That opening chorus is the thesis statement that explains why Dan Mangan’s debut, Nice, Nice, Very Nice still works seven years later. It’s a shame we don’t hear a lot of music like this anymore. It’s a shame people don’t make a lot of this anymore.

It’s hard to find a Canadian who isn’t into Dan Mangan. Last year, he had another breakout record with Blacksmith called Club Meds. But Nice, Nice, Very Nice is the one that started it all.

I found myself re-listening to it this week when Apple Music claimed the album was “new”. That was giggle-worthy, but I revisited the record anyway. And it’s worth another listen. It’s a great reminder of how far Dan Mangan has come, but also how great of a songwriter Mangan is.

The record has aged surprisingly well, although I think the fun tracks that garnered recognition in 2009 (like “Robots” are less interesting than the more personal tracks. I love “Road Regrets” (the afore-mentioned opening track) and “You Silly Git” or “Tina’s Glorious Comeback” (among others) because of their personal lyrics.

But none of the tracks are weak. It’s just an impeccable album from start to finish. Circumstances are totally different, but it reminds me in spirit of Bon Iver’s For Emma, Forever Ago: an inauspicious debut that nobody could have predicted would go this far.

Nobody’s going to give me an award for writing about how great Nice, Nice, Very Nice is in 2016. But it’s worth revisiting. And if you’ve never heard of it before, it’s not too late to listen to it the first time. Dan Mangan’s debut full-length record remains the beautiful album you remember it as.

The post Dan Mangan: Nice, Nice, Very Nice appeared first on Unsung Sundays.

Baby Darling Dollface Honey does something few bands can do: it carves out an original niche in the blues rock genre that the band easily squeezes into. With big guitar riffs and blues-influenced guitar licks, the album feels as inspired by the riffage of The White Stripes as it does the guitar licks of Buddy Guy.

Death by Diamonds and Pearls is a great example of the band’s agility, as they construct a verse that feels jurassic in scope and slowly bring the song to an explosive bridge that’s so clearly influenced by the mayhem of The White Stripes that it could be called a cover track if it weren’t for the guitar solo that follows.

Light of the Morning, the album’s opener, is worth mentioning too: the opening, with nothing but vocal harmonies in tandem with a bluesy guitar lick, is more memorable than the best tracks from most bands. It’s at once Black Sabbath and Zeppelin rolled together all at once, but it has the levity of The Hives.

I Know What I Am has a trademark blues riff with some great call and response going on between the two vocalists. Despite its obvious influences, though, it never sounds anything less than fresh. It’d be a great live track too.

Almost every track on the record is worth listening to, and the band’s wide array of influences becomes more obvious as the album goes on. By the end of Bomb, some of their metal influences have become a little more obvious too. The song isn’t heavy in any traditionally “metal” way, but at the same time it’s experimenting with some of the genre’s guitar tricks.

When the band slows down, it becomes clear Band of Skulls can be very intimate too. Honest is a great track that would sit well on something like Led Zeppelin’s III. I love the guitar sound, but I’m also a big fan of those harmonies.

That intimacy is what made early Band of Skulls so good, though. It’s not just that they’re good songwriters (although they are). It’s that the band was able to carry that sense of intimacy even into its bigger, more explosive tracks. Blood is as emotionally raw and open as one could expect from a blues track (and it’s a particularly excellent track). It feels like the band is performing right in front of you. It’s not the production, but just the band playing a clear passion.

That sense of intimacy has been lost on their newest record, I think. It’s something I treasure, and something that makes the band’s debut stand out among the pack — even seven years later. Baby Darling Dollface Honey is one of the best debut albums in recent memory, and at this point, could be called a verifiable classic.

The post Band of Skulls: Baby Darling Dollface Honey appeared first on Unsung Sundays.

From beginning to end, White Sugar is a total treat. Projecting Buddy Guy at one moment and Joe Bonamassa at another, Taylor is part human, part chameleon, all blues.

Some people would say the album slows down towards the end, but if anything, I think it just becomes more intimate. It’s not a bad thing. Intimacy is one area where blues excels. And Taylor is an exemplary blues musician. Works all around for me.

The post Joanne Shaw Taylor: White Sugar appeared first on Unsung Sundays.

These guys are old school, blues-infused rock’n’roll. Really, if it weren’t for some of the foul language, your mother wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between this record and Chuck Berry’s On Top. It’s an immensely entertaining record from start to finish, with homages to the old school everywhere and some of the best guitar noodling out there.

Two things are pretty clear: Black Joe Lewis loves blues music and rock’n’roll, and Black Joe Lewis believes in the almighty guitar riff. If there was ever a hidden gem in modern rock music then, a guy that could consistently hit you beneath the belts, right where it hurts, right where you feel it, Black Joe Lewis is that guy. Don’t miss this record if you like your rock delivered with a little soul.

The post Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears: Tell ‘Em What Your Name Is! appeared first on Unsung Sundays.

Getting rid of the sheen helps make the music feel more approachable, as if you’re listening to some of your friends have fun in a garage. Does that mean these guys pose a threat to the success of Beach House? Probably not. But they offer something the big shoe-gazers don’t: a little bit of intimacy.

The post Lotus Plaza: The Floodlight Collective appeared first on Unsung Sundays.

If you live under a rock or missed this record when it came out, Them Crooked Vultures is a supergroup consisting of John Paul Jones (from Led Zeppelin) on bass, Dave Grohl (of Nirvana/Foo Fighters) on drums, and Josh Homme (of Queens of the Stone Age and Kyuss) taking care of vocals and rhythm guitar work. This was their first and (so far) only record.

What makes the record so special is its throwback vibes delivered with modern kerfuffle and sincerity. Top notch production means that John Paul Jones’ masterful bass work can actually be heard. Grohl pounds the drums like you’ve never heard him pound drums. Josh Homme is in top form. The band sounds like a Zeppelin-inspired Queens of the Stone Age most of the time, but that’s a great thing because it makes all these guys better.

Each of the songs is worth listening to, with nary a bad one in the record, but the best songs tend to be the long ones. Zeppelin was always at their best when they were free to write epic rockers, and the formula works here too. I can’t recommend this album enough; it’s one of my favourites.

The post Them Crooked Vultures: Them Crooked Vultures appeared first on Unsung Sundays.

It’s hard to be in a bad mood when you listen to this soundtrack.Alexandre Desplat’s original score is excellent, as always, (he’s also behind the beautiful Curious Case of Benjamin Button soundtrack, which is one of the best parts of that film), but it’s also got a smattering of classic tracks from groups like The Wellingtons and The Beach Boys.

Anderson has a good ear and he goes for deep cuts. For example, one of the album’s last tracks is Ol’ Man River (by The Beach Boys) — certainly not a well-known piece, but most definitely a beautiful one. The album also sheds a little bit of light on the idea that every band from that period sounded like The Beach Boys or The Beatles — look no further than Let Her Dance, by Bobby Fuller Four, for that.

Fantastic Mr. Fox collects beautiful classical, blues, and jazz touches too — Art Tatum’s Night and Day makes a surprise appearance. And, of course, you can never go wrong with Street Fighting Man by The Rolling Stones. Looking for a pick-me-upper for your Monday blues? The Fantastic Mr. Fox Soundtrack is a great place to start.

The post Various Artists: Fantastic Mr. Fox Soundtrack appeared first on Unsung Sundays.

Wild Light is tremendous. I have no idea why they never took off. Although the album art is pretty terrible, the music itself is awesome.

They rip through the opening of the record with California On My Mind, a relatable song (at least for me) about loving and hating where you grow up (and I love this live performance, in which the drummer plays a fridge). In reality, it could easily be about a failed love or even a case of the Mondays.

From there, the record moves on with an almost-predictable amount of saccharine sadness and upbeat movements. If California On My Mind is the thesis, the rest of the album is the exploration. That’s a good thing — I can’t say that a lot of music explores a thesis with such gusto.

Listen to New Hampshire — it’s only the second track, but it’s still exploring the same love/hate story. Call Home might be one of the best tracks on the record, and it’s decidedly more optimistic. Songs like Heart Attack are absurdly catchy — again, how did these guys not catch on? The Party (Oh, My God!) is similarly radio-friendly and filled with crowd parts. It’d make for a great live show.

My Father Was A Horse and Red House keep the album moving briskly, even towards the end. If Wild Light ever committed a crime, it was simply being ahead of their time. These guys are obviously huge influences on up-and-coming indie bands like Little Green Cars. Adult Nights is well worth checking out.

The post Wild Light: Adult Nights appeared first on Unsung Sundays.