Tag: throwback thursday

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Metric – Black Sheep

Artist: Metric

Song: Black Sheep

Genres: #indierock #alternativerock

Location: Toronto, Canada

Release date: August, 2010.

Comment: Metric is as close to being indie-royalty as you will find in the world, and this electronic-leaning band from Toronto is back with a new album, Formentera, that is really good (spoiler alert: I will feature one of its songs in the near future). While we wait for that, as a #ThrowbackThursday post, we could listen again to one of their most popular songs: Black Sheep. Even though it wasn’t included in any of Metric’s studio albums, the song became popular when it was featured heavily on the Scott Pilgrim vs. The World movie, which became a cult hit.

As an interesting tidbit, actress Brie Larson is the actual singer in the version you hear in the movie (which you can listen to in one of the clips below), not Emily Haines (Metric’s lead singer). There’s some debate on the internet about which version is better. Both of them are pretty good.

  • Everything
  • Alternative
  • Folk/Indie

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Sugarcult – Do It Alone

Artist: Sugarcult

Song: Do It Alone

Genres: #alternativerock

Location: California, United States

Release date: July, 2006

Comment:  I hadn’t done one of these (#ThrowbackThursday entries) in a while, mostly due to a lack of time, not a lack of songs. In fact, I wanted to feature Sugarcult last week, after they kindly liked a tweet in which I mentioned them, but alas, I ran out of time. This band from Santa Barbara, California, started in 1999 and had a pretty successful debut studio album in 2001, during the hey-day of early 2000s punk-rock –by the way, last year they re-release that album in its 20th anniversary–. However, something I liked about them was that they were not afraid to experiment and try new sounds: none of their three studio albums sound alike.

Despite still being active (after a hiatus), they have not released a new album since 2006’s Lights Out, which is the one that features today’s track: Do It Alone. This song was the first single off that album and probably ahead of its time, because it wasn’t even as successful as the second single (Los Angeles). I think part of the reason why was that it sounded closer to the music of bands that were becoming popular then, like The Killers, than what Sugarcult had released before. It was our loss, though, because the single was really outstanding and perhaps, in a parallel world in which both track and album were a massive success, we would have had many more Sugarcult albums.

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Better Than Ezra – Closer

Artist: Better Than Ezra

Song: Closer

Genres: #indierock #alternativerock

Location: New Orleans, United States

Release date: August, 2001

Comment: I think Kevin Griffin from Better Than Ezra is one of the best lyricists around. BTE are best known for their singles released during alternative rock’s heyday in the 1990s, but Closer was the album that introduced me to them. A Lifetime is one of my favorite songs ever and a great example of how talented Kevin is as a songwriter. However, the song I want to feature today is the title track from that underrated album, a song that always resonated with me even though it I couldn’t really relate to it before.

Closer is a beautiful song Griffin wrote after having his first child. In it, he wonderfully describes the excitement, pride, bewilderment and fear he felt all at once as a new dad. I hadn’t mentioned it here before but I’m about to become a dad as well in the next 24 hours or so, and I’m finally starting to understand what Kevin Griffin meant word by word. Incredibly, I can now say that Closer is even better than I thought.

Hope you enjoy this week’s #ThrowbackThursday entry, and please bear with me while I adapt to my new routine.

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Eliza & the Bear – Friends

Artist: Eliza & the Bear

Song: Friends

Genres: #indierock #alternativerock

Location: London, United Kingdom

Release date: February, 2016

Comment: I’m excited to see this little British band tomorrow as I haven’t attended a live rock concert in a long, long time (and it sounds like it might be the only one in a while too). Named after the title of a collection of poems by Eleanor Rees, Eliza & the Bear are not well-known to the casual music fan but if there is one song of theirs that even them are likely to have heard before is Friends, which became an indie hit when it was released five years ago. Other songs I would recommend are Cruel and I’m On Your Side.

As this week’s #ThrowbackThursday, let’s honor Eliza & the Bear.

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Of Monsters and Men – Organs

Artist: Of Monsters and Men

Song: Organs

Genres: #indierock #alternativerock

Location: Reykjavík, Iceland

Release date: June, 2015

Comment: I mentioned Of Monsters and Men in yesterday’s entry and then in the comments section I said that I loved lead singer’s Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir’s voice. If the only songs you know of this quintessential indie band are their biggest hits (Little Talks or Mountain Sound), you might not be aware of her sweet and mildly raspy voice. Both songs are great but do not showcase Nanna’s vocals that much. Instead, listen to Organs, an underrated gem that wasn’t even a single off the band’s sophomore album. It’s all about Nanna and her flawless vocal delivery. Enjoy! #ThrowbackThursday

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  • Indie

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Sylvan Esso – Funeral Singers

Artist: Sylvan Esso

Song: Funeral Singers

Genres:  #folktronica

Location: North Carolina, United States

Release date: September, 2018.

Comment: One of my favorite tracks in Third Eye Blind’s new album, which we have discussed before, is Funeral Singers, which I thought was an original song until the band shared their influences for the new album on instagram and one of them was Sylvan Esso‘s Funeral Singers. It turns out that Sylvan Esso‘s version is also a cover, with the original being from experimental rock band Califone. Each version is different but if I had to pick just one, I think I’d choose Sylvan Esso‘s. There’s something about lead singer Amelia Meath‘s voice and the acoustic strums in the background that I find mesmerizing.

If, like me, you were not aware of Sylvan Esso before, I hope you enjoy this cover from 2018 (which features American musical ensemble Collections of Colonies of Bees) as much as I do.

Featured on the following mixtapes:

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  • Folk/Indie

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Black Lab – Ghost In Your Mind

Black Lab is quite possibly the greatest #alternativerock band the average music fan has never heard about. Founded by Paul Durham in Berkeley, California, around 1995, they have scored a few radio hits and placed many tracks in different movie soundtracks and tv shows. The band’s name is an amalgamation of their two biggest influences: Black Sabbath and Stereolab. I’m totally guessing here but perhaps the reason why they remained relatively unknown despite moderate success was that their name was far from memorable. In fact, a google search will get you hundreds of websites about the black labrador dog breed before anything related to this band.

One of my favorite Black Lab songs –and there are a few– is Ghost In Your Mind, released on their 2007 album: Passion Leaves A Trace. The combination of the track’s beautiful melody, flawless lyrics and Paul’s delivery makes it an outstanding song. You can tell Paul really feels every word he sings (which, to be fair, could be said of most of his songs). If this is your first time hearing about Black Lab, by all means check their whole discography out. Otherwise, enjoy this weeks #ThrowbackThursday entry. Hope you like it as much as I do.

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Sixpence None The Richer – Kiss Me

Artist: Sixpence None The Richer

Song: Kiss Me

Genres: #alternativerock #poprock

Location: Nashville, Tennessee

Release date: August, 1998.

Comment: Kiss Me is a beautiful ballad that made Christian alternative rock band Sixpence None The Richer famous not only across the United States but also around the world. It peaked at number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number one in the Australian and Canadian charts. It was all well-deserved because this sweet song is quite a gem. Enjoy this week’s #ThrowbackThursday entry.

Featured on the following mixtapes:

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American Hi-Fi – Another Perfect Day

Artist: American Hi-Fi

Song: Another Perfect Day

Genres: #alternativerock #indierock #2000srock

Location: Boston, Massachusetts

Release date: February, 2001.

Comment: I didn’t mention it on that entry, but The New Twenty’s I Can’t Afford Her reminded me a bit of the style of American Hi-Fi, at least that of their self-titled debut album from 2001. Now, if you only know one song from this still-active band led by Stacy Jones (also known for being the drummer in Veruca Salt and Letters To Cleo), it is likely to be Flavor of the Weak, which is their one big hit and a great rock song on its own. That being said, I’ve always had a soft spot for the lesser known Another Perfect Day, which is why I decided to feature that tune instead as this week’s #ThrowbackThursday entry. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

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Nine Days – Absolutely (Story of a Girl)

Artist: Nine Days

Song: Absolutely (Story of a Girl)

Genres: #alternativerock

Location: Long Island, New York

Release date: May, 2000.

Comment: This song is a classic from 21 years ago. Even though they were never able to replicate the success of this hit, they do have quite a few good songs. They took a long hiatus but got back together in 2016. Maybe they’ll surprise us with another hit in the future. Meanwhile, enjoy this #ThrowbackThursday!

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