100 Favourite Tracks of 2010: Part IV

In the morning Brûlé (as in crème) will be off again—he’ll check in someplace else similarly well-lit—but for the moment, he is focused as can be on the topic at hand: old media. He loves it. Can’t get enough. “I don’t want to sound like a Luddite about it,” he says, “but …” But Brûlé sort of is. Not a Luddite, exactly, but a hard-core devotee of old-fashioned media: of magazines that are printed on paper, of news programs that dedicate hours to single topics, and of well-modulated, unhysterical coverage of things other than, as he puts it, missing white women. As the media conglomerates of the world attempt to figure out their plans for the future, Brûlé is hatching a tiny and very specific media empire from a lovely part of Central London called Marylebone.

- Planet Monocle by Amy Larocca in NY Mag


Tame Impala - Solitude Is Bliss
Ah, Solitude is bliss. I kinda subscribe to that. And such music to listen to while you're flying solo is way awesome. Rock on, guys from Down Under.
[official] [myspace] [last.fm]

Röyksopp - Senior Living
I think this is a very sick tune from the revered (in some quarters) Norwegian duo. Brooding and poignant, listen to that wicked bassline take control.
[official] [myspace] [last.fm]

Mumford & Sons - Little Lion Man
Nice and folksy, with good ol' midwestern charm to boot. The banjo is a wonderful little instrument.
[official] [myspace] [last.fm]

Efterklang - Modern Drift
A dose of piano-backed rock is always a good listen, especially one that feels tentative, like they're on a cusp of something bigger, but still not sure of themselves. Grand orchestration is more than welcome too. Call me old but it's a personal favourite of mine.
[official] [myspace] [last.fm]

Ra Ra Riot - Boy
Hot off his Discovery release last year, Wes Miles is back with Boy from "The Orchard with Ra Ra Riot. Definitely a riotous number. Like I mentioned above, I always like strings or chamber instruments in my music. It brings a different sort of layering to the music. Refreshing.
[official] [myspace] [last.fm]

Freelance Whales - Generator ^ Second Floor
Saccharine pop number.
[official] [myspace] [last.fm]

Joanna Newsom - '81
Keep a lookout for this awesome singer, she's coming down to Singapore too, for the Mosaic Music Festival. Elegant song where Newsom easily soars to the higher ends of her vocal range. This song however, presents a peculiarity with regard to the lyrics. While on the surface, it seems to tread a little on hallowed ground, I still don't really understand it.
[myspace] [last.fm]

Deerhunter - Helicopter
This song is just fantastic. Bradford Cox says that he's a fan of the transgressive author Dennis Cooper, whose account of the shocking death of a teenage gay prostitute in Russia inspired Helicopter. The lyrics are meaningful once you know the context, and coupled with shimmery synths and fuzzy ambience, this is a stunner.
[official] [myspace] [last.fm]

Twin Sister - All Around and Away We Go (mp3)
Super trippy and super 80s, All Around and Away We Go presents a dreamy world of neverending rainbows, nice puffy clouds and beautiful rays of light that warmly caress the fields and everything else. Andrea Estella's charming and sometimes purposely muffled vocals are superb.
[official] [myspace] [last.fm]

Blackbird Blackbird - Happy High
Oh how literal the song title is. A euphoric journey that knows no bounds. But my only grouse, it's a tad too short!
[official] [myspace] [last.fm]

i tell you miserable things after you are asleep

In the wild land around the farm, there is constant change, yet it feels timeless. The beeches and hemlocks along the creek look the same. The ship-rock that always seems to be sinking in the middle pasture hasn’t sunk an inch in all this time. This is a rabbit year, but these look like the identical rabbits I saw a few years ago.

None of this is true in the garden. You can plant for shape, color, scent, whatever you like. But unless you confine yourself completely to annuals, you’re cultivating your consciousness of time. Every garden leaves the traces of its origin in the gardener, which means that it’s hard to look at even the maturest beds and borders without remembering the digging and planting and waiting it took to bring them to this point.

- Garden Time by Verlyn Klinkenborg


Ra Ra Riot - Boy
Ra Ra Riot having laid low for a little, except for Wes Miles who was active with Rostam Batmanglij as Discovery, are back with a new offering simply titled "The Orchard". Apparently the tracks have been out for a little more than a couple of weeks. A real nippy number, it's perky and Wes Miles' vocals drip with earnestness and longing. The hooks are definitely present but their signature strings are pretty much non existent here. Obviously, these guys are back and ready to roll.

Ra Ra Riot - Too Dramatic
You know what they say about the apple not falling too far from it's tree. Well, it's analogous to some extent. It's real rambunctious pop, with lovely interplay between their strings and drums/guitar. It segues real neatly as he croons about over-dramatic girlfriends that is beyond his comprehension.

Yeasayer - Madder Red
Yeasayer are up with their usual unusual stuff. The tribal melodies that permeate is part of the overall package that is an experimental yet folk-ish sound balanced with some slightly vague lyricism. The might seem pretentious and thought of as trying too hard initially, but I actually warmed up to the song after 2 listens. If you strip away the heavy sounds, the song might actually appeal to even more, but this is Yeasayer for you. Here's the official video. But it is really queer and disturbing (in a non gory/grisly manner). Check it out if you want, but it's highly likely to put one off.

The National - Conversation 16
I'm not exactly sure why I'm only posting this song now. Somehow, their new album "High Violet" didn't register with me. I don't know why. But the odd listens here and there, and suddenly I'm taking to most of this album, particularly Conversation 16. I think it's understated brilliance. Introspective and mellow; sombre yet glorious, the drums fill out the very little space left by Matt Berninger's deep and curiously affecting baritone. It resonates within you, and singing about zombies, be it metaphorical or literal, makes you wonder what is going through his mind. It could be an epiphany, but whatever it is, this is utter satisfaction.