Twice The Thrills With Half The Action

This is part of an unofficial series of posts dedicated to revisiting songs that were staples of my old mix tapes and cds circa 1996-2001.

Virgin-Whore Complex “Four Alarm Fire In Lovers’ Lane” – One of the best things about the sort of flat sing-songy vocal style that was so common in the indie rock of the 90s is that it had a way of modifying the emotional content of the songs; dialing down the drama in the lyrics to something more low key and everyday, or underplaying huge feelings to reflect the artist/character’s guarded, uptight nature. This song is a bit of both, with two singers singing about crushes and looking forward to dates, both clearly excited, but holding back because they don’t want to seem overeager or get disappointed. It’s all about the conflict of having these big expectations, and then fighting them for your own emotional survival. (Click here to attempt to buy it used from Amazon.)

Solex “Waking Up With Solex” – The title is pretty literal, as Elisabeth “Solex” Esselink describes a presumably anecdotal scene in a bathtub with her lover in the morning, as “the smells from the kitchen filled the room.” It nails a very particular form of low key sexiness, but it’s mainly just fun/funny. My favorite thing about the track now is how its form and content is so elliptical – the song and the scene in the lyrics have a beginning and an end, but feel very open-ended, as there are clearly many good things that came before and after this little vignette. (Click here to buy it from Amazon.)