Friday, April 13, 2007

Anal List

I've been toying with this list for a bit, thinking it over, wondering whether or not anyone else would be interested in thinking of lists like this.
I'll say right off that the first rule is, No superlatives. There is no possible way this could be a "top" list or a "best" list, and so again, I'm sort of wary, because if a music fan can't say, "This is the best, no question, and you're wrong if you disagree," then what can he say?

Anyhow, the list is of great moments, not lasting longer than half a minute or so, in some great songs. Of course, a song need not be a member of any of your top 5 lists in order to contain a moment that'd fit this list nicely.

I was listening to Doves' "Pounding" the other day, and toward the end, when the Edge-esque chack-a-chack-a-chack-a-chackachackachacka-chack-a-chack-a-chack-a-chackachackachacka part comes in, I thought, This always gets me, no matter how many times I hear this song. So I started thinking of other great, brief, titillating moments in songs, and I thought maybe this would be a good list for a bunch of geeks.

Mine:

5. Aforementioned "Pounding" moment
4. The guitar lick after the solo after the bridge in Weezer's "Buddy Holly"
3. First verse of Kings of Leon's "Spiral Staircase," when Followill sings, "Get your ass together, You better walk, walk, walk, a by walking, we cannot run!" or something like that. (This was the lyric I found when I Googled the song - I just thought he was singing, "A wop-boba-lop-bop" etc.)
2. The drum entrance on George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord" - the most unassuming entrance in rock'n'roll history.
1. Interpol's "Leif Erikson" - line in second verse: "Well then hook me up and throw me, baby cakes, cuz I like to get hooked."

9 comments:

Tim Horsman said...

This is another one of those difficult to construct list, but I've got a few things in mind already. Once I get it together I'll post.

Ditto on the guitar riff from "Buddy Holly"

Anonymous said...

The opening of Where The Streets Have No Name, both in person, and on disc.

No where near the depth of your reviews, but Rob Swingle and I have been doing a podcast. Check it out here: www.bothright.com

Tim Horsman said...

1) From the very first time I heard it, to now whenever I hear it on shuffle from the iPod, there is a moment in the middle of Death Cab's 20th Century Towers where a chorus of voices meet Gibbard's emo wail...."Alll Arouuunnnnd!" Every time.

2) This crazy section in The Mars Volta's "Cygnus...Vismund Cygnus" from the album Frances the Mute. It's 3:00 in to a 12:00 song (stupid prog rock), and it's the absolute tightest recording ever - it's blinding fast - it demands to be rewound every listen. If I were any kinds of musician I could describe it. I blame Brandon Schenck for pointing it out, now I can't get it out of my head.

3) The aforementioned Weezer/Buddy Holly riff.

4) The opening track of Fugazi's End Hits - "Break" - the entire first 1:30...Everything. The guitar, the lyrics ("can't ask for more so I overfill, we take apart everything we build, had it right here, now it's gone, on and on....BREAK!")

5) The opening of The White Stripes, Seven Nation Army from Elephant. Still great after 4 years.

These are just the first 5 that I can identify...I love this idea for the list - It's these moments that I live for when listening to music. There's at least three on the new Arcade Fire, and two of them involve French lyrics...

Anonymous said...

First one off the top of my head I can think of is Refused-New Noise...the intro...ridiculous. Pure Rock at it's rockest.

I'm sure I'll think of more...

Daniel Szombathy said...

It's interesting that you mentioned "Leif Erikson", Jason, because that has always been my favorite Interpol song. My favorite moment in that song is different that yours, however; I love that part when Sam starts playing the snare and then Paul sings, "It's like learning a new language."

I've never heard a better metaphor (I guess it's a simile) than that in any song ever.

Fugazi has several special moments for me, too, Tim. My favorite is probably the end of "23 Beats Off" and the beginning of "Sweet and Low". Horrible feedback into an amazingly sweet and catchy melody. Gets me everytime.

Seeing you write about Fugazi, Tim, brings back the memory of us sitting in Cox Two (probably playing chess or Tony Hawk on your computer) and you be forced to skip to the next song because you couldn't take the squealing feedback.

Ah...the memories.

I will now listen to nothing but Fugazi for the next two weeks.

Anonymous said...

Thought of another...

Intro to "Fishing the Sky" Appleseed Cast...Everytime I hear it, it makes me smile.

Ah yes, Fugazi...there's really too many to mention with them. What a great show that was for us to all see as our last hoorah...and to think Mr. Mackaye was standing right beside us during the opener...priceless.

Tim Horsman said...

I totally forgot about that show Brad. Wow. That was a great show, maybe the best...definitely the best in indy.

Not only was Mackaye beside us, so was the lead singer from Chamberlain...we think.

I agree with the Interpol switch...Ever since I read that quote, I've been hearing "Paul" sing "It's like learning a new language"...It's one of those quotes where you have to listen to the whole song after reading it.

monroes said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
monroes said...

the lull before and subsequent drum fill into the bridge of "in my place" by coldplay. it's like a mental/emotional/musical piece of Ex-Lax. sorry for intruding and commenting on such an old post, however, i needed to say that.