Nude Creature Double Feature

Seems like all the neo-psychedelic electro-pop bands have Alf fever these days.

Here are two pretty, sappy songs from Yeasayer and MGMT, both featuring music videos with sickly beige mutants on the cusp of expiration. Is this a sign of things to come? A new trend perhaps that will have us squirming for the 201os?

Either way, these will get you suffiently grossed/blissed out for the time being.

MGMT: "Congratulations"


Yeasayer: "Mad Hatter"

The Ambling Kid

Check out this little hybrid ditty I edited together:



Not unlike my last attempt at a movie/song mash-up, except this one is a bit more literal. "Ambling Alp" really has that inspirational thing going for it. And what movie is more inspirational than The Karate Kid ?

Hope I don't offend any Joe "Bean" Esposito fans. You guys are the best.

Ladyhawk/Punishment Park Fan Video

Hope you like this li'l video I edited attempting to honour a great song and a great movie.

If you've never heard of Peter Watkins, the director of Punishment Park, you should really check out his films. He makes speculative-documentaries that don't get caught up in mockumentary artificiality. Dystopiamentaries. Movies like the Gladiators and War are stunning and not to be missed.

As far as Ladyhawk go, this song is from their most recent album Shots from 2008. Lately, the Vancouver based band seems more occupied with side projects like Sports and Duffy and the Doubters. You can also hear Duffy Driediger and Ryan Peters on the new Phil Spector/Burt Bacharach inspired Maintenant by Gigi (myspace).

Interpol Checks into the Waverly

Interpol's Paul Banks has a new solo album out under the name Julian Plenty (Is... Skyscraper).

The first video from the album features two Toronto musicians - Emily Haines (of Metric) and Andre Ethier (of the Deadly Snakes) - in a very Toronto locale - the Hotel Waverly.



This isn't the first time this seedy hotel has played a seedy hotel on film. It was home to Mickey Rourke's Indian hitman in the unfortunate flop Killshot and it's also been the set for music videos from the likes of K-Os and Buck 65.

Buck 65's "Devil's Eyes" clip is especially notable for Toronto-centric cameos from Nick Flanagan (of the Brutal Knights) and Dan Burke (show promoter for Waverly's neighbour, the Silver Dollar).



Which video do you like better?

Koko to the Infirmary! Cab Calloway VS White Stripes

VS

Freeway Friday

Salmonblaster, the long extinct Canadian indie band, provide the perfect jumpstart to your weekend.

"Freeway" was one of my favourite songs back in the early '90s. Muchmusic used to play the video in pretty high rotation (yeah, the old Muchmusic before it became a lowest-common-denominator tweener station for Haylie Duff fans).

But anyhoo, this song is great to blast (no pun intended). Too bad I can't find my old mix tape with it on it. Their debut (only?) album is available to listen to on youtube, but I can't find better quality elsewhere yet. Not sure what the rest of it sounds like, but "Freeway" is classic.

Salmonblaster! The original animal name band.

Born (Ruffians) in the Ca.Na.Da

After a couple of spazzy, hooky EPs, Born Ruffians recently released their debut LP, Red Yellow and Blue. The preceding video is track #4 from said album.

I really like the homespun video, and the album ain't half-bad either. It's got a wider ranging musical palette than one would've expected, all of it very affable.

Listening to and thinking about the album, the first thing that springs to mind is its distinctly Canadian MO (and not just because of the Dundas Square references). Not Canadian in a Tragically Hip or Constantines way, but Canadian in a "Mr. Dressup" kind of way.

Born Ruffians are arts-and-crafting much like Ernie Coombs did during the 30 year run of that institution of Canadian children's television. Like "Mr. Dressup", they communicate the same virtues of simplicity, cooperativity, and a playfulness. They're pretty young guys, I wonder if they grew up watching the show.

Watch the opening and a clip of "Mr. Dressup" and see if you might agree.

Incidently, the lead track off of Red Yellow and Blue, Barnacle Goose is the song of the month (right click for mp3 downloadification).