Friday Playlist

“Stay In You Lane” – Courtney Barnett
Our Aussie queen is back!

“Talk To You” – Sam Fender featuring Elton John
Last week Fender won the Mercury Prize for best album from the UK or Ireland. The next day he announced a deluxe version of People Watching that will come out in December. Good timing! This song features Elton John on piano. On the credits I can find, the rest of the backing band is listed as Sam’s usual crew, but it sure sounds a lot like The War on Drugs.

“Back Of My Hand” – The Belair Lip Bombs
Latest track from the Jack White-approved Aussies.

“Holy Roller” – The Format
I can’t figure out if I actually remember The Format from their early ‘00s run, or just recognize Nate Reuss’ voice from his next band, fun. Weird because I remember the name The Format but can’t place any of their songs, so probably the second? The band’s first album in nearly 20 years was produced by Brendan O’Brien, famous for his long work with Pearl Jam, and features O’Brien on bass and brief Pearl Jam drummer Matt Chamberlain.

“Need” – SPRINTS
Their standard ass-kicker.

“I Want You” – Debbii Dawson
From need you to want you… I’ve really enjoyed how each of Dawson’s songs have quite different sounds. The rare straight pop artist I can get onboard with these days.

“Illegal Hit” – Yttling Hit
This band is a project of Björn Yttling, core member of Peter Björn and John. YH’s first album came out in 2007, this from their new, second album. That’s quite a gap. And quite the stylistic swing from his other band.

“Atlantic City (Electric Version)” – Bruce Springsteen
The fat, expanded edition of Nebraska is out today. “Atlantic City” is the only song from the original I ever liked very much, so it was the first song I went to check out this morning. A definite change in tone with the full band, taking a step towards the Born in the USA sound without getting all the way there. I still prefer the haunting spareness of the original, but nothing wrong with this one.

“Blue Sky Mine” – Midnight Oil
Perhaps the Springsteens of the Australian rock scene? Midnight Oil always sang about something, often about how the government and corporations were stomping on the rights of individuals, mostly the Aboriginal Australians and working class immigrants. Amazing that they had as much pop success as they did given the material they were covering.

This, by one measure, was their biggest American hit. It topped both the Modern Rock and Mainstream Rock charts in 1990. Their next single, “Forgotten Years,” also topped the Modern Rock chart. However, neither peaked as high as on the pop chart as the song that made their name in the States, 1987’s #17 “Beds Are Burning.” I would put “Beds” as their fourth or fifth or even sixth best song, but that’s the story of pop music, right? The best songs aren’t always the biggest hits. Nothing’s as precious as a hole in the ground…

“Tainted Love” – Soft Cell

BREAKING NEWS…moments after posting this I read the news that Dave Ball, the more musical half of the legendary band Soft Cell, passed away on Wednesday. “Tainted Love” deserves its own post at some point, so I won’t dive too deep into it now. Certainly one of the most timeless and recognizable tracks of its era, or any era really. This is the current official video for the song, but it bugs me a bit that it’s clearly been remastered and sounds a little too shiny for what started as an obscure, underground track from a niche group in 1981.