Portastatic: “And I Was A Boy From School”
So my good friend (and Zack’s #1 gal pal) Clair’s uncle is actually Mac McCaughan, Portastatic frontman and the founder of Merge, which - suffice it to say - is awesome. We actually both spend the summer on Martha’s Vineyard, but while I have people like my grandparents and relatives visiting and staying at my house, she’s got Sonic Youth and J Mascis. But whatever, can Thurston Moore more make a to-die-for strawberry vinegarette dressing like Grandma can? I think not.
ANYWAYS, Portastatic’s got a new LP, Be Still Please, out next week which, according to the Merge site, “continues the full-on rock band sound of 2005’s Bright Ideas but with more of an emphasis on the orchestration featured in McCaughan’s recent soundtrack work”. However, as Pitchfork reported today, they’ve put out a digital-only EP for album-opener “Sour Shores” to tide us over in the meantime, which you can pick up here. In an awesome turn of events, the EP contains a cover of Hot Chip’s “And I Was A Boy From School”, the original version of which is shaping up to be one of the defining tracks of 2006. Forgoing the funky electro-soul of the original for a more stripped down, guitar-based approach, McCaughan’s version doesn’t come close to topping the original but certainly makes for an excellent listen nonetheless.
MP3: “And I Was A Boy From School” - Portastatic