Spider – Energy Gone Wrong
Committing a large chunk of your life to play hardcore punk is akin to joining a dissident political group in a country ruled by a one-party system under the iron fist of a dictator. You’ll definitely get recognized, you won’t make many friends, and many will admire your work, but won’t admit it for fear of retaliation.
In other words, it’s a very brave act to turn the love of the Adolescents, The Circle Jerks and The Germs into a lifelong profession. In fact, on closer scrutiny, it absolutely makes sense. While the earliest, glamorous punk bands were often consumed by their instincts for self-destruction, the hardcore groups that came later possessed a great instinct for self-preservation and a desire to constantly move forward.
This is what Spider’s Energy Gone Wrong brings to mind for me. The hardcore group has crafted a song with a fierce groove, passionate vocals, and a noticeable pop-punk veneer. Pop stars come, go and are swiftly replace, but it’s only the truly passionate musicians that inspire long-term devotion.
Aidan Jack Finnecy – Mr. Blue
Throwing out a cover once in a while proved an excellent fighting strategy for many bands. Van Halen’s David Lee Roth used to say that reworking a cover is an excellent way to take half the slack of your own back when getting a new record ready. When the resulting cover manages to reinterpret the original in a way that opens it up to a new public, that’s even better. House, mansions, maybe even castles, were built on the success of a well-played cover.
The enduring success of Catherine Feeny’s Mr. Blue is a symptom of the times, where records don’t get sold, so much as pitched to folks who might need a bit of a tune in the background. While it enjoyed a good amount of recognition when it was originally released back in 2008, the song has gained a strange cult following after being featured in a number of movies and as the memorable, depressing ending of the cartoon BoJack Horseman.
This is all besides the point though. Aidan Jack Finnecy are a very interesting 60s inspired, brand new indie-rock duo. It’s mostly the quality of the singing, part Ariel Pink, part Jeff Buckley that sells the cover and makes eager to here where Aidan Jack Finnecy is headed to next.