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Jay Reatard – “See/Saw”
Deerhunter – “Fluorescent Grey”
These tie together quite nicely, as Reatard covered the Deerhunter song on one of his recent limited edition 7 inches (which have, by the way, been neatly compiled for an October release on Matador).
In April last year I described the Deerhunter track as “a wonderful slow burning gem set to an urgent rhythm track and adorned with chiming guitars, breathy backing vocals and, towards the climax, a haze of buzzing guitars, nestled low in the mix.” For some reason, I subsequently forgot to listen to it again, but thanks to Reatard I’ve rediscovered its simple pleasures.
Speaking of Jay Reatard, he’s no slouch when it comes to songwriting either. In fact he’s possibly the only man who’s more prolific than Bradford Cox. The lead track from the upcoming Matador Singles ‘08 album, “See/Saw”, is as a pretty much perfect three-minute garage-punk tune. Download it now, thank me later.
Perhaps it’s the sign of a dwindling attention span – or maybe I’m a touch embarrassed about my ‘total plays’ count over at last.fm – but today I’ve been focusing on short tracks. I made a rather awesome iTunes playlist of every decent sub-two minute track I could find and my personal favourite turned out to be “Awful Bliss” by Guided By Voices.
What Robert Pollard achieves here in 72 seconds here is absolutely staggering. While lesser songwriters would baulk at a song of this length, Pollard knows that less is sometimes more. That mentality applies to the recording process, too, and consequently “Awful Bliss” sounds like a magical first take. If someone told me it had been written, recorded and mastered (if GBV albums even get mastered!) in twenty minutes I’d probably believe them.
Hunt it down (it’s one of several indie-rock classics of the highly recommended Bee Thousand) if you haven’t heard it.
Since his first 7″ release in 1999, Frenchman Laurent Girard has been quietly carving out a niche and making a name for himself in the world of ambient electronic music. Released on a multitude of different labels (Static Caravan, audio dregs, Autres Directions in Music) under the name Melodium, Girard’s catalogue is as sizeable as it is impressive – My Mind Is Falling To Pieces is his twelfth CD album, and audio dregs are imminently about to release number thirteen.
And while there are hordes of bearded laptop composers scattered throughout Europe’s towns and cities, Girard is particularly noteworthy for combining gentle ambient soundscapes with more human elements, such as folky acoustic guitars and his limited yet charming vocals. Another important ingredient is humour; 2005’s La Tete Qui Flotte featured a track titled Greg Davis > Craig David, which still raises a smile to this day. Although its name would suggest otherwise, My Mind Is Falling To Pieces is no different in this respect.
Although sufficiently impressed to award it a 7/10 rating, I noted that 2007’s self-release Vilnius lacked the personal touch that had helped to propel his earlier works beyond those of his contemporaries. At the time I wondered whether Girard might be running out of steam and ideas.Thankfully My Mind Is Falling To Pieces has quashed these doubts in the most emphatic fashion: it’s arguably his strongest recording to date.
Key to the album’s success is the way in which Girard’s voice, guitar work and electronic compositions are moulded together. It all sounds seamless. Previously certain movements within tracks have sounded clumsy, with programmed beats struggling to keep time with harshly strummed acoustic guitars. Here, however, Girard’s delicate finger-picked guitar patterns dance happily over the whirling synths and sparse beats. Tracks like the superb folk-infused finale Death Will Take Me Away From This World represent a real leap forward in terms of composition and performance. The faint tape hiss of old has been replaced by a new professional sheen, but this step up in production values has not come at the expense of character.
My Mind Is Falling To Pieces confirms Laurent Girard’s place at the top table of European electronic music. Latecomers to the Melodium party would do well to start their obsession here. (9/10)
Album review published on NORIPCORD.COM
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For more information about Melodium please visit his official website or his MySpace. You can purchase this album over at the Arbouse Recordings site.
Today – and for the past week since I first discovered it through the rather excellent indie-pop blog Take The Pills! – I’ve been listening to The Sea Urchins‘ “Pristine Christine” practically on repeat. I had considered The Field Mice’s “Emma’s House” to be Sarah Records’ crowning moment but now I’m not so sure; this is a truly perfect sub-three minute helping of taut jangle-pop. Bonus marks for the ridiculously twee title.
At the time of writing, you can listen to “Pristine Christine” on this fan MySpace page:
http://www.myspace.com/theseaurchinsanddelta
