Kim Deal
“I DON’T know if it’s a driving compilation,” explains Kim Deal of the CD she’s curated exclusively for Uncut. “But that might be good, because if it’s a real CD then a lot of readers might listen to it in their cars…”
There’s certainly a pulse to a lot of the tracks on Gigantic, a 14-track selection of some of Deal’s all-time favourite songs: see Stereolab, Radiohead and, of course, the originators of the motorik beat, Neu!. Elsewhere, there are relentless grooves, from the retro electronic sway of Omertà, The Stooges’ low-slung swagger and Black Sabbath’s juggernaut swing. While the album quietens down on occasion – especially with Elizabeth Cotten’s peerless “Freight Train” – every track seems to inform Kim Deal’s work with The Breeders or on her new solo album, Nobody Loves You More. Whether you’re in your car or at home, it’s probably a good time to stick this CD on the stereo and enjoy a fantastic 70 minutes of music. And while you’re at it, head to page 56 for an extended interview with Kim about her new album, Florida and how country failures – “their liver enzymes are sky high, big mutton chops, they’re on their third wife…” – have influenced her work.
Joy Division
1 JOY DIVISION
Warsaw
Kim kicks off with the opening track from the Manchester crew’s debut EP, “An Ideal For Living”. Here are Joy Division at their punkiest, with Ian Curtis sneering and Bernard Sumner’s guitar slashing and savage. Stephen Morris’s innovative drum beat points towards their future, though.
2 TH’ FAITH HEALERS