ten in the swear jar "san jose fight song"
the halfway point between the scattered postrock insanity of xiu xiu and the accordian craziness of his first band, IBOPA. "woke up in a bad mood, dude." if it weren't for a few odd instrument choices and his odd voice this could almost be late 90s modern rock canon. most similar to "i luv the valley" off xiu xiu's latest, fabulous muscles. this song has the quintessential line that sums up almost all of jamie stewart's music "cause things don't turn out alright."
--from ??? // lyrics
ten in the swear jar "famine (1949 version)"
with a tone entirely misleading of it's extremely dark lyrical content, this has one of the most addicting choruses jamie has penned. i'm assuming there was an IBOPA version of this as well, which i'd love to hear, and i also really hope he rerecords this for the next xiu xiu album. accordian and pings reminiscent of hospital machinery churn along till it all starts coming apart at the seams. "it just died, i did not kill it. it just died, i did not kill it." reality can be a scary scary place.
--from my very private map [1999] // lyrics
ten in the swear jar "helsabot"
mr. stewart has the great habit of recording his own songs, over the course of his different bands, which is good because it means he can work towards a perfect version, but in this case, my favorite version of "helsabot" was (i believe) this first one recorded for TITSJ. some of his most restrained vocals, set to sad and beautiful lyrics. some drones and blips, almost what i'd call xiu xiu-lite. current band/touring member caralee mcelroy (who is supercute and looks like she could be maggie gyllanhaal's sister, and i believe is the subject of xiu xiu's "little panda mcelroy") sings this one live now and that version is definitely worth checking out too.
--from my very private map [1999] // lyrics
this week is jamie stewart week here at listen closer, i'll start with his oh-so-good-maybe-my-favorite-band-groundbreaking-critically-embraced-everyone should-love-this-band-oh-man-they're-so-freaking-good project, xiu xiu. they're going on tour and since the two xiu xiu shows i've been to have been two of the best shows of my life, i can't recommend anything more highly. jamie is charmismatic, his live voice is unnerving and beautiful and entrancing, and he's one of the nicest/friendliest people i've ever said "i love your music!" to. i once sat on a couch next to him in easthampton mass, listening to a band open for him at the flywheel, where six people showed up. when xiu xiu went on and played, i knew i was watching something special. they didn't seem to care that there was virtually no one there. they just played and played, and absolutely blew me away. i wished more people had been there to see it, not just for the band's sake, but because i wanted other people to experience what i just had. maybe it wouldn't have been the same if more people had been there, but i'll remember it forever.
xiu xiu "i broke up (sj)"
courtesy of kill rock stars site, comes THE xiu xiu song. the first i heard, and the first i'd recommend to anyone. it's schitzophrenic, it's funny, it's sad, it's clever, it's dancy, it's everything xiu xiu is in one song. jamie stewart has a ludicrous talent for confronting something so head on, so clearly and plainly that you begin to think he can't be serious. he tries to tread that line of something that is so sick, depraved, scary, sad, that it has to be funny. and it's okay for it to be funny. some people hate his intentionally over the top delivery and his angular guitars and his everything-as-instruments style, but i just feel bad for them. to think xiu xiu has only been around two years and i've been listening to them for less than that boggles my mind.
--from knife play [2002] // official site // lyrics
xiu xiu "ceremony [joy division cover]"
one of xiu xiu's most accessible tracks to those who might not otherwise be able to get into them is understandably, not their own. but while this ian curtis penned track was distant and restrained and ghostly when joy division recorded it. xiu xiu's version is manic and electro-infused. it more than does justice to the original, it's so excellent. the vocals are panicked and the dance floor is about to explode. if ian curtis was a ghost when he recorded this song, jamie stewart is a banshee.
--from chapel of the chimes ep [2002] // lyrics
xiu xiu "ian curtis wishlist"
the last song on xiu xiu's second lp, a promise, destroys me. jamie recorded it drunk, first take, i read in an interview, and almost didn't put it on the album like that. i wouldn't have it any other way. simple swirling synths and a few clicks. the best part is when his vocals overload the mic. it just sounds so... good. there's a level of sad honesty he reaches in this song that not many people will ever reach. this would be my favorite xiu xiu song if they didn't have so damn many perfect songs.
--from a promise [2003] // lyrics
david dondero "the real tina turner"
i hope just one of you gets as excited about this song as i do. i've played it for many people and i always seem to get the "eh" reaction. they like it, but not like me. david dondero plays what he calls the "skinny indie white boy blues", and though his best album is his newest, the transient, this here's my favorite song. sounds a bit like m. ward, or bright eyes done as southern garage rock.
--from shooting at the sun with a water gun [2001] // epitonic site // label site // lyrics
sondre lerche "sleep on needles"
indie pop bliss. lerche's vocals dance around almost a croon. one of my favorite things about lerche is that his vocal range falls right in line with mine so i can sing along with all of his songs with ease. always a bonus! i love both of his cds, and they're the kind i can always flip on at dinner and not have my mother bat an eyelash before she starts humming along. best moment: when the bells chime in at around the four minute mark.
--from faces down [2002] // official site // lyrics
sunday's best "saccharine"
this falls squarely into what the press ended up dubbing "emo" but it sounds most like the piebald vein. it's all about the chorus and guitar hook "we want it and we want it now!" great for shoutalong car rides. i could totally picture this one blasting in a stadium. catchy and fun.
--from poised to break [2000] // epitonic site // lyrics
sci-fi lullaby "moonshine"
quite awhile back now, in mp3.com's heyday, i discovered this band, who had a couple charttopper's there. they've never released a proper cd to my knowledge, soooo no one has ever heard of them outside of there from what i can tell. though, they did cover a song for the trailer of stuck on you and i heard them on a jukebox in buffy once. but this lack of publicity takes nothing away from their sugary vocals, and gorgeous melodies. i dunno what to call them really, pretty power pop? i could never get tired of this stuff. most all their songs are jampacked with buzzes and squeals and guitars and handclaps, and this one's no expection. but it's all about the vocals. when the piano chimes in during "it's not just you that feels like shit today / there must be something in the food" !!!!! yes!!
--from ??? (garageband.com has more mp3s) // official site // lyrics
sci-fi lullaby "over the clover"
it wasn't easy at all for me to choose which songs to post, but i think the chirping keyboard three keyboard hits after the "it was my mistake..." chorus part is what gets me here. when i listen to a lot of music, i become obsessed with certain sounds. i've liked entire sounds based on one moment of audio bliss that i can always wait for. something that just hits me in the right place. more sweet alterna-pop greatness here.
--from ??? // lyrics
sci-fi lullaby "dirty"
depeche mode meets blur, this song made me fall in love with this band. a love song about blasphemy. "so if god calls / tell him i'm on the phone / with something more beautiful / then you will ever have the chance to know." not much else i can say besides, hear this!
from-- ??? // lyrics
stereophonics "nothing compares 2 u (prince cover)"
this famous song was written by prince, though i'm pretty sure the most famous version was done by sinead o'conner. those versions don't speak to me, but this one i lovvvvvvvve. his voice wraps around it, raspy and echoed, with a simple acoustic guitar chugging along. and a few quiet keyboard accents. but the tone he hits in this version if what makes it for me. the melody matched with his voice on the lines like "since you been gone i can do whatever i want." the voice hits a pleasure center in my brain somewhere i think, because it just sounds SO GOOD. it came from a 2002 charity compilation of cover songs from various #1 hits. not sure if it's still available but the group that made it has a website here.
--from 1 love [2002] // lyrics
john vanderslice "nikki oh nikki"
the first thing you notice about john's music is how clear everything sounds. his production is immaculate. the chain sound in this song goes straight to the back of your head. maybe it comes from owning his own studio, or maybe he's just an incredible producer. either way by the time his voice cuts into this song you should be addicted. his voice is grating in that good way, almost bad good, like if it was prettier, none of it would work. each "... going to die" gets a little better. one of these days vanderslice will go down in history when he finally records his perfect album.
--from life and death of an american fourtracker [2002] // official site // lyrics
sorry about the lacking posts this week, i could blame it on bandwidth or incredible real life drama but really i was just lazy... saturday and sunday entries next week, plus three songs most days to make it up to you nice folks. huzzah!
casiotone for the painfully alone "tonight was a disaster"
if you've heard CFTPA before and dismissed his stuff, PLEASE listen to this song. not just the best of his songs, but one of my favorite songs ever. droning and poetic. sad and beautiful. sometimes i think it's hard to write modern poetry and remain serious. with this song owen ashworth raises himself in my esteem to luminaries like john darnielle. he manages to make a reference to lil' kim hit home more than thousands of classic poems ever could with my life. i don't doubt a lot of his stuff won't catch you, but this song merits your listening.
--from pocket symphonies for lonesome subway cars [2001] // owen's livejournal // lyrics
casiotone for the painfully alone "jeane, if you're ever in portland"
besides the pure genius of "tonight was a disaster", his newest album twinkle echo is by far his best. if you loathe his style you probably won't appreciate this either, but this catchy little dance jam drives me crazy. the simple "ahh ahh ahh" chorus is absolutely perfect.
--from twinkle echo [2003] // lyrics
casiotone for the painfully alone "roberta c"
this is my favorite song off twinkle echo. a catchy drum riff and my favorite chorus of any CFTPA song "a listless intellectual in her prime / scrabble high score: 409 / with nothing remarkable to leave behind". excellent excellent excellent.
--from twinkle echo [2003] // lyrics
edit: okay first my link to it was messed up and then the whole song wasn't uploaded correctly, thanks for letting me know, but NOW everything should be fine. sorry again, i'm lame. but thanks for the help and hope you enjoy anyways.