Death Cab = Prefab
September 18th, 2005Two unfortunately named bands make eerily similar music.
Death Cab for Cutie’s new album (which has been on heavy rotation all weekend) sounds very much like selected songs from the Prefab Sprout ouvre, particularly their first, Swoon.
Heather often cites my love of Prefab as the demarcation line in our age difference. That and the Waterboys. I still hold Fisherman’s Blues up there as one of the top albums of the 80s.
However, it was I who brought The Postal Service into the house. Still, that doesn’t make up for the fact that I have, somewhere in the vault, either Journey or Loverboy on vinyl. This would be before I lived in England and learned better.
Heather gave me the Doves and I offered Catherine Wheel. She the New Pornographers and I Marumari. It’s a delicious dance, this love of music and sharing. I still think she tires of my electronic leanings; Amon Tobin, TRS-80, Shadow, Boards of Canada, Four Tet, The Dining Rooms, Aphex Twin, and others (although I did score points with u-ziq’s Royal Astronomy). We share a love for Ben Folds (I had seen him live before she had) and Soul Coughing (the most underrated band of the 90s). Music is also a dangerous addiction, worse than crack. And this is going into wanky Pitchforkmedia/indie snob territory, so I’ll stop now. o
September 19th, 2005 at 12:13 am
ive been a fan of dcfc for about 4 years now. since the release of the photo album. are you comparing new dcfc to prefab, meaning the electronic beats of plans , or dcfc as a whole? ive never heard prefab but i will give it a listen. plans is alright i wish they would go back to we have the facts and we voting yes sound or photo album, more guitar less beats.
September 19th, 2005 at 12:56 am
as to your electronic leanings…might i be so bold as to suggest m83? amazing stuff. sigur ros meets appleseed cast.
September 19th, 2005 at 2:48 am
iTunes gave me a free DCfC track this week, and I remarked upon the unfortunate name at the time. Nice bassline, though, and that’s what’s important. I can barely remember Prefab Sprout, and I need to listen to the free track a couple more times, although on first hearing it I quite liked it, which is a good start. A better start than most of the iTunes free tracks, that’s for sure.
September 19th, 2005 at 7:15 am
I’m just glad that I’m not the only one who thinks that Soul Coughing is a great band.
September 19th, 2005 at 7:19 am
Journey. Loverboy. Ben Folds. The only names I recognized on your post. God. Now I REALLY feel old. (Note to self: Must go talk my kids and get some insight into newer music)(sigh)
September 19th, 2005 at 7:32 am
I’m just glad I’m not the only one who appreciates the brilliance of the word “wanky.”
September 19th, 2005 at 7:32 am
Why does Soul Coughing so rarely get its due? Mike Doughty is brilliant.
September 19th, 2005 at 8:11 am
Prefab Sprout were one of my favourite bands when I was a younger, influenced by my older sisters! Brothers Patrick and Martin McAloon grew up in my husbands home town in Consett, County Durham (very small town in the North East of England)
At one point the whole band were living in a communal house up there.
I even had a cat called Sprout
September 19th, 2005 at 8:17 am
Note: Amon Tobin also released an album under the moniker ‘Cujo’ called ‘Adventures in Foam’ which is quite tasty.
September 19th, 2005 at 8:17 am
Oh - and another cat called Faron (after the song Faron Young)
September 19th, 2005 at 8:17 am
Oh - and another cat called Faron (after the song Faron Young)
September 19th, 2005 at 8:17 am
Note: Amon Tobin also released an album under the moniker ‘Cujo’ called ‘Adventures in Foam’ which is quite tasty.
September 19th, 2005 at 9:20 am
One of things my husband and I loved about combining households was the union of our music collections.
We are close in age, so the music of our youth reads more like coffee preferences: I took mine black (Joy Division, The Birthday Party) while he preferred his with cream and a bit of sugar (The Modern Lovers, World Party).
Despite our disparate tastes, we have found common ground as we get older. We are still both trying to claim credit for Yo la Tenga’s presence [http://www.yolatengo.com/] in our home!
September 19th, 2005 at 9:32 am
For those of you needing to keep up with great music try http://www.kexp.org. It is a member supported radio station (in Seattle) that can play any music they want. The variety is so great on KEXP and they have live in studio performances-there are 3 of Mike Doughty.
September 19th, 2005 at 9:40 am
Realizing my mother had a Waterboys cassette back in the 80’s was an odd moment for me.
I wanted her to be that mid 30’s clueless mom.
Now that’s who I am!
September 19th, 2005 at 9:50 am
i almost never understand what the heck you’re writing about, yet i think i’m pretty smart. you must be way smarter.
September 19th, 2005 at 10:08 am
I LOVE The Waterboys. I haven’t met anyone else who does.
September 19th, 2005 at 10:43 am
Ah Soul Coughing. Alas, they’ve broken up, but Mike Doughty has a solo album out now. And he’s even on tour somewhere. http://www.mikedoughty.com/
And just to be a music snob, they are not The Doves, just “Doves”
September 19th, 2005 at 11:18 am
Mike Doughty was just here in the Charleston area last weekend. I couldn’t attend the show due to college football plans, but a friend who went said it was a really good show. Hold on, I think I actually have “Irresistible Bliss” here in my office…
September 19th, 2005 at 11:18 am
The New Pornographers’ Neko Case is making great music on her own, but also with this fantastic Toronto band, The Sadies. Her last album with them, The Tigers Have Spoken, is a mainstay in my car/house/office and is perfect for howling at top volumes. And I’m not just saying that because I have a crush on her, honest.
September 19th, 2005 at 11:22 am
Check out My Morning Jacket’s new CD as well as Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. You will not be disappointed. Well, actually, some folks despise CYHSY but if you like ‘em, you really, really like ‘em.
But My Morning Jacket’s new CD is fucking brilliant. Really.
September 19th, 2005 at 11:58 am
Oh, and that song on DCFC’s new cd, the one called Someday You Will Be Loved makes me feel molested (i.e. gross) every time I hear it. I sorta wish someone had told them to nix that ditty. It’s the only song on that album I could have done without.
Though, I’m pretty sure it’s just me.
September 19th, 2005 at 12:13 pm
I love this post. I did one last week on music that I like and it came out way longer than I thought it would - http://downwardspiraldance.blogspot.com/2005/09/music-that-i-like.html - but it was well worth it. And of course, over the weekend, I thought of about 16 different songs/bands/albums that I love that I had forgotten to mention. So I am sure I will do a ‘Part Deux’ one of these days.
Music is essential to my sanity.
September 19th, 2005 at 1:11 pm
I own every album you listed in your post, although I don’t have any on vinyl. All my vinyl is big band/swing/dixieland from 80 years ago.
I’m glad to see someone has made the Prefab-DCfC connection. I bet if you asked Ben Gibbard he’d list them as a primary influence. Lyrically, I think I prefer DCfC. Gibbard ranks up there with Conor Oberst in terms of ability as a wordsmithy.
Good to know someone else has a music habit that borders on crack-level addiction. True appreciation of good music, especially cross-genre (I hate fanboys), is a dying trend. Kudos to you and your readers on having impeccable taste
September 19th, 2005 at 1:12 pm
I have never heard of any ot those bands (except a few). But you’ve probably never heard of Oh-OK or The Pigs, either. My friends and I had a music email chain going around for a while letting each other in on little known bands. I love to hear of new things. Thanks!