1. Kate Bush - Wuthering Heights
Perhaps a bit of an odd choice considering our love of Kate Bush that seems to grow every year and the fact this is her biggest hit having gone to #1 in several countries in 1978. After playing The Hounds of Love over and over and over again in the last few years we finally branched out to pick up her debut, The Kick Inside, featuring the centrepiece "Wuthering Heights". Written, of course, about the famous Emily Bronte novel, the song "Wuthering Heights" is able to capture the emotion of the book as well as the damp, bleakness that it often conveys. Written from Catherine's point of view, it is easy to picture her wandering the desolate moors of not so jolly old England. 'How could you leave me when I needed to posses you? I hated you, I loved you too'.
I read the book in and around 1999 but it didn't resonate with me at the time so I re-read it again a few years later. I told a friend I was re-reading it to which she asked, "isn't that a book for teenage girls?". Yes, it probably is but after listening to this song endlessly in 2010, I'm going to read it again... and perhaps get a Wuthering Heights tattoo. 'Heathcliff, it's me Cathy, I've come home, I'm so cold, let me in in a your window'. Please do, Heathcliff, she's clearly earned it.
(Two vidoes were made for "Wuthering Heights", we prefer the completely bizzare red dress version made for the US. And to think she was only 18/19 years old at the time...)
#2 Cocteau Twins - From the Flagstones
Originally released on the Sunburst and Snowblind EP in 1983 and was then included on the Pink Opaque compilation as well as the BBC Sessions and Lullabies to Violaine which is were we rediscovered it. We would have originally heard it 10 years earlier on the BBC Sessions released in 1999 but could never get into that double disc... like a number of the Cocteau Twins releases. Their early 90s album Heaven or Las Vegas will most likely forever be in our Top 50 of all time but the rest of the Twins' catalogue can be hit or miss to our ears, or at the very least take a long time to really penetrate our hearts and minds.
It was the same with the Lullabies to Violaine compilation. Purchased early in 2010 it didn't get full spins until that summer. I remember specifically walking to a lounge in the sweltering heat to watch the World Cup final with The Cocteau Twins playing on the ipod. It was here, while walking down Nassau that "From the Flagstones" finally hit. Coming in with shimmering bells and a flanged out guitar, Liz Fraser's voice comes in almost right away. The track has us reach for the dictionary as we try to follow Fraser's vocal gymnastics. With their usual vague lyrics that mean everything and nothing all at once, the sadness of the track comes through.
'At times I've seen you from the balustrade
At times I've seen you from the flagstones'
#3 Absolute Body Control - Figures
Somewhere along the way in 2010 we discovered the genre of Cold Wave (or Minimal Wave) which lead us right to The Minimal Wave Show on East Village Radio.com hosted by the effortlessly cool Veronica Vasicka. Within a few months of each other, two cold wave compilations were released in 2010 - The Minimal Wave Tapes vol 1 and Cold Wave and Minimal Electronics vol 1 both of which could be looked at as the Northern Soul of late 70s/early 80s electronica, overlooked gems that deserve further investigation.
The first track on the Cold Wave compiltion was from the Belgium group, Absolute Body Control with their 80s track, "Figures". The compilation is solid top to bottom with many treasures buried within. We're not sure what it is about "Figures" that makes it standout, perhaps its the familiar synths, the catchy '12345' build up in the lyrics, or perhaps its just because its the first track. Either way, its fast become a favourite of our 80s synth pop to be held up alongside Depeche Mode, The Human League and New Order.
(The video version is slightly different from what appears on the compilation listed above)
#4 Dave Brubeck - Blue Rondo A La Turk
Last August we made our first trek to Chicago from our homebase in Winnipeg, Canada. With that we made a stop at the legendary Jazz Record Mart. Now, we're not going to claim to know much about jazz or jazz stores other than the usual indie rock entry points such as Miles, Coltrane, Mingus, etc. However, what we have, we love so this stop was essential among attending Lollapalooza, and seeing the Cubs, Sox, art galleries, etc.
After searching the racks for close to an hour we then walked over to the "Killers" section for the essentials. There we purchased more Coltrane, Herbie Hancock, and The Dave Brubeck Quartet's classic Time Out. This album contains the jazz standard "Take Five" which is undeniable with its ultra cool 50s groove. However, by the time we get there our hearts have already been captured by "Blue Rondo A La Turk". A frenzied piano to bring in the low riding bass then the accompanying sax to match the piano lines. Ooooohhhh, this is magic. The cymbal ride, the piano which sounds like the theme to W5, and then at the 1:52 mark the tension finally lets up to bring in a relaxed swing. This is truly a wonderful piece of music.
#5 Red House Painters - Katy Song
Last summer we flipped through one of our Uncut magazines and read up on the ins and outs of the various recordings by Mark Kozelek - his solo work as well as Sun Kil Moon and the classic 90s band Red House Painters. RHP are a band we read about all through that decade but never really heard their music even though I'm sure we danced around them many times. With a stop at Minneapolis' Cheapo Discs, we threw the self titled disc (aka Rollercoaster) from the band in our basket.
What we discovered from that moment, that others knew 17 years earlier, was the beauty of the track "Katy Song". Coming in at over eight minutes, the song feels like it lasts about three. The crushingly heartbreaking lyrics are what first grab hold - 'I know tomorrow you will be somewhere in london, living with someone, you've got some kind of family there to turn to, and that's more than I could ever give you'. Meandering guitar lines, the subtle smacking of a drum, and the sung harmonies that close the song with several minutes to go brings an end a memorable journey.
The Re-discovery:
National Velvet - Flesh Under Skin
Back in the late 80s, early 90s MuchMusic in Canada would run hours upon hours of videos which seems foreign now... I assume, I haven't watched the station in years. The best were always the Spotlight shows featuring a full half hour of videos from one band. It's here we discovered and fell for The Ramones, Jesus and Mary Chain, Jane's Addiction, R.E.M, etc. Another band that would feature quite often was Toronto’s National Velvet.
We purchased their Courage tape in 1990 and listened to it quite often while delivering newspapers on our skateboard. There was one song though that always caught our attention that was on their first self titled debut, it was “Flesh Under Skin”. The track sounds of its time combining goth, dance, and hard rock all given a pop sheen. The video featuring singer Maria Del Mar, who could not be more sexy yet somehow approachable at the same time, was quite memorable to young eyes. “I feel flesh under skin, I feel the conflict of sin, I feel lava turn to ice, I feel… no one’s love tonight”. If I was a 20 year old living in Toronto in 1988 I’m sure this would have been my soundtrack. National Velvet is one of those bands where looking back its still a wonder they did not hit bigger if even for a moment. Here’s our small way of giving them at least a bit of their due.
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