The Boy With The Thorn In His Side

“All that I fear
don´t turn away
and leave me to plead in this whole other place…what if I never break
estuary won´t you take me
far away
far away”

Let me get this out of the way right now. I heart Interpol. I love them with all my heart. We New Yorkers owe this band owe this band a bushelful of thanks and then some. They, along with fellow favourite sons The Strokes, helped to reinvigorate the local music scene. They helped us to reclaim our identity as the greatest city on Earth in terms of musical relevance. I know I tend to wax poetic often about Manchester but at the end of the day, New York City is the place musicians come to when they want to take on the big boys.

Since their 2002 debut Turn On The Bright Lights, the band has turned the indie scene on its head with dark and moody post-punk. Thanks to Interpol, bands like Editors, White Lies and the like would be able to follow in their footsteps and score major label deals. While I must admit I didn’t go gaga over Interpol’s major label debut, 2007’s Our Love To Admire, nothing changes the fact that the band has accrued enough capital to allow them a mulligan. It also doesn’t change the fact that since then, the band has been sorely missed. New drones and moans were needed in the worst way in the hearts and minds of each and every Interpol fan worldwide.

Time to turn those bright lights on once more, children. The band has come out of hiding and present us with a gift in the form of a new single called…Lights. This is the Interpol I know and love. There’s no thinly-veiled attempt at a pop hit to be found here (Cough…The Heinrich Maneuver…). If anything else, it’s much closer to the debut album’s sound in terms of scope. Much darker and a return to basics of sorts.  I could say more but why ruin it? Listen to Lights yourself and rediscover the magic that is Interpol.

“Lights” by Interpol

“Darling, just don’t put down your guns yet,
if there really was a God here,
he’d have raised a hand by now”

Courtesy of the gang at They Shoot Music Don’t They, here is a really cool acoustic performance of Papillon by Editors frontman, Tom Smith in Vienna. Tom looks like he would be quite at ease busking in the subways here in New York City. Something tells me he’d fetch a few dollars or so doing some Editors songs at Union Square…

It’s about that time once again, Suede-heads! Another year has passed and I’m going to share my favourite records of the year that just passed us by. 2008 was a wonderful year and put a halt to the overwhelming mediocrity and crapitude we had been subjected to in recent years. 2009 upped the ante by introducing us to some note-worthy new artists and some brilliant returns to form from a veteran or two. With that said…

Never mind the bollocks, here’s Billy Suede’s best of 2009. Part one!

20. Little Boots. Hands. (679)

2009 brought the debut by Miss Victoia Hesketh better known as Little Boots, the pixie beauty who showed the world that pop music isn’t the realm of the likes of Lady Gaga alone. While we’re still waiting for the official release of Hands stateside by Atlantic, those of us who bought the import, LEGALLY downloaded it or or…got it off the torrents (Shame on you!) were treated to some of the best pure pop gems of the year.  Lady Gaga might have had the mainstream, Jersey Shore  crowd but Little Boots had the blogosphere on its knees. Truly an artist to keep an eye on for the next decade, to be sure.

19. Raekwon . Only Built 4 Cuban Linx, Part 2. (ICEH2O/EMI)

While everyone and their mother was singing the praises of Jay-Z’s trimuphant return to the charts with The Blueprint 3, Another luminary in NY hip-hop was releasing a better record on the same day. Raekwon of the almight Wu Tang Clan came out of hiding and released his fourth solo record and the long awaited sequel to 1994’s Only Built For Cuban Linx. Needless to say, there’s nary a bad track on here. As is normally the case with any record from a Wu-Tang Clan member, there are appearances by fellow members throughout. What puts this record on this list is the lyricism and the storytelling that Raekwon displays here. No matter how many producers had their turn manning the boards, there is a consistency throughout that is rare in hip-hop right now. Another shining example to prove that if you’re looking for real hip-hop, it’s not on the radio.  It’s in the streets of New York.

18. Franz Ferdinand. Tonight. (Domino/Epic)

It must be said. I am indeed a fanboy of the Franz. It also must be said of their second record,2005’s You Could Have It So Much Better which should have been retitled This Could Have Been So Much Better that aside from a couple of songs, the record as a whole was a disappointment compared to their sterling debut.  The band returned with a vengeance in 2009 with a smart and tidy record that brought back the groove, added with some synthetic ornamentation and cut back on the balladry which is not the band’s strength. While the record didn’t get the love that the band had enjoyed in the past, be assured that Tonight was proof positive that the Franz is not going anywhere.

17. Filthy Dukes. Nonsense In The Dark. (Polydor)

Another solid debut from the indie dance world. The Dukes had been making waves for  quite a while through the blogosphere with hot tracks like This Rhythm (featured above), Messages and Tupac Robot Club Rock. Much like the Raekwon record, this album is one of there are many movable parts. In this case, virtually each song is given a different personality as there are different vocalists throughout. The record doesn’t suffer a bit for it. It’s an adrenaline boost from the get-go and one of the few dance records that can also be looked as a pop record and we haven’t had one of those in quite a while. A shame they don’t have a US deal as yet. Hopefully 2010 will be the year the Dukes gets some shine. Hey, at least Kanye likes them!

16. The Temper Trap. Conditions. (Glassnote)

A simply beautiful record. A debut record from a band that certainly has the talent that break through in the very near future. Dramatic. Melodic. Tunes. While the son this record are most certainly singles Sweet Disposition & The Science of Fear, the band has written a solid record that they can be proud of. Another record that while it did well in the UK with the NME crowd as well as the band’s native Australia, the record really didn’t bother the US at all. While disappointing to the band, I’m sure, I’ve got a feeling The Temper Trap will find their way high on the Billboard charts very soon.

15. Editors. In This Light And On This Evening. (Kitchenware/The FADER Label)

The record comes out Stateside early this year but it came out everywhere else in 2009 so it counts! What counts even more is the about-face the band underwent for album number three. Gone is the refined dark post-punk sound of the 2005 debut The Back Room. Tossed aside was the Coldplay tinged arena-rock lite that was 2007’s An End Has A Start. 2009 found the band showing off their love for Blade Runner and the synth! The anthems are still present as is Tom Smith’s stentorian baritone but the use of synths add another element to the band’s repertoire. In some respects, the album is even darker than the debut. While that may scare some fans of their earlier work away, it may also be the reset button the band needed in order to move forward. Anyone who still thinks they sound like Interpol is getting smacked.

14. Mos Def. The Ecstatic. (Downtown)

Before he became a likeable and acclaimed actor, Mos Def was a rapper. A very good one with respect coming from backpackers and the mainstream crowd alike. To date, his 1999 Black Star collaboration with fellow great, Talib Kweli is still the stuff of legend and the template from which today’s underground hip-hop scene draws inspiration from. While his own records do tend to be a bit on the spotty side, no one can utter a negative word on his 2009 opus, The Ecstatic.

Quite possibly, Mos’ most complete work, period. He shows his diverse influences yet again from a little bit of rock, a little bit of Afrobeat…all the while bringing the lyrical force that we come to expect from the man formerly known as Dante Smith-Bey.  It’s pleasing to see that while he got the normal shine from the underground circles, Mos’ work was appreciated by the public at large with the record debuting at number 9 on the Billboard charts and garnering a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Record….if you follow that sort of thing, of course.

13. Muse. The Resistance. (Warner Brothers)

Muse has been on the precipice of greatness for a while now. Personally I felt 2006’s Black Holes And Revelations was a slight come down from the band’s high water mark, 2004’s Absolution due to the band’s experimenting a bit more but leaving the urgency of the songs behind. 2009 found the band revving up their political juices and sounding as angry as ever.  While political in scope and still embracing the progressive rock sound the band has been delving into more and more with each record, The Resistance is also arguably the bend’s commerical sounding record yet as evidenced by the glam-stomp vibe featured above in leadoff single Uprising. A great band just got even better in 2009. Ten years in and the band is well on their way to becoming an all-timer.

12. Yeah Yeah Yeahs. It’s Blitz. (Interscope)

Three albums in and NYC’s Yeah Yeah Yeahs have evolved quite nicely over the years. A sparkling, frenetic debut in 2003’s Fever To Tell which spawned the mega-hit in Maps, there was a let-down of sorts as the band veered in lie alt-country with 2006’s Show Your Bones. In 2009, the band came back with a kick in their step and an infusion of synths to augment their sound. It worked like a charm as evidenced by the two lead-off singles Zero and Heads Will Roll. The band finally got their balance right between the rockier pieces, the softer ballads and the more accessible work. Karen O found his footing and the band find themselves as quite possibly the heir apparent to the Pretenders. Always on point, never boring with a beast of a frontwoman leading the way.

11. Hatcham Social. You Dig The Tunnel, I’ll Hide The Soil. (TBD)

A debut record that really came in under the radar in 2009 but it’s my hope that the band will not continue to reside in their current underrated status for much longer. Hatcham Social, a band long championed by the likes of Faris Badwan of the Horrors and Tim Burgress of the Charlatans made their album debut in 2009 after releasing some quality singles beforehand. Their sound is reminscent of the seminal bands one would have heard released from the Kitchenware and Postcard labels in the early 80s like Josef K and Orange Juice but doesn’t lack any of their charm or immediacy. The record is simply a joy to listen to and displays a brilliant future for the band.

January 19 will be the date. It will only be roughly four months from the UK release date but who’s counting. The Editors’ new record In This Light And On This Evening will finally reach our shores via the FADER label. Of course, there are those who decided to give the finger to the archaic territorial release date nonsense and downloaded it or bought it as an import…like me. Those who haven’t and decided to wait, let me simply tell you it is worth the wait. The record is solid as solid comes. Editors with an electro twist and the anthems are still abound!

What’s even better is the news that the band will come Stateside in February for a tour. Needless to say, it’s a show you don’t want to miss if they are in your town. Here are the dates!

Seattle, WA Showbox At The Market (February 5)

Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom (6)
San Francisco, CA The Warfield Theatre (8)
San Diego, CA House of Blues (9)
Los Angeles, CA The Wiltern (11)
Denver, CO Ogden Theatre (13)
Chicago, IL Victoria Theatre (15)
Toronto, ON Phoenix Concert Theatre (16)
Boston, MA House of Blues (18)
New York, NY Terminal 5 (19)
Philadelphia, PA Trocadero (20)
Washington, DC 9:30 Club (21)

Editors on MySpace
Editors on Facebook

“Darling just don´t put down your guns yet
If there really was a god here
He´d have raised a hand by now
Darling you were born get old and die here
Well that´s quite enough for me too
We´ll find our own home somehow”

Granted it will only have been roughly two years since the release of An End Has A Start, it made me smile to no end to discover the new brand new offering by, in my opinion, one of the more criminally underrated of the new new wave bands.  Birmingham’s Editors are set to release their brand new record entitled In This Light and On This Evening on the 13th of October via Kitchenware in the UK. The first single off the record is sure to become a live favourite and is already becoming one of my favourite songs from the band and it’s called Papllion.

It takes the ever-evolving dark post-punk sound the band has been honing since their 2005 debut The Back Room and applies a more raw and futuristic sheen through the increased use of synthesizers. This should not really come as a surprise as singer Tom Smith stated in interviews that the band in writing their new songs had become very influenced in making a record that evoked the sound of the Blade Runner soundtrack. Listening to Papillon for the first time, I must admit Blade Runner wasn’t the first time that came to my mind. I had almost done a double take upon hearing the lead synths and thought of the band VNV Nation and their anthemic industrial pop.  Needless to say, this did not detract from my going goo-goo over this track.

Who says post-punk is dead?

Editors on MySpace
Editors on Facebook

“Papillon” by Editors taken from the forthcoming Kitchenware release, “In This Light and On This Evening”