Undoubtedly, the D.C. independent record store has made something of a resurgence in recent years—-even if conventional logic tells us that those brick-and-mortar shops are ultimately doomed. (Although there’s some recent evidence that they may not be.)
So it’s a bummer that for Record Store Day on April 17, some of D.C.’s indie labels have no plans for exclusive releases—-although their reasons are fairly understandable. As far as I can tell, most D.C. bands are also opting out, even though nine shops in the city are participating, according to the event’s Web site. (Then again, this brings up a question we’ve already pondered this month: Can we still consider Ted Leo a D.C. artist? Either way, the 7-inch he’s dropping looks pretty cool.)
This brings me to the erudite D.C. indie-pop band Exit Clov, which recently dropped the album Memento Mori, and which has an excellently curated covers 7-inch planned for Record Store Day. To wit, the tracklist:
-
“Sing Your Life” (Morrissey)
- “Steppin’ Razor” (Peter Tosh)
- “The KKK Took My Baby Away” (The Ramones)
- “Mongoloid” (Devo)
In an e-mail, Exit Clov member Susan Hsu (who, by the way, used to work at Washington City Paper) writes that the Cover Boy EP will be available at Crooked Beat and Som Records, and hopefully elsewhere, too. The EP’s first track is a pretty, lush, and somewhat loungelike foil to Morrissey’s abrasive, stop-bitching-and-start-a-band original: What sounds like a taunt from the Moz’s mouth is sweet encouragement coming from Hsu and her twin sister, Emily.
[audio:http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/artsdesk/files/2010/03/Sing-Your-Life.mp3]