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A lot of new stuff, a live show and a hardcore obscurity
This list consists mainly of albums that are about to be released or have recently been released, along with a new single, a live show and an older reissue I’m into at the moment.
This is the one of the best garage punk albums I’ve heard in a long time. Jay has played with THE REATARDS, LOST SOUNDS and currently TERROR VISIONS, this is Jay’s first full-length solo record. He plays all the instruments and it’s a 16 song, 28-minute adrenaline rush all way throughout this fine disc. His MySpace page lists his influences as THE RAMONES, THE ADVERTS, URINALS, WIPERS, WIRE and BRIAN ENO. That’s pretty accurate as he even does a faithful, but totally revved up cover of The Adverts’ “We Who Wait” that bests the great original! This came out in late 2006 but will probably my record of the year. I love it.
This is much better than his first proper studio album When I Said I Wanted to Be Your Dog. In fact, it may equal or even surpass his brilliant EPs collection Oh You’re So Silent Jens (one of my favorite albums of 2005). In particular, the first five songs on this record are absolutely astonishing. The obvious single is “The Opposite of Hallelujah” and it’s a stunner, but also check out the SCOTT WALKER-esque opener “And I Remember Every Kiss” as well as “A Postcard to Nina”, which I saw Jens perform last year at Bowery Ballroom. The most notable difference between this collection and his previous records is that it’s nowhere near as melancholy-sounding and much more upbeat generally, though many of the lyrics are still bittersweet in that way that only Jens can deliver.
On the first few listens, this is another fine indie-pop album, though not quite the revelation Descended Like Vultures (which in my opinion far surpassed their debut Out of the Shadow) was. This one definitely isn’t as immediate but perhaps it’ll grow on me.
It’s nice to see a newer band from the UK bucking the trend of disappointing sophomore album. While not quite as great as Thunder, Lightning, Strike, this is nevertheless a fine follow-up that’s sure to be played at lots of parties and clubs for the remainder of the summer and well into the fall as well.
I trashed this record in a previous Top 10 list. However, after revisiting this record following their excellent performance a few months ago at Sasquatch, I’m happy to report that while it’s not a great album, I still like it much more than I did on the first few listens.
Singer HR is the weak link here, but at least he’s there, the production is appropriately raw and the music alternates between their early ‘80s hardcore punk and late ‘80s punk/hard rock/reggae hybrid sounds as well as straight-up reggae. While not a great album, it’s a good, listenable album (perhaps their best since I Against I) and at this stage of their career it’s much more than I expected from them.
Another young U.K. artist who has bucked the trend of sophomore slump is M.I.A. In fact, I think this is a better record than Arular, her debut. In particular, the single “Bird Flu” is astonishing and one of the best songs I’ve heard all year. It’s like something ADAM ANT (or perhaps BOW WOW WOW) would’ve come up with 1980 had he been transported to the modern era and produced by TIMBALAND (who handles production work on one track here, though not that one). Also of note is “Jimmy”, a cover of an old Bollywood hit from the 1982 movie Disco Dancer, and “20 Dollar”, which quotes THE PIXIES’ classic “Where is My Mind” (also immortalized in the movie Fight Club).
Although I haven’t been as crazy about Rufus’ last few albums as I was about Want One and although his show was at times a bit on the boring side, overall I still enjoyed the set, especially when he dipped into Want One chestnuts like “14th Street” (the main set closer), “I Don’t Know What It Is” (a highlight of the first encore) and “Harvester of Hearts”. Furthermore, there was a stunning version of LEONARD COHEN’s “Hallelujah” (which was performed with his sister).
Neko Case’s opening set was simply gorgeous and stunning, much like her set at Sasquatch a few months back. And much like the last time I saw her, the highlight once again was “I Wish I Was the Moon” from her 2002 masterpiece Blacklisted.
The A-side of Jay’s new 7” is a typically fine track, but the real winner here is the B-side “Don’t Let Him Come Back”. It’s a cover of an early GO-BETWEENS song (the B-side of their second single “People Say”, it was later released on ‘78-’79: The Lost Album). You can hear it at his MySpace page (link in entry #1) to hear this as well as other tracks, including a bunch of great 2005 demos of songs that ended up on Blood Visions.
For many years, the only Kingface song I ever heard was “Dirty Wings” because of its inclusion on the great State of the Union compilation that Dischord released in 1989. Their records (just a few 12” EPs, only one of which was released in their short lifespan) were (and still are) as rare as hen’s teeth (I only knew one person who had one back in the day), but luckily this discography CD came out in the mid ‘90s. Somehow I missed it and it went out of print. Enter the internet and for the past month or so I’ve been rocking it. It turns out that “Dirty Wings” wasn’t a fluke and that their reputation was well-earned. More hard-rock oriented than their DC peers at the time (including SOULSIDE, whose vocalist BOBBY SULLIVAN is the brother of MARK SULLIVAN, the vocalist for Kingface) , they nonetheless played amazing emo-core that incorporated the influence of VAN HALEN and the like without too much wankery, showmanship and flash (unlike so many of their hardcore peers when they attempted to branch out). It’s a shame that this stuff is out-of-print and so hard to find now, but I feel fortunate finding it, even in digital form.
Yes I know that Ronson is Mr. Big Stuff in the UK right now, being the primary producer and co-writer on AMY WINEHOUSE’s fantastic smash album Back to Black, not to mention the fact that this album debuted at #2 on the charts there and has produced a massive hit in his version of THE SMITHS classic “Stop Me If You Think that You’ve Never Heard This One Before” (retitled “Stop Me”) sung by DANIEL MERRIWEATHER.
You know what, though? This is a great record. You want more highlights? How about LILY ALLEN covering the KAISER CHIEFS’ “Oh My God”? Or what about Winehouse covering THE ZUTONS’ “Valerie”? Perhaps you’d like a version of RADIOHEAD’s “Just” by PHANTOM PLANET? Or maybe a version of THE JAM’s “Pretty Green” as sung by someone named SANTO GOLD (yeah I didn’t know who he was, either)? It all sounds a lot better than how I’m describing it, but trust me, this record is infectious.
I don’t know if it’ll hold up in ten or even five years, but for now it sounds great. This is what chart-spanning pop music should and could be.
