Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Plenty of Fine Music For Your Tuesday

Bubblegum
Bubblegum - Click to order
In the order in which I heard them:
  • Clinic - Bubblegum (Domino) [clinicvoot.org]
    • This comes dangerously close to surface level (as opposed to underground), but Clinic just released their sixth full-length, recorded in Liverpool, and it's pretty darn good. Mostly mellow, but an interesting listen.
    • You can hear the whole thing on their MySpace for free.
    • If you get the version on "bubblegum pink" vinyl, you also get a disc called Son of Bubblegum, with acoustic versions of six of the tracks on the parent album. You also get a poster, a T-shirt iron-on, a sticker and a coupon to download the tracks for free. Gee!
    • Clinic will be touring the UK and the U.S. to promote this album starting in a couple of weeks.

    "Other Directions" - Click to download
    • Welcome Back Sailors - "Other Directions" single (Beko) [MySpace]
      • Experimental pop duo from Italy. Lavish production and a beautiful pop sound. Not easy to describe—you should really hear it.







      "We Just Had More Fun" - 
      Click to download
      • Plastic Flowers - "We Just Had More Fun" single (Beko) [MySpace]
        • One-man pop project from Tallahassee. This is basic modern digi-pop, heavy on the keyboards. Not bad, but not terribly exciting.








      Seconds Late for the Brighton Line
      Seconds Late for the Brighton Line -
      Click to order
      • The Legendary Pink Dots - Seconds Late for the Brighton Line (ROIR) [legendarypinkdots.org]
        • Long album by the the Netherlands' legendary Legendary Pink Dots. This is their first release in two years, which is a really long time for this band that's put out around 45 weird albums since 1981.
        • This is darker than all the above stuff, very appropriate for October and Halloween and all that. There's much more keyboard than guitar here. They didn't try to modernize their sound much—this could easily have been recorded in the '80s. So if that's your mood, this might be for you. It's very listenable and even pretty in many places, especially toward the end, and the lyrics are very creative. But I might need a couple more weeks to really appreciate it. 
        • Got it here, by the way. Much of the album is on their MySpace, though, if you care to sample it.
        • The LPD will start their 30th anniversary tour next weekend and will be here in Columbus on October 23rd.

        The Salmon of Doubt - Click to download
        • Procedure Club - The Salmon of Doubt (Beko) [MySpace]
          • I already liked this band a lot. Beko announced yesterday that they were going to release a full album for the first time to celebrate their first birthday, and it turned out to be this PC album!
          • PC is a boy/girl duo from New Haven, Connecticut, layering loud guitars and keys over electronic drums.* They just released their first "proper" album on Slumberland this past June, though they had another even before that.
          • This new album has twelve tracks but is less than 33 minutes long. It's a super sweet experimental noise-pop album, and I'm crazy about it. Get it and play it loudly! I urge you.**


          *If that sounds like my own band, they do sound similar to a couple of the tracks on our album. Not a plug, just a note. They take the experimentation a lot further, though, and they'll probably be a touchstone when we make our next album.
          **If you're not going to listen to this album, there's really no reason for you to read this blog! This is as good as it gets, and it's completely free!




          All good stuff, but it probably comes as no surprise that I'm picking the loud, sloppy boy/girl band with electronic drumming (Procedure Club) as today's winner. Honorable mention goes to "Other Directions" by Welcome Back Sailors.


          Here's a stream of "Witches", the fifth track on The Salmon of Doubt, so you know what you're in for with this Procedure Club album. It's a great track, and the title happens to be appropriate for October.


          Procedure Club - "Witches" (The Salmon of Doubt, 10/5/2010)

          PS--PC's Andrea just replied to my message on MySpace saying she'd like to play in Columbus someday!

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