Neil Young’s score for the 1995 Jim Jarmusch film Dead Man is hauntingly evocative, an improvised set made with electric and acoustic guitar, organ, and piano, recorded as Young watched rough cuts of the film over just three days.
Libra Opal Commencement.
One. Two. Three. Four. Five.
Six. Seven. Eight.
Nine. Ten.
BEGIN.
Again.
David Lynch told me:
“You have control over action alone, never over its fruits. Live not for the fruits of action, nor attach yourself to inaction.“
My mother’s been in the hospital for a few days now. Nothing catastrophic or life-threatening, thankfully; she’s doing relatively well at the moment but has more procedures and tests coming up and has been stuck in a room on the 4th floor for days. So I’ve got a little tribute, her self-proclaimed favorite song ever: The Righteous Brothers‘ eternal You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’.
I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. I don’t know if anyone could enjoy it as much as my mother does, though, but try if you’d like!
[regular posting will resume shortly]
David Lynch is a 100% certifiable mad genius. This is statement of fact, not opinion. From film to music to writing to, well, reporting the weather, he’s a transcendental force to be rockoned with. In addition to having impeccable visual sense, an ear for ethereal storytelling, and the golden touch of endearingly profound weirdness, the man has unfathomably great taste in music. To that end, he recruited David Jaurequi and several session players to record the music for his seminal Twin Peaks film, Fire Walk With Me. Under the name Fox Bat Strategy, they appeared in the Pink Room and Blue Frank scenes, and also recorded this set of tunes written by Lynch… and promptly disappeared for years.
Upon Jaurequi’s death in 2006, Lynch decided to summon this shelved collection of haunting pop apparitions toward the light of day. It took him three years, but thank god he did at all. These seven tunes are beyond cool – the perfect crystallization of the alluring idea of his film work translated into a darkly romantic album.
Fox Bat Strategy is pretty much what a David Lynch fan would expect based on experience with his unique oeuvre. Sweetly menacing, reverb-laden old school bluesy rock sounds with a hint of pitch-black midnight surf guitar. Lyrics written by the man himself straddle the line between Roy Orbison– or Ricky Nelson-style saccharine love ballads and the unnerving prose laid out in the dreamier sequences of Blue Velvet, Mulholland Dr. or Twin Peaks itself. It’s too bad this is the only release we’ll ever hear; we can take comfort in the fact that there are at least a solid 40 minutes of smokey majesty to savor, again and again.
[please take the golden opportunity to purchase this via amazon or Mr. Lynch himself]
Noonday Underground is the sun drenched soulful electronic project from Simon Dine (formerly of Adventures in Stereo) which flies across the radar first appearing as a retro throwback, slowly revealing its entirely inventive and modern structure and intricate production detailing. Submerged in everything 60’s-cool, from exotica to California pop and Motown swagger, Dine weaves evocative time-travel textures shot through by every technique at his disposal in a modern studio. It’s a deliciously supple blend which has gone virtually unnoticed far too long.
Stretching out on the wider canvas of this second LP, the album opens with orchestral pomp straight out of a climactic film score, doubling over into a breakbeat laden lounge simmer before sliding directly into first single Boy Like A Timebomb. Slow-burn vocals by Daisey Martey (of Morcheeba) manage to steal the spotlight from the deep groove brass section and massive drum fills, evoking the passionate gravity of classic soul sirens and sultry Bristol trip hop birds alike. While ostensibly Dine’s partner in crime throughout the band’s early career, she is joined by a menagerie of crooners on this outing; most notable is early supporter and famously soul-infatuated former front man of The Jam and The Style Council, the preeminent Paul Weller. His turn on the emphatic I’ll Walk Right On is one of the unquestionable highlights on this platter, already stuffed to the gills with one gem after another. While the smokey atmosphere, dubby bass and loose percussive nature begs comparisons to modern acts like DJ Shadow or Portishead, the surface feel itself is indebted to the exotic sheen of composer John Barry and his quintessentially cool film scores. Every listen to this album transports me to a space where I’m suiting up in a peaked-lapel tuxedo and ordering a gin-vodka martini, shaken and served in a deep goblet with a thin slice of lemon peel, all the while zipping over the clouds in a chrome-accented private jet on the way to some hidden volcanic island. Yes, it’s that evocative. Turn it on, turn it up, and get to the runway – there’s plenty of room on this trip.
[the Japanese release (with 2 bonus cuts) can be found at amazon for a better price than used original copies, while norman records supposedly has a standard priced copy in stock, and eil will let you request the next available unit. yeah, it’s a bit hard to track down]
Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood comprised one of the most inimitable duos in pop music history. Nancy’s wise-beyond-her-years little girl voice serves as a perfect foil to Lee’s grizzled-but-tender cowboy delivery in a perfectly balanced duet of sweetness and spice. Hazlewood’s still-relevatory electro-tweaked countrified pop constructions take the entire production to the next level in this slice of coed harmonic bliss, hot and fresh after four decades.
Their second release, Nancy & Lee Again, may not contain the iconic Some Velvet Morning (expertly covered by Slowdive) or their superb take on The Righteous Brothers‘ You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling, but it’s the superior record to my ears. Here’s that cover:
The near epic Arkansas Coal (Suite) kicks off the set in dusky mysterious tones and quickly builds through an emotionally swerving narrative toward an anthemic horn blasted finale.
Mid-album highlight Down From Dover (prominently sampled by The Go! Team) is possibly the best showcase for Sinatra’s voice, a raggedly heartfelt turn which may surprise those who know her as a too-cool chanteuse from These Boots Are Made For Walkin’ or Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down). Capped off by the deliciously playful conversation of Got It Together Again, we’re privy to these final words:
Nancy: “I wish everybody would be quiet, and nice.”
Lee: “Yeah, and don’t throw rocks.”
“Yeah.”
“And don’t shoot guns.”
“Right.”
“And come home safe.”
“Right”
“Because we miss ya.”
This intimate exchange gives me a chill right down my spine. It’s exemplary of the whole album, an experience not unlike listening in on two sweetly adoring old friends as they sing like they’re the only ones who can hear, only for each other. We’re just lucky it was caught on tape.
[pick this right up on original vinyl at amazon (!!! yes!!!) or get it digitally via 7digital, as it’s not issued on CD. or you can get the excellent Fairy Tales & Fantasies collection, compiling almost every good track they recorded]
Here for all to witness is the wonderfully fleshed out evolution of one of the premier bands of modern times, Disco Inferno. I’ve already shared their greatest album – DI Go Pop – so now it’s time to realize the full trajectory of this majestic yet mind-bogglingly ignored outfit from post-punk innovators to something altogether more advanced, alien, and never since equalled.
Between 1992 and 1994 this band singlehandedly expanded the concept of what rock music could be, influencing countless other forward-thinking artists while remaining shrouded from the public, and as it turns out, history’s gaze. The five EPs collected here represent some of the most staggering artistic growth a single group has ever achieved in a lifetime – and Disco Inferno accomplished this feat in only two years.
Summer’s Last Sound
A Rock To Cling To
The Last Dance
Second Language
It’s A Kid’s World
[normally this is where you’re pointed towards a purchase point. unfortunately none of these EPs have been reissued since their first release and are currently unavailable commercially. if you find used copies please bring it to my attention and that will be shared here. for now just enjoy the music.]
Optimistic Underground 