Rubik Makes MAGNET A Mix Tape

With needle-in-the-red electronics and unbridled orchestration, Dada Bandits—the new album (on Fullsteam) from Finnish four-piece Rubik—steals from no one but evokes our favorite pop-art masters: the Flaming Lips, New Pornographers and Jackson Pollock, to name a few. Dada Bandits might be the brightest bit of indie rock to come out of Finland yet, a bombastic album that mothballs the reindeer sweaters in favor of some space-age Sgt. Pepper duds. Rubik singer Artturi Taira made MAGNET a mix tape of cosmic-rock standbys and local favorites.

“Wasteland” (download):
https://magnetmagazine.com/audio/Wasteland.mp3

The Flaming Lips “Silver Trembling Hands”
They played this one live in Helsinki this summer with Wayne Coyne sitting on the shoulders of a guy dressed as a bear. It stuck in my head pretty badly, and when they put the EP out this fall, I was ready. Sounds like a soundtrack for a heavily sedated car chase before breaking into this Tortoise-esque chorus. Fantastic. Really looking forward to their new album.

Cockpits “The New Gospel”
Great sludge from these Finnish guys. Their main songwriter/singer/guitarist Lauri actually played with us for a few years. But I think this suits him way better.

David Bowie “Station To Station”
A great trip provided by a true master. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with this song. My favorite part is probably the hectic ending, the “It’s too late” part. The way the song evolves before getting there is just marvelous. And talking about album openers; you can tell you’re on your way to a very special place from the very first lines.

Talk Talk “Ascension Day”
Could’ve been any track off Laughing Stock, though. One of those albums that successfully creates its own universe and you can just try swimming along. Such a superb soundtrack for autumn nights.

The Beatles “Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite!”
This one’s a bit underrated, isn’t it? Easily one of my favorite Beatles tracks ever. I think the song sums up everything that is so magical about this band: great melodies, superb arrangements, Lennon’s fantastic voice. And more. This can never sound outdated, ever. I rest my case.

Caribou “Melody Day”
We listened to Caribou a lot while crossing the Rocky Mountains recently, and it fit just perfectly. Beautiful and haunting at the same time.

Wolf Parade “Kissing The Beehive”
This one reminds me of the band Television and in a good way, indeed. A great, epic song, it just keeps crumbling on and on. One of those songs that could go on forever and still stay cohesive and interesting. Lasts 10 minutes but feels like three. Could make a great single in an ideal world.

dEUS “Theme From Turnpike”
A Belgian band you really should listen to. On this one, they actually capture every good aspect there is about sampling, basing the whole song on a Mingus sample. And it works out just brilliantly. The chaos in the ending has a great never-ending feel. The way Tom Barman cranks “No more loud music!!” gives me the creeps every time I hear it.

John Coltrane “Meditations” (the whole suite)
The choice between the quartet version and the one made with his enlarged ensemble depends on the day’s mood. Both are pure, transcendental pieces of music, very emotional, very moving. Going through these is a very purifying experience, the spirituality is so present in his music.

Ceebrolistics “Uuvus/Luata”
Nightly electro/dub/rap/whatever from Finland. The whole Ö EP is so fantastic. These guys have yet to release a “proper” album (OK, Ö is referred to as EP, though its about 45 minutes). I think they have been working on it since … I don’t know, 2006? But no matter how long it may take, I have confidence it will be worth waiting for.