November is here and the leaves are beginning the block the drains.
The walk to work seems to take that little bit longer. It could be because the winter sun is dappling across the city, blinking out into countless shards of light. It could be that we stop and stare into each shop window, wondering what to buy our loved ones at Christmas.
Or it could be that the flippin' drains are blocked.
Here are the singles…
– – –
Single Of The Week
Tame Impala – Feels Like We Only Go Backwards
Oh Tame Impala.. how we wish we could don kaftans and Indian beads and float around Australia being impossibly cool. But we can’t. So instead we have to rely on tracks like this, extolling the virtues of tripping out towards the nether-regions of the conscious minds via guitar pedals, studio effects and a ruddy great pop song. One of the highlights of their recent ‘Lonerism’ full length, the song seems to gain added status when taken on its own. Don’t ask why – it just does. Try it for yourself to see. One of the year’s tippest-toppest videos as well.
…and the rest.
Two Door Cinema Club – Sun
‘Beacon’ saw Two Door Cinema Club leap head first into becoming an actual, proper, studio outfit. Managing to wrestle themselves away from the tour bus for a few weeks, the album found the band using guest vocalists, vintage kit and even the odd orchestra or two. ‘Sun’ is a definite pop moment – concise, well pieced together it features everything fans like about the band. Not quite our tipple of choice this week, but it’s easy to see how the Northern Irish group have managed to charm so many people.
Benjamin Francis Leftwich – In The Open
Amidst the morass of objectionable nu-folk wannabes Benjamin Francis Leftwich remains surprisingly likeable. ‘Pictures’ was a well fashioned, contagious piece of songwriting and during interviews Leftwich remains shy, humble… nice. ‘In The Open’ is nice as well – all soft edges, gentle strumming and sighing vocals – but it doesn’t exactly grab us. That said, we didn’t rush to turn it off, either.
Proxy – Junk
Russian techno? ‘Ave it. Proxy hails from St. Petersburg and recently scored a Track of the Day with ‘Revolution’ so naturally we were going to like this. ‘Junk’ has plenty of Rave overtones but there’s a brittle, damaged feel which marks the producer out. Not exactly a pop single, but then we never expected it to be.
Pure Bathing Culture – Pure Bathing Culture EP
Baths are one of life’s rather overlooked pleasures. To put it simply: baths are great. So any group who toe the Clash party on baths are bound to get a review. Pure Bathing Culture are a Portland duo, whose take on 80s synth pop has a hazy, blissful atmosphere. It’s a decent introduction (and we don’t want to judge them too quickly) but we can’t help but feel that their bubble bath has gone a little flat.
Deap Vally – End Of The World
Ban the bass! Just when you thought two piece blues combos were a thing of the past, Deap Valley come rattling along to remind just how fun the whole concept was in the first place. One of the first introductions British audiences have had to the two piece, it finds Lindsay and Julie (for tis their names) out-wailing Zeppelin and shoving Jack White in the shade. Deliciously deviant.
Photo Credit: Matt Saville
