Our weekly look into the blogosphere where we talk about six tracks we found out about in the previous Wednesday-to-Wednesday seven-day period.Track of the week:
‘You Were a Kindness’ by The National
I heard this when they played it live for the very very very first time, and it was just as amazing then as it is now when hearing it behind my laptop. Berninger’s baritone is just lovely, so filled with sadness. The slide guitar, when I heard that live, that was brilliant. Stroke of genius. Best thing is, this is basically nothing like what they did on their High Violet album this year. Not that the album was bad, but somewhere in the back of my mind I was thinking, if they go more bombastic than this, I don’t know. And then they come with this restraint heartbreaker of self doubt. Love the reference to Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcare Named Desire (Berninger sings: “You were a kindness when I was a stranger”, which I think is taken from “I’ve always relied on the kindness of strangers”, otherwise “kindness” in the first sentence is grammatically incorrect). One of the best things I’ve heard this year, and that includes the album from the same band.
http://hypem.com/#/track/1191849/The+National+-+You+Were+a+Kindness
‘Hand Me Down Your Love’ by Hot Chip (Todd Edwards Micro Chip remix)
You know, I kind of like Hot Chip if they don’t go into ballad mode. Because I just don’t think they’re very good at that. But making a little party out of it, that they can do, and just play ‘Over and Over’ and I’m game. This remix by Todd Edwards sometimes sounds a little bit too 8-bit Nintendo-ey, and that always grates on me a bit I must admit (not a huge fan of most bands who employ that sound as their main thing). At times I find this remix to sound a bit unhinged, and I’m always glad when it goes back to the simple basics. I would’ve loved it if this song just had a bit more punch. Or, since it hasn’t, it would in any case be about two minutes shorter.
http://www.lagasta.com/hand-me-down-your-love/
‘Days of Our Lives’ by Restless People (Joe Karaoke mix)
This is a track originally recorded by Restless People and which has been covered by Primary 1 (we did an interview with him a couple of months ago which you can find somewhere on this site). Titled, for some reason, the Joe Karaoke remix. I like this one better actually, the original is kind of a summer jam and I’m more inclined to like stuff with a melancholic touch. Maybe that means that I’ve got to get out of my room more often and head to the beach every once in a while (but I loathe the beach, so scratch that). I love it that this reworking basically resembles the original in nothing. Not that the original was bad (you be the judge of that), but I love it when people don’t just slap a bass on it and say, voila, mix. This probably is a bit too restrained to set the dance floor alight for everyone, but I’m quite enjoying it.
http://hypem.com/#/search/karaoke%20joe/1/
‘She’s a Superstar’ by Aeroplane feat. Chromeo
Oh, how I’m regretting not catching Chromeo when they were visiting my little country, because what they’ve been showing the world this year has been quite impressive. This is a track they did with Aeroplane (or, the lad of Aeroplane, nowadays). A lovely stomper of a synthy glam track. The vocals are well good, as can be expected from Chromeo, and Aeroplane just make it work. Got to love the musical-like chorus of “She’s a superstar, superstar!” after which we get the piano and the beat again. Very nice track to dance to, but also to listen to, a combination hard to marry, but I think Aeroplane and Chromeo quite pulled that off. And I’m always in for something which has hints of glam in it.
http://chromeo.net/blog/2010/08/chromeo-vs-aeroplane-aeroplane-vs-chromeo/
‘First in Line’ James Yuill (Dan Lissvik remix)
I’m a bit on the fence concerning Yuill. Some of his stuff I really like, but a good deal of his work doesn’t really connect with me. When this track started I thought, oh no, African drums! I’m not a big fan of those. But luckily that is pushed to the background in favour of a restrained, melancholic track with ditto voices by Yuill. I think Lissvik really made something that complements Yuill’s voice. Both the music and voice have the same atmosphere, and I’m always a big fan of that. I imagine this will be lovely to bob your head to at night while the train is bringing you back home.
http://hypem.com/#/track/1192502/James+Yuill+-+First+In+Line+Lissvik+Remix+
‘Fuck You’ by Cee-Lo
I don’t think anyone is disputing that Cee-Lo has a good voice. Because he has. It is just that I think that the previous songs he has brought out this year, the choice of song was a bit poor. I mean, Danger Mouse was brilliant for him, and I think this makes it obvious. This just doesn’t have the punch Gnarls Barkley had and which made that so nice to listen to. I mean, Cee-Lo is belting it out, but the music itself just feels a bit insipid. It doesn’t have the bing and the bang and the oomph. And this one does have it a bit more than the others. It goes a bit big band retro for my ears, but not enough. I would’ve loved horns coming in, would’ve loved it if the music would just take Cee-Lo along. Now it just feels Cee-Lo is pulling the cart with all his might and the music is hobbling along. It isn’t a combination where one part strengthens the other, which is too bad. Also, any title with “fuck you” in it should get a two point deduction. That’s just an overused, meaningless, all too common phrase in my book. It might’ve been bold and provocative in the Sixties, now it is the reverse of that.
http://hypem.com/#/track/1196353/Cee+Lo+Green+-+Fuck+You
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