Max's TOP 10 SONGS OF 2011

1. Royal Headache - Never Again
from Royal Headache (R.I.P. Society/Goner)

Some records are great without making you want to be a part of them, and that's fine. It doesn't make them less great. But some are so exuberant and rich and alive-sounding that they make you want to sing along to every song at every show and be involved and there's something so special about records like that and what I'm saying is that Royal Headache's debut album is like that. There are so many great cuts from the album, but this opening track - Never Again - is extra frenetic and just a perfect introduction to my record of the year.

2. Total Control - One More Tonight
from Henge Beat (Iron Lung)


A couple of reviews of Total Control's Henge Beat have talked about the album's take on retrofuturism, and that approach is certainly one of the most interesting things about the album. Luckily, as well as being interesting, it's also full of great songs that reference enduring classics like Eno, Talking Heads and Joy Division. There's something so intriguing and also unsettling about this song's repeated refrain of "A burst of laughter / introduces your friends"; it's kind of genius.

3. John Maus - Believer
from We Must Become The Pitiless Censors of Ourselves (Ribbon/Upset The Rhythm)

There was nothing else this year (or any other year, really) that sounded like John Maus's cavernous space-synths & death metal vocals, and this closing track from his record is such an anthem.

4. Ford & Lopatin - Emergency Room
from Channel Pressure (Mexican Summer) 

It's such a pleasure to hear a band employ artificial textures so gleefully; everything about Channel Pressure sounds synthesised & mechanical. But even though Ford & Lopatin clearly have so much fun assembling their plastic beats, they never forget to write hooks and beats that stick in your brain, and that's just what Emergency Room does.

5. Kurt Vile - On Tour
from Smoke Ring For My Halo (Matador)

Smoke Ring For My Halo is the sweetest & gentlest release by Kurt Vile so far. Even so, he fits in some terrifically macabre imagery on songs like On Tour, my favourite from the record: "On tour. Lord of the Flies."

6. Ghost Wave - Hippy
from Ghost Wave EP (Arch Hill)

I will never not love New Zealand bands who play Flying Nun-inspired garage punk. All of Ghost Wave's debut EP was great, actually, but Hippy's minimalist guitars and brilliantly unexpected bridge refrain is basically as good as it gets.

7. Panda Bear - Last Night At The Jetty
from Tomboy (Paw Tracks)

Tomboy might not have captured the zeitgeist the way Panda Bear's debut did, but if you're asking me (and I guess you could say that you are, in a way) Last Night At The Jetty is as good a song as he's ever written: sweet, wistful and sad.

8. Twerps - Dreamin'
from Twerps (Chapter/Underwater Peoples)

80s jangle-pop might be the last aesthetic that can possibly be mined from that exhaustively revised decade, but it's kinda surprising that it's taken this long to happen: it's such a listenable sound. On their debut album, Twerps ditched the scrappy milkbar punk that they'd been messing with to write some extra grown-up songs with strings and everything; super impressive stuff.

9. Real Estate - It's Real
from Days (Domino)

It's just so easy to love Days, the second album from Real Estate. It's catchy and melodic and totally sincere, and this song from it features expertly deployed whoa-ohs; everything's there, really.

10. Guerre - Millennium Blues
from Darker My Love (Yes Please)

You could say that 2011 was "the year of new R&B", or whatever, but as with so many microgenres, it only really happened at all because a handful of talented practitioners. Guerre is one of the best.

BLAH BLAH BLAH

MP3: Royal Headache - Down The Lane

Totally thrilled on this hyper-melodic first taste from Royal Headache’s self-titled debut. These dudes have been one of the best things about Sydney’s resurgent DIY punk scene for a while, on the strength of a self-produced 7” and some pretty amazing live shows, and their album, produced by Mikey Young of Eddy Current Suppression Ring and Straight Arrows’ Owen Penglis, delivers on their early promise pretty comprehensively. There's a ‘60s pop hue to punk jams like Down The Lane, but they don’t come across as revivalists – you can put that down to a combination of a thick romantic streak and a totally prosaic lyrical style which is so terrifically unpretentious that it makes you wonder why so few other songwriters have been able to write like this. It's kind of perfectly summarised in a line from "Down The Lane" which goes "I've been alone and I'd take you home but my bedroom smells like cum / I could take you out, it'd be my shout, but you'd find that I'm no fun."

Royal Headache is out September 2 through R.I.P. Society (available digitally from Repressed) in Australia, Goner in the US (distro'd by Midheaven/Revolved & Easter Bilby) and XVIII in Europe.

R.I.P. Society are running a couple of competitions to win limited edition, hand-decorated test pressings of the album, one of which can be won by buying a presale ticket for the Sydney launch (on Sept. 2 at Goodgod) through moshtix; and RQ readers in the US can check them out on their US tour, starting Sept 8 at Deaf By Audio in Brooklyn:



facebook / myspace / label

TOP 2010 SONGS: Max

2010: it was pretty great! I saw Inception like three times and listened to all the best music I've ever heard. Plus, Rose Quartz went to New York (SEE ABOVE) and hung out with all our new best friends. We also got to witness some of our favourite labels and bands just kill it this year: Olde English Spelling Bee, R.I.P. Society and Chapter put out a billion great records which everyone loved and bands like Street Chant, Big Troubles and way too many others did massive stadium tours of Brazil. Holla! Anyway, here's my top 10 songs of this year:

10. Wild Nothing - Live In Dreams
Gemini out through Captured Tracks // myspace

Love how relaxing this whole album is; that's not a popular adjective but it's true about Wild Nothing, all smooth and subdued like it's been lifted from the saddest '80s teen movie of all time.

9. Air Waves - Knock Out
Dungeon Dots out through Underwater Peoples // myspace

I'm a total sucker for this kind of sweetly shambolic alt-country w/ '70s Cali pop sensibility (clean bass, jangly guitars etc).

8. Royal Headache - Splash
7" out through R.I.P. Society // myspace

Frenetic, fuzzed-out pop-punk thrashers like this are what Royal Headache do best; just total odes to shit like swimming pools that feel kinda profound cos you get bamboozled by all the hooks and then you're like wha?

7. Danger Beach - Apache
Milky Way out through Dream Damage // myspace

Real "tender" instrumental surf-pop from inland Australia: maybe that's why the rolling guitars sound melancholic and the reverb'd out, faraway drums are ever so slightly askew.

6. Straight Arrows - Bad Temper
It's Happening out through Rice Is Nice // myspace

After literally years of teasing us with sporadic 7" releases, these power popsters finally dropped a (terrific) full-length record. This is my favourite from it: lo-fi but technicolour with vocal harmonies I still can't figure out after dozens of listens.

5. Deerhunter - Helicopter
Halcyon Digest out through 4AD // myspace

Maybe you didn't know, but Deerhunter put out another album this year!

4. Surf City - Crazy Rulers Of The World
Kudos out through Popfrenzy/Fire // myspace

Warm, fuzzy, completely enjoyable "surfgaze" beamed to you directly from the teenage summer you discovered Daydream Nation.

3. Hammocks and Honey - Undone
Spellbinder out through Special Award // myspace

Find of the year, for sure: this jam from Melbourne's Hammocks and Honey is beautifully, wistfully hypnotic; months after I first heard it I still can't stop listening to it.

2. Nobunny - Live It Up
First Blood out through Goner // myspace

I listened to this song exclusively for about two weeks after I first got this album, which might be because it sounds like the Ramones covering the Cars but whatever. It's totally jaunty, totally catchy, with a philosophy you can live by; winner, right?

1. Outer Limits Recordings - $20 Dollar Bill
7" out through Olde English Spelling Bee // youtube

This total 2010 h-pop classic sounds like it was recorded to a tape that had been recorded to way too many times before, but that can't hide how goofy/hilarious/catchy it is. It's a sound that's been mined before, for sure, but never as consistently well as Sam Mehran and his various projects mine it: the run of singles from Outer Limits Recordings and The Sweethearts in 2010 has been absurdly high in quality. If this was recorded in pristine hi-fidelity it'd probably be a hit; too bad, pop fans.




OTHER FAVES:
The Sweethearts - Burning Through The Nite
Big Troubles - Bite Yr Tongue
MGMT - Flash Delirium

Ducktails - Hamilton Road

Street Chant - Yr Philosophy

Boomgates - Bright Idea

Matthew Dear - Slowdance

Guest Mix: ROYAL HEADACHE

Royal Headache // ROSE QUARTZ Megamix

If you read this blog ever you'd know we think Sydney punx/power popsters Royal Headache are basically one of the most exciting bands in the whole world right now. They're fucking great, and totally good guys! They did us (and you) a solid by making this mix, which is on the verge of improving your weekend/life. Here's what Joe from Royal Headache said about it:

"So Shogun didn't put any tracks on this. He doesn't have the internet and if he knew we were doing this would take over the entire mix and just put Kate Bush - Running Up That Hill 12 times. I wish we'd made that mix. There's not much to say about this... none of the songs make sense next to each other. There's no theme. Nothing's that obscure so we dont really get to show off how much more we know about music than everyone ever. Everything's pretty sick though (except the Lighthouse Keepers, they get their arses kicked after LIZZY. Actually that song's not so bad. Nah it sucks) Hate to crush everyone's hopes and dreams but we didn't actually make this mix, the only band we've ever heard of / listen to is KISS (I'm not sure if you have a KISS font but please display it on your website according to the logo, we get offended viewing the name in such wimpy typefaces common to most websites (thank you in advance))."


TRACKLIST:

1. The Marked Men - A Little Time

2. The Replacements - Favorite Thing

3. Shoes This High - The Nose One

4. Public Zone - Naive 

5. The Bureaucrats - Grown Up Age

6. Haskels - Taking The City By Storm

7. Thin Lizzy - Waiting For An Alibi (Live @ Opera House)

8. The Lighthouse Keepers - Gargoyle

9. Television Personalities - A Picture of Dorian Gray

10. Evelyn Freeman - Didn't It Rain

11. The Falcons - I Found A Love

12. Showbiz & AG - Next Level

PS, Sydney: check out Royal Headache and a shitload more great bands next weekend at R.I.P. Society's Success Summit!

[Royal Headache MySpace / Facebook]

Photos: ROYAL HEADACHE

Dimity Kasz took these brilliant pix of Royal Headache at their recent show at Newtown RSL. Amazing shots of Sydney's best band at their peak. Check out more photos of the gig at her blog, or head to Sydney Live for a bootleg of the show.

HAVE MY FUN

Royal Headache - (Untitled)

Alright, listen to this bootleg (BOOTLEG!) of Royal Headache playing in the basement of an ex-call centre in Sydney from last Sunday night. It was totally spooky: they played this set that so comprehensively slayed it was like they reached out on some Na'vi shit and "saw us"; more specifically, what we the listening public circa 2010 want from our scrappy punk bands who always wear the same windcheater. This traxx which I don't know the name of carries on the soul/Motown vibe they have going on previous jawns, only MOAR: this is some seriously effective 50s pop, only it's heaps lo-fi and about halfway through you get such a punk rock tusk you need to take a break and go assault something, or something. Fuck me I can't wait for these bros to release an album.

PS, thanx times a million to Morris who recorded this set and has recorded shitloads more for his terrific blog!

[Royal Headache MySpace]

POOL SHARX

Royal Headache - Splash

The Sydney thrashers come good with the first taste of their first commercially available recording, which will be available for cash soon. Heaps of firsts! Seems like ages since we first heard Girls and went crazy for its combination of frenzied lo-fi attack and soaring vocal melodics (seriously, soaring) and this is no disappointment. It's one big hook-laden celebration of the finer things in life, i.e. SWIMMING POOLS, which means that when their 7" finally drops we're gonna have a well-rounded coverage of things that rule: girls (Girls and Eloise), swimming pools (Splash) and surprises (Surprise). Sick.

[Royal Headache MySpace]

[7" available soon thru R.I.P. Society]

MAX'S TOP 20 SONGS OF 2009

Hey bros! Thanks for checking out my list of 20 songs I liked this year. I hope you like them too. This week, you can check out similar lists from all us Rose Quartzers; next week, we give you our top albums of 2009 - WITH A TWIST. We'll tell you about it next week. Anyway, here are the songs:



1. Bachelorette - Dream Sequence
from My Electric Family

I'd use the word magical to describe the way this masterpiece balloons and unfolds as you listen: tinny beats become drums, synthesiser brass becomes a technicolour Sgt. Peppers horn section. It's fitting that this lush pop imaginarium is called 'Dream Sequence': it treads (actually, waltzes) the line between reality and artifice, incredible flights of fantasy mingling with vivid & eclectic flashes of memory.

[MySpace / buy]

2. Monsters of Folk - Say Please
from Monsters of Folk

So much to love in this song - the swaggering 3/4 time signature, Conor/Jim/Matt trading vocals - but best of all is the motherfucking guitar solo which is both melodic and face-melting in a way I thought only J. Mascis remembered how to do.

[MySpace / buy]

3. Royal Headache - Girls
from Demo cassette

“This absurdly FUCKING good garage pop gem is full of lovestruck madness, but in a way that you can, y’know, respect, because it’s all loose and raw and kinda manly. Girls... is all joyful, lust-fuelled abandon... with its transcendental Guided By Voices supermelody.”

[MySpace]

4. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Come Saturday
from The Pains of Being Pure at Heart

In about 10 years when everyone who's cool right now is making overly-sentimental films about their life circa 2009 they're gonna use this song because it's such a golden indie rock gem it's making me nostalgic for this year now.

[MySpace / buy]

5. Washed Out - Feel It All Around
from Life Of Leisure

"...rather than producing big, shiny, plastic beats that sound custom-made to blare out of lousy car speakers, tracks like Feel It All Around have the noise and the dust and the charm turned way up, like Ariel Pink for the dancefloor... all heavenly and shit with twinkly synths and spacewalk harmonies."

[MySpace / buy]

6. No Through Road - Party To Survive
from Winner.

"This is a ridiculously classy jam, like Guided By Voices fucking around with Pavement, and it’s the kind of thang you’d play at a party if you wanted to make sure that it turned out to be UNBELIEVABLY memorable."

[MySpace / buy]

7. Lightning Dust - Antonia Jane
from Infinite Light

The bar's always high for Black Mountain side projects, but this record was even more terrific than I was expecting: narcotic, noir-ish alt.country with a melancholy vibe.

[MySpace / buy]

8. Grizzly Bear - While You Wait for the Others
from Veckatimest

I thought that Veckatimest deserved the hype, but I love While You Wait For The Others because it reminds me the most of Yellow House, which deserved it more but didn't get it.

[MySpace / buy]

9. Yo La Tengo - Periodically Double Or Triple
from Popular Songs

I interviewed Ira Kaplan earlier this year and I was like, "lulz, how did you think of such an amazingly dorky and neurotic and cerebral character for this song?!" and he was like "...". White boy funk is the best and so is the weird Casio breakdown in this song.

[MySpace / buy]

10. Street Chant - Scream Walk
from Scream Walk 7"

Maybe one day New Zealand will teach everyone else how to make three-minute pop songs sound like the freshest, most incredible things ever invented, even better than the chewing gum with the liquid centers.

[MySpace]

11. Animal Collective - Summertime Clothes
from Merriweather Post Pavilion

Man, how about that Animal Collective?

[MySpace / buy]

12. The Daredevil Christopher Wright - Clouds
from In Deference to a Broken Back

"There’s highs and crashing lows, falsetto and handclaps, fucking polyrhythms. Constant surprises: references to the pastoral pop that’s going crazy right now as well as vintage pop and 70s guitar heroism. And really, really good songwriting."

[MySpace / buy]

13. Here We Go Magic - Fangela
from Here We Go Magic

Feels like Here We Go Magic got kinda lost in the hypnagogic pop avalanche despite a) being one of the best things about it and b) touring with Grizzly Bear, which at this stage is pretty much the best thing that could happen to any band. The album's solid but this is an amazing song with basically the best use of that kind of production I've ever heard.

[MySpace / buy]

14. Faux Pas - Silver Line
from Noiseworks

"...rich, lush melodies are kind of a Faux Pas hallmark but Silver Line mirrors the Flaming Lips' recent transition to a more muscular kind of pop glory. It floats and shimmers and throbs, surging forward and dissolving and surging again, all wondrous and cosmic but with a vibe that's ever so slightly unnerving."

[MySpace / buy]

15. Saudade - Hidden Talented
from Lookouts' Journal

"This is some hazed out space-age shit, like getting high through a motherboard in 2200. Pretty fucking creepy, too: the white noise builds and builds and the whole time there’s this melody way up high that’s all noble and righteous yet out of reach, like the human spirit facing the apocalypse or a lone astronaut adrift in a galaxy of evil."

[MySpace / buy]

16. Neon Indian - Terminally Chill
from Psychic Chasms

It's sweet that a Brooklyn band made the perfect record for us here in the Southern hemisphere to have the best summer ever to.

[MySpace / buy]

17. Telekinesis - Coast Of Carolina
from Telekinesis!

At first, Coast Of Carolina sounds like a perfect power-pop anthem but behind the percussive riffs and crunched-out guitars lies a gentle 60s pop gem.

[MySpace / buy]

18. Jeffrey Lewis & The Junkyard - Slogans
from Em Are I

This is like the ultimate combination of exuberant 90s indie rock and Jeffrey Lewis reining in his tendency to be totally verbose.

[MySpace / buy]

19. Ganache - In Pidgin
from A Halter Pardon Him and Hell Gnaw His Bones!

This song is so hilariously wordy and boppy I pretty much listened to nothing else for about a fortnight after I heard it the first time. Feels good to know if anything should ever happen to Stephin Merritt we've got another hilarious dude with a badass baritone to turn to.

[MySpace / buy]

20. Weezer - Can't Stop Partying
from Raditude

I only like this song ironically, but it's such an intense blast of irony it makes my knees weak and I refuse to belive this isn't the way Rivers intended.

[MySpace / buy]

TURNED BAD

Royal Headache – Eloise

Royal Headache – Girls

Writing songs about girls is a gr8 idea because for starters you’re dealing with a subject matter everyone (EVERYONE) likes already (you’ll find the same can not be said about boys). The way you make it better is by not pussying out in the actual songs, and Royal Headache understand both of these important points. These two absurdly FUCKING good garage pop gems are both full of lovestruck madness, but in a way that you can, y’know, respect, because it’s all loose and raw and kinda manly. There’s Girls, which is all joyful, lust-fuelled abandon and actually fairly unintelligible but still one of the best songs I’ve heard this year, with its transcendental Guided By Voices supermelody; and Eloise, which descends into ragged na-na-nas from some controlled and slightly sinister (“Eloise / don’t make me bad”) power-pop.



Royal Headache are also playing the ace Flip Out festival in Sydney, August 29 at the Manning Bar.

UPDATE: They've also been added to the Melbourne line-up (September 5 at The Corner) following a write-up on Pitchfork's Forkcast! You heard it here first!

[Royal Headache MySpace]