(THIS POST ORIGINALLY APPEARS ON THE TWIN CITIES BLOG NEWEST INDUSTRY)
Electric Bond, Owen, Weekend, Harry Nilsson, & Sombear...
Well hello again, MP3 junkies! Welcome to a very special edition of Songs Of The Week!
This week's edition of Songs Of The Week is the 52nd edition, which means that this is the one year anniversary of the column! That's right, one whole year's worth of The Current's Song Of The Day tracks have now been downloaded, reviewed, and filed away!
To celebrate the occasion, Newest Industry is beyond excited to announce the return of Songs Of The Week co-founder MinneSarah! St. Paul's finest music blogger hasn't been able to join us since December of 2012, but she's back now to review songs and help break up the monotony of TCDroogsma's ramblings!
Of course, TCDroogsma is still here because he has a laptop, opinions, and copious amounts of free time. As per tradition, they have not read each other's reviews before publishing.
As always, we strongly suggest that you follow this link and subscribe to the podcast yourself. It's free and it's fun for the whole family!
To that end, once you've given each song a spin or two, please take a moment to vote for your favorite in the poll to the right side of the page. The winning artist receives the personal validation that comes with winning an anonymous internet poll, arguably the highest achievement to which a modern musician can aspire
So, Droogsy... MinneSarah... thoughts?
01. Elastic Bond - Find A Way (from the album Real)
TCDroogsma:
I was never much of a fan of the "New Soul" sound to begin with. I get bored as hell trying to listen to an Erykah Badu record straight through. Amy Winehouse held some appeal, but that was more cult of personality than anything. Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings do absolutely nothing for me. I guess Bitter:Sweet album was pretty OK.
My point being, it's almost a testament to all that's both wrong and right with Elastic Bond. They do such a good job of impersonating the "New Soul" sound on "Find A Way" that I can't really complain about the song itself as much as the genre it inhabits. This is great music if you're filming a vodka commercial in a studio made up to look like a 2013 speak-easy, but in a pair of headphones it just drifts on by.
MinneSarah:
Add some Latin style horns to the soul revival movement and you're part of the way to Elastic Bond's sound. While this song encompasses a mix of several genres, the opening has an easy sixties lounge feel. The lead singer has a strong, sultry voice which both mingles with the upbeat guitar and xylophone and then demands the spotlight during the chorus.
While I'm a tad tired of our generation's take on sixties soul, this band does a good job mixing up the elements to keep it interesting and also varies their sound more than most of the scene's rote offerings. However, that said, I still don't know that I'd remember it for the lyrics. This song oozes summer, so enjoy it while you can, there's no harm even if you do forget it by winter.
Final Score: TCDroogsma - 2/5
MinneSarah - 3/5
02. Owen - Bad Blood (from the album L'Ami de Peuple)
TCDroogsma:
Man, I must be getting old, because Owen is a testament that kids who grew up on that Desaparecidos record are now all grown up and starting their own bands. Saddle Creek! The gift that barely gave the first time and somehow keeps giving!
To be honest, I do like "Bad Blood" quite a bit. Rather than taking some great post-punk riffs and enveloping them in a wave of fuzz, Owen does a very interesting job of turning that genre into an exercise in minimalism. "Bad Blood" skips along to it's own beat, creating a strangely pretty soundscape. Rather than complaining about relationships or "the scene," Owen spends the song lamenting his own bloodlines before imploring the listener to, "wave your freak flag high." Makes me want to drive around town blasting "Uptown Girl."
MinneSarah:
In the early 2000's I went to a lot of shows in various basements in these Twin Cities from Midway through Midtown. The guitar in this song reminds me of standing too close to an amp, inhaling the musty smell of earth and sneakers, and feeling awestruck at the guts and talent displayed by my friends. The guitars are purposefully full and dissonant, a highly enjoyable combination. The nostalgia of the guitar carries this song for me, but the lyrics are downright depressing. I would have expected a song entitled "Bad Blood" to be more about bearing grudges than beating yourself down because of your family's history.
While the lyrics fit the mood of the song, it is still something I'd only be able to listen to in moderation. I wanted to give "Bad Blood" a 3, but nobody calls grandma dumb. I was trying to give Owen the benefit of the doubt, thinking she was mute while she put up with that, but as that's the most memorable line in the song it makes me upset. Perhaps that gesture is the best example of his case - Owen is just an asshole - no getting around it.
Final Score: TCDroogsma - 3.5/5
MinneSarah - 2.5/5
03. Weekend - It's Alright (from the album Jinx)
TCDroogsma:
Man, I must be getting old because Weekend is a testament that kids who grew up on How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb are now all grown up and starting bands. Wait, I used that line already? Fuck. I must be getting old.
Honestly, I'm kind of jealous of the guys in Weekend. I was in my late 20's before I realized that U2 didn't suck. These guys seem to have got the message much more quickly (though, in my defense, Bono wasn't in those iPod commercials when I was a kid).
Unlike those Irish icons, Weekend doesn't let themselves become encumbered by "we can all save the world" lyrical bullshit. Rather, they stick to the broadest possible brush strokes. I mean, the first verse is, "Sunrise/girl brings/blinding/sunlight..." It's a five word verse! And then it's on to some The-Edge-As-Senior-Thesis guitar work and an echoing "Wooooohhhh....."' Sometimes there's just no sense over-thinking things.
MinneSarah:
Bring back shoegaze! If you feel the same way, let's organize a fair at McNally Smith to recruit a new generation of young songwriters to carry the Jesus and Mary Chain torch through the 2010's. No takers? Then let's at least take our little siblings to a Weekend show and force them to stare at their shoes.
"Alright" is a driving yet airy song. It's absolutely hypnotic - if you were to plan a party and invite a group of interesting people wearing ripped jeans and striped t-shirts, then put this song on a loop, it would take everyone about 40 minutes to notice. But that's not a bad thing - why stop at 4 minutes when you could make a night of it?
Final Score: TCDroogsma - 3.5/5
MinneSarah - 4/5
04. Harry Nilsson - One (Alternate Take) (from the box set RCA Albums Collection)
TCDroogsma:
As a Beatles fan I've always been at least peripherally aware of Harry Nilsson. His John Lennon stories are the stuff of legend. Still, every time I tried to dig into his catalog I found myself bored to tears. In between checking their iPhones & smoking e-cigs, music critics will tell you (repeatedly) that you have to, "dig deep" into Nilsson's catalog to really appreciate his "genius."
Now, admittedly, I did not dig deep in preparation for this review, but I did read Sean Fennesey's highly-enjoyable column on Grantland regarding the late singer-songwriter. With my interest yet again piqued, I was oddly excited to see Nilsson pop up on this week's songs. Time to give this guy another shot.
Sadly, it took me about 8 seconds to realize the "One" that I was being treated to was merely a different (original?) version of the Three Dog Night song that stands as one of my least favorite songs of all-time. I've always, always, always hated that song. This version of "One" offers a bit of a reprieve from that mess, with a minimal arrangement, some bongos, and Nilsson's voice shining brightly. Still, unless Morrissey is covering this song Paul Westerberg on guitar, Alex James on bass, and Kanye dropping a guest verse I just can't bring myself to like it. Nilsson fanboys may leave their scathing comments below.
MinneSarah:
Who is Harry Nilsson? Well, if you are like me, you may have asked yourself that as you read the titles in your Netflix instant queue aloud. What I gathered while flipping through music documentaries was that his heyday was clearly the 70's - fonts don't lie. Little did I know that he was also friends with The Monkeys (among other more notable musicians, I guess) and also wrote the song, "One," ubiquitous in pop culture and a favorite vehicle for commercials that aim to make you feel bad you don't own more things.
You likely know this song from the Three Dog Night version, but Harry Nilsson, the shy songwriter, performs this version himself. The simplicity of this take allows Nilsson's vocals to shine and makes the Three Dog Night offering sound absolutely showboaty. It sounds melancholy without sounding desperate. Plus, you know all the words already - how many of these Songs of the Day have such a powerful familiarity?
Final Score: TCDroogsma - 2.5/5
MinneSarah - 3.5/5
05. Sombear - Incredibly Still (from the album Love You In The Dark)
TCDroogsma:
Longtime readers of the Songs Of The Week column (Hi Mom!) can probably imagine just how thrilled I was to be reviewing yet another Minnesota-based synth-pop act. If I have to review any more of these I'm going to wear out my hyphen key.
Much like the majority of the genre, Sombear's "Incredibly Still" is a mostly enjoyable mix of "deep" emotions, some keyboard plinking that drifts in and out of the mix in a circle, and a chorus that doubles-down on the vocals and goes for the knockout. Sombear does get bonus points for letting his turn-of-the-century-pop-punk flag shine, as it can't be a mistake that the "in between season" is the age 25 and, "you're still young, they all said, so get to it..." The only think missing was Davey von Bohlen singing "Crimson & Clover" afterward.
MinneSarah:
Excellent band name - it makes me think brooding teddy bear. So cute, yet so serious! Quite amazingly, the singer is able to condense a five syllable chorus (the song's title) into a four syllable delivery to keep with the beat! The keyboards weave the song together, and I enjoy their ethereal yet grounding quality. The drum beat is a little trip-hop, and the volume fades to create texture, especially when the singer shifts his vocals to drifting oohs and aahhs.
However, I'm going to have to step away from the above and confess that the vocals are a little too emo and made me want to switch the song off for the first four or five listens. Although I can't pinpoint it, this song veers a little too Postal Service for my tastes and it took me quite a few listens to comfortably get into the zone with this one. If your subconscious mind, like mine, jumps to unflattering comparisons - this song is a grower, but it can come out ahead.
Final Score: TCDroogsma - 2.5/5
MinneSarah - 3/5
Well there you have it, music fans! Another week's worth of songs downloaded, reviewed, and filed away!
As always, please keep in mind that neither Newest Industry nor our contributors are in any way affiliated with the artists above, The Current, or MPR. We're just music fans with laptops and a bit too much time on our hands.
For more TCDroogsma be sure to give him a follow on Twitter (@TCDroogsma). He can also be found right here on Newest Industry hosting our free weekly podcast Flatbasset Radio.
For more MinneSarah be sure to give her a follow on Twitter (@MinneSarah). She can also be found here on Newest Industry filing reports out of St. Paul in our Big Day Out column.
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