the sunday superlative - 3/29/09

This Week: Catharsis!



Everyone hits rough patches. It's all part of life's rich pageant. One of the most miraculous things that music can do for a person is provide an outlet for all of those negative emotions. Sometimes it may take a while to find the right outlet, that one song that just does it for you, but rest assured when that happens that the song will immediately become part of you and never leave.

Such is the way of these three songs, each of which has stood the test of time (my history with all of these dates back to middle school, and I haven't lost an ounce of love for any of them) and have snugly found their place among my favorite songs ever. In other words, yeah, this is probably the most "legit" Sunday Superlative post in a long time, in that it really is showcasing what I believe is some of the most exemplary, powerful music I have heard. Of course, everyone is different and I can't guarantee that anyone else will find these as deeply cathartic as I do. I could never stop you from trying, though.

The Cure - "Disintegration" (mp3|7.63MB)
For those of you who may not have gotten the memo, The Cure's Disintegration is far and away, without question, my favorite album of all-time. There's no competition. What they accomplish with those 72 minutes is gorgeous, shattering, and utterly perfect. And yet, as tremendous as every song is, not a single one has ever been as viscerally powerful for me as the title track. Extremely few songs can lay claim to having brought me to tears. Even fewer can boast of having that effect on me pretty much every single time (in fact, we may have just narrowed it down to this song). The secret ingredient is a mystery even to me: it's eight solid minutes of swirling, drone-dance hell with Robert Smith wailing some of his most painfully personal lyrics ever, and somehow it just works (the closest analogy I can think of is Of Montreal's similarly wonderful "The Past Is a Grotesque Animal," on which this must've been a huge influence). More than that: it transcends. It becomes by some force of nature a receptacle for all of the misery and depression and suffering in the world, and in the process emerges as one of the most powerful pieces of music ever set to tape.
(from the 1989 album Disintegration)

Nine Inch Nails - "Mr. Self Destruct" (mp3|4.12MB)
Trent Reznor has always been very hit-or-miss with me. Some of his songs are great, while others just seem to miss the mark entirely. When he hits, though, he has the power to hit hard. "Mr. Self Destruct" is an exceedingly abrasive song, and I have no doubt that's what gives it such an overpowering force. When I am inhumanly, furiously mad, there is no greater song in the universe. It strikes all the perfect nerves: Reznor's bitterly antagonistic lyrics, the frenetic, chugging rhythm that gets punctuated with bursts of vicious screaming and noise, the eerie and murderously calm eye of the hurricane wherein you're still pissed as fuck and want to kill something but are disturbingly relaxed about it. By all accounts, it is an anger spell in musical form. It is the only song I can think of that has ever managed to capture every nuance of that particular emotion, and for that I cannot give it enough credit. No, this isn't the sort of thing I can freely listen to at any time (or even often), but when I can it's nothing short of sublime.
(from the 1994 album The Downward Spiral)

Tears for Fears - "Shout" (mp3|5.96MB)
Tears for Fears' place in the grand scheme of rock music is not something that should ever be underestimated. No, they never made a great album, and yes, their output worthy of "required listening" can pretty easily be consolidated into a list of about a half-dozen songs, but ... have you heard those songs?! They're better than not only the majority of 80s pop music, but the majority of music in general. "Shout" is a fine example. Of their myriad hits, this is probably the most famous and recognizable, but it possesses a startling power that is conspicuously absent from almost all other mainstream music. It's an angry song, but it doesn't express that anger with screaming and waves of corrosive noise like plenty of others -- Mr. Reznor included -- would. Instead, it opts for a steady, gradual crescendo that begins as relatively composed and ends almost like some great war cry. When that searing guitar comes in at around 4:30, I just want to raise my fists to the sky and do exactly what the song tells me to. Maximum volume required.
(from the 1985 album Songs from the Big Chair)

The end! I'll try my hardest to be back next week, possibly with something a little cheerier. We'll see. Take care, folks.

friday five - 27.03.09 - drugs!

I've come to a realisation within the past couple of weeks. That realisation is this: If I don't update, people will beat me.

Since teachers, employers, and customers are forbidden by law to beat someone if they are lax in their services, I feel somehow more obligated to procure this rather abrupt yet hopefully mildly satisfying music post out of the ether and into your outstretched hands.

Why?

Because if I don't, people will beat me.

So, without further ado, I give you: drugs!¹ Well, not real ones. But close enough, right? I mean, you're only here because you're addicted, yeah? Good; my mind-controlling blog-waves are working!

Don't ask how they function, just read! Augh! You people!



Band of Horses - "Weed Party" (mp3|4.37MB): "Just another party song." Not really. The point here is - besides having a weed party - everything's going to be okay. Doesn't matter if the parents are there or if they find out. Just have your weed party. It's cool. And if it's not? Hey, look! Wine! Thank you, Band of Horses, for your support. The party will go on.
(from the 2006 album Everything All the Time)

High Places - "Head Spins (extended version)" (mp3|4.05MB): So, this is actually about love. It's nonsensical like love, and love makes you high, and speaking of love - oh, and by the way, dinosaurs and seagulls' wings. High Places presents to you exactly what my thought process looks like when I think about my relationships with others. (Before you say a word: I have a lot of friends. Facebook says so.)
(from the 2008 album 03/07 - 09/07)

Klaxons - "Gravity's Rainbow" (mp3|3.64MB): This one was obviously selected for a very different reason. A few of you (okay, one or two. maybe one.) might get this. This is why Klaxons is awesome. See, there's this book. We'll call it Literature McHuge-Big. Actually, we'll just call it Gravity's Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon. This guy stockpiled weed and potato chips and wrote a book. That's all you need to know, besides the fact that this book is fucking large. Anyway, there's this part in the book that references ejaculation and WWII bomb trajectories, right? Yes, well, there you go. This is a song about a part in a book about the comparison between ejaculate and a falling bomb. And now I really want some potato chips.
(from the 2007 album Myths of the Near Future)

Pink Floyd - "Any Colour You Like" (mp3|4.71MB): You probably knew I was going to throw some Floyd in here. Oddly, it wasn't "Several Species of Small Furry Animals Gathered Together in a Cave and Grooving with a Pict." (Although - nah, never mind.) This is just a super-chill instrumental track from Dark Side of the Moon that's - well. I mean, that sounds like it would be a great song to smo - er. You know. Do that thing. That thing you do. When you - aww, screw it.
(from the 1973 album Dark Side of the Moon)

Telepathe - "Drugged" (mp3|4.72MB): The thing about Telepathe is the fact that they have this awesome Au Revoir Simone/Switchblade Symphony girlbaby awesomeness going on. Couple that with lyrics like "I sit in the swirl" and "I watch the light" and - oh, did I mention the distorted electronics and trance vocals that still manage to combine into something vaguely industrial and dark? Yes please.
(from the 2009 album Dance Mother)

Okay, that's it. You kids clear out. Oh yeah, and watch where you st -

- eeugh. Never mind! Good night!


¹Our Google statistics are about to skyrocket. Just you watch.


As always, send lovemail/hatemail/anymail related to the Friday Five to fridayfiveradio@gmail.com. Requests are always considered and welcomed. See you next week!

the sunday superlative - 3/1/09

This Week: Good Songs by Terrible Bands: 2000s FM Rock Edition



I suppose this entry could also easily be subtitled Guilty Pleasures, because it's true: I like these songs quite a bit, but if you listen closely you can hear a small part of me die every time I admit it. The truth stands, though. I, the snotty and fairly unflappable indie kid, also occasionally listen to the radio, and sometimes I even enjoy it. Most of the time I'm appalled by the collective taste of contemporary mainstream America, but from time to time even the most appalling of bands manages to get it right.

So that's tonight's showcase. I'm sure you've heard of all three of these bands. They share two things in common: (1) they're all pretty huge right now; (2) they're uniformly terrible. I would never, ever purchase an album by any of these guys. The point I'm making, though, is that talent (or perhaps luck) can be found in even the most unlikely places. All three of these songs are quite good. I'd never condone listening to the remainder of their output, but even I must admit to sneaking a bite or two of these songs every once in a while.

Fall Out Boy - "Thanks for the Memories" (mp3|6.03MB)
Ever since I discovered and fell head over heels in love with Brand New (whose indescribably fantastic The Devil and God... I practically have memorized by now), I have a hard time discounting the entire musical umbrella known unfavorably as "emo." But let's face it: the vast, vast majority of it really sucks a big one. No "emo" band has enjoyed the same degree of mainstream success as Fall Out Boy, and I guess one could reasonably argue that none are as deserving (since they're all offensively generic enough as to be interchangable). But ugh, I can't stand them. These guys were the shit in high school, and I guess they continue to be. I don't care for their image, I don't like their obviously put-on emotional turmoil, I don't think Pete Wentz is omg hott, and my hair reflexively stands on end every time I hear their music. And that's why I perhaps unfairly regard the catchy and unmistakably homoerotic "Thanks for the Memories" as something of a fluke. It's a well-written song and I enjoy it more than I care to admit, but I'm just left with that nagging feeling that even a stopped clock tells the right time twice a day.
(from the 2007 album Infinity on High)

Maroon 5 - "Makes Me Wonder" (mp3|4.83MB)
My apologies in advance, but whenever I think of the singer of Maroon 5, I think of Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight: "What happened? Jer balls drop off?!" The man is one hormone injection away from sounding like Sheryl Crow. But in 2007, against all odds, he and his band miraculously managed to turn this into a good thing for three and a half minutes and deliver "Makes Me Wonder," which may well have been my favorite mainstream track of that particular year. I don't know what magic drug these guys took, but they embody that cocky white-boy funk thing so perfectly that Justin Timberlake might as well just throw away the latter half of his career (he can start by throwing away the first half, too). This is a frightening song. Absolutely terrifying. It has no right to be this damn good. But it's really, really quality.
(from the retardedly titled 2007 album It Won't Be Soon Before Long)

3 Doors Down - "Kryptonite" (mp3|5.37MB)
I remember when this song came out. I was in 6th grade. I even liked it then. This either means my taste hasn't improved, or this song is actually pretty good. Despite the answer I would lean towards, the band apparently favors the latter option, since they've spent the past decade trying -- and failing -- to rewrite it. Really, they should've just broken up. All of their songs sound exactly the same, like a second-rate 3 Doors Down tribute band (jesus god almighty) trying to one-up the only good song they ever had. Trust me, that's not a good place to be. But hey, at least this "Kryptonite" ditty is pretty good. I mean, it's not like "Stairway to Heaven" or anything, but in a loud mindless alt-rock sort of way, I find it pretty satisfying.
(from the 2000 album The Better Life)

Catch you folks later!