unpopular

We Make Believe

Don't Fall - The Chameleons (from 'Script Of The Bridge'. On YouTube)
Another Bed - The Twilight Sad (from 'No One Can Ever Know'. On YouTube)
We Make Believe - Observer Drift (Bandcamp)
Predictable Kinds of Thoughts - The Pear Traps (Bandcamp)
Capricornia - Allo, Darlin' (On Slumberland's Soundcloud)
The Good Things - Summer Twins (Bandcamp)
Comme Des Garçons - Sleuth (Bandcamp and on YouTube)
No Idealists Left - Liechtenstein (from 'Fast Forward')
Arnold's Song - The Creakies (Bandcamp)
Special - Randolph's Leap (Bandcamp)
Are You Who You Think You Are? - The Spook School (Bandcamp)
Jealousy - Capitals (Soundcloud)
Come Home - HEHFU (Bandcamp)
A Well Of Hours - S's (Bandcamp)
Coral Reef - CAVE CAT (Soundcloud)
Skin Storm - Bradford (on YouTube)
Forever Boy - A Classic Education (Soundcloud and on Vimeo)
I Hope He's Everything You Wanted Me To Be - Just Joans (from forthcoming volume 4 of TVP's tribute on The Beautiful Music)

Give yourself a treat, download for a day available now!

Forever Boy

A Classic Education - Forever Boy (Official Video) from A Classic Education on Vimeo.

Let me make it clear that I do not like motorcycles. Smelly, noisy, greasy things. I do not particularly like the iconography of motorcycles either, although I can understand the appeal and the roots that feed into popular culture are crystal clear. So whilst on an emotional level this new film for A Classic Education’s fabulous ‘Forever Boy’ does little for me, there is nevertheless something enormously appealing about it. The Pop culture connections spin around, from ‘Loveless’ to Bruce Davidson; from ‘Girl On A Motorcycle’ to Danny Lyon. Of course ACE have referenced Danny Lyon on the ‘Call It Blazing’ set and rightly so, for Lyon is one of the truly great photographers. And after all there has always been something of the gang in all the best groups.

 

There is something enormously appealing in the obsessional nature of investigative trail following at work here too. The film features 70 year old ex-Motorcycle racer Giovanni Collina who continues to ride his motorcycle every day. And if the physical reality of that means little to me then the abstract is the soul’s essential life-blood itself and sits so perfectly alongside those evocative tales of Italian cyclists that Herbie Sykes has been excavating these past few years. And really, aren’t Herbie’s texts so spiritually analogous with Lyon’s photographs? And don’t A Certain Education capture something of that spirit in their sound?

If you’re in North America you can catch ACE on tour over the next couple of months with Cloud Nothings, Ganglians and others. And when you’re done watching the ‘Forever Boy’ film, take a look at this excellent little documentary by LessTV. 

- BLAZING ROADS - A Classic Education from Less Tv on Vimeo. 

 

Sleep Around

 

Apparently there is to be a new Spaghetti Anywhere EP featuring this particular cut. I am looking forward to it enormously having thoroughly enjoyed listening to their previous releases last summer. Indeed, they cropped up on two Unpopular mixes here and here. Expect a track from the new EP to similarly feature on a mix here soon. Catch their previous releases from their Bandcamp. The lovely 'Doolally' and 'Arrochar' singles are free, so really there is no excuse.