Casper Bangs is the recording project of DC based vocalist and guitarist Rob Pierangeli. Named after the ex-lover that inspired many of the songs, Casper Bangs is a trip through the joys and downers of loving and being loved. The Whitespace 7” and s/t EP are a preview of Casper Bangs’ full-length record, I Woke Up. It was written and performed by Pierangeli at his desktop computer in the midst of relational bliss – it’s a document of a good thing that ultimately goes bad. The songs contain strong unaffected vocals balanced with harmony, layers of noisy guitars, and reverb.
Kurt Vile / Freak Train
I love the speed and repetition on this song, the beat, the arpeggiating guitar line, and pulsating bass. And when Vile starts shouting ‘freak train’, it’s somewhere in between Springsteen and Dylan. Make no mistake, these guys bring it live, too.
Jay-Z / Lucifer
Jay-Z, in general, is the mother fucking TRUTH. You know Danger Mouse’s mash up of Jay Z’s The Black Album and The Beatles White Album, right? Notice that Danger didn’t really touch Lucifer’s beat. That’s because this cut is perfect already. I mean, you can’t mess with this beat: the bass line, the drums, the piano line, and, of course, J always delivers fire. It just doesn’t get any heavier.
My Bloody Valentine / I Don’t Need You
If you don’t like jangly pop, then we can’t be friends. I know Loveless is their masterpiece, but I just can’t get enough of some of the
earlier My Bloody Valentine pop songs. When the song breaks to that bass line riff, it’s just so dope. Truth be told, I’m more of a musical person than lyrical, but I dig the lyrics on the chorus. It’s like, ‘hey you’re lovely, but I don’t need you’.
Atlas Sound / Shelia
Bradford Cox knows something about crafting pop songs. This song comes in with all that good floor tom and shaker. I love shaker! Everyone should use more shaker. Sometimes I get a little bored in the B section, but then the guitar and shaker come back in and I’m like, ‘hell yeah!’
Mos Def / Quiet Dog Bite Hard
This song makes me want to KRUMP. There’s not a lot musically going on here, but the beat just kills. You have to get up and clap.
CAN / Moonshake
CAN is one of my favorite bands, and Jaki Liebezeit is one of my favorite drummers. Typically, CAN tends to go on long psychedelic interludes that can last up to twenty minutes. But they have a few pops songs like this one, clocking in at three minutes. What’s great about this song? Everything. Damo is real sexy on the vocal delivery, and the guitar line on the chorus matches lovely with drums.
Crystal Stilts / The Dazzled
At first I didn’t like this song, but then it just grew on me. It probably has something to do with the sleigh bells, and monotone uh uh uh singing on the chorus. I dig how this song stays small with its Velvet Underground sparse drumming.
Wire / The 15th
God. 154 is such a great record, and The 15th is one of the stand out tracks for me. Most of my friends love Pink Flag, which is dope, but I think there are tons of great songs on Chairs Missing and 154. This cut is a much more laidback Wire track. It’s not fast and all attitude, like some of their earlier stuff. Instead, they bring some beautiful melodic guitar work and a softer vocal approach. It’s a great tune, and I’m thinking about covering it.
Related posts:
- Jason Thomopoulos, Slaves To Gravity Brighton-based hard rock band Slaves To Gravity have just...
- Lions At Your Door The long-awaited debut EP for Australian band Lions At...
- The Nextmen London DJs The Nextmen have a cool new video...
- Jennifer Fraser, Zaza Recently signing to Kanine Records in the USA (Chairlift,...
- The Swimmers The Swimmers, from Philadelphia, PA, play driving indie-rock with...
{ 0 comments… add one now }