Makes Me Feel Glad I’m Not Dead

My new Hit Refresh column is up on the ASAP site. This week: DraculaZombieUSA, Carbon Dating Service, and a selection from Sublime Frequencies’ Radio Algeria.

Harpers Bizarre “Witchi Tai To” – This is exactly the sort of thing that can make you stop for a moment and think “oh wow, these old hippies really had it figured out.” If this is not total bliss, it’s very close to it, to the point where they make the Beach Boys sound like a gang of rampaging thugs. Check out that lead guitar, by the way — it wouldn’t shock me if this was a cherished record in the Kaplan/Hubley home. (Click here for the compilation’s Discogs page.)

Mixel Pixel “You’re The Kind Of Girl” – The music has that sort of “sexy” “futuristic” sound that seems to be very popular among the type of urban folks who are maybe a bit more pretty and sexual than they are cool (i.e., all those people who have internet personals ads where they say that Massive Attack’s Mezzanine is their favorite thing to listen to while having sex), but the real appeal here is in the vocals, which play on the deadpan she said/she said dynamic of the Human League’s “Don’t You Want Me” to great effect. To make things even better, the girl sounds almost exactly like the lead singer from The Waitresses! (Click here to buy it from Kanine Records.)