Sunday, March 07, 2010

Pavement's "Kennel District"

Been listening to a lot of Pavement lately in anticipation of seeing them at Pitchfork this year (anyone else seeing the Pavement reunion train?) and discovered this previously overlooked gem:

"Kennel District" from Wowee Zowee


I've always found Wowee Zowee to be the unfairly overlooked album in Pavement's catalog. Something about it's bizarre song fragments really appeals to me for the same reason I have an irrational love for Todd Rundgren's A Wizard A True Star album. And it's highs (Rattled by the Rush and Grounded primarily) are just so, so good. But somehow I've overlooked this song in the past, and I am the worse for it.

I love the combination of My Bloody Valentine-esque guitar with (dare I say) almost Wilco-style poppiness. It sounds very un-Pavement to me, but is just fantastic, and helpd remind me why this band still holds up, and why I can not wait to see them.

4 comments:

texplush said...

VC, I recently rediscovered this track as well, and have been really digging into the expanded reissues (must hears if you don't know them, especially the Crooked Rain and Slanted reissues). It's an awesome song.
i'm seeing pavement in NYC in sept. and i'm super excited. they are the best band.
also, i dare say that Wowee is the go-to favorite pavement album for hardcore fans. I remember in college being told that I wasn't a true fan unless it was my choice for their best. I love it of course, but it's still only tied for third with Brighten the Corners for me.

Quinapalus said...

Terror Twilight is probably my favorite Pavement album.

Yeah, I said it.

drischord said...

Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain. No question for me on that one. Even if it was their most "commercial"-- a very relative term. So good from first song to the last.

小玉西瓜 said...
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