I am a very lazy man. Luckily, a small part of me is pro-active and creative (not to mention gosh-darned handsome), and he managed to jostle me into a writing position.
So, here we are once more. To ensure I don't waffle on, I'm going to jump straight into a list. Sorry to fall back on the old standby once again, but this should be fun. Join me!
4 Enjoyably Overblown Modern Songs
I don't tend to care much for supposedly epic, pretentious and downright ridiculous rock songs. I'm not in the business of making enemies, so lets just say I'm not a fan of Queen and leave it at that. However, some lucky artists have the talent of being able to create 10-minute long epics, lush with church-filling noise and laden with gravitas, without sounding like idiots. Here's four:
"The Gash" by The Flaming Lips (from The Soft Bulletin)
Get past the unintentionally hilarious (or perhaps intentional - who knows?) title and you will be in for quite an experience. If you're already familiar with The Flaming Lips, then this song probably won't overly surprise you. If not, well hey - listen to it on headphones first, and ensure you're sober (to be fair, probably good advice first time you listen to any Flaming Lips album).
Try not to snigger when I say "The Gash" is wondrous. The sort of song that sounds like the soundtrack to an exploding star, it sucks you in with thunderous symphonics, before harmonised falsettos describe a seemingly epic battle, and the soldiers at it's heart. It is Wayne Coyne's earnest vocals that provide a heart to go with the bombast, and ultimately it is the band's masterful juggling of so many musical elements that saves this beautiful track from ridicule.
"Genesis" by Justice (from †)
It's not hard to make assumptions about a band that uses a symbol for their album title, and brazenly slips biblical references into their tracklistings. Despite all that, Justice are really all about highly danceable fun, and nowhere is this more apparent than the brilliantly extravagant opening track, "Genesis". Beginning with deep, imposing synth lines, the track eventually breaks into an epic dance number. While the synths rise and fall, waver and stagger, the backing drum programming stays firm and steady. It's just unpredictable enough to make it brilliant to dance to. Oh, and it ends with near-isolated, dramatic piano, before lurching into the frenetic intro of Track 2. Dance music for midnight mass? Perhaps.
"Swans (Life After Death)" by Islands (from Return to the Sea)
While it would be a stretch to call Return to the Sea a concept album, it's generally accepted that 10-minute opener "Swans" is a sequel of sorts to the last track of The Unicorns 2003 album, Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone?. The two bands are virtually the same, give or take a few members.
Still with us? Good. So while Unicorns' track "Ready to Die" describes.. yep, death on a desert island, "Swans" returns to what we can only assume is the same beach, with the same guy.
However, while "Ready to Die" was a simple (but no less poignant) affair about a man coming to terms with the end of his life, part two paints an epic picture, taking in endless seas, waking up after death, climbing through the insides of whales, and so on.
Some might argue that Islands overstretch themselves in the final few minutes of "Swans". I would say that the ridiculous running time is key to this track's appeal. The story may make little sense, but I can think of few other songs from the last few years that fire my imagination so.
So, here we are once more. To ensure I don't waffle on, I'm going to jump straight into a list. Sorry to fall back on the old standby once again, but this should be fun. Join me!
4 Enjoyably Overblown Modern Songs
I don't tend to care much for supposedly epic, pretentious and downright ridiculous rock songs. I'm not in the business of making enemies, so lets just say I'm not a fan of Queen and leave it at that. However, some lucky artists have the talent of being able to create 10-minute long epics, lush with church-filling noise and laden with gravitas, without sounding like idiots. Here's four:
"The Gash" by The Flaming Lips (from The Soft Bulletin)
Get past the unintentionally hilarious (or perhaps intentional - who knows?) title and you will be in for quite an experience. If you're already familiar with The Flaming Lips, then this song probably won't overly surprise you. If not, well hey - listen to it on headphones first, and ensure you're sober (to be fair, probably good advice first time you listen to any Flaming Lips album).
Try not to snigger when I say "The Gash" is wondrous. The sort of song that sounds like the soundtrack to an exploding star, it sucks you in with thunderous symphonics, before harmonised falsettos describe a seemingly epic battle, and the soldiers at it's heart. It is Wayne Coyne's earnest vocals that provide a heart to go with the bombast, and ultimately it is the band's masterful juggling of so many musical elements that saves this beautiful track from ridicule.
"Genesis" by Justice (from †)
It's not hard to make assumptions about a band that uses a symbol for their album title, and brazenly slips biblical references into their tracklistings. Despite all that, Justice are really all about highly danceable fun, and nowhere is this more apparent than the brilliantly extravagant opening track, "Genesis". Beginning with deep, imposing synth lines, the track eventually breaks into an epic dance number. While the synths rise and fall, waver and stagger, the backing drum programming stays firm and steady. It's just unpredictable enough to make it brilliant to dance to. Oh, and it ends with near-isolated, dramatic piano, before lurching into the frenetic intro of Track 2. Dance music for midnight mass? Perhaps.
"Swans (Life After Death)" by Islands (from Return to the Sea)
While it would be a stretch to call Return to the Sea a concept album, it's generally accepted that 10-minute opener "Swans" is a sequel of sorts to the last track of The Unicorns 2003 album, Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone?. The two bands are virtually the same, give or take a few members.
Still with us? Good. So while Unicorns' track "Ready to Die" describes.. yep, death on a desert island, "Swans" returns to what we can only assume is the same beach, with the same guy.
However, while "Ready to Die" was a simple (but no less poignant) affair about a man coming to terms with the end of his life, part two paints an epic picture, taking in endless seas, waking up after death, climbing through the insides of whales, and so on.
Some might argue that Islands overstretch themselves in the final few minutes of "Swans". I would say that the ridiculous running time is key to this track's appeal. The story may make little sense, but I can think of few other songs from the last few years that fire my imagination so.
"For Reasons Unknown" by The Killers (from Sam's Town)
Back when I was still fairly "new" to music, The Killer's debut Hot Fuss was one of my favourite albums. Fast forward two years of joyous discovery and I was pretty underwhelmed by the follow-up. While I was a big fan of the breezy, synth-laden debut, this one was too full of hollow bombast for my liking.
On the other hand, there is a part of my brain that will always crave widescreen rock such as this, even if it is devoid of true emotion. Sam's Town is great in this regard, offering several gems of desert rock excess. "For Reasons Unknown" is truly the best example of this. While the lyrics are merely examples of generic yearning, Brandon Flowers' unabashed passion is highly infectious. Best listened to at top volume in your room, when you think no-one can hear you singing along, hand on heart.
Well, that about does it for now. Next post I will try and come up with something more original. More importantly, I will attempt to come up with something that doesn't end up with just talking about my favourite music! Meh, we'll see.
