The last time (which also happens to be the only time) I posted on Pelle Carlberg, I took some heat for admitting that I'm not a big fan of The Velvet Underground & Nico. Well things have changed since that post; it took a particularly dusty piece of vinyl and a generous amount of marijuana, but I am now among the countless thousands who regard that album as perhaps the singular defining album of what is now known as "indie rock." However, none of that matters; you'd be a fool to like a band or album only because it's "important" or "legendary." The music is good, that's all.
But this post isn't about VU & Nico. It's about a man who considers that album a significant influence for the music he produces. Now before you listen to the following songs expecting a sincere, heartfelt testament to 1967 and blow-up when you realize they're nothing of the sort, realize I'm not saying at all that Pelle Carlberg is "Lou Reed: reborn." If anything, he's "Lou Reed: satirized."
In A Nutshell is the name of Carlberg's newest LP, released earlier this month. And, in a nutshell, it's a collection of highly satirical songs with track titles like "Clever Girls Like Clever Boys Much More Than Clever Boys Like Clever Girls" and lyrics like "if I didn't have bad luck I'd have no luck at all." Because of its comedy, much of the album seems destined for "throwaway status"--especially for those who expect all music to fill their lives with the drama and emotion they explicably lack. But for those of us who can listen to a song without needing to identify with it, or without needing to be taken to an emotional place we have trouble finding in real life, Pell Carlberg's music is, in a nutshell, perfect. Here are a couple of songs to have some fun with:
[MP3] Pelle Carlberg - I Love You, You Imbecile!
[MP3] Pelle Carlberg - Clever Girls Like Clever Boys Much More Than Clever Boys Like Clever Girls
Official Site | MySpace Site | More MP3s | Buy In A Nutshell
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