One of the things that confuses me about hipster music snobs (pot and kettle, I know. Shut up) is how they can use “dad rock” as an insult while pointing to the picture of Dire Straits next the dictionary definition (”dad rock” is in the dictionary, right?).
The War on Drugs (who are excellent) have been pejoratively compared to Dire Straits for using the same sort of atmospheric new wave/roots rock mixture, and I’m so confused about why the hell that’s a bad thing.
For a movement birthed out of the late 70s’ punk scene, it didn’t take long for new wave to become entirely married to pop.
Anyone who appreciates Chicago for their unique blend of progressive jazz and soft rock would be sorely disappointed by this disc.
My first brush with The Human League came from my old music-guru roommate who said, “I love the Human League, but that’s only because I have a soft spot for crappy 80s pop.” And sure, the Human League lived in the same sort of post-punk/new-wave synthpop that the 80s loved, and true, Don’t You Want Me (the anthem of creepy exes everywhere) is a favorite on my local “inoffensive hits of yesterday and today” station. But Dare! is far from a straightforward pop record. There’s enough synthesized dissonance to make the most avant-garde music fan (see: my former roommate) happy.
In Stockholm, there is a record store called Pet Sounds which is listed on numerous “best record shops in the world” lists. It was at this shop that I asked the man working there for something distinctly Swedish. He told me of a Stockholm based punk band called Ebba Grön who broke up and became a post punk band called Imperiet, and suggested this record, translated as Blue Heaven Blues. I took him at his word, and did not return void. Were their lyrics in English, it’s doubtless that Imperiet would have been canonized among New Order, Psychedelic Furs, Duran Duran, and other post punk/new wave patron saints.
Like most people, my first experience with Future Islands was their stellar appearance on Letterman. And friend, you HAVE to watch that video. It is truly one of the most arresting performances of the last ten years.
But if you think Future Islands is just a band with great single and some killer dance moves (seriously, watch that video), you’re only hurting yourself. Continue reading
The mid-to-late seventies were a great time for punk. An unvoiced rebellion finally found its eloquence wearing ripped denim and filling CBGB & OMFUG (Joey Ramone having convinced the owner to let punk bands play there instead of just country, bluegrass, and blues acts).
Punk was fresh, it was real, and most importantly, no one knew what punk was supposed to sound like yet. Whenever I hear Heart of Glass between Brothers and Allman on the oldies station (my town’s radio stations are weird), I shake my head incredulously muttering, “these guys used to play with the Ramones.” And Television too, but Television isn’t exactly what you think of when you think of punk either.
You said it, Bender.
If you don’t think this record is great, you’re wrong. It caught my ear upon its arrival when my family had cable and Fuse still played music. I was a tenth grader with Dashboard Confessional, Finch, and Thursday in my CD player when I first saw a crazy music video by a bunch of moptops called Hot Hot Heat playing a song called Bandages.