kevinisabastard

22 July 2021 – Middle of the Night by Amy Shark

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I’ve been looking for a sunny album to get into this week to go with the good weather. It’s not really working out. I listened to a lot of Phoenix yesterday and today, but I keep going back to Amy Shark’s “Love Monster” album. It’s not particularly sunny, but it is a very consistent album, full of dark and thoughtful tunes.

As is often the case, picking my song of the day from that album is almost arbitrary. They’re all powerful, emotional songs that seem to originate as vocals and an acoustic guitar. I like songs that start from that point because that’s where I have always written from so it makes the most sense to me. It’s kind of an IT approach to song writing, where you get as close to a full song as quick as possible.

“Middle of the Night” is one of the less acoustic guitar songs on the album, although I’m sure there’s a decent version that could be made from it. I think it’s my favourite at the moment because of the lyrics. I like the way Amy Shark writes lyrics because they’re focused on a topic most of all. There’s very little extra language put in exclusively to sound good. It’s the kind of lyrics a person could actually write down as opposed to vocal sounds to fill space. I also like the repeated “Fuck my life” lyric. Swearing is such useful type of language that censoring it or avoiding it is really limiting. Here it’s essential in creating that defeated feeling. It’s a bleak track but it’s cool and it’s been stuck in my head all week.

You can listen to “Middle of the Night” by Amy Shark here.

22 July 2021 – Middle of the Night by Amy Shark

21 July 2021 – 1901 by Phoenix

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My cousin Ciarán introduced me to Phoenix. I was 18. It was a strange time. I think I was mad depressed for a period of time after Christmas but it turned into the really good period that ran up until the middle of the summer at least. I was really happy and super focused. I had my leaving cert and I really fucking killed it. I got really into maths at that time. I think because I found it the easiest thing to study. It was right or wrong, very objective.

When I studied I’d lock myself in the room for hours and I would listen to the four Phoenix albums that were out at that time back to back in chronological order. It was like a meditative thing where the music blocked out everything else.

That coincided with when I started going out for the first time. People were turning 18 so there were lots of parties. People’s parents would leave them home alone so there was free gaffs.

“1901” is the song that links both elements of life. It was a great mood lift when studying. It’s energetic and fun. It’s the kind of song that could act as a break from study, to shake it all out and come back focused. It’s also a great indie dance banger of the time. It’s a frantic wiggle. The drums are that perfect late 2000s/ early 2010s punchy indie dance sound. The synths are just a massive wall of noise and the guitars are clangy highlights to the whole piece. I love French singers singing in English because of Phoenix. I’m not sure exactly what it is that made me like lead singer, Thomas Mars’ voice in the first place but it’s now a quality that I like about other bands or singers so it’s obviously deep in my little brain.

“1901” is such a perfect song for that time that it will always be one of my favourites.

You can listen to “1901” by Phoenix here.

21 July 2021 – 1901 by Phoenix

20 July 2021 – Get Down Saturday Night by Oliver Cheatham

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I wrote half of this post and changed my mind. I was a little conflicted about which version of the track to pick. I was going to pick the Room 5 version, “Make Luv”. I felt like I needed to preface it by talking about how much I like the original before I could talk about why I prefer “Make Luv”. As I wrote I changed my mind.

I love the original version by Oliver Cheatham, “Get Down Saturday Night”. It’s a fuller sounding song. Oliver Cheatham had more to do. The backing vocals are great. The bassline is fantastic. It’s slower than the Room 5 version but it’s got a proper groove and it’s very danceable. One of my favourite parts is the the bridge. You’ve got the jangly guitars from the pre chorus. I love the classic move of shouting out locations. It’s just such a great trope. And then there’s the sample of the laughing kids which is almost creepy.

I love when it appears in the film “Ex Machina”. It’s very intense, but so appropriate. Oscar Isaac’s character’s reaction is exactly the same as mine when this song comes on. I don’t care about anything else, I’m about to tear up the fucking dance floor.

You can listen to “Get Down Saturday Night” by Oliver Cheatham here. I also love that the best version of the song on Spotify is on an album for cool dads.

20 July 2021 – Get Down Saturday Night by Oliver Cheatham

18 July 2021 – American Psycho

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I rewatched “American Psycho” last night. It’s very good but it’s definitely a tough watch. It’s unbearable at times. Just very intense. There’s a bunch of things that I like about it. I love the music. Christian Bale is incredible as usual.

The thing that struck me when I watched it last night was the supporting cast. I think Christian Bale is exceptional and that’s been explored before, but the supporting cast are all very good as well and there are a whole bunch of people I’d forgotten about.

Jared Leto is in there as Paul Allen, an even more grotesque Wall Street bro than Christian Bale’s Patrick Bateman (Bateman’s external persona that is). His hair is even worse than Bateman’s. He’s smarmy and unpleasant. Jared Leto does a great job. He’s an odd dude, but he often crops up very good films. His appearance here made me think about his appearance as the Joker and made me wonder about Christian Bale as a possible Joker. His Bateman is definitely a decent blueprint.

Chloë Sevigny is very good as Bateman’s assistant, Jean. I think that because the viewer can see how bad he is, it’s useful to have someone like her there. She’s not like the other Wall Street people and she obviously has positive feelings towards his, somewhere between worship and attraction. She’s a sweet character and she’s a good contrast to compare Bateman to. She also helps to highlight the way he’s teetering on the brink, starting to spill over but clinging on.

I also liked seeing Justin Theroux in there as the only person that Bateman finds interesting, Timothy Bryce. He actually has one of the best scenes, it’s like two back to back great moments, the discussion of the repercussions of AIDS and then the conversation about the strength of their cocaine. Check that out here.

Then you’ve also got Reese Witherspoon and Willem Dafoe in there giving decent performances.

I feel like “American Psycho” is in the same category as “Fight Club” of films that certain men love but I think it deserves the praise it gets. I really like Bateman’s obsession with pop music. I appreciate the competition around business cards. It’s a wild ride with some wild characters and some great performances.

18 July 2021 – American Psycho

16 July 2021 – Freak Like Me by Sugababes

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I literally only realized that the Sugababes weren’t the Sugarbabes. Life is just one rollercoaster after another…

I always liked the Sugababes. The reason that “Freak Like Me” was in my head this week was that I watched the New British Canon video about it by Trash Theory on YouTube. You can check that out here. Basically, the video breaks down the origin of the song and credits its producer, Richard X, with reinventing British pop music. I thought it was pretty cool. It’s a great song with an interesting story . They’ve got great voices and the two songs that a being used for the mash up are a great and very surprising combination.

You can listen to “Freak Like Me” by Sugababes here.

16 July 2021 – Freak Like Me by Sugababes

15 July 2021 – Following Fools by Lime Cordiale

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I’ve written about Lime Cordiale before. I’ve even kinda written about “Following Fools” before, but not as one of my songs of the day. It’s one of my favourite songs and also one of my favourite videos.

One of the things I like most about Lime Cordiale is that they get into serious shit even though they’re goofy dudes. There’s a big conversation to be had about men and manhood and masculinity. I don’t think everyone is able to have it. “Following Fools” is about young men following in the footsteps of older men. It acknowledges the responsibility that older generations have, but I also think the title suggests a recognition of the facts that (a) nobody knows what they’re doing, and (b) every previous generation got some things wrong. I love this song because it starts the conversation without going into Joe Rogan mode. It’s coming from a place of love and honesty.

On top of all that it’s a classic Lime Cordiale tune. The bass grooves away. The pre chorus vocals have that vibe of those Beatles songs where you get the impression the drugs had taken hold. It’s dreamy and sweet. The fact that it’s meaningful is just a bonus really.

You can listen to “Following Fools” by Lime Cordiale here.

15 July 2021 – Following Fools by Lime Cordiale

14 July 2021 – Act Yr Age by Bluejuice

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Bluejuice’s greatest hits, “Retrospectable”, became one of my favourite albums during lockdown last year. I got sucked into watching YouTube clips of Triple J’s Like A Version. It’s a radio segment in Australia that has produced some incredible covers. I love covers. There’s a huge amount of potential to flex by picking something cool to cover and then covering it in an interesting way. Bluejuice had a number of appearances over the years and they always managed to do something fun.

I’m not sure if I consciously moved from YouTube to Spotify or if the various algorithms aligned, but I began listening to Bluejuice’s own music religiously. “Act Yr Age” was the first song that I remember listening to. I like so much about it. I love the hand claps. I think there’s a xylophone in there, some kind of tingly key sounds. I love that. I like that the main riff is on piano. There’s a great energy to it. Jake Stone and Stavros Yiannoukas are like voice soul mates. Their combination of voices is consistently perfect. It’s a fun song and it makes me happy.

You can listen to “Act Yr Age” by Bluejuice here.

14 July 2021 – Act Yr Age by Bluejuice

13 July 2021 – No Tomorrow by Orson

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If it had been possible to bet on bands being successful I would have bet on Orson when their first album came out. Obviously, in hindsight, there are a lot of red flags – bad hats, grown men singing about not having school tomorrow, but I really thought that was a great album. The fact that half of the band have gone on to be very successful songwriters and producers is not surprising in the least, although the fact that they’ve worked with people like Lil Peep and Charlie XCX feels a little confusing. In terms of picking a favourite song by Orson , it’s a bit of a toss up between “No Tomorrow” and “Bright Idea”. I really like all of the album, but picking a non single track from an album by a band that are considered to be a two hit wonder seems like an intentionally hot take. Operating on the basis that we could all die at anytime and I might not have time to write about two Orson songs, I’m picking “No Tomorrow” as my song of the day choice.I like “No Tomorrow” largely because it’s a cool guitar song . The lead singer has a great voice. It also has the goofy elements:

“And tomorrow there’s no school
So lets go drink some more Red Bull
And not get home ’till about 6 o’clock”

but there’s something about that that appeals to me. I like the complaints about Orson. It’s an undeniably bad couple of lines. To me, this song is the embodiment of the problems of successful first albums. Bands have all their lives to write their first album. That means they have the time to get it right, and I really think Orson did, but it also means they’re stuck singing songs about being teenagers into their twenties and beyond. I love having such a perfect example of it.

You can listen to “No Tomorrow” by Orson here.

13 July 2021 – No Tomorrow by Orson

08 July 2021 – Angel by Pharrell

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Xtravision in Ashbourne had a box of discounted CDs that I used to trawl through. We used to do laps of the town and it was a regular stop throughout my middle teenage years. When I was about 17, I bought Pharrell’s “In My Mind” album. I think it cost me €6 from the Xtravision bargain bin. It was in a blank case with no album booklet.

It was a pivotal album in my musical brain development. I think I knew that it wasn’t a perfect album. Pharrell’s lyrics were often lame or a bit jarring. It was so strange because it’s an incredible piece of production and he obviously understands what sounds cool at a scientific level, but it was very much a transition for him from the producer or featuring artist to being the leading man.

There’s a couple of songs that I love on the album but my favourite has always been “Angel”. I think it’s in part because it’s kind of a sing/rap crossover from Pharrell. The other thing I love is the level of nonsense in the lyrics.

“She got an ass like loaf of bread
Make you want a slice
But she’s the girl, you take her home to mother
But she dont want ya bread
Brother, ya betta think twice (twice)
See, you can see the heat I will be her butter”

I love the idea that he said that and it got past a full team of people. Madness.

It kinda makes sense that the album would have mad shit on it because Pharrell was just on top of the world as a producer. You can hear it in “Angel”. The beats are classic Neptunes beats. The falsetto singing from Pharrell and the harmonies are incredible. The piano verse is super punchy. I think when you can do all that you’re allowed write nonsense lyrics.

You can listen to “Angel” by Pharrell here.

08 July 2021 – Angel by Pharrell

07 July 2021 – Drunk in the Morning by Lukas Graham

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I’m very bummed out by the football. I’m generally a fan of anyone but England but this was a particularly tough one. I think if it had gone to penalties it would have been fine if England had won. If Sterling had scored that first half chance I would have been happy enough to accept it. That winning goal was very lame though. It’s actually fucked up my night. I liked the Danes and I like Denmark as a country. So I wanted to pick one of my favourite Danish songs.

“Drunk in the Morning” is another one of our road trip songs. Lukas Graham is a bit of an odd boy in a very Danish way. They generally speak perfect English but then say some mad things. “Drunk in the Morning” is a perfect example. It’s a wonderful song. The main riff is on the piano with some nice flourishes added by some horns. It’s meshed together with a more hip hop beat. Lukas Graham has an absolutely incredible voice. It’s effortless and because he seems kinda scummy it’s surprising when you hear the voice come out of him. Maybe he’s not that scummy anymore. He’s probably got about 2 billion streams on Spotify so I’m sure he’s doing alright.

The reason it feels perfectly Danish to me is that despite everything it has going for it, it’s lyrically insane. It sounds like a sweet song but it’s really just a list of red flags from a romantic partner. Imagine you are the “Girl” of the song. Straight of the bat, you were asleep. Your expectations of this guy were already low but they’re sinking further. Oh. It’s actually five in the morning. Of course you were asleep. I was going to try and pick out a list but it’s pretty much all of the lyrics. There’s something wonderfully Danish about that. It’s like the uncanny valley of songs. It’s so close to being a perfect love song that the deviation off course feels colossal. And there’s something wonderful about that.

You can listen to “Drunk in the Morning” here and you should watch the video below. That’s where I first heard of Lukas Graham and what it lacks in polish it makes up for by there being a can of Turbo G in the video.

07 July 2021 – Drunk in the Morning by Lukas Graham