If I Told You: Televise

Last week I saw the Unrest reunion show, which was probably a high point of my life. Listening to "West Coast Love Affair" with your best friend from high school? Seeing an ex-boyfriend pogo in the corner? It really doesn't get any better. But in the days after, I started to feel kind of like a loser. Or like my mother. You see, my mother really only listens to music made before 1973, the year she graduated from college. I graduated from college in 1998 and a cursory glance at my itunes proves my point: I am becoming my mother. Except obsessed with the nineties. It's sad when all of your favorite bands are broken up. How often is Unrest gonna reunite? Not very often.

But then salvation came in the form of Televise. My friend Nicki, who is addicted to MP3 blogs, told me I had to hear this band founded by the former drummer of Slowdive. Former member of Slowdive! Dude, she had me at hello.

And then I read their bio and really fell in love. I quote: "Jamie Armstrong was added on guitar in January '04 to complete the lineup after writing an imaginary soundtrack to NASA's space exploration videos." Imaginary soundtracks to NASA space exploration videos? That's what all music should sound like! I want them to be my new best friends.

After deciding that they were my New Favorite Band, I decided it was time to listen to their music. It did not disappoint. They claim to draw upon the bands of 4AD, Thrill Jockey, and Creation. All I have to say is, Sigh. There are only two songs available stateside, via their website, "If I told you" and "Smile", but both are unbelievably awesome and go perfectly with snowy weather, though I imagine they'll be a nice soundtrack to any season.

With Televise, I can conveniently feed my unquenchable shoegazer fixation/nineties nostalgia trip while at the same time resting assured that the band is both current and somewhat obscure. I guess the question remains about whether a band whom I've only heard two songs can really be GBoAT-quality. The answer, I believe, is found in their bio, where they say "music is limitless, endless possibilities of sound, no restrictions or guidelines, freedom is found." I prefer my bands to sound like their main activities include smoking pot, reading Siddhartha, and watching nature movies. These are also confident words, words that can only come from the Greatest Bands of All Time.