New Music: California rockers Best Coast recently dropped a new single in anticipation of their upcoming EP Fade Away called “This Lonely Morning.” For those unfamiliar with the group, they’re a surf-rock/indie rock sort of band, with guitarist/singer Bethany Consentino and multi-instrumentalist Bobb Bruno creating walls of sound that sound like an updated version of 1950s and 60s girl groups, surf, and garage rock, and a deceptively large sound for only a duo.
Anyway, the new single “This Lonely Morning” offers up much of the same that made Best Coast one of the biggest names of indie rock today. With walls of guitars, a pumping drumbeat that wouldn’t feel too out of place in a Beach Boys song, and Consentino’s multi-tracked vocals, the track just sounds fantastic. Consentino said she wrote it about waiting for ages for someone to call, and how it feels when they don’t, which is something we can all relate to. If you’re familiar with Best Coast, or are just hearing of them for the first time, give it a listen. The EP it’s from, Fade Away, comes out October 22.
What I’ve been listening to:
I’ve had a listen to a few pretty eclectic albums this week. One was a project by Psycosis that takes Neutral Milk Hotel’s seminal indie-rock album In the Aeroplane Over the Sea and mashes it up with rap songs from the last decade. This leads to some very interesting songs and beats, with Jeff Mangum’s plaintive cries, chugging acoustic guitar, and organ often enhancing the rap verses in a strange cross-genre symbiosis that is amazing. Choice tracks include “Look at the Two-Headed Boy” (mashup of “Look at Me Now” by Chris Brown and NMH’s “Two-Headed Boy”), and “Untitled Paint Job” (“Ice Cream Paint Job by rapper Dorrough and NMH’s “Untitled”).
Another is Jawbreaker’s 1992 album Bivouac. This band was one of the first bands to craft a first-wave emo punk sound, more akin to the Replacements and very early Green Day with more heartfelt lyrics than Hawthorne Heights. Some good tracks from it are “Chesterfield King” and “Bivouac.” I also found a cassette that’s called The Greatest Love Songs of the 50s and 60s that I got at a tag sale for a quarter, and because my car has a cassette deck I’ve been playing it a lot. Anyway, it’s got some great girl-group, Motown, and doo-wop songs on there that are from all different artists of the era, but all make for a great-sounding retrospective of that era. Some good tracks from it are “Up on the Bridge” by the Chiffons and “Teenager in Love” by Dion and the Belmonts. I don’t know where you’d find this album, but its constituent songs could probably be found pretty easily.
Local Music Happenings:
1) Amherst band Outer Stylie is having a release party/show for their newest album Into Being at Bishop’s Lounge in Northampton at 9PM on Friday, October 11th. They’re a heavy, funky, psychedelic rock band that is always a blast to see live.
2) On October 27, actor Hugh Laurie takes the stage at the Calvin Theatre in a role that’s more Dr. John than Dr. House. In support of his new album Didn’t it Rain?, Laurie takes the audience on a retrospective of blues throughout the American South and Midwest.
3) Aaron Carter is coming to Pearl Street on October 21. Need I say more?