Margot and the Nuclear So and So's

While walking to the subway after class tonight, my friend handed me a CD and said, "Listen to this. I think you'll really fall in love". What was placed in my hands was "Animal!/Not Animal", the new album[s] by Margot and the Nuclear So and So's, an 8-person band who formed themselves in 2004. I say albums because the band has done something unique; they've combined two discs to make one: the songs their record company wanted them to do [found on Not Animal] and the ones they felt passionate about [on Animal!].

I listened to the album the second I got home, not expecting anything spectacular enough to keep my attention. Boy was I wrong. The first song I heard, "A Children's Crusade on Acid" was enough in itself to capture my heart and seal my approval. It's haunting and profound and has a bohemian-esque quality, as does the whole album. It sounds like something Radiohead and Deathcab for Cutie would create, had they done an album together. If you listen closely, you'll notice a lot of what they wrote posseses a hint of something having to do with Chicago. That could be because that's where they recorded Animal!.

Margot and the Nuclear So and So's are on tour now. Check their website for tourdates and to listen to some of their stuff: http://www.margotandthenuclearsoandsos.com/

My other favorites include:
A Lightning Rod
Love Song for a Schubas Bartender
Pages Written on a Wall
Hip Hip Hooray