Track of the Day: 'Martin' by Car Seat Headrest

The second track to appear from their forthcoming album 'Making A Door Less Open', this song sees Will Toledo's Car Seat Headrest in a relatively mellow mood. I'm assuming that the titular Martin is the narrator of the song, since he's singing about a guy called Justin. The introduction of a trumpet towards the end gives the song a different vibe to most Car Seat Headrest tracks, and makes me think the the new record will be even more diverse that I was expecting.

I'm not sure if the extreme protection and cleaning video was made before the coronavirus pandemic kicked in, or if it's a response to that, but it feels a bit too close to home for now - we need some escapism in these troubled times. But don't let that put you off listening to the song.

'Making A Door Less Open' is released on 1st May 2020.

Recommended music: 'Collector' by Disq

Hailing from Madison, Wisconsin, new 5-piece guitar band Disq inhabit the same sort of spaces as Bodega, Fountains of Wayne and Weezer amongst others. There's some great melodies in here, along with some decently (or indecently) fuzzed guitars, some acoustic track, and even a bona fide pop song on 'Loneliness'.


Parts of some of these songs also remind me of the band XTC, in the way they're constructed and the rhythms they use, like for example on 'Fun Song 4', and there are also hints of Ben Folds on 'Gentle'.


 All of these influences combine in a record that sounds joyous and full of energy, as if it's designed to lift the spirits and propel you forward, while at the same time looking back through the nest bits of your record collection.

Like every other band Disq have had to cancel their forthcoming tours, so once you've listened to the full album below why not by a digital or physical copy from them? You know it;s the right thing to do.

Video of the Day: 'Hallelujah Money (feat. Benjamin Clematine)' by Gorillaz

They're back - and it's about time! Damon Albarn loves a political comment, so what better time to release this scathing attack on capitalism than on the eve of the inauguration of President Donald fucking Trump. Featuring the beautiful vocals of Clemantine as well as some input from Albarn himself, it's a more mature sounding Gorillaz (for all the Spongebob Squarepants featuring video in the background). Let's hope for much more like this from him as 2017 rolls on.

Recommended music: 'Faith In The Future' by Craig Finn

Craig Finn's second solo album is a successful attempt to present some gentler, and more personal songs than he normally presents via The Hold Steady. Dedicated to his mother Barbara who recently passed away, there's a definite air of death and melancholy about this record. That's not to say that it's depressing though, rather it's just accepting of the fact that death is a part of life that comes to us all in the end.

In amongst the trademark character-led songs ('Sarah, Calling From A Hotel' being my favourite) you'll find one of the few listenable songs to have ever been written about 9/11; 'Newmyer's Roof' telling how Finn & his boss at the time watched the fall of the World Trade Centre while drinking beer on a rooftop at 9:30 in the morning. "I saw the towers go down from up on Newmyer's roof, Yeah we were frightened, yeah we were drinking, it was all so confusing". If you see Finn play this live he'll tell the story of how his present-day girlfriend was actually in one of the towers at the time of the attack and managed to escape, making this an even-more personal story than it already was.

There's also 'Going To A Show', which could be as much about performing a gig as watching one; "Some nights it just seems like the same old thing, some nights it feels like a new frontier". Meanwhile people and places come and go - Christine goes to Memphis, Sandra stays in Scratton, Maggie's husband goes to Colorado and Arizona, and St. Peter hangs out in New York.

Musically it's not particularly adventurous but there's a warmth to the arrangements and a familiarity that allows them to stay in the background so you can focus on the crystal-clear delivery of the lyrics. Overall, as with all of Finn's output, you're left with a sense that despite the world being a bit shitty at times, things will work out in the end.

Recommended music: 'Kite Without A String' by Beach Moon/Peach Moon

Another release from the bijou Paper Trail records, this hazy, gently lo-fi record will slowly drift into your consciousness. Full of warmth and tinkling melodies, it's an album that never outstays its welcome but makes the most of the time it has with you.

Starting life as a solo vehicle for Robert Prisco from San Francisco (I love how that rhymes), but since expanded to a full band, at its heart Beach Moon/Peach Moon revolves around Prisco's high, softly-sung vocals. Like Mercury Rev's Jonathan Donahue but with less angst, he subtly swoops through the tunes, using his voice as an integral instrument within the overall set-up. Meanwhile the lyrics are full of missed opportunities and stolen moments that fit well with Prisco's world-weary delivery. "Thoughts are fleeting, seething through my barren bones" he sings on The Fog, one of many references to the natural world and our environment. On 'Firefly Stars' he tells us how "She filled my sky a deep dark indigo, That's how I saw how bright the moon was", before moving on to the end of the relationship on the title track: "I'm not mad at you, I'm just sad at us".

Overall then it's a wistful but not downbeat album, full of touching moments and hidden pleasures. Well worth a listen.

Recommended music: 'Zen Summer' by Cloud

The second album from Tyler Taormina sees him in a brighter place, both literally and metaphorically. Although it was recorded before he packed up and left Long Island for Los Angeles it almost sees him anticipating that move, replacing the outpouring of emotions on 'Comfort Songs' with something more contented and relaxed. From the moment the wave crashes against the shore at the start of opening track 'Fly Into The Mystery' you can sense the journey to the West Coast. Here's what Tyler says about the vibe of the record:

"After 'Comfort Songs' I was in a dark place; but I always knew that when it ended a really uplifting and bright time was going to come. When it inevitably did the lightness I experienced turned into a real strange period of transition, culminating with me leaving home for Los Angeles. 'Zen Summer' was written to help those experiencing the anxiety associated with a state of flux. I wanted them to realise that things would be alright in the end."

Despite the change in direction the album is still full of personal observations. You can sense the importance Tyler places on surrounding yourselves with people you care about in these mirrored lyrics from 'Sunshine Psych' near the start of the album and 'Rainbow Road' at the end:

"I like when a house is full of life and when friends stick around"
"I like when a house is full of life and friends you call the best"

In 'Melting Cassatt' (which you can hear below) he confesses that "I told myself that I wouldn't cry...but it's OK now". Advice is despatched on the trippy 'Sleepy Giant Speak' :"One way out is to whine, one way in is to count the good things, it's your life, don't be scared"

The music meanwhile has broadened and deepened to become a blend of Mercury Rev and The Velvet Underground, while on the blissed-out 'Tastes Bad' we move into the stoned mantra of enlightenment-seeking psychedelia.

Overall this blissed-out and uplifting record is something that nourishes your soul as well as providing enjoyment for your ears. The album is out on 7th April via Paper Trail Records, and you can order your copy here.

Recommended music: 'The Race For Space' by Public Service Broadcasting

The sophomore album from Public Service Broadcasting sees them tell the tale of the space race between Russia and America between 1957 and 1972. Following their usual model of using historical soundclips, they play the two sides off against each as they reach epic and sometimes tragic milestones, from the launch of Sputnik, to the death of the 3 Apollo 1 astronauts, to the first spacewalk and ultimately the moon landing. According to the sleevenotes they used different mixing techniques and even a different drum kit to record each nation's tracks, and in doing so they've successfully managed to give a different feel to the CCCP and the USA.

The record does feel like a development for the band and a step forward for them. With an act like this who are so dependent on the recorded clips there was a risk that the songs could become very formulaic and repetitive, but here they've developed new sounds and new ways of working. The first two tracks are probably the most diverse, moving from the heavenly choir on the title track to the funked-up "superhero theme tune" of 'Gagarin'. Later on they enlist the help of Smoke Fairies on 'Valentina' to bring a female perspective to the story of the first woman in space, Valentina Tereshkova. Meanwhile 'Go' is a fantastically energetic and joyous retelling of the Apollo 11 lunar landing.

For me the most impressive thing about this album is how they've managed to convey both the emotion and majesty of the space programmes, and also managed to inject a tinge of sadness that it all came to such an abrupt and disappointing ending. To send a manned to the moon with less computing power than there is in a modern-day iPod is a phenomenal achievement, and you have to wonder where we could be now if the two nations had pooled their resources and worked together to develop an ongoing and sustainable space programme.

If you haven't seen the brilliantly fun video for 'Gagarin' then you should go here to watch it. And you can get a free remix of that track from this page on my blog.

Video of the Day: 'To Die In L.A.' by Lower Dens

Equal parts glamorous and seedy, this colour-saturated new video from Lower Dens heralds their new album 'Escape From Evil', as well as a new look for main woman Jana Hunter. Featuring the improbably named actress/model/singer Actually Huizenga, and the impossibly handsome Danny Ata (pretending to be Marc Jacobs), it's some kind of morality tale (I think) on the vacuousness of Hollywood. Oh, and there's some dead deer in it too for reasons which don't become apparent. Weird.



The new album is out on March 30th.

New music: 'WildN' 4 Respect' by Rowdy City

Some fresh new hip-hop for you out of Connecticut USA. Rowdy City are a 4-piece crew whose album drops next month. Having opened for artist like Snoop Dogg and 2 Chainz amongst others they're now ready to hit the big time themselves.Here's the video.

Track of the Day: 'No Better Blues' by Chance The Rapper & The Social Experiment

Think you're having a bad day? Just be grateful you're not Chance The Rapper - he hates everything, everyone hates him, and life's got no better since he found fame. That's the gist of this track, although as he's already had to point out on social media, his message is a satirical one and is delivered with his tongue firmly in his cheek. It's a shame that people have focused on the 'I hate white people' line without recognising that the line before it is 'I hate rascists'.

Anyway, here's the track, it's free to download, and I love its melancholy feel.

New music: 'Speed Wobbles' by Cerebral Ballzy

There now follows an experiment in which I will attempt to see how much of a review I can write for this track in the 67 seconds it takes to it to play through.



Cerebral Ballzy are back with a new album 'Jaded & Faded', from which this jumped-up slice of punk has been hewn. The aptly titled Speed Wobbles does indeed speed along in an amphetamine-fuelled rush of energy and bile.

Well there you go. A forty word, sixty seven second review of the track. Download it for free and see what you can think of to do in that amount of time.

New music: 'Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye' (Leonard Cohen cover) by Cloud

A nice little freebie for your Saturday morning, courtesy of Tyler Taormina (Cloud), the creator of one of my favourite albums of the year (see my review of 'Comfort Songs' here). It's a great version of one of Cohen's best-known tracks, with Tyler managing to inject some brittle emotion into the track - he really does sound like he's been badly wronged by someone.

You can listen to the track or download it below.