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Mclusky is dead. Long live Mclusky.
I'm utterly furious that nobody's talking about this motherfucking record, and I decided that I'd move my one-man conversation from the most recent Mclusky thread and into its own, since Mclusky sadly, really is gone. The guitar and bass tones one this thing sound like granite strings on a cinder block body being mauled, rather than played, by asphalt picks. Totally, brutally, gorgeously ugly and beautiful and mad and brilliant. Not to mention catchy as!
For context, a few relevant and at times very thought-provoking links...
Falco's reaction to the leak, culminating with this brilliant post-script--"Next time somebody tells me that i can't drink my rider in the building I'm playing in I'm going to fuck them with their own shoes.":
MySpace.com Blogs - future of the left MySpace Blog
A wonderful interview at DiS (they have ardently supported this record, and there are a few other excellent pieces up for perusal):
Conversing with myself and another: DiS meets Future Of The Left / In Depth // Drowned In Sound
And, actually, Wikipedia seems to be the best way to get a good idea of critical consensus:
Travels with Myself and Another - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Please listen to this. Mclusky was the best band since Nero was still on the violin, back in the day. Somehow, against any and all odds, FotL is even better. After all the shit and shit luck that these dudes have been through, they deserve at least a listen! So give them one, for fuck's sake!
Finally, make a point of hearing "Lapsed Catholics," which may very well be the best song of the year. Says DiS...
‘Lapsed Catholics’ ends the album devastatingly, starting as an acoustic spoken word piece completely at odds with everything else here, before bursting into the most anthemic thing FOTL have produced to date. Falco sounds nude by the end, screeching "Give me something I can take away!", the closest he’s come to emotional transparency on record. It's the same earnestness you see when he's belting out his songs live.
...and ClashMusic...
Album finale ‘Lapsed Catholics’ contains the few brief moments of respite on here. Over a gently plucked, near-flamenco guitar, the group intones a series of reminiscences from their favourite films. Voices intermingle, and the simple lyrics begin to creep over one another, distorting the meaning before an electric guitar rears its head and screams. “I can’t stand still for the rest of my life,” sings Falkous, and you feel that this is one of the album’s most direct moments. “Be aware, be alert!” he shouts, desperate for a life without compromise. Seemingly answering the opening track’s call to arms, the band gently speaks the final words on the album, saying “it’s part of who they are, and who they’ll be again”. The lust for purity, for something unique and distinct, runs through the record like electricity running through a guitar.
"The Hope That House Built" (first single from Travels, and seemingly only functional if you watch it in HD; do it)
YouTube - Future of the Left 'The Hope That House Built' (Official Video - 4AD)
"Arming Erritrea" (inexplicably, this is not the best song on the record--that's how good an LP it is! PLAY IT BRUTALLY LOUD):
YouTube - Arming Eritrea - Future of the Left
And a few from the first record, Curses...
"Adeadenemyalwayssmellsgood" (early single):
YouTube - Future Of The Left - 'adeadenemyalwayssmellsgood'
"Manchasm" (stunning single, with the brilliant refrain of "Collin is a pussy/A very pretty pussy/Collin is a pussy/A very pretty pussy...cat"):
YouTube - Future Of The Left 'Manchasm'
"Suddenly It's a Folk Song" (the tune which originally pulled me in and made me start making my peace with Mclusky's demise):
YouTube - future of the left - Suddenly It's A Folk Song - Manchasam
And, of course, the greatest video of all time, just because:
Sweary Kittens - rathergood.com
Mclusky is dead. Long live Mclusky.
I'm utterly furious that nobody's talking about this motherfucking record, and I decided that I'd move my one-man conversation from the most recent Mclusky thread and into its own, since Mclusky sadly, really is gone. The guitar and bass tones one this thing sound like granite strings on a cinder block body being mauled, rather than played, by asphalt picks. Totally, brutally, gorgeously ugly and beautiful and mad and brilliant. Not to mention catchy as!
For context, a few relevant and at times very thought-provoking links...
Falco's reaction to the leak, culminating with this brilliant post-script--"Next time somebody tells me that i can't drink my rider in the building I'm playing in I'm going to fuck them with their own shoes.":
MySpace.com Blogs - future of the left MySpace Blog
A wonderful interview at DiS (they have ardently supported this record, and there are a few other excellent pieces up for perusal):
Conversing with myself and another: DiS meets Future Of The Left / In Depth // Drowned In Sound
And, actually, Wikipedia seems to be the best way to get a good idea of critical consensus:
Travels with Myself and Another - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Please listen to this. Mclusky was the best band since Nero was still on the violin, back in the day. Somehow, against any and all odds, FotL is even better. After all the shit and shit luck that these dudes have been through, they deserve at least a listen! So give them one, for fuck's sake!
Finally, make a point of hearing "Lapsed Catholics," which may very well be the best song of the year. Says DiS...
‘Lapsed Catholics’ ends the album devastatingly, starting as an acoustic spoken word piece completely at odds with everything else here, before bursting into the most anthemic thing FOTL have produced to date. Falco sounds nude by the end, screeching "Give me something I can take away!", the closest he’s come to emotional transparency on record. It's the same earnestness you see when he's belting out his songs live.
...and ClashMusic...
Album finale ‘Lapsed Catholics’ contains the few brief moments of respite on here. Over a gently plucked, near-flamenco guitar, the group intones a series of reminiscences from their favourite films. Voices intermingle, and the simple lyrics begin to creep over one another, distorting the meaning before an electric guitar rears its head and screams. “I can’t stand still for the rest of my life,” sings Falkous, and you feel that this is one of the album’s most direct moments. “Be aware, be alert!” he shouts, desperate for a life without compromise. Seemingly answering the opening track’s call to arms, the band gently speaks the final words on the album, saying “it’s part of who they are, and who they’ll be again”. The lust for purity, for something unique and distinct, runs through the record like electricity running through a guitar.
"The Hope That House Built" (first single from Travels, and seemingly only functional if you watch it in HD; do it)
YouTube - Future of the Left 'The Hope That House Built' (Official Video - 4AD)
"Arming Erritrea" (inexplicably, this is not the best song on the record--that's how good an LP it is! PLAY IT BRUTALLY LOUD):
YouTube - Arming Eritrea - Future of the Left
And a few from the first record, Curses...
"Adeadenemyalwayssmellsgood" (early single):
YouTube - Future Of The Left - 'adeadenemyalwayssmellsgood'
"Manchasm" (stunning single, with the brilliant refrain of "Collin is a pussy/A very pretty pussy/Collin is a pussy/A very pretty pussy...cat"):
YouTube - Future Of The Left 'Manchasm'
"Suddenly It's a Folk Song" (the tune which originally pulled me in and made me start making my peace with Mclusky's demise):
YouTube - future of the left - Suddenly It's A Folk Song - Manchasam
And, of course, the greatest video of all time, just because:
Sweary Kittens - rathergood.com
Mclusky is dead. Long live Mclusky.