This week’s Judge is electro-rocker Car!Car. (The exclamation is silent.) He offers some great insight on a few of his favorite OS tunes so we’re excited to share them with you!
Bio: Car!Car is an electronic musician from central Massachusetts. He loves talking about music as much as he loves playing it.
“Growing up, I was always jealous of music writers who had all these obscure-as-sh*t references they would use to make their comparisons during reviews or articles. Then again, writing about music is pretty pretentious. It’s cool to be paid to do it, but pretentious.” ~Car!Car
1. Fly Me to the Moon by Dirty Scarab for Electronica
“Moody, atmospheric and elegiac: three words that can describe this excellent slow burner by Dirty Scarab. Certain similarities to another one-man electronic band come to mind, and for good reason—Dirty Scarab was the winner of a 2007 Nine Inch Nails remix competition. However, this single and artist shouldn’t be discarded for merely paying homage; there is a soulfulness to the vocals that contrasts nicely with the static-filled, post-apocalyptic sound he infuses into the track. This track is as much industrial electronic as it is Tricky-esque trip hop, which is a recipe for awesome in my book.”
2. Sixty-Five by God Made Me the Raven for Punk
“I wish there were more written on God Made Me The Raven’s page about them, because having only one song—this one—and no bio makes them an interesting and mysterious find. Even their MySpace hosts this one solitary track, but what a track. An accomplished drum intro and an opening guitar riff borrowing slightly from Black Sabbath’s ‘War Pigs’ sets a tone for the sonic attack about to come. Aside from the manic drumming, what sets this punk song aside from countless generic, store-bought streetpunk for me singer Johnny Heartbreaker’s (yep, they all have the requisite punk nicknames) considerable vocal chops. A classic in the making, and I’m going to hope for some more.”
3. Evil Girl by The Surf Rats for Punk
“Although named The Surf Rats, this song by the UK trio has more psychobilly sensibilities. The lyrics are simple and acerbic while the music hits you with a quick, one-two punch soaked in some classic Fender reverb, not to mention a cheeky little double-picked riff remniscent of the Cramps. Catchy to the core, ‘Evil Girl’ deserves a spotlight, in contrast to the overly-processed, fly-by-night music that passes for rock and roll these days.”
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