Forgotten Gem: Pulp - 'Help the Aged'

"Funny how it all falls away"

Jarvis Cocker's band, Pulp, followed up its breakthrough album, Different Class, with This is Hardcore.

'Help the Aged' is a tender slow burner featured on Track Four of Hardcore that oscillates between benevolence and stark truths.  "You can dye your hair, but it's the one thing you can't change," sings Cocker, in reference to the one constant none of us can escape:  our own mortality.

Structually, 'Help the Aged' slyly begins as the usual ballad, but steadily marches toward a bombastic melody with a stunning hook.  It doesn't hurt that the lyrics are stirring and poetic.

Watch the video to 'Help the Aged' below, and while you do remember, "Help the aged.  Because one day you'll be older too."

Zedd - 'Spectrum'

Electronic dance music has become a dominant force in the pop and rock music scenes as of late. The cult followings of Deadmau5 and Skrillex by today's youth are a partial testament to that.

'Spectrum' by Zedd is another electronic dance tune that balances house beats and catchy hooks with a likable vocal. Check out the video to 'Spectrum' below:

Sky Ferreira - "Everything is Embarrassing"

Sky Ferreira's latest single, "Everything is Embarrassing", is one sumptuous slice of indie electropop.  The lyrics are memorable, the beats are fresh and the hook is undeniably classic.

"Everything is Embarrassing" is to be featured on Ferreira's upcoming, October 2nd EP, "Ghost".  The EP is intended as a lead-up to her debut album, "I'm Not Alright", which is scheduled for released late this year.

For more on Sky's music, visit:  www.skyferreira.com

Forgotten Gem: Ash - 'Burn Baby Burn'

In 2001, I played Ash's 'Burn Baby Burn' incessantly on my portable music device.  Not quite emo, not quite punk, not quite grunge, 'Burn Baby Burn' was a thrash guitar-laden anthem incorporating power pop vocals, all within a strict three-and-a-half time limit.

By contemporary standards, 'Burn Baby Burn' might sound like an All-American Rejects rip-off.  But back in 2001, the tune seemed innovative to me, and I remember it garnering some decent radio airplay here in the States.

For old times sake, you can watch the video to 'Burn Baby Burn' below:

Forgotten Gem: Ween - 'Freedom of '76'

Ween was panned for not taking rock music very seriously.  But in 1994, when the duo released Chocolate and Cheese, critics took another look.  Was it possible to successfully fuse humor with decent songwriting?  The album seemed to answer that question in the affirmative.  

'Freedom of '76' is a track from Chocolate that, on the face of it, is a quasi-parody of seventies soul, but that serves as a solid chillwave predecessor in the end.

Stream 'Freedom of '76' in the player below:

Ween - Freedom Of '76 .mp3

Gotye - 'Somebodies: A YouTube Orchestra'

By now there have been countless covers made of Gotye's impressive 'Somebody That I Used to Know.'  Gotye, himself, seems to be reluctantly impressed, and just posted this video mashup of many of the renditions in the video below:

Sponsored Post: Little Caesars Pizza - 'Fishing'

Check out this humorous spot from our most recent sponsor, Little Caesars, in the video below:

Forgotten Gem: School of Fish - '3 Strange Days'

Lighter and fluffier than their grunge counterparts, School of Fish delivered the power pop-tastic '3 Strange Days' in 1991.  And unlike their alternative rock contemporaries who were digging deep into the songbook of punk, School of Fish reached all the way back to Woodstock, implementing psychedelic guitar licks and power hooks.

After '3 Strange Days,' School of Fish faded from the radar.  Tragically, singer Josh Clayton-Felt died of cancer in 2000 at the age of 32.

Watch the video for '3 Strange Days' below:

Forgotten Gem: Liz Phair - 'Supernova'

On the heels of her breakthrough Exile in Guyville, Liz Phair released follow-up Whip-Smart just a year later.  'Supernova' was the sophomore album's flagship single, but it oozed of perfunctory pop hooks and formulaic production value when compared to the Exile collective.

Nevertheless, for as much as 'Supernova' seemed to mimic the alternative radio shtick of the time, it sounds refreshingly underground by today's standards.   Modern "Alternative" often sounds too polished, and modern "Indie" often gets lost in its own digital abstraction.  'Supernova,' on the other hand, is a back-to-basics ode to garage punk and songwriting.  It stands on its own merits.  And for that, I find 'Supernova' quite endearing.

Check out the video to 'Supernova' below.  (Try not to laugh too hard at all the nineties tropes):

Joss Stone - 'The High Road'

Joss Stone killed it on Jimmy Fallon Thursday night when she belted her silky smooth rendition of Broken Bells' 'The High Road.'  Dare I say, I enjoy this version better than the original.

Although I wasn't able to locate the Jimmy Fallon video clip for posting here, I've done the next best thing and embedded the SoundCloud stream to Joss' studio cut of 'The High Road' below:

Forgotten Gems: Archers of Loaf - 'Harnessed in Slums'

The Archers of Loaf may not have garnered the same level of indie-rock stardom as many of their early-'90s counterparts, but that didn't stop the influential Chapel Hill, NC band from making a lot of noise.

With a sound as angular and pop-centric as Pavement, but owing equal credit to the pure noise of Sonic Youth and the raw energy of the Pixies, the Archers strutted the line between melody and discordance like few of their contemporaries.

While the band's 1993 debut, Icky Mettle could still be considered their best and most important album, I have an affinity for their follow-up, Vee Vee.  On Vee Vee, the band plowed straight ahead with such a genuine lack of restraint that songs come off as contorted and misshapen, yet strangely and perfectly balanced.  "Harnessed in Slums" is a great example of the group's ethos, and an often overlooked indie-rock gem.

Watch the video for Archers of Loaf's joyfully raucus, "Harnessed in Slums" below:

Natalie Duncan - 'Sky is Falling'

Upcoming pop songstress Natalie Duncan advances torchy, bluesy jazz with her slow burner, 'Sky is Falling.'  Delicately searching, Duncan brings forth a credible sense of melancholy amidst a backdrop of optimistic expectation.  Her first album, Devil in Me, is set to drop July 24.       

In the meantime, watch the music video to 'Sky is Falling' below:

Childish Gambino - 'Heartbeat'

Like most folks, I first encountered Donald Glover as "Troy," the jock character on NBC's groundbreaking comedy, Community.  On the show, Glover plays a goofy, silly guy who's into playing in imaginariums and treating the "real world" with genuine contempt.

I had heard for awhile that Donald Glover had a side project rapping under his alter-ego, Childish Gambino, but I was never real motivated to listen to his stuff because of typecasting:  I couldn't separate the serious rapper allegedly portrayed by Childish Gambino from the totally not-very-serious character of "Troy" from Community.

This all changed when I had the pleasure of catching at random the video to 'Heartbeat' on CoolTV, the only television station that actually seems interested in playing music videos right now.  When I watched the vid I was, surprisingly, pretty darned impressed.

Unlike the absurd "Troy," Childish Gambino in 'Heartbeat' lays down lyrics with a distinct viciousness not replicated by other rappers.  Certainly, the overall cadence is akin to Kanye, but the emotional delivery is undoubtedly reminiscent of Mr. Slim Shady, himself.  The hook is auto-tuned enhanced, but the artificiality is mitigated by the mean lines Glover drops all throughout the song.

Stream the video to 'Heartbeat' by Childish Gambino below:

Father John Misty - 'Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings'

'Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings' has really struck a chord with me as of late.  Sung by J. Tillman--pseudonym Father John Misty-- the tune is wistful and soothing and folksy and generously proclaims "Jesus Christ" all throughout.

You can watch the video for 'Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings' below:

The Wombats - 'Jump Into the Fog'

'Jump Into the Fog' has steadily earwormed its way into the playlists of many alt-rock radio stations as of late.  To be sure, the looping keyboard riff has a lot to do with it.  But the song is also solid, containing a manic melody.

Check out the video to 'Jump Into the Fog' by The Wombats below:

Glenn Mederios - 'Nothing's Gonna Change My Love for You'

Sometimes, the perfect prescription for a lazy Sunday is a schmaltzy love ballad. In 1987, Glenn Mederios had a hit with his rendition of 'Nothing's Gonna Change My Love for You.' The corresponding video is heavy on slow motion, horse riding on the beach, playful water fights, and, perhaps most importantly, uncomfortably long centershots of the vocalist belting out the tune's prolific chorus.

 Watch the video below:

Behind the Sample: Nancy Sinatra and Robbie Williams

In the final moments of last night's Mad Men season finale, Don Draper sits down in the lounge and orders an old fashioned.  Just moments afterward, a couple of young and attractive females proposition the show's protagonist, asking if he's alone.  Before we can discover the Ad Man's answer, the scene blacks out, and Nancy Sinatra's 'You Only Live Twice' saunters in the background, carrying the show out on a hopeful--albeit muted--note.  Will Don continue living the virtues of his new life with second spouse Megan?  Or will he revert to the not so virtuous ways of his past?

As I was taking in this final scene, I had that all too familiar nagging feeling.  I knew I'd heard this song before, even though I never really had.  Thankfully, it only took me a few moments of self reflection to realize that 'You Only Live Twice' featured the same sampling as the late-nineties smash 'Millennium' by Robbie Williams.  In 1999, I probably heard Robbie Williams' take on the sampling only a few hundred times.  Conversely, I had never encountered Nancy's version, even though it was the theme song to one of the Sean Connery Bond films.  Nevertheless, I felt a little sheepish having not realized until this moment that the most iconic part of 'Millennium' was borrowed from another song 22 years its senior.  

Below, I've posted videos to both songs.  Listen to the two of them in succession to discover the music behind the sample:

    

Carly Rae Jepsen meets Third Eye Blind

"Here's my number. So call me maybe." Carly Rae Jepsen meets Third Eye Blind. Enough said. Watch the mashup below:

The Men - 'Open Your Heart'

The Men are a post-punk group from Brooklyn.  Their latest single is 'Open Your Heart' from the album of the same name.  True to form, the track's melody consists of Blitzkrieg beats and assertive guitar.   Some clever vocal bridgework provides a tight, but inviting, framework for some rewarding listening.

Stream 'Open Your Heart' in the SoundCloud app below:

 

Yuck - 'Chew'

After taking 2011 by storm (at least in the world of Indiedom), Yuck returns with its newest material in the form of 'Chew.'  The band continues its Ode to the Nineties tradition it successfully established last year by including a fair share of fuzz and reverb.

Stream 'Chew' in the Soundcloud app below: