I suggest that you listen to the tracks before or while you read my say about these songs. Hope you will like these more.
80. "Heart-stopping liar"
A Weeknight Memoir In High Definition|Taken By Cars
I unearthed this track coming from the days when I was an elementary student. Thanks to Internet, and Pedicab's Facebook page, I was brought into another great local act. Their mix of shoegaze(that genre of alternative rock that I can simply describe as making creative sounds/noises out of guitars and the effects pedals) and electronic music is worth listening.
The guitars are notable, with a pinch of synths.
And you wouldn't realize more and more, until you hear this, that girls' vocals in rock bands do rock. The vocals here sounds similar to the vocals from an 80s band, Romeo Void.
Recommended: This Is Our City (here, no more comparison to Romeo Void. This one's better!)
79. "Ayos lang. Sa susunod na lang" (It's fine. Next time.)
I'm sorry I cannot give the actual song. But I listened to this live version first before I could ever hear it right from the album.
La Liga Filipina|Pedicab
Pedicab doesn't stop making dance-able, funky and electrifying sounds.
Their latest album, or let's say EP(extended play), entitled Kaya Mo Mag Sando?, which I have as the first CD I've ever bought and owned, brings in fresh tunes coming up from a bass synthesizer, a brilliant play of guitar, drums with a great drummer hitting it, additional effects varying from radio samples and whooshes, and a vocal ranging from spoken word to rap.
And in my own opinion, I find the album well-mixed.
Again, I laud the colorful titles artists label in their songs. In this track, it feels like something historical, and obviously native.
Nonetheless, some of its lyrics make me feel the way I felt at school then.
Though I lost, I could hopefully do better next time.
78. "Cool kids never have the time"
1979|Smashing Pumpkins
This was discovered from searching through music info at Wikipedia.
The notable thing here is that it used samples and loops in the beginning—something that a 90s rock band like Smashing Pumpkins seemingly won't do.
But I like the song as a whole because it's not much gritty but still rocks so well. I could ride in to the chords, and the additional sounds, and the sing-able vocals.
I searched through people's interpretations of this song, and I agree with them. They all direct towards people like me, teenagers. I think it is better if I leave you with these comments I found at Song Meanings:
"I think this song is directed towards teenagers. In most schools, there are endless amounts of groups and cliques...And there's always that one group that doesn't exactly have a classification...They realize this, of course, but they don't care. That's what makes them the most valuable people in this age group: the fact that their image doesn't bother them."—dsrm_smile
"1979 was the year the last of the babyboomers graduated from highschool. In 1979 if you made it or failed in life it was on you...When you have to fend for yourself, you get selfish and disenchanted. This song is not about teenagers rebelling...It is about kids being regarded as having responsibility at an age when they must accept it, but they are facing the future by themselves."—USMClawyer
77. "You're away, so far away... "
Keeping The Avenues Open|Moscow Olympics
Does this sound foreign to you?
Actually, it's from here. It's another independent local act, and another shoegaze track.
It begins with a simple beat that I guess was made through a drum machine. Then, these guitars come in, crashes through your ears, and seemingly envelopes you into a bluish or purplish cloud or cityscape.
The vocals will step in soon, and serenades in soft words that you'll rarely hear. It makes me think that he speaks somehow in a lonely way. That's a characteristic of shoegaze.
"Keeping The Avenues Open", which is a remodeled version of their past song, "To Keep The Avenues Open", helped me appreciate guitars more, and the effects they make by stepping on the pedals.
Another thing, the mood I felt in this song somehow equates to my mood in my complex and twisted school life.
A good beginning, then a dramatic end. That's a nice way to create and compose a song.
It is interesting that the name of the band comes from a worldwide 80's event—the 1980 Summer Olympics held at Moscow at the former Soviet Union. Their name's so attractive. I haven't expected a band name as cool as Moscow Olympics.
However, the band's not active as of this moment. And you wouldn't see a copy of their nice album—with a person in a study table as their cover—anywhere. I hope someday they'll come out and get more people listening to them.
76. "But I used to be free"
Black Chandelier|Biffy Clyro
This came out of the radio, on Jam 88.3, as a fresh hit, a song that aired on the station for the first time.
"Black Chandelier" has impressive lyrics, a remarkable intro (drip,drip,drip,drip), and a banging noise of guitars in the bridge, like it's something metal.
And again, I felt connected to the words, as if it speaks of a separation from all your burdens, from all the demanding people, from all the humans you cannot get along with, from all the mess and failure you've gone into.
75. "You're drowning in her"
Raspberry:Girl|Chicosci
Now another homegrown track.
I heard of the rock band when I was still a little child. Not that I hear them all the time, but I always hear the name.
My attention was turned when I saw their newest album entitled This Is Not A Chicosci Record. With the help of cable, I encountered this song. The title is so cute: Raspberry:Girl. It is not read as a ratio, for your information.
After hearing the song, I gave a second thought to all the emerging music that I didn't like before. I thought before it's all emo and nothing at all, but no. This is still rock, whatever you call it.
And this stays true to the title of their album. The composition is suitably embellished with that sample from the start, and the trumpets in the middle. It wasn't obvious that they made it.
But all in all, it's something you can ride into, especially if you're spellbound or fallen. I'm not saying I am.
74. "Like stars burning holes right through the dark"
Sleepyhead|Passion Pit
This is the first song I've heard from the electro pop group, out of their first release entitled Chunk of Change. This came out as a suggested video on YouTube, and I clicked it. From the start, it's beautifully made.
It sounds good, anyway, with all that sampling and all the colorful keyboards and synthesizers. Head-popping. And it amazes me that that kind of "crying" voice would come out from a man. I like it.
Did you hear that from the start: "And everything's going to the beat"? It was nice to know it came from a recorded voice of Beat writer Jack Kerouac reading his poem entitled San Francisco Scene. He's one of the authors whose book, On The Road, I wish I could read and have soon.
73. "We're all having problems. And we all got something to say"
Carried Away|Passion Pit
And so we have a back to back for the first time!
I didn't stop at Sleepyhead. There are many songs from the band that I like, and I think they'll be shown in this ongoing chart soon. One is this, coming from their album, Gossamer.
It's really hard to interpret lyrics, but I can somehow relate to the lyrics, at the least in those words: "I get carried away, carried away from you."
Simple yet cool.
72. "In my mind I know it's hard but we're getting it through"
This one's another live version. I hope you're fine with it. The whole song won't start immediately, so please have patience. Thank you.
The Shot|Pedicab
This one also came out from the EP. Here the band takes a break from their funkyness, coming up with an indie-pop tune. However, the EP has no lyrics in it, so we all have to rely on Diego Mapa's vocals.
But with just the title, "The Shot", I can relate to it.
Because in some ways we give our shot, the best shots we can make. A shot for a good grade. A shot for an accomplishment. A shot for an approval. A shot for a win.
71. "What I'd do for a pretty face"
Reverend's Daughter|Typecast
Before, I wasn't much attentive to homegrown rock before, until I see songs like this on Myx. And I'm thankful I finally became open to more kinds of music.
This good amount of Pinoy rock is simply harmonious, and the lyrics is straight to the heart, direct to the point.
How did you find numbers 80 to 71? You can comment if you like. Just click the title of this post first, then that comment box will appear. Why don't you share this blog to your friends? They may find it nice.
For the next set, more indie acts will be heard, as well as local artists. I hope you aren't bored by this. Keep updated. Thanks! Take care.
