July ‘08 Mix

July 29, 2008

1) Sun It Rises - Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes

Fleet Foxes is getting some pub for their CSNY-like vocal harmonies, and they are admittedly gorgeous, but I really love the guitar lines that move in and out of the song. Roll it all together and you get a nice little aural sunrise to kick off your morning.

2) Blue and Gold Print - Re-Arrange Us - Mates of State

I think I’m just a sucker for the Mates of State formula, because I could not honestly tell you how this song differentiates itself from other Mates of States songs.

3) Dead Sound - Lust Lust Lust - Raveonettes

I like the way the Raveonettes pull the vocal way back to the point that it’s almost a continuation of the wall of guitar noise that kicks the song off.

4) You Ran - Shots - Ladyhawk

I’m pretty sure Shots is my favorite album of the year.

5) Call It A Ritual - At Mount Zoomer - Wolf Parade

At Mount Zoomer is a bit of a mixed bag, but the spooky gallop of this track creates a nice contrast to Wolf Parade’s usual wall of sound.

6) Lipstick VogueM - This Year’s Model - Elvis Costello

The Attractions finest moment, on a purely instrumental level, also features two of my favorite Elvis lyrics: “Sometimes I almost feel just like a human being” and “sometimes love is just a tumor, you have to CUT IT OUT”

7) Lost Coastlines - The Stand-Ins - Okkervil River

I love the “Can’t Hurry Love” bassline, and Jonathan Meiburg’s Morrisey-esque co-vocal. So far The Stand-Ins isn’t quite as strong as Okkervil’s previous work, but Will Scheff remains one of the great lyricists working today.

8) Waves - Fire Songs - Watson Twins

The Twins are better singers than they are songwriters, so their most successful tracks (like this one) have them elevating basic song structures with an elegant melancholy that can really tug the heartstrings.

9) Asking for Flowers - Asking for Flowers - Kathleen Edwards

I’ve never fully committed to country music, but the storytelling has always been its most compelling element. Edwards’ vivid portrait of a busted marriage makes me love country music for a few minutes.

10) Fear and Convenience - We Brave Bee Stings and All - Thao Nguyen

I like Thao because she is Asian.

11) So Desperate - Heretic Pride - Mountain Goats

All this talk of storytelling and great lyrics… fuck it, John Darnielle does it better than anyone.

12) Sixteen Blue (Alternate Vocal) - Let It Be - The Replacements

The “alternate vocal” is a touch looser than the the original, but Westerberg’s ode to adolescence is still one of my favorite tracks off one of my favorite albums.

Posted in Mixtape