Category: Music

Sighed, when I cried I know,
It all makes us see how we lie
We sigh, some say
But you know all this
Sighed, when I cried I know,
It all makes us see how
We lie, we sigh
Some say, but you know

– Cocteau Twins
“Sigh’s Smell of Farewell”

I sometimes wonder how much great music there is out there that will one day be lost forever.

You’ve probably heard about the thousands of movies slowly turning into dust in film vaults. Likewise, there must be millions of great albums, singles and cassettes released by bands that either existed before CDs, or who just weren’t popular enough to make the leap to CD – and thus, easy ripping to mp3 or other digital formats.

As turntables and cassette players continue their march towards obsolescence, people don’t know what to do with their old vinyl and tapes, and eventually just give or throw them away. And then there are people like me, who continue to hold on to their vinyl in hopes of one day converting it to digital format, but just can’t get around to it. Either way it’s a shame.

Take the Atlanta band 86 for example. One day I was at the Book Nook, an iconic used book and record store in the city, when I stumbled across their EP Minutes in a Day. I bought it and took it home for a listen. Most of the EP is just OK, but I quickly fell in love with the title track. The desolation of the opening made it my perfect “drive home song”. When I listen to it I think of driving home on almost empty interstates at 4:30 on a Sunday morning, and the eerie stillness of everything at that hour. And it makes me smile.

I searched high and low on the Internet for the EP for years, but never had much luck. Given that the band broke up in the early 90s and didn’t have much of a following outside Atlanta, I didn’t have much hope of their music ever turning up on iTunes or at Amazon’s mp3 store. However, thanks to a “magic Google search” yesterday, I was finally able to snag a copy in mp3 format from a music blog. So now I can share it with you!

Have a listen and tell me what you think:

[audio:86.mp3]

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart is a band from – you guessed it: New York, New York…where all the bands I listen to these days come from.

Aside from having a pretentious name, the band has a great sound.

Their first album has as much indie cred as necessary… but the single “Higher Than The Stars” coats it all in a nice, creamy layer of delicious synthpop that sounds a bit like New Order meets The Smiths.

“The Pains” also have some connection to Saint Etienne (one of my all-time faves) as well, as there is a “Saint Etienne visits Lord Spank Mix” of this song as well.

Have a listen and tell me what you think!

[audio:pureatheart.mp3]

Check out their MySpace page here.

If you’ve ever seen the film Trainspotting, you’re probably familiar with the song “Born Slippy”, as it was featured prominently in the film.

The song has an interesting story behind it: the original version, by electronic band Underworld, was completely instrumental. The b-side of the single had lyrics, and was known as “Born Slippy .NUXX”, allegedly from a computer error which appended the NUXX extension to one of the tracks in the song. The lyrics are supposedly the “internal dialog” of an alcoholic (band member Karl Hyde was a functional alcoholic at the time). The band didn’t give the tune much thought until director Danny Boyle used it in Trainspotting, which caused the tune to hit #2 on the British charts.

This version is a cover from the German band Get Well Soon. It’s very slow, with a haunting piano line running throughout. To me, the original is a dancy, almost poppy tune. You can easily ignore the lyrics while gyrating on the dance floor or driving around at top speed. But this version forces you to listen to the desperation and sadness of the lyrics. It’s not something you want to cue up on the iPod at at party… but it is something you’ll listen to while lying on your bed with the room spinning out of control later on that night.

Have a listen and tell me what you think:

[audio:bornslippy.mp3]

Many folks of the 80s Generation will remember Alison Moyet, lead singer of the band Yazoo (Yaz in the US). She was one of those musicians who, at the height of their fame, turned their back on the music industry that brought them such fame and riches. Moyet has begun popping up again in the UK, and she’s looking really good these days:

Check out this article for an in-depth interview to find out why the woman who sold 25 million records left fame and fortune behind.

Yes, I know that 2009 isn’t over yet. But it’s getting late in the year, and I’ve already fallen in love with five great bands this year:

Au Revoir Simone (Brooklyn, New York) – Three chicks and a bunch of synthesizers, Au Revior Simone sounds like the illustrations in a child’s book of fairy tales come to life… and I mean that in the best way. David Lynch loves them, and once you hear them you’ll understand why (if Twin Peaks were to be remade today, he’d probably use Au Revior Simone instead of Juliee Cruise for those scenes). This is my favorite song by them by far, and here’s a live version of the same song in HD.

Asobi Seksu (Brooklyn, New York) – There are so many good bands from Brooklyn these days! This band is two people – Yuki Chikudate and James Hanna, with some friends helping out on occasion. I am completely blown away by this song, which combines the drums and bass from early U2, guitars inspired by the Cocteau Twins, synths from OMD and the kind of breathless female singing made famous by The Sundays and Sixpence None The Richer to create something that not only doesn’t suck, but is actually kind of awesome.

Continue reading “My Favorite Bands of 2009”