exploremusic

“Jacqueline Susann” by Pernice Brothers

There are at least eight people in the Pernice Brothers—but only two actual siblings. Joe is the guy out front. They’re originally from Boston but now are all over the place.

Joe has been living in Toronto for a while where he’s be working as both a musician and an author. He has a great novel called It Feels So Good When I Stop, which is a semi-autobiographical thing. Good summer reading. He’s also working on a screenplay for a movie called Meat Is Murder.

But back to the band. The Pernice Brothers were formed in 1997 and have half a dozen releases, many of which are filled with some of the saddest songs you have ever heard in you life.

The most recent CD—which is out this month—is called Goodbye, Killer. They offered up a song called “Jacqueline Susann” for a free download last month as a way of introducing the album. It’s not sad at all. In fact, it remind Alan a little of the old British band Squeeze. 

“A Campaign of Shock and Awe” by Evelyn Evelyn

The second song on today’s list is very weird. It’s from Evelyn Evelyn. They want us to believe that they are conjoined twins (both named Evelyn) who sing in vaudeville style. Actually, it’s Amanda Palmer (ex of The Dresden Dolls and her partner, Jason Webley). It’s extremely odd yet very entertaining—kind of like looking at a car crash where you know no one got hurt. The song you should listen to is “A Campaign of Shock and Awe” from their self-titled album.

“Beautiful World” by Lola Dutronic

Lola Dutronic is from Toronto, Berlin and Paris. There are two people who play French-style electronica pop. If you like bands like Phoenix, Air, or M83, you’ll be pleased. They have an EP called Musique and start with a song called “Beautiful World”.



“The Soul Grave” by Sigh

Sigh is Japanese—Tokyo. They are the country’s biggest extreme metal export. They’ve been around for 17 years. They like to think of themselves as black metal, but their style varies too much. They get into all kinds of sounds. Their 2010 album is called Scenes From Hell and start with a track called “The Soul Grave”.

“Christine” by Siouxsie and The Banshies

For a classic track, we have some Siouxsie and The Banshees. Although most hardcore goths won’t admit it, Siouxsie was a very big part in getting that whole scene started in the late 1970s. Check out a video of the song “Christine” for some extreme eye makeup tips.