Craig Finn – God In Chicago
As soon as Craig Finn sets his scene, describing a mother finding her dead son and his sister finding a stash of drugs, “God in Chicago” marks a different strategy for the former the Hold Steady frontman. He doesn’t bark the lyrics, nor does he sing them. Instead, he simply speaks the words over a forlorn piano theme, with the tone and intimacy of a story related graveside.
After the sister calls up her brother’s friend to take them off her hands, they set off together on a road trip from Eau Claire to Chicago. The joy of this song lies in Finn’s carefully chosen details; the sister and the friend blast 1999 and Led Zeppelin III in the car. (Originally, it was the Replacements, but Finn recorded the song the day Prince died and changed it as a memorial.) They buy toothbrushes at Walgreens. They bum cigarettes from strangers. They find God among the skyscrapers.
“God in Chicago” is the most affecting song Finn has recorded in a decade, largely due to the freshness of the spoken-word delivery and his excitement in this new trick. He knows exactly when to step out of the way, ending the song without ending it: “We came up on St. Paul and she was sobbing,” he sings. You expect him to add one more line for some sense of closure but, in this song as in life, grief has no conclusion.
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Fleet Foxes – Third of May / Ōdaigahara
The 3rd of May is an important date in Fleet Foxes history. Six years ago, on that day, they released their last album, Helplessness Blues. In the time since, the band’s members have released solo music, started side projects, or departed the group altogether. Less obviously, May 3rd is also the birthday of founding member, guitarist Skyler Skjelset, who is the focus of Fleet Foxes’ new song “Third of May / Ōdaigahara.”
The band’s first single from their forthcoming record Crack-Up is a sober reflection on how Robin Pecknold and Skjelset’s relationship has endured success. With this issue serving as a guiding subject, Fleet Foxes present their longest and most experimental number yet. Though it’s full of all the qualities Fleet Foxes fans savor (sprawling crescendos, bellowed introspection, bucolic imagery), it feels evolved. What begins as a traditional Fleet Foxes song slowly transforms into a mournful, mystical instrumental. They retain the grand orchestration of their past work, but rather than sticking to one tone, the track dissolves into several acts across it’s nearly nine minutes: contemplation, melancholy, chaos, and resolution. Meanwhile, Pecknold’s lyrics take a similarly elaborate turn: “Aren’t we made to be crowded together, like leaves,” he sings. To him, their long friendship is as innate as seasons changing, but its absence is dire (“If I lead you through the fury, will you call to me?”). Fleet Foxes songs have certainly been devastating before, but never has their sensation of warmth been so wrapped in uncertainty.
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Gorillaz – Saturnz Barz (Spirit House)
Hot on the heels of two brand track premieres coming courtesy of Mistajam’s Radio 1 evening show, Gorillaz have now shared the 360 animated visual for Saturnz Barz (Spirit House).
Directed by Jamie Hewlett, the trippy video is produced by Cara Speller with Passion Pictures Animation in collaboration with Google Spotlight Stories. You can watch the six-minute film via the player above.
Additionally, three new videos have appeared on YouTube: We Got The Power featuring Savages’ Jehnny Beth and Noel Gallagher, Ascension with Vince Staples, and Andromeda featuring D.R.A.M.
Earlier today (23 March), the animated band – which is masterminded by Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett – released details of the fifth album, Humanz. Heavy on features, it corroborated a leaked version of the tracklist which appeared online yesterday
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The Jesus and Mary Chain
The Jesus and Mary Chain haven’t penned a song in 18 years, largely due to their inability to get along, but a successful live tour helped the brothers to heal their wounds and now they have got back in the music-making saddle to record new material.
The Scottish indie legends premiered ‘Amputation’ on Steve Lamacq’s BBC 6 Music show this afternoon – and it’s got the Mary Chain stamped all over it. As is to be expected, it’s cloaked in heavy reverb and contains more than one reference to “rock ‘n’ roll”
The Jesus and Mary Chain first split in 1999 due to issues between Jim Reid and his brother, guitarist William Reid, but reunited in 2007 and released a live box set last year.
‘Amputation’ is taken from the band’s forthcoming albumDamage and Joy – their first new LP since 1998’s Munki – which is out March 24.
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Jonti – Scrood (feat. Steve Lacy)
After touring as the Avalanches’ guitarist, and galvanized by his new deal with Future Classics and Stones Throw, the Sydney-based producer Jonti is back with his first solo material in five years, “Scrood.” It’s an upbeat, ethereal composition with Steve Lacy from the Internet. The song’s breakbeats, sustained synth lines, and cool bass melody are reminiscent of the intersection of jazz and hip-hop that the Internet inhabited on their 2015 album, Ego Death. Lacy’s presence is felt most keenly through the song’s lucent guitar riff, but “Scrood”’s increased tempo and spaced-out vocals take it in a different direction than what he’s done before. Jonti layers his harmonies with a healthy dose of reverb, blending his voice into the production until it is almost indistinguishable from the other instruments. Eventually, they put aside all those sounds to let a superb string section shine through at the end. Jonti has described the song as a testament to “[soldiering] forward with [love], even when you find yourself in hopeless scenarios.” On “Scrood,” he reaches into the despair and manages to emerge with something beautiful.
Read the rest of this article at Pitchfork
