Stray tracks from 2008 (part 2)

Tom Cooney- Gulia
Ever wondered what an Australian M.Ward would sound like? No, me neither, but it turns out we should have.

My Morning Jacket- Touch Me I’m Going to Scream.
Earlier in the year I might have been a little enthusiastic about this CD (I believe the irrelevant words “album of the year.” might have been bandied about. Ultimately the album stumbles as often as it stands, but the dreamy confusion of Touch Me I’m Going To Scream is still a treat.


Ben Folds (feat. Regina Spektor)- You don’t know me.
You know how after the World Trade Center fell down that found that survivor like five days after? That’s what this song’s like, the only positive out of an unmitigated fucking disaster.

Justin Townes Earle- Lone Pine Hill
It’s hardly surprising that the younger Earle has a flair for dramatic storytelling, but what is shocking is the extra layer of depth he brings to his Civil War tale. Embellished with lines that question patriotism, love and loss, it’s s subtle take on his father’s “Bash ‘em over the head wih ideology.” style of songwriting.


The Killers- A Dustland Fairytale
Making rock music isn’t easy- that’s something The Killers are all too aware of-, but making Springsteen rock is damn near impossible. Even though Flowers prefers broader emotive strokes over detailing the moments that dresses wave and screen doors slam, it’s still a pretty good approximation at what the Boss would sound like if he’d moved from Jersey to the city where anything goes. The piano flourishes over the chugging guitars and maybe, just maybe, you start to think that Thunder Road might be in Vegas. But probably not.

Port O’Brien- Fisherman’s Son
I used to think they bred them tough out in Alaska – this was way back when it was best known for The Deadliest Catch and not soccer moms who try to tell zingers at Republican Conventions. But then Port O’Brien showed that Alaskan Fishermen can be just as mopey as everyone else.

Girl Talk- Give Me a Beat
Sure, his songs are ultimately a chance to feel musically superior because you recognized more samples than anybody else, but there’s something to be said for somebody who can find common ground between Styx and Britney Spears (promiscuity and makeup don’t count!).


Calexico- Victor Jara’s Hands.
Calexico’ s Carried to Dust would have sounded fine with just the two ‘core’ members and not in everybody in the indie scene who’d ever heard of Mexico. But then it wouldn’t be a Calexico record, it would be fifteen songs brimming with singer-songwriter angst and some vague Mexican references.
Instead, the band made them these sketches a fully fledged album. The opener Victor Jara’s Hands could have stayed a lonely ballad, but instead the drums build like a sandstorm (is that analogy relevant? Do they have sandstorms in the American desert?) and the bilingual chorus kicks into high gear like a fugitive running for the border.


Songs I'm too lazy/drunk to comment on.
Arms- Blah
Empire on the Sun- Blah