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SUB POP PRESENTS INSOUND DIGITAL MIXTAPE - SEPTEMBER 2009

Not to let Insound monopolize this site, but they just keep coming up with funky ass shit like every single day. Plus, what I am about to discuss for the remainder of this article is a perfect hybrid between an actual album (as the title of this site would suggest and from which the last two entries have deviated) and the instant gratification of a grab-and-go free mp3 download. So Insound spit out this digital mixtape for the month of September. It's tagged as "Sub Pop Presents:", so take note all you avid record-label followers. Download it HERE.

I don't think there is an intended order to the tracks, but here are some of the highlights:

Iron & Wine -- Belated Promise Ring. I haven't heard too many songs from these guys, but from what I can gather it is almost purely folk music. This one is particularly gorgeous. It is a typical ode to the quirky girl that's been around since childhood, with whom the protagonist has always been confusedly in love in spite of the admonishments of others around him, brimming with fondness, nostalgia, and the bittersweet realization that it will never work.

No Age -- You're A Target. No Age, doing what they do best. Rockabilly tunes and rhythms strangled and obfuscated through nightmarish distortion; slightly off-tune demonic sounds -- the exact instrument responsible uncertain -- welling up through the brackish noise. I think the vocals are what make this band great -- they draw the sound away from the My Bloody Valentine comparisons it might otherwise herald and cement the band's status as one of the more biologically sophisticated evolutions of punk.

Sunny Day Real Estate -- Seven. This track is off of the digitally-remastered version of Diary that was released recently. It sounds amazing. I have the original version of the album, but this track alone has been enough for me to seriously consider picking up the upgrade -- and it's in fact one of my least favorite from the album (in spite of its being the most popular). For as long as I've owned the album I've said that a major part of what makes it so great is the drumwork. Plenty of rock music has outstanding percussion, but you usually have to consciously listen to it to appreciate it. On this track, and on the rest of Diary, the drums stand out as magnificent and energetic whether the listener likes it or not.

The Vaselines -- Son of a Gun. The Vaselines are perhaps most famous for being audibly called out on Nirvana's timeless "Unplugged" album. This track here sounds like it was recorded by holding a microphone to a 200-ft metal pipe pointed towards the band -- with the wind blowing. I almost want to say it has a Clash kind of feel to it.

Fleet Foxes -- Mykonos. This song has been kicking around the internet for awhile. It was released as part of their Sun Giant EP, which preceded their critically-infallible self-titled debut LP by a few months back in 2008. The song sounds a lot like the song "Your Protector" from the debut -- until you reach the middle and it launches into a thundering, voluminous refrain, the harmonized vocals soaring above it all in true Foxes fashion -- complete with plenty of references to the narrator's brother.

Red Red Meat -- Gauze. The song opens with a progression of slow chord strums sporting a cadence we might expect from Radiohead -- you know, where you aren't quite sure at first how a consistent percussive beat is going to fit in exactly. The vocals have more of a Collective Soul thing going on. I am quite fascinated with the sort of lazy, inexact guitar, occasionally half-strumming or half-plucking whenever it feels like it. The effect is actually quite soothing, and I imagine this is the kind of song that would precipitate a gradual lull in conversation amongst a small group of people as each inadvertently finds his or herself drawn into listening.

Flight of the Conchords -- Hurt Feelings. These guys never fail to make me LOL.

....And there's plenty more good stuff on this mix to choose from and form your own conclusions about. Take advantage while the gettin's good: Sub Pop Presents Insound Digital Mixtape - September 2009