Top8 - 09/30/24

Time for another Top8. I know what you're saying to yourself – "if only I had WTSQ, but in a text format with a shitty, opinionated attitude and constant references to shoegaze". Well, here you go. I aim to please (ish). Please send all selfies taken at the Sierra Ferrell show to wtsq.org/contact.

The Cure - Alone

I honestly thought this day would never come. New music from The Cure. More than that, a single released ahead of a new album that comes out in only about a month. We lived to hear this.

The track is called "Alone" and it's… actually really, really good. It's kind of wild to me that this is a band that last released music more than a decade and a half ago and they have returned with a track that recaptures their classic melancholic sound, as if no time had passed at all. It's not lost on me that, to be their first release in ages, "Alone" takes a long time to get where it's going. Robert Smith's iconic vocal doesn't join the instruments until more than 3 minutes of the song's 6:48 run time. This is not a man who appears to be in a hurry. And thank god for that. The effect is an emotional, cathartic track that wouldn't have half the power without the long intro. The band themselves tread familiar territory here with heavy but somewhat distant drums and layers of swirling synths and guitar lines. This is a strength of The Cure – the band is never in the way of the song. You can listen to this track a few times before you even think about what instrument is doing what. I am strongly reminded of the band's classic "Pornography" here, meaning that they seem to be leaning into the wistful, atmospheric songs that made a lot of us fall in love with them to begin with. Time will tell if there are any upbeat bangers like "Friday I'm In Love". I will be happy regardless. "Songs of a Lost World" comes out November 1st, and I cannot wait.

Wussy - The Great Divide

If you look up Wussy you'll probably see that they are one of Robert Christgau's favorite bands. Christgau is basically THE DUDE when it comes to music writing so this is probably worth paying attention to. However, once you tune into Wussy, you won't care who else likes them. The Cincinnati band provide a perfect synthesis of Neal Young's 90s grunge with Galaxy 500 haze, and they do it while still sounding very much like a band you could randomly happen upon playing in a bar. I mean this in the best possible way. Wussy feels like a band that does things on their own terms. "The Great Divide" is classic Wussy. We find the band here creating a warm intimacy on a track that hums along with quiet urgency. The lyric discusses a distance that's grown between two people and it quickly sweeps you into its feelings. Wussy isn't really a conventional singles band. This isn't meant to be catchy or anthemic. Music is a place we go to look into our own hearts. Wussy is a band that creates a soundtrack for this journey. 

The Murder Capital - Can't Pretend to Know

The Murder Capital is often overshadowed by their slightly more successful Dublin neighbors Fontaines D.C (it's a testament to the truly stunning string of great albums that Fontaines have had that this could be the case). Generally speaking, The Murder Capital's post-punk is a darker, more foreboding affair than many of their contemporaries. They wear the gloom well. On "Can't Pretend to Know", the band match a clashing guitar with a chugging bass and insistent drums to great effect. I am not sure if this is being released ahead of an album or not. Either way, use this as a reminder to listen to The Murder Capital more often.

Lambrini Girls - Company Culture

Lambrini Girls' bio makes a point of letting you know they are not Bikini Kill, or any other band for that matter, besides Lambrini Girls. It's an important distinction. Music bloggery can be a reductive practice. Hell, I compare this band to that band all the time. The fact remains that serious artists have their own voice. Just because they are both angry, leftist, feminist bands does not make the comparison natural or reasonable.

"Company Culture" is an absolute molotov cocktail thrown at office misogyny. The band furiously tears through the song's three minutes with vitriol and righteous indignation. Poor behavior on the part of men is too often excused by referring to a "company culture" that involves jokes at the expense of women or turning a blind eye to sexual harassment. Lambrini Girls are one of my favorite bands going right now. Get angry. 

Soft Kill - Roseland

The aesthetic of darkwave is a well-worn territory at this point. What matters is how you perform and interpret the genre. Soft Kill bring a punkish edge along with a Sovietcore vibe to their music, and "Roseland" is a good example of this. There isn't much more to say. I like this track a lot.

James BonTempo and Truth Tables - Here Ever After

These guys have spent some time with a Son Volt record. There are flashes of other modern Americana acts on "Here Ever After", but the major flavor is big guitar with a little twang hanging onto the edges. The vocals are a little different and make me think of 60's rock like The Kinks. These guys are probably going to end up on Mountain Stage, so check it out now and you can say you heard it here first. 

Merce Lemon - Foolish and Fast

Merce Lemon's vocals and lyrics take center stage on "Foolish and Fast". There is a yearning here that I immediately resonated with. It's supported with a pleasantly noisy guitar. I like this song and I really need to wrap this up so I can go eat something. 

Tropical Fuck Storm - Stayin' Alive (Bee Gees Cover)

Tropical Fuck Storm are a band that you can can tell will be insane to see live. Some bands are like that. You just know that if you go to the show, you're coming home with your shirt half-torn off, a minor flesh wound, and a million stories. Personally, that's my kind of show. Given this, it should come as no surprise that TFS would be releasing a live album called "Tropical Fuck Storm's Inflatable Graveyard". (This is, in point of fact, their second live album.)

The band's final song seems to be their truly wild cover of the Bee Gees "Stayin' Alive". They burn this song to the ground. It's chaotic and noisy. It's dancy and ebullient. It's TFS in a nutshell. If you don't like this cover, we can't be friends.

Listen here

And the extra innings, just a few extra tracks I want to add. This time I am throwing in three songs by the great Kris Kristofferson. I found out that this absolute legend died while I was writing this. There will never be another Kris Kristofferson. Let me know what your favorite track of his was.

Kris Kristofferson - Help Me Make it Through The Night

Kris Kristofferson - Loving her was Easier (Than Anything I'll Ever Do Again)

Kris Kristofferson - Jesus was a Capricorn

Here's a playlist with everything.

Thanks for reading and listening. 

-emily