The end

Well my indiepop friends, after almost three and a half years I have decided to wrap up the blog. Sadly, I don't have much time for it any more, and because of this it's become more of a chore than a pleasure. So it's time to call it a day.

Many thanks to those who read and commented, those who regularly read without commenting (I know who where you are :)) and especially those who sent me stuff. I love getting stuff. Sorry I couldn't use it all.

Let's end this on a classic, shall we?

Moss Poles - One Summer

1987 single from this London band who went on to release a debut album and then vanish. Though they were seen as sort of a peripherally C86 band, I actually think this comes very close to late '70s power-pop territory - it wouldn't seem at all out of place on one of those compilations with the likes of The Records, Bram Tchaikovsky etc. Great tune, anyway.

The Driscolls - PC Roberts

Late '80s jangle-pop band from Bristol whose entire recorded output seems to consist of a handful of 7"s and compilation tracks. Most of which are worth tracking down, if not exactly essential.

This is from a 1987 cassette comp which mostly features bands of equal obscurity, though there are tracks from the McTells, Mayfields and Haywains - as well as a familiar one credited to "The Palesaints".

The Minutemen - Doctor Wu

The Minutemen were such geniuses in their own right, I feel a bit guilty that their first appearance here is with a cover (of a Steely Dan song, of all things). I suppose the reason for that is that much of their music is the kind that I cerebrally appreciate without necessarily enjoying, if you know what I mean. Though lumped in with the LA punk scene, it would always be more accurate to describe them as post-punk - and even within that genre they were unique, drawing on jazz and funk influences to a degree almost unheard of by their contemporaries. Unfortunately, not being a fan of either jazz or funk, I couldn't really get into a lot of their stuff. But I always felt kind of bad about it.

In any event I did love this one, first of all because I thought it was brilliant that they covered it in the first place - an '80s punk band covering Steely Dan? Seriously? - and secondly because I love what they did with it, the dual vocals where one person sounds like he's trying to do a faithful version and the other is clearly taking the piss. As I said...geniuses.

It's from their 1984 (third) album Double Nickels on the Dime.

Julian Cope - Sunspots

A great tune from Julian's second solo album, Fried, from 1985. Sometimes I think it's one of the most straightforward pop songs on the album, other times I think it's just weird in a different way. I'm actually particularly fond of the horns.

Lone Justice - Ways to be Wicked

The first single, a Tom Petty cover, from their self-titled 1985 debut album. I didn't care for this at all back in the day but Maria McKee and her massive voice got their charms into me eventually and I grew to love it. Still not sure about a lot of the rest of the album, though.

The Would-Be-Goods - The Camera Loves Me

1988 single and title track to the Would-Be-Goods' debut album, a collection of ornate and sophisticated twee girlpop with lyrics and vocals so contrivedly upper-crusty I almost feel like a class traitor just listening to them. I always thought they had a bit of the novelty act about them, though they're not without their charms.

The Stupid Cupids - Big Blue Bus

Definitely up there with the worst band names ever to appear on this blog, though in fairness, the Stupid Cupids weren't a real band so much as one of the many identities used by Paul Chastain and Ric Menck (the Springfields, Velvet Crush) over the years. And besides, it's hardly like they were trying for a good name.

This pleasant and fun little tune was released on a 1987 Bus Stop flexi, and was later re-recorded by another Chastain/Menck alter ego, Choo Choo Train, under the title "Big Blue Buzz".

Rites of Spring - For Want Of

This is a little bit, well, quite a bit heavier than most of what gets posted on this blog and I don't expect it'll be to all readers' tastes. Maybe I'll post something ultra twee tomorrow, just for balance, like.

Rites of Spring anyway were sort of the original "emocore" band, bursting out into the US (specifically DC) hardcore punk scene in the mid-1980s with performances that allegedly left their audiences in emotional smithereens. Their lyrics were unusually personal and introspective and it's hard to imagine your average combat-boot-wearing spikey-Mohawk-head getting much out of them, but somehow they managed to spawn the development of an entire punk subgenre - quite unintentionally, I'm sure.

This was always my favourite of theirs and plus, it contains what is probably the defining emo lyric: If there's nothing here, then it's probably mine. Genius.

 

The Church - Too Fast for You

1981 single, also released on the (self-titled) UK version of their debut album. The guitars are quite lovely in this one, apart from a brief interlude before the final verse where they get a bit wankery. I always thought the Church's sound in this era promised more than it delivered but this is one of the high points.

I'm off to Indietracks for the weekend - see you Tuesday!

World of Pooh - Mr Coffee-Nerves

Great track from World of Pooh's sole album, the obscure 1989 classic The Land of Thirst. Really, don't feel bad if you've never heard of it. I probably wouldn't have either if I wasn't kicking around San Francisco at that time.

To the extent it's known at all, it's probably only because Barbara Manning was in the band and she's got a bit of a cult following among American indie fans. This song isn't one of hers, though.

Billy Bragg - A Lover Sings

Always loved this one from his 1984 album, Brewing Up with Billy Bragg. The opening line alone is one of my favourite things he's ever written.

 

Joy Division - Isolation

A lot of Closer, Joy Division's second album, is too bleak for my tastes. Musically, that is; it's all pretty bleak lyrically but I don't find that quite as off-putting. Especially when those bleak lyrics are as stunning as some of these ones are.

Colourbox - Arena

Like "The Moon is Blue", my favourite Colourbox track (which I've already posted), this is kind of an oddity in terms of the general style of the album, which is oriented towards a much more upbeat type of dance music. Unlike "The Moon is Blue", this one didn't grab me the first time I heard it - or the second time or even dozens of times later. It's not really my kind of music at all, to be honest. But after two and a half decades of hearing it just because I put the album on to hear "The Moon is Blue" and didn't bother taking it off afterwards, I guess you could say it's grown on me. And I now think it's rather stunning.

The Stone Roses - Waterfall

I was going to post another song from the Roses' debut album since I assumed I must have posted this one already, because it's my favourite song from that album, and not only my favourite song from that album but my favourite Roses song, and not only my favourite Roses song but one of my favourite songs ever by anyone. But I can't seem to locate a post for it. Blogger's search function is a bit wonky so it could well be that I did post it and just can't find it now, but I'm not going to worry about it too much: if any song deserves a double-post it's this one. Just listen to it. It's perfect, in the way that "Just Like Honey" is perfect.

 

Everything But the Girl - Riverbed Dry

B-side to the 1984 "Native Land" single, which I've already posted. I think it's really quite a majestic little piece in its own way. Tracey's voice kills me on it, but then, it usually does.

 

SOA - Public Defender

Been a while since I've posted any '80s punk, so here's a classic bit of harDCore from an early Dischord band featuring one Henry Rollins on vocals. He was still going by Henry Garfield then.

This isn't an official video, if you couldn't guess.

 

Soft Cell - Torch

File this one under "songs I never realised were actually as good as they were". This 1982 single was actually Soft Cell's second-biggest hit, something that surprised me to learn because I would have assumed it was "Say Hello Wave Goodbye", which certainly seems to be better remembered. This one's not as instantly memorable as that or for that matter "Tainted Love" but it's really quite nice in its own little way.

The Au Pairs - Armagh

Powerful piece from the Au Pairs' 1981 debut album, Playing with a Different Sex, written about the (mis)treatment of Irish female political prisoners in a British jail. I always think of the opening lines to this song whenever Guantánamo is in the news.

The Waterboys - The Whole of the Moon

I'm just back from watching a dreadful Ireland performance in Euro 2012, which will probably depress me for the rest of the week, but the DJ in the pub where I watched the match had the good sense to play this song afterwards which at least managed to cheer me up as much as anything could, because I absolutely loved this song as a teenager. I'm a little bit drunk so don't expect me to say anything more about it.

1985, I think.