
Lung Brothers – Death Be Kind
Some people mean it. They’re terrifying. They’re not saying things just to get attention, just to mess with your mind while you’re busy having a beer and watching the game. Some people are genuinely sad bastards with a kind of poetic love for tragedy and the abyss. There’s nothing you can do for those people but take the risk and listen to them. Lung Brothers are those kinds of people.
They’ll probably be alright. But not in the way that other people are right. They won’t hold birthday parties for themselves, and if they do, they won’t invite a clown or hang colourful balloons in the kitchen. If they do hold the party, it’ll be because their wife made them do it, and after a few drinks, they’ll invite you into the garden and, while having a smoke, recount how their father used to beat them or how they saw their pet gerbil die when they were just a child. Mad stuff!
Lung Brothers’ “Death Be Kind” is beautifully poetic in the same way that every truly hopeless and well-crafted piece of art is. But there aren’t many of those around. Most artists throw some light in for good measure, or if they’re in a black metal band, don’t mean it anyway, so there’s no reason to get upset. Lung Brothers do mean it, and while it ain’t hard to see why their lo-fi indie-rock is beautiful and brave, it’s easy to get upset with them just as you would with people who ask you out to the garden to tell you horrible truths about their lives. The world’s filled with those, but only some, like Lung Brothers, tell the whole story and don’t leave out any of the terrible details.
The Bobby Tenderloin Universe – Marigold
Some people think that they’re stuck in an old-fashioned Greek tragedy. It takes years, and, unfortunately, sometimes, the disappearance of those people causes everyone else to realise that, essentially, they were right. All of this is a massive burden on one’s life. But there are perks. When one of these tragic heroes speaks, the world tends to listen and sigh.
The Bobby Tenderloin Universe makes poetic Country & Western not unlike those indie-rock heroes, The Silver Jews, led by one genius, David Berman, seemingly condemned by himself to damnation. Adding beautiful poetry to country music might not seem like the most obvious musical equation. But look deeper, and you’ll realise it makes sense.
The best country songs have longing and despair in them and a graceful stance from the person delivering the words. The Bobby Tenderloin Universe’s “Marigold” is a pretty song about returning to The Garden of Eden and seeking love in a new way. But there’s something unsettling in the baritone of the singer. It’s the thousand-yard stare in aural form. A lot must’ve happened on the road to this garden, and the country indie song makes you wonder just what those eyes must’ve seen to make the singer hurt so bad.