I’ve finally found some rock that isn’t 40 years old. Of course, though, it had to be by one of the most abundant underground hip hop producers today, Danger Mouse. Danger Mouse has worked on a number of different projects including Gnarls Barkley, DANGERDOOM, The Grey Album – one of the best mashup albums to date – and now, to top it all off, he’s collaborated with James Mercer of The Shins to form Broken Bells.
When first hearing of Broken Bells on hypem, I didn’t realize the two had collaborated at the time. After realizing it, I knew I had to check out the entire album. I’ve listened to the album a few times through and so far it’s prettay, prettay good. The group reminds me a lot of Gorillaz, that sort of electric-inspired alternative rock. I like this new style, but haven’t immersed myself in it enough (any other suggestions?). The album had two songs in particular that stuck with me. Of course, they’re the two singles off the album, the first being “The High Road”, which I instantly fell in love with, and “The Ghost Inside”, which took some time but is steadily becoming my favorite.
The reason I chose to feature “The Ghost Inside” over the other favored track is because it has something that I can’t really explain… or maybe I just have more to talk about with this one (I’m sure ill feature the other some other time). What might be the reason I like this one so much is because it, in particular, reminds me a lot of the Gorillaz. It has some quirky vocals that grow on ya, and some unconventional, hip hop inspired instrumentals (a lot like the Gorillaz). One of the sounds actually reminds me of the sound that the black smoke makes in LOST. I probably just got LOST on the brain because the final episode is tomorrow! But just listen closely and I bet you’ll hear it too. Anyways, check it – tell me what ya think.
[audio:TheGhostInside.mp3|titles=The Ghost Inside]
Download: The Ghost Inside
Broken Bells Information:
Genre: Rock, Alternative, Indie
Members of Broken Bells:
James Mercer: Vocals, Guitar
Danger Mouse (Brian Burton): Musician, Producer
Label: Columbia Records
Albums: Broken Bells
Similar Artists: Gnarls Barkley | The Shins | DangerDoom | Gorillaz
Links: BrokenBells.com | Wikipedia | MySpace | Twitter | Facebook | Last.fm | AllMusic
The Ghost Inside Information:
Album: Broken Bells
Release Date: March 9, 2010
Lyrics: SongLyrics
Buy Links: Amazon | Amazon Mp3 | iTunes