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 good.
Röyksopp – “The Drug”
Over the years, The two guys in Röyksopp have put out some really fine material that fits into my personal music realm of choice, minimalist electronica. They’ve also released some really snappy songs, occasionally featuring guest vocalists like Erland Oye or Karin Dreijer Andersson. They’re releasing a new full-length instrumental called Senior on September 13, and started streaming it from their website on on the 6th. This is the video for the first single, which definitely falls on the minimalist electronica side of things, called “The Drug.” I thought it was shot on some post-apocalyptic movie set. Turns out it’s just Detroit. –Doug Davis
Trippple Nippples – “Harakuju Girls”
Trippple Nippples has been a semi-secret pleasure of mine since my
sophomore year of college. That sounds much dirtier than it actually is,
honest. I found the Japanese group while perusing MySpace in search of
some new tunes (this was back in 2006 when people still checked their
MySpace accounts more than once every other month) and I found myself
immediately hooked by the catchy and downright corky nature of the
group. At the time, Trippple Nippples didn’t have much posted–just a
couple of demos, one of which was “RIP Meat,” an infectious little
number that I still find myself listening to when the mood is right. The
only video I could find for “RIP Meat” was a fan-made video of Tokyo
“street fashion”. If you happen to like what you hear then make sure to
check out Trippple Nippples’ MySpace page and keep your eyes and ears
out for any info regarding the release of the band’s very first EP. –Catherine Downes
Ride – “Vapour Trail”
As a recognized genre, the distortion-fueled fuzziness of shoegaze
wasn’t that popular to the masses for very long, especially once grunge
flannelled its way onto the map shortly after the ’90s began. When one
thinks of shoegazers, it’s easy to pretty much begin and end with My
Bloody Valentine, even though one would be wrong to do so. There were
plenty of other English fellows that enjoyed the same eardrum busting
sound, while focusing a greater attention to melody and overall
catchiness, like Oxford’s Ride, for one excellent example. Many have
pointed to their debut album, Nowhere, as perhaps the second-best
shoegaze album to soar from behind a massive wall of sound, even. –Kelly
Dearmore
Jawbox – “Mirrorful”
Thirty weeks of doing this column, and I’m just now covering a band
that I spent four years of my life documenting in a book, along with
almost a dozen other bands. What gives? Anyway, Jawbox put out only four
records (two on Dischord Records, two on Atlantic Records), but none of
them are bad. I’d highly recommend starting out with either For Your
Own Special Sweetheart or Jawbox. Here’s the song that turned me onto
them. –Eric Grubbs
Buffalo Tom – “Taillights Fade”
It’s hard to believe that Buffalo Tom has been around nearly 25 years.
Supposedly, the Boston band is working on its eighth album, but Buffalo
Tom’s heyday has to be 1992 when the band released its best effort, Let
Me Come Over. On that album, singer/guitarist Bill Janovitz finally
perfected his mix of loud and soft as the brilliant single “Taillights
Fade” aptly demonstrates. Sadly, Buffalo Tom attempted to get super
slick on the following album, Big Red Letter Day, and the results were
painfully uneven. Buffalo Tom rebounded a bit with 1995’s Sleepy Eyed,
but commercial success has always eluded this fine trio. Fans of The
Replacements and Dinosaur Jr. can certainly find some wonderful gems in
the catalogue of Buffalo Tom. –Darryl Smyers
Wilco – “Jesus Etc.”
Yankee Hotel Foxtrot was Wilco’s fourth studio album, but it just as
easily could have been their last. The contentious recording
sessions–which were well-documented in the film I Am Trying To Break
Your Heart–resulted not only in the split from the band’s label Reprise
Records, but saw longtime multi-instrumentalist/co-head songwriter Jay
Bennett being dismissed by the band as well. Fortunately the album ended
up being the band’s first critical and commercial success. My favorite track of the album has got to be the gorgeous “Jesus Etc.,”
which may explain why I listened to it around a dozen times over the
weekend. The album’s original release date was supposed to be September
11, 2001 before it was ultimately pushed back to April the following
year. Listening to lyrics like “Tall buildings shake, voices escape
singing sad sad songs” seem to eerily predict the events of 9/11 and
have taken on whole new meanings in the wake of the tragedies. In any case, the way Tweedy subtlety changes vocal melodies and cadences
over a consistent set of chord changes is nothing short of brilliant,
keeping the song interesting after repeated listens. The understated,
perfectly mixed harmonies are just the sort of cherry that shoot “Jesus
Etc.” into the next stratum. This is one I almost always listen to
twice in a row when it comes up on the iPod. –Cory Graves
Toto – “Rosanna”
Toto is best taken in small doses, lest you start to morph into a
lifeless radio-pop shell. But wow, what an airtight job of
instrumentation on this. The band was full of very sharp players, and this is
their finest moment. My favorite part is the low “Or is it?” vocal
utterance heard in one of the last choruses. This is, of course, the
bullshit radio edit version, that cuts out a pretty impressive
volley-and-response keyboard and guitar solo at the end. The album
version is really the way to go, if you get the chance. This is also a great song to make fun
of and laugh about, especially if your friends ever catch you listening
to it. Toto wouldn’t even care. –Alan Ayo
