Pick-Me-Up Songs (Part 2)

On to the second disc! You remember the rules from yesterday, no? Ok then!


1. The Shins-Sleeping Lessons: This song truly feels like pulling out of a funk--it's a minute and a half of James Mercer's distorted falsetto and keys before light percussion and acoustic guitar come in, and nearly two and a half before it builds beyond that. When Mercer was writing Wincing the Night Away, he was suffering from insomnia, though a more visceral emotion and reaction are present in the song. While the rest of Wincing the Night Away failed to live up to expectations (save "Australia"), this opener is a fine way to start the record.



2. Wilco-Shot in the Arm: Jeff Tweedy is at his most poetic here, with couplets like: "The ashtray says / you were up all night" and "you finally slept / while the sun caught fire." But what really makes the track are the dual refrains, first Tweedy chanting, louder and louder "Maybe all I need / is a shot in the arm / something in my veins / bloodier than blood." Second, and more mellow, "what you once were / isn't what you want to be / anymore."



3. Ted Leo-Biomusicology: The opening guitar riff is reminiscent of the Arcade Fire's "Wake Up" (or vice versa), which is a good start. Maybe this song is "Wake Up"'s cooler, more thoughtful older brother. If that guitar wasn't enough to get you going, Leo ends the song singing: "all in all / we cannot stop singing / we cannot start sinking/ we swim until it ends / they may kill / and we may be parted / but we will ne'er be broken-hearted."



4. The Velvet Underground-Rock & Roll: Somehow, still, the Velvet Underground are not appreciated to the extent they should be. For four records between 1967-1970, they were as good as any band out there not named the Beatles. Forgive Lou Reed for his latter sins (most recently, Lulu) and enjoy those four records (The Velvet Underground & Nico, White Light/White Heat, The Velvet Underground, and Loaded). My favorite is the 4th, Loaded, which is the most pop-heavy of the quartet. Rock & Roll is one of the stunning tracks off of Loaded, as Reed loosely spins the tale of midwest Jenny, whose life was saved by Rock & Roll! Yeah Rock & Roll!



5. Andrew Bird-Way Out West: No link for this bad boy, you'll have to find it on your own. But it's well worth it.

6. Built to Spill-In the Morning: Is there any other way to feel than "In the morning / feeling half right?" And while Built to Spill and Doug Martsch are known better for their virtuoso guitars than Martsch's off-kilter voice, the lyrics here do capture the feelings of overwhelming mornings: "Today is flat beneath the weight of that / next day next day next day next day."



7. Band of Horses-Funeral: Maybe there's something morbid about the song ("at every occasion / I'm ready for a funeral), but the determination in Ben Bridwell's voice and the strident guitars makes this an uplifting experience as a funeral could be.



8. Paul Simon-50 Ways to Leave Your Lover: Another odd choice, perhaps, but let me explain. Leaving your lover is actually tougher than being left, I'm pretty sure. This song provides (nearly) 50 ways to leave your lover, but also the more comforting realization that it's something that many people must do at some point.



9. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah-The Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth: More for the overall feel of the song than anything else. Singer Alec Ounsworth is at his warbly best here on the vocals, carefully intertwined with the call and response guitars used on the song.



10. The Walkmen-Rue the Day: For some reason, this song feels like Christmas to me, more specifically, coming home for Christmas from college. "When we were introduced / we both laughed / cause we've been friends since long ago / and then today / but I never thought of you one single day / but yesterday / I remembered driving with no headlights / we would tiptoe out in the evening / never done such things before / but I have never frowned once / thinking of you since / I'd be lying if / I said your name never came up / as I'd be thinking of just how I'd like to cash my days in now / and all I ever do is think of yesterday / man it's hard to stand up straight all of the time." Hamilton Leithauser's drunken cadence waned a little on later records, but it's at its best here. The coup de grace is the end of the song, as Leithauser's wisdom shines through his inebriated vocals: "oh there's a memory calling / calling way too loud and way to strong / twisting all the bad things into good / I'm a lucky guy now / but I'll never know until its gone / yeah I'll never know it till its gone."



11. MGMT-Weekend Wars: Fight against the need to be productive on your weekends. Crush those plans to paint your walls. It's difficult to win unless you're bored. Easy to remember, hard to do.



12. YACHT-Psychic City: I remember running through the streets and National Mall of downtown DC listening to this song. Five minutes of original bliss, a great song after a move to a new place.



13. Modest Mouse-Float On: If you forgive the opening lines (which ape Alanis Morisette's "Ironic"), you have the centerpiece of the fantastic Good News for People Who Love Bad News, a melody used throughout the record, and a song to pull you out of whatever doldrums you're in at the moment.



14. Micachu-Vulture: Containing one of my favorite lines of all time ("half of my leg is still in my coffee"), this opener to 2009's Jewellery is catchy in a way that this type of experimental pop rarely is. Everything feels sped up to a degree which feels out of control, yet Micah Levi manages to reign it all in, more or less, to a disastrously beautiful effect.



15. Black Lips-Bad Kids: A little punk, but not in pretentious way, a little pop, but not in a cheap way, a little drunk, but not in an out of control way, and a lot of great guitar and humor.



16. Deerhunter-Don't Cry: A distant cousin of "Biomusicology" or "Wake Up," with the guitar catchiness and oh ah whoaaaaaaaa's, but a little off-kilter, just like the rest of their catalogue.



17. Dodos-Red and Purple: It has the resplendent percussion that made Visiter so fantastic, and the emotions-on-sleeve approach that really put the record over the top. It's a heartfelt invitation to the heartbroken: "come and join us in the trenches / red and purple / by our sides."



18. Avett Brothers-Shame: A normal sad sack Avett Brothers song? Um, no. Sure, it starts that way, but man oh man, I still think the end of the song is one of the best things they've ever done. They hit the bridge a little after 2:15, and it's a Beach Boys song from there on out, "the truth the be known / the truth be told / my heart was always fairly cold / posing to be as warm as yours." And yeah, there's boatloads of shame there, but that bridge is uplifting as any words the Avetts have ever spouted.



19. Noah and the Whale-Love of an Orchestra: Sandwiched in the middle of Noah and the Whale's gut-wrenching breakup record The First Days of Spring is "Love of an Orchestra," a moment of bright light in an album otherwise filled with late, lonely nights. The songlover's best refrain: "I know I'll never be lonely / I got songs in my blood / I'm carrying all of the love of an orchestra."



20. Solomon Burke-Everybody Needs Somebody to Love: When the King of Rock & Soul tells us that "if everybody was to sing this song, it would save the whole world," it's hard not to believe him. So when you hear his voice, pulled taut like the string of a guitar, the effect is palatable not just because of his voice, but also because of his convincingly earnest nature. And when he ends it by saying "I need you (you, you, you, you)," the listener is right in step. I'm guessing that when he requests "I just want one woman to stand up and say 'I love you,'" he was overwhelmed by the response. Which is this world as it should be.



21. White Stripes-The Same Boy You've Always Known: Jack White was at his most snarling on White Blood Cells, and ends this song telling the listener "and if there's anything good about me / I'm the only one who knows." The guitar stomps right along with Jack, providing the necessary muscle for the defiant nature of the song.



22. The Kinks-This Time Tomorrow: Nothing more than "this time tomorrow / where will we be / on a spaceship somewhere / sailing over an empty sea..."



Bonus: Suggestions from Steven (in yesterday's comments section):

1. Ryan Adams-Chin Up, Cheer Up



2. Ryan Adams-Halloween: Had not heard this one before. Good pick.



3. Van Morrison-Starting a New Life: Van Morrison's voice alone, especially from that era, is enough to pick you up.



4. Van Morrison-You're My Woman



5. Josh Ritter-Good Man: Steven: " I mean, it admits over and over again how bad it has been and still is out there, but there are these major chords we hold on to, and you just ask a woman to swing up on your horse with you and ride into the sunset b/c despite all the bad, you’re a good man for her…a good man. Damn, I love that song."



Photo by Poppet With a Camera