A few weeks ago, Paul dropped Minus the Bear in our Suggestion Box, describing the Seattle outfit as “catchy and upbeat.” We all need a little catchy and upbeat now and again, and most of the time MTB works it in a fresh, complex way. Check out the pop hooks on “Pachuca Sunrise,” my favorite among these, off the 2005 release Menos el Oso. You can practically see the rays of sunshine filling your room. If you’re looking for something a bit heavier, though, “Dr. L’Ling” and “Drilling” (featuring Minneapolis rapper P.O.S.) the former off the upcoming Planet Of Ice, due in August, give you plenty of noise, thick guitars and heavy drums. Either way, heavy or light, thank Paul for the Minus the Bear tip.
Maximo Park
I’ve always been a sucker for things British (colonial exploits excluded). Recently I had a mad craving for a British-made Lion Bar, which has the perfect combination of caramel, chocolate, wafers and what I swear tastes like nougat (although I am told I am wrong on this). It’s the perfect candy bar and I just can’t seem to find anything else as good stateside. While I was visiting the British establishment in New York that actually sells this confectionary achievement, I couldn’t help but enjoy the salesman’s accent. Which brings me to my point, Maximo Park. While Maximo Park is perhaps more straight up radio poppy than the music that I general enjoy (but always want so much to like), it’s British radio poppy! So I love it! And while I commend all of the accentless Swedish acts that astound me so, there is just something about someone singing in a Newcastle accent over a ragey guitar. Go figure. So as the sun gets hotter and the days get lazier, I recommend giving in to your sillier side, snapping up a Lion Bar (if you can find one) and slapping some “Our Earthly Pleasures” on the Pod. Earthly pleasures, indeed.
The Harvey Girls
Not only are the Harvey Girls’ Hiram and Melissa very talented AND generous (they give away much of their prolific output to freeloaders like me) AND nice AND interesting, but it turns out they’re just plain good people: Declinate their most recent EP, will cost you some pocket change through the great web-only label SVC, but all proceeds go to RAINN, the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network. The songs are as multifaceted and enchanting as ever and the cause is very important, so give a free listen and then buy the rest. It’ll be worth it in more ways than one.
Blessed Light
According to Mill Pond Records, “the creative force behind Blessed Light, singer/songwriter/guitarist Toby Gordon, came into this world on June 17, 1977.” It kind of sounds like he’s still there. I was even thinking of adding a “disco” genre tag for the last track below, “Something More.” In general, though, we’re looking at thick, grand, majestic pop heavily inspired by the Pacific Northwest and the 1970s. So iinstead of wondering when “Suzanne Sunshine” will ever end, imagine it playing on the radio as you drive off with Woodesron to buy Aerosmith tickets (a la Dazed and Confused).
JakobÃnarÃna
I can imagine a relay race where Mark E. Smith runs the first leg. He makes his way around the track and when it comes time to pass the baton he doesn’t want to give it up. He thinks the race is 4×1600, when it’s really 4×100. See, just when I think there can’t be another Fall record: there’s another Fall record. That’s not a bad thing, but other bands are ready to take their baton and run with it. Iceland’s JakobÃnarÃna (their debut album hits this fall) seem ready to go the distance. Their music is crisp and full of youthful energy while vocalist Gunnar Ragnarsson sings with a mature timbre similar to Mark E. Smith, despite the fact that he’s probably young enough to be Smith’s grandson. Thematically, compare and contrast the pogo-core of JakobÃnarÃna’s “Sleeping in Seattle” with Minor Threat’s hardcore “Out of Step.” I wish more of America’s youth were as out of step with pop-culture.
David & the Citizens
Swedish pop is actually a very wide ranging label. You got your twee pop, your synth pop, your acoustic pop, your shoegaze pop, your pop pop, and with David & the Citizens you’ve got your rockin’ pop. Think of them as Sweden’s The New Pornographers. Catchy, smart, full of energy, and able to manipulate emotions with a wide range of topics and just the right hook to fit the moment.
Oliver North Boy Choir
I always get a kick out of bands who appropriate and regurgitate a public figure’s name into something great and weird. And while Oliver North Boy Choir can’t compete with the handle The Tony Danza Tap Dance Extravaganza they school them in terms of melody and listenability (in the opinion of this old man. I’m sure the kids go ape for TTDTDE). “Shell for the Mourning” has the schizophrenic energy of a Cornelius track. Bursts of fuzzed-out guitars intercut with lulling electronics while a frenetic beat keeps everything going along at a brisk clip until the bridge where the singer carries on a call and response with a Speak & Spell. The singer’s calm, cool delivery, she sounds as if she could be Laetitia Sadier’s younger sister, stands in contrast with the rest of the track, with the exception of the few lyrics I caught in the chorus, “another rope for your neck” and “another wound from a bullet.” They just add to the sweetly subversive texture of the rest of the song. An important postscript: “Shell for the Mourning” is the next output from this Danish trio who exclusively release singles digitally. They’ve accepted and embraced the much-prophisied demise of the album as an art form without sacrificing the stereo-life of their music.
Through the Sparks
If you’ll excuse the blatantly obvious for a second, one of the awesome things about the Internet is that you don’t have to be in New York, L.A., Chicago, Boston, Austin, or one of a handful of anointed college scenes to get noticed. Although, no matter where you are, you need a MySpace page come hell or high water. Through the Sparks aren’t in one of the Chosen Towns—they’re in Birmingham, Alabama, which by all accounts has a thriving local scene but probably won’t make any “The next” lists nonetheless. Plus, get this, Through the Sparks record in an actual garage. How…quaint. It’s enough to make you regain faith in American music. It also helps that the music itself is easy on the ears: a thinking feller’s mix of guitar and piano rock that’s both down-home and sophisticated. Any inherent Birmingham-ness or Southernness in general you might be looking to place on these polished pop articles will be as elusive as the band’s lyrics are charmingly obtuse. Maybe that’s the other awesome thing about the Internet: you can be from a scene without necessarily being of it—provided you’re on MySpace.
Santa Maria
This one’s gonna be quick because I gotta take care of the mothers in my life today! Maria Eriksson from The Concretes pulled together some of Sweden’s finest players to back her up on her solo album. The first selection, “Cuckoo” is the most Concretes-like: playful, bouncy pop, while “Dogs” is slightly more introspective and somber. Ericksson and company get downright proggy on “Make Up.” A little something for everyone. Enjoy the music. Thanks for stopping by and don’t forget to call your mother!
Dntel
Lately there have been all these commercials for the NYC “easy listening” radio station and despite my general aversion to anything “easy” (especially when “listening”), I’ve been fascinated by how calm the woman on the advertisement is. One has to wonder… is it the music? Well I’m not ready to throw in the musical towel yet and so my latest solution to needing a little sonic R&R is going to have to be Dntel. Dntel is definitely not going to make the evening drive line-up next to Celine Dion BUT Dntel is Jimmy Tamborello (also part of The Postal Service and Figurine)–which earns him some cred in my book. His vocals are calmer (and prettier) than Ben Gibbard’s (although BG gets points for style) and the beats are a little lighter and more folky-playful. The end result is that I can’t turn it off. It’s a lovely and complicated melange of bips and tics that also manages to calm and soothe. Interesting. It ain’t easy like I thought I wanted, but it’s just right. As always, some tracks are included here, but the intrepid listener can find the whole album on Dntel’s Myspace page…