To get back in the swing of things, let’s run through a
little of the stuff I’ve kept on rotation this summer. As the weather gets colder I’ll be back in
front of my computer more and should have more stuff to highlight.
Rilo Kiley- “Portions for Foxes”
Just a really excellent example of how to do indie rock
right. I’ll take Under the Blacklight as the most consistent Rilo Kiley album, this is
for me by far their best track. Jenny
Lewis has excellent control over her voice, and injects the song with emotion
without taking it to an extreme. Clever and incisive lyrics (“And the talking
leads to touching/and the touching leads to sex/and then there is no mystery
left”) complete the package.
Bruce Springsteen- “Lost in the Flood”
The monumental centerpiece to Springsteen’s underrated
debut, Greetings From Asbury Park, NJ.
The two slow strummed ballads drag down the energy level of the album, and
“Spirit in the Night”, despite it’s swinging riff, meanders off course
lyrically. But the cover of “Blinded By
the Light” proved that Springsteen had the chops to write a hit, and “Lost in
the Flood” showed the potential in his songwriting. In some ways the precursor to “Jungleland,”
on this track Springsteen displays his unparalleled ability to illustrate life
on the rough underside of the city.
Jimmy Eat World- Bleed
American
The zenith of pop-punk tinged emo. Jimmy Eat World walk a fine line, remaining
catchy enough for radio play without devolving into Sum 41-esque faux-angst. One
of the pre-eminent summer road trip albums, this moves at whatever speed you’re
driving. And the hooks- anthemic. Throw
this on, remember how good “The Middle” actually is, and remember never to take
Pitchfork without a grain of salt (a 3.5 in August 2001!).
Cryptopsy- None So
Vile
An absolute behemoth of a death metal album, this record is
more a textbook example of the form than anything else. Flo Mounier’s drumming is well worth all the
praise it gets, and the rest of the band is completely in sync. The album breathes
in a way that many death metal records do no’t.
Each instrument clearly contributes to band’s sound and there isn’t an
off-note on the album. This is a great
place to start when looking to move from melodic death metal to a more pure
death sound.
Against Me- “Thrash Unreal”
A pretty big hit for the band that I had missed as I started
with White Crosses. Their most recent
album, Transgender Dysphoria Blues is
as good and important as anything released in the past few years. I may write
more about it at some point, but that album is both a phenomenal punk rock
record and extremely eye-opening for those of us who don't have a great understanding of the experiences of trangender people. After seeing them at
Governor’s Ball this summer I can also highly recommend catching their live
show. “Thrash Unreal” is from earlier in their career but the reasons why it
remains a live staple are hard to miss.
