Track of the Moment: Euro-Trash Girl by Cracker

           The thing about great music is it never leaves you.  It follows you whenever you go, and can really brighten up your day if you happen upon it flipping through your Ipod.  That happened to me yesterday with Cracker.  As frequent readers know I’m no stranger to this band, and have been listening to them since 1992, but no band is truly good enough to listen to nonstop every day, so Cracker had sort of faded into the background recently.  I couldn’t tell you the last time I’ve listened to them, but when I came back it was the magic to my ears.

            Euro-Trash Girl is the 69th (ya the way this album is structured is very weird) track off the album Kerosene Hat.  It is a pull-no-punches ode to the runaway.  It tells the story of a man who finds himself in Europe with no money, no contacts, no control, and only one aspiration: to find a Euro-trash girl.  The song is vintage Cracker, with witty lyrics, fantastic twangy guitar, and driving drums. 

The drum piece to me is the most interesting part of the song.  For the most part the beat is a very simple, a snare drum played to almost a marching tune.   It’s as if the character in the song is marching.  He’s on a path, no matter how chaotic and sporadic his adventure seems, and it’s coming to an end. Where exactly?    You tell me.

You Should be Celebrating: Cracker by Cracker

(I wanted to thank John for letting me post this week)

The 90’s is turning 20 this decade (depending on the year you’re referring to) and since a lot of the internet was either born in or a kid in the 90’s a lot of people are getting nostalgic. I saw a lot of coverage about albums like Nevermind, Gish, Ten, and Blood Sugar Sex and Magik (a VERY abridged list of successful albums) turning the big two-oh. This got me thinking: I grew up in the 90’s, and thanks to my Dad I was exposed to a lot of different bands early, so what other good albums are celebrating? I found my answer in the band Cracker.

My Dad bought the self-titled after hearing them on 88.5 XPN (a radio station in Philly.) Their single "Teen Angst (What the World Needs Now)" reached number 1 on Billboards Modern Rock Tracks, and their album was getting good reviews. (Fun fact: they were even nominated for MTV’s best new artist…but Nirvana, a band formed 5 years earlier, and already put out an album won.) This album was followed by some more critically, and even commercially successful albums. Despite all this I feel like Cracker still managed to be very obscure.

This is an album that I’ve learned to like more and more as I’ve grown up. Between Johnny Hickman’s twangy, bluesy guitar playing, and David Lowery’s clever word play, ranging from somber to irreverent, the album’s true work of a band that truly loves music (also they have accordion which is something I don’t think you hear nearly enough of in alternative music.)

This album turns 20 on this date March 10. I included the song “Happy Birthday To Me” obviously for the anniversary of the album, but also because they use it a lot at things like sporting events when announcing birthdays. Every time I hear it when I feel like Cracker isn’t getting the recognition for a genuinely fun, rocking Birthday Jam.

Look for their new stuff coming out in 2012.