Monday, December 29, 2008

Wire - "Pink Flag" from the Album Pink Flag and
  die kreuzen - "Pink Flag" (T&G62A)

Wire Pink Flag CD coverdie kreuzen Pink Flag 7-inch cover

Wire provides us with an original art punk gem from 1977 and die Kreuzen provide us with a drone punk rendering from 1990.

Wire were of course genius, but you might make the argument that die Kreuzen's spaced out guitar sound suits Wire's impressionistic lyrics even better than the original arrangement did.

While Wire was always crisp and angular, die Kreuzen stretch the sound of the song, the sound of the guitars, that is, pull it like chromium taffy into this near-infinite delay, and then smash the whole lumpy ribbon of sound they'd just made, so that what had been distinct, choppy, arresting is now distorted, broken, and warped.

The difference between Wire's original and die Kreuzen's cover is the difference between a zig zag pattern etched into zinc plate, buffed clean, and the pattern made by a sponge dipped in paints, silver/chrome and crimson and yes, pastel pink, all smeared together, as it is dragged freehand sidewise along a long, bumpy wall.

Wire - Pink Flag - 10 - Pink Flag.mp3

This file was removed February 9, 2009. If you're still way interested in coming up with a copy of this--and really can't figure out where you might get one--drop me an email and I'm sure I'll be able to figure something out for you.

File under: Art punk

die Kreuzen - Pink Flag (T&G 62A).mp3

This file was removed February 9, 2009. If you're still way interested in coming up with a copy of this--and really can't figure out where you might get one--drop me an email and I'm sure I'll be able to figure something out for you.

File under: Covers where they change the words

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