First Tracks

While I’m waiting for someone to get out of the file I need, I’ll just bang this out while I’m thinking about it. Album first songs. I know it’s almost dead now, what with the single-ification of everything. But, there’s something special about the first song on an album. It creates your expectations for the rest of the album, sets the mood, lays out the tablecloth and silverware… you know.\
I’ve been listening to a lot more rock lately… and there are some really good first songs out there. Like:

• Untitled off of Turn On The Bright Lights by Interpol – I don’t think I’ve loved the open guitar solo of a song more since The Smiths How Soon Is Now. Listen, you’ll see.
• E-Pro off of Guero by Beck – Yeah, this one rocks too. It doesn’t fool around with a gentle intro. It jumps right in and rocks on.
• Fight Test from Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robot by The Flaming Lips – Concept albums almost feel like cheating, but it works so freakin’ well.
• I Fought The Angels from Universal Audio by The Delgados – I never get tired of this album, and this song in particular. It’s so good. Simple, elegant and rockin’.
• Grace Kelly Blues by Eels from Daisies of the Galaxy – You know an album will be fun when it starts with a brass band, and goes into a bouncy little number like this. Perfectly sets up the artful quirk of the rest of the album.\
  Ok, back to work…