All things considered, I can't stand Depeche Mode. I tend to think of them as a sort of tiresome S&M version of U2, the band I detest most out of all bands, ever. But I really, really love 'Personal Jesus', for reasons I don't fully understand.
This week, for reasons also unknown, I have also developed a terrible weakness for early-90s-style squelchy acid house. I can't go for a pleasant walk in the French countryside without simultaneously subjecting myself to full-frontal sonic 303 assault administered intracerebrally via my fraying iPod earphones.
Not content with keeping this to myself, I'm going to draw you brave blog readers into my lonely little acid-drenched exile by subjecting you to this *epic* remix of 'Personal Jesus', which actually sounds like a gigantic intergalactic laser space war has broken out over which star system gets custody of 'the' Mode. It's epic, and it's awesome, and Great She Elephant, for one, is going to hate it:
Depeche Mode - Personal Jesus (Boys Noize Rework) (mp3)
[Buy from Phonica Records]
And here's the antidote, it's Quinquireme favourites Husky Rescue once more, here being remixed by Tunng. Tunng combine really lovely sparkly electronica noises with traditional instruments, and they've never sounded lovelier or sparklier than here, accompanied by Rita-Leena Korhola's ethereal vocals. Oo, it's like looking at the stars on a clear midwinter night. No, really it is:
Husky Rescue - Diamonds In The Sky (Tunng Mix) (m4a)
[Buy from Amazon]
That last one is especially for Broke in Berlin, who inspired me this evening to re-learn how to upload mp3s to this blog...there's no stopping me now, muahahaaaa!
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24 comments:
Husky Rescue was really nice as always. You probably already know, (but I just found out), that "New Light Of Tomorrow" was featured in The Sopranos episode called "Johnny Cakes".
(I'm so anti-depechemodian I just can't open the first link.)
Thank you galore (although I dimly haven't been able to open the links yet). The last time the Inberlin famiy had a musical dedication was when my sister's friend, Anne C_, dedicated the song she was allowed to dedicate at the end of some exciting quiz on Radio 1 or Capital Radio - we're talking 1981, or thereabouts - to my sister, but in all the excitement, we forgot we didn't have a wireless at the time and by the time we'd all trooped out to my father's Ford Cortina (estate, I think), we'd missed it. So double thanks.
I have downloaded both of these for my journey home. Thanks!
Family, not famiy.
And I've worked it out now. I have an urge to go to Finland (and for it to be summer). Thank you, thank you.
Junkie S&M leather-trouser stubbly I-died-y'know Depeche Mode are, indeed, dreadful. But I maintain a guilty fondness for the early, fresh-faced, quiffy DM of the first two or three albums. 'See You' is a classic prototype indie-pop/C86 anthem, but with synths instead of jangly guitars.
Not as good as the Human League, obviously, but better than, say, Blancmange or A Flock of Seagulls.
Taiga: I didn't know that. Hm, haven't seen the Sopranos for ages. Must watch more television.
BiB: My pleasure, thanks for the inspiration. And that's an anecdote worthy of a Pulp song.
Billy: Oh dear god, I wouldn't listen to the DM one on an aeroplane - flying is unnerving at the best of times. But safe flight anyway! (I'm too late, aren't I?)
Tim: It's the lyrics, apart from all the other things you mentioned. Just awful. I think I like 'Personal Jesus' because they manage to rhyme 'receiver' with 'believer', which is about as advanced as they've ever got, unless I've been missing something.
*opens can of worms*
In fact, I find that on the whole, American indie bands are far more eloquent with the English language than practically any British band I know of. Hm, I wonder why that is.
The first one *is* distressing - it made me panic wildly yesterday while enjoying a nice walk along the disused railway line. I think you have to be in the right mood, whatever that mood is. And it helps to listen to the second one afterwards, as a kind of palate cleanser. And 'icicles melting or water freezing' is a good description - it's nice and wintry.
< confession mode on > I like Depeche Mode, and Dave Gahan is pretty sexy in a weird rat-like way < confession mode off >
I'm quite fond of the Johnny Cash cover of Personal Jesus.
Funnily enough, Anon, that's actually what I was looking for when I found this one. And I was looking for it because it was a music question on University Challenge on Monday. So I suppose I have J. Paxman to thank for indirectly bringing me a monstrous slice of acid house monstrousness. Thank you, Paxo!
Littlest realdoc does a mean version of Personal Jesus (the Marilyn Manson one)on Singstar, in the style of a school choir if you can imagine that.
Oo, realdoc, upload it, and we can create a terribly fashionable choral mashup featuring Stars Of The Blogosphere (And Their Kids)!
>on the whole, American indie bands are >far more eloquent with the English >language than practically any British >band I know of.
I'm not sure that's true, but if it is, maybe that's fair. British television kicks American TV's ass/arse as far as intelligence and humo(u)r are concerned. Us sepos have to have some sort of claim fame other than big bootprints...
>>British television kicks American TV's ass/arse as far as intelligence and humo(u)r are concerned.<<
Ooh, now, I don't really watch much television so am not particularly qualified to comment, but I think that both countries produce equally intelligent and funny television programmes that are increasingly drowning among thousands of channels of crap.
Over here our TV channels (mainly C4, looking at this list) have chosen to show us US stuff like Buffy and Friends and the Sopranos and Lost and Scrubs and Desperate Housewives and Sex and the City, and you couldn't accuse any of those of not being intelligent/funny television, however you might feel about the actual content. (Actually I haven't seen Lost at all, so I don't know about that).
I don't know which of our programmes you get, but you can bet the ones that you do see are what remains after your networks have filtered out all the mundane crap.
I still think the American indie bands have it on the language-use front. Our bands seem to be more interested in wielding guitars and being a bit glamorous/sleazy/sexy/degenerate than in saying something meaningful in a pretty way, but maybe I'm just not being subjected to the right British bands.
I have to admit when I read personal Jesus I automatically thought of Marilyn Manson, not that i'm a big fan of his but i do like that song. I will down load the ones on your post for later enjoyment
I'm a fan of DM - I've seen them several times live. And if you were at the Science Museum on Saturday, you might have heard me singing Personal Jesus in the Game On Exhibition.
But even so, I know they have committed crimes in the name of rhyme. Such as:
Promises me I'm as safe as houses
As long as I remember who's wearing the trousers
and
The turning point of a career
in Korea
being insincere
(and, yes, they all rhyme on the record). I will always be grateful that the track 'Big Muff' from the debut album is an instrumental.
But we forgive them because albums like Violator and Black Celebration sound fantastic, and because occasionally, they come up with sheer genius like:
Death is everywhere
There are flies on the windscreen
For a start
re British bands and lyrics, I think Belle and Sebastian and Neil Hannon arepretty good lyrically.
LC: seeing as you wrote that genius review of King Kong, and that post about how you get to work, and that one about the jazz hands, you're fairly safely established in the upper echelons of my estimation. And I quite approve of Marilyn Manson - to misquote GW, there's something very admirable about people who make themselves look ugly on purpose.
Baggie: Not sure 'enjoyment' is exactly the right word, but enjoy anyway!
Sean: Thanks for those lyrics, they unlocked Proustian memories of me being incarcerated at school at the age of about 14, with a friend who was a big DM fan. As I recall, it was the bouffant-haired blond one (not Dave Gahan) who had the most trouble remembering to wear trousers, even in those pre-C86 days.
Realdoc: I don't know anything about Neil Hannon, but yes, B&S have good lyrics, if a bit fixated on the trauma of being the awkward one at school.
I suppose I am not qualified to judge really. We get no broadcast or cable TV at our house. So we order things from Amazon.co.uk that our friend Roz recommends (Green Wing, Smack the Pony, etc.). The one US show I did get addicted to (again, on video) was Deadwood -- but I like noir, and Deadwood is a noir Western.
BTW, love the Husky Rescue remix (no surprise there).
'jebus'
Always makes me laugh. Well done lc, I'd forgotten about that one.
Anyhow, I also loathe and despise U2 and Depeche Mode (but have a strange liking for Personal Jesus)
Thought triggered by that personal jesus remix: It's funny now to think that mixing indie rock and acid squelches didn't really happen before dubnobasswithmyheadman.
Well, not exactly funny 'ha ha'. Or really funny at all. Or even that interesting. Possibly not even true.
Hmm.
Funnily (or not funnily) enough, it so happens that I have a copy of dubnobass etc. sitting here on the table beside me...which is quite coincidental seeing as I only have five CDs with me here in total.
I remember when 'Mmm Skyscraper I Love You' came out, and rushing off to the record shop to buy it, and thinking 'finally a bit of dance music that I actually really like'.
There are still only about five pieces of early 90s dance music that I actually really like. And talking of acid squelches, 'Hardtrance Acperience' is one.
Hmm, might put that on now.
Ah, acperience!
Speaking of which, If you don't already know it can I very strongly recommend the Hardfloor remix of Circus Bells by Robert Armani. (I tried to find a freebie mp3 to link to but couldn't find one.) It is the perfect hard acid house tune.
Thanks Rafael, I shall procure it, and it may even creep into the 'unholy frightening noise' podcast that I am slowly assembling...
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