ALBUM REVIEW: The Flaming Lips - The Terror

by Robby Beck



In a way the musical trajectory of The Flaming Lips closely matches that of one of their greatest influences, Pink Floyd. Both bands started out making noisy, druggy psych rock with loads of dark eccentricities. As both bands gained exposure their material became more dense, complex, and concept-oriented. They were crafting symphonies with their rock music rather than just writing songs. Even as both of these bands grew to become household names, their music and experiments just became more complex in the process. There aren't many bands that can gain such substantial notoriety while keeping their ever-expanding artistic vision intact. In Pink Floyd's heyday, they could do whatever they wanted and retain their success, and The Flaming Lips have been in that camp for years.

Ever since The Flaming Lips' 2009 double album Embryonic this band has just been piling on experiment after experiment and basking in their too-big-to-lose status. Among these include releasing at least one song every month in 2011, collaborations with the likes of Lightning Bolt, Neon Indian, Yoko Ono, and Ke$ha (of all people), and a 24-hour song. Yep. But all this seems to have been in place of putting out a new full length album, rather than in preparation of one. We got a fairly cohesive collaborative album on Record Store Day last year, but The Terror is the first proper studio LP we're getting from the Lips since 2009's Embryonic. Before you consider anything else, just bet on this: this band is not done reinventing themselves with every single album.

A press release that frontman Wayne Coyne put out with the album's announcement states the album's concept:

We want, or wanted, to believe that without love we would disappear, that love, somehow, would save us that, yeah, if we have love, give love and know love, we are truly alive and if there is no love, there would be no life. The Terror is, we know now, that even without love, life goes on... we just go on… there is no mercy killing.

This feeling is integral to your understanding of The Terror. Vast landscapes of nothingness, loneliness, desolation. The Terror has been called a nightmarish album, but the nightmare here is that you are alone, you are nothing but nothing and the world is full of you.

This album is easily the band's biggest embrace of ambient and drone music, in fact an LP this reminded me of right at the get-go was Tim Hecker's Ravedeath, 1972. The Terror evokes the same kinds of apocalyptic and desolate musical tropes that that LP does so strongly. This album starts off with "Look... the Sun is Rising" which is one of the most fleshed out segments on the album as far as instrumentals. There are live drums, which only appear in a couple other instances, and while many of the electronics and effects on this record mesh together and become an all encompassing atmosphere, there is a singular synth line on this track that is somewhat catchy. That is once you get past how unsettling it can be. Wayne's voice doesn't really shine out on this track though, where it does start making an impression is "Be Free, A Way". Wayne's voice is usually on the forefront of many of this band's releases, but the way it's utilized on The Terror is extremely unique; it's clearly his voice, but it's put through a set of delay effects that bring an eerie echo to his voice that reverberates throughout everything else in the music. This strange effect and the echo it creates symbolizes the sheer emptiness of the world this record exists in, with Wayne's voice calling out to anything that can listen but his voice just bounces off of every inanimate object and remains unheard. If a tree falls in the forest, and no one's there to hear it, did it really make a sound?

"Try to Explain" is the one soaring, passionate moment on the record, with Wayne's vocal melody perhaps reaching a height that is almost blissful and beautiful before being pulled back into the darkness and nothingness around it. The truly demented nature of The Terror comes out in droves on its 13 minute centerpiece "You Lust". It is one of the most repetitive moments of the record, but while it's not exactly a loud song it is unrelenting in its tortured and harrowing nature. The harsh electronics interjecting near the end of "Turning Violent" further go on to convey the harshness of this environment. The final track in a way ends off where the album began; live drums make another appearance, the instrumental wells up in a more rock-style manner, and Wayne is singing about how this dread and monotony he is going through is "always there."

The Terror is one of the darkest records The Flaming Lips have ever made, and it is also their most fully realized piece of work since The Soft Bulletin. I haven't spoken on many of the musical ideas of a number of tracks, but that's because to do so would almost be pointless; The Terror is an experience you must invest yourself into and only then will you reap the twisted rewards. A lot of great albums create a dense world that listeners can actively explore and find new pieces of wonderment with in every listen. The Terror creates a universe that is no less dense but exploring it leads only to pain, death, loneliness, desolation, grueling monotony. The true Terror is that with every new listen, you'll find a new piece of this empty, unbearable purgatory.

"We don't control the controls."

Score: lite to decent 9

(Don't be too terrified of this review to follow Robby on twitter @ClydeNut)

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Pavement Pow Wow: Our Top Ten Pavement Songs

[The Pixies are Kyle's favorite band. Pavement is Alex's favorite band. The two have fought about which influential group is superior since time began. As an interesting experiment, the two have decided to set aside their eternal hatred and list their top ten songs from each band. How will their lists compare? Read below to find out.]

Kyle Shoemaker's List

10. "Stereo" (Brighten the Corners)

My all time favorite Pavement groove to say the very least, the bass line on this track is just legendary. I always loved the way this song balances the high energy chorus with the mellow weirdness of Malkmus' vocals.

9. "Conduit for Sale!" (Slanted and Enchanted)

I'm a huge fan of the Dismemberment Plan and this song essentially laid out their formula years before they formed (if you don't believe me, go listen to Is Terrified). The rapid fire absurdist spoken word delivery of Malkmus' combined with Bob Nastanovich screaming the chorus is one of the few great pleasures in life. All the dynamics and energy of a Pixies song and all the Malkmus of a Pavement song. How can you go wrong?

8. "Gold Soundz" (Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain)

It's impossible for me to listen to this song without thinking of the excellent and strange music video where the entire band is dressed as Santa Claus and equipped with bows. Among all the lyrics that Pavement is known for, I don't think any is as noteworthy as "Because you're empty and I'm empty / and you can never quarantine the past"; it's meaning is something meant for individual pondering at 3AM and I won't attempt to do so here.

7. "Summer Babe (Winter Version)" (Slanted and Enchanted)

Is there a bigger fuck you to rock music conventions when when Malkmus laughs when saying "dropped off"? Is there any moment more quintessentially pavement than when Malkmus' utters "not here babe, TORTURE". 

6. "Shady Lane / J vs. S" (Brighten the Corners)

A genius but scatter-brained lyrical mess with one of the best pure melodies in the Pavement discography. I don't know what a "Shady Lane" is and why Malkmus wants one so bad, but I do know he should ask his god, who's god? everybody's god. I've always thought the song was Malkmus somehow pondering the fragility of life, but that's probably just the video talking. In summation I have no freaking idea what this song is about, but it's so catchy and Pavement and stuff.

5. "In the Mouth a Desert" (Slanted and Enchanted)

I'm a man of simple pleasures and the guitar tone of this song is the main reason I'm listing it this high. The dichotomy of Malkmus' pretty boy delivery and the guttural tone and distortion of the guitar makes this one of Pavement's all time greatest songs. 

4. "AT & T" (Wowee Zowee)

Nonsensical by design this song has absolutely everything I look for in a Pavement song; a great melody, bizarre lyrics with a quirky delivery, and an energetic chorus. The final moments consist of Malkmus screaming "whoa" and ending the song by repeating "the story goes", what story? your guess is as good as mine.

3. "Unfair" (Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain)

Malkmus' ultimate ode of his home state, this song manages to name drop no less than 4 cities within California while at the same time pitting the north and south against each other in a playful way. The insane imagery of "credit card in the air / swing your nachos like you just don't care" makes anyone that listens to "Unfair" want to burn the hills of Beverly just as badly as Malkmus does.

2. "Grounded" (Wowee Zowee)

The most epic song in Pavement's vast discography to say the least, the whole thing just sounds so huge. A lot of that is the post-rock influenced introduction that sounds as if it's the guide-book used for every Explosions in the Sky song ever. You're simply doing yourself a huge disservice by playing this song at anything but full volume. The actual song is some sort of condemnation about Doctors, but who cares about that with all the life-affirming going on?

1. "Elevate Me Later" (Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain)

When I was cutting down this list to 10 songs, "Elevate Me Later" was a song that very nearly didn't make my list... but the strangest thing happened. I suddenly realized in my head that the lead guitar line to this song is the first thing I hear in my head when I think of Pavement and I really didn't even associate it with any one song. When I really thought about the implications of this it was simply too strong of a feeling for me to dare place another song above it. To me music is all about memorability that will stand the test of time, and any song that I don't have to actually hear to hear in my head deserves extra special praise.

Alexander Borg's List

10. Harness Your Hopes (Brighten the Corners: Nicene Creedence Edition)

Throughout his years in Pavement, frontman Stephen Malkmus used his razor sharp wit and unmatched command of language to satirize countless subjects with the music industry being one of his favorite sparring partners. On “Harness Your Hopes,” Malkmus proves that he is just as capable of self-parody as clever satire, crafting a song excessively in his band’s signature style. Chock-full of non sequiturs, flippant rhymes every half-second, and meta references all over a fractured guitar melody, “Harness Your Hopes” stands out as an essential part of Pavement’s cannon.

9. Stereo (Brighten the Corners)

An energetic joke song about how his band is far too weird to be played on commercial radio peppered with hilarious lines “What about the voice of Geddy Lee? / How did it get so high / I wonder if he speaks like an ordinary guy?” Malkmus is at his goofy best on “Stereo.” My favorite part of the song comes from Bob Nastanovich who serves as the song’s one-man fact-checking committee, answering Malkmus’ question with an exuberant “I know him and he does!"

8. Trigger Cut/Wounded Kite at :17 (Slanted and Enchanted)

“Lies and betrayal / Fruit-covered nails / Electricity and lust” are the words that open one of Pavement’s best pop songs and although the seemingly nonsensical lyrics might seem illogical paired to a pop song, these words hold a special significance in the heart of any fan of indie rock. As Pavement’s legacy grows increasingly larger as the years go on, karaoke bars better start programming this magnificent song.

7. Frontwards (Watery, Domestic)

Who else but Stephen Joseph Malkmus could write a song that is equally rocking and introspective? The best track off the absolutely flawless Watery, Domestic EP, “Frontwards” combines guitars simultaneously melodic and noisy with the famous line “Well I’ve got style / Miles and miles / So much style that it’s wasted.” When he repeats the line for the final chorus, Malkmus alters the line to “So much style that it’s leaving.” A powerful and bleak expression of ennui  and possible self-doubt, “Frontwards” remains one of Malkmus’ most emotionally arresting songs.

6. Fin (Brighten the Corners)

While he would later prove his guitar heroism on a number of solo releases, Stephen Malkmus didn’t become a truly great guitarist until Brighten the Corners in my opinion. Borrowing the altered tunings he learned from Sonic Youth, Malkmus was a highly effective guitarist before Pavement’s most mellow album but not a great one. On the appropriately titled closer “Fin,”  Malkmus’ incredibly ear for magnificent solos is put on full display. Making use of the track’s five and a half minutes, Malkmus crafts an incredible, languid climax that shines as one of Pavement’s greatest achievements.

5. Father to a Sister of Thought (Wowee Zowee)

One of countless stylistic deviations found on the brilliantly unfocused Wowee Zowee, “Father to a Sister of Thought” could easily be mistaken for a particularly lazy Silver Jews track were it not for the distinctly Pavement lyrical and production quirks. The lackadaisical alt-country song’s saunter perfectly compliments the stoned, slacker vibe the band embodied at the time and the way Malkmus expressively professes “I’m just a man / You see who I am” never fails to get me.

4. Gold Soundz (Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain)

“Gold Soundz” earns its spot on this list for a multitude of reasons. I love the meta-textual “And they’re coming to the chorus now!” announcement Malkmus shouts, a possible cue to his coltish band. I love the ironic “z” pluralization. But most of all, I love the profound lyrics. While Malkmus might casually rattle off “So drunk in the August sun / You’re the kind of girl I like / Because you’re empty / And I’m empty / And you can never quarantine the past,” these mystical words resonant with my soul as cheesy or hyperbolic as that might sound. And for that, I thank him.

3. Range Life (Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain)

A subtle commentary of how indie and the mainstream conflict and a genuine desire to find some place to settle down, “Range Life” is an anthem or more accurately, an anti-anthem. While it lacks the size or audaciousness often associated with anthems, “Range Life” is an anthem because of its universally understandable core. Isn’t it a goal in everyone’s life to find some place that brings them peace?

2. In the Mouth a Desert (Slanted and Enchanted)

The pinnacle of Pavement’s relentless and noisy first chapter, “In the Mouth a Desert” was the song that showed me that uncompromisingly aggressive could be intelligent and lyrically complex. As Malkmus weaves an obscure lyrical tapestry, the song rises and falls in intensity. Despite its jagged aesthetic, I’ve returned to “In the Mouth a Desert” a countless number of times, each time picking up a new level of complexity.

1. Grounded (Wowee Zowee)

If it weren’t for the Beatles’ “Strawberry Fields Forever,” “Grounded” would be my favorite song of all time. I’ve devoted so much of my life to listening and analyzing music and in all that time I’ve never encountered a song that begins to rival the emotional gravitas of “Grounded.” An epic work in the truest sense of the word, the song begins in a haunting, almost post-rock fashion before entering it’s first verse where Malkmus details the life of a highly successful physician. While Malkmus focuses on the riches the doctor can afford during the verses, he punctuates each of the choruses with “Boys are dying on theses streets!” emphasizing the inescapable realities of the profession. Already stirring thanks to its incredible lyrics, the song reaches new levels of emotion when Malkmus’ guitar roars. The song is indescribably beautiful and sad, making it my favorite song from my favorite band. 

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ALBUM REVIEW: The Antlers - Undersea

by Robby Beck

It hardly seems like it's been three years since Brooklyn group The Antlers released their breakout record Hospice, which captured the hearts, and tears, of many, including yours truly. In 2011 they released a record called Burst Apart that took away the conceptual ideas that Hospice had, and in theory I should've been disappointed with that record. But it ended up moving me the same, because even if the songs were separate entities rather than a whole, The Antlers never lost their sense of emotion, and replaced the concept-album format with a series of beautiful sounds and production that ended up redefining the band in the best possible way.

The soundscapes and production seem to be the primary focus of their newest EP, Undersea, and to be honest that might be it's biggest flaw. Not that the sonic textures are bad, in fact in many cases they're the best parts of these individual tracks, but that is the problem. The sounds on Antlers records are always great, but what rivals that is the raw, naked emotion. Whether it be confessional and soul-crushing on any number of tracks on Hospice, or mournful but hopeful as in a track like "Putting the Dog to Sleep". Unfortunately this EP is just lacking in that regard, and I guess what's supposed to make up for that is a vague concept surrounding this release. Something about being underwater, perhaps?

The EP begins pretty strongly with maybe the most summer-y track The Antlers have ever released, "Drift Dive". The first taste of the new sounds the band have been working with is soothing, romantic, and gorgeous. The remaining three tracks however, are darker, as if you're sinking from the shoreline to the deep, unknown abyss. After "Drift Dive" though, the EP runs into the first real pothole for me. "Endless Ladder" is very pretty, and would be pretty nice as a 4, maybe 5 minute piece, but it just doesn't have enough staying power for the 8 and a half minutes it lasts. "Crest" brings back some of the jazzy horn sounds The Antlers have worked with before, and as beautiful as those and Peter's voice is, I just wish the lyrics he were singing had more description, and were less vague. The EP closes pretty strong with "Zelda", which may be the darkest song on here. The soundscapes are some of the best on the record, and the lyrics, while still being too vague, hint at some things to come.

If this EP is a sign of what's to come from the band, then I'd say it's a good start sound-wise. But on the band's next release I just hope to see more of the urgency and poetry that I get so much out of the previous releases from this band. I'm interested in another concept-led album from The Antlers, but I'm hoping to get a better sense of that concept in music to come from the band.

Score: Decent 6

(Robby is undersea at the moment, but you can hit him up on Twitter @ClydeNut to hear his stories from below.

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TRACK: Menomena - "Heavy Is as Heavy Does"

Portland, Oregon's Menomena has been one of my favorite experimental rock bands for quite a while; albums like Friend and Foe and I Am the Fun Blame Monster are must-listens in my book. But the band took a pretty huge blow last year when one of its core members Brett Knopf left the group. The collaborative nature of the band guaranteed that there would be changes on the horizon with only 2 members left, and there was speculation on whether or not the band would even continue.

Thankfully the band decided to pull a Battles and carry on, with a new album on the horizon entitled Moms, and we finally have the first taste of this new album via "Heavy Is as Heavy Does".

The band recently said in an interview with Pitchfork that the album would center around themes of family, but the opening line of this tune, "Heavy are the branches hanging from my fucked up family tree" brings this concept into a much darker context than I expected. There is a darkness, almost a brooding nature to this track's minor key piano, and when the song explodes into a flurry of instrumentation and noise and distortion, it further drives the point home.

I'm loving the music on this one, but I'm loving the lyrics equally as much. It remains to be seen how the full album will fare compared to the band's back catalog, but it seems as if Moms will take the band on a more personal route. Stream "Heavy Is as Heavy Does" here and look out for Moms on September 18th via Barsuk.

(Robby loves moms. To find out more, follow him on Twitter @ClydeNut)

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ALBUM REVIEW: DIIV - Oshin

By Danny Spiteri.

If you’ll excuse the cheesy analogy (no pun intended), I’d like to start by asking you to imagine yourself cooking a box of pasta. It’s not a particularly exquisite strain of noodles; rather, it’s the sort of Kraft knock-off store brand that you can find in your local supermarket, but you’re low on both financial and edible resources, so you’ve decided that it’ll have to suffice. You begin by filling a pot to about two thirds of its capacity with water and setting it on a hot stove. Once it starts to boil, you grab the box and pour its contents into the pot. After about seven minutes have surpassed, you remove the pot from the stove and empty it into a colander which you’ve placed in your sink. The water drains, then you move the pasta back into the pot. You take the packet of seasoning that was included inside the box and rip it open, allowing the powder to provide a light coat atop the pasta. Finally, you look to the side of the box for list of instructions and see the final step: adding the milk. The recipe suggests one fourth of a cup; realizing how bland the flavoring is in such a cheap box of pasta, however, you decide to pour in the entirety of the milk carton, all four cups of it, in order to both offset the dryness and accommodate for the dull taste. Excited to try the result of your altered formula, you eagerly move the pasta into a small bowl and place it on your kitchen table. You sit down, fork in hand, and lower it into the dish, pulling out your first bite. Your tongue touches the spoonful, and you taste... nothing. Looking down in disappointment, you realize that your meal resembles little more than macaroni 'n' milk soup. You notice upon closer examination that nearly all the flavor powder has been rinsed away by the excess of milk, leaving you with nothing more than a bowl of white, tasteless pasta. What was mediocre before is now almost completely flavorless, and instead of a subpar yet passable result, you are stuck with something even more nondescript and forgettable.

Imagine this analogy again, replacing the pasta with a band, the flavoring with the character of their music, and the milk with reverb. Like the milk in this recipe, reverb is certainly a necessary component of the music, but in a case of overuse, it can drown it out of its personality. This concept of moderation is something that DIIV, the project of Beach Fossils guitarist Zachary Cole Smith, does not seem to understand. Although the band's combination of influences from dream pop, shoegaze, and post-punk shows hints of potential throughout the forty minutes their debut album, Oshin, spans, most of this succumbs at the hand of their insistence on dousing their music so heavily in reverb. Simple yet decent vocal melodies are obscured behind walls of generic guitar tones, bass lines establishing commonplace chord progressions, and repetitive drum beats. Some of the hooks warrant inevitable toe-tapping, but the flaccidity of their delivery makes for only a mild stimulation. This and the lack of variety between tracks leaves the album feeling like little more than a formless mess of monotony.

My intention is not to undermine any of the genres by which DIIV are influenced. Shoegaze and dream pop have yielded wonderful results in the past, but such successful artists have certain defining elements which lend them memorability, elements which DIIV lacks. Whereas My Bloody Valentine immerses the listener in intricate layers of sound (among many other strong assets, of course), DIIV offers sheets of tame atmosphere. Cocteau Twins excels largely on the idiosyncratic vocals of Elizabeth Fraser; Cole Smith, on the other hand, sings with the sort of inflection that can be found easily within 30 seconds of surfing through the "indie pop" tag on Bandcamp. Even the post-punk rhythms employed by former Smith Westerns drummer Colby Hewitt feel neither driving nor hypnotic as they often do in their native context. While I understand that DIIV is most likely not trying to break new ground with Oshin as the aforementioned artists did, they are so content with taking a safe route that they fail to carve out a unique niche in the landscapes of these genres.

Despite its general monotony, there are a few relieving exceptions to Oshin's normally stagnant formula. The melody that fronts "How Long Have You Known," though not exactly stunning, is relatively catchy and stands a notch above the others on the album. "Doused" finds DIIV exploring their post-punk influences to a notable extent with acceptable results. The bass line that opens the song provides a somewhat sinister atmosphere throughout the track's duration, and Cole Smith's vocals feel slightly more urgent than they usually do. I can't help but wonder if the record would have been more pleasurable if the band had developed this darker, minor-keyed side more.

Unfortunately, for every positive moment, there is a handful of negative ones. I question the purpose of instrumentals "(Druun)" and "(Druun Pt. II)," which display a glaring lack of direction, and consequently feel like unnecessary filler. The percussion-less closer "Home" could have been a cathartic comedown, but instead feels like an underwhelming attempt at a conclusion. The remainder of Oshin falls into the category of faceless tedium that too accurately sums up the release. I wouldn't call this album offensively bad, just offensively boring. Although I can appreciate how easily digestible and aesthetically friendly the record is, it ultimately flies rather swiftly through one ear and out the other, leaving hardly a speck of a mark on the way.

A flaw in my opening analogy is that DIIV are not drenching their music in reverb merely to mask how dry and uninteresting it is otherwise, but also largely as a stylistic choice. It isn't just DIIV doing this; in fact, reverb-soaked guitar pop is an extremely popular sound in indie rock at the moment. Quite frankly, however, I am sick of it. I am sick of artists condensing shoegaze and dream pop into such a watered down formula, sick of reverb being abused to the point of consuming individuality, and sick of the popular approach to the genres being one that feels so emotionally detached. To me, DIIV is the amalgamation of each of these issues, and a sign that this brand of revivalism truly has run its course. I can only hope that I am right and that indie rock begins to move into more interesting and creative territory; otherwise, it will just be beating a dead horse.

Score: Strong 4



(Are you as tired of this sound as I am? Or do I "just not get" it? Let me know on Twitter.)

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TRACK(s): The Antlers - "Drift Dive" & "Crest"

Some time ago The Antlers announced a mysterious new release called Undersea, claiming it to be "an EP in length, but well beyond that in scope". This follows one of my favorite albums of last year, Burst Apart, and my favorite album of 2009, Hospice.

Now we have not just one, but two new tracks (which essentially means we have half the EP in our hands). "Drift Dive" definitely brings the band in a relatively Summer-y direction, but not in a Best Coast or Tennis kind of way (thank God). Instead the band maintains their subtlety, introversion, and even their melancholia into this brighter sound. Familiar Antlers touches such as waves of electronics, horns and Peter Silbermann's angelic voice are here, but along with the Summer-oriented sound you get some harp and piano. There are likely a dozen other subtleties in the production I haven't even picked up on, which goes to show that this Antlers track is as dense as some of their best work.

Along with "Crest", which premiered as part of NPR's All Things Considered. This track brings The Antlers back into a familiar darker situation, but it's no less inventive than the last.

Undersea will be released on July 24 in North America through Anti- and July 30 in the UK and Europe through Transgressive. I'm eager to see where this ambitious group goes next.

(See? Robby doesn't just post about metal. Follow him on Twitter @ClydeNut)

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STREAM: TOPS - "Tender Opposites"

TOPS is a four-piece based in Montreal who offer a plethora of cute hooks and synths that work brilliantly with Jane Perry's distinctive vocals.

Stream their debut album Tender Opposites before it's 28th February release.



Pre-order a limited edition cassette copy here

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TRACK: The Shins - "September"

The Shins released a "mah-jam!" worthy track already this year in "Simple Song." Now that track's B-Side, and supposed album cut from their forthcoming Port Of Morrow LP, has been released. "September" is much more downbeat and is a throw back to James Mercer's earlier work with the band. Port Of Morrow is looking increasingly like a mixture of the older Shins version of indie-pop and a newer, glossier, more ambitious style of balladry. Color me excited.


The Shins: “September” (b-side of “Simple Song” 7”) from Record Store Day on Vimeo.

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STREAM: Kiran Leonard - Bowler Hat Soup

Kiran Leonard has been last.fm-ing me his stuff for almost a couple of years now, and I'm glad he has. He has sent me a wide-variety of genres through many self-produced albums (released at a machine gun rate, really) and each album adds an interesting wrinkle to his musicianship. I've heard ambient, jazz-odysseys, and now a great indie rock record with influences ranging from pop-punk (Dresden Dolls???), Animal Collective, Sufjan Stevens, and of course Zappa. If you have time this afternoon, check out his band camp page.

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MIX: Lesser-Known Pavement Songs

I think it's important to start out this post by stating that Pavement is my favorite band of all time.  Pavement established themselves as a unique voice in the 90s indie rock scene both sonically and through their songwriting.  On the sonic front their were equal parts British post-punk, noise, and classic rock with pop melodies that could rival The Beatles.  In Stephen Malkmus they had a great songwriter who channeled his ennui with meta-humor, abstract diction, and powerful melancholy.

Despite their relatively short carer, Pavement were prolific releasing an astounding five LPs and nine EPs.  Here are my favorite Pavement songs that you might have passed up:


"Fin" [Brighten the Corners]

 Pavement - Fin by pluxy 

The under-appreciated closer to Pavement's most mellow album showcases Pavement's most underutilized assets, Malkmus' guitar playing.  Malkmus' finger style electric guitar helps the track build into a beautiful, melancholy apex.


"For Sale! The Preston School of Industry" [Officially Unreleased]

One of my favorite Spiral Stairs' songs, "For Sale! The Preston School of Industry" documents Pavement's uncanny ability to write pop songs absolutely effortlessly.  The semi-improvised song was set to be released on the Brighten the Corners reissue but the Dutch TV station they performed the track on demanded a ludicrous amount of money to sell the rights.  Hopefully a studio demo will be part of the eventual Terror Twilight reissue.


"Give It a Day" [Pacific Trim EP]

Who else but Stephen Malkmus could write a pop song about the strained relationship of Puritan ministers Increase and Cotton Mather during the Salem Witch Trials?


"Harness Your Hopes" [Brighten the Corners: Nicene Creedence Edition]

Even though this track is basically Malkmus showing off his ability to rhyme off the top of his head, I absolutely love it.  "Don't telegraph your passes / You'll end up with molasses / Cauterized in syrup / And syrup is not molasses!"


"No More Kings" [Schoolhouse Rock! Rocks]

A surprisingly epic cover of a Schoolhouse Rock! song.  Hearing Malkmus confront King George III over taxation without representation is both hilarious and righteous.  Play this song at your next Fourth of July barbecue.


"The Sutcliffe Catering Song" [Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain: Nicene Creedence Edition]

An early version of what would eventually become "Easily Fooled."  Not only is it one of Pavement's most fun songs, it's also a lyrical masterpiece.  "I don't need a timekeeper / I don't need an interlocutor / And baby you look a little cuter / Day by day."


"Unseen Power of the Picket Fence" [No Alternative]

What begins as a chronology of R.E.M.'s early career becomes a profile of each of the band's members and  ends as an alternate history where the seminal college rock band was somehow present at the Civil War.


"You're Killing Me" [Slay Tracks (1933-1969)]

The first track off of Pavement's debut EP.  SM and Spiral Stairs made heavy use of radio static, fuzz effects, and lo-fi recording techniques to sonically capture the emptiness of their hometown of Stockton, California.

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TRACK: The National - Rylan & I Need My Girl

The National played two new songs over at CBC Radio's Q Show. Matt Berninger does his typical slow yet soft baritone narrative and things get very sad and beautiful.

Coming off of their lengthy High Violet tour, listen to the indie rockers flesh out two new songs now over at CBC Radio.

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