New sounds and increasingly irrelevant conversation
In this edition Troy Farmer and Whalebone get to the heart of some important matters with this latest mixtape as the jumping off point. We answer burning questions such as when does a movie’s theatrical release rise to the level of we need a babysitter? Just what exactly is the true meaning of “Tokyo drifting?” Remember Web 1.0? And is it cool if we all start saying vitamins with a British affect?
Let’s get to the bottom of this
Emily Lind’s song “Castles” isn’t that creepy, given her performance in Dr. Sleep which is. Actually it’s a little creepy and icy sounding. But did you see Dr. Sleep? What did you think?
One thing we’ve realized this parenting thing really cuts into—movie attendance. We usually reserve baby-sitter nights for friends’ parties or shows or date night type things. Though we did make an exception for seeing Once Upon a Time in Hollywood at the Cinerama Dome (which appeared in the film). That’s literally the only movie we’ve seen out together in the past nearly two years. He’s obviously worth it though. And we’re big fans of this new trend of Netflix and the like streaming their own movies right after the theatrical release. So long story short, no, I haven’t seen Dr. Sleep. You? Worth a babysitter or should we hold out for Greta Gerwig’s take on Little Women?
Def. Hold out. With Arlo Parks, you’ve got two songs from teenagers in a row. So she says it was inspired mainly by Portishead and Earl Sweatshirt, which is kind of a perfect description for this song, “Sophie.” Dummy came out in 1994, meaning Parks never lived in a Portishead-less world.
Troy: Are you asking if we’re old? If so, yes; if not, still yes. I think that’s a pretty apt comparison/inspiration though. A lot of the hip hop-ish music we’ve been liking this year is out of the UK though. Might just be the accent that’s so appealing, but I think it’s more likely just some great, inspired different takes on the genre coming out of London et al. Same with jazz, though that’s less our Gestalt. Also, would be alright if I started saying “vitamins” like that, you think?
Love Glass Animals. But we digress. Who is Denzel Curry and should he be on every Glass Animals song from now on? It seems like it shouldn’t work, but it’s so good.
Troy: He should be on every everyone’s song from now on. That’s a great song, but his break makes it. So kind of counter to my former point, great American rapper on a song by Brits. He’s originally out of SpaceGhostPurrp’s crew, Raider Klan, but he since parted ways and started up his own collective, Cloud 9 or C9. Then as almost every musical artist of note of late, he moved here to Los Angeles. He’s awesome. PS—the current iteration of Glass Animals’ site is equally awesome; any fans of early web need to visit it ASAP.
Follow up: Is the White Wolf (which we met back a mix ago) a good car for drifting? Also, the term “Tokyo drifting” seems to be open to interpretation. But clearly it’s derived from “toking,” right?
Troy: I think Wolf would have been better at drifting prior to its new tires a couple months ago, when it looked like it was sporting very large, black bagels on all sides. But I think that’s a fair assumption on Tokyo drifting. Certainly better than number 6 on Urban Dictionary’s page.
Anna Wise has collaborated with Denzel Curry also on her debut album that this song “Nerve” is from. She’s been around a few years, and has popped up on Kendrick albums since Good Kid and has released albums with bands, but what do you think of the solo album?
Troy: I like it, but it didn’t make our best of. Much more laid back and almost jazzy than I’d expected, which is great, but I like her poppier stuff more, I think. Someone else she features on a song from that album did make the cut. No spoilers here though.
How do you think G Flip being a drummer affects her songs? There’s a sort of arena rock feel—in the nest way possible—to “Killing My Times.” It’s buried, but it’s there. Def Leppard’s heart beats deep inside.
Troy: Oh, man, I’ve loved her stuff ever since we first heard her and put her on a mix last spring. And her debut album definitely sounds more polished and studio than her earlier stuff. I think she plays her fair share of stadiums back in her home of Australia. She blew up pretty big after Triple J started playing her down there.
What’s even happening in Attack Attack? It’s very vibe-y, but is it about attacking?
Troy: The arpeggiator maybe? Yeah, Klangstof is a dutch electro-indie-type band that trends pretty weird, drone-y in the pop realm. Their sophomore full-length is due out in February and this track’s form that. We caught them at Coachella a bit back; hopefully this new album means some more stateside playing again.
In the future, when someone remakes Garden State, we nominate “Ghost Towns” by Stolen Jars to play the part of that Zero 7 song.
Troy: Oh, I could see that. Man, that movie does not hold up well, FYI. Those guys—and by guys, I mainly mean Cody Fitzgerald, who’s the longtime mastermind behind the evolving band—have been around for a bit. We actually interviewed them back in 2015. Their newest album is reeeeeeaaaally good and made our honorable mention for 2019 best ofs. I never would have even known about it if David Byrne hadn’t kicked off a recent mix from his ongoing series with them though.
Going to say Operator Music Band sounds like Blondie listening to Kraftwerk.
Troy: Were I them, I would be proud of this assessment. They definitely channel that whole era with their album, Duo Duo. That’s a really fine line to tread, between honoring a former sound while creating a new one and blatant derivation or regurgitation. I think they tread it well though.
And then with Automatic, it’s kind of like krautrock rises again. That’s a super fun track though.
Troy: Yeah, that’s our krautrock block. They’re a trio from right here in LA. They recently played what I think was the last live performance for KCRW’s Morning Becomes Eclectic. They talk about the inspiration for the album art + title, and the song “Electrocution,” which does indeed involve being electrocuted. And possibly slipping into the great void momentarily. Get your faulty wiring fixed, readers!