So yesterday had a bizarre reminder that yes, I can be totally inept in certain social situations. On a related note, it's weird to see bands that I always thought of as "mine" become more popular.

Of course, the inverse is also true sometimes. Here's a recent example: I never thought I'd be enjoying Britney Spears' "Toxic." But I am, albeit as a cover.

Nickel Creek are a band that's not quite poppy enough for me to enjoy on a superficial level and not quite deep enough for me to enjoy on an emotional one, but they're a band that's skilled enough to almost entirely overcome those obstacles. It was pretty damn cool seeing them this past week, though the highlight of the show wasn't even one of their own songs. Their version of "Toxic" was incredible, and while this recording isn't as good as I'd like, it's the best I can find. Everyone should download it, because it's not every day you get the chance to hear an electronic, ProTooled-like-crazy pop song played (faithfully!) live on violin, mandolin, guitar and upright bass. And you really shouldn't miss the chance.

Nickel Creek - Toxic

This has been your Burt Bacharach Primer week, courtesy of the AIM mp3 exchange. You should have:

Dionne Warwick - Walk on By
Dusty Springfield - Wishin' and Hopin'
Lou Johnson - (There's) Always Something There To Remind Me
Tommy Hunt - I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself
Carpenters - Close to You
BJ Thomas - Raindrops Keep Fallin on my Head
Dionne Warwick - Do You Know the Way to San Jose?
Dionne Warwick - I Say a Little Prayer

I was surprised no-one guessed after "I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself," which the White Stripes covered in one of Elephant's standout tracks. It was the first song I was consciously aware of as being a Bacharach song. But I shouldn't expect everyone else to have somehow had that same experience, obviously.

There're three Dionne Warwick songs here, because she was, I think, the best singer to do Bachrach's songs. And there's two that I didn't know were Bachrach songs until recently - "Close to You" and "(There's) Always Something There To Remind Me." The latter especially is interesting, because most people are very familiar with the 80s cover but have probably never heard this version. Also included is my favorite Bachrach song, "Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head." Bachrach can be too twee even for my tastes, but he does also have some excellent work that's far too underappreciated by our generation.

This is news some of you might not care about or understand. But you all should care about it, because it means awesome things! And only awesome things! And if you don't know what I'm talking about, ask and I'll be only too glad to provide you with reasons why you need to care!
http://destroyerzooey.livejournal.com/95245.html

OMG! From the Sigur Rós news page:

sigur rós have been kind enough to give the fans a preview of the upcoming sæglópur ep. you can now download one of the b-sides, refur, here. refur is a unique sigur rós song as it marks the first time that kjartan steps away from his usual background vocals and takes the lead vocals. as a result, the song has taken a more upbeat direction than the band’s previous works, which, according to jónsi, is likely to characterize the band’s future releases.


Direct link: http://befb.vortex.is/sigur_ros-refur.mp3