Fat Goth Fat Goth… Like a goth to the flame(-grilled)

The Best of This Week’s Singles: Sigur Rós, When Saints Go Machine, Fat Goth and more!

Published on April 4th, 2013 | Jonny Abrams

We don’t sort them into the Best of This Week’s Singles and Worst of This Week’s Singles prior to listening, you know: every single gets a chance to impress or depress sufficiently to be swept into either category. To start with, here are Rocksucker’s reviews of the best of ’em, starting with our single of the week…

Casual Sex – Stroh 80

Daft, laid-back, strutting, wonky, sun-smooched: all of these things and more make this utterly delightful in a way that brings to mind David Bowie, Kevin Ayers and Stephen Malkmus. Consider that a glowing recommendation, and stick this on your summer playlist immediately.

If you don’t have a summer playlist, make one and then add it.

Rocksucker says: Four and a Half Quails out of Five!

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Empress Of – “Hat Trick”

Swoonsome chillwave invested with pleasing levels of eccentricity? Yeah, that’ll do us, especially when it finishes sounding like a sun-worn instructional video from the 1970s.

Rocksucker says: Three and a Half Quails out of Five!

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Fat Goth – “Surf’s Down”

They’ve got band name and song title of the week nailed down, that’s for sure. The song’s not bad either, good fun and all executed both frenetically and with textbook precision. Reminds us of Timmy and the Lords of the Underworld (metal aficionados will no doubt be able to call upon a more informative, less ridiculous reference point).

Rocksucker says: Three and a Half Quails out of Five!

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Filthy Boy – “Waiting on the Doorstep” and “Mental Conditions”

Like Arctic Monkeys meets The Divine Comedy without being quite as spectacular as either, this is nevertheless promising stuff that may also lay claim to this week’s best opening lines, delivered in a suggestive baritone: “Honey, I’m home / Earlier than expected again / I can see you’re not alone / Would you like to introduce me to some of your friends?”. Really nice, sunny chorus about it, too.

Rocksucker says: Three and a Half Quails out of Five!

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“I’ve found me a looker / Yeah, she’s a nice, high-class hooker / I picked her up and took her my place / I switched the light and gently touched her face” is another gem. Ditto “They’ve gone and put me away, now / Yeah, I’m no longer a stray, now / They say it’ll all be okay / As long as I take these tablets every day / Hooray”. This is refreshingly confident and unforced-sounding, not to mention dripping with sunny good vibes even with the melancholic lyrics and vocal delivery. Well in, Filthy Boy.

Rocksucker says: Four Quails out of Five!

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Haim – “Falling”

How long have the ’80s been back in fashion for now? Did they ever go out in the first place? It’s getting hard to tell. Anyway, this is a decent, disco-ish sort of number but they’ve got better in them, going by their previous, better songs.

Whosoever was responsible for kitting them out in those tiny shorts deserves great credit, though. Is that an acceptable thing to say? At least it’s not as bad as the Chris Brown ‘joke’ we made in This Week’s Worst Singles.

Rocksucker says: Three Quails out of Five!

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Johnny5thWheel&thecowards – “Diary of a Liar”

Daaa-yum, those twinkly keys just melt all over this typically sinister-yet-grin-inducing number from the Sotones Records bunch, whose Music To Shake’n’Shuffle To album was one of Rocksucker’s favourites of last year. This brand new single sounds like The La’s and early Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci pitted against each other in a psychedelic ’60s monster movie, for which it can only be commended. Here’s hoping it precipitates a new album, because the extra added electronics and harpsichord sure are tantalising.

Rocksucker says: Four Quails out of Five!

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Mount Kimbie – “Made to Stray”

Ooh yes, a synaesthetic treasure chest of juddering percussive elements and felty, otherworldly swirls of synths! This is like a more serious, less colourful Matmos, with added vocals. Glean from that what you will. Or just listen to the thing.

Rocksucker says: Three and a Half Quails out of Five!

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Sigur Rós – Brennisteinn

Blimey, Sigur Rós have gone scuzzy! Well, for them, at least – the open-air splendour remains intact atop the distortedly grinding bass and pounding, staggered drums – but on this evidence their forthcoming Kveikur LP should go down better than last year’s whale music expo Valtari. In some ways, this harks back to the darker bits of their classic 1999 album Ágætis byrjun, so good news for those who’ve been holding out for more of that kind of thing. Impressive stuff.

Rocksucker says: Four Quails out of Five!

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State of Play – “Sequel to a Bad Movie”

Did we say Filthy Boy had this week’s best opening lines? Well, “Said I looked deep in the merchant’s eyes / See don’t believe in this merchandise / What’s been on TV, you can purchase twice / By the time you leave, it’s a third this price” has at least got to be a strong rival. Quite unexpectedly, this is a rock-rap hybrid that’s clever and fun as opposed to clunky and aggravating. Good work.

Three and a Half Quails out of Five!

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Wall – “Shoestring”

Great lyrics, great warm production, scrumptiously subtle harmonies – with a little more exploration to the songwriting , this could have been stunning. As it is, it’s merely very promising, yet still good reason to keep your eye on the Wall.

Rocksucker says: Three Quails out of Five!

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When Saints Go Machine feat. Killer Mike – “Love and Respect”

Danish electronic masters make an unexpected play for the hip-hop crowd, do it really quite well. At times, it sounds like…*gulp*…trip-hop! Remember that?

Anyway, new album out in May. Who knows what to expect from it now?

Rocksucker says: Three and a Half Quails out of Five!

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See you next week, everybody!

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About the Author

Editor of Rocksucker and the website's founder, Jonny is passionate about the music he listens to, both good and bad, as well as interviewing his favourite musicians.


3 Responses to The Best of This Week’s Singles: Sigur Rós, When Saints Go Machine, Fat Goth and more!

  1. Pingback: Interview: State of Play - Rocksucker

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