“Skal Vi Prøve Nå?”

by Lindstrøm & Prins Thomas

(Eskimo)

Mellow, endlessly playful, unassumingly lovely summer beach music
that, once the melodic refrain asserts itself, turns into
electro-gamelan: thumb piano and mallet instruments galore, shuffling
hi-hats and chunky percussion, thunking bass and woozy organ. It goes
on for 10 minutes; but as soon as it’s done, chances are you’ll want to
play it again.

“Let Me Know”

by Monica ft. Missy Elliott

(J)

Any song that begins “You said that you’d take me to the Jay-Z
concert last night” is a song I want to like a lot more than I do this
totally undistinguished vehicle. Missy’s production and guest spot are
as lifeless as her own material has been lately. From the forthcoming
Still Standing, a title that, after hearing this, is even more
of a red flag than usual.

“You Never Know”

by Wilco

(Nonesuch)

Life is too short for solo George Harrison as it is, much less this
homage to it.

“Craigslist”

by “Weird Al” Yankovic

(RCA/Jive)

Life is also too short to miss this perfect Doors rip/parody/homage,
featuring Ray Manzarek himself on organ. I love every verse, from the
“Missed Connections” one (“You were a blond half-Asian with a bad case
of gas/I was wearing red Speedos and a hockey mask”) to the impossible
finale, involving a trash can full of Styrofoam peanuts (“But the trash
can ain’t part of the deal/Only giving you the peanuts—get
real”). But the bridge clinches it: “An open letter to the snotty
barista at the Coffee Bean on San Vicente Boulevard… Didn’t you see
me hold up my index finger? That means, ‘I’ll order my soy decaf
hazelnut latte in just a couple minutes.'” Not to mention the
video: Al’s little Jim Morrison jump/leg-kick on the first chorus is as
good as the record itself. Between this and 2006’s insane R. Kelly
homage “Trapped in the Drive-Thru,” dude has gotten better than ever,
right under everyone’s noses.

“I Don’t Know”

by TBD

(TBD Sounds)

Lee Douglas is one of the rare house dudes who consistently
delivers, and TBD is his new duo with Justin Vandervolgen, ex-bassist
for !!! and Out Hud. “I Don’t Know,” the B-side of their new 12-inch,
is a hard, squealing acid track that suddenly boils over with a great,
cheesy horn riff and an organ solo that sounds like it got lost on the
way to 1968 and decided it liked the scenery here better. Good
move.
recommended

13 replies on “It’s a Hit”

  1. Who does this Matos guy think he is? His so-called Wilco “review” was nothing more than a nasty cheap shot at George Harrison. What a pity that shallow-minded, uninformed jerks who have accomplished little in life can virtually libel a beloved music legend. Hopefully, there won’t be many readers who take heed to what this Matos dolt said. Harrison’s solo career had many redeeming qualities and his music rightfully lives on. Cheers to Wilco, too, for having excellent taste. I think it IS a hit, damn it!

  2. Yeah, I’m sure “Michaelangelo” patted himself on the back when he thought of that oh-so-clever diss of Wilco—which is kind of an old song at this point anyway—but is it really good writing to just assume that people would think that solo George Harrison sucks? But, hey, at least “Michaelangelo” loves the Weird Al song. What a nonconformist!

  5. Minus 179 cool points for knocking solo George Harrison. Anyone worth their stripes as a music reviewer would never denigrate the first three sides of All Things Must Pass, which is in my humble opinion the best solo Beatles album ever. I will say, though, as a huge Wilco fan, I’ll pass on “You Never Know”.

  6. @3 & @4: Nick Thune is not funny and wishes he was half as talented as Stephen Lynch. Also, covering the same subject matter is hardly ripping someone off.

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