EPISODE 6

EPISODE 6: It's Not All Skin and Bones

Song: 'Working Together'
Artist: Gonzales
Album: Soft Power (2008)
Label: EMI

Merry New Haps, e’ryone! The holidays were excellent, but the Snobs are goin’ back to work, and there’s a lotta work to do! 2010’s gonna be a big year full o’ big records and big breaks. To get us back into the e-crate-diggin’ work flow, a little loose-letting from Gonzales, best known for the breathtaking compositional austerity on his production of Feist’s The Remainder. This, his pop record, was actually released just as his work with Feist was sending flares up above Arts and Crafts Berlin outpost. Enjoy the cast! Enjoy the year! Now back to work! Oh-oh oh-oh oh-oh oh-oh oh!

Song: 'No Place For Me'
Artist: Ghostland Observatory
Album: Robotique Majestique (2008)
Label: Trashy Moped Recordings

Two things drew me to this band instantly:
1. They hail from the self-proclaimed 'Music Capital of the World', Austin, Texas, rocking some of the most snobinest festivals from said area (including ACL & SxSW)
and
2. They have quite possibly the coolest sounding band name I've heard in quite some while.
Watch their live performance and you'll see for yourself that they whole heartedly live up to their quirky namesake with an over the top trashy-synth rock show that includes bright lights and long capes. Dead serious. 

Song: 'Sweet Words for the Sour'
Artist: Whitey
Album: Great Shakes (2007)
Label: Unreleased

No one wants to release in December, anymore, and no one probably will until Internetpol starts allowing December entries on the following year’s ‘Best Of’ lists. So, when you have a minimum record-a-week habit, you start to do desperate things. You start going back through that list of records with one catchy tune, buying the one catchy tune and making compilations of neat tunes from a catalog of records you could never recommend – or worse, you start taking “you might also like” suggestions from… [shudder]… Genius. It’s how I head about Whitey. itunes has a stack of records that just don’t move, and apparently if you have a little LCD Soundsystem in your library, you’re a prime candidate for the almost always awful UK electro rock that is less Brooklyn’s gritty disco reinvention, and more a failure to get the message that rave is dead. Except that in the case of the recommended Whitey record – it was actually pretty tight, and most amazingly out in 2005. A little background checking later and “Great Shakes” came to light – a completely unreleased (officially) record that was pulled after a premature leak caused Whitey to throw up his hands and take a little time off. To be clear – Whitey is not like the rest – he knows what he’s doing – the tracks are catchy and substantial, the ideas are his own (except where reminiscent of some finer Beck moments), and the official 2010 sophomore record promises to be one of my recommendations to Genius.

Song: 'Walking The Dog'
Artist: fun.
Album: Aim & Ignite (2009)
Label: Independent

After leaving his previous band The Format, Nate Ruess grabbed two other friends / musicians from recently broken up bands Anathallo & Steel Train, and started work on would eventually become their debut album under the moniker 'fun.' (which, when trying to find any info on this band is anything BUT that, with a name like fun.....'No Google, I didnt MEAN 'Sudoku FUN' or 'FUN and easy dance lessons', but thanks for that.) None the less, this album may not be the most incredible pop album ever made, but it IS an incredibly mixed and superbly composed disc that is clearly made by three musicians who have a firm grasp on the potential of pop music, and have created quite an orginal genre for themselves.

Song: 'Sunrise'
Artist: Yeasayer
Album: All Hour Cymbals (2008)
Label: Sonic Unyon

Though more popular comparisons have been drawn since, for me the release of MGMT’s Oracular Spectacular and the establishment of ‘that whole thing’ is forever paired with the release of Yeasayer’s more organic psychedelic All Hour Cymbals. Maybe cause I downloaded them both at the same time, maybe because I was stunned by how they both brought so many aspects of established ideas into a still difficult to pinpoint newness. Most likely it was my thwarted attempt to see them together during a visit home in 2008. All of that just to say that this Yeasayer record is richly relevant and vitally superb. It should not be overlooked, and it should not be overlooked soon – the new one’s out in a couple of weeks (and if the new single is any indication, there’ll be something special about knowing this one before getting to know that one). 

Song: 'Roche'
Artist: Sebastien Tellier
Album: Sexuality (2008)
Label: Record Makers

There really is only one word that can sum up this entire album and that is Sexy. So it only seems fitting that the disc's name is in fact Sexuality. This French born gentleman has close ties to other snob cast worthy counterparts Air (whom he has toured extensively with) and Daft Punk (having Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo produce this effort). My absolute favourite quote from a review on this album was that 'it's the musical equivalent to the Red Light District'. I couldn't put it any better myself.

Song: 'Die Slow'
Artist: Health
Album: Get Color (2009)
Label: Lovepump United

So there’s this club in central-east downtown LA bordering Skid Row called The Smell that has been home to the all ages noise-rock mini-revolution of the last coupla few years and which has produced No Age, Abe Vigoda, The Mae Shi, Health and a legion of pre-freshman aged devotees who seem to ease right into a scene of sonic demolition of tone and structure. This record will represent my third earnest attempt to enter the world of Health, whose blurring brutality and concurrent popularity are surpassed in the scene only by Smell poster children No Age. Finally, a song I can get behind for real. Die Slow has also had some pretty great remix treatment by Pictureplane and Tobacco, but we’re presenting the genuine article in hopes that you might be one of the lucky few that sees the appeal through the Smell.

Check out the video

Song: 'Quiet Little Voices'
Artist: We Were Promised Jetpacks
Album: These Four Walls (2009)
Label: Fatcat Records

Hailing from one of my favourite cities on earth, Edinburgh, Scotland, these gentlemen got their start after winning their school's 'Battle Of The Bands' contest in early 2003, quickly relocating to Glasgow to get themselves a proper shot at getting their sound out there. The disc itself combines some great pop-infused indie rock melodies that are pretty damn enjoyable. It's really no wonder that this is one more album that landed itself on quite a few 'Best Of '09' lists.

Song: 'Count 5 or 6'
Artist: Cornelius
Album: Fantasma (1997)
Label: Matador 

Tokion magazine introduced Cornelius as ‘The Japanese Beck’ back in 1998. In 1998, there was only one other Beck, the American one, and when a European aimed Japanese pop culture magazine told you what to do, you did it. Thanks to a then vitally fruitful pre-Napster relationship with Columbia House (as part of a 3-4-1 deal that included Portishead Live in NYC and Delirium’s Karma – just to take you all the way back), I was soon exposed first hand to an album that played so far ahead of its time, we’re just barely catching up now. Unlike the other bands in that three-fer, Cornelius stayed with us, putting out a consistent string of miraculously future-informed Hi-Fi records that are still way ahead of our time. I can’t believe this record is now 13 years old. Neither will you.

Song: 'White Sky'
Artist: Vampire Weekend
Album: Contra (2010)
Label: XL

It begins. 2010, (the official follow up to 2007), is gon’ be a big year. No matter how much indie-success-story-backlash there’s been time to generate since Ezra Koening made docksiders cool again, (like just unfathomably cool, I write, warm in my London Fog navy pullover), you just can’t hate Vampire Weekend when you’re faced with the music. Singles Horchata and Cousins have steadily grown into current favorites of mine, though the rest of the record plays a little more typically like White Sky – that new ‘Discovery’ leaning vibe. As for the backlash, this new record is gonna make a lotta people take personal stock of what could possibly have made them strike first. All Vampire Weekend has done is release two great records that are actually that smart, fresh and very likeable. Look, I’m not on any side – I just think the music is actually great, and gotta remind people – you’re sposeda hate records that are huge and suck. As for records that are huge and great – you’re just gonna have to learn to share. Africa out.

Song: 'Fruit Touch'
Artist: Hudson Mohawk
Album: Butter(2009)
Label: Warp

So far the only other person I know of who wanted to start a band with that name, Hudson Mohawk brings us the drunken drums, crushing synth and fluorescent flash typical of the sort of thing we tend to think sounds just awesome toward the end of a 3 hour set, 4 Double SJs and enough Millers to line the booth. So, what’s our excuse this time? The Snob Cast isn’t supposed to be easy! It’s supposed to hurt a little! An introduction to 2009’s highest bidder on the 80’s synth-funk revival. The whole record is filled with fearlessly fragmented Parsons-Project ideas that shouldn’t work (R Kelly biting soul jams on embellished keyboard demo tracks, the album art alone) which when framed within the always somehow undeniable head-bob-worthiness of his army of back breaking beats and his dialed-in take on late neon era synthesizer and sampling techniques makes for one fresh, fresh, freshity fresh record. Get a little freshness in your life. Get Butter.

Song: 'Summertime'
Artist: Girls
Album: Album (2009)
Label: True Panther Sounds

What a perfect closer for the first cast of the new year. I mean how could you not be interested in a band whose biographies include stories of being born into a cult, millionaire benefactors and addictions to prescription drugs. Combining Californian pop melodies, a la The Beach Boys, with surf guitars and a laid back, all-too-relaxed, vocal style. With lyrics referencing sleeping late, napping in parks and soaking up the sunshine, it's pretty much the ideal 'end of summer' song.