by kevin diamond
As the heat burns us and boils our insides, we need a run through the sprinklers, or a bucket of ice water over the head to remind us that we’re human and we’re attached to this earth. The Hype Filter this week is designed to be that ice cold bath you are looking for.
► We start with Nude Beach’s self-titled single, a slow burn of drum machine bass and snare, and reverb-laden vocals, with a singular guitar line fleshing out the tune. Lo-fi without the tape hiss, anthemic without the bombast, this tune is perfect for an early morning hangover, or maybe that late night alone in your apartment with your fifth scotch and soda collecting dew on the arm of your favorite chair.
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► Denim Owl mine the Yo La Tengo catalogue for the opening organ riff on this chill-out track. With a dash of Stereolab aesthetics and a simple but busy tom pattern, the song soon opens up into a swirling harmony-heavy pop chorus, and suddenly this song is off running.
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► We posted the video for this song last week, but it’s such a beautiful one, I had to include it on this mix. Banjo or Freakout hail from the UK, but this sounds decidedly west-coast Americana to me. A mid-summer night Sunset is painted, complete with beach fire embers and salt-stained kisses.
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► Top sound is a group from Sweden mining the Jens Lekman/PB&J wave for all it’s worth. This song soothes with french lyrics and a chill vibe. They give their kids instruments at age 3 in Sweden. What are we doing in this country?
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► The beginning of this song reminds me of “Oh La La,” the track by The Faces best known as the closing song of Rushmore. Brown Recluse add a fair share of Belle and Sebastian bag-of-tricks to this pop ditty, with well placed horns, finger picked guitar lines, and a smooth baritone voice.
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► There’s a cold, late-night aura to the music Silk Flowers makes. I can feel myself walking along the deserted streets of bushwick, with the lead singer’s creep-out voice to keep me company.
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► We posted a Lake track a while ago, “Oh The Places You’ll Go.” Madagascar follws the same train of thought – lounge/jazz chords, atmospheric production style, whispy vocals. It still works.
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► From the emerging Underwater Peoples label comes Frat Dad. Like their label mates Real Estate, Frat Dad’s bread and butter is in their low-fi production eerie vocals. It’s a hit and miss formula, but when Freak In Nature hits it’s chorus, it swings for the fences and makes it with room to spare.
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► When I listen to Flowers by Flight, I here shades of early 90’s beck, beautiful fuzzed out bliss, Flaming Lips worthy drumming, epic songwriting. In short, the kind of shit I based my life around when I was 16 years old. It’s the kind of song I always wanted to right. Loud, brash, and pointed.
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► And we leave you with this track by the Wave Pictures, with a classic R&B/Motown structure, and David Bowie vocals. It’s pretty much a perfect song. Fall in love all over again.
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One Comment
i love when you bathe me in cold water diamond