Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Spencer Krug (Sunset Rubdown, Wolf Parade, Swan Lake)


Spencer Krug is my favorite songwriter of this decade. Plain and simple. Frustratingly, despite my best efforts to spread this Krug love to anyone who'll listen, only a few friends have joined me in this zombie-like state of obsessive appreciation. Hopefully this playlist will help to change that.

This was an especially enjoyable playlist to make. Part of the reason this came together so easily was the glut of fresh material available to draw upon. Since he started releasing music about five years ago or so, Krug has been remarkably prolific, serving as a main creative force behind three full time bands. Wolf Parade, where he shares songwriting duties with Dan Boeckner (who has since founded The Handsome Furs), has released two full length albums in that time. Swan Lake, a trio comprised of Krug, Dan Bejar (of Destroyer and The New Pornographers) and Carey Mercer (of Frog Eyes), has also released two full length albums in the same time span. Finally, Krug's main project, Sunset Rubdown, is set to this month release their fourth album (Dragonslayer) since 2005. That's a lot of music! Oh, and he's been touring consistently with Wolf Parade and Sunset Rubdown during that entire time. Double oh, on top of all that, he's also put in service as a part-time member of Frog Eyes as well. Jeez.

But this vigorous pace by no means reflects some sloppy, scattershot approach to songwriting. Each of these projects serve to showcase a different side of Krug's significant talent, but together they share a common sensibility that bears his unmistakable imprint. For that reason, every one of his releases- regardless of the band name attached to it- seems to contribute to a larger mosaic of music. For instance, the second half of the playlist contains three songs ("All Fires," "Nightingale / December Song," " and "I'll Believe In Anything") that are culled from each of his projects and span a spectrum from acoustic ballad to atmospheric prog-rocker to anthemic love song, but that also each share an over-arching lyrical theme of souls existing like burning fires. This interconnectedness across bands and albums makes tracking Krug's work all the more fun and rewarding, while also buoying the songs with a welcomed sense of purposefulness and raw emotion. It's that unfiltered artistry at the heart of Krug's songs that helps to make for music that, upon repeated listens, reveals itself to be unusually personal and immensely satisfying.

1) Stadiums and Shrines II / Sunset Rubdown- Shut Up I Am Dreaming / 2006
2) Idiot Heart / Sunset Rubdown- Dragonslayer / 2009
3) You Are Runner and I Am My Father's Son / Wolf Parade- Apologies to the Queen Mary / 2005
4) Upon on Your Leopard, Upon on the End of Your Feral Days / Sunset Rubdown- Random Spirit Lover / 2007
5) The Courtesan Has Sung / Sunset Rubdown- Random Spirit Lover / 2007
6) You Go On Ahead (Trumpet Trumpet II) / Sunset Rubdown- Dragonslayer / 2009
7) Apistat Commander / Sunset Rubdown (Covering Xiu Xiu)- Remixed and Covered / 2007
8) Shut Up I Am Dreaming of Places Where Lovers Have Wings / Sunset Rubdown- Shut Up I Am Dreaming / 2006
9) All Fires / Swan Lake- Beast Moans / 2007
10) Nightingale / December Song / Sunset Rubdown- Dragonslayer / 2009
11) For the Pier (and Dead Shimmering) / Sunset Rubdown- Random Spirit Lover / 2007
12) The Taming of the Hands that Came Back to Life / Sunset Rubdown- Random Spirit Lover / 2007
13) I'll Believe In Anything / Wolf Parade- Apologies to the Queen Mary / 2005
14) The Men are Called Horsemen There / Sunset Rubdown- Shut Up I Am Dreaming / 2006

Total Time: 73:59

1 comment:

  1. I forgot how freakin'good "You are a Runner and I am My Father's Son" is! I have no choice but to make it the song of the day.

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