Song of the Day: The Vaselines - Last Half Hour

Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Today’s song, featured on The Afternoon Show with Kevin Cole, is “Last Half Hour” by The Vaselines from the 2014 album V For Vaselines on Rosary Music.

The Vaselines - Last Half Hour (MP3)

Elevated in the early '90s to widespread recognition thanks to a cosign from superfan Kurt Cobain, The Vaselines have resumed creating the singular indie pop that brought them cult status twenty years prior. Formed in Glasgow in 1986, Frances McKee and Eugene Kelly initially only had limited success outside of Scotland, recording a single LP (1989's Dum-Dum) and a pair of EPs before disbanding at the end of the decade. The band's legacy, however, became significantly influential due to Nirvana's covers of three of their tracks – "Son of a Gun", "Molly's Lips", and "Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam" – and subsequent sporadic live appearances from Kelly with Nirvana. Seventeen years after the band's initial dissolution, a string of joint appearances by McKee and Kelly led to a full-on reformation of the Vaselines, which resulted in touring (backed by members of fellow Glaswegians Belle and Sebastian) and two new albums, 2010's Sex With an X and 2014's V For Vaselines. Continuing where Sex With an X left off, "Last Half Hour" adds an increased amount of melodic muscle to the band's time-tested formula. McKee and Kelly's boy-girl harmonies are as sharp as ever, and swapping jangly, messy feedback for layers of chugging guitars, they sound just as youthful and vibrant as they ever did. Augmented with a twin-guitar solo and a vocal round in the final chorus, "One Lost Year" underscores that The Vaselines' reformation sounds more and more like two old partners getting back together for fun rather than cash and continues to be something to celebrated.

The Vaselines are embarking on a North American tour behind V for Vaselines in January, including a stop at Neumos on January 24th. Get tickets and more info on that 21+ show here, keep up with the band on their website and Facebook, and watch the band play "Son of a Gun" live on KEXP all the way back in 2009.