Another requirement I have for this type of music is that it be organic, lively, warm. Post-rock, electronic, ambient, and Sigur Ros-type stuff, although it has it's place, can be weighty and isolating. When I'm beaming white light into my retinas, interfacing with a computer screen, it's nice to maintain a human connection through music.
Selection number one:
Travis - The Invisible Band
I know Travis, at times, has come dangerously close to flimsy commercial Brit-Pop like Keane and Coldplay. However, I maintain that they haven't crossed the line, especially on this enjoyable album. The thing that has always appealed to me most about Travis is their careful rhythms. The lead guitar parts are soulful but restrained. The songs unfurl at a deliberate pace and build in drama.
Take the first track "Sing" as an example; it kicks off with plucked banjo arpeggios leading the band through a gentle groove that would be satisfying even if it looped ad nauseum and the soaring chorus never happened. Similar arpeggiated motifs reoccur through the album, such as the shuffled guitar lead in the chorus to "Pipe Dreams."
Perhaps the most pleasing part of this album is the shit-hot production. Endless reverb, without sounding thin. Ambient sounds whir and flutter through the background, feedback gently screeches, and warm synthesizers bubble and drone. The singer's voice is smooth and likable. His lyrics aren't the deepest I've heard, but they're somehow clever in their simplicity.
***
Now let's take those grooves into more overt territory.
The Sea and Cake - Nassau
I'm sure any Sea and Cake will do you good while you're working and relaxing, but this one has a roughness around the edges that I like. It opens with sustained organ chords and churning drums reminiscent of some of the more hypnotizing numbers on Yo La Tengo's "I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One."
From there it gets a little more jazzy. The vocals aren't easily discernible and turn at unexpected angles. The drumming is a highlight, ranging from light, swinging ride cymbal grooves to funky, pounding rhythms that echo and occasionally threaten to drown out the band. At these moments the beat becomes the focus: a distinctive move on Sea and Cake's part.
The guitars are shimmering, metallic, and have the improvisational spirit of jazz, often working in call and response with the drums. However the music maintains the unity of pop rock, the chords often locking into the melodic aesthetic of indie, while retaining a looseness that gives the music mystery and depth.
***
To move away from the shadowy territory of Sea and Cake, let's go for something unexpected.
Limbeck - This Chapter is Called Titles
Limbeck is a Southern Californian band that plays a mixture of power-pop and alternative country. I'm not sure what level of fame this band eventually achieved, but this is their first album and it's delightful.
Pop-hooks galore. The first track "Back To Racine" is charged up and catchy while still being free and easy. Like some of the other emo of the era, their lyrics reference geography and travel. However, Limbeck's music has aged more gracefully than bands like Phantom Planet and the Get Up Kids, perhaps because Limbeck's songs have a certain maturity. The singer is bright-eyed and optimistic while still seeming to have been around the block, or across the country, a few times. This album evokes the sun, wide open skies, and road tripping through the desert. When you listen to it, everything will be fine.
***
I would say, "let's take it down a notch," for this next selection, but all these albums have been pretty "down." Nevertheless:Air - Talkie Walkie
This album was quite well-received when it first came out, and in my opinion hasn't lost luster in the way other records billed as instant indie classic have, such as You Forgot it in People, or Funeral. The whole thing is just so tasteful and atmospheric that I don't know how one could get bored with it.
The arrangements are sparse and clean, but occasionally build to climactic, reverberated glory without any pounding beats or abrasiveness. A highlight is around a minute into the song "Run," where the percussion drops out and synth strings soar to ravishing heights as a loop of the singers voice repeats his last word, "Run-run-run-run-run" to the beat.
Many songs on Talkie Walkie include interesting use of synthesizers, and enter creepy, spooky territory while remaining emotionally true to life. "Biological" has a rocking, plucked banjo part in the chorus that Travis would approve of. It later builds to a slow, awesome, atmospheric jam, similar to "Run."
Of course, the album has a few upbeat dancey cuts, such as "Surfin' on a Rocket" that would make other Frenchmen like Daft Punk, M83, and Justice proud.
***
And now for some power:Elliot Smith - Figure 8
This album has majorly depressing subject matter, but the musicianship and songwriting is just so good that the end result is more life-affirming than the opposite. Elliot Smith took his style into more eclectic, at times Beatlesy, territory on this album. His voice is as haunting as ever, but the arrangements swirl with tinkling piano, organ, fat electric bass and crunching electric guitar.
It's deliciously soulful and moody from start to finish. Smith's singing leads the band up stairs of intense crescendo, only to smolder in self-defeat. For an example of what I'm talking about, check out the climax 1:45 into "Stupidity Tries." This album makes Bright Eyes seem like they don't know what they're doing, but that's beside the point. It's an expressive and soothing piece of work, quite beneficial to listen to.
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