Category Archives: Music

My iPod #198: Nine Black Alps – Cold Star

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Skip to 10:07 of the video. It’s the whole album if you want to hear it! But 10:07 is when the song starts.*

So I was out yesterday. Went to my friend’s house to play a bit of FIFA and watch the Arsenal match (which was terrible). I was out for almost half the day, and so could not do my post.

But here is the first one coming today! I have plenty of Nine Black Alps songs on my iPod, and I could talk endlessly about all of them. This one I’m not so sure about. I’m only kidding! Let’s go.

“Cold Star” is another track from Nine Black Alps third album “Locked Out from the Inside” which was released in 2009. I’ve made it clear on two occasions before that it was a return back to form after the somewhat disappointing “Love/Hate”, and “Cold Star” only made things so much better when I was listening to the full thing for the first time on the Internet.

Instrumentally, it’s another three minute shock of loud and relentless, crunchy guitars and a stomping rhythm section. This and violent, depressing imagery such as ‘tired faces’, ‘bleeding’ and’ ‘amputation scars’ altogether combine to make a song about hopelessness which is over before you even realise. All of this is done with a Beatles reference in the chorus too. Unbelievable.

A bit unrelated… but good news is that they have a new song out! “Novokaine”. Hopefully, a sign of a new album to come.

*11/06/2020: I changed the video so it’s just the song.

My iPod #197: Blur – Coffee & TV

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“Coffee & TV” is a track by Blur from the band’s sixth album “13”. It was written and sung by guitarist Graham Coxon, who is joined by Damon Albarn in the chorus.

I’ve known this song for a long time, even though I didn’t listen to all of Blur’s discography until earlier this year. That’s only because it was a single, and a lot of people know it for its memorable video directed by Hammer & Tongs.

I can’t really listen to this song without thinking about that milk carton. The music video has nothing to do with the message of the song, which is more about wanting to break away from uncomfortable social situations and living the simple life without any worries, but it just fits. I couldn’t imagine the song having any other video.

Did you know that the solo in the song wasn’t even meant to be in the final version of the song? Apparently it was a placeholder until Coxon could think of something better, but it just got to the point where they couldn’t because it was too late. That’s a good thing to bear in mind.

Enjoy.

My iPod #196: Maxïmo Park – The Coast Is Always Changing

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“The Coast Is Always Changing” is a track from Maxïmo Park’s first album “A Certain Trigger” which was released in 2005. The eighth track on that album if I remember correctly.

It was a single too. Their very very very first single. Like even before “Apply Some Pressure“. I didn’t know this song existed until the video played on MTV2, and that was way after the album had been released anyway.

One thing that irks me about this song, and others on “Trigger”, is that it sounds a lot different from “Apply Some Pressure”, “Graffiti” and “Going Missing”. Has anyone else noticed this apart from me? In terms of production this song, “I Want You to Stay” and “Signal and Sign” for example sound really rough. A bit like demo recordings. Whereas the former three sound really polished. I don’t know if that’s just me. Maybe it is.

I do like this song though, however different it sounds to the other singles.

My iPod #195: Hot Club de Paris – Clockwork Toy

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Hot Club de Paris is a band that you have probably never heard of before.

Well, I will take you back to 2007 when MTV Rocks was called MTV2. I still don’t quite understand why it changed, but that’s not the point. The point is, videos by the band were played on this channel. “Clockwork Toy” was one of them.

“Clockwork Toy” was the last single to be released from the trio’s first album “Drop It ’til It Pops”. That was the last time I heard anything by them. I haven’t bothered to listen to anything else that was released after that. My bad. I wasn’t very interested in them.

But the three songs of theirs (including this) I do know are good enough.

My iPod #194: Coldplay – Clocks

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What a day it has been. Two words. Anchorman 2. A must-watch. See it as soon as you can. One of the best movies out this year. Seriously, you guys. No more can be said on fantastically funny and bizarre this film is.

Today’s song is “Clocks” by Coldplay, the third single from the group’s second album “A Rush of Blood to the Head”. It almost didn’t make it onto the album due to time restraints and could have been released on “X&Y“, but they managed to record it very quickly and it now stands the test of time as track number five on their 2002 release.

This contains a notable piano melody which repeats throughout most of the song. You have heard it before. I must have heard it in an advertisement before I knew what the song was called or who performed it. If you didn’t know where it came from, you know now.