John Vanderslice - "They Won't Let Me Run". From John's upcoming Cellar Door. This track isn't as manic or intense as much of Vanderslice's recent work: in fact, it's downright laid back. In places it almost sounds like Modest Mouse, were Modest Mouse to clean up, arrange harmonies, and decide to go all baroque pop. I guess it's really closer to Pinback, Starlight Mints, or, I don't know, a sour-voiced-and-sunny Sparklehorse. The song is full of these little sonic details, these whimsical flourishes that thicken the springy, string-fed jam. It's nice. [I just noticed this track is available, with other mp3s, at John Vanderslice's own site. Oh well!]

The Eyesores - "Bent at the Waist". I was flipping through the $5 CD rack at Cheap Thrills today, and stumbled across the Eyestores' Bent at the Waist. I had never heard of the band, but I recognized immediately the artwork of William Schaff. William is the mastermind behind recent Okkervil River, Songs:Ohia and Godspeed! album-covers, and he's also a phenomenally gifted, astonishingly kind artist. I remembered reading something about his work with some alt.folk bands in Providence, so I figured I might as well pick the record up. It turned out to be a wise choice: the Eyesores play a thick and pungent sort of dark tango that falls somewhere between the Squirrel Nut Zippers and Sixteen Horsepower. This title track is vigourous, good-natured, fiercely striding. Upright bass, accordion, lightly pummelled drums, and (Schaff's) mandolin combine for a surprisingly light-footed folk round. It's like a soundtrack for ivy.