25.2.10

You're just a small light

I'm really enjoying the new Lali Puna album, Our Inventions. There's something about Valerie Trebeljahr's voice that's very soothing and comforting. Their electronic pop music is warm and inviting. I often feel like I can sink into a Lali Puna song and land softly. Or maybe like the song is a cloud and it floats me to someplace where the skies may be grey, with hopeful glimpses of blue. Their songs are like a heaven made up of 1s and 0s. Or something.

Stream more Lali Puna tracks here, check out their webpage here and buy music over here.

Lali Puna > Move On

14.2.10

Just one time with a monkey wrench


In 1993, the Mario Brothers received the Jellyfish pop song treatment. If only all songs about video games were this cool, or good. A b-side from Jellyfish's New Mistake single, Ignorance Is Bliss is a lyrically straightforward tune concerning the characters from the game and sung from the perspective of Bowser, King of the Koopas. Musically, it's like the mad hatter of pop songs; stopping, starting, speeding up and seemingly about to whirl out of control and fly off the planet. Some parts of it also remind me of a stage play for some reason. It's all so Jellyfish, I don't think I could name another band who might be able to pull off a song like this these days. I love how it ends, when he says so casually and dismissively, "On second thought, I think I've made my point.", and the song waltzes and fades. Wonderful.

Jellyfish > Ignorance Is Bliss

Makin' up a mess of fun

For today, I was thinking of posting some beautiful, bitter song of heartbreak and despair, but you know what? I really don't care right now. I just wanna have some fun. So in celebration of fun in general, I give you the theme song from the Banana Splits. Find this song on the Saturday Morning: Cartoons' Greatest Hits compilation from 1995. Kind of an uneven album, but there are some fun tracks, like this one, that are worth hunting down.

Liz Phair with Material Issue > The Tra La La Song

10.2.10

You've been acting awful tough lately


I came across this song a week or so ago, and I can't get it out of my head. It's I Am Not A Robot by Marina & The Diamonds. I like the synthy production, and Marina's vocals sorta remind me of my beloved Kate Bush. I also like the vocoder in the background, I wish it were a bit more prominent, considering the "robot" theme of the song. The video is pretty trippy, too. She looks weird covered in all that black tar or whatever it is. She has an EP out, called The Crown Jewels, and her album, The Family Jewels, drops in a couple weeks.

Stream more of Marina & The Diamonds over at the official site, and keep up with Marina on Twitter.

Marina & The Diamonds > I Am Not A Robot

3.2.10

Songs of < 3 & < /3

 

Valentine's Day is coming. Some people love it, some people hate it. I don't really care for it myself, it's kinda of a prefab cash-grab "holiday", but that's just the way it goes. Just for fun, I wanted to see if I could put together a mix of love songs, but it didn't feel right without the darkness of heartbreak. I added even more songs and came out with these 32 tracks (yeah, I know it's long, it just happened that way). It's not definitive by any means, just stuff I happen to like. The songs are not evenly split, at least I don't think so because I didn't count. The subject matter was pretty easy, so I just tried to go for flow, and there might be some success in that respect. I'd say that most of these, I've been listening to forever. There are some newer tracks that I've taken to rather quickly, but it seems to be a decent mix of old and new.  

Some of these tracks really kill me. Badly Drawn Boy's Magic In The Air is so sweet and hopeful, like when you meet someone new and everything just clicks. Lamb's Gorecki is absolutely devastating, probably the best love song I've ever heard. This is the sound of falling in love. XTC's Your Dictionary has got to be the bitterest and most venomous breakup song ever written. Garbage's #1 Crush is pure stalker obsession. I love when Shirley Manson whispers menacingly, "I'd do time for you." Now THAT, my friends, is love. Joe Jackson's Happy Loving Couples never fails to crack me up. You can almost see him rolling his eyes, a knowing look on his face as he says, "You know what I mean... happy loving couples in matching lamb turtleneck sweaters, reading Ideal Homes magazine... yeah." Those assholes. Yeah, indeed, Mr. Jackson.

Check the tracklist while you're waiting for the download magic to happen (link at the bottom) and then drop this mix onto your mp3 player of choice.


Songs of < 3 & < /3
1. Heavenly - I Fell In Love Last Night
2. The Magic Kids - Hey Boy
3. The Magnetic Fields - I Don't Want To Get Over You
4. The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart - This Love Is Fucking Right
5. Lesley Gore - Look Of Love
6. The Clash - 1-2 Crush On You
7. Lucky Soul  - Love 3
8. Ben Folds Five - Song For The Dumped
9. Go Sailor - Windy
10. The Beatles - I'm Looking Through You
11. Frances Nero - Keep On Loving Me
12. Badly Drawn Boy - Magic In The Air
13. Cat Power - Could We
14. Neko Case - Buckets of Rain
15. Irma Thomas - It's Raining
16. Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan - (Do You Wanna) Come Walk With Me?
17. Tom Waits - Take It With Me
18. Aimee Mann - What The World Needs Now
19. Garbage - #1 Crush
20. Bat For Lashes - Siren Song
21. Rogue Wave - Maps
22. The Cookies - I Never Dreamed
23. Blondie - I'm Gonna Love You Too
24. Lush - I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend
25. The Ramones - I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend
26. Ivy - Get Enough
27. Book Of Love - You Make Me Feel So Good
28. Chris Clark - Put Yourself In My Place
29. Joe Jackson - Happy Loving Couples
30. XTC - Your Dictionary
31. Lykke Li - Little Bit
32. Lamb - Gorecki

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