Myths of the Unfuture #4: The Toy Dolls - Spiders in the Dressing Room

PHOTO BY ALEXA

Get out your hair dye, your plaid, and your combat boots—we're heading back to the world of 1980's British punk rock. Now it was easy enough to be in a punk band. The whole point was you didn't have to be able to sing or play your instruments. All you needed was something to be angry about.

The Toy Dolls, then, stand out among the crowd. For one thing, they have an uncommon amount of talent in writing catchy melodies. They also sing perfect harmonies to them and glide effortlessly through key changes and mood changes. And then there's the subject matter. Lead vocalist "Olga" sing his hyperactive, high-pitched way through tales of runaway elephants and test tube babies. "Spiders in the Dressing Room" is one of these. Olga's lyrics are innocuous as he recounts his battle with a very persistent arachnid. But don't worry – it's still loud and fast enough that your parents will tell you to turn that racket down.

The Toy Dolls - Spiders in the Dressing Room
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Myths of the Unfuture #3: Todd Rundgren - There Are No Words

PHOTO: MICROABI @ FLICKR

For the most part, Todd Rundgren's Runt is a rock record. Recorded as a trio with Hunt and Tony Sales, this 1970 LP features bluesy jams interspersed with piano ballads and makes you long for the days when music used to rock. Rundgren is from Pennsylvania and got his start playing the blues, eventually moving on to rock and roll and then prog, an era that fellow dance music fans will recognize because of Daft Punk's inclusion of his "International Feel" in Electroma.

"There Are No Words," however, is none of the above. No, your speakers aren't broken; this is two minutes and eleven seconds of eerie vocal harmonies and overtones. If I were you, I'd give it a listen yourself--no words really describe it accurately.

Todd Rundgren - There Are No Words
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Myths of the Unfuture #2: Green Day - Rest

PHOTO BY PATRICKSMITHPHOTOGRAPHY @ FLICKR

Green Day are best known for bringing something resembling punk rock back to the forefront of the music scene. Certainly they had all the credentials, rising up out of California's East Bay among peers like Operation Ivy, Crimpshrine, and Jawbreaker. The trio's behavior onstage was outlandish, their dress was rubbish-bin chic, and they frequently packed the famous 924 Gilman full of slam-dancing fans. For the most part, it's understandable why their third effort, Dookie! was the first to hit the mainstream; their first two albums (and a handful of EPs and split 7"s) are mostly forgettable pop-rock odes to girls they were too shy to talk to.

"Rest", from the band's first LP, 39/Smooth, has been called the worst track from the album, and it's easy to see how this song with its drum-circle beats and open fifth harmonies, is jarring alongside more conventional tunes like "At the Library" and "Going to Pasalacqua". By itself, though, it is an eerie and expansive piece of music. Despite simple and repetitive lyrics it makes its mark.

Green Day - Rest
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Myths of the Unfuture #1 : Placebo - Days Before You Came

PHOTO BY THE_POLSTAR @ FLICKR

Welcome to the Unfuture.

Who am I? I am a music lover. Music has drawn me in as long as I can remember and when I really love a band or an artist or a style of music, I dig into it as far as I can, and I often end up unearthing treasures that have been overlooked by time. Which brings us to...

What's this all about? Myths of the Unfuture is a spin on the Klaxons album title Myths of the Near Future. Instead of apocalyptic prophecies, though, I'm here to bring you the lost urban legends and forgotten dreams of the past. The Unfuture isn't going to feature a great deal of new releases. Instead, what you'll be seeing here is the greatest music you missed when it first came around. Or maybe you didn't. But this is just in case.

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Placebo came on the scene in the midst of the early-to-mid '90s British glam rock revival. While over in the States, kids were starting garage bands and mourning the loss of Kurt Cobain, across the Atlantic audiences suddenly became a sea of androgynous haircuts, feather boas, and lots and lots of glitter. With their crossdressing and shamelessly pansexual lyrical content, Placebo fit in perfectly well and soon had their very own hordes of tiara-donning admirers. As the decade wore on, though, the trio traded in adolescent glamour for edgy haircuts and a darker sound, culminating in 2000's Black Market Music. Yet one of Placebo's most glamourous and decadent songs (perhaps second only to the classic "Nancy Boy") is the album track "Days Before You Came", an ode to debauched love affairs in the whirling sea of sex, drugs, and rock & roll. It remains one of my favorites from the band to this day.

Placebo - Days Before You Came
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