Audio By Carbonatix
Welcome to Staff Trax, the weekly feature here on DC9 where we shed some light on
the music we’ve been enjoying of late, regardless of the touring or
album release schedules that tend to bear the focus of most of our
coverage. Consider it a chance for you readers to get some more insight
into our own personal tastes. Maybe you’ll find something you like, ya
dig?
Crystal Castles – “Celestica”
It’s not that I’ve been deliberately resisting Toronto’s Crystal Castles’ second album, Crystal Castles II. Rather, I haven’t cared enough to consciously make an effort to get my hands on it. After last years sold-out, very-last-minute cancellation at the Granada Theater, I hadn’t felt the need to really give the electro act the time of day. Eventually, they slipped from my mind entirely–only to return after seeing their name mentioned on Twitter. Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor recently tweeted something about how good the act’s second album is. And that was nearly enough to propel me into giving Crystal Castles II a proper listen. Until it slipped my mind once more. Thanks to a friend, the album ended up at my house and I finally popped it into my stereo over the weekend–and that’s where it has stayed since, pretty much on repeat. The moral of the story: If you haven’t already done so, give Crystal Castles II a listen. It’s worth it. –Catherine Downes
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Galaxie 500 – “Strange”
At times, I “discover” a band only to realize they haven’t only been
around for a while, but that they’re more a thing of the past. It’s cool, though. In certain cases, such a missed opportunity turns out to be
the key to a veritable gold-mine of tunes that are readily available,
and not delivered album by album, years apart from one another. After
catching Ben Stiller’s latest movie, Greenberg, I found myself enjoying
the James Murphy-intensive soundtrack, especially since his movie tunes
are all very un-LCD Soundsystem-like. A song that forcefully caught my
attention, in the midst of Murphy’s score, was “Strange” by the now
defunct (they broke up in 1991) slowcore group, Galaxie 500. Hello,
treasure trove. Originally presented on the dream-pop group’s 1989 LP,
On Fire, this spaced-out folk anthem has a ramshackle energy that deftly
displays the softer, more acoustic side of shoegaze. The New England
trio have a couple of other releases that I’m also currently making my way
through now. I might need a pail to carry all this gold
in. –Kelly Dearmore
BrakesBrakesBrakes – “Hold Me in the River”
