Originally Published via the old filters / new light newsletter on May 31, 2022
Future Islands – Sun in the Morning (4AD Session)
Future Islands’ lead singer–and well-known member of the National Association of Marlon Brando Look-Alikes (NAMBLA)–Samuel T. Herring shot to indie stardom with his 2014 release Singles (along with some ferocious dance moves on the late night circuit).
The album, for me and probably many others, is dominated by its opener “Seasons (Waiting on You)” and its closer “A Dream of You and Me.” But I revisited Singles (or should I say, ~it revisited me~) recently and “Sun in the Morning” stuck out for its uplifting tone and smooth transitions.
Plus, I’ve been trying to improve my morning routine by sitting on my roof deck and taking in some natural rays in lieu of my phone’s blue light, so it was an appropriate theme song.
Sunburned Hand of The Man – Flex
All politics is local and all music is personal. Sunburned Hand Of The Man hits locally for me, not only for its reference to the most common state of my summer skin, but also because of the meandering yet driven psychedelic instrumental whose vocal absence is briefly broken by what sounds like a man loitering by a gas station asking where you’re headed.
Genre: Helicopter blade psych-rock
Music Video Includes: failed plane landings, washer machine/trampoline antics, and great American literature
Elvis Costello – (I Don’t Want To Go To) Chelsea (Live in Cologne)
Was Elvis Costello cool? According to my dad, yeah, he was. Was my dad cool? I’m sensing a bit of a circular logic problem here.
Pairs Well With: Not wanting to go to Chelsea
Historical Note: this recording was smuggled into East Berlin and is credited with ushering in a wave of of anti-communist mullets
Goat – Let it Bleed (live)
In hindsight, it seems so obvious that afro-beat bongo drumming goes perfectly with psychedelic rock licks, a heavy drum kit, and Santigold/Grimes-esque squeals. It’s like a good business idea that’s been well-executed. Sure, now it seems obvious, but there was a point in time when it was only a crazy, unorthodox collection of thoughts.
High risk, high reward.
MOTO BANDIT – BRADSPITT
As a rule, I’m anti-bands that only use capital letterds. But meant to be broken, rules are (Yoda voice). And once the chorus of “BRADSPITT” hits you’ll see why the exception was made.
It’s a summery guitar and a wall of synthy sound–MOTO isn’t reinventing the wheel here–but it comes together well enough where you’ll be wanting to take those wheels for a spin.
…
<===>And the rest of ’em… an eery, rocking track that seems to come with an ultimatum off Jude Shuma‘s 2021 album Suzy Space Cadet… a new single from Mt. Joy that combines their brand of earthy, sing along indie with some Zep-style guitar solos… and a brooding dancer from ALASKALASKA (it’s anarchy with the capitals I guess).
<===>I wonder how long the NIMBYs can last without their servant class. With unmoving traffic, no transit to speak of, and no multi-family housing, it’s no surprise the Cape has a worker shortage. Looks like they’ll be washing their own dishes.
<===>I’m guessing Wayne’s stat comes from the 1 million law-abiding men and women who save their own lives by not being one of the thousands of American who accidentally shoot themselves with their firearm each year.
I can’t really bring myself to write anything meaningful about such a meaning-sucking event like Uvalde. It has, however, destroyed once-and-for-all the fiction that “a good guy with a gun stops a bad guy with a gun” since we had a whole squad of “good guys with guns” stand idly by while a bad guy murdered a classroom full of children.
Well, maybe the notion can survive if we realize that cops aren’t actually the good guys.
<===>Finally, even though it’s devastating to the environment and quality of life in cities, the ever-increasing size of pick-up trucks that are only driven in urban settings is still a hilarious trend.
Reminds me of a classic Scary Movie 3 bit featuring Charlie Sheen and a sheriff’s hat.
Thanks for listening and see you in a week! Ned