I forget who was originally responsible for discovering them between us, but I’m willing to give Freed credit for turning me on to Blue States. This was probably in 2002, right around the time that a song of their found its way into the soundtrack for 28 Days Later. At the time they were recording pretty downtempo/electroinca-type stuff, so it hit me by total surprise when, after an apparent breakup and regrouping, their 2004 album, The Soundings, turned out to be a sort of M83-like take at guitar driven indie rock. It wasn’t well received (I don’t think it ever got a U.S. release…), but I loved it [And by the way, David - Oasis? Really?]. I wondered if the sound would stick, only to discover the band – apparently operating like a phoenix – had broken up and started over again. Scaled back to the solo act of Andy Dragazis, First Steps Into… sounds more like the cinematic electronica act that I had first encountered, with a bit of the pop sensibility from their previous incarnation. You can’t tell me that “Allies” wouldn’t fit perfectly into a movie soundtrack.
There are a couple of remixes on here, most notably this HEALTH track from the remix album, DISCO, that they put out after apparently realizing that the average listener prefers the dancey stuff to the mass of noise that they usually record. There’s another Under Electric Light track on here, this one from their earlier Blue EP, and a TV On The Radio cover from Ned Collette that I stole from a Cokemachineglow podcast a couple years ago. Ned sounds like an Australian Nick Drake or Bill Fay, and his songs have a sweet Bon Iver-ness to them that works well both on lazy summer weekends, as well as late-night driving. I think there’s something special about music that can do that.
PS – This Joan Of Arc track is a three and a half minute masterpiece.
[banner photo by Henri Cartier-Bresson/Magnum]
July 2008 Mix
01 Blue States – Allies
02 HEALTH – Tabloid Sores (Nosaj Thing Remix)
03 The Coast – Tightrope (Tokyo Police Club Remix)
04 Kevin Drew – Frightening Lives
05 Blind Willie McTell – Little Delia
06 Under Electric Light – Sitting Here
07 Ned Collette – Hours (TV On The Radio cover)
08 Close Lobsters – Just Too Bloody Stupid
09 Nina Simone – Do What You Gotta Do
10 Joan Of Arc – Ne Mosquitos Pass
