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A highly specific situation that speaks to a broader social experience and feeling. The alternative is a track like Snow Patrol’s Chasing Cards.
“If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me
And just forget the world?”
Immediately those phrases mean everything to everyone. Would you lie here with me and just forget the world? Weirdly the mostly specific thing in that entire idea is The World and, now correct me if I’m wrong here, I do believe the world is fairly large, at least compared to my apartment which isn’t altogether enormous, particularly given that we’re paying $6,400 per week in #sydney rent. There are no proper nouns, no person or place is mentioned, just empty house painted in the faintest beige so as we can all agree that we could happily fit our own furniture in it. “It’s perfect for me!” So in summary, that Snow Patrol song means everything and nothing to everyone and noone, which is actually harder to do than you’d think, at least with any degree of success. That first sort of song though, that’s the work of Courtney Barnett. That sort of song is lyrically pinpoint specific while still entertaining a bigger concept like nostalgia or loss and translating that smaller element so as it might speak the bigger idea to a broader audience. That’s Barnett, that’s what she does and that’s what she’s done. The imagery is perfect put together to be altogether familiar in it’s discrete specifics. You know those jars, you know what a railing in the shower implies and you know where Preston is even if you don’t know where Preston is, and if you don’t, then you do. Right? Wrap it up Tommy. The track itself sounds like it would fit admirably on the Middle East’s one glorious LP I Want That You Are Always Happy. The forthcoming CB LP is going to be quite some record, it seems.
I’ve never written about Lanks (real name Will Cuming) for a variety of reasons. He’s only one EP deep so far so we’re not referring to a lifetime of omission, but nonetheless he’s been heavily present on quite a few Australian music blogs and websites these past few years. Present enough so as that he was unmissable in the world of the aus music blog, which at some subconscious level must have contributed to my failure to pen. The truth of it is that I was never so struck by his music that I couldn’t not write. His singles have been solid since ‘Rises And Falls’ dropped a year ago and even Beach Houses from a few months ago challenge my static hand. This newest single Hold Me Closer though, that’s the one that demanded attention. It’s Will’s best vocal performance and some of the most assured songwriting + structure he’s put on show so far. Here’s the thing though. It actually doesn’t matter a lick that Lanks never features on Sound Doctrine because the guy’s work ethic has driven him to the top regardless of the thirty six extra plays I could have offered him. Now for the song.
Reminds me of some sort of Oscar Key Sung and FKA Twigs hybrid whilst those those rolling toms drive some energy into the track when its pulse starts to slow. She’s got the voice, the production is great, the songs are strangely alluring and everything feels good to go for 2015, here’s hoping the rest of 2015 is as on board with this project as I am. For the uninitiated, Moon Holiday is Sydney’s Alex Ward – she’s dropped just the one EP way back in 2010 but she also featured on the deluxe edition of Flume’s record and if she has the Streten tick of approval then who are we mere mortals to ask questions? Absolutely nobody, that’s who. This is the second single from her next EP which is already two from two and looking likely to fulfil some rather high hopes.
A new jam from Tim Shiel and Ben Abraham‘s Telling, that’s what we were treated to on Wednesday this week. It was posted with neither fanfare nor press release, injected into the internet’s netherveins through the musical fluidbag that is soundcloud. Sometimes that fluidbag feels more like a colostomy bag but not this day friends, we have a real gem from this pair, a track called New Love that highlights Ben’s vocal chops and Tim’s sharp capacity to process vocals. The beat is lovely in itself, peppered with choral synths, harp progressions and a guitar line that serves rythm around the thumping bass which actually strikes quite hard during that middle eight(*ish) section. A very clever song from a very clever duo.
This song loses me immediately when it opens with some fairly vanilla coffee discussion but hold your judgement, we move forward from there. Copeland tried that song about cofee schtick and it didn’t work all too well. I think they got too caught up in the coffee dialogue which is, funnily enough, the same mistake that my friend Jared makes which is why he’s entirely intolerable to be around. Not Brisbane’s Greg Chiapello though, coffee is just a launchpad for Greg, as it should be for all of us. The song doesn’t full take flight until the piano line arrives with the chorus and the result is sickly sweet but unimaginably catchy. It’s something like Tobias Jesso Jr crossed with Roy Orbison. I’m into it.
Artists you need to know rn
| 1. 1300 |  |
316 |
| 2. Voidhood | |
259 | 3. jamesjamesjames | |
186 | 4. Zan | |
174 |
| 5. Sesame Girl | |
147 |
