Messaggio fanatico, fondamentalista, pieno di pregiudizi e basato su nient’altro che sulla totale fiducia che nutro per la musica dei “Magnetic Fields” e per i testi di Stephin Merritt.

Il 26 gennaio 2010 uscirà l’album migliore dell’anno.

Questa è la tracklist:

01 – You Must Be Out of Your Mind
02 – Interlude
03 – We Are Having a Hootenanny
04 – I Don’t Know What to Say
05 – The Dolls’ Tea Party
06 – Everything Is One Big Christmas Tree
07 – Walk a Lonely Road
08 – Always Already Gone
09 – Seduced and Abandoned
10 – Better Things
11 – Painted Flower
12 – The Dada Polka
13 – From a Sinking Boat

La notizia ufficiale delle casa discografica la trovate qui

I set an internal goal of fifteen posts after which I thought perhaps I might consider possibly, maybe sharing this URL with selected friends.  This is post #16 and I am still writing for the odd stranger who pops by to read about Beck or Stephin Merritt.  (Note to strangers:  sorry!)  Launching this URL to friends might require some anticipatory, self-serving edits and/or wholesale hiding of particularly pathetic posts.  (Must. Delete. That. Draft. E-mail.)  However, more fearsome than the prospect of being exposed as exceedingly pathetic is the prospect of being exposed as exceedingly dull.  I readily admit that I am a sucker but could not bear to be a tedious sucker.

This blog feels a bit like an after-school special:  each post contains a few anecdotes and a big lesson that I am ill-equipped to teach.  I would say this is not unlike a Malcolm Gladwell New Yorker article except that last time I used Malcolm Gladwell in this sort of example, my friend interjected, “Hey!  I dated Malcolm Gladwell.”  Apparently, this is not uncommon among New York women.  So.

Last week I set up my Google Reader.  It gave me occasion to contemplate what my friends serve to the blogosphere:  recipes, photo-essays of meals (no more Michelin stars this month, they say!), historical tidbits from a former Slate “Explainer,” rants advocating drug legalization and sentencing policy reform, and indefinable, indefatigable essays evolving an Appalachian landscape ethics.  Then there’s the would-be ex:  self-flagellation several orders of magnitude greater than you’ve seen here.

The drug/sentencing policy blog belongs to my favorite out-of-town boy (until displaced, “New York Boy”).  When I solicited suggestions for New York activities, he sent me a link to a blog post about the High Line.  He ignored my question when I asked if he wrote it, though later, in person, he acknowledged the blog and told me he shares it ad hoc when someone asks his opinion on a topic that he has discussed.  Of course, immediately on return to L.A., I scrolled eagerly through the blog–certain it would provide a window into his soul–but in fact in speeding through the archives I found only one personal post.  It asked why parents interpret the Facebook prompt as querying what “utterly banal” thing their child has done in the past five minutes.  Ouch.  That’s a window, all right!  (Red flag?  As I always say, no red flag is too red or too big.  Post forthcoming.)

No blog tipper suggests that you write about yourself.  Who cares?  Plus, it’s harder than excerpting major newspapers and The Onion.  Plus plus, sometimes nothing happens!

I joked today that the quality of my social life correlates with the volume of text messages I receive.  Current volume:  low.  My friend laughed and said that I’m saving money.  No, I have a plan!  I’m wasting money!  Then he inquired at what point it would be cost-effective to cancel my text message plan.  I refuse to do the math but assure you:  if I hit that point, you do not want to be reading this blog.

The Magnetic Fields. Jens Lekman. Tracey Thorn. I en och samma låt. Min entusiasm var ögonblickligen och ohejdat ohämmad när jag fick reda på det. A marriage made in heaven! Treenigheten på ett musikaliskt schackbräde med min karta och kompass.

Häromåret 2008 såg jag The Magnetic Fields i Köpenhamn. Mina förväntningar infriades direkt när Stephin Merritt dök upp med sin buttra och yrvakna uppsyn. Plågad av turnéleda och tinnitus som gjorde att han fick hålla för öronen varje gång publiken klappade efter en låt. I ett mellansnack yttrade en bandmedlem att publiken inte kunde se honom där han satt gömd bakom instrumenten.

- Well, maybe I don’t want to see them.

Klockrent. Sug på den repliken. Det går bara att älska honom.

Nu kommer vi till “Yeah! Oh, Yeah!” som Jens och Tracey har gjort en cover av. Den var den låten som drog ner mest applåder och skratt under konserten. I deras tolkning har någonting hänt. Lyriken är densamma. Musiken skiljer sig inte nämnvärt. Uttrycket däremot är annorlunda.

I originalet berättas en historia om ett par, som sjungs av Claudia Gonson och Stephin Merritt, som går mot sin undergång. Kort sagt handlar den om en ond gold digger som dödar sin stenrika fru och behåller pengarna. Gonson sång badas i ekon och saknar definition, så trots att hennes lyriska innehåll är större, är hon klart den sekundära spelaren. Hennes del är mindre dynamisk och mer monoton än mannens. Samtidigt gör Merritt den hånfulla rollen, med sina “Yeah! Oh, Yeah!” och retfulla sarkasmer.

I covern har dynamiken försvunnit. Thorns roll är mer framträdande och dominant medan Lekmans är mer slö och livlös än elak. Det största problemet är att jag inte tror på deras förhållande. Det känns inte speciellt trovärdigt. Jag drar inte på smilbanden. Tyvärr kan det gå med covers såväl som äktenskap: bra i teorin – dåligt i praktiken.

Tracey, som verkar ha blivit förälskad i Merritts låtskrivarkonst, har gjort två covers till med bättre resultat (se spellistan nedan). Fast jag undrar om inte den bästa MF-covern är Gameboy 8-bits versionen av “All my little words”.

Nu när vi är inne på temat passar Tindersticks – A Marriage Made in Heaven ft. Isabella Rossellini utmärkt för den bjuder på en likadan sarkastisk parduell som i “Yeah! Oh, Yeah!”.

When he fell in love, I was acting
I sent her flowers, asked her to marry me
But all I heard was their clapping
Now she cries with a cigarette at the window

Nu kan man få för sig att jag har en krass syn på äktenskapet. Det är inte sant. Jag är lyckligt gift. Det jag inte tror på är perfektionen utan att det måste finnas en gnutta friktion för att det ska fungera. Faktum är att Lekman och Merritt spelade på mitt eget bröllop. Inte tillsammans eller på plats (Jens hälsade från bergen i Uzbekistan) men det blev väldigt mäktigt ändå. På bröllopet hade vi förutom kyrkomusik, däribland Händel, följande setlist:

Inmarsch. Pampigt, kraftfullt och euforiskt.

If rain won’t change your mind, let it fall.
The rain won’t change my heart at all.

Det vackraste stycket om livslång kärlek jag känner till.

Spotify-playlist med alla ovanstående artister. Kärlek, längtan, bitterhet och sarkasmer i en skön förgrening.

En esta ocasión os dejo una recopilación que preparé el pasado sábado buceando por todo lo que llevaba en el iPhone mientras disfruaba de un tarta y un café en El Azul. Decidí hacerla mientras escuchaba a Baxter Dury (espero que sea la próxima recopilación que ponga en el blog). A partir del tema Dirty Water, fui enlazando canciones y apuntándolas en un cuaderno para hacer después los ajustes necesarios. Espero que os guste.

Haz clic para descargar la recopilación

Los cantantes y grupos que he incluido son Baxter Dury, Girls, Yo La Tengo, Eels, Stephen Malkmus, Cornershop, Nick Lowe, The 6ths (Stephin Merritt), Silver Jews, The Wedding Present, The Posies, Steely Dan, Super Furry Animals, The Sea And Cake, Lloyd Cole, Canadian Invasion, The Martinis, The Frank And Walters, Music Go Music, Port O’Brien, Polaris (Mark Mulcahy) y Black Crowes.

Como siempre, haciendo clic en la portada os podéis bajar las canciones y la carátula en pdf, y AQUÍ tenéis el listado de canciones.

P.D.: La foto la hice hace ya unos cuantos años (era el mes de Diciembre) en la playa de Riazor, en La Coruña.

Today’s “Around the world in LA” residence is probably not going to seem that special to Angelenos, I fear. But the fact that this place is met with, “Yeah, that place. Yawn…” just serves to further  cement the fact that Los Angeles is truly a fantastic place. Today’s ho-hum residence is the Snow White Cottages in Silver Lake:

Some nice facts about the eight Snow White Cottages:

• They were originally the homes for Disney animators in the ’30s working on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (sic). The Disney Studios were just around the corner.
• I know a somewhat short of stature songwriter who lives in one of the cottages. If he were one of the Seven Dwarves, I think he would be named Wistful.
• These cottages are just down the street from Marshall High School, which is famous for educating Miss America 1941 and being the site of the school carnival scene at the end of Grease where Olivia Newton-John gets all slutted up for John Travolta.

• I also have a friend who lived here after he kicked a nasty drug habit. I guess now that he’s clean he would neither be  Dopey nor Sleepy.
• The cottages were featured in the David Lynch film Mulholland Drive. Unlike some other David Lynch productions, Mulholland Drive did not feature any dwarves.
• Elliott Smith also used to live here. Maybe he could have been Dopey or Sleepy.

• There are a bunch of other Black Forest-y sorts of houses nearby, including Walt Disney’s old residence, but I felt this post was getting too long to include them here.
• These cottages are in need of some basic maintenance. Unfortunately, the landlady appears to be ruining the Snow White Cottages by repairing the roofs with cheap tarpaper rather than the intricate thatchwork they had originally.

Go check them out before they’re completely cheapo-refurbed over.

One of my favorite songs ever, The Magnetic Fields’ “Yeah! Oh Yeah!”, is covered here by St. Vincent and John Vanderslice at a live show sometime in 2007. It’s quite a treat, especially if you’re a fan of all three of these acts.

Provavelmente estou virando dinossauro, pois está cada vez mais difícil descobrir novas bandas que sejam representativas musicalmente. A última foi o Fleet Foxes, que embora muito boa, nada traz de novo.

Zapeando a MTV, dei de cara com uma apresentação rápida sobre os estadunienses do Magnetic Fields, e seu álbum clássico:  69 Love Songs.

Algumas faixas – tocadas bem rapidamente – me despertaram a atenção, e  fui a fundo para escutar com calma este disco (lançado em 1999), que passeia por vários estilos (folk, noise, pop…), tendo como unidade as canções de amor compostas por Stephin Merritt.

Recomendo a fortemente a audição.

Para conhecer mais:

The Magnetic Fields (Wikipedia)

House Of Tomorrow (Stephin Merritt)

If you’re in New York City and like math, consider stopping by the Math Midway, an interactive math exhibit running 10-6 this Sunday, June 14 as part of this year’s World Science Festival Street Fair. (The World Science Festival, despite its name, seems always to take place in New York.  Reminds me of a book I read at Emmanuel’s house, an Encyclopedie des Fromages du Monde which was in fact about the cheeses of France.)  Two more Greenwich Village recommendations from last week’s visit to New York: new Italian storefront restaurant Risotteria and Stephen Merritt’s musical adaptation of Coraline.

It seems that the people behind the Midway are planning to launch a full-scale museum of mathematics, to be called Math Factory and located somewhere in Greater New York.  Is this a good idea?

Update: I almost forgot my most important New York recommendation:  the Francis Bacon retrospective at the Met, which is even better than Risotteria and Coraline.

Jeg pleier ikke kritisere eller diskutere andre musikkanmeldere. Her opplever jeg at det er et skille mellom mine roller som musikkanmelder og som akademiker; innenfor akademia er jo kritikk av kolleger nærmest modus operandi, the favorite bloodsport, og en helt sentral dimensjon ved møtet mellom kolleger. Selvsagt skal det være en eller annen slags begrunnelse for kritikken, men mye (for mye, vil jeg nok legge til) tekstproduksjon handler om å forklare hva andre gjør eller har gjort feil. En sentral dimensjon i en slik akademisk kritikk er knyttet til språkbruk og skrivestil. Og gjort på den riktige måten kan det komme mye godt ut av slik kritikk. Jeg vil, for nå å si det slik, gjerne kritiseres for det jeg skriver. Når det kommer til mer journalistisk virksomhet opplever jeg det altså annerledes. Muligens har det å gjøre med at man skriver under press. Det er ofte kort tid til deadline, og man har knapt tid til å file på formuleringer eller tenke over metaforbruken. I heldige stunder blir uheldige formuleringer tatt av desken eller korrekturlesere (jeg har skrevet litt om dette her), men som oftest kommer det igjennom, og man kan selv gremmes når man ser sin tekst på trykk. Slik er det, og kan man ikke leve med det bør man nok ikke skrive for aviser. Men da snakker jeg om kritikk av mine egne tekster. Å kritisere, eller diskutere, andre anmelderes tekster er tross alt noe annet. Samtidig kan man noen ganger ta seg i å spørre “kan man overhodet skrive slikt?”, og det spørsmålet kom til meg to ganger i går. Og på tross av at jeg dermed altså kan se ut som om jeg kritiserer navngitte personer her (og det gjør jeg vel strengt tatt), her kommer de to eksemplene. Og jeg er altså først og fremst ute etter å diskutere dem heller enn å si at de er “feil” hva nå enn det er. (En beslektet post er denne, om “Stemmer, ben og legger”).

Så altså, første hendelse er BT-magasinet i går, der Sverre Drønen i sin spalte pop-preik har en side med overskriften “Sutrehomopopens venner.” Drønen, som ellers blogger på droneland, har brukt ordet før. Første gangen, så langt jeg kan finne ut, er i en bloggpost fra februar 2007, med tittel “Sutrehomopop?,” deretter i posten “Å, dra til Grønland!” fra februar i år, og deretter, for kort tid siden, i anmeldelsen av Bloc Partys (myspace) Intimacy Remixed i Bergens Tidene. Og nå altså i går (i en artikkel som ikke ligger på nett). Hva er så denne “sutrehomopopen”? Drønen definerer den slik: “musikk av og for homoer som synes synd på seg selv.” Og eksemplene hans i gårsdagens artikkel er Antony Hegarty (myspace), Rufus Wainwright (myspace), Morrissey (myspace), Boy George (myspace), Stephin Merritt/The Magnetic Fields og The Czars, mens Mika (myspace) blir stående som et eksempel på en som prøver men ikke helt får det til. Ok, innrømmet, muligens er det det banale faktum at flere av mine favoritter (som bloggens lesere straks vil gjenkjenne) opptrer i denne listen som får meg til å reagere. Samtidig tror jeg det handler mer om “sutre” enn om “homopop,” også selv om jeg nok ikke helt forstår hva “homopop” er, altså hvordan den skulle skille seg fra “heteropop” (eller hva dens motsetning nå skulle være). Men jeg tror det er mer at jeg ikke helt gjenkjenner Antony eller Rufus som sutrende. Drønen skriver sånn sett at det finnes “god sutrehomopop”; i anmeldelsen av Bloc Party synes Rufus å kunne stå for denne. Men likevel. Og det er nok i forhold til beskrivelsen av Antony jeg virkelig blir uenig, der Drønen skriver: “Vokalisten i Antony & the Johnsons har helt siden han introduserte verden for sin dvaske kropp og en røst som mest minner om en hvalross som er grunnstøtt i isødet vært en naturlig favoritt for sutrehomoene. Den ubestridte sutrehomopopsolkongen.” Lesere vil vite at jeg er uenig. Men, og dermed kommer vi tilbake til noe av problematikken med å diskutere/kritisere andre musikkanmeldere, slike utsagn er nå engang rimelig subjektive. Det ligger i anmelderiet som sjanger at det er (mer eller mindre) kvalifisert synsing.

Den andre artikkelen der jeg i går spurte meg selv om man virkelig kan skrive slikt stod i Politiken. Erik Jensen har en artikkel med tittel “Her er USA’s storsælgende jomfrublondine.” Og dere skjønner hvor jeg vil hen, og det er åpenbart at det er kropp og sex det er snakk om her. Hva slags ord er “jomfrublondine”? Artikkelen handler om Taylor Swift (myspace), storselgende ikke bare i USA, og Jensen skriver om henne i kontrast til Britney Spears (myspace), Amy Winehouse (myspace), og Paris Hilton (myspace). Han skriver også interessante ting om Swift, men likevel.

Så altså, “sutrehomopop” og “jomfrublondine.” To ord som begge så definitivt også reiser spørsmål knyttet til forholdet mellom musikk og sex (eller kjønn eller kropp). Det er spørsmål jeg synes er mer enn relevant, men det gjør det ikke lett å skrive om.

It is really such a crime to like a cover as much as (if not more than) the original? Although there are  certainly some atrocious covers out there which can leave your perception of the original song in tatters, I am not ashamed to admit that there are a fair few covers which I hold in as high esteem as their originals. Here are a few covers I feel are up to the mark.

Although I am quite fond of ‘Heart it Races‘ by Melbourne’s Architecture in Helsinki when I stumbled upon this cover by Dr. Dog I was mesmerised.   They have managed to give the song a certain something (which I can’t quite put my finger on) that it seemed to be missing. The original is a light, fun electro-pop song while the cover version has transformed it into a warm and dreamy tune. The song translates very well into this ever-so-pleasant style of jangly indie pop (or whatever you might like to call it).

I was pretty much a sure thing that I would love The Shins version of the Magnetic Fields song ‘Strange Powers‘. For one, the lyrics are great. Who could go past a song with the line “when we kiss it feels like a flying saucer landing”. Combining romance AND sci-fi amount to lyrical genius in my book. The film clip for the original song stars a very androgynous chick(?) gallivanting around Coney Island. Even though numerous people have told me it is now a dilapidated tourist-trodden hell hole, I still have a strange and steadfast desire to go there one day. Maybe I should blame songs which reference it such as this one and ‘Coney Island‘ by Death Cab For Cutie. Secondly, I always find the Shins so endearing. This might be because they have a particularly powerful brand of indie-pop which makes you want to dance like a fool or it could be because their lyrics are puzzlingly dark for a band with such a light hearted sound. Enough about the Shins. The cover is great.

I am well aware that I may get a complete roasting from Tom Waits fans for this one but I actually really dig Scarlett Johansson’s version of ‘Falling Down‘. I have heard a lot of people say ’she can’t sing’- sure, her voice isn’t to everyone’s taste but isn’t the same true of Waits himself? The cover is actually pretty true to the original in terms of vocal delivery and the banjo is lovely to boot.

Honourable mention goes to:

• She & Him covering ‘I Should Have Known Better‘ by the Beatles (ORIGINAL,  COVER)

• My Morning Jacket’s version of ‘Rocket Man‘ by Elton John (ORIGINAL, COVER)

• Sufjan Stevens covering ‘The One I Love‘ by R.E.M (ORIGINAL, COVER)

• Bon Iver’s version of ‘The Park‘ by Feist (ORIGINAL, COVER)

Opinion seems to be divided; the Beach Boys, if I remember correctly, were rather fond of them, but my favorite musical artist, Stephin Merritt of the Magnetic Fields, snarls:

“See them on their big bright screen,

tan and blonde and seventeen;

eating non-food keeps them mean,

but they’re young forever.

If they must grow up, they marry dukes and earls -

I hate California girls!”

Me, I think I like these California girls. I like their long sundresses, their square sunglasses, their flat sandals. Provided they’re not those ones what carry tiny dogs in their purses, California girls are fine by me.

Because everybody should like Stephin Merritt as much as I do, here’s his “California Girls”, sung, I think, by Shirley Simms:

I didn’t make that video, btw. But isn’t that a great song?

Mixtape #5 contains mp3s by:

Rihanna featuring The-Dream, Ingrid Michaelson, Bloc Party, The Ting Tings, Eric Hutchinson, Katy Perry remixed by LMFAO, Montt Mardie, Spoon, The Magnetic Fields, The Rapture produced by Timbaland, Neimo, Fat Joe featuring Akon, and Mute Math.  Read ahead to download.

So my brother’s girlfriend (who is the straight-up shit, y’all!) told me her BFF has been checking out (and apparently diggin!) Boomsker.  (Wait, does that mean someone actually reads this?…Sweet!)  I’ve never met her (the BFF), but since she’s my almost-sister-in-law’s almost-sister, she’s basically family.  Basically.  Plus, her mom’s got the hots for my brother.  So whether El Hermano ditches his ball-and-chain (I kid, I kid) or goes for the cougar mom, either way I’m stuck with Co-Co and Lo-Lo.  And if Lo-Lo is even a tenth as cool as Co-Co is, all is swell in my world.  So this one goes out to the sister I never had (love you, Grudey!) and L-to-the-ogan.  Hope I can provide you sexy betches with some good music while you’re at your jobs!  And on that note…what’s a job?…

Eric Hutchinson – Rock & Roll:

Bad day?  This song (one of the catchiest of 2009) is a cure-all for anyone feeling even the slightest bit sick or depressed.  With a just-upbeat-enough tempo; uplifting chord progression; guitar for a beachdeck party with your fave friends; and a chorus of joyful organ, energizing handclaps, and “na-na-na”s, listening to “Rock & Roll” is the sure start to what will be a great weekend.  You’re welcome.  For fans of: Jason Mraz, Josh Kelley, Matt Nathanson.

• Download:  Eric Hutchinson – Rock & Roll.mp3
• (buy album)
  

Montt Mardie – New York:

Swedish songwriter/singer/multi-instrumentalist Montt Mardie’s records have never had an official US release, and that trend will continue with his third album (the “Best Of” compilation of his previous two albums released in Sweden), which will at least see itself a proper UK release this May.  Mardie (pronounced “mar-dee-yay”) makes throwback music to most eras of popular music of their times.  Lyrically and melodically cinematic, “New York” is a love song to the city of its title, and anyone not in the Northeast United States will feel nostalgic for their little piece of Noo Yawk, and those who are up there will feel compelled to take a bite out of the Big Apple.

• Download:  Montt Mardie – New York.mp3
• (buy album)
  

Fat Joe – One (feat. Akon):

“One” is the first single off Fat Joe’s new album (it’ll be his ninth) and features Akon being less annoying than usual and actually bringing a bangin’ hook to a surprisingly hot song!  Granted, all Akon really sings is “one”, “one”, “ooh”, and “ooh yeah”, but trust me, it’s an improvement and it works.

• Download:  Fat Joe – One (feat. Akon).mp3

Neimo – Johnny Five:

Bringing sly, hooky guitar riffs and new-wave hooks, this Parisian four-piece band are currently touring Europe.  With Bruno Alexandre’s disaffected but pulsing vocals sung (in English) over raucous post-punk guitars, “Johnny 5″ is the itch in your ears scratched to great effect.  For fans of: David Bowie, New Order, The Bishops.

• Download:  Neimo – Johnny Five.mp3
• (buy album)
  

Rihanna – Hatin’ On the Club (feat. The-Dream):

If my abusive former CURRENT boyfriend (break up with that douchebag already, Ri-Ri!) was out cheating on me, I’d be not only hating on the club, but probably setting fire to it!  So you can call it curmudgeon-&-b if you’d like, but I think I’m gonna side with Rihanna on this one and hate on the club too.  The-Dream brought us a hot one with “Hatin On the Club”.  And even if he didn’t, those brassy 60’s girl-group “why-eye-eye”s are too sticky to pass up.

• Download:  Rihanna – Hatin On the Club (feat. The-Dream).mp3

Katy Perry – Hot N Cold (LMFAO remix):

Katy Perry’s THE most annoying song is made actually listenable by the electro-crunk masterminds of LMFAO.  I posted LMFAO’s song “I’m In Miami, Bitch” in an earlier post, and they bring all the bling of platinum grills to “Hot N Cold”, a song at which I shudder whenever it’s played where I am.  But LMFAO bring something serious to this sickening tween-pop song, and the result is something that is mixed to perfection.  LMFAO brought some hot remix skills with them, but their originals are nothing to scoff at either.  I credit them with giving me “Hot N Cold” in its only listenable format.

• Download:  Katy Perry – Hot N Cold (LMFAO remix).mp3

The Magnetic Fields – California Girls:

There are so many genres of alternative music that if Boomsker were to just create a new one, no one would notice probably because no one reads this.  How about…lo-fi ironic indie.  Alright, we know how to label the music to market it, now we just need a band.  I think The Magnetic Fields will do just fine.  Led by the uber-prolific Stephin Merritt, the band is Cambridge-born, NY-based, and created their epic, yet still with pop sensibilities, the 1999 three-volume 69 Love Songs.  “California Girls”, however, is not on their opus of 68+1 songs, but on their most recent (and critically acclaimed) Distortion, which features lots of what it’s named after.  Fuzzy indie-pop songs in the same vein as Jesus & Mary Chain, The Magnetic Fields will make you either dance or cry, but probably both at the same time.  For fans of: The Gothic Archies, any Stephin Merritt band, (a more lo-fi) The Apples In Stereo.

• Download:  The Magnetic Fields – California Girls.mp3
• (buy album)
  

Mute Math – Typical:

Off their 2006 self-titled debut album, “Typical” is alternative-rock band Mute Math’s stinging first single.  It may not be new in the just-released sense, but it still sounds fresh in 2009 and is worth a listen.  If there’s a band that is The Police for the BlackBerry generation, it’s Mute Math.  For fans of: Jonezetta, Copeland, Acceptance, Mae.

• Download:  Mute Math – Typical.mp3
• (buy album)
  

The Rapture – No Sex For Ben (produced by Timbaland):

Produced by Timbaland, “No Sex For Ben” appears on the Grand Theft Auto IV soundtrack.  Ewan Pearson of The Rapture has said the song is about DJ Ben Rymer (uh, ya think?) from Gucci Soundsystem, and the song is meant to “take the piss out” of Rymer.  Is taking the piss out of someone a good thing?…  For fans of: LCD Soundsystem, Midnight Juggernauts, Radio 4, Hot Chip.

• Download:  The Rapture – No Sex For Ben.mp3
• (buy album)
  

Spoon – I Turn My Camera On:

I could (and likely will) post so many good songs by Spoon, and right now you get what is the first of probably many future mp3s on Boomsker by the Austin, Texas indie-rock band led by the brilliant Britt Daniel.  This song is not their best, but has plenty of greatness, nonetheless; it’s been picked up by several sitcoms, movies, commercials, yadda yadda yadda.  Great band you need to hear more of.  Spoon have made art-pop masterpieces; “I Turn My Camera On” is not one of them, but I still love it and think you will too.  For fans of: Tapes ‘n Tapes, The Walkmen, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, The Shins.

• Download:  Spoon – I Turn My Camera On.mp3
• (buy album)
  

Ingrid Michaelson – Be OK:

Her acoustically-framed songs are infectious, but just because Ingrid Michaelson has made two albums full of Grey’s Anatomy-ready songs, don’t write the singer-songwriter off just yet.  “Be OK” is gleeful and inspirational in a way I’d describe as the indie version of Diet India.Arie.  But musically, she’s Sara Bareilles with a guitar.  For fans of: Tristan Prettyman, Priscilla Ahn, Lenka, The Weepies.

• Download:  Ingrid Michaelson – Be OK.mp3
• (buy album)
  

Bloc Party – Flux:

Produced by Jacknife Lee, “Flux” is a dance-y indietronica gem that’s been remixed for just about every dance compilation album, especially for those DJing in the UK.  Off the A Weekend In The City album (and the North American version of their third album, Intimacy), Kele Okereke’s vocals are channeled through autotune while the rest of the British band is giving its best to keep up with the breakneck tempo.  “Flux” marks a new direction for Bloc Party who seem to be venturing more and more into electronica territory with each release.

Also, I’ve incldued below one of the many remixes of “Flux”, re-named “That’s Not My Flux” by DJ Sunderland who mashed-up the Bloc Party song with The Ting Tings’ name/identity-crisis, “That’s Not My Name”.  Katie White (The Ting Tings)’s rapped vocals are layered over the production of “Flux”, and Sunderland adds some of the percussive accentuations of “That’s Not My Name” to the rhythm, as well.  I love hearing Katie White over the guitar line toward the middle of the song, and her bandmate Jules De Martino’s drum inflections throughout buttress “Flux” with slight padding of The Ting Tings’ dance-punk/new-rave incentive.

• Download:  Bloc Party – Flux.mp3
• Download:  Bloc Party vs. The Ting Tings – That’s Not My Flux.mp3
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For folks who love witty t-shirts, Threadless is usually the place to go. But their new emo + emu design that’s up for potential shirt-printing is… well… barking up the same tree. I mean, I couldn’t tell you how long this thing has been circulating on the net…

the original emo emu

But, the emu seems to be the go-to animal when entering “emo” into the “cultural concept + similar sounding animal + funny idea liking both” equation… plus, that picture was used in one of the emo-cult TV reports warning parents of the danger of emo… but, it’s hard to say what parents could possibly be afraid of from that picture… that their kids want to turn themselves into large, depressed birds?

I’ll be interested to see what happens if this image does indeed get selected for circulation among the masses as clothing, simply because Bob Nanna writes short jingles about most Threadless shirts. Bob Nanna might best be known for fronting the mid-90s, Mid-Western emo outfit Braid, among a host of other emo acts. You’d have to wonder how the irony of the situation might be reflected in the ditty Nanna would potentially write… or maybe it wouldn’t at all, it’s hard to say. Either way, check out some of Nanna’s Threadless tunes, they’re short, sweet and catchy. Look out Stephin Merritt, you’re not the only one who can truck out short, simple, and solid songs by the truckload!

Braid – “The New Nathan Detroits” (video):

Stephin Merritt (born January 17, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter based in Los Angeles (formerly in New York City), best known as the principal singer and songwriter in the band The Magnetic Fields. He is known for his distinctive and untrained bass voice.

Showtunes

Year: 2006

More? Read It:
Stephin Merritts Other Coraline: Movie info from FilmInFocus
The production is a collaboration between writer and actor David Greenspan (who wrote the play and also plays the Other Mother), Magnetic Fields frontman Stephin Merritt (who wrote the music and lyrics), and director Leigh Silverman.
Coraline Coming to Off Broadway with Music by Stephin Merritt
Adapted from the truly terrifying children’s book by Neil Gaiman (author of the international sensation Sandman), this tale of menace and mayhem is set to music and lyrics by smart-rock iconoclast Stephin Merritt (of The Magnetic
Stephin Merritt: The Silent Type Mother Jones
Dek: The Magnetic Fields' Stephin Merritt talks about the "indie-rock ghetto" and his new album&#8212;but stays mum about Sasha Frere-Jones and <i>Mamma Mia</i>.Short.

Paul Steel History