Matthew Montgomery, 2009

Back in September 2009, I had the opportunity to spend a lot of time in my car while traveling across the western half of the United States. During this time I discovered that when speeding down a side road in Iowa, not all songs were created equal. Here is a list, in no particular order, of the 10 best songs for driving to.

1. The All New Adventures of Us – “Firetruck”

This song is wonderful to say the least. It meets all the requirements to be a good driving song: sonic guitars, blasting horns, enough changes to keep you interested and of course, a beat you can tap your gas pedal too. The song speaks of never missing another adventure, and that really embodies what this article is about: adventures.

2. The Beatles – “Two of Us”
“Two of Us” is one of those jangly guitar songs you just can’t do without on a good drive. It’s stood the test of time and after nearly 40 years it is just as valid as it was on its release. The song itself induces images of driving on a winding backroad with the windows down and the sun shining.

3. Cake – “Shadow Stabbing”
With equal parts heavy bass, clean drums, and smooth vocals, there was no way I could leave this off the list. It’s the kind of song that makes you turn the stereo up and tap your steering wheel. Listening to this song generally leads to everyone in the car dancing, singing and having an all around good time.

4. Grizzly Bear – “Two Weeks”
The song opens with staccato piano with bass and drums accenting it. This song made the list more for the musical content than anything else. Something about the flow of this song lends itself to the idea of driving away and letting go. It’s a wonderful piece and a great way to start a long drive. Just turn this on and pull out of your driveway; you’re good to go.

5. Hot Hot Heat – “Middle of Nowhere”
“Middle of Nowhere” is another foot tapping tune with more “windows down” potential than your run-of-the-mill song. It speaks of heading out to the middle of nowhere, not because you have to, but because you can. The lyrics are intensely catchy and bring a level of intensity to the list we haven’t had so far.

6. Ben Kweller – “I Gotta Move”
“I gotta move while the streets ahead are sunny” is the first thing you hear out of this song. It continues to send a none to subtle message that he has outgrown his small town home and needs to get out and get his life on track. Complete with crunchy guitars, tambourine and a classic rock and roll guitar solo, you can’t go wrong with this song when speeding down the interstate.

7. The Lodger – “The Good Old Days”
Twinkling guitars and dance-beat drums slam into the list with no remorse. The bass has a endearingly thin yet full tone and reminds of 1960s pop songs. This is one of those songs that makes you want to dance in your seat. The message of the song is essentially that things have been pretty terrible for a while, but they’re finally starting to look up and perhaps these could be the good old days everyone is always talking about. Why would you not want to hear that as your driving on the open road?

8. Nada Surf – “I Like What You Say”
This song comes from Nada Surf’s 2008 album, Lucky. This is the album that took Nada Surf from being a mediocre alternative rock group to a wonderful pop outfit. Sweet vocal harmonies dominate this track along with clean electric guitars strummed throughout. The drums make this another hit when it comes to the steering wheel tapping, windows down crowd.

9. This Will Destroy You – “Quiet”
“Quiet” is the first song on this list with no vocals. The song begins with echoing guitars, strong chords on the piano and a persistent beat on the drums. After a while, it breaks down into a giant chorus of distorted guitars and cymbal heavy drumming. A solid post-rock track is a must on every long drive and it doesn’t get much better than this.

10. Weezer – “Holiday”
There was no way I could complete this list without this song. It was hard enough to narrow it down to only one Weezer track. A classic power pop track with sonic guitars and aggressive drums, there is no song on this list that matches the raw emotion and power of this song. Great songwriting and intensity guarantees it a spot on any playlist for the open road. However, when listening to this song on the interstate, be careful. It may lead to excessive speed, and from personal experience, the authorities don’t take “I was listening to Weezer” as a valid excuse.

Emiliana Torrini – “Me and Armini” | download
Download audio file (meandarmini_edit.mp3)

Torrini might be best known for performing “Gollum’s Song” from 2002′s The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, but Me and Armini could change her status from being a slight footnote in mainstream pop culture, whic she attained both for “Gollum’s Song” and for co-writing two tracks from Kylie Minogue’s Body Language. A footnote, though, doesn’t seem to be Torrini’s favorite option, so with Me and Armini she’s released a powerful, engaging picture of her musical talent of the Iceland native.

Vocally, Torrini is superb, but Me and Armini is a record populated not only by beautiful vocals, but by well-thought, inspired instrumentation that’s almost as album-defining as Torrini herself. From the reverb-laden “Gun” to the synthesizer-backed “Dead Duck,“ the musical background Me and Armini is set to is nearly as inspiring as its vocals — a tough feat, indeed.

Thankfully, Torrini doesn’t succumb to the trappings of three-minute pop songs, and each track lasts as long as it seems it should; whether a given track lasts from two minutes to just over six, it’s clear that Torrini has a modern sensibility that others abandon in favor of flash-in-the-pan radio hits. Me and Armini lacks any definitive radio single, though “Heard It All Before” comes fairly close with its energetic reggae-inflected rhythm, and “Jungle Drum” comes closer with poppy rhythms and a catchy chorus.

Of course, that’s not to say that any of this album is something that will be rejected outright by mainstream pop listeners, despite the album being released on the historically not-mainstream-oriented Rough Trade Records (though not exclusively so.) Torrini, her sultry vocals fronting Me and Armini is on the verge of something that may just be accepted on a wider scale: After all, while there’s no shame in singing about a disfigured denizen of Middle Earth, there’s no shame in being known for something else, instead.

The site includes a great MP4 download for those looking to watch this extravaganza on their favorite media device.

Plus, there’s a great performance of Apollo 18 favorite, “Fingertips,” that’s not to be missed. The video’s embedded after the jump.

Grand Archives — “Torn Blue Foam Couch” | download
Download audio file (torn_blue_foam_couch.mp3)

[amtap amazon:asin=B0011HF5YW]

The Helio Sequence — “Keep Your Eyes Ahead” | download
Download audio file (keep_your_eyes_ahead.mp3)

The Helio Sequence — “Blood Bleeds” | download
Download audio file (blood_bleeds.mp3)

The Helio Sequence — “Everyone Knows Everyone” | download
Download audio file (everyone_knows_everyone.mp3)

Tour dates:

The Helio Sequence
Feb 09 Music Millennium, Portland, OR (Free in-store performance–7pm)
Feb 25 Howie & Sons Pizza, Visalia, CA
Feb 26 Spaceland, Los Angeles, CA
Feb 27 Casbah, San Diego, CA
Feb 28 Detroit Bar, Costa Mesa, CA
Feb 29 Independent, San Francisco, CA
Mar 01 Satellite Lounge, Reno, NV
Mar 07 Crystal Ballroom, Portland, OR
Mar 08 Neumos, Seattle, WA
Mar 09 Neurolux/ Crazy, Boise, ID
Mar 10 Kilby Court, Salt Lake City, UT
Mar 11 Larimer Lounge, Denver, CO
Mar 14 Bourbon Rocks, Austin, TX (Sub Pop SXSW showcase)
Mar 15 SXSW, Austin, TX (Sub Pop Showcase)
Mar 17 Plush, Tucson, AZ
Mar 18 Rhythm Room, Phoenix, AZ
Mar 20 Velour, Provo, UT
Apr 05 Tavastia Club, Helsinki, Finland
Apr 07 Södra Teatern, Stockholm, Sweden
Apr 08 Rockefeller, Oslo, Norway
Apr 09 Vega, Copenhagen, Denmark
Apr 11 Motel Mozaique, Rotterdam, Netherlands
Apr 12 Arts Centre, Norwich, United Kingdom
Apr 14 Thekla Social, Bristol, United Kingdom
Apr 15 Wedgewood Rooms, Portsmouth, United Kingdom
Apr 16 St. George’s (Brighton), Brighton, United Kingdom
Apr 17 City Varieties, Leeds, United Kingdom
Apr 18 Sage Gateshead, Gateshead, United Kingdom
Apr 19 Union Chapel, London, United Kingdom

Reed KD — “Empty Bottles” | download
Download audio file (empty-bottles.mp3)

Reed KD — “Even If I” | download
Download audio file (even-if-i.mp3)

Purchase The Ashes Bloom on ReedKD.com

Reed KD on MySpace

Papercuts — “John Brown”
Download audio file (papercuts-john_brown.mp3)

Jenny Hallam – “Avoiding the Spotlight” | download
Download audio file (03-avoiding-the-spotlight.mp3)

The Gorgeous Hussies – “What Fool Would Feel”
Download audio file (track4_what-fool-would-feel.mp3)

Most anybody can listen to music and appreciate it, but it takes a certain kind of person to desire to create it. What influences you to create music?

Ryan Smith: There are a couple of things that drive me to create music: First is desire to play in general. The energy and natural high you get from performing is addicting. In that sense it is more intense and especailly gratifying when you create the music yourself. Anyone can play covers, but playing music you have created, and that people enjoy, is the main reason for creation. The second reason is just to drive ourselves to be better musicians. I like the fact that in this band I can play a few different styles. We are a rock group and since so much has been done with that genre it is hard to come up with new and creative music. It is a great challenge we are taking head on!

John Chatelain: I think part of making music is trying to figure out what pushes us to do so. It’s sort of circular (we make music to figure out why we make music), but we live with these songs long before they actually become songs, and much of the writing and refining process is just trying to ‘get it right.’ Get what right? Who knows! But when it happens we can feel it. This is how we write, and also how we are producing the album.

I think this kind of connection we experience in writing and recording is also what we are hoping to have with people who hear the music. We chose themes that were personal to us, but that most everyone could relate to as well. And we want them to relate, and if the songs get people bobbing their heads and moving their feet, that’s all the better.

What’s the status on your upcoming release?

Ryan Smith: We are still laying down tracks in the studio. Currently guitars are being tracked and vocals are next. We are almost on the downhill run.

Jordan Olsen: We’re still laying down foundational tracks. But we’re almost on the downward slide! People can see up-to-date photos from the studio on our blog at www.thegorgeoushussies.com.

What are your goals with the upcoming album?

Jordan Olsen: This is our most accessible album we’ve written in or out of this band. We feel the songs are very relatable and will strike a nerve with most people in our audience. We hope this album will be a foundational building block to furthering our career with touring and building a strong fan base. Essentially, we feel the music is our best work and will hopefully be well received and help build a stronger fan base.

Ryan Smith: Tour tour tour! We want to be able to put out an album that can be commercially acceptable but also hit that edge between normal and experimental.

What is your recording process like?

Ryan Smith: These sessions have been fun and hard. I am engineering the album, but also being the drummer we decided to get a different engineer to worry about tracking those. We got our friend Aaron Hubbard, who is an active freelance engineer in Salt Lake, to take over on that one. But because the budget was tight we had just two days to track the drums. We did a lot of prep work for the album itself and it paid off when we recorded the drums. I was able to play well and with the energy that I wanted. Also, because of the fact that we all have day jobs it’s hard to set aside time to record. We are lucky if we can get three nights in a week, and possibly a Saturday. It is tough but we are slowly chipping away at it. The overall feel has been fun and energetic. When we hear how the songs slowly come together and evolve when we record a new instrument, it makes it all worth it.

John Chatelain: We laid down scratch tracks altogether, to ensure the ‘playing-with-other-people feel’, and then are working slowly through doing the final takes of everyone individually. We finished the drums and bass and are near finishing guitars, after which will come vocals then keys, alt percussion and any other harmonic flourishes the individual arrangements may require. What I really appreciate about the way we are recording this album is that on any one evening we may only be recording one person’s tracks, but we are all present to listen and discuss the individual performances. So in this way we all record the guitar, or bass, etc. It is a great opportunity to familiarize ourselves with the subtleties of everyone’s performances, and when one of us hears a motif or a ‘happy little accident’ that needs to stay we can point it out and work at implementing it. There really is a lot of writing that gets done in our recording process. We go into the studio thinking that the songs are more or less written, but so much becomes apparent when you aren’t concentrating on your own performance that the songs develop almost independent of any of us individually. Which is great.

Jordan Olsen: Meticulous and well planned. There is a certain amount of street cred given to bands that are willing to just go in and all lay down tracks at once and call it a day. However, we’re not like that. I don’t know if we’re too left-brained or just really anal, but we spend many hours in the studio dubbing parts and fiddling with instrument sounds and tones to try and get “our” sound as much as possible. It’s a lot of work but very satisfying.

What’s the reasoning behind offering live videocasts?

Ryan Smith: In order to build a fanbase, you have to offer your self up. Having a videocast on our website is a good way to involve the fans in the recording of the new album. When you are on stage there is a certain connection between you and the audience, and being able to bring that to rehearsals as well keeps the energy high. Plus we’re geeks.

John Chatelain: The videocasts play a certain role in this connection. I always think it is interesting to see how different groups develop their music, and this is a way for people to tune in and see how we do it. It also adds a personal level to the whole band thing, ’cause people can see that we are real guys, who quote the simpson’s incessantly, who take a break during every rehearsal to go get a soda, and all those things that are typically hidden by the opaque mystique of the rock band persona. Jordan Olsen: It’s hard to keep in contact with our fans at all times. And especially right now while we’re not performing because we’re in the studio non-stop working on the album this is a good way for fans to get a “fly-on-the-wall” experience on how our music is developing.

Do you prefer to perform to an audience or to spend time in the studio?

Ryan Smith: A good mixture of both is required I believe. Being a musician there is a passion for both. I don’t think you can have one without the other. Touring and playing live is the best way to showcase your talents and musicianship. Usually by the time you are done in the studio you can’t wait to get out and play some shows. It goes the other way as well, when you have been out on the road for so long and you have new ideas that need to be tracked, you start to get the bug to really go in to the studo and produce some good material.

John Chatelain: Studio time is great because we get to ‘geek out’ (and how!) over tones and arrangements and gear, but the energy and thrill of live shows is really the crux of the experience. That and eating at Denny’s afterward.

Jordan Olsen: Contrast is always a good thing. I love getting on stage and playing to an excited audience and hitting the road with my friends and playing a new joint each night. It’s so much fun. But a nice break to write and work on new material is equally enjoyable. If we didn’t give ourselves time to recoup and write new material I think it would negatively affect our live performance. The studio is where a band “creates” themselves. So I’d have to say I enjoy an equal amount of time given to both performing and studio time.

How supportive is the Salt Lake City area of your music? Do you find support coming from elsewhere as well?

Ryan Smith: Salt Lake is great. We’ve had some great experiences at a lot of the Salt Lake venues. Some bad ones, but mostly good. I think we have been a little more accepted outside of the Salt Lake valley because of our style of music. It is different and I’m not sure the home crowd digs the old stuff too much. Hopefully our new material will go over well in SLC and we can continue to build our fan base.

Jordan Olsen: To be honest we’ve seen MUCH more success outside of the Salt Lake City valley than we have within it. The SLC crowd can be broken down into just a few musical cliques and each has a definite sound and attitude of music they subscribe to. We don’t fit into any of those molds so we have a much more difficult time getting the attention of the average music listener in SLC. So in 2007 we played about 2/3 more shows outside of the SLC valley than within it. We’ve received fantastic responses from music scenes throughout Idaho and Southern Utah. Hopefully, however, some of the new songs on our upcoming album will be a little more accessible to SLC listeners. It’d be nice to grown a fan base closer to home.

The Gorgeous Hussies are
· Jordan Olsen: Vocals and guitar
· John Chatelain: Vocals and bass
· Ryan Smith: Drums
· Tyler Steadman: Keys

While certainly not another If You’re Feeling Sinister in terms of massive success and unobscured quality, The Life Pursuit has more than its fair share of quality tracks, ranging in styles from a “classic,” mellow Belle and Sebastian feel, notably in “Dress Up In You” and “Mornington Crescent” to the more upbeat sound established on 2003′s Dear Catastrophe Waitress — which encompasses a large portion of the album, but is evidenced strongly in “The Blues Are Still Blue” and “Funny Little Frog.”

The Life Pursuit manages to be not only an interesting album once or twice, but upon the repeated listenings Belle and Sebastian have seemingly standardized across the larger portion of their back catalog. Initially, there are — or at least seem to be — points of weakness across the album; “To Be Myself Completely” meets such criteria initially, however, upon a second or third listen, takes on a real life of its own. Such is the case with the whole of the weaker tracks on the release — and perhaps it’s not such a negative attribute, after all.

Belle and Sebastian’s The Life Pursuit is an endearing release with all the expected charm and grace from the “Glasgow Seven,” much as one would expect from a group with such resounding historical success. Even after seven studio albums and ten years, it doesn’t seem the band’s sapped for creativity yet.

Matthew Montgomery