Lily Chou-Chou – Glide
I’m pretty sure this isn’t news to many, but the soundtrack to this movie, written by a fake band put together by the director, music producer Takeshi Kobayashi, and singer Salyu (her debut) is pretty striking. It gravitates toward the Bjork/Portishead trip-hop style of yore but brings in classical reference points in a way that makes it sound unique from “trip-hop” (almost every other scene in the movie is scored by Debussy’s Arabesque, so that flows through the movie, too). Great movie, and I know I’m late to the party because Quentin Tarantino even used a song from the soundtrack in Kill Bill, so… my apologies.
Porcupine – Unauthorized
Porcupine has always made me anxious because they have a sound that lives on a knife’s edge. It feels like it’s about to fall apart at any moment. That’s a compliment though because it’s thrilling and they always manage to make it work. Their new EP is the perfect evolution of the sound and it sounds huge. I like this reworking of a song from their 2018 demo because it lays bare that evolution. Don’t miss their two great covers on the split with Prison Suicide either.
Rat Columns – I Can’t Live On Love
Rat Columns has been around for, umm, like 7 years? They’ve always had a nice sound that cuts across indie flavors of rock and roll music with that dash of psychedelic spice on top. This record feels like their most fully-realized. It has more hooks and is wrapped in a nice, neat package.
Marrón – Te Guardare
I’ve been seeking out little crumbs of music from Marrón for years. I completely missed them when they were active, as usual, but found some of their old stuff on Advanced Perspective and was hooked. They have that Revolution Summer sound with more grit and an edge that I really love. This is their lone LP, and it’s excellent.
LUV – Leaving Us Vulnerable
Who is LUV? Where did they come from? I don’t know anything about this band but I luv them (please forgive me).
Fifteen
I’m back to listening to these Fifteen reissues from Dead Broke Rekerds and reliving my teenage years. They are clearly very lovingly put together and the music is great. I can’t imagine anybody under 30 “getting” Fifteen, but maybe that’s okay.