Mass Gothic features the guy who used to be in Hooray For Earth, which makes complete sense once you listen to this song. It has a nice indie aesthetic to it. I can already imagine Buzzfeed making some cutesy viral video like “ten ways to become friends with your ex” where this song would soundtrack it. This song has a nice singalongability to it. Is that a word? It is now.
They are playing SXSW somewhere, check them out. Not gonna lie, you’ll have to look up where and when yourself.
Many a song plays host to personal and universally-relatable lyrics. Yet some remain unapproachable or inaccessible to those who would otherwise empathize, merely due to a less than memorable supporting melody. “I Don’t Wanna Be Funny Anymore” is just the opposite. Here, Richmond, Virginia’s Lucy Dacus and her band have crafted a perfect skeleton on which to hang a simple premise. It plays like the confession and resolution of an old friend with a sudden change of heart. Compacted to less than 3 minutes, the attention capture is immediate and refreshing.
Dacus’ first album, No Burden, was just released two weeks ago, and has already garnered some positive reviews. While I found other songs collected in the same such as “Strange Torpedo” to be slightly less impactful, her shows would certainly be worthwhile to visit at SXSW.
They will be playing at the Parish on March 17 at 8PM, as well as Clive Bar on March 18 at 8PM.
Aurora (Aksnes) seems something of a prodigy from her Wikipedia entry. She started writing music at the age of 10, released tracks at 16, and had signed with Decca Records when she was 18. Even The Guardian and the BBC have picked up on her precipitous rise. But you needn’t take other’s words at face (or ear) value. Running with the Wolves is clearly a strong effort from any would be singer-songwriter, let alone one at the age of 20.
While the distinctly Nordic bass line draws one close, it’s the choir that does one in. The imagery blends and transforms itself so seamlessly into that of a deathly struggle over a moonlit fjord at -20C that you might have chills running down your spine. The quiet-to-loud, simplistic-to-multiplexed type of dynamic contrast is at work here, too. Of course, I’m under no illusion that the chorus is anything other than her own voice overlaid – but it is fun to suspend disbelief for a second and imagine if it were the Franciscan friars. It would sound so much more final. This is, indeed, that dramatic of a song. The name of her forthcoming (March 11) album – All My Demons Greeting Me as a Friend – is no less comprehensively dark. But who am I to argue with a shade of youthful nihilism as an means to an end, if the end is this interesting?
Somehow, someway, Chairlift has risen from the ashes of mediocre indie pop bands to a band I really like in the past few years. The elevation was unexpected but not unwelcomed. It’s kind of like goat curry, I never thought much about goat curry but then a few years ago I moved close to a restaurant named Jerk King and that place happens to serve goat curry, and also it was open really late. So one night, I don’t know why, but I will place it on the mystery known as fate, I walked into the place and decided to have a go at the goat. Why not right? I liked it, but didn’t think about it too much at the time.
Slowly and surely, as time progressed, I found myself visiting this Jerk King more and more. With increasing frequency, I found a certain gravitational pull to the Goat curry. One day it dawned on me and I came to the stunning realization that I do, in fact, like goat curry.
This is kind of like Chairlift. We all know them from the track Bruises, which was on ipod commercials. Then they released a few more albums and had some songs such as I Belong to You and Amanaemonesia. Those songs were good, but over time, I found that I did listen to them more then I expected. It didn’t hurt that they were accompanied by some of the most creative videos out there. I wonder if Chairlift likes goat curry, part of me thinks that Caroline Polachek is vegetarian. But then I can also see her eating sushi. Does she eat sushi? will we ever know.
Anyways, they put out a new album this year called Moth and it is fantastic. It might be their most commercial album yet and the track Moth to the Flame is sure to be very popular once they release it as a single. I love the first notes of the song, it makes you think like it’s a Color Me Badd track before ascending into danceable territory.
They are playing at SXSW so you should get some goat curry and check them out.
Here is the song Moth to the Flame. Dance to it you little bitch.
