(THIS POST ORIGINALLY APPEARS ON THE TWIN CITIES BLOG NEWEST INDUSTRY)
Goldspot, The Dismemberment Plan, Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin, King Krule, & SCRNS...
Well hello again, MP3 junkies! Welcome to Songs Of The Week #63!
For those of you who are new to the SOTW column, here's the story: TCDroogsma and MinneSarah are both fans of The Current's Song Of The Day podcast. They're also both opinionated and have access to computers. Seeing an opportunity to let them indulge in their MP3 habit and put them to work writing reviews we created the Songs Of The Week column. Over a year later later and here we are.
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, feel free to cast a vote for your favorite song of the week in the poll to the right side of the page. The artist who accrues the most votes wins the validation that comes from winning an anonymous internet poll, arguably the loftiest height to which a modern musician can aspire.
As per tradition TCDroogsma and MinneSarah have not read each other's reviews prior to posting
So... Droogsy, Sarah... thoughts?
01. Goldspot - Abyss (from the album Aerogramme)
TCDroogsma:
As I was working on this review I found myself reading about Goldspot and it all sounded so awful. Their influenced by psychedielic rock & Indian pop music. Their big break was on Morning Becomes Eclectic. Perhaps most damning of all, "Imagine Paul Simon heading to Mumbai to record his next record and listening to the Cure on the flight and you're getting close." Paul Simon!?! Yeesh!
Fortunately, almost none of that bullshit surrounding "Abyss" matters because, at its heart, it's a tried and true pop song about loss, regret, and better days ahead. The lyrics contain some mumbo jumbo about being a butterfly & and a castaway, blah, blah, blah... None of it matters when you get to the drop off & subsequent incline of the chorus.
MinneSarah:
The Beatles are still influencing just about every band on the planet - some more than others. "Abyss" is a polished sounding song, which would not sound out of place on a finale of a television drama. It has got a lot of pop, and more than a few strings - including an Indian sounding instrument worked in for good measure. While the lyrics are about turning back time and forgetting everything that has ever happened, the delivery makes it sound like a net positive. The singer's voice is decisive and smooth, creating a comforting constant.
This song is basically setting the bar for this type of modern sounding 60's pop revival, and setting it up for mass market appeal. However, it may be forever stamped with 2013-2014, or perhaps this trend is here to stay and Goldspot will be the one influencing a genre forty years from now.
Final Score - TCDroogsma: 3/5
MinneSarah: 3/5
02. The Dismemberment Plan - Daddy Was A Real Good Dancer (from the album Uncanny Valley)
TCDroogsma:
I wouldn't call myself a big fan of The Dismemberment Plan, but that's more a lack of exposure than judgement. I only know one song of theirs ("You Are Invited") and it's a pretty fine song. Also, there lead singer's name is Travis. I can get behind that.
My point is, I was kind of excited to see their name in this week's songs. "Daddy Was A Real Good Dancer" is an enjoyable three-and-a-half minutes. The guitars have a slide-guitar sort of sound while the drums shuffle around implying you to have a go at dancing yourself. Travis Morrison's lyrics carry a surprising weight regarding children, parents, expectation, & responsibility. However, Morrisson does a great job of keeping it all light, never selling the emotions (or the joke) too hard.
MinneSarah:
This twangy tune is an ode to a dad, from his son. It highlights the folklore that we have of our parents and the lives they led before we were born. While we grow up to fill out our understanding of our parents as real people with real foibles, we view them with more compassion. This song is sweet - the lyrics and title refer to "daddy" with a childlike awe despite coming from the perspective of a grown man (and new father) who is speaking of the father as a removed party. The sentiment is incredibly sweet and relate-able. As far as something worth listening to more than once or twice, you'd have to be a fan of The Dismemberment Plan or perhaps just an enthusiastic progeny.
Final Score - TCDroogsma: 3.5/5
MinneSarah: 2.5/5
03. Someone Still Loves You, Boris Yeltsin - Nightwater Girlfriend (from the album Fly By Wire)
TCDroogsma:
Speaking of bands I was excited to see this week...
Someone Still Loves You, Boris Yeltsin won me over forever a few years ago with the song "Think I Wanna Die" from this very same podcast. That's one of my favorite songs of the decade. "Nightwater Girlfriend" sticks with the Apples In Stereo vocals & hooks, but wraps the whole thing up in some fuzzed out bass work. All of which makes for a great song until the 2:14 mark, at which point a Steely Dan smooth funk workout shows up to push the song over the top. Fantastic.
MinneSarah:
"Nightwater Girlfriend" is an upbeat, handclapping, dance around your underwear sort of song. I'm not familiar with SSLYBY, but this song reminded me a lot of that Black Kids' song "I'm Not Gonna Teach your Boyfriend How To Dance With You" The chorus sounds like it came out of the film The Craft - "Don't turn your power on me," makes it sound like a Wiccan chant or disclaimer. While the rest of the song sounds like a normal 2000's style pop song, it does feature a much appreciated neo-disco interlude in which the singer raises his voice a few octaves. Impressive.
Final Score - TCDroogsma: 3.5/5
MinneSarah: 3/5
04. King Krule - Border Line (from the album 6 Feet Beneath The Moon)
TCDroogsma:
When I first heard King Krule's "Out Getting Ribs" a few years ago I wasn't blown away. Ginger solidarity aside, it just kind of rambled along. The guitar work had some of that I-grew-up-on-The-Smiths charm, but the song lacked much of a hook. It was as if the novelty of that rich, baritone voice coming from a skinny 19 year old was the only thought out selling point.
"Border Line" takes all those disparate parts and fashions them into a hell of a pop song. As I spent the week with this one I kept finding myself thinking of Lou Reed's classic Transformer album. Like post-Velvets Reed, King Krule seems to have chosen to leave behind attempts at profundity and embraced a sense of style. Unlike "Out Getting Ribs," you don't necessarily have to listen to the lyrics, man... "Border Line's" lighthearted swagger creates the perfect canvas King Krule's 19-year-old lamentations.
MinneSarah:
What a lovely, chill song. "Border Line" starts out with a pizzicato gypsy jazz guitar and eases in a hip-hop drum beat. Archy Marshall's voice is booming and full of bass - you'd never guess that it's coming out of a 19 year old British kid. The plausibility of this feat emphasizes the elasticity and relevancy of British music. There is a bittersweet feel to the song which makes it seem genuine, and the overwhelming result is uplifting. This song sounds sophisticated yet simple. I love it - while listening to all the songs this week, I had a hard time not just replaying this one.
Final Score - TCDroogsma: 4/5
MinneSarah: 4.5/5
05. SCRNS - TTYN
TCDroogsma:
Everything about SCRNS screams (or rather, dismissively sighs) "No." Another Twin Cities synth-pop act? It's the side project of the bass player from Howler? Howler's still a thing? The singer is a ballerina turned vocalist? Why do they hate vowels? Y's a vowel sometimes. I ride hard for Y as a vowel.
Despite those long odds, SCRNS pulls it off with "TTYN." They aren't reinventing the synth-pop wheel by any stretch, but that's a compliment. Rather, they're not overthinking it. That "I'm a serious artist" vibe that hangs over so many Twin Cities synth acts is, thankfully, non-existent. Echoing the playfulness of MGMT's "Time To Pretend", SCRNS stated goal of making it burn, pushing it higher, making stupid dreams come true, & "set your goals, get your cash, and forget all your friends" seems like reasonable career choices if bass playing and ballet performance don't work out.
MinneSarah:
Lyrically, "TTYN" has the most tongue-in-cheek lines of any song I've heard. This electro-pop song is led by sweet yet strong vocals which are pulled in several directions with different vocal effects. Lyrics like, "Make your stupid dreams come true." and "Set your goals, get your cash and forget all your friends." make it sound like they were straight out of the egotistical hip-hop lyric book. However, the dissonance between the delivery and the lyrics sets up a compelling dynamic - plus the chorus is out of this world catchy. The acronyms are lost to me, but I'm sure hipsters across the country will be texting both the band and the song to each other and the naming choices just saved some time.
Final Score - TCDroogsma: 3/5
MinneSarah: 4/5
Well there you have it, MP3 junkies! Another week's worth of songs downloaded, reviewed, & 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.
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