Epic, 1983
Acquired: Half Price Books, Used, 2011
Price: $2.50
Once, when Jenny was working at the Merc, she said that one of the baker guys asked if I was wearing a “The The” shirt and he said that if I was, “That I was awesome, and that he totally approved.” I can’t remember what shirt it was. I think it was my green Hold Steady shirt with the praying hands. I felt embarrassed because I’d never listened to The The, but apparently they were cool. Great name, I have to admit. So a couple of The The records show up at work and I go “Snatch snatch snatch.” And it doesn’t sound early 80s cornball at all like it should. Instead, it sounds like really awesome post-punk at the base of the new wave. I really love “This is the Day” because it’s the song I know on this record. I was like “OH THIS IS THE THE I DIDN’T EVEN KNOW GO FIGURE!” Too bad I have to know the song from a car commercial or whatever but you have to admit, it sounds pretty car commercially. What with that accordion riff and that really great sounding chorus. It’s lighthearted like Austrialian alt-pop, or what I have as the platonic ideal of Australian alt-pop from the 80s. Not just that song, but this whole album. It’s a little more frenetic at times but mostly I’ve just been throwing this on when I need to put something on to cook dinner to or clean up the living room or whatever. It’s good background music that grows on you. Scratch that, background music sounds like a knock against this, and it’s not meant to be. It just goes well with any situation. Cool record. Approachable but still has a little weirdness. Side B sags a bit under the lengths of the songs (and suffers from some dated synths, but it's only really the last couple of tracks and even then the're still pretty good) but it’s still cool.
And, hilarious music video.
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