Tuesday, September 9, 2014

DROP YOUR GUARD

After posting Ty Segall the other day, I got a message from the son of a couple I know. I go way back with this kid. It was at my apartment that his parents met, so that should give you an idea. I know he was brought up listening to good music, beginning at a very young age, and he pays attention to newer stuff much more than I do. I trust his taste enough to follow a lead. He recommended a band he thought I'd like, Parquet Courts. I know. You get one chance to name your band and you pick that? Right off the bat, I had a decision to make. Begin nitpicking or just listen to it with the ears of an eighteen year old. I chose the latter, and you know what? These guys make some respectable noise. There's all sorts of stuff I hear in there, not the least of which is guitar interplay that belies the era they're stuck in. The type of stuff that Dream Syndicate did when they were channeling the Velvet Underground and Everyone Knows This is Nowhere era Neil Young. Robert Quine when he stretched out on stuff with the Voidoids. Hell, even Jonathan Richman's playing on "Pablo Picasso". So, with the kid in mind, it's noisy guitar night over here,

A plug for tonight's suggester: His name is Reoh Darwell, and this kid is a fighter. Born with cystic fibrosis, he jumped head first into distance running, was on his school's cross country team, racked up awards and graduated high school with a 4.2 average. Hear me out. If you think this sounds like the work of some over achieving goody two shoes being pushed by smothering parents, think again, This was the work of one cool baddass kid. I've known this family since before they were a family. They're good people, that don't just fall into line. You know what I mean. They're like us. 

If you feel like helping out Reoh, and his brother who was also born with CF, and all others who suffer from the disease, donate to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. If you want to help Reoh get a scholarship, you can go to this site to vote for him (before September 15). Know this: I've never heard this family complain about the daily treatments Reoh and his brother require, let alone all of the medical costs. They didn't ask, or even hint about a mention here. After Reoh suggested the song, I just got to thinking about all the time I've spent with them over the years. They're a cool family, a very cool family. They are goofy and they have taste. You'd like them.

~ NOTE: ALL MEDIA IS HOSTED BY THE BLOGS & SITES NAMED BELOW ~
Listen:
Parquet Courts - Stoned and Starving mp3 at Citizen Insane (?)
Scott & Charlene's Wedding - Rejected mp3 at The Mad Makerel
The Dream Syndicate - Halloween mp3 at The Mad Mackerel
Modern Lovers - Pablo Picasso mp3 at DJNoDJ
The Velvet Underground - Sister Ray mp3 at Host A Library (?)
Fuck Cystic Fibrosis:
Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Tell 'em Reoh Darwell sent you.
Abbvie CF Scholarship - Vote for Reoh (before September 15)

3 comments:

On The Flip-Side said...

I love this band!

espen e. said...

Hey Tom! Won’t claim to generally be «in the know» (or even especially curious) when it comes to hip young bands of the current «underground» (if such a thing exists), but still I sort of stumbled across Parquet Courts when they (re)released «Light Up Gold» (early 2013). Now, my initial reaction was a bit Ho-hum Heard This Before, and – unmoved – I moved on. But when the chance (/challenge) to review the album later turned up, I gave the band a second – and more dedicated – listen. And guess what?.. They won me over good.

Ended up writing a piece on the album, and checking back I see I referenced names like The Fall (/Mark E. Smith), Television, Modern Lovers (/Jonathan Richman), Sonic Youth (/Thurston Moore), VU (on a bed of Kraut) and Camper van Beethoven. Suffice to say; «Light Up Gold» saw some heavy rotation here last year.

And oh yeah; kudos to Reoh! Gave him my transatlantic vote – hope it can tip the scholarship scale :).

e

Tom G. said...

Hey Espen! It's funny I almost described them as the Modern Lovers doing the Fall. And I almost added Television to the guitar interplayer sound alikes but didn't because Verlaine and Lloyd never really get crazy sloppy. But yeah, that early Televison (particularly Marquee Moon) has been a favorite for years.

By the way, check out the blog by Morgan, the guy who also commented. He's the guy behind On the Flip-Side, that 45 blog I'm always linking to and another man of taste.

Hope all is well. A tip of the hat to Isak!