8000 bam bam

mp3: Sunglasses "Whiplash"
mp3: Hula Hoop "Call Off"

Savannah, GA is a weird place. The city always lives up to its marshy southern gothic reputation: eccentric residents, antebellum gentility and hospitality, decadent food, Spanish moss, nasty old race problems, corrupt politicians. I was fortunate enough to live there for a couple of years, and I would really like to see a spotlight cast in this little musical corner of the world.

So it was great to stumble across Samuel Cooper (who apparently goes by the name of 8000 bam bam) and his impressive menagerie of projects (Sunglasses (that's them up there), Hula Hoop, Grandma Q, and 8000 bam bam (his solo project)). Each band only has a handful of songs to their myspace page, but each is absolutely worth spending time with. From the sounds of it, he formed these bands while a student at SCAD. I'm posting the only two mp3s I could get my mitts on: "Whiplash" by Sunglasses and "Call Off" by Hula Hoop.

On "Whiplash," the band comes off like an electronic Johnny Mercer, pulling you along in a neon horse-drawn carriage of a song. It sounds sweet and goofy (that slide whistle!) and generous and big-hearted. This thing sounds like its constructed entirely of good vibes and pleasant dreams. Plus, the video, directed by Cooper himself, is colorfully bonkers. Check it out:



Then, we have "Call Off" by Hula Hoop which is, in a few key ways, even more chill than "Whiplash." The song orbits around a soul sample (I'm assuming) that is as sunny and breezy as a Sunday picnic. In the end, "Call Off" builds to a lively close that showers the listener with cascade of beautiful harmonies.

Neither of these songs is groundbreaking, but it's rare to come across a band (let alone 4 of them) that exudes more goodwill than Mother Theresa. I really hope that we hear more from Samuel Cooper in the near future.