The Weekly Froth – with a new song by The National!

The National

Track of the week: ‘You Were a Kindness’ by The National

I heard this when they played it live for the very very very first time, and it was just as amazing then as it is now when hearing it behind my laptop. Berninger’s baritone is just lovely, so filled with sadness. The slide guitar, when I heard that live, that was brilliant. Stroke of genius. Best thing is, this is nothing like what they did on their High Violet album this year. Not that the album was bad, but somewhere in the back of my mind I was wondering what would happen if they got even more bombastic… would it possible?

But it’s OK: here, they’ve come back with a restrained heartbreaker full of self-doubt. I love the reference to Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire (Berninger sings: “You were a kindness when I was a stranger”, which I think is taken from “I’ve always relied on the kindness of strangers”, otherwise “kindness” in the first sentence is grammatically incorrect). It’s one of the best songs I’ve heard all year. … Continue Reading

The Weekly Froth: we <3 Active Child…

Active Child

Our weekly look into the blogosphere where we talk about six tracks we found out about in the previous Wednesday-to-Wednesday seven-day period.

Track of the week: ‘When Your Love is Safe’ by Active Child (Classixxx remix)

That’s one nice voice Active Child has got there. And the good thing about this Classixxx remix is that the voice comes out perhaps even better than on the original, as he gives it something extra on occasion. And that works pretty well as far as I’m concerned. Classixxx saw the qualities of this song and basically put a bit of eyeliner on that to accentuate the eyes, so the best comes out even better while the rest sensibly stays in the background a bit more. I also love the understated instrumental additions by Classixxx, which makes it a sort of italo like 80s synth track, which is always good in my book. Just a smart remix of this track, not overhauling it like a buffoon, but instead just some changes in the right places without overshadowing the strengths of Active Child. And I will take such an approach over anything that just puts a heavy beat on it and tries to change it by just making it bigger and bolder. … Continue Reading

The Weekly Froth – new Cut Copy! Sound of the week!

Cut Copy

Our weekly look into the blogosphere where we talk about six tracks we found out about in the previous Wednesday-to-Wednesday seven-day period.

Track of the week: ‘Where I’m Going’ by Cut Copy

Hell. Yeah. First time I saw these guys live was just after their second album in a club in Brooklyn (a gig put on tape by Pitchfork and a venue which I believe since then has shut down). These guys, they can make you dance. Had to miss them just a few days ago, which I’m still bummed out about, but it was too expensive to get there, and in my hometown Dum Dum Girls were playing. Can’t have it all I suppose. Hope they come back soon though, because this is stellar. Naw, strike that, this is just immensely fun! Handclaps, but more camp than their earlier work it seems to me, and this is just a party from the get go. I mean, can anyone not dance to this? Surely. This has dance floor written all over it. They go a bit dreamy in the middle, and then they go back to the dancing again. And those “yeah, yeah, yeah” bits are a sure invite for everyone to pump their fists in the air and sing along. Perhaps the lads have been a bit cheeky and took some elements which are shoe-ins for a certain reaction. But to then execute it so finely, only a few can do that. … Continue Reading

The Weekly Froth: what’s hot on the blogs?

Hurts

Our weekly look into the blogosphere where we talk about six tracks we found out about in the previous Wednesday-to-Wednesday seven-day period.

Track of the week: ‘Wonderful Life’ by Hurts (Mantronix remix)

Now, don’t laugh, but I actually thought I was listening to some sort of remix of a Michael Jackson B-side at first! Never thought you would hear that in a paragraph dealing with a Hurts’ song, did you? Mantronix puts some disco in the track though, and it works amazingly well. The voice and the narrative lend themselves perfectly for such a reworking. Those two elements combined with their new environment give it this kind of 80s quality. And suddenly lines like “So don’t let go / never give up it’s such a wonderful life” don’t sound trite anymore, but just part of that underground disco aesthetic. Now, it’s not full throttle disco, if you perhaps got that idea from this. Bit more understated, perhaps even more synth 80s than disco. Like an early Spandau Ballet/Eurythmics mixture, without the swagger of the latter and the commercial appeal of the former in the later stages of the career (followed that time line?). Even for people who don’t want anything to do with Hurts because of that hype thingy they are surrounded by, this might actually be worth a shot if you like your 80s stuff.
… Continue Reading

Short Circuitry 008

'Good Morning Hammersmith’, by Nico Hogg: http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicohogg

Keeping it simple and straightforward this month; Short Circuitry’s been swimming through a boundless ocean of heady delights, and inevitably any attempt to whittle it down is going to end up grossly inadequate. Still, top marks have been going to tunes that defiantly refuse to pander to the sheer heat and humidity that’s reduced this wasted copper wiring to little more than a weakly sparking wreck. In particular, regular injections of Rhythm & Sound’s seminal With The Artists CD and the veritable dose of sonic frostbite that is the Moritz Von Oswald Trio’s Vertical Ascent have kept these drums rattling in some form of delicate equilibrium. Just about, anyway. Right, onward… … Continue Reading

The Weekly Froth #35

Foals

Our weekly look into the blogosphere where we talk about six tracks we found out about in the previous Wednesday-to-Wednesday seven-day period.

Track of the week: ‘Spanish Sahara’ by Foals (Deadboy remix)

Like with every change of sound, the new Foals album had its supporters and critics. Every decision anyone makes can always count on people agreeing with it and not agreeing with it. It’s how the world turns, I guess. Deadboy, you know, I don’t really remember the name and his stuff, and if someone says “Deadboy” to me, I’m inclined to think something crude and hard will follow. Actually, this is the opposite, which not only surprises me, but it surprises me pleasantly. I love the woodblock kind of thingy he puts on it, and that combined with other subtle additions make this a worthwhile listen. Deadboy fills up the “break” in the song with some deep bass and then has it continue for a while. The vocals, which arguably are one of the things that have improved on the new Foals album, are high up in the mix, which I always tend to like. Add to that the bass, the woodblock and some nifty additional sequences, and I think Deadboy has made this track his own in quite a nice manner. Pleasant surprise. Even though I wouldn’t have mind it if he would’ve cut the last two minutes. … Continue Reading

The Weekly Froth #34

Tortoiseshell

Our weekly look into the blogosphere where we talk about six tracks we found out about in the previous Wednesday-to-Wednesday seven-day period.

Track of the week: ‘This Girl’ by Tortoiseshell (Canyons dub)

I find Canyons a terribly, terribly strange band. Some of their stuff have me in hallelujah mode, while some songs seem unnecessarily longwinded. This is their dub of Tortoiseshell’s ‘This Girl’. And it quite works for me actually. It begins understated, yearning male vocals up front, and a lovely, lovely understated bass that goes with it. The bass stays, drums are added, and the vocals go up up up. And rightfully so, because the first time I heard that I was pretty impressed. I could probably live a day on that bass and vocal combination alone. I just love it when vocals do that, and good vocals are quite underrated me thinks. Definitely try and get to that chorus part and see whether it ticks your box, because if it does I think you’re in for a treat. … Continue Reading

Singles Of The Week: Eminem’s lyrical guff, Everything Everything’s rudery and lots more

Eminem

Eminem – Not Afraid

Comparisons with Sex and the City probably don’t come thick and fast for Eminem. But think about it – both gained notoriety around the end of the ‘90s for the blunt manner in which they discussed boobs, bits, and the unspeakable things they wanted to do to their lovers (weeing on/killing them). However, these days it’s pretty difficult to locate the faintest whisper of their early brazilliantness amidst the mires of appalling clichés they both wallow in. Let’s list some of the hackneyed lyrical offences on Eminem’s comeback single, ‘Not Afraid’… … Continue Reading

The Weekly Froth #33

crystal castles

Our weekly look into the blogosphere where we talk about six tracks we found out about in the previous Wednesday-to-Wednesday seven-day period.

Track of the week: ‘Suffocation’ by Crystal Castles (Memory Tapes remix)

I always feel slightly ashamed when I have to say that I don’t fancy Crystal Castles that much, because it kind of seems the thing to do. I do love Memory Tapes though, and I do love that band a whole bunch (me is the proud owner of a first edition vinyl of the album). So this could go either way. You would think. But I was lucky enough to have a little interview with the man behind Memory Tapes and so I know how he does his remixes. And the thing is, he doesn’t look at the original at all. He just looks at the components and creates a remix off of that. So in essence, it will definitely be more his aesthetic that will be shining through than that of Crystal Castles. Which, for me personally, is a good thing. So no surprise here, I do love this one. It has got a bit of that dreamy vibe that I love so much and which I think is just so great to listen to while walking around at night. If you want to bounce off of each other on the dance floor then this probably isn’t going to make you happy. But if you like the dreamy, fantastical vibe, then this might just be for you. It definitely is for me, in any case. Also, nifty drumming. … Continue Reading

The National to Derrida: Music In Context

The National

It didn’t feel like too big a deal at first, when things didn’t work out between me and the girl from California. Sure, it was a pity. She was beautiful, after all; smart and affectionate too. But best of all she was a fan of The National. When we discovered our shared love for the guys from Ohio on our first date, things could hardly have seemed any better. Sadly, however, it came to a premature end when she rather abruptly called time on things just a few weeks later. “Never mind, these things happen, plenty more fish in the sea,” my friends all told me. “Even fish who like The National.” They are a rare breed, but this was true enough – and at least in ending so early, for once it didn’t seem like something my mind was likely to linger on. … Continue Reading