Adem: “To Cure a Weakling Child|Boy/Girl Song”
Adem (solo folkster and half of the band Fridge) covers two of Aphex Twin’s Richard D James classics on an album’s worth of various covers called Takes, which is out June 3rd on Domino Records.
3 years agoThe Meeting Places: “Now I Know” (Words On Music)
The fuzzy melodies and hazy atmosphere of shoegaze and dream pop may have started with early 90’s British artists like My Bloody Valentine and Slowdive, but that torch has been carried into the present day by artists mining the same sounds. Since the early aughts, shoegaze has made a bit of come back—especially here in the States. Brooklyn’s Asobi Seksu, Austin’s post-rock darlings Explosions In the Sky, and lesser knowns like LA’s The Meeting Places and labelmates, Should (from Baltimore!), each owe a significant debt of gratitude to the effects boxes of yore.
Take this track from the Meeting Places debut album, Find Yourself Along the Way (2003) on the excellent Words On Music label; it fits right in with the poppier British shoegaze (think Chapterhouse, Ride, and Lush) of my teenage years. I’m cool with that. To me, shoegaze was less of a trend and more of a new appreciation for the sound of guitars. I don’t think I’ll ever tire of that.
3 years agoPortishead: “Magic Doors” (Island)
I have very fond, very sad memories that will be forever tied to listening to a tape dub of Portishead’s first album, Dummy, while driving in the snow to see a girl I can’t remember one lonely Winter night in 1994.
Some 13 years later, here’s a track from the brilliantly-titled new album, Third. It’s one of the better songs from a record that doesn’t seem to stand up to the ten years it took to come out. Third will be released worldwide April 28th.
3 years agoWhat do you get when you splice together New Order, the Wedding Present, and maybe the Magnetic Fields? I don’t know, but wouldn’t it be cool? That’s totally what this song is.
Their official site has mp3s from several releases available here. Or check out their MySpace for more stuff, including a long list of influences. I definitely hear the Chills in there. The Smiths, too, a little. Jangly!
3 years ago