musicacious

I Keep Forgetting That They Even Had Electricity Way Back in the 1960s AKA Introduction to Silver Apples

2009-04-28T10:22:00.002-05:00

originally posted on zunetracks.net

One of my favorite ways to discover new music is by checking out my favorite artists' influences. I discovered Silver Apples while reading about the Silver Jews who have shared members with one of my longtime favorite bands, Pavement.

Silver Apples were a two-piece electronic rock band formed in New York City during the late 60s. Rock duos seem to be the lineup-de-jour but Silver Apples were ahead of their time in more ways than that. They consisted of Dan Taylor on drums with Simeon Coxe III on miscellaneous home-cobbled electronic equipment including 12 oscillators and several sound filters. These instruments were apparently played with hand, elbows and feet.

The homemade instruments are very interesting especially when you think about how easy it is to download software that will do all of that for you today. I think what makes Silver Apples stand out is Taylor's drumming and Simeon's vocals. Taylor establishes the firm foundation with ties all of the beeps and static together. And Simeon's vocals have a tired Buddy Holly quality to them.

That said, they released several top-100 charting albums in the 60s before eventually (and mysteriously) imploding amidst a law suit from Pan-Am airlines. Silver Apples reformed in the late 90s and released their third album (which they'd recorded in 1970). Dan Taylor died of a heart attack in 2005 but Simeon is still doing solo music/art shows today.

For fans of currently electronic and experimental music I cannot recommend Silver Apples enough. You can find more info on their website - www.silverapples.com

If you've got a Zune Pass you can find a 1997 reissue of their first two records called Silver Apples. You can also find MP3s on Amazon and EMusic.

It's D(epeche Mode) Day!

2009-04-21T08:36:00.004-05:00

$3.99 at Amazon mp3!

Full Moon Machines

2009-04-17T10:22:00.008-05:00

I got this song by Full Moon Machines free on a Tiger Puking Tiger Records (seriously!) sampler from Amie Street and I find it pretty interesting. Sort of Crystal Castles meets Lift to Experience, eh?

Full Moon Machines - "Ghost Room Dust"

Also, there's a Barsuk Records sampler being offered for free from Amazon mp3 at the moment, among numerous other samplers by other labels. Check it!

Easter - Marillion

2009-04-12T14:30:00.005-05:00

So keeping with my recent theme of date/holiday related songs, I present "Easter" by Marillion. My friend Steve introduced me to this band's music in college, during many late night drinking and smoking sessions at our friends' apartment. I preferred the earlier prog rock Genesis-influenced stuff (when songwriter Fish was with the group) much more than their later years, when Steve Hogarth joined the band and turned their sound more in the direction of Radiohead. They are still making albums and touring, thirty years after they formed.

"Easter" is, in my opinion, one of the best from Marillion's "transitional" years, at the intersection of Hogarth's influence and the band's Fish-era sound.

*Edited for a confession - I had a local folk musician make fun of me a few years back for liking Marillion. Not a lot of us prog rock geeks still around I guess...

Post-Morrissey Bliss!

2009-04-11T09:10:00.004-05:00

So, the show last night? FANTASTIC. Morrissey has only improved with age. I will probably go see him again the next time he comes through Dallas--I really don't think I will ever tire of the man! So--some differences between this show and the last show I saw him play back in the early 90s: 1) Last night, he talked to the audience much more than he did back then--seemed much friendlier and like he was enjoying himself much more, which was nice! 2) Three shirt changes! He pretty much kept the same lamé shirt on the whole time when I saw him before (though it was mostly undone), but it was an outdoor show, so perhaps there was more air circulation or something. Or maybe he's just gotten much sweatier as he's aged. In any case, people still went NUTS when he took off the second shirt onstage and threw it into the audience (then joked that he's noticed that whenever someone catches the shirt, they immediately leave the show). I couldn't really see any of it, so I can't actually comment on his shirtless physical appearance these days, but the crowd seemed awfully appreciative! 3) He played lots of Smiths songs, which I don't remember hearing ANY of last time. 4) Much more interesting stage setup--a great backdrop, good lighting--I don't think there was anything special happening up there when I saw him before. Then again, it WAS at Astroworld of all places...

Anyway, he put on an excellent show, sounded amazing, and played songs spanning most of his career. I didn't write down the set list, and nobody else seems to have gotten one up online yet, but here are the ones I can remember at the moment in no particular order (except for the first on the list, which actually IS what he opened with):

This Charming Man (The Smiths)
I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris (Years of Refusal)
Billy Budd (Vauxhall and I)
How Soon is Now? (The Smiths)
Irish Blood, English Heart (You are the Quarry)
When I Last Spoke to Carol (Years of Refusal)
Seasick, Yet Still Docked (Your Arsenal)
Best Friend on the Payroll (Southpaw Grammar)
Something is Squeezing My Skull (Years of Refusal)
Ask (The Smiths)
The World is Full of Crashing Bores (You are the Quarry)
I'm OK By Myself (Years of Refusal)
The First of the Gang to Die (You are the Quarry)
Let Me Kiss You (You are the Quarry)
Death of a Disco Dancer (The Smiths)
Sorry Doesn't Help (Years of Refusal)

I'll update this once I find an accurate set list and make my usual dorky concert set list mix--huzzah!

Anyway, do yourself a favor and go see Morrissey the next time he comes through town!

* Update--still haven't located a setlist, BUT here's an actual picture from the show (this is the second of the three shirts, by the way) taken by Ray Lek:

After Years of Refusal, I'm Finally Going to See Morrissey Again!

2009-04-09T21:01:00.006-05:00

So, tomorrow night, Shannon and I and our friends Z and Marya are off to see the infamous (that's more than famous to you, buddy!) Morrissey in concert. The first time I bought tickets to his show was way back in 1992; sadly, just after I purchased the tickets for my friend Brian and I, my purse got stolen at school and when it was at last found and returned to me, the tickets were long gone. I was very sad. Brian had not yet paid me for his ticket, so he just went and bought another one and went without me (jerkface!), but he at least bought me a t-shirt. The next time Morrissey came to town I had better luck. He played at AstroWorld and it was during his lamé shirt days (awesome!). I honestly can't even remember who I went with (Katy, maybe?), but all of us in the bleachers kept standing up on them and screaming, and the security guards kept coming around and knocking us all off of them. I barely even remember the show. So now that I'm older and well...older, I'm excited to be seeing him again, especially now that he's, well, older as well. I'm quite interested to see what his shows are like sixteen years later. And it will be Shannon's very first time. If I remember and if I am not a big lazy-ass again, I'll write an update about how the show actually is. Here's hoping it's a fun time!

Here's the first single off his most recent album, Years of Refusal:

"I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris"

2 Live Jews

2009-04-08T18:31:00.005-05:00

Since today is the start of Passover, I thought it would be fun to post a song by 2 Live Jews (a play on the name of the band 2 Live Crew). I heard their hilarious album As Kosher As They Wanna Be (a play on the 2 Live Crew album name) when I was a college kid with a Jewish boyfriend. I don't think these guys are still around, and I wonder what happened to all of the fun "Dr. Demento" inspired bands? I guess I'm just getting old and nostalgic for the olden days!

Song: "Oy It's So Humid"

April 5th - Talk Talk

2009-04-05T17:50:00.004-05:00

Talk Talk was one of those rare bands whose albums got immensely better with time. Nature's beauty and its ugliness, spirituality, complex emotions, a deep profoundess without a name, leaves on trees, fractals, snow on fresh grass...that is what their music - particularly their last three albums (The Colour of Spring, Spirit of Eden, Laughing Stock) - makes me feel.

"April 5th" is from their third album, The Colour of Spring, released in 1986. I love this song because to me, it really sounds like Spring emerging from a long cold winter, with abundant sunshine and blue skies and flowers peeking through the snow. [I would have posted the mp3 but had technical difficulties - this is just the song posted to You Tube; the image is the album cover art.]

David Sylvian - Brilliant Trees

2009-03-09T09:48:00.005-06:00

I confess that I fell madly in love with this album the first time I heard it, and I still enjoy it immensely. David Sylvian's Brilliant Trees was his first solo album after having left the art rock band Japan back in the early 80's. Per Wikipedia, BT is "a musical palette containing extracts of Jazz, Ambient and radio noise, to lyrics influenced directly from Sylvian's reading of Jean-Paul Sartre." Sylvian's voice makes me think of a cross between Cy Curnin (of The Fixx) and Peter Murphy. And I'll admit, he's not hard to look at either.

The most interesting thing to me about this album though is that the bass guitarist (Holger Czukay) from Can plays the French horn on just about every song, and I had never heard anyone rock out on the French horn before. Beautiful stuff.

Here's the terribly arty video for "Red Guitar" - directed by Anton Corbijn, the guy who did a bunch of 80's videos including several for Depeche Mode:

Lunar Rotation

2009-03-05T11:32:00.002-06:00

Fine Time (live) by New Order

Serves You Well by Bozo Porno Circus
*performing March 21 at the Meridian*

Lunar Rotation-Post Valentine's Day Edition

2009-02-15T01:26:00.003-06:00

Work For Love (live) by Ministry

For Love by Lush

Lunar Rotation-Cramps Edition

2009-02-05T11:19:00.003-06:00

Some select videos from the Cramps mourning the late Lux Interior

What's Inside a Girl?

Bikini Girls With Machine Guns

Ultra Twist

Cramp Stomp

R.I.P. Lux Interior

2009-02-05T11:13:00.002-06:00

Erick Lee Purkhiser has sadly died. He died yesterday (Feb. 4) at the age of 62. He was better known as Lux Interior, the lead singer for The Cramps.

Lunar Rotation-Crash Worship Edition

2009-02-02T21:42:00.004-06:00

Here are two live clips from Crash Worship. I really don't know how to describe it other than some pagan-drum-travelling circus. My first experience was around 1994 in a wooded area outside of Austin. I picked up a friend and drove to the woods where we helped another couple who were stuck in the mud. There was a rave going on. There were two big bonfires and people dancing naked. I was rather surprised. I'd never been to anything like this, well and still haven't. I watched my friend dance among the flames. She didn't get naked although a part of me was hoping she would. Anyhow, it was well after midnight when Crash Worship finally took the stage. By then we found some more friends of ours who came from Houston in a van. Crash hadn't played an hour when a rain storm began pouring. So we all bundled up and began walking through the woods looking for the van. I gave my friend my shirt because she was cold from the rain. We found the van all 7 or 8 of us piled in. I don't how I got lucky and snagged the driver seat. I guess it was because I was the tallest. We slept in the van for a couple of hours when the sun came up. I then had to march through mud to find my truck and pray it wasn't stuck in mud. Luckily it wasn't. We then met up at a convenience store for breakfast (i.e. candy and coffee) and to use the restroom. One guy got soaked and the only dry clothes were girl clothes. So I'm walking into the restroom followed by a guy with a black tank top and pink shorts. I can only imagine what the old men meeting and chatting over coffee and cigarettes must have thought. Then again this was near Austin so they may not have thought anything of it. I then took my friend to her dorm where she had to get ready for work. I wanted to sleep in her room, but with her roommate there it would have been awkward. So, I drove from Austin to Liberty on little sleep. I wonder if I could do all that again today. Oh, the fun times of youth!

Greenlandic Hip Hop

2009-01-25T17:47:00.003-06:00

Who knew there's a hip hop scene in Greenland? I certainly had no idea until today! Bless you, You Tube!

This band is Nuuk Posse (Nuuk is the capital of Greenland). The video is one of their songs played along with a slideshow. I'm not sure these guys will ever make it to MTV. Still, pretty cool stuff! Greenlandic language is fascinating (to me, anyway). Wish I could understand the words.

Lunar Rotation

2009-01-25T14:13:00.003-06:00

Holiday by The Other Ones

***Anyone remember this song?***

I'm gonna do something a bit different here. Instead I'm gonna take us on a trip back 25 years ago. Here is a peek into Jamaican dance halls in the early to mid
1980s. Enjoy!

Lunar Rotation-Birthday Edition

2009-01-20T10:34:00.003-06:00

Birthday by the Sugar Cubes (ignore the first few seconds)

Okay I'm not "Mr. President" but I figured it was funny enough.

Ladyhawke

2009-01-19T10:36:00.006-06:00

Yikes! I have been so incredibly lazy about posting it's not even funny! Ok, well, maybe it is a little.

Anyway, I recently got six or seven new albums that I've been making my way through. A couple are not great (Bauhaus? Seriously? That's the best you could do after all this time?). And a couple are pretty good (way to go, Ladytron!). But there's one that I've found myself seriously addicted to, and since I think Shelby especially would really appreciate it, I'm forcing myself to post for the first time in way too long.

Without further ado, the clear winner in this batch of albums is New Zealander Ladyhawke. Yes, Ladyhawke--just like the classic 80s fantasy movie starring Matthew Broderick, Rutger Hauer and Michelle Pfieffer. Okay, so the movie isn't very good, but the album IS. Like the movie, it's got a very 80s sort of feel to it--lots of synth (think Gary Newman), and just something about the way the songs are structured call to mind stuff from that decade.

As usual, I don't have any mp3s on me at the moment, but you can watch the videos below to get a sense of what she does:

"Dusk Till Dawn"

"Delerium"

"Paris is Burning"
In conclusion: you should buy this. It's good! And fun! And 80s new wave-ish! And it's waaaaay better than the movie. Seriously.

Lunar Rotation

2009-01-04T11:09:00.002-06:00

Kiss & Tell by Bryan Ferry

Mommy's Little Monster (live) by Social Distortion

Now, people think I'm crazy for this, my wife already does. These are my two favorite male vocalists, Bryan Ferry and Mike Ness. Now people say, "Jason, they are such opposites!" Yes they are! Bryan Ferry's voice is just melodic and (at the risk of sounding girly) beautiful. Mike Ness, on the other hand, has that gutteral, raw, energetic voice that has no melody. However I could still listen to it all day!

A Christmas Miracle!

2008-12-29T14:16:00.007-06:00

A few months back, I added a new record player (a Crosley CR74-OA in cherry) to my Christmas wish list. I've pretty much always had a record player, except for a couple of years in college after my grandfather's old one died and I couldn't immediately find a replacement, and then again three years ago, when the one I finally found in college finally broke. At the time, we figured we wouldn't be replacing it anytime soon, because it was so hard to find record players that didn't have to be hooked up to an entire stereo system (which we did not have and did not want). And honestly, it just didn't seem like a priority. But I missed it. And so I was very excited when I found that you can get a really nice record player (that also plays CDs and tapes) for about $150 that does not have to be hooked up to anything. And that's what I got for Christmas this year, along with several albums that I love. It's the best Christmas gift I've gotten in years and years and years.

Did you get anything good this year?

2008-12-28T18:20:00.002-06:00

Suffering (live) by Fishbone

Back When Was Fab by George Harrison

Lunar Rotation-Merry Christmas

2008-12-24T10:14:00.002-06:00

Turn this was up loud!

Lunar Rotation-The Week of Christmas

2008-12-21T01:12:00.003-06:00

Merry Christmas I Don't Wanna Fight Tonight by The Ramones

OMG!

2008-12-19T14:29:00.012-06:00

So, remember awhile back when I posted an open letter to Dave Kendall? Well, um, apparently he read it (on another blog I have, without the post script). And wrote this:

bizarrely enough I do remember the Gumby pics. how strange I stumbled on this site. and i was not making porn, i produced a documentary about it…not the same thing, ahem…

My response:

Ha ha–awkward! Well, you know how Wikipedia is…I should learn not to trust everything I read there!

Er.........

Rather embarrassing. I'm really sort of hoping it was just a Dave Kendall pretender.

But if it wasn't, OMG! Squeeeee!

Lunar Rotation-Reggae Edition

2008-12-14T13:22:00.004-06:00

We just returned from a week long cruise. I am glad to be home. Life can't be put on hold forever. During our trip, my mind frequently thought of the movie Club Paradise and reggae music. So, enjoy....

This Old Man (live) by Yellowman

***We took a tour in Montego Bay and drove right past this stadium***

Get Up Stand Up (live) By Bob Marley & The Wailers (I know I know you can't have reggae without someone bringing up Bob Marley)

Mi Gi Dem (live) by Burning Spear

Music once disliked now enjoyed

2008-12-14T12:36:00.004-06:00

Sometimes it just takes me hearing something more than once for the music-loving part of my brain to respond positively.

For example, I used to strongly dislike the song "Walk Out to Winter" by Scottish new wave band Aztec Camera. I had downloaded it upon reading someone's glowing review of the band, since I am such a new wave nerd. Immediately the song turned me off - I can't even explain why (maybe it's the repetitive three minute intro in the 12" version I bought, but I'm not sure). It ended up on my iPod though, and since it's sometimes hard for me to change tracks while riding my bike and listening to the iPod, I was forced to listen to it a few times. Now I absolutely love that song, and there are days when I can't get it out of my head because it's so damn cheerful.

Anyone else have a similar experience with a certain song, album, or band?

Aztec Camera - Walk Out to Winter (12" version)

Separated at Birth?

2008-12-14T12:04:00.005-06:00

I realized the other day while watching the news that Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich looks a lot like Roxy Music frontman Bryan Ferry (not counting the hairdo).

Playing Ghost Games with the Apes

2008-12-12T08:44:00.011-06:00

Since it's the end of the year, and lots of folks are making "Best of 2008" mixes (something I think about doing every year and then never quite get around to), I've been going through what I've heard over the past twelve months and reminding myself of what I liked and why. One of those albums is Ghost Games by the band Apes, which was released in mid-February.

It's one that I wasn't quite sure what to make of on first listen. It sounds like its got deep roots in 70s rock, which is something I never really got into--big drums, organ, a wailing vocalist (apparently their third), silly stage names, and kind of an open, live sound. But the more I listen to it, well, the more I like it. Partly, I think it's that Ghost Games is so different from what I normally listen to and what my friends normally listen to--when I'm tired of hearing folk pop and indie rock and instrumental electro-noise, this sounds...really refreshing. I read one review that said something like, "if you're looking for something to karaoke to, this is not it," but I kind of disagree. Yes, it's a bit difficult to understand what the heck frontman Breck Brunson (a.k.a. Midnight Joe) is actually singing sometimes, but once you figure it out, it's somehow immensely rewarding; when joining in with him (though you wouldn't know it to look at these folks), it's easy to imagine yourself a real, old-fashioned rock star on stage in some giant stadium, with a big light show and tight pants. I mean, who doesn't love that fantasy?

If you enjoy bands like Les Savy Fav, Ghostland Observatory or, you know, 70s rock bands like Deep Purple, you should give Ghost Games a listen. Or two. It might grow on you.

Sadly I don't have any mp3s for you at the moment. I'll try to remedy that this weekend. Until then, you can listen to a couple songs off the album at the Apes' myspace page.

Sometimes I'm Obnoxious for the Sake of Being Obnoxious...

2008-12-11T09:05:00.008-06:00

So, every year a group of our friends gets together for a CD exchange party. We pick whatever album has been the most influential for us over the past year, buy a brand new copy of it and wrap it up for the party. Then we draw numbers to decide who gets to pick first. People who pick later can either choose to steal a CD that's already been opened, or they can pick a new one, still wrapped up, still a mystery. The system has its flaws; often people end up with CDs they don't particularly care for, and sometimes several people bring the same album. But for the most part it's a fun night, mostly just because we get to stand around and listen to and talk about music for hours, which, you know, I like.

Anyway, on Monday night, we made our annual pilgrimage to Good Records in an attempt to find our most influential albums of the year in an actual store. It's always tough for me, because my first choices always seem to be albums by bands from other countries (like, say, Sweden), or else things I've downloaded from Amie Street by independent artists from whom you would have to actually order a CD directly. Imports are expensive and I always procrastinate too much to have time to order a CD online. So we go to the store and hope for the best.

Last year, my top choice was a Swedish import, so that was out, but my next two choices were available, so it was a fairly easy task. This year? Not at ALL. I had a list of ten to twelve CDs I would consider taking. And Good Records had NONE of them. And that made me mad. And so I ended up picking something that I didn't love or even really listen to much at all, but which was the weirdest, most sonically offensive thing I'd heard all year, because at least it was interesting (Crystal Castles, you win!). I knew that most likely only two or three people at this party would care for it even a little bit (maybe), and it didn't matter. I bought it anyway. And now I'm trying to decide which track to play for people--one that is less strange that will make folks at least want to check it out? Or one that gives them the full effect of what they're in for?

Do you ever just want to cram challenging music down other peoples' throats?

I do.

And anyway, the whole point of these CD exchange parties is to be exposed to music you haven't really listened to before, right? Well...booyah. I have a feeling this one fits the bill perfectly then.

A couple of the less "sonically offensive" tracks from the Cystal Castles album:

Crystal Castles - Air War mp3
Crystal Castels - Crimewave mp3

And last year's song--sweet, innocent little Sea Wolf:

Sea Wolf - You're a Wolf mp3

P.S. Just for the record, it might sound like I don't really like the Crystal castles album, but I do! It wasn't high on my list of my favorite albums from this year, but I actually do think it was the most interesting one I listened to. That's all.

Music Has The Right To Children

2008-12-10T10:09:00.004-06:00

A couple of things. Sorry for the sporadic posting on here - not that there are many of you reading, but it just felt like, at least for me, that I wasn't really giving a lot of my best effort here, and it seemed wrong to do this half-heartedly. I love music so much, and to not give it my full attention or best prose felt wrong. I've since realized that it's OK to not write Pulitzer prize winning stuff on here. Nothing I've ever put on here was tremendous writing anyway. Mostly, it's just going to be quick hits about music, and I need to be satisfied with that. I'll keep fighting that internal battle on my own. In the meantime, let's get back to the hits:

I might have mentioned Boards of Canada previously. Anyway, Music Has The Right To Children is one of the best electronic albums of ever. You don't have to believe me. I mean, if you disagree, you'll obviously be wrong, but that's your choice. Anyway, it's $3.99 this week at Amazon MP3. Link

If you don't own it already, it's really a no-brainer at $4.

One of my favorite tracks:

Roygbiv MP3

So we went to the R&R hall of fame

2008-12-02T17:04:00.002-06:00

I was asked to share my thoughts here by a friend. My first thought is that I can't see any pictures on this blog because blogger won't load them . . .

Some R&R Hall of Fame Thoughts:

Music is so many things to so many people that its hard to communicate that with a walk through musuem. They did have music available to listen to which was nice, but I didn't have time to really experience that.

I know just about every inductee from the 60's 70's and later. This either means that I'm a well versed rock-o-phile or that the industry has crammed these artists in our faces to the point where we all know who they are weather we like it or not. We all know that there is some cramming and that those worthy of induction aren't all super-terrific rock geniuses. I like the Beatles but I don't really need to listen to a best of album with George Harrison's greatest hits.

Naming it after a Genre is weird; do they want to honor the youth movement that happend when R&R was first getting going? If so then it will always be frozen it time. I know that Rock and Roll is more than a genre, but that phrase is almost unuseable now. So many other music movements have come and gone, even some that wouldn't want to be called R&R.

I think the recent changes in the record industry have made me view the history of R&R with a much different view. Instead of explosive messages changing the course of history, I see expression being limited by the vision of a corporate record industry that for the most part is now a thing of the past. Internet distribution of music might make something like the R&R hall of fame obsolete. How can we determine who has #1 songs when no one listens to the radio anymore?

Lunar Rotation

2008-12-01T08:11:00.002-06:00

Home (live) by Public Image Limited

Real Wild Child by Iggy Pop

Lunar Rotation

2008-11-24T16:23:00.003-06:00

Huuvola (live) by Peter Murphy

Surrendered (live) by Peter Murphy
***I included a bonus Peter Murphy video due to the previous post***

House of Fun by Madness

My Milky Way Arms

2008-11-23T23:59:00.007-06:00

So, I've been pretty lazy about music lately. I went on vacation, and the holidays are coming up, and excuses, excuses. Anyway, I've mostly just been listening to Peter Murphy's 1988 album Love Hysteria over and over and over again (Shannon is probably about ready to throw my iPod out the window).

Tonight, however, I was just about out when something startled me and I just couldn't get back to sleep. So instead I came out to the living room, where I've been perusing my Amie Street library.

I've been getting the majority of my music from Amie Street for a couple of years now--usually the free stuff. I have a tendency to just "purchase" (if it's free, can you really call it purchasing?) whatever looks like it might be slightly interesting without even giving it a brief listen first. Then, if I remember, I download it later, and possibly think to put it on my iPod. But lots of stuff just never actually makes it onto my computer at all.

Such is the case with a 5 song EP I just discovered in my library tonight by Houston or Austin-based band (their Myspace page says one thing, several reviews another) My Milky Way Arms. It's shoegaze, and electronica, and lots of gorgeous, shimmery, swirling guitars and static-y noise and pretty-pretty high-pitched keyboard sounds, and well, I'm a just little bit smitten. I am downloading this IMMEDIATELY and putting it right onto my iPod. Sorry, Pete--I think you've just been supplanted!

RIYL: Chapterhouse (Whirlpool era, not Blood Music), Ride, the Beach Boys, Grandaddy and Explosions in the Sky.

You can listen to the entire EP (released in January of this year) and purchase it for a mere $5.00 on their Myspace page.

My Milky Way Arms - "Unbearable Lightness of Being" MP3

And:

Chapterhouse - "Treasure" MP3
Ride - "Paralyzed" MP3

Just a Couple of Random Videos...

2008-11-21T10:04:00.005-06:00

What's a Girl to Do MP3

Or maybe not so random...

Got any others that fit?

Drippers EP

2008-11-18T17:30:00.003-06:00

I've mentioned before how i love Black Moth Super Rainbow. They've got a new EP out - Drippers. If you buy it from them, I think there are maybe a few different scratch-n-sniff covers. That's crazy ... crazy awesome!

Enjoy this track:

Happy Melted City MP3

Lunar Rotation

2008-11-17T10:37:00.001-06:00

Hold Me by Fleetwood Mac

Change Your Mind by Sharpe & Numan

Put Another Dime in the Grampall Jookabox

2008-11-14T13:43:00.006-06:00

So, I've been running into more music lately that's tough to classify. This Grampall Jookabox falls into that "tough-to-classify" classification. I could be way off since I'm not super familiar with Danielson (last time i listened intently was maybe the Tooth & Nail days in the late 90s), but it seems a little like that maybe. It's freaky and folky, but not freak folk. I don't know. Anyway, I think if you like your music kinda weird and sort of genreless, then you should check this out.

FYI, it doesn't all sound like this "Ghost" track, which is really beginning to grow on me:
Ghost MP3

Bonus:
The Girl Ain't Preggers MP3

School of Seven Bells is in Session

2008-11-12T14:23:00.003-06:00

I remember back several years ago going to see a band called The Secret Machines of Captain Audio at a Good/Bad Art Collective show in Denton, Texas. I knew about Captain Audio, but this was, if I’m not mistaken, among the first-ish Secret Machines shows when the band was trying to decide what it wanted to be.

They later moved to New York City and started doing the Secret Machines thing full time. I’ve seen Secret Machines several times and enjoyed most of those performances.

Now, Ben Curtis, one of the two brothers who formed Secret Machines, has broken off and formed The School of Seven Bells with one of the girls from On! Air! Library! and her sister (this forming bands with siblings thing has always been a little fascinating to me). It feels nice to be able to trace a band lineage back pretty far and to sort of see those musicians develop over time into who they eventually become.

Anyway, The School of Seven Bells, which I’d heard about earlier, but which first hit my consciousness full-on with their “Chains” track on the pretty great Adult Swim/Ghostly International free downloadable album Ghostly Swim, have just released Alpinisms. Upon some cursory listening, there are some really great tracks on the album. If you like hazy/swooshy guitars, pretty female vocals and some interesting beats, it’s worth your time. It’s sort of reminding me of what might happen if Ulrich Schnauss met Enya and they both lightened up just a bit.

The School of Seven Bells is touring right now with M83. Hopefully they’re coming to a town near you (I’m not so lucky).

For your consideration:

Half Asleep MP3

Music and Memory

2008-11-11T11:19:00.011-06:00

So, I've read articles before about how our brains make connections between our memories and our senses--how you can think of an event from your past and sometimes hear or smell or taste what was going on at the time, not just see it. And I think that's really, really fascinating, how sight and sound and touch and taste and scent are all bound up in memory.

Lately I've been feeling kind of notsalgic and have been listening to a lot of the albums that I loved back in high school. And I've realized that many of them have very specific memories tied to them.

Whenever I hear The Queen is Dead by The Smiths, for instance, I remember lying on my stomach on the living room floor, reading Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice with a flashlight during the power outage whatever hurricane was around at the time had caused. I had just gotten The Queen is Dead on cassette the afternoon before, and was listening to it on a crappy battery operated tape player that had seen far, far better days. I remember the color of the light, and the quiet of the house, and the lighting flashing outside the windows. And now, I know that album far better than I know any other Smiths album. Repetition and the surrounding events cemented it in me somewhere that most albums just never reach.

Likewise, whenever I listen to Depeche Mode's A Broken Frame, I think of planning out a mix tape I was making for a friend, and flipping through Spin magazine, and how my bedroom walls at the time were covered floor to ceiling with posters and photos and clippings cut from magazines and drawings I'd done. I remember having friends I really liked, and my first kiss, and taking pictures with my Polaroid camera. It's a safe, warm, cozy feeling that comes when I hear it, more than a specific event, which is maybe a large part of why it remains my very favorite Depeche Mode album to this day.

There are several other albums I can think of that I also associate with various times or places or events in my life. Do you have albums like that, that you didn't just listen to a lot, but that somehow became part of you, through whatever else was going on around you at the time? Albums that are forever entangled with certain memories?

I find it interesting is all...

The Smiths - There is a Light That Never Goes Out MP3
Depeche Mode - The Sun and the Rainfall MP3

Lunar Rotation

2008-11-08T22:53:00.002-06:00

Magdalena (live) by A Perfect Circle

April Skies by Jesus and Mary Chain

Thom Yorke Loves Obama

2008-11-07T09:40:00.003-06:00

Thom and Obama sittin' in a tree... I think the radiohead frontman is big into politics and hope and change and stuff. Consider this for a minute: for the past several years, radiohead has had a lot to be angsty about, but what does it mean now that, supposedly, there are good things ahead? I'm hoping the next radiohead or Thom project will be all "Shiny Happy People" covers.

Oh yeah, and here's a new remix Thom released, reportedly as a celebration of Obama being elected. Honestly, I liked the original version a lot better.

"Harrowdown Hill" Remix: Harrowdown Logic Jump Rmx MP3

Video of the original version of "Harrowdown Hill" from Thom's solo release from a couple of years back:

Crystal Stilts (File Under: Overhyped)

2008-11-05T15:53:00.006-06:00

People in this here blogosphere have been heaping a lot of hype on the Crystal Stilts lately. Those people are wrong, and, incidentally, it's this kind of misplaced hype that fuels backlash against music blogs.

I'm posting a couple of tracks below for you to check out, but this band just doesn't sound like it's trying very hard (particularly the singer). That sort of "I don't care" attitude is cool when it works (see: The Velvet Underground, The Jesus and Mary Chain), but when it doesn't (see: Crystal Stilts), it just makes your band sound lazy. Maybe they have a great live show???

Also, what's with all of the "Crystal" names lately?

Tracks:

The Dazzled MP3

Shattered Shine MP3

Tobacco (but not the chew/smoke/dip kind)

2008-11-04T16:44:00.004-06:00

Tobacco is from Black Moth Super Rainbow, which sounds a little like Boards of Canada. Tobacco has just released a new solo album.

You would be wise to check out all of these things, as they are all pretty awesome.

Tobacco:
Street Trash MP3 (turn the volume up on this one)

Black Moth Super Rainbow:
Sun Lips MP3

Boards of Canada:
Roygbiv MP3

Heavenly Pop Hits: The Flying Nun Story

2008-11-04T09:11:00.012-06:00

Yesterday I spent a lot of time with an old friend--the 1988 album Hail by Straitjacket Fits. I've come across very few people who have heard of this great New Zealand band, and I think it's a crime. I was introduced to them by my favorite MTV video jockey, Dave Kendall, on 120 Minutes. He played "Down in Splendour" off their second full length album Melt and I fell in love (with Straitjacket Fits, that is--I was already in love with Dave Kendall). Anyway, I ended up listening to a couple of other bands on their label, Flying Nun, like The Clean and The Verlaines and The Chills. And as a result, Flying Nun was forever etched into my brain as a great label.

I'm not sure how many of you are interested in this documentary on Flying Nun, but I was very excited to find it, so I figured I'd share, just in case.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Part 8

Part 9
Here's a track from The Chills:
Heavenly Pop Hit MP3
And two from Straitjacket Fits:
She Speeds MP3
Grate MP3

Lunar Rotation-Election Day

2008-11-03T15:18:00.003-06:00

No matter what side of the fence you're on. Go vote!!!

Freedom of Choice by Devo

Elected by Alice Cooper

Seconds Away from New The Legends

2008-11-03T14:48:00.005-06:00

Just a quick post. The Legends (from Sweden) are really just one guy - Johan Angergård - but they're also one of my favorite bands. Up Against The Legends is an amazing record, and Public Radio is great, too. Fans of the Jesus and Mary Chain and early Cure will like those records, respectively. Here's a new song - "Seconds Away" - that came out recently as, probably, a stopgap between records. Johan's a pretty prolific guy (he's also in Club 8 and Acid House Kings) and the head of Labrador Records, one of my favorite labels of the last few years.

This song made me feel better the other day. Hopefully it's up to the task for the weeks ahead.

Seconds Away MP3

Heaven 17 - Penthouse and Pavement

2008-11-01T16:53:00.004-06:00

This album has become a favorite of mine since I downloaded it last week. Maybe it's partly because the upcoming elections have got me and seemingly everyone else in America swept up in speculation and an unprecedented interest in politics. Also, I just really like early 80's synth pop-y type stuff. I am no music critic in any sense whatsoever, but here is my brief summary of the concept behind Heaven 17's 1981 classic "Penthouse and Pavement": British musicians fed up with Thatcher, Reagan, yuppies, and the prospect of nuclear war throw a big defiant party and plan to go down dancing when the nukes take us all out. Oh, 80's Cold War paranoia, how I faintly remember you from my youth. [Click here to read Wikipedia's description.]

Yeah, you might say it's a little political. Okay, maybe a lot. That aside, it's a really fun synth pop album enhanced at times by American R&B, funk, and disco influences. If you can get past the political stuff (if that sort of thing bothers you), and you like early 80's synth pop, I highly recommend this album. Also, it was rated the #1 album of 1981 by Melody Maker, if you think that kind of thing matters.

Video for the song "Penthouse and Pavement":

Happy Halloween!!!!

2008-10-30T23:48:00.003-06:00

(This isn't the original video. Hell I don't think this is Ministry in the clip but it's an awesome song!)

Scary Monsters (live) by David Bowie

Lunar Rotation-Two Days Until Halloween

2008-10-29T09:06:00.003-06:00

While this isn't the actual video for Rob Zombie's Demon Speeding I thought it was pretty funny and theme oriented. Most of his good, Halloween themed videos don't allow embedding. Dangit!

Black Number 1 by Type O Negative

New Gang Gang Dance

2008-10-28T11:47:00.005-06:00

Just wanted to post a quick point of interest. I've been checking out some of the new Gang Gang Dance record Saint Dymphna on the Social Registry. They got a bunch of buzz out of CMJ recently, and they'll be touring with Marnie Stern. It's kind of tribal-ly beats and some weird spoken word parts and strange sounds, but pretty good altogether. It's not totally "out there," but it's definitely not mainstream.

I'm going to start trying to Twitter (username: emptycylinder) the tracks for everyone to check out, as well.

Anyway, check this track "Vacuum." It reminds me a bunch of My Bloody Valentine's "I Only Said."

Gang Gang Dance Vacuum MP3
My Bloody Valentine I Only Said MP3

Lunar Rotation-Three Days to Halloween

2008-10-28T07:53:00.003-06:00

(I know, I missed yesterday but I was busy, sorry)

Bloodletting (The Vampire Song) by Concrete Blonde

I Don't Wanna Go Down to the Basement by the Ramones

Lunar Rotation-5 Days Until Halloween

2008-10-26T00:19:00.003-05:00

Spirit by Bauhaus

Bring Back the Bomb by GWAR

Lunar Rotation- 6 Days til Halloween

2008-10-25T09:52:00.002-05:00

He's Back (The Man Behind The Mask) by Alice Cooper

Scream by The Misfits

Lunar Rotation- The Seven Days of Halloween

2008-10-24T16:28:00.005-05:00

For the next 7 days, I'm going to post Halloween themed music videos. Enjoy.

Are You Ready For Freddy by The Fat Boys

I'm Your Boogieman (cover) by White Zombie

The Genius of Il Genio

2008-10-23T09:00:00.007-05:00

Yesterday morning, for the first time in I can't remember how long, I was unable to make myself exit the car to go in to work because I was so thoroughly enjoying what I was listening to--that being the debut album of Italian electro-indie-pop duo Il Genio. Il Genio was formed in early 2007 by Gianluca De Rubertis and Alessandra Contini; they sing in Italian and French, and they sound, to me, a little like a mix of Ladytron, The Primitives and Édith Piaf. I learned about them through a Flickr buddy of mine who lives in Firenze (he took photos of a show they played there last week, which you can view here). Under the photos he has up on Flickr is the caption, "You will love them at once." Well, I figured I'd just see about that.

First I watched the video for "Pop Porno", and I liked it. A lot. Pretty, poppy, and not overly sacharine. Contini's voice is high and breathy, but with a crispness to it that is extremely appealing. So I went on to the video for "La Pathétique"--not quite what I was expecting after "Pop Porno". I recognized the tune (it's Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 8, Op. 13), which threw me off at first, but then I found myself being sucked in by the wonderful contrast between the two voices--De Rubertis, it turns out, has a fantastic voice himself! So I bought the album (an MP3 copy from Amazon, $7.99). And I worried a little that the rest of the album would not be as good.

I was wrong to worry; the rest of the album is even better.

"Pop Porno"

"La Pathétique"

On a side note, I've found that I'm a sucker for music sung in other languages. A lot of times, it's the lyrics that will turn me off of a song--I have a hard time ignoring them if they're really bad. But if I can't understand the words, there's nothing to get in the way of my enjoyment, even if the lyrics are terrible! I recognize the fact that not everybody likes listening to music when they can't understand the words, but if that's you, I recommend giving Il Genio a try anyway. Because you never know--they may convert you.

"You will love them at once." Ale was right--Il Genio is truly enchanting.

Pop Porno MP3
Applique MP3

Girl Talk a Disappointment in Dallas

2008-10-22T14:27:00.006-05:00

I realized something sad last night at the Girl Talk show in Dallas at the Palladium. I realized that I would probably never go see Girl Talk again – at least not in this city.

I and the bulk of my group at the show were just very out of place in a crowd composed primarily of SMU frat and sorority kids.

I should have known early on, when tickets were priced (through Ticketmaster) with service charges that drove the cost above the $20 mark, that I wouldn’t be joined at the show by the type of people who attended the last Girl Talk show I saw (a much smaller affair last year in March at, I think, Elysium in Austin). Of course, when I showed up last night and saw hundreds of 20-year-olds pouring into the venue with backwards-turned ballcaps (some of which, I kid you not, actually said “Kappa” on them) and Forever 21 dresses, the gravity of what I was in for started to hit me.

I’m not sure when Girl Talk became the next John Mayer, but something about what he’s doing speaks to these kids. Don’t get me wrong. I like that people like music, but the live music experience is a collective one, and if you’re not feeling the crowd at a show, then it can really mess with your own enjoyment. I wasn’t feeling that crowd.

Then there was the Girl Talk performance itself. The new album, “Feed the Animals,” lacks the surprise and ingenuity of his better work, but the live show I saw in the past was so much better than any of the recorded material.

Sadly, Gregg Gillis was playing to his audience last night. While it was good for them, it was bad for me. Those kids didn’t grow up on all of the 90s, 80s and 70s music Gillis usually samples into his songs. So he didn’t bother much with those samples. Gone were the Nirvana/Elton John/Dr. Dre type mashups. Gone were most of the indie rock samples found in Gillis’ earlier work. They were replaced instead with simpler, less inventive constructions. Gillis had abandoned his original audience in favor of a younger, less discerning one. If it’s any indication of what the whole set was like, the biggest cheer from the crowd all night came when Kelly Clarkson’s “Since You’ve Been Gone” entered the mix late in the show.

His mix just wasn’t surprising or challenging. The problem with that is that his whole shtick is based on being surprising and challenging. That’s what a mashup does – forces you to look at the mashed up songs in a different way and to hear them fresh, as a new creation. By removing the element of surprise to pander to his inexperienced audience, Gillis was left with a performance that was less compelling than some basic standard DJs that I’ve seen.

The opening band, Grand Buffet, was also one of the worst bands I’ve ever seen. Remember when Vanilla Ice first came out and everyone thought, “I can be a rapper!” One friend likened it to the rapping scenes in Teen Witch. Yeah, it was like that, except worse, because these guys thought they also had to deliver “messages” about how people can stand up for something and change the world. Oh yeah, and there was a guy in a chicken mask dancing around like he mattered – just insulting on so many levels and terrible all around.

Girl Talk Tracks:

What It's All About MP3
Set It Off MP3

The Death Set Last Night in Dallas

2008-10-21T13:27:00.006-05:00

I had the chance last night to go catch Baltimore’s The Death Set down at The Lounge on Elm St. It was a free show put on by Parade of Flesh. John over at Parade of Flesh has been booking some really interesting and great shows in Dallas, and things seem to be going well (full disclosure, I’m in a band that will be playing one of those upcoming Parade of Flesh shows – shameless plug: Nov. 17 at Club Dada: Skeleton$, Sydney Confirm, Florene and h…n
– but I’d think they were cool shows outside of my potential future involvement).

Aside from my feeling a little too old to be at the show, it was a lot of fun. I got there in time to catch PVC Street Gang (I think from Denton), which reminded me just a little of Frank Black fronting Queens of the Stone Age on at least one song and of the Pixies in general on most of the other songs.

The Death Set (which apparently won some sort of “Best Live Band in Baltimore” award in 2006) is a lot more hardcore live than they sound on record. With songs that clock-in around the 2-minute mark and a set that lasted only 25 minutes, they blasted through several tunes, jumped around with the slam-dancers (not full-on moshing, mind you), stood on speakers, tossed hats, shoes and guitars into the air and made me smile. The kids loved it, and for a Monday night show in Deep Ellum, the fact that there were between 40 and 50 people there is pretty amazing.

We really need more of this type of thing in Dallas. People need to go out and see live music. It gives you things you just can’t experience any other way. I’ve been seeing some success with these free shows that have been happening the last several months around town. Hopefully that will pay dividends on down the road.

The Death Set is in Austin tonight at Red 7, and they’ll be touring abunches for the next few weeks. A lot of those dates are with Girl Talk – which I’ll be seeing tonight, actually. I didn’t jump around much at the Death Set show specifically because I’d be dancing my pants off at the GT show. I will probably be tired tomorrow.

Tracks:

The Death Set – Negative Thinking MP3
PVC Street Gang – Cutlass MP3

Gaining My Musical Independence

2008-10-20T08:14:00.008-05:00

I've been listening to music my entire life. My early childhood was spent with the likes of Billy Joel, The Village People, Enrico Caruso, The Manhattan Transfer and The Oak Ridge Boys, which were the musicians my parents most loved at the time. We had an intercom system in our house, and every morning my mom would wake my brother and me up with music, and when we got home from school, she'd be playing music and dancing around the house as she vacuumed and dusted. In the evenings, after dinner, we'd sometimes go upstairs and throw a few albums on the record player and dance and be silly, or if it was opera, just sit quietly in the dark and listen. We even had music playing when we were outside in the swimming pool or playing in the yard. And I was quite happy to listen to whatever my parents liked--I learned to like it too.

But in 1984, for the first time, I connected with something that I discovered entirely on my own, without any help from my parents. And that something was Michael Jackson. I mean, what eight-year-old kid at that time could resist the video for Thriller? It was a mini horror movie that I was actually allowed to watch (I wanted to watch horror movies BAD in those days), and not only that, it was a mini horror movie with synchronized dancing zombies! I was completely hooked. My parents bought my brother and me the tape and we played it until it broke, but by the time that happened, the door had been opened and I was also into Madonna, and Huey Lewis and the News, and The Bangles, and Genesis, and Tears for Fears, none of which my parents knew anything about (thank you, MTV!).

And when my mom got into Rod Stewart shortly thereafter, I did NOT learn to like him. Michael Jackson made me realize that I didn't HAVE to.

"Thriller"

What opened the door for you?

Thriller MP3

Lunar Rotation (a day early)

2008-10-18T16:50:00.003-05:00

Edge of No Control by Meat Beat Manifesto

Money by KMFDM

Air France Friday

2008-10-17T17:14:00.005-05:00

It’s Friday, and I feel good about that, so I’m going to post a single song that pretty much made me feel good all summer (It was my official unofficial "song of the summer 08" - last year it was "To The Sky" from Maps). I hope it makes you feel good, too.

It’s from the Swedish band Air France. If you’re in the U.S., you’re probably going to have a tough time tracking down hard copies of the Air France EPs. I want to say they’re only available via import. I did see the news on Pitchfork the other day that they’re compiling the more recent couple of EPs and issuing those soon in the UK. Hopefully we’ll get a U.S. release.

Air France is from the RIYL: The Avalanches category. I also seem to remember seeing something recently about the Avalanches working on or getting close to finishing a new album. I hope that’s true.

No Excuses MP3 – from the No Way Down EP

Bargain Bin: The Rentals

2008-10-15T12:56:00.006-05:00

I’m working on a new bargain bin feature that I hope can be weekly here on Musicacious. I’ll admit it: I’m a chronic CD purchaser. Because I know that I have a problem, I sometimes have to resort to the cheapest way possible to buy CDs, which means sifting through bargain bins everywhere – thrift stores, used CD stores, bookstores, pawn shops, etc. Usually, I come away with something worthwhile for $3 or less, which is pretty excellent when you consider that you just scored a whole CD for the cost of three downloads on iTunes.

Over the years, I’ve found a lot of rare, out-of-print stuff as well as plenty of CDs with only one good song – so it’s a mixed bag, but going through the bins is a great way to kill time and often yields some nice rewards.

So, to kick everything off, here is last night’s bargain bin find:

Band: The Rentals
Album: Return of the Rentals
Price paid: $1 + tax

You guys probably remember The Rentals when they hit around 1995 with “Friends of P.” It’s a pretty fun song. Actually, this whole album isn’t too bad. I don’t recommend it if you hate the Moog, but, if you hate Moogs, I fear your bankrupt soul may have larger problems than this record.

As an interesting side note, you might remember that there was a time period in Dallas where it seemed like there were a ton of bands with Weezer and Rentals influences. I always thought that was kind of strange.

Please feel free to share some of your great bargain bin finds.

Tracks:
Waiting MP3
Friends Of P. MP3

A Place To Bury Strangers at The Loft in Dallas

2008-10-14T15:44:00.013-05:00

I had one of those nights last night where I was kind of at loose ends. I’d been waffling about what to do with my evening, and, ultimately, I decided to go catch the A Place To Bury Strangers show at The Loft in Dallas. There were about 30 people there to see the band, which was sad for The Loft, because they’d apparently guaranteed the band $1,000 to play the show. But the few people that did show up obviously were there to see the band, not to mess around and be jackasses (I’m looking at you Dallas-House-of-Blues-Ghostland-Observatory-fan frat dudebros).

This was, I think, the fourth time I’ve seen APTBS, but it’s still a phenomenal live show with tons of volume, violently mistreated guitars and enough strobes to make you worry about adult-onset epilepsy. The UK's Sian Alice Group opened and was pretty good for what portion of the show I caught. I can’t really substantiate this very well, but they reminded me a bit of Bardo Pond (which I don’t like very much, but Sian Alice Group was pretty decent).

Anyway, APTBS is touring (and have been for quite some time – earlier this year with Nine Inch Nails). They’ll play Austin tonight at Emo’s and some other dates through the end of the year, basically, all over the United States and Europe. You should go see them if you can.

Some tracks from A Place To Bury Strangers:

I Know I’ll See You MP3
Ocean MP3

Columbus Day

2008-10-13T17:38:00.008-05:00

Yeah. So, there ends up being furor these days over Columbus Day and how it celebrates rape, murder and pillaging.

For some reason, Joy Division’s “Dead Souls” seems like a fit – probably for that “conquistadors who took their share” line. It’s not my favorite Joy Division song, and, admittedly, I was first introduced to it via The Crow soundtrack through the Nine Inch Nails version. I had that soundtrack on cassette, so no MP3 download of that version. Sorry.

Instead, how about something more recent – as in the past couple of years. We’ll go with a song from Wooden Shjips since the Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria were, most likely, wooden.

Dead Souls MP3 - Joy Division

Losin’ Time MP3 - Wooden Shjips

Lunar Rotation

2008-10-12T10:57:00.003-05:00

Karmacoma by Massive Attack

Bad Luck (live) by Social Distortion

New: Ten Kens

2008-10-10T17:24:00.008-05:00

I suppose it’s time for some more new music. It occurred to me that music blogs do a lot of praise-heaping on bands. I mean, why would you bother to post something about a band you don’t like that much, right? Well, maybe there’s some room for a bit more loathing. Ultimately, just because I don’t like it doesn’t mean you won’t, and I’m definitely not opposed to giving new bands some increased exposure – even if I think they suck. It’s just nice to talk about music, which is the point of this blog anyway.

For your consideration: Ten Kens

Admittedly, I’m a bit behind on this Ten Kens stuff. The record from this Canadian (of course) band dropped on Sept. 15, but I haven’t seen a whole lot written about the band and figured there’s still probably a bit more noise to generate.

The Ten Kens’ new self-titled record is on the Fat Cat Records label, which, as you probably know, is home to bands like Sigur Rós, The Twilight Sad (which I mentioned previously on the blog) and Animal Collective. Fat Cat is a great label, but that doesn’t mean they always make great decisions.

Ten Kens have a bit of the Twilight Sad sound and a bit of the Animal Collective sound and a bit of the sound from Deerhunter (which has a bit of the Animal Collective sound, btw). I’ve also seen Slint mentioned somewhere as a reference point and even Arcade Fire. That’s a pretty wide range of comparisons, and nice ones to boot, but …

I’ve mentioned before that RIYL is an important way to learn about bands you might like, but here’s the thing with Ten Kens – you’d really be better off spending your time listening to those other reference-point bands instead of doing lots of Ten Kens listening. The other bands all seem to be doing this type of music much more effectively. Ten Kens is not bad music, but it’s just not that exciting either.

What it is, is new. So, here are a couple of tracks for you to make your own decision:

Bearfight MP3

Your Kids Will Know MP3

Videos That Take Place Almost Entirely Inside of Cars:

2008-10-09T13:59:00.014-05:00

Just two for now, but maybe you guys can help me out.

First off: "Way Behind Me" by the Primitives. This song was originally released in 1988, just after their first album, Lovely came out; it was added onto all later editions, including the one I've got. Which I love. It's one of my top 25 albums of all time. And possibly one of my top 10. This song is also included on their follow-up album, Pure:

Next up is Jens Lekman's "You Are the Light" off his 2004 debut album When I Said I Wanted to Be Your Dog. Two things about Jens Lekman: 1) he's funny, and 2) he's Swedish. Which basically means he's like, the perfect man.

Can anyone come up with any others?

---------------------
Nathan's additions (ignoring the Alanis Morissette, so as not to be insulting):

Also, some more lovely Jens for you guys (from the Rocky Dennis EP):

Rocky Dennis Farewellsong to the Blind Girl MP3

How do you process new music?

2008-10-07T16:57:00.002-05:00

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how I process new music. I think it’s probably pretty unique for person to person, but I’d be happy to find out I’m wrong.

For me, I get an album. I listen to the album once. And the most common process is that one or more songs on the album reach in, grab me by the stomach and pull me in. My heart swells when I hear them, sometimes with happiness that bubbles like champagne. Sometimes with almost unbearable sadness that lasts only as long as the song. But the songs really grab me. They own me for a while. I am unable to listen to anything else on the album but those songs, and sometimes it’s just the one song.

While some part of me acknowledges that I am missing out on the rest of the record, I don’t care. In fact not only am I not able to listen to anything else on THAT album, I can’t really listen to anything else, AT ALL. I have an hour commute to work. Sometimes I listen to the same song over and over the entire trip. And the thing is, I know, I KNOW I am slowly killing this beautiful feeling the song gives me. The more familiar it becomes, the closer I get to having heard it one too many times.

Often I can’t get enough of a song for 2-3weeks. It tapers off after a few days and I branch out once in a while, but I still listen to that song several times a day for weeks on end. And then BAM. It happens.

I don’t love it as much anymore. And I have to put it on a shelf and come back to it later. And it always makes me sad. Because my addiction to it killed it. I knew better, and I couldn’t stop.

Anyone else do this?

This Land is My Land

2008-10-07T09:57:00.012-05:00

* Warning: I am about to get mushy and gushy and sappy about America. Just so you know...

In Ear Park, the new release from Department of Eagles, is my most recent free Amie Street acquisition. I could only give it a brief listen this morning, party because the phone has been ringing off the hook and partly because there's a problem with my computer where anything you listen to using headphones is almost completely overwhelmed by static (argh!). But from what little I managed to hear, I'm thinking that it's an album I will love (better review to follow, probably in a couple of days).

The reason I think I will love it is because it seems to have the same dark, quiet, beautiful, melancholic feel to it as the works of many of my favorite musical artists (Alela Diane, Pinetop Seven and The Black Heart Procession, to name a few). They all have a real sense of nostalgia about them, and when I listen to them, I feel almost as though I'm peering into the early days of America--the pioneer days, the pre-Civil War South, the Old West. This music speaks to me of fear and longing, of hardship, of loss, and of the heartbreaking beauty within those kinds of darkness. It also speaks of the adventure and endless possibilities of wide, open plains and crisp clear skies, back before the cities wiped out the stars. It touches a place in my heart that not much else really gets to, a place that connects me to my country and to a past experienced neither by myself, nor by my ancestors, but which nevertheless still belongs to me simply because I was born here. I suppose you could call it patriotism without nationalism, a feeling that I am tied to this land and its history and people, regardless of rights or wrongs or my feelings about the government.

I think a lot of this sort of music (though probably not so much The Black Heart Procession) would be classified as alt-country/folk or Americana, which I don't generally have much interest in; in fact, it takes me completely by surprise whenever I form an attachment to something within the genre. I'm not sure exactly what it is that makes these particular artists' music so meaningful to me, but it's there, and it's strong. And if Department of Eagles ends up having that same spark, I'll count myself a lucky girl.

For now, I'll leave you with an Alela Diane video. This is for her song "Pirate Gospel" off her 2006 album of the same name:

Hauntingly beautiful, no?

Well, maybe it's just me...

Here are some sample tracks from Department of Eagles as well as Daniel Rossen's other band Grizzly Bear -

Department of Eagles:

Phantom Other

In Ear Park

Grizzly Bear:

Little Brother

Crystal Castles: Crystal Castles

2008-10-06T08:51:00.013-05:00

During our commute to work this morning, Shannon and I had a hard time figuring out what to listen to. We tried to listen to My Bloody Valentine, because I've been meaning to for awhile and just finally found the cd, but I am very particular sometimes about my music matching my mood, or the weather, or the time of day, and MBV just wasn't doing it for me this morning, in the rain. I wanted to be listening to it on a bright and sunny afternoon instead, but as there wasn't really any way to make that happen immediately, we had to settle for finding something else. Shannon asked what I had new, but it seems like most of what I've been listening to lately is either shoegazery or Swedish, and Shannon was hoping for something with a beat. Only after he got out of the car did I think of Crystal Castles, which I think he will love (because, you know, their stuff sounds like video games).

Crystal Castles is a Canadian electro-punk-dance-noise duo (Ethan Kath and Alice Glass), named for the home of none other than She-Ra, Princess of Power. Apparently there's been quite a bit of controversy surrounding them involving sampling, Creative Commons license and some leaked tracks; you can read more about that here if you're interested. I can't quite remember how I happened across them; iTunes or iLike or something of the sort recommended them to me at some point, and so I gave them a listen. At first, I did not really like them at all, but I gave them another chance and actually quite enjoy them now. I think they go a bit overboard with the Atari-like effects on some songs, but for the most part, it's a really fun album. Or a really interesting album at the very least.

Here's the video for their song Courtship Dating:

Not the most compelling of videos, but it'll give you a taste of their sound, though this one is much less "video-game-y" than most of their stuff. You can listen to and/or download their song "Air War" here.

Lunar Rotation

2008-10-05T15:53:00.004-05:00

Stainless Steel Providers by the Revolting Cocks

Aria by Delerium (with Mediaeval Babes)

New Tunes

2008-10-03T12:42:00.007-05:00

I kind of want it to be my goal to post on here more often to talk about stuff or whatever but mostly to share some new bands/new songs that have caught my attention in recent weeks. There’s sort of a constant barrage of that going on, and while I have some reluctance to add to the noise, what’s one more voice …

Also, because the Internets is so totes awsum, I won’t bore you with long explanations about bands and their histories or whatever. You’re smart enough to find that stuff on your own if you care. I’m going to try to do some quick hits of songs and bands and what they remind me of as far as other bands – because RIYL is maybe one of the most important ways to find new bands.

So, let’s begin with a new favorite: Glasvegas

Lame (?) facts:

Glasvegas is Scottish.
Alan McGee of Creation Records fame loves them.
They sound a bit like a cross between Doves, The Twilight Sad and 60s girl groups but with a guy singer.
They have a girl drummer who stands up to play a la Mo Tucker from The Velvet Underground (seems like that’s more popular than you might think).
FYI, the album will be out here in the US, I believe, next year. It’s out now in the UK.

Tracks:

Glasvegas –

Geraldine MP3
Daddy’s Gone MP3
Be My Baby (Ronettes cover) MP3

Bonus:

Doves –
Pounding MP3

The Twilight Sad –
And She Would Darken The Memory MP3

The Ronettes –
Be My Baby MP3

Happy Birthday, Julie Andrews!

2008-10-01T16:53:00.005-05:00

You are seventy-three years old today--four years older than my dad!

A confession: I LOVE Julie Andrews. I really, really do.

I know. LAME.

A Bit of Depeche Mode History (That They Would Probably Rather Did Not Still Exist)

2008-09-30T15:16:00.008-05:00

I just ran across this video for "See You", from Depeche Mode's second studio album, A Broken Frame, which was released in 1982. For those of you who don't already know it, this is my very favorite album of theirs, but it is popular neither with a vast majority of fans, nor with the band itself. In fact, Martin Gore has referred to it as their "worst album". Harsh, man! I'm not sure how VH1 got a copy of this, as, according to the Wikipedia article on A Broken Frame, the guys were so embarrassed by the cheesy things director Julien Temple made them do for the videos that they never officially released them. I actually find this one quite endearing--Dave Gahan looking about sixteen years old and unbelievably awkward, wearing a bow tie, bomber jacket and puffy pants, Martin Gore with the same gigantic poodle hair he's always had (although perhaps a bit more of it than in later years), Andy Fletcher's giggling and self-conscious booty-shaking...it's cute! VH1 proclaims it "So 80s" in the top right-hand corner of the screen, and boy, do they have that right! However VH1 ended up with the video, someone apparently wants You Tube to limit its being spread around much--"embedding disabled by request". Oh, Depeche Mode, get over yourselves. We were ALL ridiculous in the 80s, weren't we?

Count On This (More On Mixes)

2008-09-29T09:26:00.007-05:00

Way back when I got my first laptop, I had a lot of fun playing around with iTunes. One of my favorite things to do was to pick a word and then do a search to find all the songs in my music library that included that word. It was endlessly fascinating to me. After awhile, I began to pick themes and make mixes based on the results--the astonomy mix, the cats and dogs mix, the night and day mixes...I went a little mix crazy. Eventually the newness of it wore off and I quit doing it. But this weekend, as I was putting the finishing touches on the mix I've been working on for my friend Laura, the urge came over me and I made a spontaneous theme mix, just because. And I remembered just how fun those can be. First of all, I tend to get stuck in ruts when I choose songs for the mixes I make for people, but this way, I end up with a bunch of songs that I really like that I wouldn't normally think to include on a mix. Also, there's a lot of variety in the types of songs that come up, which can be interesting. But most of all, the theme mixes appeal to the mad scientist in me--the part that loves to catalog and categorize and create order, that loves playing with words and making lists, the part that revels in finding connections in seemingly unrelated things. I love the experiment.

After all my moping last week, about how making mixes is not fun anymore, I'm happy to have rediscovered that they can be. Sometimes relinquishing a little control can be a great thing.

Anyway, here's the mix, if anyone's interested:

Count On This

1. 1st Things 1st - Phantom Planet
2. 2 Hearts - Kylie Minogue
3. 3 Times and You Lose - Travis
4. 4 Out of 5 - Soul Coughing
5. 5 Years - Björk
6. Six Different Ways - The Cure
7. Tram #7 to Heaven - Jens Lekman
8. 8am Departure - The Perishers
9. 9 to 5 - Lady Sovereign
10. Ten - Jimmy Eat World
11. Eleven - Sandrine
12. 12:51 - The Strokes
13. 13 Ghosts II - Nine Inch Nails
14. Sonata No.14 in C#m (Moonlight Sonata) - Depeche Mode
15. TVC15 - David Bowie
16. Mannen i den vita hatten (16 år senare) - Kent
17. Seventeen Years - Ratatat
18. Waiting For the 7:18 - Bloc Party

And because I always insist on making some sort of cover, no matter how lame: Count On This

Notes:
4. I'm kind of over Soul Coughing, but I actually think this song is pretty fun, and I like it in this grouping.
10. I don't really like Jimmy Eat World very much, but this is a decent song. Why do I have Jimmy Eat World on my computer if I don't like them very much? I have no idea.
14. This is a pretty straight version of the Moonlight Sonata--it has NOT been Depeche-Modified, which is a little disappointing--I would've liked for them to have Pimpfed it up a bit.
16. In English: The man in the white hat (16 years later)
18. Ok, I cheated a little by including this one, but it was the only song I had with 18 in it (where's my Skid Row???). I could have just made it a 17 song mix, but I felt like this made for a better ending than the Ratatat song did, and also I have number of song preferences for mixes, of which 17 is not one.

Further Notes:
I wish I could have included a link for the mix as a whole instead of for each individual song, but I am inept at this sort of thing, so I just did the best I could. Sorry! But yes, I will burn a cd for anyone who wants a copy.

Lunar Rotation

2008-09-28T11:51:00.004-05:00

In a previous blog life I had a Sunday feature called Lunar Rotation. I figured it's time to bring it back.

Celeste by Project Pitchfork

Her Love Rubbed Off (Carl Perkins Cover) by The Cramps

Really AWFUL music videos

2008-09-27T18:11:00.005-05:00

I love surfing You Tube, the virtual abyss of videos that neither time nor cheap VHS cassettes has lost. I especially love the campy, cheezy, and downright terrible stuff. Here are three music videos that are truly horrific. Think of it as an early Halloween present!

The first one is "Losing You" by Jan Terri. With a face made for radio and crippling case of tone deafness, she found success after many years as the opening act for Marilyn Manson. You can learn more about Ms. Terri here.

The second video is some crappy band's cover of "The Final Countdown" by the Swedish glam metal band Europe. It's so bad it's hysterical and has me in tears every time I watch it. Each band member might as well be playing in a different state. My 6th grade beginner's band class played more cohesively than these guys. I think the singer's voice is my favorite part though. He's even more tone deaf than Jan Terri.

I'd like to know why Celine Dion thought it would be a good idea to cover AC/DC's "You Shook Me All Night Long". She even tries to do that silly dance that Angus Young used to do where he hopped around on one leg. Seriously disturbing. And check out the guy jamming on the cowbell!

Live Album Languor?

2008-09-26T13:07:00.005-05:00

I'm not generally a fan of live albums; if I really want to hear a band play live, I'll get off my ass and go to a show, where I'll get the whole experience. Granted, that usually costs quite a bit more than buying a cd of a live performance would, but with a cd you don't get the visual, or the energy of the crowd, or, in smaller venues, the actual interaction with the performer. Plus, I'm sorry to say, but there are a LOT of live albums that, well...suck. Many bands out there may sound great in the studio, but make a live recording of them, and it just doesn't translate well. Not well at all. However, I must admit that despite all that, one of my all-time favorite albums is a live one. Not only that, but I prefer it to every other studio album of theirs that I've ever heard. I am talking about Ministry's fantastic 40-minute, 6-song live album In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up. It was recorded during their tour in 1990, and I did not feel like showing up, because, honestly, I was a little bit afraid. And also my parents would never have let me go, and I was a little goody-two-shoes who did not sneak out or lie about my whereabouts. Bah! Anyway, I got the album pretty much as soon as it came out and stopped listening to anything else of theirs entirely because everything else just suddenly seemed unnecessary. It was that good. And still is! It's loud and heavy and dark and fast and full of sweat and swear words and total and utter ridiculousness. Ministry at its very, very best. I listen to it when I'm angry and feel like singing (make that yelling) along to a bunch of "F---you!"s. I listen to it when I'm happy and feel like laughing at a bunch of "F---you!"s. And I listen to it when I'm just in the mood to rock, hard. I love it!

Anyone else have a live album that works for them? I'm really interested, because I actually only have two or three of them on my entire huge, long list of albums I love. Or even like. And I'm convinced there have to be at least a COUPLE other good ones out there...

M(onda)y Bloody Valentine

2008-09-25T17:27:00.013-05:00

I had the good fortune on Monday to finally experience the culmination of a dream that began 15 years ago. I got to see My Bloody Valentine play at the Roseland Ballroom in New York City for the first of two nights worth of sold out shows at that venue. It was part of a seven-date North American tour and marked the band’s second show on American soil in, I believe, 16 years.

The show, something many MBV fans thought would never happen, due to band leader Kevin Shields reclusiveness, perfectionism and distaste for performing live, was among the greatest live shows I’ve seen (and I’ve seen a lot of live shows). I realize that’s probably a very personal thing. It might not rank among your favorite shows, but yeah, it’s in my Top 5 (a list that also includes The Cure, Explosions in the Sky and Yo La Tengo … I sort of leave a revolving last spot open depending on how I’m feeling at the time).

This show was also, bar none, the loudest show I’d ever seen. They were giving away free earplugs before the show, and there were little signs that said, “MBV recommends using earplugs.” The regular portion of the show was loud enough on its own (far louder than most other shows I’ve seen), but, as some of you may know, the band also likes to include a noise portion during the song “You Made Me Realise,” from its rather hard-to-find out-of-print EP of the same name. During a break of sorts in the song, the band launched into a 17-minute period of pure noise. It was so loud that you could literally feel your body, as well as the air around you, vibrating. That type of volume does weird things to your physiology. It makes your mouth dry and it makes you feel cold all over (not in a bad way, sort of in a tingly way).

That portion of noise, which I can only liken to what it might sound like to stand in front of a jet that is taking off … for 17 minutes, was also one of the most beautiful things I’d ever heard or experienced. I’d been looking forward to it for the whole show (it is generally the set ender), and it didn’t disappoint. Too bad a lot of people headed for the door a couple of minutes into the noise. They missed out.

I’ve been to a few “noise” shows, and I’ll probably go to more as time goes by, but in all that clatter, there’s something pretty amazing going on. It’s really painful for a bit, but, if you tough it out, you’ll hit this portion where the music and noise stops being painful and starts being beautiful … maybe like what you’d think it sounds like to hear angels singing or what it feels like being protected inside a womb of light and love surrounded by a maelstrom of pure evil. I don’t know. Describing it sounds ridiculous. You should definitely experience it on your own.

So, I’m including below the video from the 20-year-old “You Made Me Realise” and a link for you to download a live version of the song from a Vancouver show from 1992. The sound is kind of poor on that MP3, but it’ll give you an idea of what that song (and the noise) sounds like live.

Simply amazing.

You Made Me Realise (video)

You Made Me Realise (live in Vancouver, 1992) MP3

FYI, this whole Vancouver show is floating around out there on the Interwebs and should be pretty easy to track down if you're into it.

I Miss Mix Tapes!

2008-09-25T12:55:00.007-05:00

So, I told my friend Laura awhile back that I would make her a mix. I love making mixes for people--finding songs I think they will enjoy, arranging them in an order that flows nicely, making cover art if time and inclination allow--I think it's fun! Or at least I used to. I realized the other day, when I found myself totally procrastinating on the actual making of the mix (as I have on every other mix I've made in the past many years), that things have changed for me.

Creating mixes used to take me a LOT more time and effort than it does now, back when I made them using fifteen to twenty cassettes and my dual tape deck stereo instead of with my computer and a blank cd. I'd take each cassette out of it's case, and then carefully put it back in when I was finished with it. I pressed fast-forward and rewind endlessly, first to find each song I was looking for, to make sure it was one I actually wanted to use, and then again to get the tapes positioned just right, so that I could release the pause button on one and hit the record button on the other and have a perfectly smooth transition into the next song. Sometimes I'd use my finger instead, to move the spools by hand, just a smidge backward or forward. I stopped and started and switched tapes as I tried to decide which song sounded best after the one that I had just recorded. And then I'd listen to it, all the way through, to be certain it sounded just the way I wanted it to. If it didn't sound right, I'd redo it, ALL of it, if necessary. Finally, when it was finished, I'd make a cover for it--cut out the paper to the appropriate size, write out each song title, and sometimes a little something about why I chose it, label it with whatever title I'd made up for it, as well as the name of the person I was making it for, and glue on whatever photo or drawing I had decided on for the cover. And then I'd carefully label each side of the cassette with the title as well. It was a work of art, and the result of hours and hours and hours of time and energy. And I loved every second of it--it never felt like WORK.

But now...it kind of does. And that tells me that a very large part of the joy I got from making those mix tapes came from the physical aspects of it that have been lost for me, now that I have all of my music on my computer. Which is sad, because I'm not sure how to get it back.

Any suggestions?

P.S. Also, does this make me OLD? It does, doesn't it?

The band t-shirts that got banned

2008-09-24T14:21:00.008-05:00

My friend Emily and I were huge fans of John Lydon of Public Image Limited (formerly Johnny Rotten of the Sex Pistols) when we were in high school in the mid 90's. We were at the mall one day, shopping at a music memorabilia store called Media Magic, when we spotted a PiL shirt that was marked down to five bucks. We went halves on it, and we became proud co-owners of a shirt that had the album art from That What Is Not on the front:

Emily wore the shirt to school one day and was sent home and told to change. Apparently our high school's administrators felt that the shirt was too suggestive. I forget what the image is supposed to be (someone's scalp? I'm not really sure). I don't think that shirt was ever worn again.

In hindsight I find the situation amusing though, since her boyfriend Scott got away with wearing a graphic Pantera tour shirt several times before one of his teachers figured out what was really on it:

I couldn't find an image of the actual shirt, but it looked like the above album cover, except that the screw was going somewhere else instead of into a guy's skull.

Anyone else been sent home and told to change in school because of a band's t-shirt?

Dear Dave Kendall,

2008-09-23T09:49:00.010-05:00

I miss you. Do you remember back in 1990, when my best friend Katy and I would send you letters every week, begging you to play the latest Depeche Mode video on 120 Minutes, and how with them, we would always include a drawing of Gumby and Pokey wearing Depeche Mode t-shirts? We watched your show faithfully, always hoping you would read our letters on the air and acknowledge our artistic talents and fantastic musical taste to all the world (or as much of the world was awake and watching at 12:00 a.m. on a Sunday night, which, admittedly, we were not, as we weren’t allowed to stay up that late and thus had to record your show on video tape instead). But you never did. I hear you’re making porn these days. That's pretty pathetic, but I want you to know that I still think of you fondly, and cherish the hope that if I ever happen to run into you somewhere (perhaps while you’re on a break from your busy skin flick schedule), that you’ll remember me as the Gumby Girl and tell me that our drawings were precious to you - as precious as hearing you say things like, “It was my aunt’s carpet, the bastard” was to me.

Much love,
Lara

P.S. I wrote this awhile back, and just now, I looked you up on Wikipedia, and I saw that you're doing this:

Sept. 2008 - - Dave is now hosting "Party 360 with Dave Kendall" on Sirius Satellite Radio's First Wave Channel 22. This airs on Fridays 6 pm - Midnight ET -- "Join Dave Kendall, creator and former host of MTV's 120 Minutes, every Friday as he jump starts your weekend with 360 minutes of your favorite classic alternative party songs."

Way to go! I'm proud of you, Dave.

Expect a letter from me soon...

Life's too long for you to get it wrong

2008-09-22T17:22:00.005-05:00

Oftentimes, pop music is dismissed as less than a thinking person's music.
This opinion distresses me.
Mostly because it’s wrong.
Pop music can be smart.
It can be fun, and witty and it can make your behind start moving, right there in your desk chair in your tiny cubical, and it can do it before you even notice.

Exhibit A.

Annie.

http://www.anniemusic.co.uk/index.php

Go on. Open the link now, and watch the video, or at the very least listen to the song as you work. You’ll be charmed, I’m sure.

I first heard Annie in 2004, when she released the single “Chewing Gum” in the UK. I admit that even as a pop lover, I had to take a moment to decide how I felt about it. But in the end, my behind decided for me. It just could not be still. The single, as well as her debut album “Anniemal” (2005) were pop at its best. Elevated to an art form.

Annie latest single, “I Know UR Girlfriend Hates Me” struck a chord with me at first listen. (Thank you DJ Zoo @ The Cavern in Dallas) It’s fun. It’s clever. It’s pop. And that’s alright with me.

Friendly Fires - Friendly Fires

2008-09-22T08:57:00.015-05:00

So, this, the self-titled debut album by UK electro-pop band Friendly Fires, is one of my most recent acquisitions (I got it a couple of weeks ago, free from Amie Street--booyah!). What they sound like to me is, say Bloc Party got magically transported through time and ended up in the early 1980s, and then spent a lot of time hanging out with The Clash and Talking Heads and A Flock of Seagulls, and maybe Pete Burns from Dead or Alive. And also Prince, who Friendly Fire claims as one of their biggest influences. Then you'd have this band. I'm on my third or fourth time through the album, and while nothing's really blown me away, it's enjoyable. Every song has earned a four star rating on my iPod, so, you know, it's pretty solid--nothing terrible, and nothing even mediocre. But nothing really amazing either, which is unfortunate. Perhaps it will grow on me more in time (some stuff just takes a year or two to percolate), but I'm betting it's one that will just always remain a fun listen--and that's all. It's nice to have those albums around, but, you know. It's just nothing to get super excited about.

If you want to check them out, here are several of their videos, which are available on You Tube:

You can also download the album from Amie Street for $7.30 at the moment.

Shelby's 80s Mix

2008-09-19T16:39:00.001-05:00

My friend Shelby, who I have actually KNOWN since the 80s, made me a mix. Here's the track listing:

1. The Fraggle Rock theme song
2. "Cry Wolf" - A-Ha
3. "Mad World" - Tears For Fears
4. "More Than This" - Roxy Music
5. "Rumors" - Timex Social Club
6. "No Promises" - Icehouse
7. "Uncertain Smile" - The The
8. "Love Will Tear Us Apart" - Joy Division
9. "Life's What You Make It" - Talk Talk
10. "Ghostbusters" - Ray Parker, Jr.
11. "Let me Go" - Heaven 17
12. "Poison Arrow" (US Jaxx Mix) - ABC
13. The My Little Pony theme song
14. "Two Divided By Zero" - Pet Shop Boys
15. "That's The Way (I Like It)" - Dead or Alive
16. "The Scarlet Thing in You" - Peter Murphy
17. "Save It For Later" - The Beat
18. "India" - The Psychadelic Furs
19. The Electric Company theme song

I LOVE that she put the theme songs for Fraggle Rock, My Little Pony, Ghostbusters and The Electric Company on there. Shelby was my main My Little Pony buddy, we LOVED Fraggle Rock, and we used to run around the house singing, "The Electric Companeeeeee!" at the top of our lungs. And Ghostbusters? We went to see it four times in the movie theatre and recorded our own version of the theme song at Fame City (it's HILARIOUS). So her 80s mix is particularly nostalgic for me. And also, I think she did a fantastic job of including stuff that's NOT on every 80s mix cd in the world. Lots of it I'd never heard before, which made me actually want to go out and track down copies of old 80s bands' albums and hear more. And I especially love her for including Peter Murphy. That dude has the sexiest voice known to man. Seriously!

Also, she included a bacon chocolate bar with it. And that just added to the sweetness of those fabulous 80s tunes!

To Start:

2008-09-19T15:50:00.001-05:00

I've been thinking for awhile about what it would be like to collaborate on a blog with a bunch of people with a similar interest. It sounded like fun to me. So I decided to give it a try, and drag some folks along with me for the attempt.

Music seemed like a good topic. I love music. Many of my friends love music. I can talk a lot about music--what I'm listening to, what I like and don't like, which album is my favorite by a particular artist, bands I want to see play live, how certain songs make me feel, what my first cassette tapes were, who sounds like who, the art of making mixes...the list of music related things to talk about is pretty much endless. And it seems like just about everyone I know has an opinion or two (or fifty or a hundred) on some musical subject or other.

My vision for this blog is that interested parties can just post whatever they want, whenever they want, so long as it's related somehow to music. I think it will be an interesting experiment.

Anyway, that's the idea!

Oh, and the blog title? I like to make up words. This one's just a meshing of "music" and "loquacious". Or maybe "bodacious". Or "sagacious". "Vivacious"? Whatever. I'm a nerd, okay? You all know this already.

Also, the layout? Kind of crappy right now. I'm not great at this, so if anybody feels like messing with it, go for it, please!