Band of the Week: The Ugly Club

(click to enlarge.)

The Ugly Club is the greatest supergroup you’ve never heard of. It essentially combines members from different NJ indie bands and harnesses their collective energy, prior experience and all. It’s a musical wet dream: all of these guys love 60’s soul as well as geeeeeeeetar, and you can just imagine the band forming after a gig they all played with their separate bands, where everyone is joining on stage and band lines become blurred in the pursuit of frolic.

Best of all, the music builds trombone and trumpet over the essential indie rock base, and it really shines through on soaring solos in songs like “Follow the Sound”.

If I ever owned a bookstore or café, this is the kind of music I’d play, all of the time.

The band members come from The Command Radio, Socratic, Beale Street Love, The Talking Machine, and MIE lovelies The Static Jacks. These boys obviously know how to have a good time, so why not join in on the fun?

They are releasing their "Sing What You Want" EP next week, here’s a track in advance.

The Ugly Club – Follow the Sound [mp3]

visit them on MYSPACE for info on their record release party, gig dates and other great stuff.

The Soft Pack - C'mon

ok, so I have officially forgiven the band for changing their name from The Muslims

this new single is off the hook.

The Soft Pack - C'mon [mp3]

and really, how can any of us refuse the potential of TWO debut albums from one great band? because debut albums are so often my favourite.

the song itself just makes you pity the band for having to have had recorded this in studio because it just SCREAMS "play me live play me live play me live"
I love how fast everything is, and this song really does encapsulate the whole California-has-the-best-VU-type-bands-thing.

Flight of the Conchords call it quits

I don't even know the details (I'm too depressed to investigate), I just read a couple of headlines.

le sigh. this makes me sad. I've only seen the first season, because I don't have HBO, but I was planning on buying the second season. now it seems as though there shant be a third season.

all good things (of the television persuasion) end prematurely.
like a prematurely shot wad.

let's remember the good ol days:

The Strokes Post #292

SOURCE (+ photo shoot)
(via Katie)

I can't decide what is cooler, the tattoo, the watch, or the fact that he looks like he is in attack mode.

Classic Track Thursday

I recently checked out a compilation of Frankie Valli singles from the library. the album disappointed me more than I care to say, but this song will always tide me over.

Frankie Valli - Can't Take My Eyes Off You [mp3]

record review: I Come to Shanghai - I Come to Shanghai

"We're definitely pro-masturbation."
-Robert Ashley, I Come to Shanghai

Oakland art-rock duo I Come to Shanghai are many things, but uninteresting is not one of them.

They contacted me ages ago to get the word out about their eponymous debut, and although I was skeptical at first, I couldn't quite delete their email. And I'm glad I didn't.

Maybe I was having an off day that day, because I am listening to the album again right now and just loving it. It seamlessly drifts from bouncy to spacey, and is sure to please a wide scope of people; people who listen to The Kinks and The Flaming Lips alike will dig this record.

On songs like "Watch You Sleep" they seem to fill the gap between Joni Mitchell-folk and MGMT-experimentalism. These boys just adore the 60's, you can tell. It's like middle ground between The Dodos and Pink Floyd.

"Do We Have To Rise" is one of those songs that puts you at ease as it simultaneously stimulates your every nerve, much like rock opera era Who. All in all, there is a lot of stuff going on musically, but it isn't overwhelming at all. The Oakland band seem to have perfected the art of whelming.

In the true spirit of artists, Sam Frigard and Robert Ashley are offering the entire album as a pay-what-you-like dealio on their WEBSITE

Check out the tune below and decide for yourself if it's worth your time and/or money

I Come to Shanghai - Pass The Time [mp3]

visit them on MYSPACE.
they're good friends with Jesus.

The Strokes Post #291

I love my youtube recommendations, yes I do.

Paolo Nutini covers "Wake Up"

no, this cannot wait until Sunday.



if you had asked me, before I watched this video, if I would like to hear a cover of Arcade Fire's "Wake Up", I'd probably have said "no". because that song is so perfect, and I wouldn't want anything to tarnish it.

but this is just, like, a spectacular homage to the greatness that is "Wake Up". extraordinarily well done, extremely sincere and, to be quite frank, simply beautiful.

Paolo Nutini - Wake Up (Arcade Fire cover) [mp3]

The Strokes Post #290

one of my readers was kind enough to send me photos and a video from a Little Joy gig in Lisbon. many thanks to Rui and his friend Zé Gato, who the photos and video




















PS The Strokes landed the #2 spot on RS's albums of the decade list. what did it lose to, you ask? Kid A. that's not even the best Radiohead album!

SPIN names the best 40 albums of the year.

Julian C is between the DP album and the TCV album. I love one and can't stand the other. essentially, I love about half of the list, and cannot stand the other half. it was really nice to see Girls' Album in the top five though.

what is really interesting about this list is it reminded me of an album I had completely forgotten about...Antony and the Johnson's The Crying Light. damn good album.

anyhow, here is the list.

40 Kiss - Sonic Boom
39 Wilco - Wilco (Wilco The Album
38 Rick Ross - Deeper Than Rap
37 Gallows - Grey Britain
36 Brakesbrakesbrakes - Touchdown
35 Miike Snow - Miike Snow
34 Mariachi El Bronx - Mariachi El Bronx
33 The Avett Brothers - I And Love And You
32 U2 - No Line On The Horizon
31 Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca
30 Julian Casablancas - Phrazes For The Young
29 Them Crooked Vultures - Them Crooked Vultures
28 The Flaming Lips - Embryonic
27 Jarvis Cocker - Further Complications
26 The Mountain Goats - The Life Of The World To Come
25 The Big Pink - A Brief History Of Love
24 Wolfmother - Cosmic Egg
23 St. Vincent - Actor
22 Tegan And Sara - Sainthood
21 Raekwon - Only Built 4 Cuban Linx Pt. II
20 Paramore - Brand New Eyes
19 Lily Allen - It's Not Me, It's You
18 Antony And The Johnsons - The Crying Light
17 Mastodon - Crack The Skye
16 Japandroids - Post-Nothing
15 Neko Case - Middle Cyclone
14 Amadou & Mariam - Welcome To Mali
13 Jay Reatard - Watch Me Fall
12 Ida Maria - Fortress Round My Heart
11 Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson - Summer Of Fear
10 The Dead Weather - Horehound
09 Drake - So Far Gone
08 Florence And The Machine - Lungs
07 Mos Def - The Ecstatic
06 Bat For Lashes - Two Suns
05 Girls - Album
04 Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest
03 Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
02 Yeah Yeah Yeahs - It's Blitz!
01 Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion

BONUS:
here is NME's top 50 list.
The Horrors' Primary Colours made #1

The Strokes Post #289

Julian looks/sounds/is great. my favourite two non-Jules-related things about this video are:
a. the drummer chick's jacket
b. that boy singing along to all of the words to the left of the video. tv performances always have lame audiences, and that guy was so into it. it made me happy to see a true fan enjoying Julian's greatness.

Silversun Pickups - Panic Switch

Silversun Pickups - Panic Switch [mp3, HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!]

this song has been mocking me for forever. it comes on almost EVERY time I am driving with the radio on and I am insanely in love with it.

for the longest time, I tried to convince myself it was Billy Corgan singing--but I knew in my bones that it wasn't. I always forget to look it up, but today, the nice man deejaying 92.3 said it was SILVERSUN PICKUPS and I just got my hands on it. the dj also mentioned that the band has been nominated for a Grammy--best new artist.

as for the song: it sounds so much like Smashing Pumpkins, but with more glitz, if that makes any sense. it's shiny. it makes me dizzy. it gets me pumped.

I'm gonna give the whole album a listen, that might have been an overlooked one this year...

...but the year isn't over yet!

PS don't get confused. the band has a chick, but it's a boy singing. yeah.

The Strokes Post #288

thanks Olivia!

PS If The Music is Loud Enough has a short but sweet interview with JC.

"I didn’t choose it; it chose me." <3

PPS: new NYC date announced! 14th of January.

Sunday Morning Covers

ZIP FILE

Social Distortion - Death Or Glory (The Clash cover) [mp3]

The Black Keys - Her Eyes Are A Blue Million Miles (Captain Beefheart Cover) [mp3]

Wilco - Peace Love and Understanding (Elvis Costello cover)[mp3]

Jamie Cullum - Lover, You Should Have Come Over (Jeff Buckley cover) [mp3]
Jamie Cullum's debut, Twentysomething has consistently been one of my favourite albums for over five years now. it's mostly composed of covers, but it exposed me to songs before I knew the originals (ex. Hendrix's "Wind Cries Mary" and Radiohead's "High and Dry"). I love Jamie Cullum very very much. I don't listen to his second album (Catching Tales) as much as I should. when I was looking through the new issue of Q last week, I noticed that he had a new album out. must get my hands on that.

Dashboard Confessional - Angels Of The Silences (Counting Crowes cover) [mp3]

Elliott Smith - Isn't It a Pity (George Harrison cover) [mp3]

Nickel Eye - Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye (Leonard Cohen cover) [mp3]

Iron & Wine/ Calexico - Always On My Mind (Willie Nelson Cover) [mp3]

Metric - Don't Think Twice, It's Alright (Bob Dylan cover) [mp3]

Elvis Costello - Beautiful (Christina Aguilera cover) [mp3]

Division Day - Ghosts (Japan cover) [mp3]

Beck/Wilco/Feist - Little Hands (Skip Spence cover) [mp3, HIGHLY RECOMMENDED]
oh Beck. won't you ever come back to the realm of us mortals?

The White Stripes - Moonage Daydream (David Bowie cover) [mp3]
have you all seen THIS? it's pretty great, shows you that even a savage like Bowie was once a awkward twenty year old.

Beach House - Play The Game (Queen Cover) [mp3]

Ben Folds - Say Yes (Elliott Smith cover) [mp3]
this was playing on repeat in my head while I was dreaming. not the cover, but the original from Either/Or. the cover is quite good though.

The Strokes Post #287

new youtube comment:

I was at his show Friday in Amsterdam, a guy came on stage and Julian sad something like: "happens to me every night that crazy people get on the stage" :)

HAHAHA. who do you think started this trend? one day, when Julian and the rest of the Strokes and I are all old buddies, smoking our pipes, we will laugh heartily at this.