There’s no end to the wealth of “undiscovered” treasures floating around the musical universe–artists who have achieved a sizable following over a long career, but have remained a part of the fringe. They’re not trend-jumpers, sound-apers, or tabloid-makers–they’re just criminally overlooked. I’ve always felt that on my side of the Atlantic at least, The Divine Comedy never got the attention they deserved. Neil Hannon (much like Robbie Williams) seems to have baffled North American (READ: U.S.) audiences. The Divine Comedy has been a going concern for some sixteen odd years now, and his loyal fans (and some new converts to the cause, thanks in part to the blogosphere) are eagerly awaiting the domestic release of his new album, Victory for the Comic Muse (a title referencing their debut, Fanfare for the Comic Muse).

In a recent interview in Under The Radar, Hannon admits that he didn’t initially plan on setting out to record a new Divine Comedy album: “I was a bit bored, and I wanted to do other things,” which included writing music for Jane Birkin and Charlotte Gainsbourg. Eventually, he found himself with material enough for a ninth installment of epic love stories, exotic locales, and blossoming sexuality amongst the “smartypants”. Typical of Hannon’s work, but heads and tails above your typical pop song, [STREAM] “To Die A Virgin” is the tale of a young lad in the search for tail. Sample lyrics:

“We’ve been going together/since the eighth of November,/though it seems like forever/I very clearly remember/You told me on our first date/What you’d do on my birthday/Hooray it’s my birthday!/And frankly baby I can’t wait…”

Oh, what anguish it is to be trapped in such a purgatory, and yet, what beauty Hannon rings from the 28-piece musical ensemble he brought together for the album. Victory, indeed, is his.

[The Divine Comedy's Victory for the Comic Muse buy]

Toronto’s Ten Kens sound like they travel a road few other artists are on.
[MP3] “Alternate Biker” sounds like a cross between Angelo Badalamenti’s David Lynch soundtracks and a sexy garage rock combo straight outta hell. On [MP3] “Refined” the duo of Dean Tzenos and Dan Workman sound anything but–the vocals growl and howl, the drums are loud and dirty, and the finger-plucked guitar line would scare a roomful of teenage girls more than any horror flick slasher. All this before the song culminates in a surf-rock crescendo that has more than a few touches of Pixies sprinkled on top. “Long after I’m gone, you’ll hear me, sense me, I’m the backdrop for all you do,” go the opening lyrics to “Alternate Biker”; fitting, since you’ll be hearing the sound of Ten Kens haunting your dreams long after the music is turned off, the lights turned out, and the covers pulled way up. Being in bed with the Boogie Man was never this much fun. Boo!

Sometimes I just don’t get how 1 +1 =2. Press releases for UK trio Klaxons say they’re cut from the same cloth as Happy Mondays, Altern8, and rave culture. I don’t hear it, save for the industrial siren wail motif on [MP3] “Atlantis to Interzone”, one of the tracks from their Xan Valleys EP. When iTunes searches out the CD Information, the genre for the EP comes back as electronica/dance, but I just don’t hear it. I have just been reading an article/interview with Amanda Palmer of Dresden Dolls and Peter Murphy of Bauhaus, where they discuss the deconstruction of all musical genres. Too much bastardization, cross-pollination, and genre-weaving is making classifications even more redundant. Do you like it? Does it move you? That’s all you really need to know. [MP3] “Gravitys Rainbow” has the potential to become one of those songs that will defy classification, yet still make a connection with the crowd. In my opinion, the closest Klaxons comes to rave is the remixes of “Atlantis to Interzone” and “Gravitys Rainbow” that close out the EP.

[MP3] Klaxons “Gravitys Rainbow (Van She Remix”

[MP3] Klaxons “Atlantis to Interzone (Crystal Castles Remix)

[Find more mp3s at the Hype Machine.]

If you get the QBiM RSS feed (and if you don’t well, then you should), I apologise for the awkward “Awkward Stage” post earlier… I’m thoroughly embarrassed that I accidentally posted a draft post. But, having said that, it’s quite appropriate that I would have goof-posted about The Awkward Stage, the musical project of Shane Nelken (he of The New Pornographers, various acting credits, and, um, a crematorium). His debut, Heaven Is for Easy Girls, has nothing to be embarrassed about, save for the embarrassment of pop riches it features (how’s that for a twist of phrase?). The accidental post was to feature information about an Awkward Stage contest (October seems to be the month of giveaways around here, doesn’t it?) plus a link to a great tune, [MP3] “Heaven Is for Easy Girls”. So now that you have the link, it’s on to the contest!

To win your very own copy of The Awkward Stage’s CD just submit a link to, or an actual photo that best represents/personifies “the awkward stage”. Credit where credit is due, people, so identify your sources, and let’s see what we can come up with. Submit your entry to the Comments of this posting.

London’s South are releasing Up Close And Personal, a retrospective DVD collection of live performances, videos, and behind-the-scenes clips. Last April saw them release Adventures in the Underground Journey to the Stars, and plans are underway to continue touring the U.S. with the Strokes. Highly underrated, and more than a little overlooked on this side of the pond, perhaps this clip from the DVD will give you some reason to check them out.