New people introduce you to new things. One of the cooler people I've met since my return to Seattle has introduced me to two new bands. Indulge me, please, while I steal a page from Hans and blog about their albums.
First up, The Libertines (Up the Bracket and a second, self-titled album). From the name, I expected them to be some sort of Decemberists rival-wannabes. What they really are is... well, imagine The Clash, but with about 40% of the punk bled out and yet still somehow good. I think part of it is that they show some of the same wit and cleverness you got from early Who, and the passion is very much there, but there's a little less desperation, too. Also, they're very British. They sort of plow through songs, and while they're not unplugged, they're a little lo fi and under-produced, which adds a lot to the sound. Unfortunately, it also means they never quite reach the level of raw noise they would if they actually were The Clash, which is a definite disappointment. I like them despite that, though, and it's a shame they're not together anymore.
Fortunately, The Fratellis are. These guys are basically a British We Are Scientists with the ratio of rock and pop flipped (which is to say: more pop, less rock). They make the guitars more prominent, but give them less reverb, string them a little looser (for the twang) and play fewer power-chords. At the same time, they cut out the furious pounding of the drums and lay down a steady back-beat at the root of everything and vamp the harmonies to keep the songs on-theme. It makes them a little more comfortable listening than the Libertines are, and the production boosts the sound to compensate and keep them from blending into the background. They sound, actually, a little like WAS mixed with Blur. Very good stuff, and I'm looking forward to their next album.
(and, entertainingly, Pandora will play both bands right alongside We Are Scientists when you put any one of those three in as the key band of a station.)