Terry Gross held a great interview today on Fresh Air with one of my all time favorite bands, the Go—Betweens. Grant McLennan and Robert Foster sounded polite, witty, and intelligent, just the kind of repartée you would expect from an Australian rock band.
Here's the song they described as a cross pollination of The Monkees and Bob Dylan.
And here's part of the Robert Christgau quote that started the piece.
"There's no denying that the Go-Betweens are a bookish taste--if you're bored by the literary, you won't get 'em. But rather than lyric poets, as I once thought, Forster and McLennan are better conceived as short-story writers, with the concreteness and forward motion of voices and music compensating for imagistic technique and low word count."
—from A Long Short Story.
And since I am quoting Christgau today, here's his most recent Go—Betweens review:
Oceans Apart [Yep Roc, 2005]
Robert's songs more tuneful in their maturity, Grant's more atmospheric, they punch 'em all up to make a stronger impression than on their comeback album, thus proving that it was one. Settled down in real life, Robert recaptures his peripatetic past with a clear conscience and a sharp eye; still questing, Grant couches his romanticism in instrumental subtleties that soften his detachment. Robert so fond, Grant so elusive, both so beguiling, they're deeply civilized for the leaders of a working rock band. And for just that reason they can follow the calling until that distant day when strumming itself is too much for them. A
Links:
An Archive of Robert Christgau's Go—Betweens Reviews