Anton On Songs Of The Modern Age, As Selected By Mr. iPod On Shuffle.
1. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Catholic Schoolgirls Rule.
In the early 90s, all I'd listen to while playing Whacky Races - something I spent a great deal of time doing - was What Hits?. This wasn't one of my favourite tracks on the album, probably because I didn't understand the concept; I thought there must be some sort of important doctrine that governed the existence and activities of catholic schoolgirls (after all, when I'd see something like 'Frank Rules!' graffitied on a wall, I'd wonder what these rules were and why they needed to be put in place, and I could never understand who would be forced to follow them).
It was only later in life, during adolescence, when the true meaning of the song came to me, and I begun to understand how very true its message was, its chorus ringing in my ears - and those of my friends - as we saw breasts expanding under school uniforms.
Later, this track would become the soundtrack for a year ten prank acted out by my two schoolfriends Felix and Nick. They blasted the song from a ghetto blaster while running through the grounds of a nearby, highly exclusive catholic girls college. The sentiment, I understand, was not appreciated.
2. The Sunnyboys - Show Me Some Discipline.
The self-titled debut from the Sunnyboys was perfection; a screaming, insecure, angry, lonely testament to young manhood wrapped in divine pop melodies and fuzzy guitar riffs. Alone With You encapsulated the malaise of the immature guy looking for companionship and confidence in the bottom of beer bottles while out with too-perfect-to-touch women. The album still stands as one of the most impressive achievements in the history of Australian music.
It was no surprise then that the follow-up albums, Get Some Fun and Individuals were let downs, unfortunate by-products of hectic tour schedules, poor management and a band that didn't know when to stop and think where it was going. They were losing money, their lead singer and songwriter dealing with a badly troubled mind.
Even so, Get Some Fun produced Show Me Some Discipline, a welcome sign of remaining form from Jeremy Oxley. Most punters were creeped out by it, unsurprisingly suspicious of a song that seemed to be borne out of a desire for a good spanking and the feel of tight leather on skin. Apparently, Oxley meant for the song to be about relationships, not kinky sex, but his intent isn't here nor there really, as Roland Barthes would happily tell you; the twin assault riffs and urgent verses sound like pent up sexual frustration to most who hear them.
3. Moby - Natural Blues.
Before every song on Play found its way into advertisements, coffee shops and the ubiquitous metal-and-pine bars of the western world - and there was a time, believe it or not - it was a surprising, life-affirming, otherworldly effort from a man few outside the techno or soundtrack sets knew of. The old Lomax-recorded blues, synthy strings, fingerpicked acoustic guitars and chilled out beats were the sound of a ripe imagination in tandem with near-divine inspiration. It was eclectic, interesting and - most importantly - touching, both old and new, caught inbetween the deep south and the east coast.
Natural Blues is a perfect example of all that. Moby was open enough to hear the stunning pathos in the slave refrain (oh, lordy now, trouble's so hard) and smart enough to know not to obscure it. He frames it, embellishing it with 21st century technology, recontextualising its sadness. Which is why the song was always going to end up in an advertisement - along with every other song from the album, famously; it was too beautiful not to be co-opted. Too weird to live...
1. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Catholic Schoolgirls Rule.
In the early 90s, all I'd listen to while playing Whacky Races - something I spent a great deal of time doing - was What Hits?. This wasn't one of my favourite tracks on the album, probably because I didn't understand the concept; I thought there must be some sort of important doctrine that governed the existence and activities of catholic schoolgirls (after all, when I'd see something like 'Frank Rules!' graffitied on a wall, I'd wonder what these rules were and why they needed to be put in place, and I could never understand who would be forced to follow them).
It was only later in life, during adolescence, when the true meaning of the song came to me, and I begun to understand how very true its message was, its chorus ringing in my ears - and those of my friends - as we saw breasts expanding under school uniforms.
Later, this track would become the soundtrack for a year ten prank acted out by my two schoolfriends Felix and Nick. They blasted the song from a ghetto blaster while running through the grounds of a nearby, highly exclusive catholic girls college. The sentiment, I understand, was not appreciated.
2. The Sunnyboys - Show Me Some Discipline.
The self-titled debut from the Sunnyboys was perfection; a screaming, insecure, angry, lonely testament to young manhood wrapped in divine pop melodies and fuzzy guitar riffs. Alone With You encapsulated the malaise of the immature guy looking for companionship and confidence in the bottom of beer bottles while out with too-perfect-to-touch women. The album still stands as one of the most impressive achievements in the history of Australian music.
It was no surprise then that the follow-up albums, Get Some Fun and Individuals were let downs, unfortunate by-products of hectic tour schedules, poor management and a band that didn't know when to stop and think where it was going. They were losing money, their lead singer and songwriter dealing with a badly troubled mind.
Even so, Get Some Fun produced Show Me Some Discipline, a welcome sign of remaining form from Jeremy Oxley. Most punters were creeped out by it, unsurprisingly suspicious of a song that seemed to be borne out of a desire for a good spanking and the feel of tight leather on skin. Apparently, Oxley meant for the song to be about relationships, not kinky sex, but his intent isn't here nor there really, as Roland Barthes would happily tell you; the twin assault riffs and urgent verses sound like pent up sexual frustration to most who hear them.
3. Moby - Natural Blues.
Before every song on Play found its way into advertisements, coffee shops and the ubiquitous metal-and-pine bars of the western world - and there was a time, believe it or not - it was a surprising, life-affirming, otherworldly effort from a man few outside the techno or soundtrack sets knew of. The old Lomax-recorded blues, synthy strings, fingerpicked acoustic guitars and chilled out beats were the sound of a ripe imagination in tandem with near-divine inspiration. It was eclectic, interesting and - most importantly - touching, both old and new, caught inbetween the deep south and the east coast.
Natural Blues is a perfect example of all that. Moby was open enough to hear the stunning pathos in the slave refrain (oh, lordy now, trouble's so hard) and smart enough to know not to obscure it. He frames it, embellishing it with 21st century technology, recontextualising its sadness. Which is why the song was always going to end up in an advertisement - along with every other song from the album, famously; it was too beautiful not to be co-opted. Too weird to live...
I don't get the Sunnyboys though. Ok .. I'll admit I've only ever heard one of their songs, and I don't even remember the name of it . But I remember thinking I didn't like it. (it's the one with the video where they're playing outdoors)