Song of the Day: Little Green Cars - The John Wayne

photo by Lauren Slusher

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 selection, featured on the Midday Show with Cheryl Waters, is “The John Wayne” by Little Green Cars, a 2012 single on Glassnote Records.

When Little Green Cars played KEXP’s CMJ Showcase earlier this fall, the most impressive aspect of the Dublin quintet’s performance wasn’t their five-part harmonies, palpable chemistry, or Irish charm -- it was their sincerity. In an age when the New York Times publishes pieces on how to live life without irony, Little Green Cars’ honest approach to songwriting is refreshingly earnest. The song that first drew label attention and the lead single from their forthcoming debut, “The John Wayne,” opens with a fuzz guitar and kick drum stomp that lead into the band singing “It’s easy to fall in love/It’s easy to fall in love with you”. It’s an unabashedly simple lyric that many bands would fall prey to, but Little Green Cars throw themselves wholeheartedly into the delivery, and as the song builds to a driving charge that could soundtrack a modern take on one of the titular actor’s rides into the sunset, it’s easy to see why Little Green Cars have broken out of the Dublin music scene to a bigger stage more suited for their emotional scale.

Little Green Cars don’t have any North American dates booked at the moment, but chances are that they’ll be back on the road after Glassnote releases their debut album early next year. Check on their website and Facebook to learn about any future dates, and watch the official video for “The John Wayne” below.