ikara colt, “city of glass”
“City of Glass” is exactly what I thought Sonic Youth would sound like before I ever heard them. Maybe the most urban rock song I’ve ever encountered (along with “I’m Waiting for the Man”), a vision of what city living must be like, a montage of Scorsese fast cuts and Cassavetes pops and public transportation and struttingstruttingstrutting to an art opening/party/a celebration of you, legs and short skirts and sideways glances that you walk through, knowing that you are completely in charge of all that is in your domain: this is mine, all of it, now get out of my way. It’s so cocksure and smart and conceited, and listening to it as you preen through a city — as I have been every day for the last month or so — it’s impossible to not feel like Big Bossman #1, for even the most modest of us. Of course Ikara Colt — four Brits who split a couple years ago — released this song in 2002, way too early for the blogwars that wouldashouldacoulda crowned this pretty much the greatest song of all time — for a day. Well, Ikara Colt, let that day be now. R.I.P.
The page for “Chat and Business” linked to says that the album is not available in my country (Sweden). However, a seemingly identical version of the album is available at http://www.emusic.com/album/10993/10993895.html - it seems that this has happened for a lot of epitaph albums.
Right on! I had lost these guys in the ether of my music collection. Now, I’ll be listening to them all over…and over again as I rock the sidewalks of NYC. Brilliant.
I saw Ikara Colt at Glastonbury in 2002? 2003? I’ve always vaguely liked them, but I loved what you said and I think I’ll revisit. (That album isn’t available on eMusic over here, more’s the pity.)