A few years ago I worked at an Internet company next to a tall, lanky English guy (I’ll call him “Fred”) who seemed to know a lot more about music than your average corporate Web hack. He had well-developed opinions on bands I’d heard of and ones I hadn’t, and introduced me to a couple of very interesting groups.

Come to find out after several months that he was actually part of a little-known cult band back in the ’80s, a jangle-pop band from London called the Siddeleys. Though they were short lived (seeming mostly to be active from 1986 to 1988), they managed to catch the eye of BBC broadcaster John Peel, who was impressed by front woman Johnny Johnson’s almost Morrissey-like delivery. Peel invited the band to record one of his famous Peel Sessions, which yielded, among others, the track “My Favourite Wet Wednesday Afternoon” — one of the best-sounding indie tracks I’ve heard in a while.

Though the song is a little redundant (it could use an instrumental bridge somewhere after the third chorus), lyrically it contains imagery very evocative of a wet, nostalgic London afternoon. Lines like “Love that moves the sun, heaven and all the stars / This is just a fraction of what is rightfully ours” and  “I’ll take my dream to the grave with me if you don’t say something soon” are perfect for such a velvety-smooth Britpop track. The harmonies will echo in your memory for days. Thanks, Fred.

(Album available on Amazon)

Dave Grohl. Josh Homme. John. Paul. Jones.

Allow me to spew mindless superlatives like a hyperactive little kid, but Them Crooked Vultures is probably going to be the most mind-bending, capillary-rupturing tsunami of awesomeness to pound the shores of the modern rock scene this decade. Wait, does that sound over the top? Good.

For those of you who hate living in sunlight, Dave Grohl is the accomplished (and slightly self-inflated, from what I hear) ex-drummer of Nirvana and current Foo Fighters champion, Homme is chief asskicker of Queens of the Stone Age and an all-around brilliant songwriter, and John Paul Jones is John Paul Jones. From Led Zeppelin. (Twitch, twitch. Puke.) Them Crooked Vultures is the supergroup they formed in 2005 (joined by live rhythm guitarist Alain Johannes of QOTSA). Their debut album is due out November 16 in the UK, and November 17 in the US, which probably means there are already pirated versions flying around hither and thither.

This is still OK, though, because the entire album is available right now through the band’s YouTube channel. Of course it’s sweet, from the killer drum opening and chomping guitar riff of “New Fang” to the simple jaw-busting power of “No One Loves Me & Neither Do I.” I suggest you void your bowels to make room for the sheer rock infusion that will ensue, grab the first copy you can get your hands on, and devour that ambrosia like it’s green beer on Saint Patty’s Day.

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