sound like AC/DC shouldn’t be anywhere on this list, but Depeche Mode’s greatness can’t be denied. (Well, it can, but we won’t listen.) Nine tracks of warm analog synth greatness.
1991. Nirvana – Nevermind All of the albums featured here have had an impact, but there is something unique about popular culture’s love affair with Nirvana in the early 90′s. The trio became the centerpiece of the “grunge” movement but their musical legacy transcends genre associations.
1992. Pavement - Slanted & Enchanted Whereas Nirvana had an immediate, broad impact on popular culture, Pavement’s influence would be gradual, helping to shape the aesthetic of the emerging “indie rock” genre. Today as then, listening to this album is an absolute revelation.
1993. Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream The Pumpkins were a quartet, but this album was essentially performed by Billy Corgan save for drum support from virtuoso Jimmy Chamberlain. Produced by Butch Vig and engineered by the legendary Alan Moulder, this album is the sonic equivalent of honey & melted butter on toast.
1994. Portishead – Dummy Members of Portishead may scoff at the concept of trip-hop, but the genre had a lot of fans in the mid 90′s. This is due in no small part to the band’s debut masterwork. Immaculately crafted and produced, it’s hard to believe a mere three musicians put this together.
1995. Bjork - Post Oh Bjork Guðmundsdóttir. your world-class vocals and aggressively avant-garde sensibilities. Any one of your first three albums could have been on this list. Post currently sells at Pure Pop for just under $7. There is no excuse not to own this one.
1996. DJ Shadow – Entroducing The only instrumental album on this list. With Entroducing, DJ Shadow showed us something we’d never heard before. Often imitated, never matched, Entroudcing hits most of the touchstones of the emotional palate over its all too brief 64 minutes.
1997. Radiohead - OK Computer Radiohead is one of the world’s most commercially successful and critically popular bands. OK Computer blew us all away when it came out, and it still does. Bold, broad and buoying, this album was an absolute shoe-in.
1998. Neutral Milk Hotel - In the Aeroplane Over the Sea ITAOTS didn’t make huge waves upon it’s initial release. In the decade since, it’s visibility has grown and its influence has become apparent. Warm, eccentric arrangements, superb deliveries of surreal lyrics. Unconventional, evocative, and highly moving.
1999. Beck - Midnite Vultures Mellow Gold and Odelay were the critical darlings, but Midnite Vultures was the party album of its time. Sounding like a coked-up Prince produced by James Brown, Midnite Vultures offers nonsensical anthem after nonsensical anthem before concluding with the falsetto masterpiece, “Debra”.
2000. Outkast - Stankonia Describing the pairing of Andre 3000 and Big Boi as formidable would be an understatement. After improving leaps and bounds with each of their first three albums, they found more room for growth with this dirty south opus.
2001. Daft Punk - Discovery An album with such longevity it would be nominated for a grammy in 2008, seven years after its release. Assembled from a vast array of samples, ingeniously rearranged and supplemented, Discovery brought the French House movement into the 21st century and further into the global spotlight.
2002. Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot Amid inner turmoil and trouble with their label, Wilco recorded Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, considered by many to be their finest album as well as one of the best albums. The documentary I am Trying to Break Your Heart offers a fascinating portrait of the circumstances of this album’s creation.
2003. My Morning Jacket It Still Moves The major-label debut from this Kentucky outfit propelled them to well-deserved greater heights. My Morning Jacket blend seemingly disparate influences, country and psychedelic for example, and create a unique and compelling style that still moves (har-har) people to this day.
2004. Arcade Fire Funeral The face of indie rock has changed since the 90′s. It is no longer a fringe genre but a mainstream phenomenon as represented by album’s like this superb release from Canada’s Arcade Fire. Fans of rich arrangements and charged emotion shant be disappointed.
2005. Gorillaz – Demon Days Fronted by Damon Alburn, who was making contenders for this list in the 90′s with his band Blur, Gorrillaz are a uniquely great band. Ostensibly made-up of cartoon characters (created by comic legend Jamie Hewlett), Gorrilaz expose most bands who’d claim to blend hip-hop with modern rock to shame.
2006. TV on the Radio - Return to Cookie Mountain Hailing from Brooklyn, TV on the Radio all but monopolized critical acclaim in 2006 with Return to Cookie Mountain. It’s a testimony to this album’s appeal that Pure Pop was selling out of import copies in the weeks leading up to its release.
2007. Andrew Bird - Armchair Apocrypha Former Squirrel Nut Zipper Andrew Bird has been consistently great in his solo career as exemplified in this wonderful release. Baroque with a gritty edge, Armchair Apocrypha has a broader appeal than one might expect from something so eccentric.
2008. Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes Fleet Foxes took the world by storm in 2008 with this breezy, lush and listful album. The perfect compliment to everything from a cold winter drive to a warm summer afternoon, this is an album that measures up to anything on this list.
