The Scotland Yard Gospel Choir - "Tear Down the Opera House"

All the way from 2003 (a place, far away) comes a song that sounds like it's from longer ago. It's about senseless destruction, or apathetic anarchy to be more fair, but it gives me a completely different feeling: progress! growth! I see a line of babies' cribs swinging to the beat, and people growing so fast out of them, their arms and legs are coming out the sides, like spider legs or something, until they just stand up and march, again to the beat. They pick up hammers and beat all the old people to death, and take all the thrones and crowns and jewels they leave behind. Get scared, the kids are coming in.

[Buy I Bet You Say That To All The Boys from their site]

Also: This band is getting better as you're reading this. They have two new (really good) songs on their MySpace page. "This World Has No Place" = turn-it-up.

*****

Sunset Rubdown - "Snake's Got A Leg II"

You thought the last one was scary (no you didn't).

First: I mentioned off-the-cuff that I was disappointed in this album when I first listened to it. Now, that was true, but hear my weak defense, because of its peripheral point: I was listening to the album out of order, and I thought the order I was listening to was correct. Now this is not a proper defense against calling the album disappointing, because it's blowing my damn mind now, but it is an interesting fact that this has happened on multiple occasions with similar results: Fiery Furnaces' Gallowsbird's Bark and Frog Eyes' The Golden River. Both albums I couldn't have cared less about when I listened to what I thought was the right track order, but then when I realised I'd been listening to it wrong, gave another shot, and was blown away. Tell me this has happened to you. Please. Anyway, the song:

This song is an alarm-bell. It's saying trouble just got worse. What we used to be merely afraid of is now more powerful in ways we didn't think possible. It's also something like a reprise, but the first version was much slower and less desperate. It was a plan to work things out, but by the time we reach this song in the album (the first version is the 2nd song, this is the 2nd last) the plan hasn't worked out. We're fucking sinking. And the last part of the song, where it kind of changes to the other side of the rhythm, isn't about hope either, it's not even a prayer. It's merely a description of what this thing is going to do to us when it gets here. This must be why it's so easy to dance to. I think the feeling of being doomed (for 3:51) is the most danceable feeling there is.

[Buy this album, make sure]