Belle and Sebastian - Are You Feeling Sinister

The wistful Glasgow pop of Belle and Sebastian is appealing to many people. Their sophomore album If You're Feeling Sinister received pretty high praise, following under many Top 100 lists of albums from the 90s (Pitchfork - 17, Rolling Stones - 75, Spin - 59). Since Tigermilk was such a rare find back then, many considered this their debut album. It was part of the 33 1/3 book series on different albums. Sadly, during it's release, it didn't reach popular heights since music was primary dominated by Grunge at the time. Never-the-less, it's a must have for every collection.

The Stars of Track and Field open the album with a very solemn guitar strum and bass line, but slowly builds up until it hits a pumping drum snare and begins to serenade you. Whimsical can be easily used a lot in this review, so I'll use it once for Seeing Other People, but know it pretty much describes the whole album. Me and Major will be understood by any guy who has daddy issues, especially with the line "there is too much history, too much biology between us. Not to mention the killer harmonica solo at the end. The fun display of paranoia in Like Dylan in the Movies makes it hard to take this cautionary tale serious. The tender track The Fox in the Snow closes out the A-Side. The catchy tunes of Get Me Away from Here, I'm Dying is littered with folk inspired guitar. The title track starts out with the sounds of kids playing in school yards and leaves you with the feeling of youthful mischievous. Mayfly is the perfect summer listening song. The Boy Done Wrong Again feels like a funeral or something that Harold and Maude would slow dance too. Closing is one of my favorite songs, Judy and the Dream of Horses, it's just so freaking catchy, you get hooked to the very end.

If you are a fan of the Smiths meeting Simon and Garfunkel then you should give all the works of Belle and Sebastian a try. Amazon has it $18, but you can get it on Matadors official store for $16. This is a great album to relax too.

Happy hunting!

Pair With:

There's two things you can pair this album with. The first, is  Stuart Murdoch's first film, God Help The Girl starring the beautiful Emily Browning (I'll be the first to admit I have a crush on her). The movie was powered by a Kickstarter. It will have it's limited release Sept 5th. But if you are a member of Cinefamily you can go to a member's only screening with Stuart Murdoch in person Sept 2nd!

Also, catch Belle and Sebastian on their small tour. They'll have two shows at the Ace Theater in downtown Oct 6th and Oct 7th. I saw their amazing Hollywood Forever Show, where they screened Trainspotting (which Stuart had a minor role) and played at midnight, opening with Sukie In the Graveyard. They are not to be missed. The shows are both sold out, but you can keep your eyes peeled on Craigslist for tickets or on StubHub.

Check out the music video of the title track featuring Emily Browning here.

Pulp - Different Class

I would love to say that discovering Pulp's Different Class in high school help pinpoint my budding sexuality, but that would be all too perfect. No, instead I just shook my butt and weirded my friends out. There is a lot of fun history with the album cover as well. You can check out the Buzzfeed that is all about the wedding the album cover was taken.

This is probably Pulp's biggest and best album. Opening is Mis-Shapes, a toe tapping with a simple start that builds up to it's climatic chorus. The taboo Pencil Skirt is full of an overly sexual aggressive Jarvis Cocker in all the right ways. The huge hit off this album and maybe out of all of Pulp's work is Common People, a hit you can shake your bum and scream the lyrics too. The french noir themed I Spy is very Serge Gainsbourg meets Dr. No. Throw Disco 2000 on at any high school reunion and dance the night away with the one who got away. Live Bed Show is the sad point of view of a bed and the lonely women, who at one point got a lot of action, but now occupies it alone. Taking things to the B-Side starts things off with the dreamy Something Changed. Then the Sorted For E's & Wizz gives off the vibe that it could have inspired The Flaming Lips. F.E.E.L.I.N.G.C.A.L.L.E.D.L.O.V.E gives you a feeling of being on a dark street corner until it explodes into cascade of synth and guitar. You won't forget how to spell this song after you listen to it (much how I still have to think of Gwen Stefani when I want to spell bananas). Underwear is a sad song that some girls can really relate too unfortunately. The epiphany brought on by Monday Morning is not a great one, but it does perfectly describes the mundane feeling of finally hitting adulthood. Ending the album is the sensual and sweet Bar Italia, which is about getting up after a night out with the worst hangover ever, a great way to end this album. 

I was lucky enough to see Pulp reunite a few years back, it what was an amazingly fun show. If you like britpop the Stone Roses or just great sexually charged dance music that isn't full of the word "bootie" and over driving bass, then you should give Pulp a try. Amazon has it for $32 since it is an import from the UK, but you can search eBay in hopes of finding a cheap use copy. 

Happy hunting!

PAIR WITH:

If you were lucky enough to get tickets then you probably don't need this suggestion, but the perfect pair would be going to the Ace Theater to see Pulp: A Film About Life, Death & Supermarkets with a bonus QnA with both the director and Jarvis Cocker. But if you can't make it, be sure to check out the trailer and hopefully it will be released theatrically or streaming:

The film premiered at SXSW and has been making the rounds, but you can check to see if there is a screening in your area.

UPDATE!
I just read on Oscilloscope's Facebook that the movie will be released nationwide in the US Nov 19th!