Heavy Rotation: Raveonettes, Brakes, Kaleidoscope

After a few Heavy Rotations, it's kind of clear what our roles are: Liz brings California sunshine and spark, Laura mines beautiful nostalgia and I am the bringer of darkness. Right on! The following tracks are at the jukebox, dudes, top right on our homepage. Enjoy!

The Raveonettes, "Aly, Walk With Me"
I always pegged my feelings for the Raveonettes between degrees of "okay" and "just fine," but something about their new record Lust Lust Lust really amazes me. Their game is completely tight now, and the result is sex and death in a way that doesn't exist in the often limpid likes of most indie rock. It's like they take the sunniest pop tropes and damage and demolish them with distortion. Like Jesus and Mary Chain channeling a 60s girl group, yes, but underneath those ghostly-sweet harmonies, this song is totally hot and desperate and shyly sincere. Perfect to put on eyeliner to, perfect to make out to. But I'm sure you figured that out. (Kat)

Brakes, "You're So Pretty"
For a while now I've been working on this piece of fiction that I hope to send out into the world at some point in the not-terribly-distant future. (Care to publish me? Anyone?) In the movie I'm watching in my head, this song is playing while some adorable science-nerd boy rides his bike around a half-ugly beach town very early in the morning. Brakes really know how to set the mood; totally track down their lovely covers of "Sometimes Always" by Jesus and Mary Chain and "Jackson" by Johnny Cash if you can. (Liz)

Kaleidoscope, "Flight From Ashiya"
If you looked up '60s psych in an audio-dictionary, this song would surely be playing. While their slightly more well-known "A Dream For Julie" is more along the lines of hippie-dippie sunshine & rainbows style psych (even featuring the lyric Strawberry monkeys are smiling for Julie), "Flight from Ashiya" is more Tibetan prayer flags, Beatles-in-Rishikesh, and the rising dawn. I mean, really, it actually sounds like the sound of the sun rising. (Laura)

Lyme & Cybelle, "Follow Me"
Is there anything better in this world than a flawlessly-executed boy vs. girl vocal switch-off? Lyme & Cybelle are a short-lived and super-early-early project of Warren Zevon's (he's Lyme), who I know absolutely nothing about, except for that I really love his work on Lyme & Cybelle's "Follow Me". This song is plaintive and delightful, a bit of a chameleon really- it always sounds perfect, no matter what mood you're in or what season it happens to be. (Laura)

Lucas, "Lucas With The Lid Off"
When I was 15 or something I babysat every afternoon for the little brother of one of The Most Popular Boys In School. The kid and I used to play basketball and dance around a lot to MTV, and one of the songs we dug most was "Lucas With The Lid Off." (He also really fancied "Cantaloop" by US3, but whenever "Dirty Deeds" by AC/DC came on the radio he'd literally roll on the floor laughing, for whatever reason.) I'd forgotten all about Lucas till very recently, but this track still sounds all new and fresh, and the video (directed by Michel Gondry) is way worth revisiting. (Liz)

Scientist, "Dance of the Vampires"
People argue whether or not Scientist Rids the World of the Curse of the Evil Vampires is the best dub album of all time. I'm going to say yes because the record is pure insanity in a genre already noted for its head trips and loopiness. Dub isn't right unless it's sinister and haunting and soul-devouring but (and this is important) kind of goofy. This song lilts and drifts seductively into the rest of the record, which turns kind of nightmarish and crazy-cakes and gets all Donnie Darko-like. No wonder they used it in the Grand Theft Auto III game. (Which, by the way, Scientist received no royalties for. Thanks a lot, Rockstar Games!) (Kat)

Posted by Kat, Liz and Laura in Heavy Rotation
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