![20031400 110494 [mp3] Tokyo Police Club End of a Spark (Daytrotter Session)](http://images.wolfgangsvault.com/concerts/320/20031400-110494.jpg "[mp3] Tokyo Police Club End of a Spark (Daytrotter Session)")
If it seems like I’ve done a lot of talking about re-listening to the albums that have come out this year, it’s because I have. I’ve been meticulous about it, running through them in alphabetical order, figuring out what it is I really enjoy. My issue this year is that, while there has been a lot of good albums released, there are very few great albums. It makes my Top 3 relatively easy, but the rest of my personal list has gone somewhat slower.
Tokyo Police Club’s sophomore album – Champ![[mp3] Tokyo Police Club End of a Spark (Daytrotter Session)](http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=tympanogram-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B003PBDSCI "[mp3] Tokyo Police Club End of a Spark (Daytrotter Session)")
– doesn’t fall in my “great” category, but it’s on the higher side of good. It’s not a huge departure from their stellar debut, but it does offer different textures and feeling than Elephant Shell![[mp3] Tokyo Police Club End of a Spark (Daytrotter Session)](http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=tympanogram-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B0016UNO1K "[mp3] Tokyo Police Club End of a Spark (Daytrotter Session)")
did, and it’s still catchy as hell. The band put on one of my favorite concerts from this past year (although it’s still a resolution of mine to go to more), and when Dave and I talked to Dave Monks briefly before the show, he seemed like a genuinely nice guy. That doesn’t have much bearing on the music he makes, but it was nice to know he wasn’t a dick.
The band recorded a session for Daytrotter that was released a little more than a month ago that’s pretty great. The band is pretty straight ahead in concert, and the session displays that. And while Tokyo Police Club might not be anything revelatory in a live setting, it’s nice to hear a band that’s good at what they do.
Connect with Tokyo Police Club :: MySpace | Facebook | Twitter | web
Tokyo Police Club – End of a Spark (Daytrotter Session) (mp3)
Written on
November 29, 2010 by
Dave in
Music
![2364 56905356789 56888811789 1907632 907 n [mp3] French Kicks](http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs027.snc1/2364_56905356789_56888811789_1907632_907_n.jpg "[mp3] French Kicks")
Scrolling through iTunes recently, I came back across one of my favorite (mostly)under-the-radar bands, a band easily among the most underrated of its era: French Kicks. The closest thing we have to The Walkmen without the accompanying fanfare, French Kicks seem to languor in obscurity. There are so many songs through their catalogue that are truly great, it was difficult to choose which I felt most representative of their quality, so I just chose a few favorites. Here is my little love letter to the band, wherever they may be.
French Kicks – Also Ran (mp3) from Two Thousand![[mp3] French Kicks](http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=tympanogram-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B000SY4QDU "[mp3] French Kicks")
French Kicks – Knee High (Daytrotter Session) (mp3)
French Kicks – Said So What (mp3) from Swimming![[mp3] French Kicks](http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=tympanogram-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B0019SYAC6 "[mp3] French Kicks")
![20031357 51531 [mp3] Gamble House: “Second To None (Daytrotter Session)”](http://images.wolfgangsvault.com/concerts/320/20031357-51531.jpg "[mp3] Gamble House: “Second To None (Daytrotter Session)”")
It gave me great joy to see a band I have attempted to tout get exposure from the good people at Daytrotter with a recorded session all their own last week. The Los Angeles quartet played four songs at the Daytrotter studio, The Horsheshack, in Rock Island, Illinois. Amongst the songs they played were the first song we featured here on the site a few months back, “Bonny Doon,” as well as the song I chose for our Hype Machine Radio show segment, “Second To None.”
The Daytrotter versions, as they usually are, are little nuggets of gold; recognizable as the original, but with something just a little extra. Like a tympanic glint in the artists eyes, awash in the history and grandeur of what Daytrotter will hopefully be revered as some day.
I’m glad Gamble House was able to record a session, and hopefully they will get a bit more recognition from this exposure. I’ve attached my favorite track, but you can grab the rest at the above link. And while you’re there at Daytrotter, see what else you may want to grab. You’ll have plenty of choices.
Gamble House – Second To None (Daytrotter Session) (mp3)
![20031323 37382372 [mp3] Tame Impala Alter Ego (Daytrotter Session)](http://images.wolfgangsvault.com/concerts/320/20031323-37382372.jpg "[mp3] Tame Impala Alter Ego (Daytrotter Session)")
As we move close to the end of the year, I find myself revisiting all the albums I have from the preceding 12 months. I know there are ones I’ve just missed, and some stuff I’ll need to catch up on over the next month or so before we make our requisite Best of 2010 list. The debut album from Tame Impala, however, is one that I know will easily reach the Top 5 without my going back to listen again (although I am sure that I will). InnerSpeaker was my definitive album from the summer, soundtracking the long, hazy days with it’s revisiting of 1960′s psychedelic rock.
And from InnerSpeaker, “Alter Ego” was by far my favorite track. So, when I got around to downloading a ton of Daytrotter sessions the other day, I was happy to see that the band played it during their stop at the Daytrotter studio. This version isn’t significantly different from the one that is on the LP; it’s slowed down a bit, but it’s just as good.
The band has a bunch of North American tour dates lined up in the near future; the closest they get to here is Toronto, which I would consider going to if it wasn’t the night before Thanksgiving. You can check out the complete list of dates over at their Myspace page.
Connect with Tame Impala :: MySpace | Facebook | Twitter | web
Tame Impala – Alter Ego (Daytrotter Session) (mp3)
We are big fans of what Sean Moeller does at Daytrotter. If you’re unaware of what the site is all about, allow us to give you a basic rundown: Sean brings artists and bands into his studio where they record 4 or 5 songs, which he subsequently puts up on the site for free. Some tracks have limited availability, but for the most part, the site is a treasure chest of alternate versions of songs from artists you already love.
I personally don’t utilize the site as much as I should. There’s a backlog of nearly 900 sessions, dating back to the start of 2006. Looking quickly, there are sets from bands ranging in scope from Death Cab for Cutie and Spoon to Cold War Kids (2 sessions!) and Vampire Weekend to people I’ve never even heard of. The site is well written, well drawn, and completely engrossing. Right now I’m into the session from Brazos, which was released back toward the end of January. The site is updated almost daily with new sessions, and we highly recommend you spend some time pouring through the extensive catalog. Let us be plain: you will find something you love.
Here are some of my favorite songs from the sessions I’ve collected.
Andrew Bird – Plasticities (Daytrotter Session) (mp3)
French Kicks – Knee High (Daytrotter Session) (mp3)
The Maccabees – First Love (Daytrotter Session) (mp3)
