HAPPY ARBOR DAY!

We're feeling especially festive this SaveFile Friday, seeing as it's also Arbor Day here in the Mitten-Shaped State. Therefore, today's offerings are meant as an affectionate ode to whatever's left of the planet's arboreal splendor.

(BTW, the Mitten-Shaped State's official state tree is the Eastern White Pine. I'm sharing that with you because, secretly, I think you wanted to know.)

[MP3] Pulp/"The Trees"

[MP3] The Rosebuds/"Leaves Do Fall"

[MP3] Bright Eyes/"Loose Leaves"

[MP3] The Cure/"A Forest"

[MP3] Say Hi To Your Mom/"The Forest Scares the Hell Out of Me"

[MP3] Radiohead/"Fake Plastic Trees"

[MP3] Sleeping At Last/"Trees (Hallway of Leaves)"

[MP3] Gordy Boy/"A Hidden Forest" [Bjork/Cure mash-up]

MATTHEW SWEET & SUSANNA HOFFS

Seems like only yesterday (February, actually) that I was highlighting the shiny-happy pop of Matthew Sweet. That post included the song "Magnet and Steel," which featured backing vocals from Fleetwood Mac's Lindsey Buckingham and the Bangles' Susanna Hoffs.

Well, Matthew and Susanna must have enjoyed working together, because they just released Under the Covers, Vol. 1 - an LP of '60s cover tunes. Not exactly earth-shaking or anything, but some good, clean fun for summer. Clambake!

[MP3] "Alone Again Or" [Love cover]
[MP3] "Different Drum" [Stone Poneys/Linda Rondstadt cover]

[MP3] "Daylight" [Matthew Sweet w/Delerium]

[MP3] "We Close Our Eyes" [Susanna Hoffs]

TEXAS

[This post was originally intended to run on April 12th, but a combination of accumulating health issues and booze-infused blackouts resulted in an unexpected, two-week shut-down for your humble host. Said health issues still linger; said blackouts are sure to resurface. In the meantime, though, I'll do my best to maintain at least semi-regular updates.]

This week's sweet, single-malt-whiskey-soaked sojourn in Scotland comes to a close with the very-American-sounding Texas. Fortunately, this is not some chewin'-tobacco, country-western collective from Texarkana; it's a semi-sleek/semi-soulful pop band from Glasgow. They've never seemed to get a hell of a lot of love from anywhere but the UK, and not even there so much anymore.

So let's go ahead and throw them a pity party....

From the LP Careful What You Wish For, 2003 >>>
[MP3] "Broken"
[MP3] "Careful What You Wish For"

From the LP The Hush, 1999 >>>
[MP3] "Summer Son"

From the LP White on Blonde, 1997 >>>
[MP3] "Black Eyed Boy"
[MP3] "Halo"

SECRET MACHINES

New York City's (by way of Dallas) Secret Machines release their second album, Ten Silver Drops, today. I like them; don't love them. But here, per usual, are my favorites from them thus far....

From the LP Ten Silver Drops, 2006 >>>
[MP3] "All At Once (It's Not Important)"
[MP3] "Lightning Blue Eyes"

From the LP Now Here is Nowhere, 2004 >>>
[MP3] "Light's On"

LOS SUPER ELEGANTES

The L.A.-based, Mexican-Argentine pop duo that is Los Super Elegantes just wants you to get off your asses and dance. Defy them at your own peril.

[MP3] "Porque Te Vas"

[MP3] "Panadero"

[MP3] "Sixteen"

[MP3] "Forever"

ARAB STRAP

Well, we had such fun visiting Camera Obscura yesterday that we decided to stick around Scotland for an extra day or two. Today, we're going to hang out a bit with the lads of Arab Strap. Their new album, The Last Romance, came out in February. Alas, I only liked a few of the songs on it, two of which I'm offering up to you...

[MP3] "Don't Ask Me to Dance"

[MP3] "Speed-Date"

CAMERA OBSCURA

I liked but didn't love Belle and Sebastian's last album, The Life Pursuit. Perhaps, in my old age, I'm just becoming more and more difficult to please. Hell, what am I going to be like when I'm 90, cranky, constipated, yet gamely gumming my tapioca? The horror, the horror.

Whatever the case, looks like I'm going to have another chance to be delighted/disappointed by some Scottish pop when Camera Obscura release their latest CD, Let's Get Out of This Country, on June 6th. If this first song is any indication, I should be leaning toward "delight."

From the LP Let's Get Out of This Country, 2006 >>>
[MP3] "Lloyd, I'm Ready to Be Heartbroken"

From the LP Underachievers Please Try Harder, 2003 >>>
[MP3] "Keep It Clean"

From the LP Biggest Bluest Hi-Fi, 2001 >>>
[MP3] "Eighties Fan"

[MP3] "I Love My Jean" [2005]