Whoa! Suddenly Hello Seahorse are interesting. Especially the singer who seems to have gone post-menopausal with her sudden archness. Very excellent!

Update: Have you read Lapham's Quarterly. Yes yes, of course you have, you are sophisticated, posh and wise. It is a thrill to read an article by Gustave Flaubert about then contemporary French theatre. Is it not? Possibly not. I've been listening to the Kort record every morning when I drive to work. It's "authenticness" soothes me. When I arrive at work I have forgotten it's balm and in the evening after a day's worth of frenetic haranguings from clients and employees I am in need of something more difficult to deal with those who would be difficile. To me! I listen to Moonshake in the evenings. How great would it be if everyone of the country thicks that listen to the Kort record then turned around and found themselves a copy of Boys. Cortney would blow up their heads. It would be a terrible mess. Someone would need to clean up later. It is nearly election week. It is very exciting, we are soon to be ruled by racists and bigots. Tom Tancredo may even win the Colorado Governor's race and soon after he will construct a 17 foot electrified fence to not only prevent people from getting into Colorado and stealing all of the jobs but also to get out. You may never hear from me again, he could have someone in line to monitor all communications exiting the state. Hello Seahorse! will certainly be verbotten in Colorado after his election. They are...whisper...from Mexico. They used to be chirpy and annoying twee but now well it seems as if they've started listening to the Cocteau Twins and quite possibly, be still my heart, Pram. Her voice has gone from familiar and kindly to something altogether more interesting and shrill. I keep saying interesting because well most indiepop bands are not. Listen to Northern Portrait, they are as dull as dishwater. First song is almost over, I haven't said anything about it, Tancredo's shadowy fingers lingering over my keyboard, and it's dancey electro pop. Loads of fancy keyboards, less guitar, more of a production footprint than in the past. Everything is in Spanish. They could be as annoyingly chirpy and twee and I would be none the wiser but switiching exclusively to their native tongue has done wonders. It is months later. The election is over. We are free from the oppressive fear of a Tancredo administration. First song has finally finished, whew, it is a long one. Second song has started, Casa Vacia, very Pram-esque beginning, keyboards on ironing boards keyboards and a nostalgic childish voice, very excellent. In Spanish still. I did not receive a Rosetta Stone language kit so I will not be able to translate for my two readers. They were once so cloying. They were once so dull. What happened? This is truly terrific. And now of course they have been abandoned by the kids. I have ben catching up with some twee websites recently and Tangents guy was skeptical of Allo Darlin', sheesh! Unfairly I have neglected them in mentions of best record of the year. I also made mention of her Englishness in my previous mention, in fact she is Australian, and this may have ben a case of xenophobia. But she hangs with Hefner. And she writes amazingly charming pop songs that don't sound amateurish, uninspired or derivative. A rarity. This is mainly why I don't read twee websites. They have the same totems and have progressed at the same pace along an evolutionary path that leads to rubbish such as Northern Portrait and Standard Fare, it is the same process that has afflicted indie rawk websites. Evolution seems to spread at an even rate all along the spectrum of websites from the world changing to the narcissistic exercises similar to mine. Why is this? I have people who attempt to send me free records. Why? No one reads this site and I don't take what I write about music seriously. I enjoy music, I love it actually, given a choice I would rather be listening than not, but if you are given a free cd are you inclined to treat its donors more kindly? I don't know. Maybe if Kanye sent me a cd I'd feel more appreciated. Fourth song now, still Pram-ish, it has a spooky undercurrent among the electronic explorations. They didn't use to be nearly all electronic. I don't think. I recall having had the first album. I listened a few times. There wasn't the goth, semi-industrial Depeche Mode element that this song has and it wasn't nearly as good as this. I've been having an email conversation with someone that I don't know and the idea of not liking anything in the mainstream has arisen, she has come off snide and cranky and frankly a bit conservative and close minded when discussing popular phenomenons from Twilight to 500 Days of Summer. Do I sound the same? Possibly, but among the hipsters i know I am comparatively open minded. I am not probably classifiable as a hipster. My mother buys all of my clothes as birthday and Christmas presents. That's not very hip. I am wearing a nice pullover at the moment, a Christmas present, it came in useful as I was shoveling snow thre days after it had snowed. When the snow falls here it falls as snow and then in the evening when the humidity falls away, when the mercury deeps close to zero the snow changes. It turns to crystals like tiny pellets of graphite that lubricate the rapid steps between automobile and front door. A groovy disco number has started, jungle whelps, and urgent vocalizing. A bit Electronic Tomato? Rather good. They are from Mexico. I've recently finished the Zimmerman Telegram and am amazed to discover how events in Mexico were in turn so influential in deciding whether the US would join the allies side in WWI. It's a terrific read. It is short. I recommend it, also everything else that Barbara Tuchmann has written. Pancho Villa, Carranza, they all had Wilson's number, knew he would roll over and die, somewhat similar to how the thugs of the world today know the same about our current administration. But whatever. There isn't any snow in Mexico this time of year. Well I suppose in the mountains there may be snow. This is not snow music. It is not blood music. they aren't passionate or thrilling but it's clever and entertaining. It could be that I am some tepid admirer in the same reference frame as my tepid colonialism as embodied by the recent Club 8 record. I could find real Mexican dance music. I love Murcof. He's pretty authentic although I imagine his upbringing was even more posh than Hello Seahorse!. Will they jettison the exclamation? It is terrifically twee to place an exclamation after your name. Oro Y Plata, now. I imagine the next record will be more minimalist, members will depart during the sessions, disgruntled over the change in direction, I'll love it and then there will be two offshoots one that sounds like this record and a band that records the hum of their hair dryer. This song is basic, loops of sound, her voice, that's about it. All of the songs hover around the 4 minute mark. i can't burn many calories dancing to a 4 minute pop song. It's still an album, it isn't a movement. Next track, Me Has Ovidado, this one is really sparkling. Maybe the kids do love this record. They should. could it be that I just rebel against what everyone else likes? Possibly. I am not much for Captured Tracks and everyone else loves them. I listened to the Soft Moon record and it was like easy-listening The Gordons. I think they meant to be menacing. Perhaps not, perhaps easy listening lack of menace menacing was the effect they were reaching for. I kinda like the Beets. Wild Nothing does little for me. This makes me uncool. Also I like the Pomplamoose commercials. I am uncool. Will Hello Seahorse! have their own car commercial soon? I hope so. They can repatriate the funds and help out those who use to build Fords and Chryslers in Mexico but who now must commute to China to make cars. There is a fascinating photo series in the Guardian showing the ruins of Detroit. Hello Seahorse! are just melancholy enough to soundtrack the accompanying documentary, should it ever be made, and Peter Weller could host and he could mention his PHD in renaissance art and discuss the beautiful architecture that has ben abandoned in the city. Detroit was once a glimmering jewel. Sad. If this track was playing over the reliquary that is Michigan Theater or the United Artist Pavillions I'd be moved to heartache. I used to travel down Livernois, through the fashion district, past the convenience stores selling live poultry and lament to death of a city. It is dead. And snow covered. But their football team is much improved. Last track is a reprise of the second track, acoustic. Lovely things. I will assign this as ninth best album from 2010. Congratulations, you win nothing!