I actually started writing this entry purely with the intention of linking to a copy of the band's debut EP, since it's now out of print and the band have given me permission to upload it for public consumption (that actually happened ages ago, but I didn't want to post two Cobras Cobras Cobras entries too close together, so I've only just got round to uploading it now), but in doing a bit of research regarding the band's current activities, I've discovered they now have four brand new tracks - 'Wallsaw', 'Hotel California', 'Homeschooled' and 'Four' - available on their MySpace, and naturally I thought it would be churlish not to share. So that's what I've done. Shared. Hooray for you.
Of course, if you still want a copy of that debut EP (it's called Cobras Cobras Cobras Are Zombies, by the way), you can have that too. Just click here.
Friday 20 November 2009
Thursday 1 October 2009
Okay, fuck it
I've been putting off this entry for a good few months now - despite knowing exactly who it was going to be on (a band called The Memories Attack) - I guess because I wasn't really sure exactly what I wanted to write, but fuck it, I just listened to a track by the band for the first time in a while, and even if I still wasn't sure what I wanted to write, I sure as hell knew why I wanted to write it. Which is all that matters, right? Obligatory band photo coming up...
The Memories Attack partially pick up where Eric's Trip left off, counting as they do former Trip guitarist Chris Thompson amongst their members, and that gives you some indication as to what they sound like. There's no real departure from Eric's Trip's sound here, with the exception of the occasional embrace of electronically generated sound. In fact there's no real departure from the sound of countless bands. If you want something new and exciting, The Memories Attack probably aren't going to be for you. What they will give you, though, is the at times expert convergence of feedback, melodies and assault on the drum kit - the key components of great indie rock. This is great indie rock.
There's something somewhat inappropriate about the fact that I'm posting about this band now. Two things, really. The first is that the song in question - the song that I double-clicked in iTunes a few minutes before I started writing, thus providing me with the immediate compulsion to write this entry, and the song that I'm about to post a link to - is called 'Summertime'. Indeed, I initially wanted to post this in the middle of July and we could have all appreciated it in a way befitting its title, but while summer seems to cling on to the Northern hemisphere more stubbornly with each passing year, I think it's safe to say that that ship has just about sailed.
More significant, though (I think), is the fact that guitar music hasn't really been of much interest to me lately. I've just become a bit bored and disillusioned by its constant inability to surprise, looking instead to hip-hop and more ambient fare for innovation. So it's all the more impressive that, even in this state of ennui, The Memories Attack can still do enough to truly, genuinely excite me. Like I said, is not as if they're doing anything particularly ground-breaking either, it's just that they're doing what they are doing really fucking well.
So I'm going to post a link to 'Summertime' now, not because I strongly believe in your right to have illegally downloaded music stored on your computer or even because the band don't have a MySpace where you can listen to some a number of their songs to your heart's content, but because they don't have a MySpace where you can listen to this song to your heart's content, and in case you haven't guessed from the enthusiasm with which its caused me to write about the band so far, it's a song which is just about perfect. The solitary bassline at the start, the way it builds... I don't want to ruin it for you, nor do I want to contradict the philosophy I carefully laid out when I started this blog, but it's a song I feel I have to say something about. If The Memories Attack have a mission statement in musical form, this is it. And if there's one song which is going to make you want to hear everything else the band's ever recorded, this is that too.
(Note to band (everyone else stop reading) - If you don't think that's a good enough reason for me to give one of your songs away for free, by all means, let me know and I'll delete it. I just want to give your music the exposure it deserves, not rip anyone off. Note to everyone else (band stop reading) - 'Summertime' is from the band's first album, but ironically, their second album is the stronger as a whole and this one track is probably more indicative of what you get from it than of what you get from the first, so if you want to investigate further, the direction of the second album is the one I suggest you head in. And just to complicate things a bit more, both albums are self-titled.)
The Memories Attack - Summertime
MySpace: www.myspace.com/thememoriesattack
The Memories Attack partially pick up where Eric's Trip left off, counting as they do former Trip guitarist Chris Thompson amongst their members, and that gives you some indication as to what they sound like. There's no real departure from Eric's Trip's sound here, with the exception of the occasional embrace of electronically generated sound. In fact there's no real departure from the sound of countless bands. If you want something new and exciting, The Memories Attack probably aren't going to be for you. What they will give you, though, is the at times expert convergence of feedback, melodies and assault on the drum kit - the key components of great indie rock. This is great indie rock.
There's something somewhat inappropriate about the fact that I'm posting about this band now. Two things, really. The first is that the song in question - the song that I double-clicked in iTunes a few minutes before I started writing, thus providing me with the immediate compulsion to write this entry, and the song that I'm about to post a link to - is called 'Summertime'. Indeed, I initially wanted to post this in the middle of July and we could have all appreciated it in a way befitting its title, but while summer seems to cling on to the Northern hemisphere more stubbornly with each passing year, I think it's safe to say that that ship has just about sailed.
More significant, though (I think), is the fact that guitar music hasn't really been of much interest to me lately. I've just become a bit bored and disillusioned by its constant inability to surprise, looking instead to hip-hop and more ambient fare for innovation. So it's all the more impressive that, even in this state of ennui, The Memories Attack can still do enough to truly, genuinely excite me. Like I said, is not as if they're doing anything particularly ground-breaking either, it's just that they're doing what they are doing really fucking well.
So I'm going to post a link to 'Summertime' now, not because I strongly believe in your right to have illegally downloaded music stored on your computer or even because the band don't have a MySpace where you can listen to some a number of their songs to your heart's content, but because they don't have a MySpace where you can listen to this song to your heart's content, and in case you haven't guessed from the enthusiasm with which its caused me to write about the band so far, it's a song which is just about perfect. The solitary bassline at the start, the way it builds... I don't want to ruin it for you, nor do I want to contradict the philosophy I carefully laid out when I started this blog, but it's a song I feel I have to say something about. If The Memories Attack have a mission statement in musical form, this is it. And if there's one song which is going to make you want to hear everything else the band's ever recorded, this is that too.
(Note to band (everyone else stop reading) - If you don't think that's a good enough reason for me to give one of your songs away for free, by all means, let me know and I'll delete it. I just want to give your music the exposure it deserves, not rip anyone off. Note to everyone else (band stop reading) - 'Summertime' is from the band's first album, but ironically, their second album is the stronger as a whole and this one track is probably more indicative of what you get from it than of what you get from the first, so if you want to investigate further, the direction of the second album is the one I suggest you head in. And just to complicate things a bit more, both albums are self-titled.)
The Memories Attack - Summertime
MySpace: www.myspace.com/thememoriesattack
Friday 12 June 2009
Muscles
Hey Muscles, I love you, I want to have your babies. I was supposed to be putting Muscles on in Bristol, but then he sued his record company and now it looks like he won't be coming to Europe. Shame. Now here's a picture of his face:
Why yes Muscles, I would like a chip! Muscles released his first album, Guns Babes Lemonade, back in 2007; it was my favourite album released that year, and Pitchfork gave it 8 out of 10 or something, but for some reason, they didn't bother to include it in their year's top 50. He could have BEEN somebody. And I thought he had a new album due out soon, but that now seems not to be happening (I can't find anything about it, anyway), I'm guessing because of the aforementioned suing of his record company. But that doesn't matter, because I was going to write this blog entry anyway. The other day, y'see, 'One Inch Badge Pin' started going round in my head, and that's one of the songs from his first album, and it made me think "More people should really know about Muscles". So I decided to blog.
Whenever I introduce someone to Muscles, they say "Hey, this is good!" Apart from John. And some other people. Basically, what I'm trying to say is, he divides opinion. And the reason he divides opinion, I imagine, is that he makes cheesy, electro-inflicted dance music. Like Friendly Fires. Except not like Friendly Fires. I don't like Friendly Fires. So I started thinking to myself, "Why is it that, in spite of the fact they're basically doing the same thing, I love Muscles so much, yet I so detest Friendly Fires?" And I think what I concluded was that, while on the face of it Friendly Fires sound like they just want to have fun, there's an undeniable, underlying sense of them taking themselves very, VERY SERIOUSLY, which juxtaposes awkwardly with the music they create.
Muscles doesn't have that. Muscles really does just want to have fun. I mean, there's a sense of sorrow and sentimentality which seeps through sometimes - quite often, really - but for the most part, it's simply invited to join the party, and when it's not... well when it's not, there's no shame in it. That's the thing, I think. There's no pretension of things being better than they are; there's no cynical, contrived attempt to create the impression of joy. Hey, things can be shitty sometimes, but we're going to sing our hearts out and jump around anyway. Second track 'Ice Cream' probably sums it up best, with its choral refrain of "Ice cream is gonna save the day". That's it. Over and over again. "Ice cream is gonna save the day". And if you think it can, then maybe it really will.
Muscles - Ice Cream
MySpace: www.myspace.com/musclesmusic
Why yes Muscles, I would like a chip! Muscles released his first album, Guns Babes Lemonade, back in 2007; it was my favourite album released that year, and Pitchfork gave it 8 out of 10 or something, but for some reason, they didn't bother to include it in their year's top 50. He could have BEEN somebody. And I thought he had a new album due out soon, but that now seems not to be happening (I can't find anything about it, anyway), I'm guessing because of the aforementioned suing of his record company. But that doesn't matter, because I was going to write this blog entry anyway. The other day, y'see, 'One Inch Badge Pin' started going round in my head, and that's one of the songs from his first album, and it made me think "More people should really know about Muscles". So I decided to blog.
Whenever I introduce someone to Muscles, they say "Hey, this is good!" Apart from John. And some other people. Basically, what I'm trying to say is, he divides opinion. And the reason he divides opinion, I imagine, is that he makes cheesy, electro-inflicted dance music. Like Friendly Fires. Except not like Friendly Fires. I don't like Friendly Fires. So I started thinking to myself, "Why is it that, in spite of the fact they're basically doing the same thing, I love Muscles so much, yet I so detest Friendly Fires?" And I think what I concluded was that, while on the face of it Friendly Fires sound like they just want to have fun, there's an undeniable, underlying sense of them taking themselves very, VERY SERIOUSLY, which juxtaposes awkwardly with the music they create.
Muscles doesn't have that. Muscles really does just want to have fun. I mean, there's a sense of sorrow and sentimentality which seeps through sometimes - quite often, really - but for the most part, it's simply invited to join the party, and when it's not... well when it's not, there's no shame in it. That's the thing, I think. There's no pretension of things being better than they are; there's no cynical, contrived attempt to create the impression of joy. Hey, things can be shitty sometimes, but we're going to sing our hearts out and jump around anyway. Second track 'Ice Cream' probably sums it up best, with its choral refrain of "Ice cream is gonna save the day". That's it. Over and over again. "Ice cream is gonna save the day". And if you think it can, then maybe it really will.
Muscles - Ice Cream
MySpace: www.myspace.com/musclesmusic
Tuesday 24 February 2009
The Holy Trinity
Three bands in particular inspired me to start this blog. Hence, from now onwards, they shall be known as our patrons; the Holy Trinity. Whenever our faith in music begins to wane, we shall turn to them for guidance and reassurance of how great a band can be. They are, in the order which for no apparent reason has seemed most natural to me:
Cobras Cobras Cobras
I find it best to think of Cobras Cobras Cobras in terms of potholes and the avoidance thereof. They incorporate nearly everything I love in a band without ever really sounding like any of the other bands I love; they frequently embrace pop melodies without ever sounding like they have designs on the top 40; they have a strong identity, yet their songs never blur into one, indistinguishable mass. Which doesn't really tell you much about how they sound, but that doesn't matter because they're a brilliant, brilliant band who should be listened to by everyone either way. You can find out what they sound like once you've done that.
MySpace: www.myspace.com/cobrascobrascobrastonight
If you like what you hear there (which you will), you can then download their third (I think) EP for FREE!!!!!!!! It's completely legal because it's out of print, and was indeed made available to download by the band themselves, so don't worry your pretty little self about that. It's called Today! Tomorrow! and here is the link: www.mediafire.com/?aez13dhc5gj
Angil and the Hiddentracks
Angil and the Hiddentracks are great largely because they manage to combine pop, folk, jazz and hip-hop elements, as well as being French, without being shit. They're also great because they're great. Their debut album, Ouliposaliva (I think it's their debut album... it probably isn't), was released towards the tail end of last year, but it somehow managed to compleeeeeeeeetely pass me by until just last week. Which might make you think I'm a little hasty to be putting them in this most illustrious of triumvirates, but if it weren't for them, I would never have started the blog, so you would be wrong.
MySpace: www.myspace.com/angilandthehiddentracks
Tiger Bear Wolf
Like Cobras Cobras Cobras, Tiger Bear Wolf's name consists of three animal references. Unless you conclude from that that bands who make awesome music tend to favour names which exclusively mention animals three times, I think we're going to have to put it down to coincidence, for that, my friends, is just about all they have in common. Tiger Bear Wolf sound pretty much what I imagine all bands would sound like if rock and roll had never gone away; if instead of trying to create new genres and sounds, bands had just tried to refine the one which already existed. Which is kind of impressive considering that rock and roll did go away (yes it did, shut up) and they therefore had about 40 years' worth of groundwork to put in.
MySpace: See, the thing is, there's only one track up on Tiger Bear Wolf's MySpace, and in my opinion, it's one of the weakest on the album. So first have a stream of the record's opener, 'Something Worth Saving', then there's a MySpace link after the jump. And bear in mind that, if you go on to buy 'Something Worth Saving' from iTunes, it, along with most of the other tracks on the album, is labelled completely wrongly (in case you think I've linked you to the wrong track).
Tiger Bear Wolf - Something Worth Saving
MySpace: www.myspace.com/5450573
Okay, that's it. Bye!
Cobras Cobras Cobras
I find it best to think of Cobras Cobras Cobras in terms of potholes and the avoidance thereof. They incorporate nearly everything I love in a band without ever really sounding like any of the other bands I love; they frequently embrace pop melodies without ever sounding like they have designs on the top 40; they have a strong identity, yet their songs never blur into one, indistinguishable mass. Which doesn't really tell you much about how they sound, but that doesn't matter because they're a brilliant, brilliant band who should be listened to by everyone either way. You can find out what they sound like once you've done that.
MySpace: www.myspace.com/cobrascobrascobrastonight
If you like what you hear there (which you will), you can then download their third (I think) EP for FREE!!!!!!!! It's completely legal because it's out of print, and was indeed made available to download by the band themselves, so don't worry your pretty little self about that. It's called Today! Tomorrow! and here is the link: www.mediafire.com/?aez13dhc5gj
Angil and the Hiddentracks
Angil and the Hiddentracks are great largely because they manage to combine pop, folk, jazz and hip-hop elements, as well as being French, without being shit. They're also great because they're great. Their debut album, Ouliposaliva (I think it's their debut album... it probably isn't), was released towards the tail end of last year, but it somehow managed to compleeeeeeeeetely pass me by until just last week. Which might make you think I'm a little hasty to be putting them in this most illustrious of triumvirates, but if it weren't for them, I would never have started the blog, so you would be wrong.
MySpace: www.myspace.com/angilandthehiddentracks
Tiger Bear Wolf
Like Cobras Cobras Cobras, Tiger Bear Wolf's name consists of three animal references. Unless you conclude from that that bands who make awesome music tend to favour names which exclusively mention animals three times, I think we're going to have to put it down to coincidence, for that, my friends, is just about all they have in common. Tiger Bear Wolf sound pretty much what I imagine all bands would sound like if rock and roll had never gone away; if instead of trying to create new genres and sounds, bands had just tried to refine the one which already existed. Which is kind of impressive considering that rock and roll did go away (yes it did, shut up) and they therefore had about 40 years' worth of groundwork to put in.
MySpace: See, the thing is, there's only one track up on Tiger Bear Wolf's MySpace, and in my opinion, it's one of the weakest on the album. So first have a stream of the record's opener, 'Something Worth Saving', then there's a MySpace link after the jump. And bear in mind that, if you go on to buy 'Something Worth Saving' from iTunes, it, along with most of the other tracks on the album, is labelled completely wrongly (in case you think I've linked you to the wrong track).
Tiger Bear Wolf - Something Worth Saving
MySpace: www.myspace.com/5450573
Okay, that's it. Bye!
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