The Mighty Mocambos

The Mighty Mocambos, “The Spell of Ra-Orkon”

I really like song titles that sound like a D&D adventure. Especially when they’re instrumentals, as that means you’re not being subjected to lyrics that sound like a D&D adventure.

Love Battery, “Easter”

Love Battery’s Dayglo is one of the best albums from the grunge scene, a swirling psychedelic masterpiece that stood out at the time and only gets better with age. Before their masterpiece, many of the ideas were present in Between the Eyes, a record that featured many of the same wah-soaked moves that they would soon perfect. The bottom isn’t quite as firm, so the record isn’t quite as good, but it’s still an excellent listen.

The Mighty Mocambos, “The Spell of Ra-Orkon”

Well, isn’t that just a party? Those horns, baby. And the bari sax solo!

Sleater-Kinney, “All Hands on the Bad One”

A thing I just noticed: I own four Sleater-Kinney records, and it’s the four Kill Rock Stars ones. Is that because of some label affinity or something? I think it’s a coincidence, but if I were more of a bullshitter, I’d spin some yarn here about that label giving them the right support and freedom to be at their best. But, no, it’s just dumb luck. OR IS IT

The Mighty Mocambos, “Calling the Shots”

The immediacy of the drums here, both in their entry into the song as well as the production, really drives things here. That insistent bell, the grit and echo, it’s fantastic. On top of that, those punchy horns, goddamn, I could just listen to this all day. And bari sax! Love it.

L’Orange & Mr. Lif, “Strange Technology”

I wonder what it is about hip-hop that pairs with sci-fi so successfully in a way that, say, rock music can struggle with. A lot of the time when rock tries to go sci-fi, it comes across as corny or ridiculous. But hip-hop can go futuristic without any real struggle, and there have been some awesome sci-fi hip-hop records. I suppose the beats can get kind of inorganic without stretching the genre too much, and that can help things.

Buzzcocks, “Lester Sands”

The Buzzcocks were one of the best of punk’s first wave, but unlike a lot of the other greats of that scene, they didn’t totally disappear. The went away for a while, but re-formed in the early 90s, and then started putting out an album every few years. This is from their self-titled 2003 record on Merge, a fitting home given how many Merge bands were inspired by the Buzzcocks (especially Superchunk). It’s pretty nuts-and-bolts punk rock, but Pete Shelly and Steve Diggle are always worth listening to.

The Mighty Mocambos, “In The Dark”

Funk group out of Hamburg, German, the Mighty Mocambos have excellent taste in guest artists, and consistently delightful percussion. Hell, they have a side line as a steel drum band. This song comes from Showdown, which is an excellent collection of tunes.

Zeal and Ardor, “Waste”

We just had a post-black metal band, and here’s another. As you can hear, Zeal and Ardor certainly make use of plenty of the markers of black metal, but marry it to African American spirituals, to create something new from the genre. This kind of blending is super interesting, and I’d like to see it more often.