Two Additional Words:
Scritti Politti!
I know, right? I may just be believing some hype, but just lately I'm having a very hard time not listening to this:
I don't know how I feel about the voice, but the melodies and words and textures are fantastic. And there's something really irresistible about the narrative arc of a band that starts as fake Gang of Four, then becomes fake white plastic soul, and now re-emerges as this bizarre lo-fi Beach Boys harmonics plus literate pop dialectics. Comme c'est beezarre, non? I'm going to need to investigate. (But not before I finish listening to Gene Wilder reading his own autobiography.) How exciting!
In other news, I only barely remember them from the '80s. I definitely remember the band name, which seemed silly even then, but "Perfect Way" rings only the faintest top-40-radio-station-on-the-school-bus-ride-to-Colina-and/or-Westlake bell when I listen now. I do remember seeing stacks and stacks of the tape of Cupid and Psyche '85 when my friends Ken and Howard took me to K-Mart for the first time, in 1987, which was sort of like when Jeff made me eat SPAM for the first time in 1995: unpleasant. "PW" does sound exactly like the '80s, however, in that weird, airless, hyperprecise, robots-could-have-and-probably-did-play-most-of-the-sounds-you-hear-on-this way. Still, catchy.
Finally, re: Christgau getting fired by the Village Voice (because you need to know how I feel): I keep meaning to think it's really awful and sad, because he really is one of the titans (his review of Brighten the Corners of all Pavement records, returns to me all the time), and there isn't much good, smart writing in the alt-weeklies of the world... But it feels more like a great band getting dropped by a major label. Can anyone lay legitimate claim to being surprised?
(And with that, Creeper Lagoon pops up on the iPod.)
I know, right? I may just be believing some hype, but just lately I'm having a very hard time not listening to this:
I don't know how I feel about the voice, but the melodies and words and textures are fantastic. And there's something really irresistible about the narrative arc of a band that starts as fake Gang of Four, then becomes fake white plastic soul, and now re-emerges as this bizarre lo-fi Beach Boys harmonics plus literate pop dialectics. Comme c'est beezarre, non? I'm going to need to investigate. (But not before I finish listening to Gene Wilder reading his own autobiography.) How exciting!
In other news, I only barely remember them from the '80s. I definitely remember the band name, which seemed silly even then, but "Perfect Way" rings only the faintest top-40-radio-station-on-the-school-bus-ride-to-Colina-and/or-Westlake bell when I listen now. I do remember seeing stacks and stacks of the tape of Cupid and Psyche '85 when my friends Ken and Howard took me to K-Mart for the first time, in 1987, which was sort of like when Jeff made me eat SPAM for the first time in 1995: unpleasant. "PW" does sound exactly like the '80s, however, in that weird, airless, hyperprecise, robots-could-have-and-probably-did-play-most-of-the-sounds-you-hear-on-this way. Still, catchy.
Finally, re: Christgau getting fired by the Village Voice (because you need to know how I feel): I keep meaning to think it's really awful and sad, because he really is one of the titans (his review of Brighten the Corners of all Pavement records, returns to me all the time), and there isn't much good, smart writing in the alt-weeklies of the world... But it feels more like a great band getting dropped by a major label. Can anyone lay legitimate claim to being surprised?
(And with that, Creeper Lagoon pops up on the iPod.)
posted by Sean Nelson at 7:26 PM
2 Comments:
Gene Wilder=fantastic. I had a wierd childhood crush on that guy....that portaged slightly into adulthood. I blame his crazy sexy hair and the conjunction in my mind between him and chocolate.
i've yet to try spam...i'll take your word on that. blagh-ick.
Yeah, "Perfect Way," "I Just Died in Your Arm Tonight" by the Cutting Crew, "And We Danced/All You Zombies" by the Hooters and "Your Love" by the Outfield are my quintessential mid-80s pop/rock songs. They just remind me of going to nerd day camp. And I think all of the above bands had the same hair: you know, the rock mullet that wasn't quite the Amerindie Replacements mullet.
And your Christgau analogy is spot-on.
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