Love Ghost – Shine Like Gold
The worst crime rock ever committed was getting fat, boring, and indebted to a corporate world that never cared which of the latest trends it needed to support in order to get a buck. We have to forgive rock for getting old, but not for losing its interest and getting fat.
This is where we are stuck now. Rock has not expired full, and there are great things being done, usually in the underground, but when people put forth the question”Is rock dead?” what they are really asking is whether the genre still has the fight in it to ruffle some feathers.
Love Ghost may not be everyone’s cup of tea, especially if you’ve grown up on the classic rock, complete with big guitar solos and soaring vocals. And, for that reason, this is an important band. They have the potential to annoy the old guard and produce a sound that is fresh enough to make it attractive to new, young audiences.
You may call their sound trend-chasing. And, while you may even be true, it’s their willingness to break with convention and seek out fame and fortune. Ambition has always been the driving force behind rock and Love Ghost has it in spades.
The Pretty Flowers – Bucket Beach
It’s hard to understand why folks like the ones that play in the Pretty Flowers, or myself, would want to pursue being in a small indie band. Hell knows it’s not because of an ostensible supply of talent that the world simply must learn of. We ain’t no Eddie van Halens after all.
Just as The Replacements’ heartbreaking and epochal ode to playing in a band, acting like you’re too clever for the world, and only getting minimal airplay on some no-name radio stations suggests, this lifestyle chooses you and its a blessing and, especially, a curse from then onwards.
This is what it feels like on The Pretty Flowers’ Bucket Beach, a tune that brings to mind the moment that grunge went acoustic, soft, and thoughtful. Musically, this is a clever little number that spares little of the sugary melodies. It’s indie-rock from people that would really love it if you loved them.
