Been doing it all my life: Moms, sisters, girlfriends, wives, daughters, nieces, etc.
So it’s only fair that they get me back occasionally. And the difference is that at least when I’m the disappoint-ee, it’s because I've got something to learn.
So here are three learning experiences for me.
Speedy Ortiz: Foil Deer (2015)
They’re a foursome led by singer-songwriter Sadie Dupuis.
Vocally, you could easily mistake DuPuis for Liz Phair. But Sadie’s got better production values.
She’s smart and kind of intimidating like Liz, too. Where Liz was overtly sexual, you’d never know where you stood with Sadie.
She’s also got a better guitar player. Her music and lyrics are dense, and the melodies are pretty complicated. And like a boa constrictor, she’s persistent, slowly asphyxiating me with all that detail.
So it’s all a bit too gnarly for me. Which is why I prefer Liz.
And I just wish more songs were as good as “My Dead Girl”.
Soooo glad I’m not single.
B+
"My Dead Girl”
The Sleigh Bells: Treats (2010)
Loud, awkward, annoying. But never quite obnoxious. This twosome is like the awful couple you mistakenly invite over for dinner, and end up talking about for the next six months.
She sings like a five-year-old, reciting nursery rhymes. Except of course she’s twenty. He plays guitar like he’s throwing out the garbage - with the can - from a fifth-floor walk up.
But they wear you down, too. They just want to have a good time, and what’s wrong with you that you don’t?
What I’d completely missed until now is that they were signed by M.I.A.'s label. The Sleigh Bells are a rock and roll version of M.I.A. Not sure that would be considered a recommendation for older folk but there it is
The bottom line is they’re more like the neighbors on Modern Family - much smarter and daring than you ever gave them credit for.
But you still only invite them over once in a while.
B+
“Rill Rill”
St. Vincent: St. Vincent (2014)
This lady is way too arty/slick for me. Not production-wise. Just “I’ll do whatever I like and expect you to like it-wise. (And look at her sitting on her throne like that. Who she thinks she is!)
And yet Mrs. Jaybee and even son Michael like it. Me? I’m not sold on it just yet but there are a couple of fine moments.
There is a Talking Heads-ish vibe here, which is nice, but if I want that I'll put on Talking Heads.
Things don’t really take off until the sixth song. And the big ending helps, so I thought I’d get into the first half of the record, too, and that this would end up an A-. But it just isn’t happening.
Good, just not very compelling.
B+
Now that I've pissed off at least half the population, let me remind you how much I liked Beach House, Waxahatchee and Lori McKenna.
But in the meantime, is Salman Rushdie's old rental available?
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