[fingertipsmusic] This Week's Finds: September 21 (Fine Times, The Sea and Cake, Dum Dum Girls)

From: Jeremy Schlosberg <fingertipsmusic@xxxxxxxxx>
To: fingertipsmusic@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Fri, 21 Sep 2012 11:12:00 -0400
*THIS WEEK'S FINDS <http://www.fingertipsmusic.com>
September 21*



[image: Fine 
Times]<http://www.fingertipsmusic.com/wp-content/uploads/finetimes.jpg>
 “HEY JUDAS” – FINE TIMES <http://www.magnetmagazine.com/audio/HeyJudas.mp3>

Attaching wall-of-sound-like illusions to a swaying, arena-friendly beat,
the synth-flavored rock’n'roll of “Hey Judas” is big-bodied from the
get-go. And that’s even before we get to the wordless sing-along at the end
of the chorus, which graduates from arena- to stadium-sized.

And yet note how it’s not really that easy to sing along with, that
wordless sing-along part (1:16). It’s comprised of unexpected leaps and sly
intervals and finishes not with a grand finale but with an evasive
syncopation. It’s a large gesture at the center of a large-gestured song
and yet is also some wonderfully subtle music hiding in plain sight. As
such it has a kind of ripple effect on the rest of the song. I’m listening
more closely. Some of it is indeed as straightforward as it seems (not that
there’s anything wrong with that!). But there are synth lines here, lyrical
flourishes there, melodic angles elsewhere that dance through “Hey Judas”
and give this swelling, swaggering tune an intriguing soupçon of
craftiness. I kinda like that.

Fine Times is the Vancouver-based duo of vocalist/keyboardist Matthew
Moldowan and bassist Jeffrey Josiah Powell. Most recently together in a
band called 16mm, the two emerged as a band in their own right late in 2010
and shortly thereafter, apparently, producer Howard Redekopp (The New
Pornographers, The Zolas, Tegan & Sara) gave them access to his spiffy
collection of vintage synthesizers. So the unmistakable ’80s keyboards here
are nothing if not authentic. (For good measure, check their worthy cover
of “Enola 
Gay.”<http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=qgj9-PCRtLY>)
“Hey Judas” is a track from the duo’s self-titled debut, which was released
this week on Light Organ
Records<http://lightorganrecords.com/artists/fine-times/>.
MP3 via Magnet Magazine <http://www.magnetmagazine.com/>.



[image: The Sea and
Cake]<http://www.fingertipsmusic.com/wp-content/uploads/seaandcake.jpg>
 “HARPS” – THE SEA AND CAKE <http://www.magnetmagazine.com/audio/Harps.mp3>

Very pleasant wiggles and noodles, to a beat, for a full (but pleasant!)
minute, lead us with a nice electronic swoosh into a more succinct synth
line (1:11) that feels briefly like a more “normal” intro; a couple of
evocative sighs later, the first verse at long last appears (1:26). And
quite a sweet and incisive melody line we get, with its double-time descent
and half-time re-ascent, playing off layers of chiming keyboards. Suddenly
it feels like this meandering song is in fact a song that means a lot of
business. But exactly what kind of business remains unclear. Without
repeating the verse, a vigorous instrumental section leads us into an
extended middle section that seems sort of like a bridge except we haven’t
come across the chorus yet.

And no chorus in fact materializes. Back we go to the introductory sighs
and then an exact repeat of the first verse (2:45), reinforcing just how
tidy and attractive a melody this is. And now we finally begin to feel
grounded as the melody recycles, with new words, two more times. We end
with fading noodles over the now-assertive drum beat, left to contemplate
what it was we just heard. What kind of song was that? The structure is
partially backwards, and partially inside out. It begins at its vaguest and
yet also holds the ear. The most memorable melody is repeated not at the
beginning but the end. No chorus in fact materializes. This is all highly
enjoyable, if in a vague and noodly way.

The Sea and Cake are a Chicago quartet that has been recording since 1994,
with a hiatus taken from 2004 to 2007. “Harps” is from a new album called *
Runner*, which was written in a new way for the band. This time around,
front man Sam Prekop put the guitar down and began songs with a
synthesizer/sequencer. The songs went from Prekop to his three band mates
remotely, and each was encouraged to do what he saw fit with it. The final
songs were often quite different than Prekop’s early sketchings, and even
within each song, the musical arc often moved in unanticipated ways. This
no doubt has something to do with the unique path “Harps” takes.

*Runner* was released this week on Thrill Jockey
Records<http://thrilljockey.com/thrill/The-Sea-and-Cake/>.
MP3, once again, via Magnet Magazine <http://www.magnetmagazine.com/>.



[image: Dum Dum
Girls]<http://www.fingertipsmusic.com/wp-content/uploads/dumdumgirls.jpg>
 “LORD KNOWS” – DUM DUM GIRLS<http://assets4.subpop.com/assets/audio/12214.mp3>

Lovely, spacious, reverb-drenched ballad with an air of old-time
rock’n'roll about it—not to mention the guitar riff from “Crimson &
Clover.” Front woman Dee Dee sings with a trace of wounded majesty about
her, not hinted at in the upbeat ditties I’ve previously heard from this
promising quartet. This is a simple song, and powerful in its simplicity.
We stay rooted in the alternation of two chords (the IV and I chords, to be
precise) through both the verse and most of the chorus. These two chords
drive us, anchor us, move us inexorably towards the required V chord,
riding the back of a stately, steadfast bass line that adds voice as much
as rhythm to the proceedings.

When the harmonies arrive in the chorus, it feels like pure release, even
as the melody hasn’t yet resolved. We have been set up from the beginning
for the long-delayed arrival of the V chord, on the words “Lord knows”
(1:15); and see how each of the three chords now feels like its own part of
the resolution—the V chord at 1:15, the IV at 1:19, and the I at 1:22.
Directly after this is where the “Crimson & Clover” homage enters, its
landmark riff being an inverted incarnation of a I-V-IV progression. In the
background, meanwhile, if you haven’t noticed yet, what’s with all the
blurry noise? It’s hard to put your finger on, but contributes to the
song’s weary grandeur. As do the accumulating vocal harmonies, which often
themselves seem to dissolve into the backdrop. Do not miss the climactic
harmony at the end of the last verse, at 2:26. Worth the price of admission.

“Lord Knows” has been bouncing around the internet since the summertime,
but the EP on which you’ll find it, *End of Daze*, is just coming out next
week, on Sub Pop
Records<http://www.subpop.com/releases/dum_dum_girls/eps/end_of_daze>.
This is the bi-coastal band’s fourth EP; they also have two full-length
albums to date, the most recent being*Only in Dreams*, released in
September 2011, also on Sub Pop. MP3 via Sub Pop.





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[fingertipsmusic] This Week's Finds: September 21 (Fine Times, The Sea and Cake, Dum Dum Girls)

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