No more Song of the Day

I'll aim for a music-related post once a week. More manageable.

The Streets – "When You Wasn't Famous"

Fluxblog has this mp3 available for download (or use Elbo.ws or Hype Machine to search for it on another site).

The Streets (aka Mike Skinner) flat out corners the market on that whole Brit talk-rap-sing thing. I'd first heard his music (as much of America did too, I suppose) on the radio with that song with Chris Martin of Coldplay ("Dry Your Eyes" - I had to look it up). I didn't even like it when I first heard it, I thought it was whiny and depressing. My attraction to it crept up on me and after a while, when it came on, I couldn't switch the station. Hmm, sneaky.

This new single has none of that drama. I love it. Pure ear-candy. The video distracts from the song, so if you can listen to it before you see the video, do it, otherwise close your eyes and listen to it first. I'd love a version that isn't a radio edit, but I'm not convinced that I'm enough of a fan to go out and buy the CD. Probably just need time.

In unrelated news, I'm still collecting as many bootleg José González live tracks as I can find. I went out and bought both his CD's, Veneer and the Stay in the Shade EP, this afternoon. He's also safely secured a spot (say that three times fast) on the elite list of those I want to sing in my bedroom.

He's not in the stratospheric range of Jeff Buckley and Nick Drake (who he's compared to more often than not), but his music and his voice are clean, strong and emotional. Very moving. He does a lot of covers during live performances, which I give the thumbs up to, especially when they're covers of songs by Joy Division and Massive Attack. Très cool.