The Duke Spirit are one of the UK’s most exciting and dynamic rock bands. Their second studio album, Neptune, was produced by the Godfather of Stoner rock, Chris Goss, (Kyuss, Queens of the Stone Age and Soulwax), and was released almost two years after their debut album, Cuts Across the Land, which belonged more to the illustrious British lineage of My Bloody Valentine and Jesus And Mary Chain than to any contemporary ‘rock’ scene.
Bo Diddley / Who Do You Love?
Still a pure statement of rock and roll intention. Gunslingin’ Bo marshaling an awesome collection of imagery into his persona, a rattlesnake-hide house with a skull chimney. A black ex-boxer, hard as nails, female guitarist, stand up drums, all in the late 50s, proper rock n’ roll pissing upon Elvis, Buddy Holly and the rest.
Clinic / Goodnight Georgie
This track reminds me of being at art school a few years ago, listening to this when most people had gone home and working away in the studios, occasionally trying to get my now-wife to come and have a cuppa with me instead of being studious. It reminds me of an English autumn.
Bruce Springsteen / Growing Up
This is from the first Springsteen album, which I bought once on a whim but now I often play. It’s a good record. He looked damn good, too, around the time of ‘Darkness on the Edge of Town. He’s a New Jersey rocker. I’m sure i’ve tried to nick that look since!
Stereolab / How To Play Your Internal Organs Overnight
This is just a really sweet instrumental Stereolab song, incorporating great strings. I love the way they switch the part in the reprise so it plays backwards. And this record sounds really organic, too. I love their album titles: Cobra Phases Group Play Voltage in the Milky Night, for example.
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds / Long Black Veil
An old murder ballad (or execution ballad, in this case?) about a man who takes the rap for a murder because he is in the arms of his best friend’s wife and can’t expose her as his alibi. It’s a great version. Mr Cave turns on the otherworldly, out of tune, sleaze voice here to good effect. You can almost hear the hero going to the gallows and feel the cold wind blow.
Cristina / Is That All There Is?
I don’t know much about this song other than I like it, to be honest. I don’t think music always needs a meaning, and there are are lots of middle-aged music journos who want to shoehorn it onto pop music. Leave it alone, please.
Yo La Tengo / Today is the Day
It has one of those riffs that is so simple, but it’s instantly in your head. It’s like I Wanna Be Your Dog, by The Stooges. So darn simple.
The Rolling Stones / We Love You
The Stones in the eye of the storm, court cases, and jail waiting in the wings, churning out this throbbing black, acid drone. The Rolling Stones’ best psych-rock moment. I like the video they made for this, too. Mick Jagger and Marianne Faithful as Oscar Wilde and Bosie.
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{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
great list – thumbs up all the way
amazing list… amazing band!