Some Toy Band members rocking out forever

The MP3 I have posted is a total pop gem called “Lottery Ticket,” off their 2010 self-titled EP (which you should get your mitts on immediately). From the beginning, the song is almost unbearably gleeful, and although that’s generally not my bag (being pretty goth), I can’t stop listening to it. Colin Summers sings, joined by Karen Adelman on the chorus, which is really the wacky epicenter of the song. To me, the chorus invokes the kind of psychotic optimism that comes with getting drunk in the hours before noon: the entire day is ahead of you and you (and your BFF Jim Beam) are gonna! Take! It! On! Then after that, my favorite thing ever happens: a musical break with a shouty singalong. Yeah, you can tell they’re toys, and yeah, it’s a bit ridiculous, but the integrity of the song’s composition gives it enough grown-upness for maximum listenability. I actually think it’s a bit surreal, like Svankmajer’s Alice, but without all the dead animals.  These are real musicians.  They’re just acting real weird.

Toys & Tiny Instruments — “Lottery Ticket”

Visit the Toys & Tiny Instruments MySpace (and also that of My Friend Other, the band consisting of two core Toys Colin Summers and Alec Betterley, around whose songs the project takes place). And if you’re in NYC, they’re playing on January 8th at noted Bushwick venue Goodbye Blue Monday.  Oh, yeah, and you should probably either trade money for it or just try to sweet-talk some of the members into giving you the five-song EP because it’s really really good.

I briefly hung out with these kids a few times last year, before they got to writing songs. As near as I can tell, they’re in that post-college phase of forming funny, intense, doomed little social circles: a mix of drama club nerdiness, awkward sexual tension, and lots of stoned bullshitting. A kind of outer-boroughs Whit Stillman film where everybody ends up in debt and sleeping with each other.

But refreshingly it’s the girls who’ve taken the lead in translating this life into loopy musical theatre, writing and singing most of the material. The aesthetic is remarkably unified and decidedly vaginal, from the stage names–Queef Latina, Pussyface, and Cunt Muffin–to songs like “It Feels Ok, I guess” and “I’m Sorry I Farted on Your Dick Last Night.” Is it My Left Tit cause they lopped the right one off, Amazon Warrior style?

My favorite song is the relatively femme “I Can’t Stop Fucking My Ex-Boyfriend.” I’m probably biased because it’s sung by my cousin, who has given herself the stage name–god help me–Titty Titty Bang Bang. Here at girlpants we’ve paid tribute to kin before, to the way they make music a part of our lives, something more than sterile lists of mp3s to be curated or ignored. Admittedly, that sounds a little idealized when your family member is singing about hot beef injections and compulsively poor sexual decisions, but, you know, still. The song is a love letter to All-American indie rock, a sardonic Liz Phair confessional backed by the Pixies. But the real surprise is the voice: how could such a rich, bluesy thing come from my dork cousin? Christ, she kind of sounds like Scout Niblet.

It’s hard to tell how My Left Tit will develop, but you can keep abreast of the situation here. They may end up a half-embarrassing lark, but this fact makes them at least as interesting as bands that pop out of the womb fully formed and ready to blog-hump. For now they feel organic, grounded in a real, albeit dorky Lifeworld, more board game than bar crawl. Sometimes you just want to stay in with friends. And make dick jokes.

Sabbath Assembly — “Hymn of Consecration”

Each tune on the album seems to dedicate itself to one of the deities; “Hymn of Consecration” is a Satan song.  The first time I heard it, I nodded along, and then I realized I was nodding along to an invocation of Satan (“purify me with the fire”).  I had a chilling and beautiful moment with the Prince of Darkness.  Can I say that?  I’m not ever going to run for public office.  But even if I did, and they impeached me, I’d still say this is one of the best of the year 2010 (anno domini). Here is a second, sexy, scary tune called “In the Time of Abaddon” — I like this one a lot because her voice cracks and it is the end of the album and it is thrilling, frightening and kind of sublime. “Amid the grand disorder / Amid the great destruction” are the final, unadorned words of the album and it’s a little bit terrifying. 

Sabbath Assembly — “Time of Abaddon”

I want to be terrified. If you tell me you hate this we cannot be friends.  You cannot come to my house and look at my copy of the Satanic Bible and we cannot be friends.

[myspace] [Jex Thoth website]

But in actuality, this and the other various brushes with death that occurred throughout the trip went unrecorded. In fact, we ended up filming a band. Hope I didn’t spoil the surprise.

On October 25, The Corin Tucker Band, as part of the tour promoting their record 1,000 Years, played the Paradise Rock Club. Let me tell you, this club possesses excellent columns. They appear to be made of some fine stone not unlike marble, covered with an attractive metal mesh. I couldn’t have asked for a better inanimate object to lean against through the opening acts as I gathered myself to claim a spot at the stage the moment the main act appeared.

Which reminds me: the first opening act deserves what I might call an honorable mention. I initially gave Mrs. Danvers a rating of “pretty okay,” giving extra credit for having broken a string and played half their set with no guitar, and still sounding good. It was the next day that I realized their song was still stuck in my head and decided I needed to hear it again. I’ve listened to it many times since and I’ll present it to you here, just so you can have the full “listening to a band I’ve never heard of and wondering where the main act is” live show experience.

Mrs. Danvers — “What Did I Do (You Always Looked Good In the Morning)”

The Corin Tucker Band consists of Corin Tucker (Sleater-Kinney), Sara Lund (Unwound, Hungry Ghost), and Seth Lorinczi (The Golden Bears). They were joined on stage by Mike Clark (Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks) and Lorca Wood (also of Hungry Ghost). I wish to note that Mike Clark presented a frightening visage: a strangely intense man in a tie who gave me the impression that someone had hired a lawyer to play bass. Although most of the focus was of course on Corin Tucker, the whole band played excellently.

The Corin Tucker Band — “Half a World Away”

I’ve read a lot of comments online complaining that this band isn’t Sleater-Kinney. First of all, tell me that “Half a World Away” doesn’t sound like Sleater-Kinney. I can almost hear Carrie Brownstein. But no, of course it’s not Sleater-Kinney. In an oft-quoted statement, Corin Tucker called this album “a middle-aged mom record” and yeah, you can definitely hear that. A lot of the songs don’t have much of an “edge,” and I guess anybody who was expecting a really rockin’ record might be disappointed. But none of that is important. Take the band on its own and it’s clear that they’ve put together a great album that does exactly what it set out to do.

The Corin Tucker Band — “Doubt”

That’s not to say the record doesn’t have its louder bits. “Doubt” is a great track and hearing it played live was completely amazing. That’s really about all I can say about it.

It’s tough to find live music when you live two to four hours away from anything. To travel that far for one band involves a careful balance of spontaneity and meticulous planning. “Leave nothing to chance!” was my constant refrain as we prepared for the trip. “Leave nothing to chance,” I said, as I plotted every inch of the route with Google Maps. “Leave nothing to chance,” I said, as I reminded my friend to bring his ID and, because it might get cold, his jacket. “Leave nothing to chance,” I said, as we cheerfully left my car in the parking garage and walked for a good twenty minutes before I remembered that I hadn’t grabbed the tickets. I recall freezing suddenly at that moment, patting my pockets awkwardly, then beginning, “So, uh…” Turns out something always gets left to chance, but at least I remembered them before we tried to enter the club. This moderately embarrassing anecdote, by the way, was the payment my friend required before he would send the photos to me. Thanks, Troy.

Mrs. Danvers is a local Boston band and they exist primarily on their MySpace page. Their EP, What Did I Do, is on iTunes!

The Corin Tucker Band is on the good ol’ Kill Rock Stars label, and you can buy the new album, 1,000 Years, on the website. Unfortunately, the band’s touring seems to pretty much be over for now, unless you’re reading this in Japan, but keep an eye out in case they go for another round. The show is amazing.

And now, I’ll leave you with a Girlpants world exclusive: Corin Tucker performing “Miles Away” at the Paradise Rock Club in Boston on October 25, again courtesy of Troy. Enjoy!

Hey guys. I’m really busy trying to write a book, but now and again I get the chance to read Twitter, and when I do it’s often 50 Cent’s hilarious updates (why is he dating Chelsea Handler?). But today South African hip hoppers Die Antwoord tweeted their new video, and I have to say “Evil Boy” blew my mind a little and I decided I should share with Girlpants.  Hmm, let’s see, there are a lot of dicks in this video, so it’s not really safe for work, but you shouldn’t be reading blags at work anyhow.

The other thing I like (I guess the first thing is the blatant disregard for television appropriateness?) is that the dancers aren’t skinny minis. A few artists have done this lately; Lady Gaga did it in Bad Romance, I remember. I like seeing a variety of body sizes shaking it freaky deeky like amidst monster boobs with eyes, rat hoodies (as opposed to hood rats), and terrifying pudenda used as amplifying equipment. Kudos, Die Antwoord. Keep tweeting this magnificent what-the-fuck material.

Watch the trailer below and then click through to the video at Pitchfork here. It’s worth it, but not work safe.

Click here to view the embedded video.

(*pictured here, a stage set for an absent audience, replete with basic instruments and mood*)

THE BOYS WHO CRIED WOLVES

I had no expectations for Peter Wolf Crier. Actually, I was half-expecting Rogue Wave, given some misinformation on the bill and a slip-up regarding the date (they’re both playing Royale in Boston tomorrow night), so you could say I had a complete deficiency in expectation. On a stage crowded with Midlake’s psych-folk paraphernalia, Peter

Pisano and Brian Moen sat perched on drum stools, bent over their respective instruments: for Brian, a small white drumkit, for Peter, a ratty sunburst acoustic and Roland PK-5 floor controller. Then they played, and they absolutely ruled. Peter has a peculiar voice, like it’s half Adam Levine and half Robin Pecknold, and his guitar is something somewhere like Scout Niblett’s own fowl howl (tons and tons and tons of feedback, no empty space). He operates that Roland floor controller with two spry feet keeping a warm tone under each chord while using what appeared to be a Memory Boy to pile up his vocal melodies.

Meanwhile, Brian killed two pairs of sticks, a piece of which I saved from the floor. He also did that thing that drummers sometimes do, mouthing each hit and contorting his face at the choruses.

Definitely download/purchase Inter-Be, and check them out on their first real tour. They seem to have a rare magic that’s consumed in bands all too early, so I hope those spirits continue to ride high well into a good, long career.

Buy Peter Wolf Crier — Inter-Be [Jagjaguwar]

THOSE LONESOME HERMIT-TYPES

I’m one of those people you see on the forums sayin’ how the latest Midlake album is awesome and underrated and defending them against all those jerks who just like “Roscoe” or “Home” (please people they have many many more songs about the 1800s and being a scientific pantherman). Maybe I’m getting prematurely defensive, but I want Midlake to keep making music; I’d hate to see them get discouraged from a few mediocre reviews. It’s tough to top something like The Trials of Van Occupanther, and I was pleasantly-surprised to find last January that the new record found them venturing elsewhere rather than working on a follow-up. Midlake played great; as expected, with an elaborate set (four guitarists, two flutists, [is that a term?], tambourines, chimes), spot-on harmonies, and cool inter-song jamming.

I spoke to Eric (Van Occupanther himself) about the “new” direction the band is taking, that earnest folk (part playing a genre, part humble submission) with some psych excursions, and it sounds like something the next album will pursue even further. And for the small turnout, the show was all the more intimate; Eric spoke about how draining the headlining spot can be (they’re playing right now at the Royale in Boston), and revealed that this particular gig was a last-minute diversion on a hectic grand-tour (hence no Rogue Wave).  

If you haven’t heard it already, check out The Courage of Others, and if you’ve managed to avoid The Trials of Van Occupanther, you have some serious work to do this evening on your personality. Midlake has a few more stops before an excursion to Europe and a much needed respite in December, so catch them before they retire into the core of nature once again.

Buy Midlake — The Courage of Others [Bella Union]
 

I don’t wanna make this a thing, but I’m seeing The Tallest Man on Earth this Thursday, and if that shows goes anything like this one (it might, the venue is real remote and I can’t find much info on it), expect another post from me soonish.

Marnie Stern — Marnie Stern [Kill Rock Stars]

To me, a self-titled album several records into a career means a reboot, or at the very least a repositioning, but for Marnie Stern, Queen Tap Herself, it’s of course much more meaningful, maybe biographical, perhaps something akin to a ten-volume memoir or a special on 60 Minutes. So here’s Marnie Stern with Marnie Stern, the third album from Marnie Stern, and possibly Marnie Stern’s best yet. Of course, the thing slays, but it’s remarkably intimate too, those needling leads and gattling-gun drumz pummeling your ears felt instead as soft kisses. I’ll put “Risky Biz” here as an example you’ll see what I mean:

Marnie Stern — “Risky Biz” from Marnie Stern

Superchunk — Majesty Shredding [Merge]

SPEAKING OF SHREDDING, the new Superchunk album is totally good. A great year for early-90’s resurfacings from Merge (Teenage Fanclub also put out a killer record only a few months back), with plenty for the new hips and the old curmudgeons to crunch into. There’s not much I can say here that hasn’t already been said about Mac and the gang, so here’s “My Gap Feels Weird,” a title that could’ve just as easily come from Wayne Coyne:

Superchunk — “My Gap Feels Weird” from Majesty Shredding

Surf City — Kudos [Popfrenzy]

Long-awaited (since forever ago), the proper full-length from these proper boys is properly solid. Because they’re from New Zealand, tons and tons of comparisons have been drawn by bloggers webzine printmag-staff to nearly every successful New Zealand act, exhausting the critical reservoir (“hey dude they’re like the Clean and also the Verlaines a little”) and putting some real heavy expectations on Kudos. Nevertheless, the guys do that nostalgia-grab pretty well, and it’s a smooth record if you are into characterizing records as you would a peanut butter. I picked “Teacher” for all my friends currently doing the teaching thing right now.

Surf City — “Teacher” from Kudos

Everyone knows how much this band means to me (a little too much, maybe), so it´s a pleasure for me to find that their latest Let It Sway will be released on August 17th via Polyvinyl. In line with talking about travel, this record took the guys across the US to record with Chris Walla and to find several other ladies to write songs about. I just received my digital copy a few days ago, and I’m loving every second of it — they’ve found a way to synthesize virtually every influence on this one, and it serves for some moments of eerie promnesia (tell me you don’t hear Pinkerton on “Phantomwise,” or Nothing Feels Good in the closing bars of “Stuart Gets Lost”) and, better still, new insta-classics that’ll soon become inextricably bond to memories of my late summer months.

You can check out more from SSLYBY at their page on Polyvinyl. I also recommend heading over to iamwarmandpowerful.com for alternate takes, live performances, demos and other miscellany. As a former Tape Club member myself (Phil sent me the last SSLYBY pin!), I’m very, very pleased to find all these nice things available in one place.

And as you can tell, we’re on a summer hiatus here at Girlpants. I hope you’re well, and that you’re doing something somewhere that means just that.

• “Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hand” by Primitive Radio Gods.
• “Bittersweet Symphony” by the Verve.
• “Tha Crossroads,” Bone Thugs N Harmony.
• “Doo Wop (That Thing),” Lauryn Hill. (I’m pretty sure this song brought about the 1960s influx of the noughts — Amy Winehouse, Duffy, Pipettes, I’m looking at you.)

But here’s a great cover of the song that inspired this brief but (I hope) sweet post.  It’s by Finnish band Cats on Fire. Here’s to wishing that you like it as much as I do. 

Click here to view the embedded video.

I’m sure there are some other songs from that era that have come up, lately, as the 90s are in style again (side note: why??), but I’m going to cap it off at that.

But I digress.  Below are some links that effectively update us on a portion of the fascinating matter that is music in the summer. 

• John Darnielle performs 2009’s The Life of the World to Come in its entirety, and you can view the video at Pitchfork if you act quick-like etc.
• If you live in New York, you should plan to attend Northside Festival.  This year’s tremendous lineup includes Wavves, Au Revoir Simone, Titus Andronicus, Liars, and about 928347 times more.
• Everyone ever has already done an “anticipated summer releases” list, so I’m not gonna rehash. But heyo, Arcade Fire! They’ve put up the track listing for their highly anticipated new album Suburbs, and with this track listing have surfaced also some tracks for listening. Below is a radio rip of “Ready to Start,” gorgeous and slow-building. You can also listen to “Month of May” here.
  Arcade Fire — “Ready to Start” 
   
• Indie Rock Café has a good post on recent summer releases that are easy to miss in the uproar over heavy hitters. Personal highlight for me is the Lou Barlow song “Losercore,” but the post also covers Cary Ann Hearst, Apollo, the Vita Ruins, and Communist Daughter.
• Also, you should know that you can stream the Lou Barlow EP = Sentridoh III at Merge’s website. “Gravitate/One Machine” is so good. It’s hot outside plus a thousand humidity today and this song is making me want to box someone.
• And finally. Does anyone inspire as much crit lately as Lady Gaga? I know this might be old news (and the publication title may be a tad hyperbolic) but I follow this all-Gaga journal with fascination; some recent pieces posted discuss hysteria, commodity feminism, the Gaga/Illuminati connection, and Gaga as Kate Bush response. (Another topic of note might be Gaga as George Bush response, but that’s not an article I’m going to write this summer.)