“On Fire” by Galaxie 500 (A-) 1989
Dean Wareham’s trio makes beautiful Velvets-inspired guitar pop on this slightly lo-fi album. Some may find it overly simplistic, but more often the simplicity lends an air of total honesty and unpretentiousness. The guitar solos rumble and buzz in all the right places, providing a good contrast to the otherwise-clean tones. Bassist Naomi Yang even sings on the most ethereal track, “Another Day”. Perhaps it can be a little too relaxed at times, causing it to fade into pleasant background noises, but Wareham’s voice usually keeps you hooked with his charmingly unsteady falsetto warbling about paying for all the drinks again, driving far away and standing in line, eating his twinkies—if that sounds like dubious lyrical content, it’s because his voice says so much more than the words do. Plus it ends with an ace cover of George Harrison’s “Isn’t It A Pity” which tops the original by far.
“Album” by Girls (A-) 2009
On first listen, it can seem a little too much like the dream pop/surf rock revival that’s dominated the indie market in recent years to develop a personality of its own. But then you might notice the lyrics. Great love songs if I’ve ever heard them, from the plea to mend a broken relationship of “Laura” to the summer nostalgia of “Summertime”. And then you’ve got the opener, “Lust For Life” (not an Iggy Pop cover), with lead man Christopher Owens pouring out his confessions in the heartfelt opening lines, “I wish I had a boyfriend,/I wish I had a loving man in my life,/I wish I had a father,/Maybe then I would’ve turned out right.” Not that the whole album is sad. In fact, “Hellhole Ratrace” is a call to partying in the form of a slow build that climaxes with “I don’t wanna die without shaking up a leg or two,/So come on and dance with me!” There are also some interesting instrumental textures here, with the bizarre psychedelic guitars that fill the second half of “Summertime” and the lo-fi punk noises of “Big Bad Mean Motherfucker” and “Morning Light”. Admittedly, a couple of the songs on the second half sound a little half-finished, but overall, its an emotional journey set to some great pop music.
Golden Age 