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Nickel Eye f. Wale: “Brandy of the Damned (Ronson Remix)”
Strokes guitarist Nikolai Fraiture gets upstaged on his own song, twice. First, producer Mark Ronson swoops in and spiffs up the rhythm section, replacing the original’s white-reggae feel with some brass hits and afrobeat drums. Then Wale steps in and hijacks the final verse, somehow managing to put Fraiture’s stoned drawl to shame, even though he’s rapping about Slim-Fast shakes.
Crystal Antlers: “Andrew”
Crystal Antlers get the dubious honor of being the last band to release an album on Touch & Go, but “Andrew”, with it’s melancholy organ figures and vaguely bluesy vocals doesn’t seem like such a bad swan song for the label.
I.U.D.: “911”
Brutal Boredoms-inspired drum violence from Gang Gang Dance’s Lizzi Bougatsos and Growing’s Sadie Laska. No, not Boredoms-inspired as in blissful tribal drumming and sun worship. It’s more of a drive- a-bulldozer-through-a-nightclub, make vomit noises, and industrial nihilism type thing.
Art Brut: “Alcoholics Unanimous”
Art Brut front man Eddie Argos takes a hard look in the mirror and apologizes for endless nights of slurred words, drunken passes, and puke-stained furniture. But the song’s chugging guitars and call-and-response vocals might lead you to question his sincerity. The chorus won’t quit and, surely, neither will Argos.