The Clean

I can hardly forgive myself for missing The Clean when they played NYC late last year. I have great affection for the New Zealand bands that recorded with Flying Nun throughout the 1980’s, e.g., the Verlaines, Chris Knox, the Chills, the Bats, etc. And of course the Clean, who really were at the heart of it all. They just put out fiercely original music that went on to inspire countless bands (and still do).

I recently watched Heavenly Pop Hits: the Flying Nun Story on You Tube, which is a great documentary about that era of music, and was reminded about how much I dig the Clean, so I thought I’d share a couple of my favorite tracks.

Anything Could Happen

Thumbs Off

Handsome Furs - Plague Park

Handsome Furs are a Vancouver-based duo consisting of Wolf Parade’s Dan Boeckner and his fiancée, Alexei Perry. Their debut, Plague Park, was released in mid-2007. And although the sound is stripped down with just guitars and a drum machine, it’s incredibly full and textured. The effect is dark, dusty, and raucous in the all right places.

Dead + Rural
Cannot Get, Started

Lightspeed Champion – Falling Off the Lavender Bridge

At just 22 years of age, Dev Hynes has already reinvented himself from a former dance-punker in Test Icicles, into a precious, folkster dubbed Lightspeed Champion. The sound is definitely in the realm of Patrick Wolf, whom he toured with, and he’s also connected to the whole Saddle Creek collective in Nebraska. What can you say… it works. The album is something special from a unique talent.

Tell Me What It's Worth

My Drug Hell

These guys have definitely never gotten the recognition they deserve. They put out their debut This is My Drug Hell back in 1996, which yielded a modest college radio hit with “Girl at the Bus Stop.” For an amazing record that was, in my opinion, one of the best of that year, they should have gotten a whole lot more attention.

Fast forward to 2008, and finally there is a follow-up due sometime this year – supposedly called My Drug Hell 2 – released by a rinky-dink label called Forthesakeofthesong. I’ve heard about half of the forthcoming release and it’s really great, picking right up with their strongly 60’s influenced sound.

Here are a couple tracks, the first off the new one, and the second is one of my favorites from their debut.

Mysteries of Love

Jinx's Hole

The Magnetic Fields - Distortion

Stephin Merritt returns after four years with Distortion, yet another "concept" album. Funny that it seems more of a return to the early days of The Wayward Bus/Distant Plastic Trees... and that's a good thing. I was one of the few that thought his 1999 breakthrough, 69 Love Songs, was completely overwrought and would have worked better as 34.5 love songs, but alas, the "concept" was born.

Distortion works well with shared vocals by Merritt and Shirley Simms. It gets the songwriting balance right between sincerity and comedy. Highlights include: California Girls, Too Drunk to Dream, The Nun's Litany, and Drive On, Driver, which you'll find below.

Drive On, Driver

The Raveonettes – Lust Lust Lust

After what I consider to be a bit of a misstep with Pretty in Black, The Raveonettes are back with Lust Lust Lust. This latest effort is a candy-coated confection of sex and guitar fuzz, which is precisely what I’ve always found most appealing about them. Solid Solid Solid is the verdict for their fourth outing.

Dead Sound

Best of 2007 Worthy: a Few that Got Away.

As is always the case, I got into a few albums during the last weeks of 2007 that finally made it onto my iPod and into my brain. These gems would probably make it onto the top 15 list, or I would’ve had to make it 20.

Shocking Pinks
Shocking Pinks

Think My Bloody Valentine and New Order, updated with a thoroughly modern sound.

This Aching Deal

Papercuts
Can't Go Back

Shimmering songs dripping with a whispy, psychedelic haze.

Dear Employee

The Octopus Project
Hello, Avalanche

If you’re going to be an instrumental band, it helps to have interesting instrumentation.

Bees Bein' Strugglin'

Top 15 Albums of 2007

So blogging has apparently not set my world aflame, since it's been about a year since my last post (ahh... but what a post it was). Since it's the end of a great year in music, I may as well put out my top picks for the year. How about 15 to make up for the lack of content, and to outdo last year. Good stuff all so take a listen and enjoy!



1. Jarvis Cocker
Jarvis

Black Magic









2. Beirut
The Flying Club Cup

The Penalty









3. Andrew Bird
Armchair Apocrypha

Imitosis









4. Okkervil River
The Stage Names

Unless It's Kicks









5. Iron and Wine
The Shepard's Dog

Innocent Bones









6. Liars
Liars

Houseclouds









7. Grinderman
Grinderman

Get It On









8. Arcade Fire
Neon Bible

Windowsill








9. LCD Soundsystem
Sound of Silver

Time To Get Away









10. Panda Bear
Person Pitch

Take Pills









11. Radiohead
In Rainbows

Reckoner








12. The National
Boxer

Mistaken For Strangers









13. Spoon
Ga, Ga, Ga, Ga, Ga

Don't You Evah









14. Sunset Rubdown
Random Spirit Lover

The Taming of the Hands That Came Back To Life










15. Sea and Cake
Everybody

Up On Crutches

---

Honorable Mentions:


Super Furry Animals - Hey Venus!

Shocking Pinks - Shocking Pinks

The Clientele - God Save the Clientele

Black Lips - Good Bad Not Evil

Caribou - Andorra

Darren Hayman and the Secondary Modern

Charlotte Gainsbourg - 5:55

Air - Pocket Symphony

Butch Slap's Top 10 Albums of 2006

Here they are... the albums I enjoyed most this past year. Actually putting them in sequential order is always a tricky endeavor, as day to day my opinion shifts. For example, the past week I've been listening to the Black Angels record quite a bit, and am tempted to slide it up a couple notches. At some point you've just gotta call it, and say it's done - whether it's a silly list such as this or something more life affecting. Anyhoo, the 10 songs below make quite a playlist, so enjoy!

1. Sparklehorse
Dreamt for Light Years in the Belly of a Mountain

mp3: Shade and Honey

2. Bob Dylan
Modern Times

mp3: Thunder on the Mountain

3. The Decemberists
The Crane Wife

mp3: Shankill Butchers

4. Black Heart Procession
The Spell

mp3: The Spell

5. TV on the Radio
Return to Cookie Mountain

mp3: Dirty Whirlwind

6. The Black Angels
Passover

mp3: The First Vietnamese War

7. Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint
The River in Reverse

mp3: The Sharpest Thorn

8. French Kicks
Two Thousand

mp3: So Far We Are

9. The Black Keys
Magic Potion

mp3: Strange Desire

10. Pink Mountaintops
Axis Of Evol

mp3: Lord, Let Us Shine

---

Honorable Mentions:

Cat Power - The Greatest

Beck - The Information

Belle & Sebastian - The Life Pursuit

Bonnie Prince Billy - The Letting Go

Ray Davies - Other People's Lives

Band of Horses - Everything All the Time

So blogging has apparently not set my world on fire, as it's been about a year since my last post.



1. Sparklehorse
Dreamt for Light Years in the Belly of a Mountain

mp3: Shade and Honey





2. Bob Dylan
Modern Times

mp3: Thunder on the Mountain





3. The Decemberists
The Crane Wife

mp3: Shankill Butchers





4. Black Heart Procession
The Spell

mp3: The Spell





5. TV on the Radio
Return to Cookie Mountain

mp3: Dirty Whirlwind





6. The Black Angels
Passover

mp3: The First Vietnamese War





7. Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint
The River in Reverse

mp3: The Sharpest Thorn





8. French Kicks
Two Thousand

mp3: So Far We Are





9. The Black Keys
Magic Potion

mp3: Strange Desire





10. Pink Mountaintops
Axis Of Evol

mp3: Lord, Let Us Shine

---

Honorable Mentions:

Cat Power - The Greatest

Beck - The Information

Belle & Sebastian - The Life Pursuit

Bonnie Prince Billy - The Letting Go

Ray Davies - Other People's Lives

Band of Horses - Everything All the Time