song of the day: june 6/2011

Arcade Fire - Modern Man

Album: The Suburbs [2010]

in my opinion, one of the best songs from 2010 coming from perhaps the years' best album.

arcade fire successfully avoided the sophomore slump with 2007's moody "neon bible", though it was more uncertain than their near perfect debut, "funeral". having already fled the cold comforts of suburbia on "funeral" and suffered beneath the weight of the world on "neon bible", the band found peace in their past, and translated it perfectly on the nostalgia of "the suburbs". inspired by brothers win and william butler's suburban houston upbringing, the 16-track record plays out like a long lost summer weekend, with the title track serving as its bookends. carefully paced and conservatively grand, fans looking for the instant gratification of past anthems like "wake up" will find themselves reluctantly defending the album upon first listen, but anyone who remembers excitedly jumping into a friend's car on a friday night armed wit hope and no agenda knows that patience is key. multiple spins reveal a work that is as triumphant and soul-touching as it is sentimental and mature. at it's most spirited ("ready to start", "city with no children", "month of may", "sprawl II", "we used to wait"), the band makes the suburbs feel positively electric. quieter moments reveal a changing of the guard that create a very present atmosphere. the fact that they were able to make an album that can arguably stand beside "funeral" is impressive enough, and it may be their album that ages the best.

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song of the day: june 5/2011

Stereophonics - Maybe Tomorrow

Album: You Gotta Go There to Come Back [2003]

frontman kelly jones was still licking some serious wounds due to the breakup of his 12-year relationship with his girlfriend and a fallout with his best friend. the band's 2001 release, "just enough education to perform", briefly touched upon his broken heart; however, jones' darkest period came later as the band played countless sold-out gigs across europe through late 2001 and 2002. he found himself personally and professionally isolated - emotionally disant and creatively exhausted. however, the fire that made this band a major force in the post-grundge english scene still burned, and stereophonics fourth album, "you gotta go there to come back" captures his soulful journey. the lyrics on "maybe tomorrow" read like something elliott smith would write on any given day. solid track.

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song of the day: june 4/2011

Van Morrison - Into the Mystic

Album: Moondance [1970]

"into the mystic" was originally released as the last song one of van morrison's third album, "moondance", in february 1970. it was a very different record than its predecessor, "astral weeks", which had been dominated by meditations on his youth in belfast and contained an unusual musical scope that combined elements of folk, blues, jazz, and classical music. by the time of "astral weeks", morrison had moved from new york city to rural woodsock, NY, and organized his own backup band, which played on moondance. the new album was filled with the pleasures he had recently enjoyed, as well as his domestic harmony with wife janet plantet. the exception was the ethereal "into the mystic", the only song on the album that might have fit on astral weeks. the song has an easy groove, beginning with acoustic guitar and including isolated horn and string charts, as morrison evokes a sailor's pledge to come home from the sea to his lover. one of his best.

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song of the day: june 3/2011

Mount Eerie - Moon Sequel

Album: Dawn [2009]

after the release of the microphones' 2003 album "mount eerie", washington state songwriter/producer phil elverum took the title as the name of his subsequent project, which expanded on the searching feel of the microphones' music. in 2004, he founded the label "p.w. elverum and son" and has since released six albums. this song shows the spare, somber, introspective side of mount eerie, with just the barest hints of acoustic guitar.

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song of the day: june 2/2011

Vetiver - Worse for Wear

Album: The Errant Charm [2011]

a new song from the wonderful entity that is vetiver. in the same way that their song "rolling sea" made you want to sail on the water, "worse for wear" will make you want to fly.

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song of the day: june 1/2011

Nada Surf - Happy Kid

Album: Let Go [2002]

just getting into these guys now after only knowing their song "popular" and their cover of the pixies "where is my mind" over the course of the last 15 years. this album was released after years of hibernation and showed that nada surf refused to quietly fade away into gimmick-enforced exile. by putting their faith into their own pop songwriting instincts, the group stripped away lots of excess noise and layers of preconceived notions to unveil both soft-spoken charm and newfound confidence. "let go" seemed to mark a new beginning for nada surf, who have since released three albums and own a decent following, despite their general status as a one-hit wonder.

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song of the day: may 31/2011

Jason Collett - Almost Summer

Album: Idols of Exile [2005]

a feel-good song for this time of year, the title says it all. "it's almost summer, yeahhh".

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