Leak Proof: Franz Ferdinand, Flying Lotus, etc. was originally published on Black Plastic Bag on Jan. 12, 2009, at 3:04 pm
In this recurring weekly–and hopefully soon to be renamed–feature we’ll round up leaked songs, new singles, and other musical detritus of all genres as it surfaces on the web. Anyway, let’s get on with it.
Franz Ferdinand: “Ulysses”
“Come on, let’s get high,” sings Alex Kapranos on the lead single from Franz Ferdinand’s forthcoming album Tonight, but the sentiment is a little more Fear of Music than 40 oz. to Freedom. The song is claustrophobic, gray, and sleazy sounding even for a band whose moral fiber has never been much stronger than a sheet of snotty Kleenex. Still, Kapranos manages to squeeze all three syllables of “Yoo-lisss-ees” into the chorus with impressive conviction. When it comes to celebrity-drug-odyssey songs, Bowie still has the edge, but Franz Ferdinand make a pretty good run at the title here.
Bon Iver: “Blood Bank”
Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon goes electric over some kind-of-emo lyrics about hanging out at the blood bank with a girl. Three weary chords trudge onward toward the seemingly inevitable rise of post-Wilco feedback and squalor.
Morrissey: “I’m Throwing My Arms Around Paris”
Moz laments the absence of love, the absence of human touch, and yeah, screw you, he’s going to project his abused affections onto the abstract concept of a major European metropolis. Really, it’s the same old pity party Morrissey’s been throwing for twenty years, but why fix something that can remain so hopeful after being broken so many, many times. :(…
Santogold [ft. Three 6 Mafia and Project Pat]: “Shuv It”
Three 6 Mafia take a whack at this song from Santi White’s debut album, swapping out the originals’ dubby vibe for crunk synths and cheapie drum machines. Project Pat shows up and raps some stuff over the back end. Different, but not necessarily an improvement over the Switch produced original.
Flying Lotus: “Love Lockdown” Remix
Steve Ellison, grand nephew of one Alice Coltrane, throws “Love Lockdown” into a food processor, slicing the song’s straightforward rhythms into a dizzy swarm of syncopations. Freshly coated with extra reverb, West’s vocal–already heavily autotuned–sounds as if it’s been dropped down to lonely the bottom of Ellison’s gravity bong.
