here they are:
"Fisher Island Sound" by Beirut: After about a decade experimenting with more electronic material, Beirut return to the combination of indie-folk Eastern European music that made them popular among their original audience back in the mid-2000's. Named after the Connecticut location where band member Ben Lanz grew up, "Fisher Island Sound" is something of an exercise in nostalgia for Beirut which dates all the way back to when they first formed as a band. The prominent use of accordion in the song is partially due to how fellow bandmate Perrin Cloutier was newly self-taught at playing the instrument at the time the song was first written. However, not all of the song has warmth and fuzziness to it, as it also serves as a reminder for lead singer Zach Condon about how he struggled to put vocals onto the initial recording of "Fisher Island Sound" due to personal bouts with negative emotions he had during that time.
"Magnificent Hurt" by Elvis Costello: A master of his craft even into his sexagenarian years, Elvis Costello sounds just as righteously ticked off on his latest song, "Magnificent Hurt," as he did on nearly all of his songs from the mid to late 1970's! With its jagged guitars, bright keyboards, and "take that" lyrics, "Magnificent Hurt" wears its heart on its sleeve, but more in a furious way than in a sad one. This song makes it clear he is not going down without a fight. The "you" in the song is more than likely an ex-lover, but it could almost as easily be applied to society as a whole, or perhaps to certain political figures as well. The title of this song pretty much says it all. Whoever (or whatever) has caused Elvis Costello to be in such a bitter state has indeed caused him to feel magnificently hurt, but instead of bearing the cross of pain, he shoots it right back into his victim's face!
"Never Leave You" by The Record Company: "Never Leave You" continues in the blues-rock direction The Record Company usually goes in, but with a decidedly different approach. Much like The Rolling Stones' "Miss You" mixed blues-rock with disco, The Record Company's "Never Leave You" appears to be doing the same thing! I don't remember hearing anything quite so funky from The Record Company before, but they appear to be pretty good at it. The recurring phrase, "California sun," is in there because The Record Company are a Southern Californian band, and the references to things like Cadillacs and riding along with someone make me think this was probably meant to be a road trip song. These guys are too cool for school, I must say!
"The Hardest Cut" by Spoon: Spoon have dabbled in many styles of rock, ranging from post-punk to folk-rock to pop/rock, but they've never taken on blues-rock quite like they have with their latest song, "The Hardest Cut"! With both a beat and a guitar sound reminiscent of groups like The Black Keys, "The Hardest Cut" puts longtime indie-rock faves, Spoon, in a new direction, but one that their fans seem to be open to, thankfully. It's also the rare Spoon song with a prominent guitar solo, which was apparently inspired by groups like ZZ Top. As Spoon typically take their sound from either "lite-rock" faves like Fleetwood Mac and Steely Dan or more eccentric rock from roughly the same era like Elvis Costello and Talking Heads, the decision to make a blues-rock song might come as a surprise to Spoon fans, but with "The Hardest Cut," Britt Daniels and the boys prove they can boogie down with the best of 'em!
