Oh Shit

New Libertines single! For the record, we did it first.

Imo loves the feeling of rolling in the sun
Rolling in the oceans she rolls until she’s numb
But it’s never too long before a swell comes crashing in
And you’re gonna go down if you don’t learn how to swim

Every moth to a candle finds a flame too hot to handle
And Jamie broke down at Imo’s every scandal
Imo went west and Jamie sang the blues
It was Niki’s raw heart that lit her fuse

And she went
Oh shit, oh shit
Let’s make some money
Just enough to get us by
I want you when you smile
You got the dollars in your eyes

Our love is
So sick, so sick
Just takes a minute to obliterate her mind
I want you when you smile
From today until you die

They love rocky crystal in a lottery ticket
Unfortunate events (she’s his Jiminy Cricket)
Carving out initially (they did it on a wall)
And and I, in the world of a heart shaped scrawl

Guides a finger across his hairline
As his head rests on the bar
He’s stone cold cut
And she hotter than a star

But Niki loves the fire
And Niki loves the fight
And Niki’s got a heart
That will love you through the night

And they go
Oh shit, oh shit
Let’s make some money
Just enough to get us by
I want you when you smile
I want the dollars in your eyes
And they go
Oh shit, oh shit
Let’s make some money
Just enough to get us by
I want you when you smile
I want the dollars in your eyes

Tank top, boots
No money
Living on the stubs
What’s it even matter
You’re just young and in love

Oh shit, oh shit
Oh shit, oh shit
Oh shit, oh shit
Just enough to get us by

And we go
Oh shit, oh shit
We need some money
Just enough to get us by
And everybody goes, whoa
We got the dollars in our eyes
We go oh shit, oh shit
We need some money
Just enough to get us by
Oh I want you when you smile
I want the dollars in your eyes
Oh shit, oh shit

Drinking Irish Whiskey On The Irish Sea

You Bastards still haven’t listened to this yet, have you? I only listened to three or four new records this year, but this one is up there with any of my all-time favorites by any artist.

Came across the trailer above in an interesting interview with Isbell talking about working on Killers of the Flower Moon, which he was very good in as well. Ok, I’ll stop now.

Power Pop Dictator

 

If you’ve gone to see a power pop band in recent years, you might have noticed that most fans are pretty old.  If you were ever in a band, went to clubs, spent time in an indie record store, or perused online fora, you might have noticed that some power pop devotees can be surly, limited, and intolerant.  To be fair, that’s probably true of any genre, but you might expect that all those hooks and harmonies would leave power pop fans happier.  Some people grow out of at least some of their intolerances.  Some don’t, and this video has a lot of fun with aging sourpuss power poppers.  Your mileage may vary, but I found the whole thing hilarious.

Pop-Punk Candy

Mrs. Renfield put me on to this sugar rush of an album (really more like a longish EP).  Many tracks are one-idea songs, but who cares when the hook’s good and they don’t belabor the idea: all but one are under two minutes.  It so happens this band/person/whatever played Gonerfest last week, although it was an afternoon slot on a 90-degree-plus day, so can’t say I’m sorry I missed them.  But this stuff hits my sweet spot.  Good hooks throughout.  Here’s another:

Honeybus

For whatever reason, I found myself revisiting cult faves Honeybus over the weekend.  If you’re unfamiliar and craving some late 60’s psychedelic/baroque/folk/pop, they could be your fix.  I recommend streaming the anthology pictured above.  Some good hooks and harmonies throughout, though I found myself skipping a good amount of songs.  Your mileage may vary.  Perhaps due to the drug-addled times, there are some oddities, such as this otherwise good song marred by a fucking kazoo.  They had a top ten UK hit with this, which almost, just-about sounds like it could be a parody of the baroque pop of the time.

Speaking of twee pop parodies, nothing will ever surpass this masterpiece (said to be a parody of Ray Davies’ “Funny Face”) from Neil Innes, the man who would one day compose the entire Rutles catalog in something like a week.

This Is Not About A Car

Watched a pretty decent Netflix documentary about Mr. Johnson last night, which sent me back down the rabbit hole.

And I feel so lonesome, you hear me when I moan
And I feel so lonesome, you hear me when I moan
Who been drivin’ my Terraplane for you since I been gone?
I’d said I flash your lights, mama, you horn won’t even blow
Somebody’s been runnin’ my batteries down on this machine
I even flash my lights, mama, this horn won’t even blow
Got a short in this connection, hoo well, babe, it’s way down below
I’m goin’ heist your hood, mama, I’m bound to check your oil
I’m goin’ heist your hood, mama, mmm, I’m bound to check your oil
I got a woman that I’m lovin’, way down in Arkansas
Now, you know the coils ain’t even buzzin’, little generator won’t get the spark
Motor’s in a bad condition, you gotta have these batteries charged
But I’m cryin’, please, please don’t do me wrong
Who been drivin’ my Terraplane now for you since I been gone?
Mr. highway man, please don’t block the road
Please, please don’t block the road
‘Cause she’s reachin’ a cold one hundred and I’m booked and I got to go
Mmm-mmm-mmm-mmm-mmm
You, you hear me weep and moan
Who been drivin’ my Terraplane now for you since I been gone?
I’m gon’ get deep down in this connection, keep on tanglin’ with your wires
I’m gon’ get deep down in this connection, oh well, keep on tanglin’ with these wires
And when I mash down on your little starter, then your sparkplug will give me fire

I Am Everything

Hell yeah, I’m in! Anything more cringe than Pat motherfucking Boone singing “Tutti Frutti?”

Produced by Bungalow Media + Entertainment for CNN Films and HBO Max, in association with Rolling Stone Films, director Lisa Cortés’ Sundance opening night documentary LITTLE RICHARD: I AM EVERYTHING tells the story of the Black queer origins of rock n’ roll, exploding the whitewashed canon of American pop music to reveal the innovator – the originator – Richard Penniman. Through a wealth of archive and performance that brings us into Richard’s complicated inner world, the film unspools the icon’s life story with all its switchbacks and contradictions. In interviews with family, musicians, and cutting-edge Black and queer scholars, the film reveals how Richard created an art form for ultimate self-expression, yet what he gave to the world he was never able to give to himself. Throughout his life, Richard careened like a shiny cracked pinball between God, sex and rock n’ roll. The world tried to put him in a box, but Richard was an omni being who contained multitudes – he was unabashedly everything. Directed by Lisa Cortés, LITTLE RICHARD: I AM EVERYTHING is produced by Robert Friedman, Cortés, Liz Yale Marsh and Caryn Capotosto and Executive Produced by Dee Rees.