Music Gluttons

Wilie Mitchell, dead at 81

2010-01-08T14:27:00.000-08:00

I was sad to hear Willie Mitchell, who produced many of the great Hi Records albums, including I'm Still in Love with You by Al Green, died earlier this week. He was a great producer, but you can read more about him in the Times article. For now, I'll post a one of my favorite Al Green songs produced by Mitchell. A classic.

"Linoleum Knife!"

2009-11-12T13:18:00.000-08:00

Mastodon/Dethklok at Dallas House of Blues, November 11, 2009

As is the case many evenings, I was watching Adult Swim on Cartoon Network, and during a commercial break they put up a bump. The bumps usually contain something interesting or funny, so even if the show is on my Tivo, I hit play to see the bump writers have to say. They announced an upcoming tour with Mastodon and Dethklok, and I was ready to buy my tickets immediately.

You see, I’m a pretty regular viewer of Metalocalypse, and sometimes even enjoy the music. But it’s a fantastic skewering of the heavy metal scene. And Mastodon? Well, they’ve released some fantastic CDs over the past few years, including the most recent, Crack the Skye.

But I’m not going to subject my poor, long-suffering (non-metal-loving) wife to hours of grinding guitars and grunting, so instead I found a willing participant in Shaun, one of my guitar-playing friends.

First, if you’re going to this show and you want to blend in, wear black. With the exception of the wanna-be groupie in the red vinyl dress, the majority of the crowd wore black, usually with the name of a band somewhere on the shirt. Second, for the guys, which most of us were, you had to have facial hair of some sort. The bushier the better. I was kinda regretting trimming my beard the week before.

Thanks to uncooperative parking fee machines, we just missed the first band, High on Fire. The guy next too me said they were pretty good, but after further conversation, I wasn’t sure his musical tastes entirely matched mine. As we grabbed our seats, Converge was setting up. I approve of bands that set up their own gear…

…But I wasn’t really a Converge fan. They take elements of hardcore punk and some of the heavy grooves of metal and combine them with what I consider a screaming-type of vocals. The guitarist and the drummer were amazing, so I found some things to admire, but ultimately, there won’t be any Converge on my music-buying list. The singer had a manic energy that was fun at first. He seemed to draw on three classic icons of rock – he would put his toe, not the whole foot, on the monitor, which reminded me of Freddie Mercury of Queen. Secondly, he often twirled his mic by the cord and caught it, ala, Roger Daltrey of The Who. And third, and most peculiarly, he had this robotic neck twist/arm movement combo that looked like he was Dennis DeYoung from Styx, reenacting the Mr. Roboto video. “I’m Kilroy!” So yeah, that amused me for a bit.

And it was finally time for Mastodon! The stage was covered in equipment for all the bands, and they wheeled away the Converge equipment and uncovered Mastodon stuff. I’m pretty certain Shaun and I were both compiling Christmas wish lists while looking at all the gorgeous guitars and amps onstage.

Mastodon started out a little rough on the first couple of songs. It took them a few minutes to find their groove. I suspect they were having monitor issues, because the bass player kept messing with his in-ear, and the guitarists kept signaling changes to the monitor sound person. But once they got the kinks worked out, Mastodon lived up to their reputation. Musically, they were tight, the vocals sounded great, and they made it look easy. They began by drawing extensively from Crack the Skye, and then they started jumping around between the other releases. Aside from the guy next to me yelling for "Linoleum Knife" in between songs, it was great. The energy was amazing, and the band seemed to enjoy the audience enthusiasm. By the end of the Mastodon set, I felt full – listening to their dense music was like eating a rich meal. I was still reflecting back on some of what I’d heard when the crew started setting up for Dethklok.

In case you don’t know, Dethklok is the fictional band featured in the Metalocalypse cartoon. But of course, it’s never that simple… Dethklok music is featured in every episode of the cartoon, and it’s pretty good, as far as metal goes. Dethklok music is written and performed by Brendon Small, creator of Metalocalypse, and he’s released a couple of CDs as Dethklok. So yes, it’s a fictional band, but it’s also a real band. Got it?

There was always some Metalocalypse animation running on the LCD screen at the back of the stage. Sometimes it was a skit, such as the crossover promo for the Brutal Legend video game that ran prior to Dethklok’s set, while other times there were snippets from the show to help set the atmosphere for the songs.

I was of two minds during Dethklok’s set:
Right brain: “Hey, this is pretty good!”
Left brain: “Look at the animation, stupid right brain, it’s a cartoon band. They’re not even real!”
Right brain: “I know they aren’t real, but they’re pretty good!”
Left brain: “I just don’t think I can really enjoy a pretend band.”
And so on…

For the record, Brendon Small was doing most of the lead guitar and vocal duties, while surrounded by some musical luminaries that gave the necessary metal sound. And the music was really good, but it was by-the-book metal. Not much new or interesting about it.

I was surprised by the audience reactions. People were singing (er, growling) along, and seemed to know the words. That level of intensity for a cartoon band was staggering. After about 20 minutes, I’d had enough, and Shaun and I headed back towards the Fort.

Good show, overall. Mastodon made it all worthwhile, and I hope to see them again soon. Dethklok was cool to see for a few minutes, and I’ll keep watching the show, but I don’t see me becoming a big fan of the music. But their bus kicked some serious ass…

A Tale of Two Concerts

2009-10-19T12:39:00.000-07:00

Woo-hoo! Second post of 2009...

U2/Muse, Cowboy Stadium, Arlington, TX, October 12, 2009
Allman Brothers/Widespread Panic, Superpages.com Center, Dallas, TX, October 16, 2009

I’ll be up front about this – I bought the U2 tickets because (a) I knew that by the time the concert rolled around, the hype machine would be in full force and I’d be wanting tickets anyway, and (2) they had some upper level tickets for $35 each.

I bought tickets for the Allman Brothers concert happening later in the week because (a) I’ve never seen the Allmans live, and (b) Widespread Panic was opening, and I’ve always had some curiosity about Panic.

Thirty bucks for parking at the U2 concert? Yikes… I was pretty miffed when that popped up on the Ticketmaster screen, but I went ahead and clicked it anyway. But once the date rolled around, it was nice knowing which lot we’d be parking in. I had experienced Texas Stadium traffic at a Pink Floyd show and a Cowboys game, so I was expecting the worst, but we got into the lot at Cowboy Stadium very easily.

As for getting to Superpages.com Center (stupid name… I still call it Starplex), I’m a pro. I learned a long time ago that you just go right on past the first Fair Park exit on 30, and take the second one instead. That little trick kept me from sitting in Radiohead traffic for 3 hours last year. Except it didn’t work this year… In my eagerness to see the Allman Brothers, I completely forgot that it was Texas/OU weekend at the State Fair of Texas. For those of you unfamiliar with Texas/OU weekend, it’s a little like Mardi Gras without the boob flashes and parade. In other words, just a lot of really drunk people everywhere you look.

Back at the U2 concert, we were in our seats by 6:45, and had already purchased t-shirts and a bottle of water. We were the picture of efficiency, and ready for the promised 7:00 start time on the tickets. Muse didn’t take the stage until 7:45.

Fast forward a few days to the Allman Brothers show, and we were stuck in traffic at 6:45, even with my super-secret quick route. Seems like other people knew about it as well… Paid my $10 for parking, got the car in a spot, and started walking to the amphitheater. About halfway there, 7:00, and I hear the crowd roar. Widespread Panic took the stage right on time. Finally got to our seats around 7:15…

Back at Cowboy Stadium, Muse is playing, and the whole thing sounds like mush. There’s no treble or mids in the mix, and it sounds like when you’re at a stoplight next to a car playing the stereo too loud. At least they have the video screen and light show going a bit to keep me from getting too bored. Everyone around me sits quietly in their seats. A few of them have alcoholic beverages, but they seem to be far from drunk.

While Widespread Panic is on the stage, I feel like I’m back at a Phish concert. Everyone around us is dancing and grinning like a maniac, having a great time. These aren’t the smooth, choreographed movements of someone trying to impress others with their moves – these are the jerky, seemingly random movements of sheer joy and ecstasy. The sound mix for Panic is fantastic. The lead guitarist is astounding, and the bass player is making me feel like the lamest bass player ever. The music is tight, the sound is great, and people are dancing their asses off…

Elsewhere in the time/space continuum, Muse finishes their 45-minute set, and frankly, I’m kind of glad. By the end, I could somewhat hear the singer’s voice, but it still sounded like someone had thrown a bunch of bass players into a blender. We sit quietly and wait for U2.

Back at Superpages, Panic finishes an amazing 2-hour set, and I’m actually a bit tired from dancing so much. Some very drunk people from down the row come down and start talking to several people about a ride they hated in the State Fair. One woman drops most of her beer onto the floor, and doesn’t seem to care. We sit and watch the drunk people and wait for the Allman Brothers.

At the U2 concert, Larry takes the stage and the crowd roars. Meanwhile, in my upper level seat, most of the people stay seated, clapping politely.

The Allman Brothers take the stage, and the Superpages crowd is on their feet, starting their herky-jerky dances again. The only people not dancing are the ones trying to get their joints lit. Can you say contact high?

The sound is better for the U2 part of the concert, but it’s still not perfect. Still sounds muddy and bass-heavy, and I’m a fan of bass. The first half of the U2 set is all about their fun party music. The second half seems to be focused on social justice and, to a point, spirituality. Several songs into the U2 set, I’m tired of sitting, so I stand up and dance a little. There are a few people on the row behind us standing, but most folks are sitting, staring intently at the stage below.

The Allmans sound great, but I’m not looking forward to battling this stoned crowd in the parking lots, so we stay until 11ish and head for the house.

Comparing U2/Muse and Allman Brothers/Widespread Panic doesn’t seem logical at first. It’s a definite apples/oranges scenario, but of course, that’s not stopping me. The U2 show was a spectacle. It was like going to the circus – you’re watching all of these things in front of you, but there’s a disconnect. At times, we were impartial observers. I kept wondering whether or not the members of the band were having fun, or if it’s just a well-paying job for them. I couldn’t tell by looking at their faces on the video screen.

At the Allman Brothers/Widespread Panic show, the band members looked like they were having a blast. It felt like the audience was an integral part of the show, pushing the bands on to do new and different things. It’s the difference between watching TV, and doing something in real life. They were both great shows, but only one was a true rock concert.

Laurie Anderson in Dallas, 10/12/08

2008-10-13T06:21:00.001-07:00

Laurie Anderson persuaded me to buy season tickets to TITAS. Well, not Laurie personally, but the announcement that she would be performing her new show, Homeland, in Big D. I've seen Anderson at least 4 times, and it's always been a thought-provoking and mind-bending experience. Listening to Laurie Anderson allows me to slip outside my skin and recognize the overall strangeness that is the human experience. I'm convinced that the two best pop-culture windows on human life can be found in Blue Man Group and Laurie Anderson.

Anderson is currently touring her Homeland show, which the NYTimes reviewer thought could bookend her United States I-IV set. Homeland comments on the economy, war, and security in post 9/11 United States, along with a few miscellaneous stories thrown in so things don't get overwhelming.

In one of my favorite sections, Anderson comments that airport security ruins a potentially fun activity -- undressing in public. She does a wonderful job of describing the sadness and tension of people shuffling along with their possessions, attempting to get through security.

I'm very curious about whether the songs in Homeland have shifted over the course of Anderson's multi-month tour. There were several pieces on the scariness of the financial markets that would have seemed fairly prescient when her tour began in March/April. My guess is that some songs have been added in the past few weeks.

Will you enjoy this if you go? That depends on your attitude towards performances. If you attend performances for escapism, then no, probably not. It's like a newscast that also conveys emotional weight. But if you don't mind some socio-political commentary with your entertainment, you'll probably enjoy yourself.

This performance was also notable because Anderson seems to be singing more. Most of the Anderson shows I've attended in the past have focused on the storytelling, which I love. This performance seemed to be about a 50/50 split between singing and storytelling. The music isn't quite as energetic and bouncy as Strange Angels -era Anderson -- it's much more about atmospherics and synth washes.

Another major change from past performances -- the "Voice of Authority," Anderson's voice changer that makes her sound a bit like Walter Cronkite. Previously, the "Voice of Authority" has projected just that -- unflinching authority, occasionally questioning human motives and behaviors, but always dispassionate. But in Homeland, the "Voice of Authority" shows fear. In saying "There's trouble down at the mine," Anderson was implying that conditions in the U.S. are extremely dangerous, but that we're all just going about business as usual. Personally, I found it scary that after all the years of supreme confidence and detachment, the "Voice" cracked...

There were no projected visuals this time around, unlike past multi-media tour-de-force performances. The staging was simple, with candles on the floor and low-hanging lightbulbs just above the stage. Anderson stayed behind her keyboards for most of the performance, understandably, because the stage would have been difficult to navigate.

Lou Reed joined the ensemble for the final three songs of the performance, contributing vocals and guitar to a song seemingly titled "Lost Art of Conversation" (see the YouTube clip at the end of the post). After two standing ovations, Anderson came out and performed a solo violin piece for the encore. The violin was patched through the keyboard, so it had some effects running on top of the violin sound, but still allowed the gorgeous violin tone to come through.

All in all, a great show, and very thought-provoking, as Anderson shows usually are. As I mentioned earlier, I would have preferred more stories, but it was also nice to see a different sort of show from Anderson.

One Fine "Day"

2008-10-02T09:57:00.001-07:00

So. Good.

Phish!

2008-10-01T11:34:00.000-07:00

Excuse me, sorry, but I'm approaching sheer giddiness right now...

Life is good... Life is very good...

Back From ACL

2008-10-01T08:41:00.000-07:00

The crowds: Awful
The dust: Rough
The weather: Better than usual
Vampire Weekend: Pleasant, not amazing
The best: David Byrne

The second best: Spiritualized

Soul Sighs: Got My Mind Messed Up

2008-09-23T09:40:00.000-07:00

Spent some time a few months ago reading Peter Guralnick's Sweet Soul Music. Ol' Pete talks quite a bit about James Carr, but I never checked out the music until today.

Surprise, surprise--it's amazing. This is the only real performance I could find, and while poor James looks like he's seen better days, the power in his voice is still evident:

I'm in a kick for R&B right now, and "You've Got My Mind Messed Up" is sure to be my next eMusic download (eMusic is another post on here), but I gotta know, is there anything out there today that hits with this much rhythm/intensity/emotional power?

St. Vincent - Marry Me

2008-09-17T11:25:00.000-07:00

I'm late to this party, but I've become obsessed with Marry Me by St. Vincent... I vaguely remember Darren posting about it, but I can't find it on Music Gluttons, so maybe he just told me about it... I didn't heed his advice at the time and now I'm regretting it... This CD is amazing. Thanks, Darren, for the heads-up, and sorry it took me so long to follow through.

Oh, and Jeremy Enigk's World Waits is also in heavy rotation these days, for those who care of such things...

Richard Wright, RIP

2008-09-15T15:36:00.000-07:00

It'll probably get buried in news about the bad day on Wall Street, but Pink Floyd keyboardist Richard Wright passed away...

Counting Crows, Maroon 5 in Dallas, 09/06/08

2008-09-08T06:58:00.000-07:00

"Adam Levine must be a total douche" kept running through my mind while watching Maroon 5 perform. "I'll bet the other band members get so sick of him, but they're just riding the gravy train while they can, making lots of money. Yeah, he's a douche."

Levine strikes a pose on the stage, and the girl behind me sounds like she's having an orgasm. I turn around to look, and yes, she has a look on her face like one of the women in the Herbal Essences shampoo commercials. Then Levine starts to sing, and she talks loudly to her friends throughout the rest of the song. He strikes another pose and she orgasms again... She's just there to watch him make rock star poses occasionally, and doesn't seem to give a flying crap about the music. She's not the only one. Many of the people around us seem much more engrossed in conversations than the music, only to stop the conversation whenever another rockstar pose happens. More douchery...

Looking at the stage setup, the bass player has 3 amp stacks to stage right, while the guitarist has 3 amp stacks, including what looks like an Orange amp, to stage left. Meanwhile, Levine, who plays guitar for approximately 30 seconds in each song, has 4 Marshall stacks smack dab at stage center. More douchery? "I've got the biggest amp setup, therefore I must be the most important, right?" Douchery confirmed...

I will give Maroon 5 credit -- they kept the audience on their feet throughout the set. Very polished, and the radio hits really get everyone moving. Some nice little tributes/quotations of Stevie Wonder and Chris Isaak sprinkled throughout.

So things are winding up during the last song. Levine is really putting a lot of energy into the song, and the guitarist seems to be really getting into it. Levine finishes the vocal line, then runs back to pick up a white Strat... Plays about 5 power chords with the rest of the band, then takes the Strat off and starts swinging it back and forth in tempo with the drummer. The drummer hits the last beat and Levine throws the Strat, which arcs through the air and lands flat on the stage. At this point I'm thinking, "What a douche. Either break it or don't... But don't do it halfway..." Levine picks up the guitar, and the band takes a bow together. He removes the guitar strap and hands the Strat to a girl in the front row, which completely and thoroughly removes any suspicions of douchery from my mind.

Dang you, Adam Levine, not only for being a cute skinny guy who sings wonderfully, but dang you for being decent to your fans... You blew my typecasting out of the water... I hereby deign that you are not a douche... Congrats on that.

The roadies began breaking down the Maroon 5 set and started working on the Counting Crows (very cool) Grand Central Station-looking set. Around 9:40, the house lights went down, and the video screens showed a brief tribute to Isaac Hayes while some of his music played. Sadly, the crowd was quiet until Chef from South Park appeared on the screen. That got the biggest cheer of the video...

The Counting Crows took the stage, and immediately the vibe was more mellow than Maroon 5. About half the crowd stood for the first couple of songs, but the energy level just wasn't as high. The talking/orgasmic girl behind us left during the second Counting Crows song and never came back. She wasn't alone... By the halfway point of the Crows' set, there were empty seats all around us. But the people who stayed seemed to be enthusiastic Crows fans, including two girls in front of us who seemed to be sending the setlist to their friends as it happened...

After 2-3 songs, Adam Duritz announced that tonight's show would be more acoustic-oriented. It was a nice change of pace, and gave a more informal and open feel to the show, and it really looked like the band members were having a good time together.

The acoustic theme held true until the last song of the regular set, which was from the new CD. Even though the song rocked pretty good, the "new song = bathroom break/beer run" theorem still held true, and people were heading towards the exits. The Crows did the obligatory fake encore thing, and when they came back, Duritz plugged The Grey Bird Foundation for a few minutes. I thought it was a cool thing to mention, but I saw a lot of the audience getting restless. Then they closed the show with "Rain King" and the members of Augustana (the opening band that I didn't get to see) came out and sang harmony.

Walking to the parking lot, I overheard several people complaining about the Counting Crows set. For me, it was a nice, adventurous set, and the folks on the Counting Crows web board were thrilled by the rarities. But for the fans who came to hear the greatest hits reenacted verbatim, it was a disappointment... Which is too bad, because they missed a fine set...

Darren and Steve chat about the Dallas Radiohead show...

2008-05-19T15:49:00.000-07:00

Since Darren and I met up at the Radiohead show, we thought we'd do a little AIM chat about it and pop that up for you MusicGluttons. If you're not excited about it, just pretend that you work for Homeland Security and you're eavesdropping on our conversation illegally... See? That makes it more fun already!

steve: Hola!
darren: Mornin', sir.
steve: *smirk* at the "sir"
steve: You want to get rolling on this?
darren: probably a fair one. perhaps "top of the mornin' to ya!"
darren: let's do it
steve: So, you and I are both world-class crowd watchers... What was your impression of the audience?
darren: The audience was as diverse a cross section of white people as I've seen at a show in a while, with urban hipsters being the dominant majority. Like My Morning Jacket, though, Radiohead draws from all camps: jam kids, frat guys, hipsters and stoners ....
darren: your thoughts there? I saw you browsing the crowd.
steve: Yeah, I always like to check out the concert t-shirts people are wearing...
steve: Saw some U2, Widespread Panic, White Stripes shirts. I saw a punky looking girl wearing an NIN shirt. But I was most pleased to see a PaperChase shirt on one of the indie hipsters.
darren: I also saw that Paper Chase shirt as well as a few They Might be Giants ones. Special mention needs to be made of the guy who was about five feet tall and was a die-cast replica of Dylan circa '66
steve: Overall, it was a convention of Urban Outfitters customers with more recent concert shirts... Yeah, loved the Dylan guy!
steve: It was like seeing a cosplayer at an anime convention!
steve: Also, special mention needs to be made of the guy in the tie-dye shirt carrying an acoustic guitar around the lawn... What was up with that?
darren: Oh, the lawn is such an interesting place ... He looked like he stepped out of the Dallas neo-hipppie scene circa '89 and if he had any intention of playing that thing, his hopes were surely soon dashed. However, it remains to be seen whether he would have been a better opening act than the Liars ...
steve: Oh, the Liars will be discussed momentarily, but I wanna get back to that guy... Do you think perhaps he'd be practicing with all his Radiohead CDs in the hopes of playing along during the show? Like all the people who've memorized all the lyrics to Idioteque?
darren: He was just reinforcing a Dallas tradition of having a back-up on the lawn. I swore I heard him back and to the left during "Fake Plastic Trees," strumming along ...
steve: Wouldn't surprise me in the least...
steve: The Liars - greatest band ever (that I just didn't get) or greatest job of conning your way into opening for Radiohead?
darren: I've been waiting for this, and especially to hear what you think. I think it was a con. Clearly (lead singer) Angus Andrew has some comprising photos of Thom Yorke with a cheeseburger and a vault full of plastic, CFC-filled bottles, because the show did not translate live and the songs seemed to have much else going on. Add the weird dancing and I think you have a dissapointing act at best.
steve: I think Thom liked the novelty of the Liars... I mean, how often do you find a band that has taken the initiative to dig up someone as famous as Jim Morrison, perform some Santeria voodoo ritual on the corpse and have Zombie Jim Morrison fronting your band? Clearly, it had to be the novelty...
steve: ...And I'm fairly certain every other screamed word was "BRRRRAAAAAIIIINNNNNSSS!"
darren: Haha! That's seems appropriate, because their underwhelmingness was making my brain hurt pretty bad ...
steve: And of course, it was amazing how well Beastie Boys lyrics fit their music.
darren: Yes, or The Rev. Run. I remember you weaved "tricky" in fairly nicely.
steve: Yeah, the fine folks on the "Where's Waldo" blankie seemed to enjoy that... heh.
darren: I think they did ... After seeing The Liars twice they were suitably ready for some mockery ...
steve: Yeah, the Liars are an easy target... We probably could have gone all Mystery Science Theater 3000 on them for the whole thing... Fortunately, it was a nice evening and the people around us were fairly chill, so I just laid back and relaxed a bit... Chatted with Darren and my wife and did some people watching...
darren: How did the crowd stack up to Roger Waters?
steve: Much younger... Less alcohol induced stupidity. More pot smoke around at Radiohead, believe it or not. I dunno if the Waters crowd has lost their dealer contacts or if they're just trying to be good for their parole officers, but I'm convinced there was more pot in the crowd at Radiohead.
darren: I thought I had a contact high because the stuff was just in the air. You couldn't escape if you wanted to.
steve: No doubt! I'm pretty sure... I was hungry on the way home...
steve: Was there a standout moment for you in the Radiohead set?
darren: I was expecting it to be "National Anthem," which was strong, but not my high point. I was pretty blown away by how solid the new material was. I thought both "Weird Fishes" and "Video Tape" were tops for me in the regular set. The encore-version of "Paranoid Android" probably took the cake. I was impressed by their ability to keep the vibe going. I never caught myself checking my watch, which I often do. You?
steve: I've always been enamored of "Pyramid Song," and last nights was epic and beautiful. The moon was just creeping over the top of Starplex during that song, and it was just one of those moments. "Nude" was astounding as well, and "The Bends" was powerful! I was impressed by the new stuff too... While I like "In Rainbows" overall, the songs work even better in a live setting.
darren: Pyramid Song. I looked over at my friend Philip and he was kind of hugging himself. That song is/was beautiful.
steve: So I slipped out near the end of the first encore, and that's when they started "The Bends," unfortunately. So we walked a little bit on the concrete pathway and then went up the stairs into the covered area. Usually the Starplex ushers are hardcore about checking tix and making sure people didn't stand in the aisles, but there was nobody there. So we stood near the back and watched "The Bends" from there. It was much louder in the covered area. I'm not sure whether the lawn speakers were turned on...
darren: When I went down to get our friends who showed up late, I noticed how much louder it was, too. It's very possible.
darren: Aside:
darren: We were leaving and we stopped for a literally a few seconds to check directions to Cafe Brazil on my friends Blackberry and a yellow-shirted guy hassled us. I politely said that we were moving, but were just stopping for a second to check some directions (Most of the place was cleared out) and he told us if we "backtalked him again" we would be put in jail for the night.
steve: Holy crap...
darren: I thought it was emblematic of the problem with Dallas venues. And I might have said some words to him afterward about his ability to actually do that which will not be repeated here.
steve: Sounds like some of those Barney Fife mall security folks... Yeah, that's why Phish stopped playing Dallas shows for a while according to a source I read... (Don't have the link, sorry, it's been too long.)
darren: How about Thom calling out that guy during the set for yelling?
steve: Yeah! I'd love to know what that guy was saying...
steve: Plus, I think many of those fans would think it was an honor to get beaten up by Thom Yorke. "I'll just stand here, and you punch my eye and then autograph it please."
steve: What happened after the slow and mellow "Karma Police" I heard from the lot?
darren: Funny ... I don't remember "Karma Police," Let's see there was "Fake Plastic Trees," Exit Music (For a Film) and "Paranoid Android"
darren: "You and Whose Army" perhaps?
steve: We wanted to avoid the rush... We got stuck in the lot for an hour after the Waters show, and there was work this morning, so an early exit was made...
darren: That was played during the second encore ... Yorke put his good eye into the camera while he singing for a simple trick/awesome creepy effect.
darren: Understandable. It took my friends three hours to get from the Expressway to the show.
steve: Overall, it was a fantastic night! The light show was amazing, the weather was good, and there were cool people around. Sometimes I look at Thom, and think "that's the most unlikely guy for a rock star" and that's part of what I like about him...
darren: You have to admit. He's aged into his role well and really put a new spin on being a rock frontman ... plus, I think it's safe to say that the band is still creatively vital while few of their '90s peers are. Hello, Oasis?
steve: They've taken some amazing creative risks, and it's paid off handsomely for them... The critics love them, and their fans are loyal. It's good to see...
steve: Are you going to go see The Liars tonight at Lola's?
darren: Steve, you and I consider ourselves music obsessives, so it's no surprise to see us at a Radiohead show, but it's amazing that Radiohead has written such challenging music (last night's ideoteque was great) and attracted such a broad base. Maybe people aren't as stupid as the record companies think they are ...
darren: Haha ... I might have to skip, but part of me is very curious ...
darren: Maybe they'd be better in a club? But I doubt it, the songs just aren't there.
steve: I think they'd be more fun in a club... I'll bet the singer is very entertaining to watch. I think that didn't translate in the bigger venue.
steve: I'm going to run. Thanks for meeting us there last night!
darren: Anytime. It was alot of fun!

Angry Crowe Stew

2008-05-12T08:13:00.000-07:00

Okay, so let's make a bit of a stew here... Let's take a large group of people with easy access to too much alcohol and let them bake in the sun on an extraordinarily muggy May day in Texas. Then add a band that doesn't really want to be there. Finally, sprinkle a few over-anxious police officers in the mix... And voila! You have the Black Crowes at Taste of Addison...

First, the crowd. It was an agitated, slightly angry crowd. You had the pioneers, who had been there all day, and just wanted to sit and chill and listen to some music. Then there were the overachievers, who wanted to get as close to the stage as possible, and would stand directly in front of the sitting pioneers if it got them 10 inches closer to the stage. And there were the spendthrifts, who had paid their 10 bucks to get in and wanted to hear "Hard To Handle" and are basically oblivious to the fact that the Crowes have had a career since then. Saw several confrontations around me, but no punches thrown...

Second, the Crowes... Musically, they were amazing, stellar, brilliant... They did the jam band thing extremely well, where they take a song off into left field somewhere until you can't even hear the original in there any longer, then they take you back into the song from a direction you never would have thought of... Love that! But they sure looked like they would rather have been on the bus smoking up and watching SNL or something... For all I've read about Chris Robinson's dynamic stage presence, he barely moved a muscle. He occasionally bobbed his head, but spent most of the show behind the microphone, even when he wasn't singing. I mean, I get it... Headliner at a food festival isn't the most prestigious position, and I'm fairly certain the Crowes don't get the payday in ticket or merch sales that come with a normal show, but at least try to win the crowd over...

Third, the police... Okay, so Taste of Addison is supposed to be a family event, I get it. But family events don' t usually book bands that prominently feature pot leaves on their t-shirts. An extreme example would be booking R.Kelly for MayFest: "Lots of cute little girls here!" My theory is that the person doing the booking probably thought of the Crowes as a band that used to have some fun hits on the charts. But many of the fans know the Crowes as a pot-friendly band, so they show up carrying, as occasionally happens at jam-oriented shows. Well, the police were having none of that. Prior to the Crowes coming on stage, I saw few police. But a couple of songs into the Crowes set, the police swarmed the front of the stage and the center area, and started pulling people out of the crowd.

So yeah, it was a bit of a mess... Despite it all, I heard some good music from the Crowes, and they played several tracks from Warpaint, my CD of 2008 so far, including "Oh Josephine" which is absolutely divine... Can't wait to see the Crowes in a better setting.

P.S. I have a man-crush on the Crowes' bass player... Absolutely amazing! I wanna be him when I grow up...

Roger Waters tells Big D a thing or two... And the people just hum along...

2008-05-05T06:27:00.000-07:00

He’s the one
Who likes all our pretty songs
And he likes to sing along
And he likes to shoot his gun
But he don't know what it means

Saw Roger Waters at the recently named Superpages.com Center (aka Smirnoff Music Center, aka Coca-Cola Starplex Amphitheater, aka Starplex, and I'm pretty certain I'm forgetting one or two...) this past Friday night, and I'm glad I went. I was really on the fence about it, which is kinda surprising considering how big a Pink Floyd fan I was in high school and college. But I picked sides and I was bitter... I read all sorts of Pink Floyd books and articles, as if I was going to go in and help the four of them settle this matter so they can get on with things because they obviously need each other... I mean, Division Bell? It was okay... And I honestly haven't listened to any Waters solo stuff since Radio KAOS. But I always figured that when you've got three people on one side and one on the other, the one is typically the asshat that needs some attitude adjustment. Plus, I watched the Pink Floyd reunion on Live 8, and Waters' voice sounded horrific! So yeah, I had mixed emotions going into this...

Turns out it was all for naught... Waters' voice was in great form, and he was hitting some pretty high notes. He's also touring with what amounts to an amazing Pink Floyd tribute band that can pull off Gilmour's vocals and guitar lines beautifully.

The other problem for me is that I've never understood Pink Floyd as party music. Yeah, much of it has that stoner vibe... Okay, most of it, but to me, it's an introspective stoner vibe. It's always been headphone music. My cassette copy of The Wall got played so much on my Walkman that the center section was stretched and would play a good half-step lower. When I got the CD version, the middle songs all sounded too fast... Pink Floyd was almost always reserved for laying on my bed in a dark room with headphones on. When driving around with friends, we'd play AC/DC or Zeppelin. That was party music. Pink Floyd was about life, emotions, the psyche, relationships, and eventually politics.

So, Friday night, when Waters said of George W. Bush, "That Texas education must have fucked you up when you were very small!" and the guy in the next row yells back, "Yeah, I'm fucked up," you just get the general impression that much of the message is either going over the heads of the audience or they're just gleefully ignoring it while they party on, dude.

I found that some of the songs from Final Cut took on new meaning in light of the Iraq war, while many used it as an excuse to get more beer. I'm not saying I'm better than the rest of the audience, it's just that my reaction was different. I went into my shell. While much of the crowd danced, drank and smoked pot, I sat and listened. And it was surreal, sitting there while the lady in front of me WooHooed and made the devil horns with one hand while holding a beer and a cigarette in the other.

The effects were amazing! Some great films to accompany the music, along with some fantastic lighting. And of course there was the inflatable pig, which "accidentally" got away from the handlers at Coachella. Yeah, it "accidentally" got away at the Dallas show as well. As noted elsewhere, the pig had an Obama endorsement on one side. What hasn't been noted in other reviews is that the penis of the pig had "Cheney" painted on it, and "Impeach Bush Now!" was painted where the asshole would normally have been. Subtle.

Waters seemed to be having a genuinely good time on the stage. He seemed warm towards the audience, and at the end of the show, he was actually the last to leave the stage, unlike many of the stars who play "sprint for the limo" while their backing band plays the last few notes.

In the end, I'm glad I went, and it was a fantastic show. It was great hearing some of the old tunes in a new context, and hopefully some of the crowd will consider some of Waters' message... But most likely not...

Standout moments for me? The moving video tribute to Syd Barrett during "Shine On" and "Wish You Were Here," along with a rousing version of "Bring the Boys Back Home" for the first encore.

Update on the pig: "I was taking a smoke break at the backstage door of the House Of Blues/Dallas in Victory Park when suddenly...Here comes this UFO navigating oddly through the huge downtown buildings. At first I thought was a Blimp actually but as it got closer, I noticed it had legs!
Oh my god! it a freggin flying pig!
None of my HOB buddies believed me until they looked up to see a freggin pig flying through the sky!"

The Genius

2008-05-01T07:52:00.000-07:00

I honestly looked for a better version of this song. Richard Manuel don't cut it and neither do Charlie Rich. It's always gonna be a Ray Charles song to me. I love the version from Ray Charles 1964 "Live in Concert," but this live version is from 1963:

Christgau said that Willie Nelson now owns the track too, and in a way, I guess he does. There's always been a link between Willie and Ray that goes beyond "Seven Spanish Angels:"

Cindy Walker co-wrote it with Eddy Arnold. I had a gf who told me that she was listening to the Van Morrison version of this song a lot, and all I could think was, "I love Van, but the Ray Charles version is so much better." Turns out she was telling me to listen to the words. Whoops.

Day Dreaming

2008-04-28T08:00:00.000-07:00

Noel Murray talked about this song in his Popless column a few weeks back. It's been stuck in my head since then.

Check out dat yazz flute.

Radiohead news

2007-10-01T05:53:00.000-07:00

Getting my BoingBoing fix this morning, and there's a post up that Radiohead has their new album available for download. The cool part? You choose how much you'd like to pay for the download...

http://www.boingboing.net/2007/09/30/radiohead-lets-fans.html

I haven't checked it out yet (class in 5 minutes, so no time), but I'm excited by the implications. If any band could pull off a breakaway from record company independence, it's Radiohead. They've got the resources, they've got the fanbase, and I would think most of the Radiohead fanbase is pretty tech-savvy and wouldn't mind download-only releases.

I've been thinking a lot about the record industry over the past few weeks, but this kindof throws things into a different territory. I'm excited to see what happens with this.

In other news, this is the 100th post on MusicGluttons! Yeah... Considering how much time there is between posts (not complaining), this is an achievement for us...

Joni covers her ass?

2007-09-28T10:54:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I was cruising through the Barnes & Noble, and I saw the new Joni Mitchell CD. I love Joni, so I'd been intending to go to a Starbucks (even though I abhor the taste of coffee) to buy the CD. Since it was in B&N and I had a couple other things to grab anyway, I picked it up. Here's what it looked like when I bought it:

You can't tell by looking at the photo, but the blue part is a cardboard wraparound strip. Just looking at the cover, I thought perhaps from a design standpoint, they were concerned that Joni's name was in blue and might be somewhat difficult to see. But the sucky part is that the cardboard wraparound covers up the track listing on the back of the CD. Not that it would have deterred or changed my purchase, but when I'm buying a CD, I like to see how many tracks there are and read over the titles of the songs.

So I get back to my office, tear off the shrinkwrap and pull the "sanitized for your protection" cardboard thingy off, only to find this:

Wait a minute... Did HearMusic (Starbucks in wolves clothing) pay extra money just to cover up ballet dancer asses? Could it possibly be?

A quick update on Darren's musical life

2007-09-25T08:16:00.000-07:00

1. I've become obsessed with Björk after her performance at the Austin City Limits Music Festival.

Regardless, I still think this is very, very funny.

Winona Bjork

Add to My Profile | More Videos

2. I keep listening to a band called the Black Kids, even though I'm not sure they even have a full-length out yet. There's nothing special to this song, but I love it.

3. This has yet to be not funny to me:

4. Congress is actually holding hearings on rap music. How is it that rap music takes a beating for profanity and no ones worried about our children be forced to listen to this. (Disclaimer: I actually like Conway Twitty, but he sang a lot of creepy, creepy songs)

Vegoose!

2007-08-31T11:44:00.000-07:00

Have you fine musicgluttons seen this? (no, that's okay... Go ahead and take a look... I'll wait...).

Got it? Uh, yeah... Iggy & the Stooges performing Fun House? I mean, dayummmm... And one of my personal faves Unkle, who I'm fairly certain has visited the U.S. fewer times than British royalty? Crap... I'd like to be in Vegas for the end of October, but I don't see it happening... There's most definitely something here for everyone. Jam bands (Umphrey's), electronica (Thievery Corporation), rap (Rage!), metal (Mastodon!!)... Nice lineup, to say the least...

Tip of the hat to my bud Troy for the link...

Pitchfork, Myspace, and your favorite CD

2007-07-24T07:50:00.001-07:00

Monday night, I had a long conversation with my friend Sherman. We talked about the new Sony HD Bravia he bought, the War in Iraq, and also his excitement about the new John Vanderslice CD, Emerald City, out yesterday on Barsuk.

"Dude, I'm predicting a solid nine," Sherman said.

Between music geeks like Sherman and myself, it went without saying that "a solid 9" meant the disc would garner a top rating on Pitchfork Media, a Web site that, just this week, Jim Derogatis of Sound Opinions called, "The Creem Magazine of this generation."

Pitchfork held a very different estimation of the disc this morning, which received a 6.2.

I've been listening to the leak of Emerald for two weeks. I downloaded it on a torrent site, and I've been enjoying it on the way to and from work ever since. I wouldn't rank it as high as Sherman did, though; in my estimation, it's probably only a solid 7.9 or 8.

My opinion might change in the coming months, though. I've been in a Beatles for Sale mood this month, and I've also been revisiting Wilco's Sky Blue Sky, which I raved about on here not that long ago.

Using the Internet to find and listen to music has direct positives for the music listener, for sure. Now, a listener can hear a disc before buying it, removing the gamble associated with music purchases and few other products. A listener can also purchase harder to find CDs on the Internet and listen to more diverse, under-the-radar artists and styles.

However, it has also created a negative culture of immediacy that assesses and passes over music without granting the second or third listens that may captivate a listener. If the disc doesn't immediately grab the listener, it seems destined to be un-synced from the iPod.

Finally, it bestows false praise on artists that perhaps do not deserve the adulation they initially receive.

Okkervil, pre-orders and the plus side of the Web

I first heard about Okkervil River from Pitchfork in 2005. Sherman and I were sent down to Austin from Fort Worth by our college newspaper. In our preparation for what is an overwhelming amount of artists, we often consulted Pitchfork's SXSW day-by-day guide to the conference. Okkervil was notable among a host of bands that were really nothing much. They were from Austin, they were on an independent label, and they had toured with the Decemberists. Just to sweeten the deal, some compared them to Neutral Milk Hotel.

We didn't see the band at the conference, but we would get several chances to see them in the coming year. By the end of 2006, both Sherman and I were full-blooded River fans.

I bought Black Sheep Boy, and Sherman bought Black Sheep Boy Appendix, the corresponding EP. I downloaded the Overboard & Down EP, and justified it to myself by remembering that I had seen the band live three times that year.

Okkervil will release The Stage Names on Aug. 7, and I already have my Internet-only pre-release order confirmation in my e-mail. Along with my order I get the disc, a CD full of demos and an immediate download of the CD.

Without the Web, I wouldn't even have a clue as to when Okkervil River was playing concerts, not to mention all the freebies, photos, etc. that I get. For fans, the Web is a wonderful place.

Falling in love (Is hard on the ears)

When I bought Wilco's Sky Blue Sky earlier this summer, I had already heard the leak for several months. At first, I was hesitant to bestow too much praise on the album. After three records of pop deconstruction and isolation, this new record seemed much more bland and sleepy-sounding. I tend to like music that's a little more left of center, which Wilco possessed elements of in the past.

However, the more I listened to Sky Blue, and the more interviews I read with Jeff Tweedy, the more I feel in love with the album. In an increasingly terse world, this was supposed to be a deep breath and a slow, country drive. It paid real attention to craftsmanship, and it was flat out pleasant. It wasn't trying to be much of anything else.

Quickly, it became one of my favorite records of the year.

As an estimate, including the leak listens. I would say that I probably listened to Sky Blue six times before I really got a great feel for the record. Now, as the summer hits the final stretch, I'm starting to realize that I spent the summer of 2007 driving, working and listening to Sky Blue Sky. That's a good feeling.

But much like Vanderslice's new disc, the Wilco CD received fairly crummy reviews. Pitchfork panned it, and they weren't the only one.

Now, I don't have pitch-perfect music taste. It could be a crap CD that I just really enjoyed, but I do know that my initial feelings about the two discs were similar, but, in the end, it was a grower.

Nor am I saying this is a new phenomenon. Pet Sounds was a grower. In fact, it only did so-so commercially.

But now it may be among the most revered records. Some records are growers.

...and Voxtrot

At the surface, Voxtrot should be just about everything I might enjoy in a band. They are young, Austin-based, and we actually have mutual friends.

The problem with Voxtrot is that I don't really like their music. I'm a big supporter of local scenes, particularly those in Austin and DFW, but I just don't care for this band. I don't dislike them--they just aren't something I've been able to get into.

The music is a little too underwhelming. They aren't really doing anything musically that about one-hundred other bands with guitars are doing, and the lyrics are a little too emo, bedroom, boring for me. There's no real eye for detail or anything. The truth is, these are guys who will most likely not make a career out of having a band, and that is OK. Most people don't. I, for one, won't, and I'm very unconcerned with by this, too.

But, Voxtrot became an Internet success story out of nowhere last year. By this year, though, they were done--the death knell being a 5.9 from Pitchfork for their latest CD.

Ramesh Srivastava, the lead singer for the band, was unhappy about the treatment his band received and basically said that the new record was a grower and the like. Still, very few seem interested. The same folks who made Voxtrot have now, in many ways, killed them.

There was a good article in the Baltimore Sun about that dealt with the fall-out of the quick hit culture:

"Now there's so much out there that I feel silly listening to the same thing repeatedly," he said. "There's only a certain amount of time I can listen to music in a day."

Even Srivastava acknowledges that the quick-hit Internet culture he rails against has infected him as well. "I often find that, when presented with so much music," he says, "I tend to have a very disposable attitude towards anything that doesn't set me on fire in the first five seconds, as it is instantly forgotten."

No one has taken into account here, that maybe Voxtrot was never that great. Perhaps, as the Minutemen said, "The Roar of the Masses Could Be Farts."

The inverse of this is that some music that lights me up in the first five minutes does nothing for me after ten minutes. I really liked Clap Your Hands Say Yeah's The Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth at first, but by now, it's faded. It doesn't have the magic it once did.

The short of this story is this. Don't believe the hype. Take a few deep breaths, and take some time to really enjoy each CD you buy, download or listen to.

White Stripes - the one note concert

2007-07-18T14:40:00.000-07:00

From the almighty BoingBoing:

And CBC article on the concert here...
It almost sounds like something from The Onion.

Subversive vs. De-fanged...

2007-07-12T08:31:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned over on The Fort Worthian, I just returned from a trip to see family in Alabama, and while I was there, I played some Guitar Hero with my nephew, who is 12. My nephew likes to play Guitar Hero and other video games with me for three reasons:

He only sees me once or twice a year, so I'm not a common, everyday uncle.
I don't let him win, like several other adults in his life, so when he beats me, he knows he's really won.
I'm decent at Guitar Hero and some other PS2 games, so I'm a bit of a challenge for him.

When they came out to Texas in April to visit, he lost miserably. I think he won 2 or 3 songs during the whole weekend. And when the weekend was over and he was getting in the car to head back to Bama, he told me he was going to practice and beat me. And what does the kid do? He goes home and practices and practices and practices... ...on "Bark At the Moon" by Ozzy...

So I've just driven 8 hours straight and we arrive at his grandparents house, and what's the first thing he wants to do? Play Guitar Hero. He starts it up with "Bark At the Moon" and whips the pants off me. And then he beats me on other songs too, though I blame the combination of 8 hour drive with not playing GH for a while... (Geez, look at me making excuses). After a good night's sleep, I was able to beat him on some songs again. I'd say it was pretty even over the rest of the weekend, but I never did beat him on "Bark At the Moon."

When my nephew plays GH, he quite often sings along with the songs. Now here's the funny thing -- I would seriously doubt he's ever heard Megadeth's "Symphony of Destruction" outside of the context of the game. Heck, the boy is even singing along with "Caveman Rejoice," one of the GH bonus songs. And I know that if his mom or grandparents ever saw one of the Megadeth album covers, they would be appalled.

Old fart moment: As I've told some of you, I was raised in a very conservative environment, and was not allowed to listen to "secular" rock music for a long time. When my mom found a Jimi Hendrix cassette under my bed, she told me his music was Satanic, though I never really heard that element so much... I found some ways to get around the embargo -- following Kerry Livgren's conversion, I referred to Kansas as a Christian band, and I lied about Genesis being a Christian band (c'mon! It's a book of the Bible!). I also found some pretty good Christian rock at the time, but that's another post.

So I was sitting there listening to my 12 year old, Alabama born and bred, church-going nephew sing along to "Symphony of Destruction" without a care in the world, singing it like he was singing any other song, and it hit me that this is subversive. Video games are amazing in that they can get music into households that would have never bought that music in the first place. I'm becoming more and more convinced that the future of music is intertwined with video game licensing. And here's my nephew listening to and singing along with songs by Megadeth, Ozzy and Queens of the Stone Age, when he's mostly a loyal country music fan, and might not have heard these songs otherwise. That's amazing...

And then a second thought hit me -- what if this music has become so de-fanged and irrelevent that it has lost it's power? Ozzy certainly isn't as scary as he once was. We've seen the doddering and stuttering on The Osbournes. I don't think I'd ever seen a photo of Dave Mustaine until a few years ago and he's not particularly scary looking, but I remember looking at Megadeth album covers and being a bit creeped out by them. What if all the mystery and power behind the music has been stripped and it's just another commodity to be bought and sold?

On the one hand, I'm excited that my nephew is being exposed to some of this music. On the other, I wonder if it really means anything to him beyond pressing the right buttons on the GH controller. Has music lost power?

Queens of the Crap Age

2007-06-11T12:50:00.001-07:00

Here's a great picture I found of Queens-frontman Josh Homme working on the latest album, Era Vulgaris.

Frau Margot - FW Opera

2007-06-10T15:20:00.000-07:00

Cross posted from The Fort Worthian.

It was a dark and stormy night…
While that may not be the greatest start for a novel, it was a nice mood-setter for Frau Margot. The opera began with a black scrim at the front of the stage, and showed the projected raindrops and the outside of a brownstone, along with some ominous lightning flashes. An appropriate film noir opening for an opera about a murder.

But first, a little bit about the inspiration behind Frau Margot.
When composer Alban Berg died, he left behind an unfinished opera entitled “Lulu.” Leonard Bernstein approached Berg’s widow about the possibility of completing the opera, and she told him she would let him know in a few days. A few days later, Mrs. Berg told Bernstein that she had consulted with her husband and that he had said no to Bernstein completing the opera. Bernstein later found out that many other composers had approached Mrs. Berg about completing the opera, and that they were all told the same thing. Apparently, Mrs. Berg was contacting her husband through a séance to inquire about the opera completion offers.

So that’s a pretty juicy story to start an opera from… Add a bit of laudanum addiction, and extramarital affair, some twisted psyches and a murder, and you’ve got yourself a pretty juicy opera!

Frau Margot premiered in FW on June 2, which gave the company the luxury of not having the performance compared to past versions. The set was stunning, with crazy angles giving the appearance of extreme depth to the stage. There were projection scrims around the top and back of the set, and the projections were used to give the sense of shifting locations without a lot of set changes. And whenever Frau Margot was tripping on laudanum, the projections showed ripples expanding outward -- a nice trick to help illustrate the mindset of the character. The set also helped establish the aforementioned film noir mindset, with heavy use of black, white and gray elements, and stark lighting that emphasized long menacing shadows.

I enjoyed the opera, but it seemed to miss some dramatic moments in the music during the second act. I'm not sure if it was intentional or not, but Frau Margot seemed to include a less extreme version of sprechtsing from Berg's Wozzeck (which, for the record, I thoroughly enjoyed a few years ago at the Dallas Opera, and I'm certain I was in the minority that night... I've never seen so many people walk out of an opera!). Frau Margot also seems inspired by Wozzeck in terms of the sexuality displayed on stage, though Margot's is, again, a little less extreme.

The vocalists were all great, though I must give special attention to Lauren Flanigan as Frau Margot and Allan Glassman as Margot's agent. Glassman had some comic elements that really stole the show for me, and I fell in love with Flanigan's voice from the beginning. It didn't matter that she was a crazy drug-addled widow -- I was infatuated. I wasn't really feeling much sympathy or affection for the Ted or Kara characters by the end, though I think we were supposed to... But I think that's part of the film noir influence showing through again -- the moral ambiguity of Kara left me with little sympathy towards her character.

I hope this opera catches on, and is performed in other places. While it's not the most melodic of operas, it is a fascinating story and it's fun to watch.

Charlotte Gainsbourg - 5:55

2007-06-05T08:37:00.001-07:00

Calm music is needed today. I often use music as a drug -- a way to elevate or change moods, to energize, to relax, to mess with my senses... We all do it to a certain extent.

In that context, 5:55 is a nice glass of red wine. It's not enough to leave you wobbly all night, but it is enough to take the edge off and relax you just a bit.

Gainsbourg occupies a territory between (non-vocal acrobatic) Kate Bush and Air (which makes sense, as Air was involved in the recording) -- she's got the sultry seductress whispery voice going on, but she rarely affects any emotion beyond that. Whether she's singing the ominous airliner going down lyrics of "AF607105" (which would be a great companion piece to Laurie Anderson's "From the Air"), or the supposedly angry "You'll never work in this town again" lyrics of "Jamais," she maintains the same breathy tone. While I like the album overall, I find this to be a bit disconcerting, as if the whispering girlfriend has taken over Seinfeld.

Pulp fans will also notice Jarvis Cocker's (another collaborator on this project) influence in the vocal pacing and delivery on songs like "Everything I Cannot See." Compare Gainsbourg's pacing in this song to Cocker's on "This is Hardcore" for a prime example.

Now don't get me wrong -- I'm not saying this album is unoriginal or derivative, it's just one of those albums with the influences on its sleeve (and in the credits). There's some nice stuff here, and this CD has been in the player quite a bit over the past couple of weeks. Bass players will find some juicy lines to steal here, especially the ridiculously fluid lines on "5:55" and the fun funk on "Jamais." In fact the musicianship is stellar throughout. I just wish that the gentlemen from Air hadn't influenced Charlotte quite so much in the vocal department. It would be nice to hear her let her emotions out.

Once is never enough

2007-05-26T21:58:00.000-07:00

Just saw the new movie "Once" that everyone has been raving about.
OK, it's pretty good. Really good, I think. I don't much go in for things I perceived to be dopey, dumb-ass, pseudo-philosophical romantic comedies (I'm looking at you, Garden State), but this movie did a pretty good job of keeping things nice, sweet and low-key.

Here's the deal, it's a musical kind of thing about a girl and a guy, who are love-interests (or no?) in modern-day Dublin. They are both musicians, and they both bond over that, or something.

Here's the gist: It's very well-written, well acted (particularly by the dynamic Glen Hansard of Frames-fame), and really uses both silence and music well--something most movies really don't anymore.

Ah, trailers!

New White Stripes video: "Icky Thump."

2007-05-26T21:55:00.000-07:00

Holy shit.

Told you so.

Dylan in Dub?

2007-05-26T12:39:00.001-07:00

If you saw the surprisingly good ACL Fest schedule this year, (you can find it here) you might have noticed that perennial glutton favorite Bob Dylan will be headlining the festival this year. Perhaps he's taken a note from last year's headliner and friend Tom Petty.

ACL Fest is pretty exhausting in my opinion, but one or two days can be pretty fun with the right planning, water and sunscreen. On the other hand, it means Dylan will most likely schedule a show in Dallas or Fort Worth on his way down to Austin. No dates yet, but I'm keeping my eyes peeled for some more word.

In the meantime, here's Dylan's last stop in Fort Worth at Billy Bob's with Willie Nelson:

Tool in Fort Worth

2007-05-25T19:33:00.000-07:00

Found some so-so footage of Tool in Fort Worth.

Pretty much perfectly sums up what it's like to be in the cheap seats at a rock show.

Here's some Rolling Stones in Fort Worth in either 1972 or 1978 (Feel free to help identify!)

Let's start the eve with Art Brut

2007-05-25T18:01:00.001-07:00

Art Brut's got a new CD coming out, called It's a Bit Complicated. It's pretty easy to find on the internet, and if you're not too good for leaks, I say you should check it out.

Why? Because there's not much music like this out there these days. See: Fun, truly punky, Kind of earnest.

I like this CD, too. A lot less raw then the last, but still good. Eddie Argos, our lead boy, still sings like as I said on this blog last year, John Cleese fronting the Sex Pistols.

Want to know what that sounds like?

Dinosaur Jr. in Fort Worth

2007-05-23T18:11:00.001-07:00

Going to go ahead and spread the word. Dinosaur Jr.'s original lineup will be playing a secret show with blues-garage-rockers The Black Keys on June 19 at the Ridglea Theater.

Wilco's Sky Blue Sky

2007-05-15T19:51:00.001-07:00

Jeff Tweedy is growing Bob Dylan's beard.

That's all there is to know about Sky Blue Sky, the latest CD from Wilco, probably one of the most consistently provoking and interesting bands of the last two decades.

I want to make one thing clear before I go any further. Saying that Wilco's indomitable frontman Tweedy is growing Bob Dylan's beard is not a bad thing. In fact, it's downright refreshing.

OK, I'm done with this metaphor. I was going to tell you that the reason that Tweedy is growing Bob Dylan's beard is because he's trying to make New Morning. And I was going to say Sky Blue Sky is the New Morning of Wilco's rich catalog.

But you can just listen to the CD.

I'm reviewing Sky here in spite of all the other reviews everywhere else for two reasons. The first is that if I remember correctly, I'm the only musicglutton who gives a crap about Wilco. The second is more complex.

I graduated Saturday. I started work as a journalist, at a magazine, Monday. I'm two days in. And, not to get into the personal details of my own life or anything, but I like it.

I've never been so great at existential crisis. I like to think I deal with things like Dylan might. This is not to say I deal with them brilliantly and abrasively, but rather that I just adjust.

And I'm enjoying coming home at night and loading the dishwasher, cooking and washing clothes. It's satisfying.

Every line Tweedy sings, and every guitar note that he and Nels Cline play, on this CD is full of that domesticity. He sings it at one point. he sings that he tries to sweep up and wash dishes. He wonders whether the sun will shine.

Well, Either Way.

Critics aren't responding to it well, either. They want the Wilco from seven years ago. They want the Wilco that tore everything up and then refused to put it back together.

The critics wanted the same thing from Bob Dylan. But what they got in return was a beard. Dylan didn't turn his back on the hippies in 1966. The moment Dylan truly turned his back on the so-called '60s movement was when he said that a cabin in Utah, kids, a wife and trout was what is was all about.

Maybe it is. Maybe it isn't. There are parts of Utah that are better than others. Tweedy, at his trippiest, is going to Shake It Off.

Sky Blue Sky is speaking to me. But not in the same way Pink Floyd speaks to some suburban stoner. It's speaking to me the same way New Morning does. This is not a buddy listen. This is a CD that goes on when no ones around, and you're not feeling so sad about that.

Bjork on SNL

2007-04-24T16:38:00.000-07:00

Bleargh... Long time no see. Sorry. Busy, busy, blah blah bleargh... That time of the semester where all non-essential things die a slow, painful death. Except for right now, of course... I'm taking a break from grading brutiful newsletters to write about Bjork.

I loves me the Bjork. I enjoy her music and I really enjoy saying her name as if I'm the Swedish Chef from the Muppet Show. Yes, I'm easily amused, I know...

So with all the Bjork-love emanating forth from me, why oh why was I underwhelmed by her performances on SNL? Was it because it looked like she had picked up half of the Polyphonic Spree while they were hitchhiking along some remote Icelandic highway when their snowmobile tossed a tread to the side of the road? Or was it just that the music was too big and grandiose for my little TV speakers?

I purchased Earth Intruders from iTunes, and I play it very loudly from time to time and enjoy it tremendously. But it has a lot of layers to it, and I don't feel like I've absorbed it all just yet... So yeah, still looking forward to the new Bjork album, even though the SNL performances didn't do much for me...

My Summer of (Music) Love

2007-03-22T17:58:00.000-07:00

2005 was a great music year. A lot of my favorite bands released new albums that year, but unfortunately most fell flat.

I’ve got a good feeling in my bones for this year though.

Although RJD2’s latest is a sour way to start the season, LCD Soundsystem’s “Sound of Silver” is exactly what I wanted.

On to the upcoming…

Beastie Boys – I appreciated 2004’s To The 5 Boroughs because it sounded different than everything else coming out at the time, but I haven’t found myself listening to the album since then. And when it comes to politics, I think the Beasties work best with subtlety, which Boroughs seriously lacked. Two weeks ago, Adam Yauch (MCA) said "the Beasties are 'focusing on playing instruments [and] not really working with drum machines and samples' on the record, which they are in the process of mixing. The album is currently untitled, but they hope to release it this spring." I doubt they'll make it in time for a spring release, but that doesn't bother me. I'm counting on a solid return/back-to-basics-Beasties album to come in early June.
Excitement score: 10 of 10

Queens of the Stone Age - Half of 2005’s Lullabies to Paralyze was awesome; half of it was just all right. Quite simply, it’s just difficult for me to get excited about QOTSA without Nick Oliveri contributing screams and riffs. Scheduled for a release in June, Era Vulgaris is “‘rumored’ to feature guest appearances from the Strokes' Julian Casablancas, Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor, Mark Lanegan, and ZZ Top guitarist Billy Gibbons.”
Excitement score: 10 of 10

White Stripes – Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed Get Behind Me Satan a whole lot; I just enjoyed Elephant a whole lot more. It’s difficult to judge what this next Stripes album might hold in store, but I’m hoping Jack picks the guitar back up and lays down some greasy blues and distorted guitar solos. No set release date yet, but I’d bet Icky Thump arrives early summer.
Excitement score: 10 of 10

Plump DJs – The world’s biggest breakbeat act has been around since 1999 but has only released two mix albums and one studio album, 2003’s Eargasm. Still, that hasn’t kept them from releasing some insane squeaks, bleeps, beats and breaks. My brother and I had the opportunity see the Plumps in action in London last summer and were blown away. Along with the usual dancefloor murderers, Eargasm also featured tracks with vocals and a thicker sound. Lee Rous and Andy Gardner have said their sophomore effort, currently untitled but due this summer, will feature varied tempos, more vocals, different instruments and that familiar Plump touch.
Excitement score: 993 of 10

Justice – I don’t know a whole lot about the French duo’s upcoming album, due this summer. I do know that these guys are releasing the most energetic dance music around right now. Their baselines are so ridiculously distorted it’s damn hard to hear different notes; they’re blurring the line between dance and rock.
Excitement score: 10 of 10

Chemical Brothers – Hands down, The Brothers are my favorite band. They mix so many different influences so many different ways. Rock, rap, dance, psychedelic whathaveyou… they’ve got more variation in their sound than anyone else I know. 2005’s Push the Button was damn good, but ended up sounding a little formulaic by the end. In December they released two Electronic Battle Weapons, tracks intended for clubs, are mediocre at best, but at least they diverse sounds. According to their MySpace page, “The Brothers are set to return with the release of their eagerly anticipated sixth album, titled 'We Are The Night' to be released in late June/early.”
Excitement score: 587 of 10

SXSW for people who aren't in Austin

2007-03-14T07:01:00.000-07:00

Two brief notes on SXSW for people who either can't go or don't want to brave the crowds...

First, the annual SXSW torrent file is available here. For the uninitiated, the fine folks at SXSW make a zip file available with one mp3 track from each band playing the fest. This years torrent weighs in at 739 bands and 3.1 Gigs. That should be enough music to keep you going for a while...

Second, if you've got DirecTV, you can watch some of the shows live on channel 101. DirectTV will begin showing Thursday night from 4pm until midnight, central time. The music continues Friday and Saturday same bat-time, same bat-channel... Looks like these are special performances for DirecTV -- there's a schedule here.

Yeah, that was a letdown...

2007-02-28T08:27:00.000-08:00

You've all been dutifully watching as I've gotten a bit excited about seeing the Police reunion tour, so I thought I'd give you an update. (Yeah, I know this is riveting stuff -- do I watch paint dry or read Music Gluttons, but there's a point here, so bear with me...)

I got my Police presale code from Best Buy Reward Zone yesterday morning, and then I waited for 10:00 am this morning to buy my presale tickets (and if any of my 10:00 class is reading this, yes, this is why I was 3 minutes late to class this morning).

I refreshed the Ticketmaster page until "Find Tickets" became available, then clicked the link, searched for 2 tickets and plugged in my presale code. It cranked for a couple of minutes, then told me "No tickets are available."

What? You have got to be frickin' kidding me! You mean I'm in the Ticketmaster site with a presale code two minutes after the presale has begun and there are no tickets available? What a frickin' ripoff...

So, in the immortal words of N.W.A.:
Fuck the Police!

I'll spend my cash somewhere else... grrr....

Dallas Police update

2007-02-27T06:54:00.000-08:00

Best Buy Reward Zone has Dallas presale codes available, and the Ticketmaster presale starts tomorrow at 10 am. I looked at the presale for another show, and ticket prices ranged from $50 - $225 each, along with some sort of package deal...

Police tour...

2007-02-16T07:17:00.000-08:00

Okay, yeah, you got me... I'm a bit geeked about the upcoming Police tour. I've been looking forward to something like this for a while, because I never got to see them in the 80s.

So I was pretty excited when I saw the Dallas tour date in Star Time this morning. For those who care, the Police will be playing the American Airlines Center in Dallas on June 26.

I've found two ways to get presale tickets so far, so if you wait for the general Ticketbastard onsale date, you're probably going to have a row ZZZ seat. Bring a hankie along for those nosebleeds...

One way to get on the presale wagon is to be a Best Buy Reward Zone member as of Feb. 1. I've got that covered, so that makes me happy... If you're a Reward Zone member, keep checking out the Reward Zone website for presale info.

If you're not part of that happy family, you can join the Police fan club at thePoliceTour.com. They are also promising a fan club premium of some sort, so presale + premium = $100 (the cost of the membership, bleargh...)

Not sure how much tickets are going to be, so that might quell my enthusiasm a bit, but we'll see...

But the really interesting part is that the Police are headlining Bonnaroo this summer, along with an amazing list of musicians (and a couple of comedians at the end): The Police • Tool • Widespread Panic • The White Stripes • Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals • Wilco • The Flaming Lips • MANU CHAO Radio Bemba Sound System • The String Cheese Incident • Franz Ferdinand • Bob Weir & Ratdog • Damien Rice • Ween • Gov't Mule • Ziggy Marley • The Decemberists • Kings of Leon • Michael Franti & Spearhead • Wolfmother • Regina Spektor • The Black Keys • Galactic • DJ Shadow • Gillian Welch • Spoon • Keller Williams (WMD'S) • Sasha & John Digweed • STS9 • Old Crow Medicine Show • The Hold Steady • Lily Allen • North Mississippi Allstars • Fountains Of Wayne • Hot Tuna • Feist • Hot Chip • John Butler Trio • Ralph Stanley & the Clinch Mountain Boys • Aesop Rock • The Richard Thompson Band • Dierks Bentley • James Blood Ulmer • Xavier Rudd • Gogol Bordello • Junior Brown • Tortoise • T-Bone Burnett • Mavis Staples • Clutch • Cold War Kids • Dr. Dog • Paolo Nutini • Brazilian Girls • RX Bandits • The Nightwatchman • The Slip • Girl Talk • Railroad Earth • Martha Wainwright • Rodrigo y Gabriela • Annuals • Tea Leaf Green • Sam Roberts Band • Elvis Perkins in Dearland • Charlie Louvin • Sonya Kitchell • Mute Math • Apollo Sunshine • Uncle Earl • The National • The Little Ones • Black Angels • Ryan Shaw • Lewis Black & Friends • Dave Attell • David Cross •

In honor of...

2007-02-14T15:07:00.000-08:00

I'm not a very grouchy person. I like Valentine's Day. I like love, so in turn, I like a good mix of love songs. But, I like them light and fun. It's a personality thing, I suppose.

On the other hand, love does sometimes end, so it's best to have a couple songs handy in case it does.

So, in honor of Valentine's Day, as well as my newest blog, Mild Mixtapes, I've compiled two mixtapes:

First: Love sure is swell and junk!
I think a love mix should be pretty universal. It's pretty hip to pull out little-known tracks, but the best love songs are so universal they always sound fresh...

Side One:
Next To You - Police
Mercy, Mercy, Mercy - Buckinghams
Save The Last Dance For Me - Ben E. King
Higher & Higher - Jackie WIlson
I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend - Ramones
I Hear A Symphony - Diana Ross & The Supremes

Side Two:
Night And Day - Fred Astaire
You've Really Got A Hold On Me - Smokey Robinson & The Miracles
Baby, It's You - The Beatles
With A Girl Like You - Troggs
I Believe (When I Fall In Love It Will Be Forever) - Stevie Wonder
Let's Stay Together - Al Green
God Only Knows - Beach Boys

Next: Love Sucks!
This mix can be a little more personal, since let's face it, you'll probably be the only one who listens to it (Except of course the friends you force to listen along). Here's mine:

Side One:
Only Love Can Break Your Heart - Neil Young
Pictures Of You - Cure
Train In Vain - Clash
Come Pick Me Up - Ryan Adams
I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry - Hank Williams
Hello Walls - Faron Young

Side Two:
He Stopped Loving Her Today - George Jones
Simple Twist Of Fate - Bob Dylan
Trapeze Swinger - Iron & Wine
Why I Cry - Magnetic Fields
Walkin' To New Orleans - Fats Domino
Country Mile - Camera Obscura

If there are any Pete & Pete fans out there, you'll remember that Artie left to Why I Cry. Probably the saddest break-up I've ever watched.

Back From Tyler...

2007-02-11T15:03:00.000-08:00

With a new phone. Bless technology's rapid climb forward, and my willingness to put up with last week's model...

Let's talk Dallas venues. As I reported in the Star-Telegram last week, the Gypsy Tea Room will be closing her doors March 31. Don't look for my sad eulogy. I hated the place.

But where now? Do shows head to Fort Worth, or to existing Dallas venues like the Grenada Theater? There aren't many small clubs left over there these days, What's left? What's on the horizon?

I'll be posting my thoughts shortly...

New SXSW Schedule

2007-02-08T10:28:00.000-08:00

It's out there, and it's fairly impressive. Mountain Goats, Junior Boys and The Stooges - It's a handful of great music.

If you are into outsider music, both Daniel Johnston and Jandek are playing.

Check it out at www.sxsw.com

Setting Ozzy Free

2007-02-06T22:13:00.000-08:00

Ozzfest will be free this summer... Interesting...

Looks like it will be sponsor city, that's for sure. But hey, if you don't mind enduring some advertising to go to a concert, it's pretty cool. After all, we have to tolerate advertising at some of the concerts we pay to see...

The American music business and its ineptitude...

2007-02-06T08:59:00.000-08:00

This is old news, but in an interview with Playboy Magazine (probably why I missed it) last month, American Idol's something-or-other Simon Cowell (Giving him a title would make it appear that I care) said that Bob Dylan's music bored him to tears, and that the old folk troubador would never make it on "American Idol."

Okay, so there's enough absurdity in that quote that I really don't feel I even need to comment on it. If you're reading this blog, chances are you also thought Clay Aiken's "Invisible" was the creepiest song this side of the Partidge Family. So, I'm not even going to waste my breath on why Dylan is superior to anything on Idol. It's like putting the '86 Mets up against the '92 Mets. Sorry, baseball season is approaching... The '92 Mets were awful.

Even more troubling are Cowell's comments about Kelly Clarkson, who is referred to as a "young Aretha Franklin." Now, I like Kelly Clarkson alright, she worked at the same Borders I did, albeit years before, and her more rocky-pop songs are tolerable, even if "Since U Been Gone" did steal a riff from the Yeah Yeah Yeah's "Maps."

Aretha Franklin was a completely developed piano player at the age of five.

Kelly Clarkson likes to bowl at the Euless Main Event.

I rest my case.

My Name is Prince...

2007-02-05T09:46:00.000-08:00

USA Today gave Prince's Superbowl halftime performance an A, but I'm grading on a curve. In my eyes (and ears), the 2005 Paul McCartney performance is top of the heap. Mac's performance had good energy, and the set list served as a potent reminder of who he was and why he was prestigious enough to be there.

Yeah, Prince did have a tougher time, what with the weather and all, but why did he have to resort to covers? That makes no sense whatsoever... He could have banged out hit after hit after hit, and still stayed within the family-friendly decency guidelines. In other words, he wouldn't have needed to resort to Darling Nikki, and dry-hump the stage.

Yeah, the stage was remarkable and the band and the twins were great. Even the music itself was good, but my qualms are about the setlist. Prince is not one of those musicians that has had one hit album to draw from, and has to spend the rest of the night throwing out covers to fill time. He's got the back catalog to draw from, and it's full of hits. Use the massive promotional power of the Superbowl to remind people that you can kick major ass with your music...

Future Superbowl performers (because we know they're all reading Music Gluttons, right?) should study the McCartney performance for tips on how to do a Super halftime.

Grading since JBE (Jackson Breast Exposure):
Paul McCartney: A
Rolling Stones: B
Prince: B

Andy vs. Stewart: Police smackdown!

2007-01-29T06:16:00.000-08:00

I'm really not sure if this was planned, or if it was just synchronicity, but Andy Summers has released a book about his Police days, while Stewart Copeland has released a movie on DVD. Every trying to be the helpful Musicglutton, I read the book and watched the DVD to help you, the Police consumer, make a wise decision that fits your lifestyle and entertainment preferences. Actually, it's more that I always really liked the Police, so both of these were on my list of things to check out...

First, I picked up One Train Later by Andy Summers. But thanks to the end of semester rush, I didn't get to read it until after Christmas break. The timing turned out to be pretty good, as I was able to listen to the Sound Opinions podcast with a fantastic Andy Summers interview. That made me even more enthusiastic about reading Andy's book.

I found the language in the first chapter a bit flowery, but once Summers gets that out of his system, the writing becomes more straightforward. Even so, the first half of the book moves slowly, with many details about Summers' early career. I was surprised by the extent of his career prior to the Police, and Summers does a good job explaining his frustrations as his peers move on to fame and fortune as he continues to struggle.

The second half of the book, which covers the period after Summers joins the Police, picks up the pace dramatically, and eventually becomes a blur of travel, fans, and shows. This is the section of the book where I wanted more details, but some issues seem to be glossed over. I'm sure this is by design, both to echo how that phase of Summers' life felt, and possibly also to avoid irreparable damage to relationships between the Police members. The book does cover the breakup while alluding to Sting's growing fame and his reduced reliance on Stewart and Copeland as songwriting partners. Summers sounds relieved when the Police ride is over and he can get back to something resembling a normal life.

Copeland's film, Everyone Stares: The Police Inside Out is a wonderful companion piece to the Summers book. There are very few details given, but it's a lot of fun to see the Police behind the scenes. For those who haven't heard the premise of this film, Copeland bought a Super 8 camera early in the career of the Police. What's more, he seemed to keep it running even during photo shoots, autograph sessions, and especially in concert. We have some great scenes shot from behind Stewart in concert, with him playing drums and offering commentary mid-show.

For those who are only familiar with the dour, serious version of Sting, you may be surprised by Sting the pop idol. In most of the scenes, he looks like he's having a good time, and it's nice to be reminded that the man knows how to party.

There are some live tracks to be heard throughout the film, but of course they're lo-fi, and the sound is muddy in places. But Copeland did a great job of remixing some of the classic Police songs as soundtrack music, and there's some fantastic stuff to be heard there. In fact, I would buy a CD of Copeland's remixes if it was available. I really enjoyed the "Tea in the Sahara" remix that appears early in the film.

While Summers' book covers some of the issues behind the breakup of the Police, Everyone Stares just goes through the Ghost in the Machine album. I really was hoping for some Synchronicity coverage and the views of the big tour that followed, but no luck there... Still, it's an amazing film for Police fans and, as mentioned earlier, it's a great companion to the Summers book. If you can only do one or the other, get the Summers book. But if you're a Police fan, splurge and buy both.

I was excited to read in the New York Times the other day that the Police will be reuniting to play the Grammies on February 11th... And of course rumors continue to fly that the Police will reunite for a 30th anniversary tour this year. My fingers are crossed! And if you don't know much about the Police, use One Train Later and Everyone Stares to get educated and psyched...

Darren's Best of 2006

2007-01-25T22:39:00.000-08:00

Well, I waited a little while to really let the weight of the entire year sink in, and in the process, I noticed an odd trend for my 2006 listening.

For the first time in quite a while, three of my spots are held by women. Now, I like female voices as much as the next guy, but I think 2006's crop was really extraordinary.

And believe it or not, it was a great year for music - Dylan, Yo La Tengo, Band of Horses, and yes, even Nelly Furtado all put out particularly great records this year, but didn't make the list.

I also was fairly dissapointed by a lot of old favorites this year. Flaming Lips, Decemberists and Built To Spill all put out to me what are pretty much forgettable records - kind of record-after-the-record fare. But hey, everybody needs a Goat's Head Soup too, right?

Unfortunately, other than the Ghostface and J Dilla records, nothing in the hip-hop world blew me away this year. But then again, I missed albums by Rhymefest, Liupe Fiasco and a host of others who all seem to know Kanye West...

Enough postulating, to the results!

Midlake - Trials of Van Occupanther

Okay, I'll rep for the local boys a little here. This isn't a perfect record (I particularly loathe Branches) and I'm not sure how much more dour '70s Fleetwood pop I want to hear, but these guys took an otherwise dead sound and made it really work, and infusing all the rural stuff - a righteous new idea. To me, this whole thing just sounds like the less populated areas of North Texas at sunset. So, just this once, I'm going to forgive some of the self-seriousness, and just accept the music as what it is - really original and cool.

Jarvis Cocker - Jarvis

I'll admit it, I like my rock with a little cheek. Back in the day, Pavement, Pulp and Modest Mouse could rock out and still be hillarious while doing it. Well, with his latest record, Jarvis has still go that Pulp-y magic, except a little darker than before. Forget Common People, try I Will Kill Again

Joanna Newsom - Ys.

I know what you're saying, "Darren, it's so weighty and pretentious. Don't you usually scorn stuff like this?"

Well, normally, I'd say you're right, but the difference is in the talent. Sure Joanna's voice sounds like a whiny 5-year-old's, but I'm not about to penalize someone for having an off-kilter voice. Who doesn't these days? Beyond that, what's so great here is the talent. Newsom can really play the harp, and with the help of Steve Albini and Van Dyke Parks, can really arrange. So, sure their are some proggy, boring lyrics here, but the music is just terrific. I might be listening to Milk-Eyed Mender over this in a few years, but this is really her finest work to date. Far and above any other harpist I heard this year (I'm looking at you, lady in church.)

TV on the Radio - Return to Cookie Mountain

Edged out Band of Horses in the more traditional rock genre. My friend Sherman was really into these guys a few years ago, and it really took me in between this record and the last one, Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes to really dig into this sound and go along with it.

And while I'd much rather go see Joanna over TVOTR again, this is a repeat listen record. There's more accesibility here, but there's also a lot of the fun far-out barbershop-in-space mess found on the last LP and EP. I Was A Lover always makes me stop and pay attention, along with Wolf Like Me

Jenny Lewis - Rabbit Fur Coat

I just love this record. It's not really country, it's not indie, pop or even folk, but Lewis is just so damn funny and sassy, it's hard not to get into her. She's like the best drinking buddy you never had. Jenny's show-biz charmer personality really sells this record, and I'd say the first four tracks on this CD are about as good as anything else out there, and in my opnion, better than a lot of the Rilo Kiley records, Jenny's other project. I don't know how many more solo records to expect from Lewis, but if they all turn out this good, I'll be first in line to buy.

Hold Steady - Boys and Girls of America

A pretty polarizing band, in part because they were also pretty cheeky, and yet they still rocked pretty hard. I love these guys. I'd say this record elicited more laughs and bass-rumbling, car stereo knob-rocking than any other record. Yeah, they're stealing from Springsteen pretty hard, but when did that become such a bad idea?

Neko Case - Fox Confessor Brings The Flood

This was my favorite record six months ago, and it still hasn't lost much steam. I don't think she gets her due as a songwriter here - all these tunes are rock-solid. Of course with a voice that haunting, that damn country, it's easy to see why.

What really sold me here was how broad the love of this record is. For starters, Garth Hudson (The Band) is on here, and he don't just jump on everything. Secondly, I know indie kids, soroity girls, country fans and people who don't even like music that just dig the hell out this record. And for good reason - I'll wager it as a classic.

Steve's Favorites for 2006

2007-01-02T14:07:00.000-08:00

Darren asked for Best-of lists back on December 11, and I'm just now getting to mine. It's been a crazy holiday season for me...

Now, before I start all this list-making stuff, let me just say that this year, I feel even less qualified than usual to be making a list like this, because I haven't heard everything I want to hear from 06. I've been listening to way too much 1960s music and have been focused on school crap, and there have been some notable releases I haven't yet heard. I've got a copy of Thom Yorke's The Eraser in one of my CD stacks, still sealed in shrinkwrap with a Best Buy sticker on it. I haven't purchased the new TV On the Radio CD, even though I was a big fan of the last one. Why not? I blame the shifting release dates. I went to several stores the original date it was supposed to come out in the U.S., only to find out later that it got a U.K. release first. I toyed with the idea of buying the import for a day or two, then forgot about it. By the time it came out in the States, my enthusiasm had waned... Yeah, it's kinda lame, but I don't like getting excited about new music and then having it yanked out from under me. You hear me, Axl?

So yeah, short version: I haven't heard all I want to hear, which is an unusual place for me to be. That said, after the first album, the rest aren't in any type of order. Let the listing commence!

Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere
I've listened to this more than anything else this year, and I love it! So much of it sounds like old-school soul music, thanks to Cee-lo's vocals and the intelligent sample choices by Danger Mouse, but at the same time, the sound is modern. I'm still not tired of "Crazy" or "Transformer."

Midlake - The Trials of Van Occupanther
I first heard this on the Sound Opinions podcast while driving around Dallas, and I was so blown away by the segment I heard that I drove straight to Good Records to pick up a copy. Difficult to describe, but I think of it as early 70s California soft rock as performed by modern indie rockers.

Wolfmother - Wolfmother
The hype was immense about Wolfmother earlier this year, but it seems to have died down. I still hear them played at X-Games type events on TV, but haven't heard much about them otherwise. Retro Rawk! played very well. You can tell these guys worship the Zepp.

The Decemberists - The Crane Wife
I had a student a while back who was a big Decemberists fan, and I'm sorry I didn't listen to her. Frankly, I listened to Crane Wife with some trepidation -- wasn't sure what to expect, or if it was going to be some pretentious emo crap or something, so I was pleasantly surprised by what I heard. This may make the indie kids roll their eyes at me, but I hear some prog rock in there, along the lines of old Genesis (like there's new Genesis? I mean Peter Gabriel era Genesis) along with some Supertramp and some of the more mellow Kansas feeling... Yeah, they're rolling their eyes at me...

Neil Young - Living With War
I like the rawness... It was recorded in a hurry, and it didn't give all the perfectionists time to mess it up. I wish Neil would release more albums in this manner, though I'm sure the record company wouldn't allow it. When Neil released this, public opinion was not entirely on his side and it was a brave move. Now that public opinion is coming around, it seems to have been forgotten. Neil is doomed to continually be ahead of his time...

Regina Spektor - Begin to Hope
Regina's one of those musicians I'd heard of, and heard people discuss but hadn't gotten into. I think I listened to, like, 10 seconds of Soviet Kitsch at Tower (RIP) one night when it was about to close, but it didn't take. But I was listening to The Adventure Club one night in my car, and Josh played "On the Radio" and I was hypnotized... Bought the CD the next day. Love "Samson," "On the Radio," "Better," and "20 Years of Snow." Plus, "That Time" has introduced a new catchphrase in our house, where I yell/sing "So cheap and JUIcy" whenever I discuss citrus fruits...

John Legend - Once Again
Quite honestly, it doesn't hit as hard as Get Lifted, but it's still good. It feels more old-school soul to me. Look for "Coming Home" to get way overused as backing music for TV footage of troops coming home.

If anything, 2006 has been the year of the podcast for me. I'm pretty certain I spend more time listening to podcasts about music and cooking than actually doing either...

my theory on the death of Gerald Ford...

2006-12-28T17:08:00.000-08:00

Following the death of Gerald Ford, I had a 12-hour drive from Alabama to Texas, which gave me plenty of time to listen to NPR and think and drink lots and lots of glorious caffeine to help keep me alert. And during this 12-hour stretch of driving and NPR listening and thinking and caffeine drinking, I came up with a theory on the death of Gerald Ford. I figured out why the man died. I know it, and I'm pretty convinced that I'm correct. And if you've made it this far through this post, I should probably share the results of my hard thinking with you. So here it is:

Gerald Ford did not want to live in a world without James Brown...

Pretty deep, eh? I've been thinking further on this, and while I'm not 100% certain I want to live in a world without James Brown, I'm going to soldier on... Thanks for the great music and dance moves and the helmet hair and the velvet pantsuits with the rhinestones, James. And thanks for the cape routine on stage. You rocked, and you rocked hard. My in-laws found that out when I played Live At the Apollo for them at 8:00 am the other morning...

I be a grajuate...

2006-12-17T18:15:00.000-08:00

Well, that part is over with... Long-ass weekend, but it feels good! Merry Christmas to me!

Still buying CDs?

2006-12-15T13:17:00.000-08:00

It's really funny how you start to hear certain things over and over... I've had two friends ask me in the past month if I was still buying CDs, or if I'm buying everything on iTunes now. And then I stumbled on this Business Week blog asking the same thing...

So I'll tell you fine Music Gluttons my answer, because I know you're all waiting breathlessly for it... If I'm buying something that I think my lovely wife or some of my friends might enjoy, I'll buy the CD. Also, if it comes with a bonus DVD or something that makes it fun (i.e. the trippy 3-d art/glasses pack on the last Tool CD), that goes into my collection. Or, if the thing is priced at $10-11 bucks, I'll buy it... If I don't like it, I can always sell it to the used CD place or on Amazon.com Marketplace.

But, if I'm just trying something out that I'm not real sure about, or if I only want one song, I'll buy it on iTunes.

While I'm on this, here's the thing that bothers me about iTunes... In the glory days of Napster, you could literally find anything... I mean anything! Several years ago, I used Napster to find a long out of print Jon Anderson (of Yes) solo CD. If the thing was out, I'd buy it... I had it on cassette back in the day, and my wife loved it. The tape either got eaten or melted, and that music was out of our lives for several years, until I found the mp3s on Napster. Now that I have the mp3s, would I still buy the CD if it was released in the States? You betcha... ...Because we love that album. And in fact, I still check Amazon for it every so often. The freakin' cassette is being sold for $750 by some greedy soul on Amazon Marketplace.

So here's my question... Why hasn't iTunes been able to take up the slack on this sort of thing? They occasionally have out of print jazz CDs from Verve on there, and that's great... I love jazz, but I don't know enough about it to get excited about these releases. Where's the promise of the great digital marketplace where anything and everything is available? Why could I get my favorite Jon Anderson album from Napster, but I can't get a legal copy from iTunes or the record company?

Short answer: yes, I'm still buying CDs, and I'm going to miss browsing the aisles... It's just not the same browsing Amazon, and Best Buy doesn't have much for people nearing middle age with eclectic music tastes... Have to save my money and head back to Amoeba in San Fran soon...

The bestest Christmas song evah...

2006-12-11T06:10:00.000-08:00

Since I've already distributed the 2nd Annual Steve's Christmas Music Mess to mi compadres, this one will have to wait until next year, but it will be on there...

The beautiful wonderful BoingBoing recently had a link to Santastic II: Clausome! and I downloaded the tracks, not really knowing what to expect. Like any mashup collection found on the web, there are some great ones and some so-so ones. But there's one track on there that has wormed itself into my brain and refuses to let go...

Some evil genius at Go Home Productions (the link from the Santastic page doesn't seem to work) got the inspired idea of pairing the Carpenters with some dubby reggae, and the results are amazing, fantastic, spine-tingling in how unexpectedly well they work together. They even dubbed out Karen's voice in the traditional dub fashion. I've been playing this pretty much non-stop since I got it, and I'll probably be sick of it by December 25... But the beauty of Christmas music is that I'll most likely be un-sick of it by the next holiday season, so it will probably be on my Christmas mix next year.

Carpenter's Christmas (Karen Meets Roots Radics Uptown)

For the rest of the mp3s, visit the Santastic page at http://www.djbc.net/santastic/. It really is a lot of fun, and I'm sorry I missed last year's edition...

If you need free Christmas music in more of a retro vein, check out http://falalalala.com/. And if that ain't enough, PCL Linkdump has not one, but two pages of links to Christmas music! Get jolly, people!

It's That Time Of Year...

2006-12-10T22:53:00.000-08:00

...to break out those best-of 2006 lists...Let's see what everyone's got.

Pavement - Wowee Zowee: Sordid Sentinels Edition

2006-12-08T10:17:00.000-08:00

I'm going to start this out with full disclosure, Pavement is my favorite band not named the Beatles and are the greatest indie band of the alternative explosion.

There, that feels better.

So, in reviewing this large-and-in-charge special edition of Pavement's most confusing album, I must lay my biases out on the table.

Wowee Zowee is a weird album, and it's no place for a curious young Pavement fan to be alone late at night. It's full of really stupid, ahem, songs that probably had no place being put on a record.

But let's put some context on this. It was 1996 when Wowee hit shelves, and the band was fresh off their mixed-results-bid-for-stardom record Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain. The next step, as Malkmus mentions in the documentary Slow Century was to make a commercial, sell-out record.

So they made Wowee instead. It's got 18 tracks, full of oddball one-offs (Think Brinx Job), as well as a few really great Pavement tracks (Think We Dance).

A lot of record-reviewing folk refer to this as indie rock's White Album and in some ways, that is pretty accurate: Both are chock full of semi-succesful expiriments mixed in with moments of pure brilliance.

But really, I have to go to another lazy Pavement-ization to really get to the core of what makes Wowee so great. Pavement is the ultimate suburban band. Tell Rivers Cuomo and Weezer to go take a meditation break, because there isn't any band that beats Pavement on driving down Shady Lane on a blissed out Saturday afternoon. Pavement is the Pete & Pete of indie rock (Which is to also say, awesome).

It's not that Malkmus and compatriot Scott Kannberg are studied NY hipsters trying to replicate a sound either, these are flat-out suburban dudes, decked out in collared shirts and t-shirts, back from nice universities

So, back to Zowee (I burned out on calling it Wowee). If Pavement is the ultimate suburban band, this is the ultimate suburban stoner record. Most tracks have that slow burn feel of a hazy day, and well, Malkmus has pretty much said they were smoking a lot of grass during the making of the record.

So, while tracks like the melancholy sweetness of We Dance and the CR, CR toss-off Kennel District hold up pretty well, others don't. But then again, they don't have to. Put it on in the background while you're washing your car. Watch the sun sink down. Like Malkmus said, "No worry, we're in no hurry."

The extras here are lovingly preserved. There's the Schoolhouse Rock classic No More Kings and a handful of other really swell stuff that sounds pretty much like Pavement goofing off in the studio, which is to say, it sounds like Pavement.

Slanted & Enchanted's re-release was far better, though. Having Watery Domestic on disc two is a pretty big draw, and Zowee doesn't have such a big gun, but, for $14.99, it's a worthwhile purchase.

I also think Malkmus is getting a little tired of writing liner notes, since his write-up in this book is pretty disjointed, with insights like, "Recorded in Memphis." Oh. Kannberg doesn't even contribute a write-up.

But, I digress. I could fill up a blog on Pavement musings. The point here is, if you don't already own this album - the special edition is a good place to start. If you've never heard of Pavement, wait for the Brighten The Corners special edition.

Plump DJs "Mad Cow" review

2006-12-07T13:14:00.000-08:00

(Here's a single review I did for the Skiff.)

Armed to the teeth with sounds thicker than their name, the Plump DJs have consistently dominated the break-beat music scene since arriving in 2000.

From humble roots of screaming 303 synthesizer lines and sampled 1970s drum breaks, the London-based DJs (Lee Rous and Andy Gardner) increasingly have added layers to their sound: guest vocalists, changing tempos and, albeit rarely, a more mellow sound.

"Mad Cow," their latest single, however, is anything but mellow or complex. And it works.

With their signature punchy drums, squeaks, bleeps and a pitch-bending bassline, the DJs have scaled back from recent material and created something simple yet addictive when played extremely loud.

As can be expected of any Plump track intended for the dancefloor, the traditional build-it-up and break-it-down bridge makes an appearance in the form of a synth that sounds darn close to a cow, lending the track its name.

The only disappointments with the single are the timing and format of its release.

The Plump DJs have been playing "Mad Cow" since the early summer season of 2005, and after originally slating it for a December 2005 release, they scrapped it in favor of including the track on their sophomore studio album due out next summer.

After delaying its release for so long, however, the cow has finally been let out of the barn. But because the DJs have been playing it for so long, fans have already heard the single a number of times and likely aren't scrambling to order their copy.

Vinyl-enthusiasts Rous and Gardner have always been more than willing to stamp out enough records for everyone. But this time around, they've decided to initially forgo wax altogether for an mp3-only release. This could be their way of embracing the oft-described future of music, but it comes off as laziness and frugality.

The decision of how and why to release it aside, "Mad Cow" is a welcome filler for Plump fans sitting in limbo between their last single, released one year ago, and the next Plump DJs studio album to come.

4 OUT OF 5 STARS

Imogen Heap, November 24, Dallas

2006-11-27T06:31:00.000-08:00

I'm not going to spend a lot of time on this one, except to say that it was rather disappointing...

Lots of technical problems and poor mixing just sapped the energy right out of it for me... From the opening acts and into Imogen's set, it seemed like the performers were all having to take care of technical problems. The sound mixing wasn't great either -- at the beginning, the instrumentation was really low, and her vocals were really loud. Then it flip-flopped, and the instrumentation seemed to take over, especially the bass.

Imogen: I really like you a lot, but please hire professionals. Don't try to do a tour on the cheap...

To Imogen's road crew: When someone is on the stage having problems, you go out there and help them get it sorted out! Don't make the performer crawl all over the stage unplugging and replugging cables... One, it's not dignified. Two, it's keeping them from entertaining the audience. Three, it's your friggin' job! If you're out there taking care of the problem, at least the performer can tell a story or sing something A Cappella.

Highlight of the evening: Levi Weaver doing a one-man cover of Radiohead's "Idioteque" using just an acoustic guitar and a loop pedal. Astonishing, and very nice...

Overall, a very disappointing evening... I was very much looking forward to seeing Imogen, but... Should've gone to the John Legend show at Gypsy...

Hold Steady - Boys & Girls In America

2006-11-04T20:21:00.000-08:00

The Hold Steady might be copping pretty heavy from Bruce Springsteen on their Boys and Girls In America, but what's wrong with sounding a little like the Boss? Sure, the riffs are big and the lyrics are all about drifters and teenagers, but frontman Craig Finn's penchant for wordplay and humorous storytelling give the disc its own original voice. Tracks like the raucous opener Stuck Between Stations and the new single, Chips Ahoy weave quirky narrative into good ol' fashioned rock 'n' roll, while tracks like Citrus show a more restrained storytelling. If Bruce fronted Thin Lizzy, it might sound something like this.

Postscript - This is a review that ended up not running in the Star-Telegram. I know it's been awhile since I've posted, as the newspaper world has owned me for the last few weeks, but expect some more bad-ass posts on the way. Musicgluttons - unite! (But if we're going to do that, we better make sure we all have seats in the same place)

A sad week in the music world...

2006-10-21T07:07:00.000-07:00

CBGB is gone. And I'm sad... I always wanted to go there to see a show and experience the place... Yeah, the owner says they're re-opening in Vegas, but it's not the same...

And then to top it off, Tower Records in Dallas is closing. Of course, this article is from two weeks ago, but that just shows how I've been in my own little thesis world... I only found out this week when I was working on my thesis and thought, "Fuck this, I'm going to buy CDs at Tower." So I hopped in the Saturn and headed towards Dallas. So I was pretty bummed about the closing, but the upside was that everything was on sale...

And for anyone who is thinking, "Well Steve, you've got two Virgin Megastores in DFW." Sorry, but those are too sanitary and none of the staff knows the first thing about music. I could go in to Tower Records and have a decent conversation about which Oscar Peterson CD was his best, or "I like this band and this band, would I like this band?" Virgin is more about selling DVDs and video games, and I've found their music selection sorely lacking in places.

Yeah, I like CD World and Good Records alright, but when I need some jazz or classical, I've got nothing but Amazon really. Border's has devastated their music section so much it is unrecognizable and Best Buy stocks the cheap-ass "Music for a romantic dinner" CDs. So my impulse purchases of jazz and classical are pretty much gone unless I go to another city or wait for the damned thing to come from Amazon or get locked into some DRM from Apple.

Yeah, I'm kinda cranky...

...But I'm also somewhat relieved, because I've finally turned my thesis in to my committee! That's a major load off my mind. Just gotta get it through there, and I'll get to wear purple in December...

So sad week musically, but a good week thesis-wise...

Perhaps it's "rolling away again in Margaritaville.."

2006-10-06T09:41:00.000-07:00

First, I don't know if anyone saw the World of Warcraft episode of South Park a few nights ago, but it was great.

I don't know if anyone caught this, but apparently, famed-frat slacker Jimmy Buffett got busted in Europe with about 100 tabs of ecstasy. Apparently he was on his way to a resort in St. Tropez.

Ecstasy? Really? I always saw Buffett as more of a beer-and-stoner kind of guy. But seriously, what's with the cracking down on all the old farts? First Ronald Isley gets cracked on his taxes, Nelson goes down on grass and now Buffett with X. I guess we're really cleaning up the streets/spaces behind tour busses?

I saw Jimmy Buffett at Texas Stadium with George Strait and Alan Jackson. Needless to say, it wasn't my usual fare. But actually, he played a very entertaining show, and I felt like I got my over-priced ticket's worth.

Buh-Bye Oasis...

2006-10-03T07:18:00.000-07:00

Robert Philpot at the Star-Telegram reports that the Oasis has switched formats, and is now "Movin 107.5" featuring r&b hits.

Fans of smooth-jazz radio station KOAI/107.5 FM "The Oasis" must've felt as if they had a bomb dropped on them Monday -- especially if they turned on the radio at 6 p.m. and, instead of finding relaxing light jazz to get them through traffic, got hit with the Gap Band's You Dropped a Bomb on Me.

There are many doctor and dentist offices scrambling to find a new radio station in the metroplex this morning, and I ain't sad about that one bit. I actively despised the Oasis, and aside from the insipid music, here was another reason why. I was having a conversation with an acquaintance once, and we were discussing music. My wife and I had recently attended a jazz show at Caravan of Dreams (RIP), and I was telling him about it. He replied, "Oh yeah, I like jazz! I listen to the Oasis!"

So to all the D/FW folks who thought they were listening to jazz when they tuned to the Oasis, here's a secret: You were actually listening to your parent's easy listening bullcrap...

And a hearty thank you to whoever pulled the plug on the Oasis...

Iron Composer!

2006-09-21T09:03:00.000-07:00

Obviously, I like music (Duh...).

I also like Iron Chef (the original Japanese one... Iron Chef America -- not so much, though I'll watch it if there's nothing else on...).

Put them together, and you have Iron Composer:

Take two musicians from the Seattle music scene. Put them onstage at the famed Crocodile Cafe and give each unsuspecting songster one instrument, a pen and paper, and extremely limited access to a thoroughly uncooperative house band. Toss in a heckling, rambunctious audience. Demand the musicians produce and perform an original song within forty-five minutes or else. Mix thoroughly and start the clock. At regularly spaced intervals, bring in the scheming Chairman Min to unleash a series of “secret ingredient” mandatory song elements supplied by an unidentified audience member. Add a shot of alcohol every nine minutes. Sprinkle with some perverse, potty-mouthed cheerleaders, a “peace” officer charged with checking IDs and immigration papers, and a “Turmoil Ark of Doom,” and you’ve got a recipe for Iron Composer, the latest dish in musical performance art lunacy to hit the Pacific Northwest.

Uh, yeah... I would really like to see this... Somebody in DFW please do this!

Massive Attack 09/17/06

2006-09-18T05:39:00.000-07:00

As a Texas-based fan of electronic music in the early to mid 90s, I quickly got used to disappointing tour schedules. My favorite musicians of the time, many British, seemed to think that touring the U.S. in the shape of a capital "N" would hit the significant locations. They would start in New York, go down the east coast a little bit, then shift up to Chicago or Detroit, and then head for either San Francisco or Los Angeles, leaving out our fair metroplex of Dallas/Fort Worth, along with many other notable cities. (I also believe this touring strategy was a major part of the reason why the electronica push of the mid-90s never gained traction -- they were performing to the already electronicized instead of creating new markets, but that's another post.) So that type of touring strategy plays a big part in explaining why this tour was the first time Massive Attack has played Texas, even though they've been well-regarded in the U.S. since at least 1991. The second part of the seeming snub of Texas might be that Massive Attack just doesn't tour that much -- with the exception of Coachella earlier this year, Massive Attack had not played the U.S. in 8 years.

So yeah, you might say I was a tad over-excited about Massive Attack playing Big D. I became a fan not long after Blue Lines came out in 1991, and Protection and Mezzanine are both in my pantheon of greatness (though they don't quite make my ongoing Top 15 list). Here's what I like about Massive Attack: variety. Listening to a Massive Attack album is like listening to a really cool radio show -- there's an overall vibe to it, but the musicians shift for many of the songs. One song will feature some low-key rap, while the next song will feature Elizabeth Fraser (of the Cocteau Twins) or Sinead O'Connor, and then it will shift to some groove-laden reggae-esque tune with Horace Andy on vocals.

When I bought my tickets, that was one of the big questions in my mind: "Which Massive Attack will be there?" Will the evening just be two guys exchanging rap verses, or will they take a guest vocalist on tour with them? Because I'm a sucker for the female guest vocals on the Massive Attack albums... Elizabeth Fraser, Tracey Thorn, Sinead O'Connor, Sara Jay -- those are the voices that really make things shine for me. But heck, they've not been to the States in 8 years and they've never been to Texas, so I plunked down the plastic no matter which Massive Attack was coming to visit.

I started surfing the web last week as Massive Attack was supposed to start the U.S. portion of their tour, mainly because I wanted to see who was coming with them. (Yeah, I'm like the kid snooping around the Christmas presents.) But I was horrified to see that Massive Attack was having difficulty obtaining United States visas! They ended up cancelling shows in Montreal, Detroit, and Chicago, but they got things straightened out in time for ACLFest, and that meant they would be in Dallas before long... Never did find out who was touring with them, so I was pleasantly surprised last night. Consider this a spoiler alert -- If you don't want to know who will be there, stop reading now.

I'm so anal, it's not even funny... If we're going to a movie or concert, I have to get there early. Why? I'm not sure. But if I walk into a movie or concert late, I'm off-kilter for the whole thing. So we got there a little before 7:00, and the ticket had a start time of 7:30. I browsed the t-shirts, which were so-so, and then we went in. Promptly at 7:30, a DJ began mixing a bit at the front of the stage. He had some decent tunes, but the transitions were a little raw. He was up there until 8:30. Massive Attack came on stage at 9:00 in a very nonchalant manner.

The band had two drummers, and a bass, guitar, and keyboard player, and the bass was booming. It was that chest thumping bass that makes you feel like the Alien baby could come bursting out soon. One guy stood at the front of the stage and turned in a rap, but the vocals were too low in the mix to make out much. Turns out that Daddy G's wife just had a baby, so it was on the shoulders of 3D. He did very well, and put in an energetic set. I didn't recognize the song they opened with, and the audience didn't seem to, either. Most stayed in their seats. But then the energy level rose as the band went into "Risingson" from Mezzanine.

The stage lighting reminded me of the LED-looking deal that Nine Inch Nails was using last fall. It looks pretty simple at first, but they can do some pretty complex patterns that still look rather retro and pixelated. In addition, they had some scrolling text signs that were used occasionally to display factoids.

For the third song, 3D introduced "Elizabeth" and I do believe my wife thought I had gone insane. I stood and yelled and hooted while many in the audience were probably wondering what was wrong with me. You see, it was Elizabeth Fraser of Cocteau Twins fame, and I LOVE her voice. I've been kicking myself for not seeing the Cocteau Twins when they came through Dallas around '93, so it was wonderful to see her. Elizabeth and the band performed "Black Milk," another Mezzanine track, and it was gorgeous! Yes, I was officially in heaven at that point. Elizabeth left the stage, and 3D introduced Horace Andy, who came out and performed "Man Next Door."

And that's how it went from there. There would be one song that was just Massive Attack and 3D, then Elizabeth would come out, then Horace would come out. Yeah, they switched it up a bit, but it was kind of like watching the Massive Attack Variety Hour, and it felt a lot like the variety of their albums, so that was nice...

The rest of the highlights for me were, well, pretty much any time Elizabeth was on stage. She's amazing, and the absolute pinnacle of the night was "Teardrop." But the band also tore into an sinister version of "Inertia Creeps" where the bass player was throwing in this nasty bass line that kicked it into the next dimension. The encore included "Unifinished Sympathy" featuring Deborah Miller. She ripped it...

One person at ACL Fest, while admittedly unfamiliar with Massive Attack, described it as "something someone would listen to before toking up and masturbating to that anime comic porn," but I ask you, is that so bad? There would be a lot more world peace and a lot fewer problems if more people were doing that... I don't know how they did in the heat at ACL Fest, but Massive Attack were stunning at Nokia. I'm glad they finally visited Texas, and I hope they come back soon...

Bring on the new revolution already!

2006-09-13T08:23:00.000-07:00

Alrighty gang, I turned 39 recently, an age I used to think of as ancient, but now I think, "That's not so old..." So you can view this as "old-crotchety, up on his soap box again" if you want, but I think there are some nuggets here... Oh, and just so ya know, this starts off feeling ranty, but gets a bit of substance there at the end, so it's like a Snickers bar of a post, with a luscious outside and crunchy inside, or something... Bon appetit!

It seems like every quarter, the record industry is moaning about declining sales and piracy (and sorry RIAA, but I think you've pissed off quite a few of your customers with this "sue everything in sight" tactic, including myself). In almost every story I read in the papers or magazines, some industry exec talks about how the release schedule so far has been a little soft, and the big releases are coming later this year.

Maybe I'm getting old and set in my ways, but quite frankly I don't see a lot of music to get excited about right now. There doesn't seem to be anything new or revolutionary on the scene, in any genre. Country sales are outpacing rock, and rap is slowing quite a bit. Country is basically safe pop music sung with southern accents, and the "true" country music is long gone, leaving us with this urban cowboy, all-hat-no-cattle pap that settles for throwing out tired and trite patriotic and family cliches. Rock music is just recycling the same old guitar licks and vocal tricks. Every band is a variation of some band. "Yeah, man, they're Coldplay meets U2 meets Radiohead." And rap has sold out to materialism -- whoever has the most hos, bling, expensive champagne (because Cristal is sooo yesterday), and biggest rims on their pimped-out Escalade wins. We don't need to rap about what's happening in the projects or on the streets because people don't want to hear about problems -- they want to hear about how rich you are... It's all one big pissing match now...

Do I sound like a cranky old bastard? Good. I think pop music in general is in a major rut, and I think that's why sales are suffering. And yes, I do think it's been in a rut for the past several years. Nothing new under the sun right now... ...which is why I'm eagerly waiting on the next big bang of music. It's coming... Let me explain why.

I've been trying to wrap up my damned thesis (I'm like the 5th year senior of the grad student world), and I've come across some interesting stuff...

My favorite book in my research has been Rock Eras by Jim Curtis, and I plan to spend time re-reading it more in-depth later on, because there's a lot of good stuff in there... Rock Eras was published in 1987, so it doesn't cover the later stuff, but it has some interesting ideas.

Curtis writes that each rock era seemed to be fostered by some political scandal/mistrust/horror, where the people's trust in their government has been horribly misplaced. The rock era kicks off not long after, and is followed by five years of intense innovation. After the five-year innovation period, there's a significant death, followed by five years of less-inspired music that just follows the playbook (Curtis calls it assimilation). Curtis starts the first rock era in 1954, following the McCarthy HUAC hearings, when we've got Elvis, Buddy Holly, Little Richard, and Jerry Lee Lewis among others, and these guys tore it up. Then in 1959, of course, we've got Buddy Holly's death, combined with Elvis getting tamed by the U.S. Army, Little Richard turning to the ministry, and Jerry Lee Lewis marrying his 13-year-old cousin (uh, ick!), causing a nice little scandal on his British tour. And then we spend 5 years waiting for the next boom, with the teen idols, Fabian, Bobby Rydell, and Annette Funnicello. That's not to say that 59-64 didn't have some redeeming qualities -- that's when Motown starting getting its groove on, and Phil Spector was doing some interesting production work, but the popular impact wasn't nearly so broad...

Then, Kennedy's assassination happens, the Beatles hit the U.S., and we're off and running on the next boom. Highway 61 Revisited, Rubber Soul, Revolver, Pet Sounds, Sgt. Pepper, boom!
Dylan, the Stones, the Who, Hendrix, the Byrds. Then death: Hendrix, Joplin, Morrison, Altamont, Beatles break up.

Curtis has a rock era for 74-84 too, and I think that these rock eras keep happening later on, but that we see less of a bang each time. I think the overall impacts are getting smaller. Yeah, I think there was a grunge era, with the innovative period capping with Cobain's death. I don't know enough about it to really comment, but there may have been a certain type of rap era, ending with the deaths of Biggie and Tupac.

But here's what I know for certain: we've got the political crap going down -- Iraq, Israel, Katrina and some pretty shady stuff happening. We're building to something here... Not sure what it's going to be, but we're building to some defining political moment. Here's the other thing, another book I read, (but I'm blanking on the name right now, sorry) noted that declines in record sales always seemed to happen immediately before the booms. We saw record sales slow right before the 1954 and 1964 booms, and we're seeing it now. Times are ripe!

Maybe with such a diversified field of micro-audiences, a major boom isn't possible any longer... The internet, ipods, cell phones and other delivery systems allow everyone to stick their head into these little musical subsystems without having to be aware of the others. Maybe this decentralization of delivery has made a new boom impossible, and we'll all just be stuck listening to whatever genre the musical anthropologists tell is the current cool one -- "I'm listening to Micro-Grime-Step -- it's Malaysian hip-hop performed by homeless kids in London" -- and we'll keep the next boom from happening? I don't know... Perhaps I'm not listening to the right stuff right now, but I'm really ready for the next musical revolution...

Okay...

2006-09-11T20:35:00.000-07:00

So, I'm about to blow musicgluttons.com's indie-cred right out of the water.

I love the Counting Crows.

But, let's be fair, I have full Pavement and Elliott Smith discographies, but they sit on my shelf right next to the Crows. All the supressed "I shouldn't but I do" love came pouring back when I was tapped to review the band at Smirnoff Music Centre this Saturday.

My love isn't completely unwarranted, however, as the band has a reputation for putting on a kick-ass show. You can have your Muse, Adam Duritz and his schlubby band of San Fransico bottom-feeders just have this unexplainable charisma that just shines in concert that i can't help but enjoy.

In Goodnight Elisabeth, Duritz said, "We couldn't all be cowboys, some of us are clowns," and that is probably the only way that I can really describe their magnetism. Duritz has the appeal of a sad, drunk clown, and for some reason, when he plays live, you believe him. You also get the feeling that he crashed on someone else's couch until about ten minutes before the show. And he borrowed twenty bucks.

Of course, in my detached synopsis, I'm probably selling the band a little short. Duritz actually writes some emotionally compelling lyrics, some of my favorite being in Rain King

Oh, it seems night endlessly begins and ends
After all the dreaming I just wanna come back home again...

So do I!

But it's in concert where the band truly shines. They weave in and out of other songs, covers, new lines, spoken-word recitations of dialogued lyrics. Duritz walks across the monitors like he's walking, you guessed it, on a wire, in a circus.

And this guy looks like a record-store clerk. Full, gray beard, dreadlocks, read-end-hangin'-out-of-his-drawers, and he's still charismatic.

Since the guys won't be touring for awhile, I recommend Live Across A Wire, a two-disc collection of live tracks that really captures the band at their live peak.

As I right this, I can't explain why I love these guys. Sometimes, they're self-important, mopey, whatever, I love 'em.

Orbcast

2006-08-22T18:18:00.000-07:00

Nicely done podcast by the Orb on their website, including a fun, dubby version of Freebird (though I seriously doubt any Skynyrd members were involved or harmed in the making of it...).
It's a freebie, and it's available at http://www.theorb.com/

The tracklisting for the podcast is:

1. Intro Dark Star
2. The Orb "Star 6+7,8,9"
3. The Last Poets "The White Man's Got A God Complex"
4. KLF "3AM Eternal" (Remix)
5. Massive Attack "Hymn Of The Big Wheel"
6. Primal Scream "Higher Than The Sun"
7. Erasure "Ship Of Fools" (Orb Remix)
8. The Orb "Spaced" (1989 - unreleased)
9. The Orb "Little Fluffy Clouds" (Coldcut Remix)
10. The Orb "Freebird"
11. Transit Kings "The Last Lighthouse Keeper"
12. Embrace "World At Our Feet Remix"

Also, there's a new Transit Kings full-length album available from Malicious Damage. Haven't heard it yet, but the EP was greatness...

Dethklok Metalocalypse!

2006-08-07T15:08:00.000-07:00

Growl these lyrics in your best death-metal voice:

Do you folks like coffee?
Real Coffee from the hills of Columbia
The Duncan Hills will wake you
from a thousand deaths
A cup of blackened blood
You're dying for a cup

I'm a sucker for the Adult Swim cartoons, and Dethklok Metalocalypse kicks ass. Dethklok has summoned their fans to a concert in Batsfjord, Norway to hear one song -- a jingle for Duncan Hills coffee. James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett provide voices for the show, and the music is a lot of fun. Can't wait to see more...

And it's a bonus that the singer, Nathan Explosion, looks a lot like Glenn Danzig, and that Murderface looks like one of the guys in Black Sabbath (sorry, I'm not very good at playing "Name that Sabbath member," but the one I'm thinking of is second from the left in the photo).

Arthur Lee

2006-08-05T07:22:00.000-07:00

Hate to have two death things in a row, but Arthur Lee of Love passed away at 61.

I've been doing some research for a paper I'm writing, and in the course of that, I read Follow the Music by Jac Holzman and Gavan Daws, about Elektra Records. I really enjoyed the section on Elektra signing Arthur Lee and Love to the label:

Herb Cohen: They're [Love] all living in one hotel room, starving, and Arthur says, "I want a $5,000 advance to sign the contract -- cash." Jac says, "OK, meet me at the bank." Jac cashes a check. Arthur says to the band, "Go back to the hotel. I have to pick up something." And about four or five hours later Arthur shows up with a gold Mercedes 300 gull-wing that he paid $4,500 for. "Well," he says, "we need some transportation for the band, so we can get around to the gigs." [...]
Arthur had also bought a harmonica. He gives each of the guys a hundred bucks, and there goes the five thousand.

R.I.P. Syd

2006-08-02T20:01:00.000-07:00

I was handling the death of Syd Barrett pretty well until I read his tribute in the August 10 issue of Rolling Stone. That really depressed me. And yeah, I know this isn't especially timely, but it just reached a boiling point in my head, and I needed to say something.

There was so much music he could have/should have made, but the ingestion of LSD and other drugs took precedence. Instead of making music, he just ended up living the life of a hermit.

I can understand... There are times when life is pretty damned scary and intimidating, and you just want to pull the covers over your head and hide. Brian Wilson almost fell into the same trap, but thankfully, his loved ones, and prehaps even Dr. Landy, helped him get out of it. Syd just seemed to bask in his isolation.

Syd was always a fascinating figure to me, and Pink Floyd was one of my major bands during high school (more on that in the never-ending Steve's Favorite series, coming soon to a blog near you). One of the tapes that my friends and I passed around for Walkman consumption was Relics (the current CD version has a drastically different cover: I miss the old one...), a collection of early Floyd tunes. My two favorites on the collection were both Barrett tunes -- "Arnold Layne" about a guy who steals women's underwear off the washlines and then models it in the mirror, and "Bike," featuring some of the best nonsensical lyrics ever. In addition, the vocals and most of the instrumentation on "Bike" are panned hard right on the stereo mix, with echoes and piano happening hard left. The result is a lopsided feeling on headphones, until it reaches the "clockwork" section at the end -- a wonderful cacophony of clock sounds and other mechanical and freaky noises balanced equally across both speakers. It may be far-fetched, but I hear Syd setting the stage for some of the later sound collage of Ummagumma and the incorporation of everyday sounds into Dark Side of the Moon.

I know it sounds cheesy and all, but I do hope Syd died a happy man. I'm sad to see him go, and the selfish side of me hopes he's been working on some masterpiece all these years that's stashed under the floorboards of his house. But I'm not optimistic... Bye Syd.

The Journey of the Fun Machine

2006-08-02T07:38:00.000-07:00

When it was announced in January 2004 that Nick Oliveri had been fired from Queens of the Stone Age by fellow band mate Josh Homme, I felt queasy. Oliveri and Homme, the dynamic duo behind the band, had restored my faith in loud, mean rock and roll. Together they showed me that a metal band could be about more than just worshiping Satan and screaming. Oliveri, the sour to Homme’s sweet, provided the faster “fuck it all” punk attitude while Homme brought a more laidback sound, often referred to as “stoner rock” by music critics desperate for a label. Make no mistake, Homme has always been the brains of the operation, but without Oliveri, I feared Queens would lose its angry edge and find itself limited to Homme’s romantic (if you could call it that) style.

Only two months later, Homme said work had begun on the fourth Queens album, this time without Oliveri. In an interview with Pitchfork Media, Homme described the album as a return to the earliest Queens’ sound: a sort of slow metal you could dance to. While Homme’s talent for constructing intoxicating melodies cannot be denied, his apparent inability to write lyrics that don’t involve drugs, sex, or a combination of the two becomes repetitive all too quickly. It’s this weakness that made Oliveri seem more valuable to the band.

In the months prior to its release, Homme spoke highly of his forthcoming work. In another interview with Pitchfork Media, he mentioned one specific track that peaked my interest: an amalgam of fuzz guitars, screams and a Moog synthesizer titled “The Fun Machine Took a Shit and Died.”

"It's about 15 minutes long, but it's about 15 different parts,” said Homme. “It sits for a minute or something, and then it revisits things in different tempos. We re-recorded through my cassette player. It's a badass cassette player. It's the truth, actually. That's no lie."

I’ve always been a sucker for long songs, especially those with recurring themes. I think of them as short stories: an introduction of the players, a conflict, climax and resolution. And though Queens of the Stone Age have never been stranger to the long song nor the idea of recurring themes, the idea of Homme alone taking a swing at a multifaceted opera of sound was intriguing.

“Lullabies to Paralyze” was released in March 2005. The album is bittersweet. I was relieved that the album was not entirely “stoner rock”, however I found it lacked the bipolar QOTSA sound that made their two previous albums (“Rated R”, “Songs for the Deaf”) so good.

I was also surprised to find one song oddly missing from the track list. In the liner notes to “Lullabies”, after the final song credit, Homme writes the following:

The Fun Machine took a shit and died
Was lost or misplaced. (There is a reward for the return of said tapes)

Bummer.

While Queens of the Stone Age were making the rounds in Europe during the last half of summer 2005, Homme reportedly began hacking up blood before finally collapsing of exhaustion on stage at a Hamburg concert. Three shows were subsequently cancelled and Homme took a leave of absence from touring to recover.

To make up for having cancelled on his fans, Homme entered the studio to re-record “Fun Machine” for those who never got to see QOTSA perform due to his medical maladies.

"..we re-recorded parts of 'The Fun Machine' and we're putting it on a 45 and giving it to all the kids we canceled on in Europe. So it's coming out in little pieces,” Homme said.

So many months after Homme first mentioned it in the press, a demo of “Fun Machine” was finally given a limited release of less than 1000 on August 22, 2005.

The song begins slowly with a heavily filtered organ whose melody sounds like it was lifted from a child’s carnival ride. The carefree sound is quickly ended by the introduction of a heavily distorted guitar, rhythmic drum shots and the eeriest guitar plucks I’ve ever heard. With Homme singing in a strained whisper, the guitars and drums build increasingly before breaking into an all-out roar and coming full circle around the four-minute mark.

The lyrics are as violent as Homme has ever written, almost a rejection of his previous material. While Homme’s lyrics have never been lovey-dovey, they’ve at least been somewhat tongue-in-cheek-romantic and they’ve almost always had something to do with sex or girls. With “Fun Machine”, Homme restricts himself exclusively to male versus male braggadocio. Before playing the song live, Homme has said he wrote the song about his “former friends.”

“Got knives, have you seen ‘em?
In your back’s where we keep ‘em,
And you’re never gonna reach ‘em,
Now that sounds fair.”

The cassette player used to record “Fun Machine” fits the mood of the song perfectly, picking up every sound while providing enough distortion to give the entire piece an unrehearsed, garage band feel. The joy of listening to the song comes not with what’s immediately audible, but what is in the background. Every listen brings a new sound you didn’t hear before. Who the hell is screaming? Was that a cowbell? Did I just hear a dog bark?

While not quite the 15-minute odyssey Homme had originally envisioned, the re-recorded “Fun Machine” is still a five and a half minute orgy of distorted drum cacophony, eerie guitar plucks, grunts, “whats” and screams all laid over a simple three-time organ melody. But the beauty of “Fun Machine” is how well it stands alone from the rest of QOTSA's material; the sounds, the lyrics, even the history of the song's development. It's quite a departure from the polished and precise sound I've been used to.

“Fun Machine” proves to me that Homme can write a damn good metal song à la Oliveri and he can do it all without mentioning his two favorite pastimes: sex and substance abuse.

Back in all my farmer-tanned glory...

2006-07-31T06:04:00.000-07:00

Just got back from Puerto Vallarta, and I understand a few things now... The lane markers on streets are merely suggestions for a route of travel, so if there's enough room to maneuver your car between the bus on your right and the car on the left, ride that line and accelerate like hell, because whoever gets to the intersection first has the right of way. Also, when you're stopped at an intersection and there's a bunch of traffic blocking your path, just keep creeping out until the other cars are clearing your bumper by inches. Sooner or later someone will lose their nerve and let you through...

Ate a metric ton of fantastic Mexican food, walked a bunch, swam some, did some hiking down the El Naugalito river, and all with only slight digestive discomfort... Good times, good times...

I didn't listen to my ipod much while I was down there. When I travel, I like to try to experience the culture, and for me, part of that is listening to whatever music is around.

Now someone may call me closed-minded, but I don't get Tejano music. I've listened to it at length several times since I moved out here 16 years ago, and I find it mildly irritating. If I'm in a restaurant where it's playing, I can handle that. But to just play it on my car radio? It feels jittery and polka-like to me, and I ain't a polka fan.

But something weird happened in Mexico... At night in the hotel room, I'd be changing the channel on the TV, and I'd stop on Bandamax or some other Mexican music channel, and it would start to click. It wasn't like those were my only music options -- the hotel had Mtv and VH1 (though VH1 was spending a lot of time showing Miami Vice en espanol -- that was sort of entertaining in its own way, seeing Don Johnson with someone else's voice coming out of his mouth), but I ended up watching Bandamax for a while most every night, and it was starting to make sense to me.

I had a theory while I was down there, that perhaps the music actually produced in Mexico had a slower tempo to match the general attitudes there, and that perhaps Tejano was sped up a bit to match that (supposed) faster-pace of urban U.S. life. But once I got back, I put on a Tejano station, and that doesn't seem to be the case. It may just be that music in Mexico fits the environment so well that they mesh together somehow, and that Tejano in the U.S. (at least to me) feels forced. Who knows? Any opinions out there?

Just so you know, the Mexican pop stations were pretty interesting too. Mix of Spanish and English-language songs, and very fun and infectious. Heard the Black Eyed Peas a lot, along with some occasional Gnarls Barkley and Gorillaz.

So yeah, had a great time, but by the end, I was ready to be back... So much that we ate hamburgers at the Hard Rock Cafe for lunch on our last full day...

Best Music Of 2006...So Far

2006-07-25T18:34:00.000-07:00

I love a good list. Music lists are my favorite because they help me find music I may have forgotten about or missed out the first time around. Hopefully, my list does that for you.

I just realized I sound like a six-year-old writing about what I did during the summer in the paragraph above.

As of press time, 2006 has been at best a so-so year for new releases, especially after 2005, which saw wonderful new releases by Spoon, Bloc Party, Wolf Parade, etc...

Of course, most of those didn't even really hit shelves until the summer or second half of the year. I am also discounting CD's I missed or haven't really sunk in for me yet.

Enough prefacing, here's the list:

5. Sunset Rubdown - Shut Up I Am Dreaming

Full of surprising melodies and giant, anthemic hooks, Wolf Parade's splendid little record Apologies To The Queen Mary made my top 5 for 2005. So it's no surprise, that one of the brains behind that operation (Spencer Krug) has made my list once again. With a voice that sounds a bit like David Bowie after a stay at the state mental facility, Krug has a way like no other with waltz melodies, hooks and lyrics that invoke the feeling of a hero's last stand. Particularly good are the title track and Us Ones In Between. However there's nothing here that bests anything on Apologies, so if you don't have that yet, that's a much better place to start.

4. Camera Obscura - Let's Get Out Of This Country

Camera Obscura's close ties with my #3 pick are quite evident on Country, as the only reference point worth noting for Camera Obscura is Belle & Sebastian.

More than just the standard Scottish twee record, Country bursts out of the speakers with a bright, sunshine-y playfulness before turning somewhat world-weary on the final track, Razzle Dazzle Rose. Throughout the disc, Country stays true to Camera Obscura's trademark sound while still managing to branch out ever so slightly. It feels a lot like driving back to your hometown early in the morning: A little groggy, a little bittersweet, but ultimately hopeful.

3. Belle & Sebastian - The Life Pursuit

I don't think a I realized how much of a rut Stuart Murdoch and the gang were in until I heard The Life Pursuit. It's hard not to draw parallels between Let's Get Out Of This Country and Pursuit: Both were released by revered twee-as-fuck bands on the verge of singing themselves to sleep, and both assert themselves with the force of an insomniac's second wind. Pursuit succeeds in providing a new direction for Belle & Sebastian without alienating old fans or heading into wierd-for-wierd's sake territory.

2. Islands - Return To The Sea

Okay, so I just realized that I saw both my number 1 and 2 picks live this year, which might have biased my decision, but dammit, both shows were great!

Return To The Sea delivers on the promise of Nick Diamonds and J'aime Tambeur's previous band The Unicorns debut Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone?. If you're catching an immediate Graceland-era Paul Simon vibe on this one, good ear my faithful reader. Diamonds has revealed he was very influenced by Simon's 1986 classic.

Unlike Graceland, Return takes bouncing world rhythyms (Don't Call Me Whitney, Bobby) and mixes them around with lightning-fast hip-hop (Where There's A Will, There's A Whalebone) and rave-up indie rock (Rough Gem).

Bottom-line, there's a lot going on here, but it works. While many of the songs sprawl across the disc, they stay listenable, something The Unicorns did not always do so well. Also, they put on a killer show. However, with the recent depature of Tambeur, who knows if there will be a second act for Islands. Whatever happens, Return very well may be the most fun album of the year.

1. Neko Case - Fox Confessor Brings The Flood

The more I listen to this disc, the more I realize it's destined to be a classic. From the title track, Margaret vs. Pauline to the closer, The Needle Has Landed, this album full of murder ballads and lost highways is riveting. Case hired a crack backing group for the record as well, including Garth Hudson of the Band and the-ever-busy-backing-up-others-like-Iron-And-Wine Calexico.

The best track on the album comes early. Star Witness, a waltz about death and, surprise, a dark highway, shimmers like the stars over West Texas.

However, Confessor plays far better as a complete piece. Case, who may have the best set of pipes in pop music today, has really outdone herself on this one.

Reference points you ask? Well for starters, let's go with A Steve Levering favorite Wrecking Ball by Emmylou Harris, as both have an expansive, lonely sound. Confessor is a much darker record, however, so imagine Patsy Cline singing Mule Variations by Tom Waits, Case's label-mate over at Anti-.

That's my shortlist. I didn't include Art Brut since Bang Bang Rock And Roll has been out since 2005 in the U.K., even though it just dropped in the U.S. However, if you'd like to hear what a collaboration between Monty Python and The Sex Pistols would sound like, Art Brut is your band! Art Brut! Top Of The Pops!

Let's hear your lists and comments!

Why Am I Always The Last To Know?

2006-07-25T14:22:00.000-07:00

...about cool music-related things like last.fm? Actually, right before I wrote this, I almost threw my dirty socks into the garbage instead of the laundry hamper, so I guess that answers that one.

Anyway, last.fm is a little site for people who love lists and categorizations. It works like this: you download a program (or robot, as I like the call all things related to the internets) that works in conjunction with your preferred mp3 player (let's hope it's iTunes) to track what you listen to, find other people who listen to it, as well as a lot of other features I'm not 16-years-old enough to know how to operate.

For me, it's a nice little alternative to myspace.com, which is the first techno-phenomena that I am too old to understand. So many bands, so many people with __xx at the end of their user name, and well, I just find it somewhat unpleasant to look at. It's wicked cluttered and kind of gives me a headache to navigate. Some of this dissatisfaction can no doubt be attributed to my time spent in fellow musicglutton contributor Steve's Infographics class.

Since my explantion of last.fm is fairly shoddy, check it out for yourself. Of course, if I know me (and you) you're probably already on it. If this is the case, let's be friends!

Coming later today, Darren's midyear CD recap for 2006!

The next European buzz band... ...From Denton

2006-07-06T17:20:00.000-07:00

I have a very uncool confession: I stopped keeping up with local bands a few years ago. Let's face it, being a local music fan can be a frustrating experience. You hear a band at a club and you think they're absolutely amazing. Then you buy the CD at the merch booth and it's a muddy bass-heavy mix and the songs are about half the tempo you just heard them performed. Then there's the revolving door of members coming and going. And then there's the frustrating experience of just being sure that your favorite local band is going to hit it big, and then nothing ever comes of it.

Sure, I read what Malcolm Mayhew and others write about bands in the D/FW area, but I don't actively seek out the locals like I used to.

So I was catching up on my Sound Opinions podcasts the other day, listening to the June 10, 2006 show on buried treasures, and I was surprised to hear one of them mention Midlake, from Denton, Texas. They played a snippet from the new album (not out here in the U.S. yet), and I was blown away... It was like if you had the Flaming Lips covering a Crosby, Stills, & Nash song. It just so happened that I was on my way to Dallas that day anyway, so I stopped by Good Records and picked up the first CD released by Bella Union.

Fast forward to this morning, where I'm ingesting tea and a bagel in an effort to get my foggy brain to work, dammit, work! I'm sitting there, reading the Star-Telegram, and they have an article on Midlake in the Life section. Turns out Midlake is opening for Beck, Sigur Ros and the Flaming Lips in Europe, while here in the States, they're lucky if they can pull 100 folks into the club...

Surprisingly, Midlake isn't the first Denton or D/FW band to be in these circumstances. Lift to Experience, a label mate to Midlake, was in a similar situation. They played a massive stage at the Reading Festival and had their album do pretty well in Europe, while still playing smallish clubs here. In fact, thinking about Yeti and Jetscreamer reminds me that our north Texas bands are often virtually unrecognized here, and have to go elsewhere to get noticed. Same sort of thing happened to our jazz and blues musicians back in the 60s and 70s...

Not really sure what the point of this is, but it's kind of sad. I guess I'm part of the problem of not recognizing some of our home-grown talent. Maybe I'm being a trendoid, but I'll be buying the new Midlake CD when it comes out in the States...

Random poop...

2006-07-02T06:52:00.000-07:00

Just little random thoughts that have been floating around my head...

You Radiohead fans absolutely must check out the past two Sound Opinions podcasts. The first one has an edited version along with the usual Sound Opinions news and reviews. The second one is an unedited version. They are both quite fun and fascinating. Be sure to listen all the way through for Thom Yorke's performance... It is stunning and you will have goosebumps.
It is a good thing that I don't live close to Waterloo Records in Austin... I'd be blowing a major chunk of my paycheck there every month! Quite an amazing place. Waterloo has now attained the prestigious (?) spot of Steve's Second Favorite Record store in the world... Favorite record store? Amoeba Music in San Francisco. Sorry Good Records... I like you guys, but you just don't have the atmosphere yet...
While at Waterloo, I picked up DJ Spooky Presents In Fine Style, a Trojan Records compilation. It's good, but seeing DJ Spooky's name on it made me assume that the tracks would be mixed together in a continuous flow. These are individual tracks, which is okay so it doesn't put little breaks in between the songs on my iPod, but it's not really what I was expecting...
The James Brown article in the current issue of Rolling Stone is a must-read. James comes across as imperious and demanding, but we knew that, didn't we? The fascinating part comes from discussions with the band members. This article made me dig out Live At the Apollo again.
I'm not really the type to listen to an album over and over again in a brief period of time. I usually listen to an album once or twice, and then come back to it a week or two later. But Gnarls Barkley have wormed their way into my brain, and my brain plays random songs, and that makes me play the album on my iPod or put in the CD if it's handy. This truly is the album of 2006 summer for me. Still amazing. I even picked up the Cee-lo Green... Is the Soul Machine CD, but so far it doesn't hit me like Gnarls...
Adult Swim is offering a free EP from Chocolate Industries. I haven't listened to it yet, but Chocolate Industries has released some really good stuff in the past, and did I mention that it's free? It's got Lady Sovereign on it, and Random rocked, so check this out...

Okay, I think that's all the spouting I need to do for the moment...

Steve Favorite #13: A Night At the Opera by Queen

2006-06-27T02:34:00.000-07:00

I'm so sick of referees, it's not even funny. I'm just tired of them. Perhaps it stems from my problems with authority in general, but everytime a ref's whistle blows these days, my brain says, "Holy crap! What now?"

It really started with the Dallas Mavs vs. Miami Heat games. Look, I readily admit that what I know about basketball could fit in an ant's rectum, but I'm here to watch people run up and down the court, not to take free shots because of the slightest graze. And now I'm watching World Cup soccer... I know we yanks are supposed to be slightly stoopid regarding football/soccer, and I would wager that my basketball and soccer intellects are just about equal, so I prove that theory correct.

Here's what rocks about soccer: no commercials! I get on my exercise bike and put on a soccer game, and it's great. I just go. No commercials to distract me unless it's halftime or before or after the game. The other thing I really respect about soccer is the physical conditioning that's required. Those guys don't stop running the entire time! The average NFL player would have an oxygen mask strapped to his face after 5 minutes on the soccer pitch.

But soccer can also be squirrely on the foul calls, with people taking dives and doing all kinds of drama. They fall down, and the way they're laying there squirming around, you're fairly certain they've broken a bone in their leg and it's protruding through the skin and we're going to have to amputate the leg from the knee dow.......... Oh. Nevermind. He's back up and playing again like nothing ever happened. I really like King Kaufman's idea that if you're carried off on a stretcher, you don't get to come back in and play.

But I can tolerate the diving to a point, and for the most part, soccer refs seem to have good bullshit detectors to deal with crap like that. That is, until the Netherlands vs. Portugal game... Crazy! I know a lot of U.S. fans are griping about the loss to Italy, but listen gang, at least we didn't have the reftard from Netherlands/Portugal. He brought the game to a new low... Um, congrats or something?

Hey refs, just let them play...

And you know, it's always a relief to have a piece of music that either echoes or exceeds your emotions. It makes you feel rational. It helps you feel mentally stable to know that someone else is feeling those exact same feelings. And when I've gotten really worked up about someone pissing me off, there's absolutely no better song than "Death On Two Legs" by Queen.

This is an astonishing opener, a raw burst of emotion that still manages to be cool while calling someone (an ex-manager, I've read) every conceivable name in the book... Just to be clear, I'm not telling the refs to curl up and physically die -- it's more like the Yankees fans yelling "Kill the ump!" Back to the song, it's one of the most excellent specimens of the "I hate you, now curl up and die" genre.

So Queen selected this powerful song to open the album. Where do you go next? More anger? No way... You go with a 1920s/30s sound with a vocal effect that makes Freddie Mercury's voice sound like it's coming from an antique Victrola. These elements of musical whiplash are scattered throughout this album, making it a great one for us kids with ADD. From the semi-erotic themes of "I'm In Love With My Car" (which was covered admirably by Frankie Goes to Hollywood) to the cheesy poppiness of "You're My Best Friend" to the vaudeville of "Seaside Rendezvous." If you're the type of person who wants the same genre of music the whole way through, this ain't the album for you.

When I was in high school, I had this album on cassette. It was one of those special releases that had an entire album on each side, so one side had A Night At the Opera while the other side had The Game. I guess having the other side as A Day At the Races would have made too much sense. Anyway, the point of all this old fart rambling is that it was a long-ass cassette tape, and while it was a good deal getting two Queen albums for $7.99, and it was great that I didn't have to stop and flip the tape while I was in the middle of mowing the lawn, it did mean that in the middle of the tape, part of it would get a little stretched out or a little snippet of tape would bend and create a little annoying gap.

So my tape was stretched near the beginning of "The Prophet's Song" which is the start of the section that really makes this album shine for me. In the middle of the a cappella section, their voices would get all warbly, and then at the start of Brian May's guitar solo there was a tape flip that lasted about 2 seconds. But regardless I listened and sang along while I mowed the damned yard...

"Love of My Life." What can I say? Any 15 year old boy who has had a major crush can identify... "Good Company." Never was a fan, but it does break up the somber mood of the second half of the album. Which leads us to...

...the immortal, amazing "Bohemian Rhapsody." Yeah, it's absolutely stunning, even after all these years. I'm not going to go into all the recording stuff and all that, but I do think it's interesting how the album starts with the premeditation of "Death On Two Legs" and ends up with a murder. And yeah, I used to be able to hit the high note at the end of the a cappella section, but those days are long past...

Great musical adventure from Queen. They almost made mowing the lawn tolerable...

Music Shopping In Well, Cowtown

2006-06-08T09:40:00.000-07:00

I love perusing through used CD's. I generally don't have the money to buy a new CD, and I feel somewhat uneasy supporting Best Buy, especially after they slashed prices on all the indie titles in an effort to level a final death blow to the one, maybe two mom-and-pop record stores still open in the United States.

Unfortunately, Fort Worth is not record-store central, so I found myself sadly going through the 250 assorted Phil Collins' CD's at Half-Price Books. But, then, just down Hulen, I found a nice alternative.

CD Warehouse is a chain, and I like to consider myself, not a chain person, but the difference is with the Warehouse's staff. A group of about three guys who a) smoke right outside the door about every twenty minutes b) and otherwise sit around and listen to records or watch music documentaries. Last time I was in there, it was the Charlie Parker section of Ken Burns Jazz.

On my last visit, I noticed a concert bill from Scott Stapp's recent show at the Ridglea, hung upside down with "So many musicians to kill" written in red ink.

Anyway, these are guys who take the time not only to spereate Pop/Rock from Punk/Indie, but also take the time to stock new indie Cd's from bands touring in the area, or the nobodies that I go into the record store to find. Everytime I've been there, as well, at least two of them will get into a mildly heated Sonic Youth-Goo-vs.-Daydream Nation-type discussion. I've found the prices to be equal to or less than the average CD at Best Buy as well.

Anyone else know of a good store in the area.

Red Hot song?

2006-06-01T11:37:00.000-07:00

Hmmm... Did the Chili Peppers steal from Tom Petty?
http://www.nypost.com/gossip/pagesix/pagesix_u.htm

Late Night Revelation #1 - Astral Weeks

2006-05-30T23:15:00.000-07:00

My best music listening time comes at night, usually quite late, when I'm putting the last pieces of my day in order before I go to bed. Sometimes I play a nice mellow record, or something of historical importance, but quite often, I just put it on shuffle and let it play.

And this is how Van Morrison continually floors me.

My synthesis into a Van the Man freak happened way back in high school. I was beginning to collect the "important" albums, more out of a need to catalog and learn than to truly appreciate. At the same time, I was having these hour-long phone conversations with a girl I kind of dug. I brought up Van Morrison, and she mentioned her dad owned everything Morrison had ever pressed on to plastic or vinyl.

We started dating.

Now, this move was not related to the hundreds of records in the drawers below the liquor cabinet, but it certainly didn't hurt. When she went away on vacation, I bought Moondance, and when she came back, she burned a copy of Astral Weeks for me.

While we probably played Moondance far more than Astral Weeks, I still think of the latter in conjunction with that time. It's a sweet record, and after an hour, it can make the most time-tested relationship seem as fresh and exciting as first love. There's something in the delivery of the lines, in the music and the soul of the record that makes it more than just an "important" record: it's a record that stills seems to breathe and feel, it's the cypress in Morrison's catalog.

It doesn't hurt that it's such a great record. From the opening notes of the title track, a mixture of jazz and English folk, to Morrison's insistence that your boy "has clean clothes," it's an evocative picture of Morrison's home country, Ireland, and the snapshots of life.

But for me, it doesn't get much better than Sweet Thing

And I will raise my hand into the night time sky,
Count the stars that shine in your eyes
Just to dig it all an not to wonder
Thats just fine
And I'll be satisfied
Not to read in between the lines
And I will walk and talk
In gardens all wet with rain
And I will never, ever, ever, ever
Grow so old again.

Bob Dylan (God bless him) may have been "older than that now," but Morrison could grow old and young at will. To this day, I still drive down country roads with the windows down and my arm out the window while Sweet Thing disturbs the rural peace.

The history of the record is well documented, with Morrison telling the seasoned jazz players to "play what you feel," and there are far too much to be said about each song to include them all: The Way That Young Lovers Do is great off-kilter jazz, and Beside You might just be the most underrated love song ever.

But more than anything, Astral Weeks reminds me of being a teenager. It's grand, but it's subtle: it's a slice of the world that seems like the entire universe.

So, for my money, no matter how many so-so records he puts out in his later years, Van is still the Man of rock 'n' roll.

Steve Favorite #14: A Few Possible Selections for the Soundtrack of Your Life by Chomsky

2006-05-30T12:29:00.000-07:00

Society seems to put a lot of emphasis on who was the first to do something. This person was first to do this, this person was first to do that. But it seems that a little too often, being the first means that someone else is going to steal your idea and make beaucoup bucks on it. Being the first is a bad thing, because now your idea is out there, and other people can make it more palatable for the general public.

For better or worse, I'm exposed to a lot of new music through videogames. When I picked up Burnout 3 back in 2004, I thought, "Damn, the 80s are back." Just listening to the soundtrack for that videogame, I could hear a ton of 80s influences in there. I think I'm starting to understand how my parents felt when I was in elementary school and Happy Days was cool, and the girls were wearing poodle skirts while the guys rolled small boxes up in their t-shirt sleeves so it looked like they had cigs. It's a nauseating mixture of amusement and "You just don't get it, kid." that makes nostalgia a surreal experience for those who lived it the first time... Don't get me wrong -- I like Bloc Party and Franz Ferdinand and all these other bands that are mining the 80s sound. I think it's cool. But I also think that one of the originals got lost in the shuffle...

I'm not sure when I first heard Chomsky... It was somewhere in the range of 97-98, and they were becoming a well-regarded D/FW band. They played incessantly around the various clubs, and they always seemed to put on a high-energy show.

I don't know if I was just out of touch with that part of the music scene or what, but Chomsky was the first band I heard to bring back that XTC/Police, etc. angular, muscular sound, and this CD does a pretty good job of capturing the energy of Chomsky.

The first three tracks are good, but for me, this CD starts at track #4, Sigmund. The frantic guitar parts and great backing vocals eventually lead to a shouted "Sha! Sha!" over the chorus, and if you think it's fun on CD, you really need to experience bouncing up and down in a club and yelling it with the rest of the crowd while pumping your fists in the air. Next up is the conflicted Warm which seems to echo one of the central themes on the CD: control in a relationship and who has the power. At one point, Sean Halleck sings "Could you please just do what I say?" in a pleading tone. It's bittersweet, of course, but it's amazing how the power seems to shift back and forth in the space of a four minute song. Completing the trifecta for me is the energetic Road with the sing-along "a-woah-oh" part.

Disclaimer: the previous paragraph doesn't mean I dislike the rest of the CD... It's just that these are the 1-2-3 punch in the gut that I think are an astounding section. I mean, any album with the lyric "I'll shoot you with my gun" sung in a sugar-sweet pop melody to another song with "Oh you caught me, I'm a masturbator" deserves some attention, don't you think? The lyrics are amazing, and range from the semi-confessional (without being overly specific) to the non-sensical and clever.

And don't get me started on the musicianship... Glen Reynolds is a guitar god... Freaking amazing. Whenever I'd go see them at the Aardvark, I'd stand towards stage left so I could watch Glen twitch like a sheer maniac. If you've never seen Glen play, you owe it to yourself. He's got some amazing, laugh-out-loud moves, and he rarely misses a note. In fact, quite often, Sean would seem to avoid looking at Glen to avoid breaking out into laughter. James Driscoll and Matt Kellum are a great rhythm section and hold things down while Glen does his thing. And Don Cento pops some fun keyboard counter-melodies on top of everything...

Chomsky has put out two albums since this one, and while they're good, I don't think they carry the energy of this one... There are times where this feels like an old wooden roller coaster -- you wonder if it's going to hold together through the conclusion. The two later albums feel a little too polished to me...

I've heard that Chomsky is currently on hiatus, which makes me sad. I was sincerely hoping that Aezra Records would be able to make them superstars. Maybe it will happen, and I'm just being impatient. But it's just frustrating to me to see all these other bands drawing from the 80s and making it big, and Chomsky's not up there with them... It's tragic, and I hope it's rectified soon... These guys deserve it in a big way...

Favorite tracks: Sigmund, Warm, Road
Repeated listens: Hell yeah, learn the lyrics so you can sing along to the oldies when they play the AA Center someday... Plus, you can remind Sean of the lines he always forgets.

Capsule Reviews And Summer News

2006-05-27T18:36:00.000-07:00

So, as the last time I tried to post, Blogger, in a Pac-Man-like move, ate it, this is my return to the world of record revues.

Let's knock a few reviews out:

Paul Simon - Surprise

Of all the now-old dogs out there, who would have picked Paul Simon to make a record with Brian Eno? While the album lags in the middle third with wearisome mid-tempo tracks like Wartime Prayers and Beautiful, the majority of the album provocatively casts Simon's trademark vocals and stories against a updated, and at times, even adventurous, backdrop. Simon's at his best when he's mired deep in wordplay, and Surprise provides some of Simon's best couplets in decades.

Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere

The fun in this record is practically dripping through the plastic wrapper and onto the shelf. The lead single Crazy has every chance to be a Gorillaz-style, mass-friendly (of course, the ubiquitous Danger Mouse worked on the most recent Gorrilaz project as well) radio hit, and tracks like Smiley Faces and The Boogey Man show equal parts of collaborators Danger Mouse and Cee-Lo. The soundscape alone is worth the price of the record. Danger Mouse moves away from his Gray period and into a place that makes him every bit as viable as the Neptunes in innovative originality. The music is great, the vocals are fun, and it's definitely got the best cover of the Violent Femmes' Gone Daddy Gone this year.

Lali Puna - Faking The Books

Okay, so this record is about three years old, and I'm too lazy to research anything about the band. (It's summer). I think they may be German, and I think they may have other projects out there. Either way, I heard Ben Gibbard waxing about them in an interview and I checked out this record. Dare I invoke Human League? I think I must--imagine if there were only female vocalists in the Human League. Now imagine that it's 2003--enter Lali Puna. The title track is an obvious highlight here, but really the whole record plays through quite nicely. Good music alone in the headphones or with a group of friends.

So there it is, my capsule reivews. With an exciting summer concert and release schedule, we should have an interesting couple of months here at musicgluttons.

Here are two can't miss shows coming up in June:
Beck - June 21, NokiaLive
Sonic Youth - June 24, Gypsy Tea Room

ACLFest Roster

2006-05-19T12:24:00.000-07:00

A short post, but if you haven't hopped over to www.aclfest.com, check out this year's roster. It includes the great Gnarls Barkley and one Van Morrison.

Cold-2... or U-Play?

2006-05-18T11:34:00.000-07:00

True confession time -- I'm not a fan of Coldplay. I know they've got their rabid fans and all, but I just haven't been impressed. I've read interviews with the members, and they seem cool and all. I'd hang with them if they asked me... Heh. But their music just doesn't do it for me... The first time I heard them, I thought, "Hmmm, sounds like U2."

That U2 label gets applied to Coldplay quite often. Heck, it gets applied to a lot of bands at one time or another -- early Radiohead even got some U2 comparisons. But Coldplay seems to be one of the few bands making a career out of that specific sound.

Before you ask, yes, people have loaned me Coldplay CDs. And before you ask again, yes, I have listened to them. In fact, some of my friends are such rabid Coldplay fans that I have questioned myself extensively on this: "Am I just missing it? Well, I'll give them one more chance..." I've given Coldplay quite a few one-more-chances, and it still doesn't appeal to me, and I still hear some U2 in there... My friends get frustrated and tell me that it doesn't sound like U2, but I can't help but hear it.

So now, I offer irrefutable evidence of the Coldplay-U2 connection (Well, irrefutable in that it actually happened)... I was in Baja Fresh today, and had placed my order and was waiting in line to get some iced tea. Coldplay's "Speed of Sound" was playing over the speakers, and the guy getting his drink was singing to it. But here's the deal: he was singing the chorus to U2's "It's a Beautiful Day" on top of it... It worked, and I don't even think he noticed the difference.

Ladies and gentlemen of the music-listening jury, this is evidence that Coldplay is generic U2. The prosecution rests...

1000th issue of Rolling Stone

2006-05-14T13:05:00.000-07:00

Got the new Rolling Stone in the mail the other day, and I positively love the cover. It's one of those pieces of art that has so much detail, and every time you look, you see something new... I was especially excited to see the good Dr. Hunter S. Thompson as a demon opposite Kurt Cobain's angel, plus the gonzo fist embedded in the background. Bravo, Rolling Stone, and congrats!

I've been reading Rolling Stone for over 20 years now (Geez, I'm full of old-fart comments lately), and while I'm not a fan of the annual Hot Issue (lame, leave that crap to your sister publication Us Magazine), I still enjoy much of the music coverage. But Rolling Stone has really come alive with their political coverage in recent years. I think Wenner got a little complacent in the Clinton years, and Rolling Stone's political coverage suffered as a result. But Bush pissed him off somewhere along the way, and Rolling Stone is raising hell once again.

Thanks for some great reading over the years... Here's to the next 1000 issues...

Steve Favorite #14.5: Slow Riot For New Zero Kanada by Godspeed You Black Emperor!

2006-05-09T19:26:00.000-07:00

Good lord, I'm flaky... I'm on the second entry in my list, and I'm already doing the .5 deal to squeeze some extras in... I keep looking over my list and realizing that I'm forgetting certain CDs that matter to me...

Second note before we roll this entry any further... Yeah, yeah, I can hear all the indie rock snobs saying, "Dude, you got the exclamation point in the wrong place!" though they'd probably type it as "wrong! place." Yeah, I know this isn't current location for the exclamation mark in GY!BE's name, but that's where it was when this EP came out in 99, so take a Prozac and chillax.

Now where was I before all this self-flagellation? Oh yeah, I was about to tell you about this CD I love...

But first, here's one of Steve's laws of music listening: There are some pieces of music that have to be listened to at 3 AM to be properly absorbed and understood. I think most people have established emotional walls, and they do not allow those walls to be easily penetrated. That's why a lot of art doesn't register with us -- we're not open to it. But at 3 AM, in the dark, with your headphones on, your walls are down. That's when music can reach in and worm it's way into your brain and heart. That's how it worked with Slow Riot For New Zero Kanada.
The first time I listened, I was less than impressed. I thought it was boring and self-indulgent. I thought the packaging was trying too hard to be mysterious. I thought the guy reciting his poetry was daffy. I really didn't care for it, to say the least.

What makes you reach for a certain CD to give it a second chance, especially when it's 3 in the morning and you woke up and can't go back to sleep? I'm not sure why, but I grabbed it one morning and put it in my portable CD player and relaxed on the couch with my headphones on. That's when it connected...

Slow Riot For New Zero Kanada is a 30 minute long EP consisting of 2 songs, "Moya" and "Bbf3" (my favorite of the two). Nowhere on any of the packaging does it say Godspeed You Black Emperor!, and the cover has Hebrew (I think) writing on it while the back cover has a diagram of a bottle. The inside has Jeremiah 4:23-27 in English and Hebrew, plus a paragraph of handwriting that at first glance is barely decipherable. Maybe I was too busy trying to figure out the packaging to enjoy the music the first time through?

The music critic intelligentsia love to write about GYBE! being angry. I've seen reviews mention angry music and even angry packaging (God forbid you should make your packaging out of cardboard, or else you're angry). With GYBE! being an instrumental group that occasionally runs tape loops and recordings with their music, I think it's a bit more subtle than that. For example, "Moya" seems to start off with sadness and longing and builds into frustration. Angry to me is when a song starts off angry and never relents. GYBE! runs through a range of emotions, and I think much of the time, the music reflects what the listener is feeling.

"Bbf3" showcases a street recording of a guy that many would consider to be part of the "black helicopter" crowd. It's a big anti-government screed, and it's fascinating how it mirrors the music. It begins very matter of fact, and builds to a crescendo with the guy reciting some of his anti-government poetry. When I listen to it, I feel like I'm on a city street with a guy who seems a little unhinged, but I can't stop listening to him and watching him. He's fascinating, though many would no doubt take offense at what he has to say. I'll just say I used to take more offense to it than I do now... What used to be curiosity factor is starting to make more sense to me... Dunno if that's a good thing or not... Addendum: According to several sites, the poem actually consists of lyrics from an Iron Maiden song. Score!

This EP is a masterpiece of emotion. It's beautiful, it's moving and it speaks to me in ways that music with vocals sometimes cannot. It stands up well to repeated listens. Can't say how well it will age, as it only came out in 99, but I hope it's not soon forgotten.

Tower Records

2006-05-06T14:25:00.000-07:00

The Tower Records in Dallas is a happy place... I love going there and wandering the aisles, especially around 11 p.m. when the freaky people are out music shopping...

Anyway, I was there this afternoon, and got a free $15 gift card for driving a Scion around the block. So to the raving hordes that read this blog, if you would like what amounts to most of a free CD, get thyself to Tower today or tomorrow...

What did I buy? You'll find that out later, after I've had a chance to give it a listen and tell you what I think...

Smith Vs. Smiths

2006-05-03T11:51:00.000-07:00

This is more of a discussion than an entry, but I post it anyway.

I once heard someone say, "You're either kind of a Smiths person or a Cure person." I certainly found this to be true. For years, I was a Cure kind of guy, but lately, I've been more into the Smiths. Is the rivalry between the two still relevant?

"I eat meat everyday because Morrissey says, 'don't eat meat," Robert Smith said, "and I hate Morrissey."

Obviously the fued between the two is ongoing (A quick search of the web brings up a few sites devoted solely to the two), but as far as fans go, has it kind of died out?

Or, more importantly, who's better?

Case for the Cure:
1. More heart--Morrissey almost too smug at times, while the Cure, has a certain amount of believeability and honesty to the lyrics, even if Robert Smith has been happily married for about 30 years.

2. Better music--The epic feel of Cure records (especially in the mid-late '80s) is way better than the singles band feel of the Smiths.

Case for the Smiths:
1. Funny as hell--Morrissey turns a phrase better than anyone. Often, the humor alllows the band to be more self-aware and post-modern than the more romantic Cure.

2. Great singles--For a few minutes of good pop bliss, the Smiths are hard to beat--great guitar, good lyrics and really nice chorus breaks.

Discuss.

Steve Favorite #15: Wrecking Ball by Emmylou Harris

2006-05-01T21:15:00.000-07:00

As I promised too long ago, I'm going to list some of my favorite albums of all time. So, deep breath, and here we go...

First, a little background. I was living happily in Pennsylvania as a kid. I loved the snow, I was truly naive about racism and skin color, and the girl next door let me kiss her. Life was good. Then when I was 12, my dad got a job in Alabama. The Klan marched on my first day of school. My "yankee accent" was openly mocked, and there were 8th grade boys in my school dipping Skoal. And their parents knew and were fine with it! I was on a different planet...

I came to Alabama kicking and screaming, determined not to assimilate. I listened to U2, the Cure, Pink Floyd, and anything else that was considered a bit "out there" by my peers in Bama. Part of that rebellion was hating country music, in any form, shape, or fashion. Steve's random fact of the day: I went to school with the son of the guy that co-wrote "Ring of Fire" and worked with Hank Williams, Jr. Hank had moved his HQ to our town and everyone thought he was the shiznit, though we didn't say it that way at the time.

Ten years after moving to Alabama, my wife and I moved to Texas. Different state, same feelings about country music. Being a U2 fan, I was a fan of Daniel Lanois' sound, so my curiosity was aroused when I read that he was producing an album by Emmylou Harris. After Wrecking Ball came out in 1995, I kept seeing rave after rave about how great it was. Of course I still didn't give it the time of day.

Fast forward a couple of years: I'm DJing at KTCU, and I see Wrecking Ball on the shelf. I decided to give it a listen and I was blown away. It's got a big, atmospheric sound. I mean, listen to the drums on "Goodbye" and it sounds like the room is just immense -- all these echoes just keep rolling through to the next beat and it's beautiful. The bigness causes all the sounds to meld together wonderfully. It's not like a lot of modern recordings where it's like "Yeah, there's the bass, and the guitar is stacked on top of that." This is like we put the ingredients together and they really complement each other and are blended.

Speaking of drums, that's U2's Larry Mullen Jr. playing on 9 of the 12 tracks, and he's joined by folks like Steve Earle, Neil Young and Lucinda Williams. Not only are the musicians amazing, but the songs are by people like Steve Earle, Neil Young, Julie Miller, Bob Dylan and Jimi Hendrix.

I probably shouldn't have to tell you this, but I fell headlong in love with this album. The bigness of the sound, Emmylou's weathered but beautiful voice -- especially that part of her range where her voice cracks just a bit and then transitions into a thin, airy falsetto that just sounds so vulnerable. And then these big echoey guitars ringing... It's just an amazing atmosphere...

While country purists would probably say this isn't really a country album, it opened me up to listening to more country-oriented artists. I'm not hardcore or anything, but I can enjoy the occasional foray. Interestingly, I've bought other Emmylou albums, and nothing's really spoken to me like Wrecking Ball. An amazing album...

Favorite tracks: Goodbye, Wrecking Ball, Deeper Well, Waltz Across Texas Tonight
Repeated listens: Most definitely. A million little details to hear... I admit that I'm not always in the mood for this, but sometimes it just feels perfect...

Neil Young blog

2006-04-24T21:06:00.000-07:00

No, it doesn't seem to be Neil Young blogging, but it's definitely someone with connections... It's a blog about the new Neil Young album, Living With War... I can't wait to heart it.

In the meantime, visit http://livingwithwar.blogspot.com/

Neko Case

2006-04-21T10:00:00.000-07:00

Neko Case
Granada Theater
4.17.2006

Neko Case is out of this world.

Or at least she’s far beyond the indie-rock niche that she currently inhabits along with fellow torch-song torchbearers like Feist and Cat Power.

Case sang a mix of older material and tracks from her new album Fox Confessor Brings the Flood, all of which were fleshed out by Case’s five-piece band.

“Star Witness,” a song that might be about a car wreck, or a shooting, or both, set the mood for the evening, as Case wove stories of bad relationships, down-and-outers and even murder.

It became obvious within the first five songs of the show that Case was entirely on fire. After doffing a note during “Witness,” she came back to hit the next one with even more volume and vibrato in her marvelously powerful voice. It would be the only note she missed all night.

Case benefited from her new backing band, as older songs like “I Wish I was the Moon,” and “The Tigers Have Spoken” took on a new feel, more lonesome-desert-highway-at-midnight than their previous barroom feel.

But the real star of the show was Case’s shimmering voice. More powerful than Loretta Lynn or Tammy Wynette’s, Case’s voice draws a direct line to the late, great Patsy Cline.

There’s something unexplainable in Case’s voice that makes it so unique. Even when she steps away from the microphone, there was a natural touch of reverb in her voice that cut through the old movie theater like a ghost of past voices. It’s unfair that one person could possess a voice like that. It’s just downright unfair that she’s not selling a million copies of everything she lends that voice to.

What also made the show work so well for Case was her own self-effacing humor. While most of Case’s jokes are nearly unprintable, they put the normally hostile Dallas crowd at ease.

While she stuck mostly to her own material, Case did throw in a cover of Bob Dylan’s “Buckets of Rain,” that showcased both the versatility of Dylan’s writing and her own vocal prowess.

After a set that went just over an hour, Case came back for two encores, which included a gospel reworking of “Wayfaring Stranger” and the forgotten classic “John Saw that Number.”

Unlike highly-hyped female rockers like Karen O and Liz Phair, Case was able to project both confidence and sexuality without appearing sleazy. Of course, if Karen O or Phair had a voice like Case’s, they’d probably clean up their act a little too.

Death to Sam Goody

2006-04-21T09:25:00.000-07:00

Who would ever spend $18.99 for a cd that wasn't a double-disc set or include a dvd? Sam Goody you are the epitome of greed and all that is wrong with the capitalist system. But being the good little capitalist I am, I just go down the road to Best Buy and save five bucks.

The other day I was at the mall and walked in to a Sam Goody to see what they were trying to sell a cd for these days. And what did my eyes behold? A going out of business sale! With about 4 racks left of cds, I went through and found some obscure treasures. I got 4 cds for under 20 bucks! These were by no means cds that were in great demand, they were just bands that I had heard good things about and picked up, such as the hometown heros like Tripleshot and Riverboat Gamblers.

I was also happy to see that they were having trouble moving their supply of over 100 Scott Stapp's Greatest Hits cds. He is such a tool.

New Red Hot Chili Peppers Video

2006-04-21T09:17:00.000-07:00

Has anyone seen this video yet? I caught it on early one morning while I was getting ready so it didn't have my full attention but as a huge Misfits fan I thought it was fantabulous. The references were great, I saw the glam rock part (is it suppose to be Bowie?) and the 80's hair band parody reminded me of Poison. I didn't get a chance to recognize the punk band they referenced but I'll figure it out next time it comes on. I just thought it was great because there hasen't been any great Misfit references or covers since Garage Inc. by Metallic.

Hold On, I'm Comin'

2006-04-15T20:44:00.000-07:00

Today I report to you from the epicenter of the musical South, Memphis, Tennessee.

It's the town that spawned B.B. King, Elvis Presley, Rufus Taylor and Otis Redding. It's the place where a white man named Steve Cropper helped invent Memphis soul at Stax Records. It's also the place Martin Luther King Jr. breathed his dying breaths.

It's a town with a checkered past of racial harmony and some of the most unloving acts and words in American history.

Today I've walked in the halls of the revered (Stax, Sun) and the infamous (Graceland, Jungle Room), and, as a music lover, they both hold equal importance to me.

I've listened to Dylan's Highway 61 Revisited driving north up that famous highway. A stranger has also touched my hair and I've been propositioned by a hooker.

We came here seeking music, and we've found it at almost every corner. We've also found the incongruencies in how we view people, and how the world really is. It's a lot more violent than its Texas counterpart, Austin, but there's also a lot of history.

So there it is, my first written document of a trip that started when I decided, "I'm goin' to Graceland."

Police Helicopter

2006-04-13T12:00:00.000-07:00

I'm asleep. I'm dreaming that a helicopter is circling above. I keep dreaming that the helicopter is looking for me. Then I wake up enough to realize there is a helicopter circling above my neighborhood. I creak one eye open enough to see that it's 4 in the bloody A.M., and I ain't happy. Better damned well be a full-on fugitive hunt with bloodhounds and Tommy Lee Jones chasing Harrison Ford through my neighborhood for this to even be remotely worth the racket. I go out into my backyard, and there's the police helicopter with a searchlight making loops southward through my neighborhood.

So this song is dedicated to you, Mr. 4 A.M. police helicopter. Thanks for waking me up this morning... It's been a frickin' joyous day thanks to you... For you, I play "Police Helicopter" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Everybody sing along:

Aw!

Police helicopter shot the sky
Police helicopter landin' on my eye

Yeah!

Police helicopter takes a nose-dive
Police helicopter, he ain't shy

Yeah!

(REPEAT EVERYTHING)

Aaw!

All Tommorow's Parties

2006-04-10T22:56:00.000-07:00

After a lengthy hiatus, I offer proof that the rumors of my departure were greatly exaggerated.

Sitting on my desk right now are four very different discs. The first is Velvet Underground and Nico, then The Weight is A Gift by Nada Surf. Below these two gems are Electriclarryland by the Butthole Surfers and Return To The Sea by Islands.

What is the commonality between these four great albums?

Nothing!

All of these albums are great for different reasons. Nada Surf's power-pop is nearly spotless, the Velvets are dirty, dirty, dirty, and Islands' sound like Paul Simon if he played keyboards and lived in Montreal. And the Surfers, well, they're just insane. While all three discs share the commonality of being indie-rockish records, they reinforce two things

1. Music is a wonderful being that can offera sound to fit any mood, emotion or intellectual thought.

2. I buy too many CDs.

That's all for now, a very nonsensical post extolling the virtues of music, but look for more later on the wonderful-slipped-through-the-cracks-record The Weight is a Gift by Nada Surf. Until then, "Shout it out Loud."

My favorites...

2006-04-10T13:18:00.000-07:00

I'm a musical voyeur. I love looking through people's record collections and trying to figure out which bands have had the greatest impact on their musical lives. As I look through my music, there are many times where I think "Oh yeah, I bought that because I was listening to so and so, and they were their favorite band." It's almost like reading those genealogy passages in the Bible -- begat, begat, begat.

The favorite band/album question is also interesting because it can reveal how a person listens to music. What they listen for, what turns them on, what they find important. For example, some people understood better where Lester Bangs was coming from once they learned that he idolized Velvet Underground's White Light/White Heat and Van Morrison's Astral Weeks. Some of his rants begin to make a little more sense when put in that context.

So I'm going to post about some of my all-time favorite non-jazz, non-classical albums. (Yeah, that's awkward, but I'm avoiding pop/rock.) Right now, there are 13 on my list, and like any self-respecting music fan, those 13 are liable to shift position at any moment depending on my mood, which way the wind blows, whatever. But I've got them written down, and if I've forgotten something, I'll slip a .5 in there somewhere.

Like anyone's list, there will be some things on there that don't make the critic's top lists of infinity, but this isn't about that... These are my favorites.

Universal Hall Pass - Mercury

2006-04-09T07:59:00.000-07:00

Timeliness? Me? Nah... According to iTunes, this was released in November 2004, but I don't think I dug it out of the KTCU reject box until October or November of 2005. It's been sitting on my desk since then, waiting patiently, and occasionally whispering, "Listen to me." But there are a few CDs sitting on my desk, all saying the same thing, so it took me a while to get to this one...

I pulled this one out of the reject box because the promo sticker read "RIYL: Bjork, Portishead, Lamb." Whoever wrote that hit me right where I live, especially on the Bjork and Portishead references. But now that I've listened to it, I think someone was just kind of lazy, and thought, "Who do I compare Universal Hall Pass to? Let's see... Female vocals and occasional electronic sounds... Uh, oh yeah, Bjork! And maybe Portishead. Oh, and let me get a little bit of a hipster reference in there by name-dropping Lamb. Yeah, that's the ticket!" Yeah, there are occasional elements of those three artists in here, but Universal Hall Pass takes a variety of sounds and combines them quite nicely.

When I popped this CD in the player, I was surprised when (what sounded like) Casiotone drumbeats started coming out of the speakers, and a chirpy voice sings:

Son of a bitch
Don't sabotage everything that moves forward

The music then fills out with more modern and full sounds for the chorus. But I have to say I was hooked from the beginning... Melissa Kaplan, the brains behind Universal Hall Pass, displays plenty of attitude in her vocal delivery, and the music is a fun blend of different styles.

"Dragonfly" starts pretty mellow, but soons hits a funky stride that evolves into some brief drum & bass sections. "Katrina Josephina" is quite striking, with layers of vocals all provided by Kaplan.

But my favorite track on the CD is "Six-Step Dragon". Kaplan does a fantastic job of combining Asian-influenced sounds with a dancey-feeling backing track. Sometimes on these combinations of world and dance musics, it feels really forced and awkward. In this case, they complement each other nicely to create an amazing piece of music.

"Outro" seems to have a bit of a tribute to "The Girl from Impanema," or else I'm really reading too much into it... But it sounds like it's got some of the same elements to me...

In digging around the web a bit, this is Kaplan's first solo album, but she was in a band called Splashdown. I'm not familar with them, but I'll be doing some digging after hearing this incredible CD.

Kaplan has some mp3 downloads available from the Universal Hall Pass site: "Dragonfly" and "Misdirected". "Misdirected is my favorite of the two, but give it some time -- it takes a moment to catch your ear... Mercury is available from the Sneaky Records site, and also from iTunes.

London Calling...

2006-04-05T19:19:00.000-07:00

You news hounds probably saw this, but...

British anti-terrorism detectives escorted a man from a plane after a taxi driver had earlier become suspicious when he started singing along to a track by punk band The Clash, police said Wednesday.

Detectives halted the London-bound flight at Durham Tees Valley Airport in northern England and Harraj Mann, 24, was taken off.

The taxi driver had become worried on the way to the airport because Mann had been singing along to The Clash's 1979 anthem "London Calling," which features the lyrics "Now war is declared -- and battle come down" while other lines warn of a "meltdown expected."

Holy crap... Is it just me, or are people getting more idiotic with every passing moment?

Buying the same music over and over and over...

2006-04-05T07:54:00.000-07:00

I've decided to be a holdout... I'm the guy that shows up at Best Buy at 10 or 10:30 on Tuesday mornings (where I've run into Curtis several times as well). Yeah, I know we're supposed to support the smaller record stores and all that, but this post isn't about that... Perhaps I'll talk about that later.

The problem with buying a release these days is that the record companies will invariably release a better version of it later. A prime example of this is with the Flaming Lips (dang, this blog is full of Flaming Lips references). Here's a brief timeline of my last few Flaming Lips purchases:

Bought The Soft Bulletin around the time it was released.
Bought Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots around the time it was released.
Bought the Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots DVD/CD set when it was released.
Bought The Soft Bulletin DVD/CD set when it was released.

Now please don't get me wrong -- I'm not bashing the Lips here. I'm a sucker for this because I love getting the 5.1 surround mixes and the bonus tracks they throw on the DVDs. But I'm not falling for this with At War With the Mystics. I'm holding on to my cash until the DVD/CD version comes out, hopefully in the fall.

But two versions of Yoshimi and Bulletin pale in comparison to some of the other repurchases in my collection. By my count, the most repurchased album in my collection is Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon, with at least 8 different versions or formats purchased. Granted, I fell in love with this album while I was in high school, but that still averages out to a DSotM purchased every 2-3 years. Now that I think about it, I single-handedly kept DSotM on the Billboard album charts all those years.

Some other notable repurchases:

I own at least 4 versions of Pet Sounds by The Beach Boys.
I've been through at least 4 copies of A Night At the Opera by Queen.
At least 4 versions of Kind of Blue by Miles Davis.
Two versions of Miles Davis' Bitches Brew, WTF?
Three versions of Three Sides Live by Genesis (seems rather apropos, somehow).
Two versions each of NIN's The Downward Spiral and With Teeth (which just came out last year, and I already have two versions...)

Granted, many of these repurchases are through different formats, such as casette, vinyl, CD, digital, etc... But many of them are expanded/extended/slightly modified versions designed specifically to get fanboy completists like me to buy the same music again and again.

I've decided I'm tired of it. I love the expanded editions and all, but I'm not going to be the first sucker out of the gate to buy the standard releases anymore. I'll hold on to my cash a little bit longer and wait for the expanded edition. I've also figured out that buying the same music over and over is keeping me from discovering new music. That $20 I'm spending on an expanded edition probably could have purchased two sale CDs from new artists. Guess it all comes down to whether we want to buy what we already know, or experiment a bit? Sadly, much of the public, including myself, seems to buy what we already know.

Speaking of buying the same thing in different formats, I just did a quick Pink Floyd search on Amazon, and it looks like Floyd is releasing Pulse as a concert DVD. But that cover looks a tad bit similar to the cover of the Warp Vision DVD that came out a couple of years ago...

Charles Mingus - Mingus Ah Um

2006-04-03T10:03:00.000-07:00

I'll admit, jazz is a fairly recent discovery for me. Though, I've been listening to it since high school, I've never quite "got it." I can assume this is because a) of my constant fear that I will become the stereotypical yuppie music listener and b) I like catchy melodies and choruses, because, as with most post-baby-boomer listeners, I find it hard to get into music if I can't sing (in my car, very badly) to it.

As for being a yuppie listener, it's always bothered me when fifty-year-old men go home and sip wine to blues records. It just seems wrong on some level. My fear of being "that guy" has always extended to jazz. After looking back on the history of the form, though, I realized this dichotomy of listeners has existed ever since jazz was a twinkle in the eye of Buddy Bolden and Jelly Roll Morton, and I might as well just pour a glass of chardonnay and enjoy.

So lately, I've been on a little run of jazz records. First it was A Love Supreme by John Coltrane, then Kind of Blue by Miles Davis, and now, Mingus Ah Um by Charles Mingus.

Mingus Ah Um is a soulful, original record. I couldn't tell you what horns create the twin melody on "Better Git In Your Soul," but I can tell you it makes me want to dance (very badly) when I hear it. You can even hear the musicians yelling and laughing through the mics as the tune hits a breakneck pace. Next, Mingus slows it down on "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat." The sound is smooth as silk.

Mingus was notorious for being ill-tempered, and the aggression often comes through in the music. "Boogie Stop Shuffle" veers towards chaos without ever really coming close to falling apart. Later in the disc, Mingus redetermines what jazz can sound like on "Bird Calls."

One of the reasons Mingus Ah Um is so damn good is the production on the record. It's both controlled and yet somewhat spontaneous. It sounds like the band made a direct plan for the record and then couldn't bring themselves to stick to it.

If you want a good jazz record, Mingus Ah Um is a great point of entry. And while you're at it, give A Love Supreme and Kind of Blue a spin, you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Sound Opinions podcast

2006-04-03T06:02:00.000-07:00

I've just recently returned to the land of the iPod-enabled (or iPod zombies, depending on your point of view), and I'm having fun catching up with a few podcasts. My first iPod died (6 months out of warranty, grrr...) in December. I loved it, it was my constant companion, we went together everywhere, and there was great mourning when it died, blah blah blah.

The only podcast I really listened to on iPod #1 was On the Media from NPR. But I was already addicted to that as a radio show, so it wasn't really something I had "discovered" from podcasting. It was more a convenience than anything else...

So when my new iPod arrived, one of the first things I did was browse through the podcasts listed on iTunes. And while I've found some klunkers, one of my happier discoveries has been Sound Opinions from Chicago Public Radio.

Sound Opinions features two amazing music writers, Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot. It's almost a Siskel-Ebert/Ebert-Roeper kind of deal (Geez, I'm sure no one's ever noticed that before) because Jim is at The Chicago Sun-Times and Greg is at The Chicago Tribune. And apologies to Greg, but I was really buzzed to see Jim on there, as he wrote a Lester Bangs bio that I loved. He's also written a Flaming Lips bio that I hope to dig into this summer...

Jim and Greg do a great job of voicing their opinions without stepping on top of one another. They give each other room to speak, and so far in my listening, there hasn't been the cattiness that (unfortunately) seems to define radio these days. They do disagree with each other, but they keep it light-hearted and fun. Out of the episodes I've listened to so far, #16 Buried Treasures is my favorite. They played some marvelous music, and the Black Rebel Motorcycle Club interview was fascinating.

So to whoever decided to podcast Sound Opinions -- thanks! It's a fun listen, and hopefully other NPR stations will begin to pick it up. Until then, I've got the podcast to keep me happy...