Monthly Archives: January 2015

My iPod #408: Yuck – Get Away

Leave a reply

Yuck are a four-piece indie rock band that originated the grand ol’ land of England. Specifically in the capital of London. Originally members of the more poppy indie group Cajun Dance Party, Max Bloom and Daniel Blumberg went on to form Yuck as Cajun gradually ran its course. For the self-titled album, the first and the one “Get Away” opens, the group utilised their guitars to create a wall of sonic fuzz and feedback, burying the vocals right into the mix and letting the melodies and noise do all the talking. The soundscape gives off a very 90s lo-fi, shoegaze feel reminiscent of bands such as Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr, and My Bloody Valentine.

The soundscape is also established from the very moment the album starts. With a strike of the snare, “Get Away” steadily moves with a gnarling guitar riff that swirls in and out of itself and is eventually joined by the higher lead guitar riff provided by Bloom. I think the lyrics are from a perspective of a person trying to write a song with a guitar at the ready, but just can’t seem to get the right ideas going. All this bother prevents this person from going outside into the “summer sun” but the inability to “get this feeling out [their] mind” prevents them from doing so. I adore that chorus. If the “I can’t get away” phrase isn’t a chorus in itself, then the “summer sun” part definitely matches the typical chorus description. Just brings a feeling of euphoria when that change comes in.

I’m glad I started listening to Yuck. Had I known that two of its members were from Cajun Dance Party earlier than last year, I feel I would have appreciated their music a lot more. But at least I know now.

My iPod #407: Blur – Gene by Gene

Leave a reply

The first time I heard “Think Tank“, Blur’s last album to date, was a few years ago when I listened to the band’s discography in chronological order a few years back. When “13” was over and it was time to listen to “Tank”, I held a few factors that were to affect how much I would like it. It was the band’s first album of the 21st century, four years after 1999’s “13”. But Graham Coxon had left the year before. And Damon Albarn had started his work on Gorillaz in 2001. Would this affect how Blur and their songs would sound?

Well, yeah it did. Guitars don’t have as much of a presence in “Think Tank” tracks as they did in all the albums preceding it. And recording the album in Morocco must have had an affect on Albarn’s visions of his track as there is a wide variety of instrumentation utilising instruments from around that region, and resulting in general experimentation along the whole album.

In my opinion, “Think Tank” is okay. You can’t be blamed if you hear it and think of it as almost being a Gorillaz album or Damon Albarn solo record if it wasn’t for the word “BLUR” on the front cover, and Alex James and Dave Rowntree being credited in the liner notes. That’s enough about that, though. Let’s talk about the song.

“Gene by Gene” is the penultimate track on “Think Tank”. This was the one I remember listening to and simultaneously thinking, “Hey….. this song’s quite good!” I dug it. It’s a feel-good song-for-the-summer track featuring sweet “oooooh” gospel backing vocals, a very prominent bass, and a twangy high string guitar lick that is repeated throughout. It’s big beat sound is also definitely the result of the production by a certain Norman Cook. Or Fatboy Slim, as he is more commonly known as.

Despite the track’s positive vibes, it is a bit strange too. The lyrics are quite random. Even though the lyric is “I’ll never forget”, I am still very sure that Damon Albarn sings “I never doggy” in the chorus. And those panning mechanical noises at the beginning, and jolting squeaks near the end are supposedly the band members hitting metal and jumping on top of a car. (Certain I’ve read that somewhere, but I can’t find the link).

In terms of the album it’s the last time there’s a sense of positivity and optimism, because “Battery in Your Leg” follows afterwards and a bunch of feels comes along with it.

My iPod #406: Green Day – Geek Stink Breath

1 Reply

If you’re a bit squeamish, have a nervous disposition, or specifically are not interested in observing close-ups a tooth being pulled out of a person’s mouth… then the video above is not the one to watch. And yet, it was the treatment Green Day chose to be used in the video to promote the first single from their upcoming album “Insomniac“. Last seen aimlessly walking around the streets of California at night singing about an up-in-the-air relationship a few months before, the band were now louder, harsher, and in-your-face, and performing in a bright red room bursting out a track about methamphetamine use.

And those descriptions above are a few reasons why I tend to prefer “Insomniac” over “Dookie” sometimes. From what I’ve noticed the consensus is that “Insomniac” is “Dookie’s little brother”, and is okay-but-just-not-as-good as that album. It seems a bit hypocritical to say that the two shouldn’t be compared to one another, seeing as I just did that in the first sentence of this paragraph. But I will say that “Insomniac” is a underrated as hell. Give it some respect. Turns twenty this October, I want some recognition.

Admittedly “Geek Stink Breath” was not a song of theirs that I liked when I first began listening to Green Day a decade ago. The video might have had something to do with that feeling. It might have had a lot to do with it, actually. But the track, to me, sounded very, very, very simple. Didn’t really like the song’s chord progression. The vocal melody wasn’t didn’t have the effect like others such as “Minority”, “Longview”, or “Stuck with Me” had on me…. and Billie Joe sounded too snotty and grimy too. I just couldn’t get into it.

Listening to a song over and over again can have a strange effect sometimes, though. I wouldn’t say it is one of Green Day’s best songs; it’s not one of the best songs on “Insomniac”. But I think it’s choice as a single was very appropriate. The perfect song to present the band’s new sound and image. Overall, it’s alright.

My iPod #405: Enter Shikari – Gap in the Fence

2 Replies

Next Monday post-hardcore group Enter Shikari release what will be the band’s fourth album “The Mindsweep“. Can I say that I am hyped about this? Not really. My interest in their music has faded as the years pass; had I not searched the group up on Google earlier this week, I would definitely not have known that a new album was coming soon. It also may be due to the dub-step stuff they began to incorporate into their music. It’s a shame. I used like to like them quite a lot. But I believe “Common Dreads” was their last album that I was excited for, and learnt to appreciate after listening to it a few times.

“Gap in the Fence”, about subservience and taking things at face value (in Rou Reynolds’ words, not mine), is a track that builds and becomes bigger as it goes on. Initially beginning as one of the slower and quieter ones on the album, Reynolds sings on his lonesome with an acoustic guitar; soft percussion and pretty vocal harmonies occur soon after. It is halfway through when the music somehow then evolves into this glistening house/trance beat where Rou makes it clear that he needs ‘to get out of here’. Many, many times. But it all results in a climactic finish consisting of loud guitars, a mix of shouting and singing, and a final word that stretches out for a few seconds before coming to an emphatic stop. “GRANNTEEEEEEEEEEEEEED-UH.” I feel Reynolds’ anger just listening to it,

It then segues into the next track “Havoc B”, but that’s besides the point.

“Gap in the Fence” is a sick one. Very nice.

In this video – at 6:50 or so – the band talk about the song. You might want to watch the whole thing if you want to know the background behind each individual track on “Common Dreads”.

My iPod #404: Supergrass – G-Song

1 Reply

*yawn* It’s been a while. How’s everyone doing?

Hope you all enjoyed your festivities over the holiday season. Feels quite strange starting this up again, seeing as I haven’t done one thing on this site since late November. I apologise. I need breaks too. But here I am again, and here I should be (almost) every day to give you the songs on my iPod beginning with the letter ‘G’.

So what better way to start it, than with a track entitled “G-Song” – the fifth track on “In It for the Money“, the second album by Supergrass. I always wondered why it was named as so.  The title has nothing to do with the song’s subject matter; the phrase doesn’t appear in the lyrics. But it came to me not so long ago. The song’s written in the key of G Major. Duh.

The only reason I can think of enjoying “G-Song” is having listened to it repetitively alongside the other eleven tracks that accompany it on “In It for the Money”. After “Late in the Day” ends I always expect “G-Song”‘s sudden introduction to kick in, with its chugging guitars and solid bass. The instrumentation is something that really gets to me when listening to this track. It’s got a real *oomph* to it. Can’t find a better way to describe it. Especially the phrase that plays during the “There may be troubles…” refrain. Groovy as anything.

Like many of the other tracks on the album, it also contains a bridge which sounds like it could have been used to a completely different song altogether. Yet somehow, the guys manage to bring it back right into the song’s already established riff. That is good stuff, right there.

In terms of lyrics, I have a feeling that this track is one of those where the band worked on the music beforehand before coming up with the words to suit it. Gaz Coombes sings about feeling strange whilst walking on his way home or something….. I really don’t know. But that’s not a bad thing. What matters is, this track is pretty good. Recommended listen.

On an unrelated note, “I Should Coco” turns twenty this year. Anyone on getting a Supergrass campaign started to get all their nineties albums re-released and remastered? Very politely ask Gaz Coombes and Mick Quinn.

Annnnnnnddddd……

The White Stripes – Fell in Love with a Girl

Hello again. If you read the final post from the F’s, you’ll remember me writing that I had actually skipped one track out by mistake. This was the track. How I skipped it, I’ll never know.

“Fell in Love with a Girl”. Classic. Not much to say. Bass-less, simple five chord track with an amazing video which makes you wonder what you’ve been doing with Lego your whole life.

I remember seeing the start of this video when I was younger, and being disappointed when it turned out that it wasn’t “Walkie Talkie Man” by Steriogram. That video was directed by Michel Gondry too. As a result, I would always change it without really listening to the song. Big mistake. The White Stripes’ video and song are much better.

Was never a huge White Stripes fan. But this track is great. Have to say. RIP.

I bet no one remembers who Steriogram is.