Best Chunes 2024 (Part 4)
Five songs selected by my dad
Welcome to Human Pursuits, the column that features need-to-know names and stories in media and other creative spaces. Today, we continue our 2024 music recap, with five songs selected by my dad.
While this year-end recap is a great excuse to tap in with former guests, sometimes you gotta break new ground and showcase a new voice.
With this in mind, let’s give a big HuPu welcome to Tom Sawyer, my 68-year-old father, and maybe the biggest music fan I know.
In the pre-streaming days of the late 90s and early 2000s, Tom used to bring stacks of CDs out to the car. It didn’t matter if the drive was 10 minutes or 10,000. The man was hopelessly, irrevocably addicted to Chunes. I don’t know why he never got one of those little storage books… but that’s not the point.
The point is he would whip us around Edmonton listening to Fountains of Wayne, Prince, Elliot Smith, and Radiohead.
And we’re not talking Purple Rain or OK Computer.
No, this man was running errands listening to Crystal Ball and New Moon. He was blasting Out of State Plates and Thom Yorke’s 2006 solo album The Eraser while his kids stared at empty fields from the back of the minivan.
In other words: he’s not like the other dads. And I love him for that.
I never stood a chance.
THIS IS PART 4 OF 2024’S BEST CHUNE COVERAGE. READ PART 1 HERE, PART 2 HERE, AND PART 3 HERE.
Von Dutch – Charli XCX
ES: Let’s start with Charli XCX. A very cool selection for someone of your age. Laughs.
TS: Brat got a lot of buzz early in the year, including from Human Pursuits, so that piqued my interest, and, you know, it’s a great pop album. It was easy to get into.
ES: Would you say you’re Brat?
TS: I have no idea what that means.
ES: Amazing. And so why did you include “Von Dutch” in particular?
TS: It was the first song that caught my ear. In hindsight, I think there are some catchier songs on the record like “360” and “Sympathy Is A Knife". I could have included either of those.
“Von Dutch” is so simple. There’s very little going on melodically, but the production makes it work. It’s more adventurous than the other songs.
ES: Did you listen to the Brat remix album?
TS: No, is it worth checking out?
ES: I think so. Have you listened to much hyperpop before this?
TS: I’m not even sure what hyperpop is.
ES: It’s like they ran pop music through a computer.
TS: Would you say this was her breakthrough record?
ES: I think it’s her biggest record for sure. But the one she released during the pandemic, How I’m Feeling Now, might be considered the breakthrough. That one had a positive response from fans and critics at the time but Brat is probably more popular at this point.
TS: So, are her fans happier with Brat?
ES: Yeah, very happy I think.
Tokyo Bay – Nick Lowe
ES: I was not familiar with this song before you sent it to me. How did you come across it?
TS: So you’ve listened to it?
ES: Yeah I listened to it right before our call.
TS: Well, first of all, I love Nick Lowe. He’s been a favourite of mine since the late 70s. He just seems like a real talent, the sort of guy who delivers great stuff. This is his first album in a while, and a lot of the songs, including this one, feel like outliers in the pop world. It’s a throwback to the late 50s and early 60s. Early rock and roll. He’s the last of a dying breed… I can’t think of any modern rock bands that play with a bluesy influence, really. It’s sad.
Anyway, this song has some really interesting lyrics. It’s about a guy hopping on a ship and sailing to Tokyo. Like, what world is this? Nobody does that.
ES: I don’t remember hearing much Nick Lowe in the car with you growing up, so this is cool. It’s interesting that the lyrics caught you, cause I know you’re usually a music-first guy.
TS: Yeah, it’s not a story I’ve heard before.
Good Luck, Babe! – Chappell Roan
ES: That Chappell Roan song also has a bit of a throwback element to it.
TS: I dunno, what do you think she’s throwing back to?
ES: It sounds very Kate Bush to me. Especially the bridge.
TS: It’s way sunnier, though.
ES: I don’t think the bridge is all that sunny. “When you wake up next to him in the middle of the night”? That whole section feels so dramatic and foreboding. It’s about that tiny voice reminding you of your past mistakes, the things you can’t change. And it sounds like Hounds of Love-era Kate Bush.
TS: I hadn’t considered that. I’ll have to listen again.
ES: What did you hear?
TS: I just thought it was a good pop song. My main things are tune and voice and she’s pretty consistent with both. She’s a bit theatrical, but not as theatrical as, say, Lady Gaga… I think the next album will be the thing that pushes her into the stratosphere or will be a stumbling block.
ES: Would you prefer she lean into her pop sensibilities? Or should she go a bit more avant-garde?
TS: I’d rather she keep doing what she’s doing. Is anyone saying she’s going to go avant-garde?
ES: Not really. Laughs. I’m speculating just because she seems to hate being famous. If her next record is weird it might reset things a little.
Broken Man – St. Vincent
ES: But let's talk about St Vincent.
TS: I’ve followed her since the beginning of her career. Great singer, very hooky songwriting. She’s influenced by rockers from the past, like David Bowie.
ES: Oh cool. I hear a little Nine Inch Nails in this song.
TS: I don’t listen to Nine Inch Nails.
ES: You might like it. The bass line on this song, and the use of distortion, feels very Trent Reznor.
TS: I’ll check that out. Anyways she’s been very consistent. Great tunes and melody. And she’s a great guitar player.
Classical – Vampire Weekend
ES: I know your list isn’t ranked, but I notice the last two songs we’re discussing are both pretty effects-heavy.
TS: That’s true. St. Vincent sounds very processed, even though on the surface it seems like a record of musicians playing in a room, and I think the same could be said of Vampire Weekend. I love Ezra Koenig’s voice, I’m a sucker for that high tenor. And the songs are tuneful. I just wish the lyrics were more straightforward.
ES: I like the lyrics on this, but they did strike me as something you’d be annoyed with.
TS: What do you think it’s about?
ES: I dunno. I think [The New Yorker’s] Amanda Petrusich wrote that this record had a lot to do with justice and what is fair in society. And so the line “How the cruel, with time, becomes classical” seems to say that we can become numb to everyday evil, or the mistreatment of others. What is outrageous eventually becomes normalized.
TS: Okay, I can understand that. In general, they’re a music-first band for me. I like how their songs simulate the sound of a full band. It sounds like a traditional arrangement but there’s all kinds of stuff happening. The drums seem lifted from a completely different track.
ES: Their approach reminds me of hip-hop. Pulling disparate elements together to create something new. I think that’s why Only God Was Above Us feels so New York to me.
TS: I hadn’t thought of that. That's a good comparison. It becomes like a collage effect.
What were your favourite Chunes of 2024? Let me know in the comments.
Three cheers for old people! This was fun, and great to hear Tom's picks and thoughts. I lean here towards the Charli and Chappell (though maybe not quite as keen on the latter as many others seem to be). Interesting dialogue between you two on lyrics. I think Tom and I have had similar discussions over the years.
I'll admit I've never cared much for the little bit of St. Vincent I've listened to but will give this a go.
I can't tell you my own top 5 because I focused more on albums this year and still have this weird thing about songs/singles that they need to function for me as part of daily life in order to really matter. I mean, I hardly live or die by that credo but there's a "real time" thing with singles that is important to me, still.