Boston band Laminated Cat started as a five piece outfit that played 30 minute versions of Spiders in their sweltering barn attic. With time, they morphed into the twee/post-punk/sadsack/rock’n'roll/avant garde powerhouse they are today.
Pavement / Transport is Arranged Like anyone that enjoys music, I adore Pavement. This song, off Brighten the Corners, is a neat synopsis of nearly every reason why. I love the bubblegum melody, the ambiguous keyboard-flute chords, and the wordplay. Stephen Malkmus’ lyrics always manage to somehow sound deep and clever, and like he’s making them up as he goes along. But most of all, I love the middle section, where the guitars weave in and out of each other weirdly for a while before ascending to the full cock-rockin’ climax.
The Fratellis wasted no time in becoming Scotland’s biggest musical export thanks to their 2006 Tony Hoffer (Beck, Air) produced debut album, Costello Music. Their hit singles Henrietta, Creeping Up The Backstairs, Whistle For The Choir and the epic Chelsea Dagger helped define the summer of 2006/07. The Fratellis latest release, Here We Stand, is a ferocious, glam-tinged, handclap-assisted stomper of a sophomore album.
Bruce Springsteen / Thunder Road I love Bruce Springsteen. There’s a level of cheese that if you go over it becomes really great. Springsteen is probably the most underestimated songwriter in rock n’ roll. I’m not sure if this is his best song, but today, it’s my favourite.
Girl Talk has been known to underground audiences for several years, but it wasn’t until 2006 that Gillis crossed over and caught the attention of a larger audience. While his first album, Secret Diary (2002), was full of purposeful glitches and noise, his subsequent albums, Unstoppable (2004) moved closer towards danceable mixes of varying genres. With the groundbreaking Night Ripper (2006) and now the fourth Girl Talk album, Feed The Animals, he reaches nirvana with a creation that is centered on re-inventing instant party starting pop. As a re-mixer, Girl Talk is also in hot demand having tweeked tracks for Beck, Tokyo Police Club, Grizzly Bear, Simian Mobile Disco, Peter Bjorn and John, Of Montreal and 2007’s Thrill Jockey mega-mix.
Beyonce / Single Ladies This is one of my favorite Beyonce tracks ever. It has so much energy, and the chorus gets dark in a great way. The clapping never stops. The video is a flawless execution of a performance style clip. It’s perfect.
Former bassist of Weezer, Mikey Welsh, has more recently reinvented himself as a successful artist. Welsh attacks his canvases with pure spontaneity and aggression, almost never using a brush and preferring to work only with his hands and fingers.
Minutemen / Search Clocking in at 51 seconds, The Minutemen lay down all the goods that made them one of the best bands in history. This track features throbbing, melodic bass from Mike Watt, glass-breaking guitar from D. Boon, and tom-tom heavy swirls from George Hurley. Watt takes the mic for this one, at times sounding a bit like David Byrne. Almost as soon as you get your head around this tune, it’s done.
My Secret Playlist is a music discovery website and weekly email publication. We invite our favourite bands and musicians to give us the rundown on their eight favourite songs right now. These are their words on the music that inspires them.
