My tastes may have changed throughout my life, but no matter how much time goes by, a dirty guitar and a growling voice is still music to my ears. Maybe it’s just a way of holding on to “the days of my youth”, or maybe those days just happened to have produced some of the best music in recorded history. Who can say? In any case, I’d like to kick off International Garage Rock Appreciation Week by sharing a few faves, old and new.
First, the (relatively) new: this is The Ettes, with “No More Surprises”, from their 2006 debut Shake the Dust.
“You got me so excited / But I’m still undecided / So I’ll just keep my tongue in cheek.” Who doesn’t love that lyric? And while we’re on The Ettes, I couldn’t find my favorite of theirs on YouTube (Aarrgh!! [sorry, International Talk Like A Pirate Day isn’t until September]), so here’s one that sounds a lot like it, but is not quite as good. “Chilled Hidebound Hearts”, from their 2008 follow up Look at Life Again Soon.
“I wanna get me something for free / I wanna get sleep but you won’t let me”
Turning now to Denver’s own Dressy Bessy, the first song I heard of theirs is still my favorite, “The Things That You Say That You Do”:
OK, enough with the new. And enough with the Americans! This is “Making Plans for Bison”, from Shonen Knife’s 1986 album Pretty Little Baka Guy, and it’s as amazing as the title would lead you to believe:
“Bear up Bison, never say die!”
And finally, the queen. From her 1995 masterpiece To Bring You My Love, please enjoy PJ Harvey’s “Long Snake Moan”:
Have any favorites? Post them in the comments!
