Best Christmas Ever. Animal Collective leak. In between listening to an early front-runner for album of the year (2009), I took a look back and compiled this list. Now, for you, it's like the best New Year's ever, am I right?
I'm always behind on these things. December has marked the month every year where I tediously scower the interweb for music that I've missed the previous eleven months. It's been tradition every New Year's Eve to post my favorite tracks, so here I am, on time. Of course, I meant to be earlier. I always do. It certainly took longer than I remember to compile and narrow down my top fifty tracks. I had to neglect tracks by the likes of High Places and others who may not secure a place in my top albums list. I also shunned a few tracks from albums that will certainly make the top albums list with the notion that they hold up better as an album. To me, there isn't a clear winner on Lil Wayne's Tha Carter III, so you won't find any of his stuff here. And as much as I'd like to include some of my favorite tracks from Blitzen Trapper, The Cool Kids, Harlem, The Ruby Suns and others, they will have to settle for album nods. Here's the lineup, and as per usual, there's some room for rank movement. Last year, I'd argue my list was flawed. Bon Iver's "Skinny Love" should've been higher, for instance, and others should've been lower, but there is a quasi-comical parody of hit songs afterwards. Check that out, then check out this year's list, and feel free to follow the links to download the track. You'll thank yourself later, and if you're nice, maybe even me too.
1. Fleet Foxes- "White Winter Hymnal" (Early 2008 there was little to be found on Fleet Foxes. Before the Sun Giant EP and the self-titled LP, there was this sole track on the artist's myspace. Attempting to hold my excitement after this brief glimpse of a band with a sparse Fleetwood Mac feel accompanied by a folk-leaning My Morning Jacket, I patiently waited for any further information on this band. Soon enough, I was greeted with the EP, then the LP. Then, it hit me. These guys had something. I saw them twice in 2008: once, before their LP hit the shelves, and once at Pitchfork's Music Festival, long after the hype had reached its pinnacle. As great as their mountainous double threat is, this track still stands as the highlight among the pack of wolves at harmony's doorstep.)
2. Air France- "Collapsing at Your Doorstep" (Walking the east coast beach on a warm, windy summer evening provided the ideal setting for this shimmering cut on Air France's No Come Down EP. The jittery electronics and soft female vocals add to the euphoria. The vocal sample says it all: "Sort of like a dream? No. Better.")
3. Hercules and Love Affair- "Blind" (Antony's vibrato is unlike any other, and if I had known before listening that they were to be put to the backdrop of some sort of new disco track, I would've politely puked on your new carpet. Thankfully, it's quite the opposite. Whatever that may be. This is one of the best dance tracks of the year, the sort of stuff you wish the bars you frequent played. A close call is "Hercules Theme".)
4. Cut Copy- "Hearts on Fire" (With the exception of the obscure Gang Gang Dance, it seemed like all the great electronic dance tracks came out in the first half of the year. This particular one outshines all of them sans the previous two aforementioned tracks.)
5. The Walkmen- "Four Provinces" (Sure, many will argue that the raucous "In the New Year" is their album's finest moment, but I'd argue that it's the whispy yearning of "Four Provinces". And, I've heard other arguments as to the album's watermark, but whichever way you lean on this album, it only reinforces the comfortable space this album inhabits.)
6. Portishead- "The Rip" (A darling highlight on a triphop act-cum-psychrock/folk/krautrock/electronica outfit. Also, take a look at Thom and Jonny's acoustic cover. A close-call would be the paranoid clatter of "Machine Gun".)
7. Hot Chip- "Ready for the Floor" (A bit of a disjointed album that doesn't demand listens, but did manage to toss out a few tracks of the fun electropop we expected from them. Also, check out "Wrestlers", by far the best thing associated with wrestling in years.
8. Beach House- "Gila" (Warm chamber pop vocals never felt as good as they do here with the elongated syllable of the track title over tinty keys. Ah yes, just like it "Used to Be".)
9. Erykah Badu- "Soldier" (Cut straight to the neo-soul of this track and you'll find exactly what you came for- a good time despite the grim topic of war.)
10. Gang Gang Dance- "House Jam" (As bizarre as this group can be, this is as danceable and listenable as anything else out there.)
11. Wolf Parade- "Call It a Ritual" (It might not reach the singalong standing of numerable tracks on Apologies to the Queen Mary, still their best album, but this is as close as it gets to matching their previous fire. Thankfully, the rest of the album wins you over anyway in a less structured prog-rock fashion.)
12. Why?- "Fatalist Palmistry" (Why? I'll tell you why "I sleep on my back 'cause it's good for the spine and coffin rehearsal." As a listener, we may feel like the artist's notebook worth of terrific lines, but damned if he doesn't make about a hundred loosely great ideas memorable. Most artists are lucky if they pull off a couple decent statements per album, let alone several per track.)
13. M83- "Kim & Jessie" (M83 turn up the 80's nostalgia with the love-struck keyboards of this standout track on one of 2008's standout albums.)
14. Chad VanGaalen- "TMNT Mask" (Do I really have to say anything else here? It's a song that somehow lives up to its rediculous title.)
15. Vivian Girls- "Where Do You Run To" (I'll tell you where, sweet Vivian Girls, the stereo to turn it up.)
16. Q-Tip- "Move"
17. White Denim- "Shake Shake Shake"
18. Deerhunter- "Nothing Ever Happened"
19. Brian Eno & David Byrne- "Strange Overtones"
20. Silver Jews- "San Francisco B.C." (Favorite lines: "She said you don't make enough to provide for me / I said what about the stuff that we quote 'believe'? / She said I left that on the sands of history / I found a new man to take care of me / He dresses for success and emergency and he moves a lot of concrete on the QBC.")
21. Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds- "Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!"
22. Shearwater- "Century Eyes"
23. Crystal Castles- "Untrust Us" (Dance on, Nintendo geeks, dance on.)
24. Max Tundra- "Which Song" (If you're wondering which song is the best on Max Tundra's eclectic latest/greatest, it's this one.)
25. Animal Collective- "Street Flash"
26. Department of Eagles- "No One Does It Like You" (Until Grizzly Bear, in 2009, when they do it better than Daniel Rossen's original music project, Department of Eagles. And, here's an idea of what Grizzly Bear can do in "Two Weeks" or what seems like forever until their album releases.)
27. Amadou & Mariam- "Sabali" (Damon Albarn produced, and impressive to boot.)
28. Jamie Lidell- "Little Bit of Feel Good"
29. The Dodos- "Fools"
30. Wale- "The Kramer" (I'm going to be honest with you, I am intimidated by this track. On this Washington D.C. rapper's Mixtape About Nothing, he confronts you with Seinfeld samples that setup his off-topic/on-topic rants. I attempt to avoid and/or ignore race issues whenever they are presented, and this track forces us to reflect on them. However, instead of offering trite solutions or maxims, Wale offers damn good reflection, and his mixtape for free.)
31. WOMEN- "Black Rice"
32. Videotape- "Underwater" (Thanks CokeMachineGlow for this album complete with this standout track featuring Arcade Fire style propulsion and downright fun.)
33. No Age- "Eraser"
34. The Very Best- "Kamphopo" (Listen and download, too.)
35. My Morning Jacket- "I'm Amazed" (You know, I'm amazed, too. And, now, doubtful of MMJ's ability to construct a truly solid album. Z was close to bliss, and now Evil Urges is just hit and miss. This one, however, is in the hit range.)
36. The Tallest Man on Earth- "I Won't Be Found" (I love the irony of this when you read the artist name and song title together. How can the tallest man on earth not be found, anyway? That's rediculous. On the other hand, I found this track just in time to enjoy it, and include it here.)
37. The Mountain Goats- "Autoclave" (I can't help but swoon over a song with these lines: "No one in her right mind would make her home my home / My heart's an autoclave.")
38. Deframe- "Single in a Small Town" (A friend's home recorded track; decipher the lyrics here.)
39. Empire of the Sun- "Walking on a Dream"
40. Santogold- "L.E.S. Artistes"
41. Born Ruffians- "I Need a Life (Four Tet Mix)" (For more Born Ruffians action, turn to "Foxes Mate for Life".)
42. Au- "RR vs. D"
43. The Clientele- "Share the Night"
44. Frightened Rabbit- "The Twist"
45. Okkervil River- "Pop Lie"
46. The Zou- "Forget My Name" (And so local Youngstown, Ohio band, The Zou, hope you don't forget theirs, or their new album title, Archaeo-somethingorother.)
47. Panda Bear- "Boneless (Notwist)" (To de-confuse my track title, it's a remix of a Notwist track by Panda Bear.)
48. Cadence Weapon- "In Search of the Youth Crew"
49. The Black Keys- "Strange Times"
50. Annie- "I Know UR Girlfriend Hates Me"
Phew. And, now for some extras.
First, these are my favorite covers of the year.
Bell- "It's Oh So Quiet" (Björk cover)
Death Crazed Teenage Superheroes- "Down from Dover" (Dolly Parton Cover) -- Download their EP here.
Some young Swedish girls cover Fleet Foxes convincingly, and prove what pastoral folk should be. MP3 here, plus video:
If you're like me, you're exhausted by now from all the links. Here's one more, so have a laugh with Patton Oswalt at the There Will Be Blood film. If I had more time, I'd perhaps talk up a few more tracks, and I still might another day. Next time, expect my top albums of 2008, and more!
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Status Update: I am the marsupial's marsupium!
Facebook, a network for connecting friends, has an option to update your loved ones on your whereabouts. Or, you could tell them a joke. Or, you could post a quote. Or, many other things that extend beyond the original intent. Either way, over time, I've collected a few of my personal status updates. My personal favorites are the last four. Call it a best-of:
10/11/06: Michael is considering moving to the moon and farming gravity.
10/12/06: Michael is still considering moving to the moon and farming gravity (right after he harvests snow).
10/19/06: Michael is not your friend.
12/21/06: Michael is not afraid of Christmas and he will beat its ass.
1/5/07: Michael is 2007 x's better than you.
3/4/07: Michael is not interested in knowing what you're currently doing.
3/16/07: Michael is rolling into the punches and stealing old people's lunches.
4/10/07: Michael is Michael.
6/7/07: Michael is more concerned with what Michael was.
6/10/07: Michael is molecular. diabolical. stupperific. cheap.
6/18/07: Michael is changing his vacation plans.
6/18/07: Michael is changing his vacation pants.
7/6/07: Michael is going to Colorado so don't expect to ever see him again (until you see him again).
8/2/07: Michael is on drugs.
8/15/07: Michael is battling Bowser for the third and final time.
8/22/07: Michael is in your kitchen making napalm.
8/30/07: Michael is going to sell complete control of his life on ebay, because anybody could likely do it better. Any bidders?
9/2/07: Michael is not the best person on the planet so he's moving to the moon where the population equals Michael T. in Low Gravity.
9/3/07: Michael is afraid of the dark and everything it connotes.
10/28/07: Michael is octo-gone now.
11/16/07: Michael is like that of the value 'x' in algebra; a universal unknown.
11/24/07: Michael is sweepy from all the somniferous activities lately.
11/28/07: Michael is driving on the left-hand side of the road- pretending he's in England.
12/4/07: Michael is your uncle's cousin's daughter's roommate's assassin.
Jan 9: Michael is partial to paradoxes.
Jan 18: Michael is a collector, so don't leave your stuff around.
(Then, Facebook changed the rule so your status doesn't have to begin with "is")
Jan 26: Michael is not giving up on "is" even though facebook has.
Jan 30: Michael gave up on "is".
Feb 9: Michael has superpowers: namely, he can listen to more music than any human ear could ever handle. Oh, and he's pretty good at chess.
Feb 29: Michael's cell phone is currently out of commission.
Feb 29: Michael's cell phone battery was upside-down.
Mar 8: Michael is snowing inside.
Mar 14: Michael is listening to underground hip-hop. He's never been underground, but he fell in a sewer once.
Jun 7: Michael is the reason Diet Coke went out of business: greater taste and even less calories.
Jun 15: Michael is using a lot of words for a young man.
Jul 17: Michael is not seeing the Bat tonight, but he is sleeping upside-down, then he's Chicago-going-gone tomorrow.
Jul 23: Michael is a dodecahedron, and he's taking sides.
Jul 30: Michael hasn't seen himself in a long time either. All of the mirrors shattered in his house, and he's pacing the carpet screaming, "Where am I?"
Aug 7: Michael is not the same person you married, but is the same one you divorced, of course.
Aug 16: Michael is in a proverbial pickle, and he doesn't like pickles; proverbial or not.
Sep 8: Michael is down but doesn't understand the meaning of "can't". He's not sure what's worse: being down or not comprehending simple contractions.
Sep 14: Michael has got game like EA, with more innuendos than Nintendo's Wii. Stop me if I'm wrong, yeah?
Sep 27: Michael is smarter than he looks, and looks smarter than he thinks.
Oct 10: Michael is subconsciously leaving a breadcrumb trail to his subconscious.
Oct 12: Michael is the heart of Saturday night, and the colon of Monday afternoon.
Oct 31: Michael is reinventing existence brick by meticulous brick. He'll return in 1000 years when he's finished.
Nov 29: Michael is undercover as a _____, and revealing this information via facebook would not be a smart move.
Dec 22: Michael is inventing a teleport so he can be omnipresent.
Dec 22: Michael is inventing a spherical shield-encapsulating laser-force beam so as to become omnipotent.
Dec 22: Michael is inventing a printing press, flying powers for a sleigh and stuffing counterfeit cash down chimneys to prove he's omnibenevolent.
Dec 22: Michael is omniscient because he knows you knew this status update was coming.
Also, lastly, after noticing a friend's myspace had the tagline "The Cat's Meow!" (which later changed to "The Bees' Knees", I started competing with another friend by creating sayings. Well, she claims hers are real. She came up with: "The Dogg's Tuxedo", "The Elephant's Instep" and "The Eel's Ankle".
My contributions, however, are a little more bizarre: "The Taxidermist's Dentist", "The Marsupial's Marsupium", The Tortoise's Twisted Contortions", "The Reindeer's Antlers" and finally "The Farm Ho's Banjos!".
Sure, mine might not be real sayings yet, but give it time. My devoted fanbase will spread the good word, right? All two of you?
10/11/06: Michael is considering moving to the moon and farming gravity.
10/12/06: Michael is still considering moving to the moon and farming gravity (right after he harvests snow).
10/19/06: Michael is not your friend.
12/21/06: Michael is not afraid of Christmas and he will beat its ass.
1/5/07: Michael is 2007 x's better than you.
3/4/07: Michael is not interested in knowing what you're currently doing.
3/16/07: Michael is rolling into the punches and stealing old people's lunches.
4/10/07: Michael is Michael.
6/7/07: Michael is more concerned with what Michael was.
6/10/07: Michael is molecular. diabolical. stupperific. cheap.
6/18/07: Michael is changing his vacation plans.
6/18/07: Michael is changing his vacation pants.
7/6/07: Michael is going to Colorado so don't expect to ever see him again (until you see him again).
8/2/07: Michael is on drugs.
8/15/07: Michael is battling Bowser for the third and final time.
8/22/07: Michael is in your kitchen making napalm.
8/30/07: Michael is going to sell complete control of his life on ebay, because anybody could likely do it better. Any bidders?
9/2/07: Michael is not the best person on the planet so he's moving to the moon where the population equals Michael T. in Low Gravity.
9/3/07: Michael is afraid of the dark and everything it connotes.
10/28/07: Michael is octo-gone now.
11/16/07: Michael is like that of the value 'x' in algebra; a universal unknown.
11/24/07: Michael is sweepy from all the somniferous activities lately.
11/28/07: Michael is driving on the left-hand side of the road- pretending he's in England.
12/4/07: Michael is your uncle's cousin's daughter's roommate's assassin.
Jan 9: Michael is partial to paradoxes.
Jan 18: Michael is a collector, so don't leave your stuff around.
(Then, Facebook changed the rule so your status doesn't have to begin with "is")
Jan 26: Michael is not giving up on "is" even though facebook has.
Jan 30: Michael gave up on "is".
Feb 9: Michael has superpowers: namely, he can listen to more music than any human ear could ever handle. Oh, and he's pretty good at chess.
Feb 29: Michael's cell phone is currently out of commission.
Feb 29: Michael's cell phone battery was upside-down.
Mar 8: Michael is snowing inside.
Mar 14: Michael is listening to underground hip-hop. He's never been underground, but he fell in a sewer once.
Jun 7: Michael is the reason Diet Coke went out of business: greater taste and even less calories.
Jun 15: Michael is using a lot of words for a young man.
Jul 17: Michael is not seeing the Bat tonight, but he is sleeping upside-down, then he's Chicago-going-gone tomorrow.
Jul 23: Michael is a dodecahedron, and he's taking sides.
Jul 30: Michael hasn't seen himself in a long time either. All of the mirrors shattered in his house, and he's pacing the carpet screaming, "Where am I?"
Aug 7: Michael is not the same person you married, but is the same one you divorced, of course.
Aug 16: Michael is in a proverbial pickle, and he doesn't like pickles; proverbial or not.
Sep 8: Michael is down but doesn't understand the meaning of "can't". He's not sure what's worse: being down or not comprehending simple contractions.
Sep 14: Michael has got game like EA, with more innuendos than Nintendo's Wii. Stop me if I'm wrong, yeah?
Sep 27: Michael is smarter than he looks, and looks smarter than he thinks.
Oct 10: Michael is subconsciously leaving a breadcrumb trail to his subconscious.
Oct 12: Michael is the heart of Saturday night, and the colon of Monday afternoon.
Oct 31: Michael is reinventing existence brick by meticulous brick. He'll return in 1000 years when he's finished.
Nov 29: Michael is undercover as a _____, and revealing this information via facebook would not be a smart move.
Dec 22: Michael is inventing a teleport so he can be omnipresent.
Dec 22: Michael is inventing a spherical shield-encapsulating laser-force beam so as to become omnipotent.
Dec 22: Michael is inventing a printing press, flying powers for a sleigh and stuffing counterfeit cash down chimneys to prove he's omnibenevolent.
Dec 22: Michael is omniscient because he knows you knew this status update was coming.
Also, lastly, after noticing a friend's myspace had the tagline "The Cat's Meow!" (which later changed to "The Bees' Knees", I started competing with another friend by creating sayings. Well, she claims hers are real. She came up with: "The Dogg's Tuxedo", "The Elephant's Instep" and "The Eel's Ankle".
My contributions, however, are a little more bizarre: "The Taxidermist's Dentist", "The Marsupial's Marsupium", The Tortoise's Twisted Contortions", "The Reindeer's Antlers" and finally "The Farm Ho's Banjos!".
Sure, mine might not be real sayings yet, but give it time. My devoted fanbase will spread the good word, right? All two of you?
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Christmas on Pluto
Akin to The Flaming Lips' much-delayed, yet finally seeing the light of day film, Christmas on Mars, I've decided to have my own galactic Christmas party. Except, this one, is lacking the visual, and more emphasis on the audio-based themed soundtracking. That's right, it's another mix. This time, based on Christmas.
Of course, I've glossed over a few albums I theme for Christmas due to it being in the title of the song and/or lyrics, or just because I happen to listen to them around December. Lyrically, there are albums like Band of Horses' Everything All the Time where Christmas is mentioned. Such examples of song titles include Okkervil River's "Listening to Otis Redding at Home During Christmas", The Walkmen's "No Christmas While I'm Talking", and Tom Waits' "Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis".
The same Tom Waits album, Blue Valentine, also has a track "Wrong Side of the Road" that drops this lyric: "strangle all the Christmas carols". Sadly, I think that's appropriate for the mode of my mix. It's a couple classics, like Charlie Brown's Christmas, The Pogues' "Fairytale of New York", and Run-D.M.C.'s "Christmas in Hollis" which you may remember as the tune John McClane's (not to be confused with John McCain) limo driver played in the original Die Hard, another Christmas classic. Then, there's three Sufjan Stevens tracks from his fantastic Songs for Christmas series, a beautiful cover of "Little Drummer Boy" by slowcore specialists Low, a new single by The Boy Least Likely To, a couple Ben Folds tracks before his music started to become way off track from being listenable (ahem, Way to Normal), some tunes from Stephen Colbert's Christmas special among other dastardly dabbling in Christmas caroling. Luckily for you, I've spared you any excerpts from members of what is now Arcade Fire's Christmas Album, which was really never intended for release, even digitally. And, it's obvious.
Either way, enjoy away, The Planet Pluto Christmas mix party.
Also, I've arranged for a few other holiday treats.
Show 'em what we've got:
Low's fantastic Christmas EP.
Sufjan Steven's Songs for Christmas, Vol. 8, the 2008 edition, subtitled "Astral Inter Planet Space Captain Christmas Infinity Voyage". It must be the synths. This one was supposedly only distributed to friends and family, and there's speculation that the last couple missing volumes are also in existence.
Also, You Ain't No Picasso posted Belle & Sebastian's Peel Christmas Party.
Finally, in anticipation of New Year's, I might as well mention I tend to play Radiohead albums (last year was the In Rainbows webcast, the year before I played Hail to the Thief), The Walkmen's Bows + Arrows and You & Me albums mention the occasion on "New Year's Eve" and "In the New Year" respectively, The Verve provides "New Decade", LCD Soundsystem's Sound of Silver sweetly regales of parties, friends and hangovers, and, well, The Strokes' Room on Fire has just sort of been my thing since New Year's Eve 2003. I've spun that album to theme the night of two hotel parties (2003 & 2004, the first being lonely and sober, then the second of which resulted in the lot of us being kicked out for noise), one slower night at a couple apartments/houses in 2005 (Nathan's and Ryan's), a shorter night at Keith's to cap the end of 2006 with an early pass out, and finally a simple night out to a couple bars in 2007. Nothing too fantastic, but Room on Fire has been there since the ball dropped for 2004, even before The Strokes dropped the ball in 2006 with First Impressions of Earth.
But, that's not all from me. Expect year-end lists and perhaps that overdue Zou review. And, wherever I am New Year's, expect Room on Fire sizzling somewhere nearby, just as I'll expect you to be playing my mix, Low or Sufjan.
Of course, I've glossed over a few albums I theme for Christmas due to it being in the title of the song and/or lyrics, or just because I happen to listen to them around December. Lyrically, there are albums like Band of Horses' Everything All the Time where Christmas is mentioned. Such examples of song titles include Okkervil River's "Listening to Otis Redding at Home During Christmas", The Walkmen's "No Christmas While I'm Talking", and Tom Waits' "Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis".
The same Tom Waits album, Blue Valentine, also has a track "Wrong Side of the Road" that drops this lyric: "strangle all the Christmas carols". Sadly, I think that's appropriate for the mode of my mix. It's a couple classics, like Charlie Brown's Christmas, The Pogues' "Fairytale of New York", and Run-D.M.C.'s "Christmas in Hollis" which you may remember as the tune John McClane's (not to be confused with John McCain) limo driver played in the original Die Hard, another Christmas classic. Then, there's three Sufjan Stevens tracks from his fantastic Songs for Christmas series, a beautiful cover of "Little Drummer Boy" by slowcore specialists Low, a new single by The Boy Least Likely To, a couple Ben Folds tracks before his music started to become way off track from being listenable (ahem, Way to Normal), some tunes from Stephen Colbert's Christmas special among other dastardly dabbling in Christmas caroling. Luckily for you, I've spared you any excerpts from members of what is now Arcade Fire's Christmas Album, which was really never intended for release, even digitally. And, it's obvious.
Either way, enjoy away, The Planet Pluto Christmas mix party.
Also, I've arranged for a few other holiday treats.
Show 'em what we've got:
Low's fantastic Christmas EP.
Sufjan Steven's Songs for Christmas, Vol. 8, the 2008 edition, subtitled "Astral Inter Planet Space Captain Christmas Infinity Voyage". It must be the synths. This one was supposedly only distributed to friends and family, and there's speculation that the last couple missing volumes are also in existence.
Also, You Ain't No Picasso posted Belle & Sebastian's Peel Christmas Party.
Finally, in anticipation of New Year's, I might as well mention I tend to play Radiohead albums (last year was the In Rainbows webcast, the year before I played Hail to the Thief), The Walkmen's Bows + Arrows and You & Me albums mention the occasion on "New Year's Eve" and "In the New Year" respectively, The Verve provides "New Decade", LCD Soundsystem's Sound of Silver sweetly regales of parties, friends and hangovers, and, well, The Strokes' Room on Fire has just sort of been my thing since New Year's Eve 2003. I've spun that album to theme the night of two hotel parties (2003 & 2004, the first being lonely and sober, then the second of which resulted in the lot of us being kicked out for noise), one slower night at a couple apartments/houses in 2005 (Nathan's and Ryan's), a shorter night at Keith's to cap the end of 2006 with an early pass out, and finally a simple night out to a couple bars in 2007. Nothing too fantastic, but Room on Fire has been there since the ball dropped for 2004, even before The Strokes dropped the ball in 2006 with First Impressions of Earth.
But, that's not all from me. Expect year-end lists and perhaps that overdue Zou review. And, wherever I am New Year's, expect Room on Fire sizzling somewhere nearby, just as I'll expect you to be playing my mix, Low or Sufjan.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Why does ET love Reeses Pieces so much? Find out inside.
Let's knock this one out of the proverbial park, shall we? Let's hit a homer, and head home after. Let's kick it hardcore, and leave our keys in the door for the neighbors to come over. Let's rock it eight ways, and clear the skyways for the dawn we've opened up. Let's nail this roof down before the rain comes back around.
Ok.
Hi.
Instead of all that, let's start this off with a Bradford Cox (of Deerhunter/Atlas Sound fame) ET joke that he recited upon request. "How'd you know that I know an ET joke? Okay. Why does ET love Reeses Pieces so much? Because that's what cum tasted like on his home planet."
Yes. Deerhunter. I saw them on the 14th at the Grog Shop in Cleveland. I arrived as Hellogoodbye and Play Radio Play's show was ending. I was confused as to why Deerhunter would've drew such a big crowd so early. Well, it was because the Grog Shop decided to milk more money out of a single night. So, after the kids cleared and the doors re-opened, I eased my way to the front of the show. I haven't quite seen a full-fledged Deerhunter show, but Bradford's been popping up everywhere for me over the past couple years. In 2006, I saw Deerhunter's quick half-hour set at 1pm at the Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago. In 2007, he played under the moniker Atlas Sound at the same music festival, although I missed his set. Instead, he made a guest appearance during Spoon's encore. Now, I finally make it to a regular Deerhunter show and he left his effects pedals in Toronto, he stops songs because his singing is off-key or the members took too long, he attempts to add banter inbetween some music and use it as a lead-off for the next song but his band doesn't realize so he starts over, and on and on. Sure, Times New Viking came out and did their thing first, and managed to be much more convincing and energetic live than their fuzzy little album allows, but most of that was forgotten by the time Deerhunter finished their hazy, meandering set. They plucked tracks fairly from their debut, EP, one of this year's best, Microcastle, as well as the bonus album.
Bradford Cox, sans the ladies' apparel he's infamous for, was overly cautious about his sound the entire night. He yelled at the sound guy to crank up his guitar, and our ears suffered for it. He commented during the set that their set sounded like the first Talking Heads album. The eclectic crowd didn't help the uncomfortable night, ranging from the usual drunk and obnoxious sort to kids with mohawks, kids in full suits and the aggressive few that began what Bradford described as a "1994 mosh pit". After asking to play the drums, he childishly snuck over to the drum set after the rest of the band members left the stage. We watched as he spent perhaps ten minutes amusing very few beyond himself. We clapped when he started, and when he attemped a little showmanship, but that was before he just kept the basic stomp going for minutes on end. Then, finally, he abandoned it abruptly and pulled the plug to end the show. I told him afterwards that his effects-less guitar sounded like he was dragging it through a diamond mine. "Alright, very glam!", he responded, enthusiastically. I couldn't help but smile, even if my ears throbbed as I wondered if this was one of the worst or greatest and most memorable shows I've seen. I lean towards the latter, but you just can't be so sure.
Here's Microcastle standout "Nothing Ever Happened":
Ok.
Hi.
Instead of all that, let's start this off with a Bradford Cox (of Deerhunter/Atlas Sound fame) ET joke that he recited upon request. "How'd you know that I know an ET joke? Okay. Why does ET love Reeses Pieces so much? Because that's what cum tasted like on his home planet."
Yes. Deerhunter. I saw them on the 14th at the Grog Shop in Cleveland. I arrived as Hellogoodbye and Play Radio Play's show was ending. I was confused as to why Deerhunter would've drew such a big crowd so early. Well, it was because the Grog Shop decided to milk more money out of a single night. So, after the kids cleared and the doors re-opened, I eased my way to the front of the show. I haven't quite seen a full-fledged Deerhunter show, but Bradford's been popping up everywhere for me over the past couple years. In 2006, I saw Deerhunter's quick half-hour set at 1pm at the Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago. In 2007, he played under the moniker Atlas Sound at the same music festival, although I missed his set. Instead, he made a guest appearance during Spoon's encore. Now, I finally make it to a regular Deerhunter show and he left his effects pedals in Toronto, he stops songs because his singing is off-key or the members took too long, he attempts to add banter inbetween some music and use it as a lead-off for the next song but his band doesn't realize so he starts over, and on and on. Sure, Times New Viking came out and did their thing first, and managed to be much more convincing and energetic live than their fuzzy little album allows, but most of that was forgotten by the time Deerhunter finished their hazy, meandering set. They plucked tracks fairly from their debut, EP, one of this year's best, Microcastle, as well as the bonus album.
Bradford Cox, sans the ladies' apparel he's infamous for, was overly cautious about his sound the entire night. He yelled at the sound guy to crank up his guitar, and our ears suffered for it. He commented during the set that their set sounded like the first Talking Heads album. The eclectic crowd didn't help the uncomfortable night, ranging from the usual drunk and obnoxious sort to kids with mohawks, kids in full suits and the aggressive few that began what Bradford described as a "1994 mosh pit". After asking to play the drums, he childishly snuck over to the drum set after the rest of the band members left the stage. We watched as he spent perhaps ten minutes amusing very few beyond himself. We clapped when he started, and when he attemped a little showmanship, but that was before he just kept the basic stomp going for minutes on end. Then, finally, he abandoned it abruptly and pulled the plug to end the show. I told him afterwards that his effects-less guitar sounded like he was dragging it through a diamond mine. "Alright, very glam!", he responded, enthusiastically. I couldn't help but smile, even if my ears throbbed as I wondered if this was one of the worst or greatest and most memorable shows I've seen. I lean towards the latter, but you just can't be so sure.
Here's Microcastle standout "Nothing Ever Happened":
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Little Joy, and a little Low for the Holiday.
Hark! Let's talk about those shows I've seen now, then I'll discuss the Zou's new album, maybe compile a Christmas/New Year's mix (does anyone want one?) and make a few year-end lists. How's that sound? Any objections?
It's already been a month since I saw my last concerts of the year, excluding local shows. First, on Sunday, November 11th, I ventured out to Detroit with friends to witness a quaint Little Joy show. If you're unfamiliar, Detroit is the home of Communist America. Erm, I mean, Comerica Park, which, in turn, is the home of the Detroit Tigers. It's a warm, fuzzy city with steam heaters in sewers that gave us a homeless welcome. The venue was called the Magic Stick, although we weren't sure quite where it was. An option would be asking the homeless welcomemat man where the Magic Stick is, but he might've thought we were wizards. Ah, Detroit. The only city in America to unite Mexicantown and a Bridge to Canada. Don't ask, at this point, I was merely reading the signs. Also, after we parked at the nearby McDonald's, we stopped in for a restroom break. I held the door for a person who was supposedly thankful. Yet, afterwards, I saw that the door read the same words: 'Thank You'. For all I know, he might've been reading the door, instead of genuinely thanking me. If the door read 'Push', he might've said that instead. We may never know.
What we do know is that Joni Mitchell's voice is like a trumpet, and that's a good thing, according to Danny's comment as we listened to her 1971 album, Blue.
Either way, we found it, The Magic Stick. An indie bowling alley/bar with the concert in question upstairs. We partook in some billiards while Little Joy's tourmates The Dead Trees played with more bark than bite. Oh, I kill me.
Yes, I even have an Alf stuffed doll. Anyway, billiards took a turn for the insane when these three subsequent events happened:
1) Danny's cell phone fell on the pool table in front of my shot.
2) I blew a ball during my turn in the way of Landis' shot.
3) Danny hit a ball at Landis' broken finger (he had punched a cow on his farm that kicked him; don't ask, it's an udder rediculous story) while he was pointing something out.
I know, I know, we're practically the three stooges. I mean, there was even a girl asking us how much bowling cost. We explained that it was eight dollars for an hour of play, etc. After a brief discussion as to how this ranks in pricey-ness, I jokingly told her to quit using up our hour! To paraphrase Michael Scott from the Office (US edition), "I may be mean, but sometimes the ends justify the mean." Okay, well it was meant to be a joke, I promise. I mean, some of us laughed.
Little Joy, also known as Los Hermanos singer/guitarist Rodrigo Amarante, The Strokes drummer Fabrizio Moretti and multi-instrumentalist Binki Shapiro, took the stage conveniently not long after we finished our billiard'ing. It was a small crowd, so they implored us to pull up chairs and bar stools. Then, in a little over a half hour, they had expired their entire output, consisting of one half-hour long debut LP, and even knocked off this warm cover of Helen Shapiro's "Walking Back to Happiness". They made some jokes of their own, brought us a 'lotta' joy with their summer-tinged, bossa nova lovers rock. It's easy to enjoy the easy breeze of Shapiro's kind voice, like it was the steam emitting from the sewers. A nice touch to a dirty scene. Amarante pulls his weight with some great numbers, too, even if his voice is strangely Strokes-ish. This show was the convincing point where I knew they were one of the rare side projects to get it right, and also one of my favorite albums of the year. More on that later. Yet, after their brief set, due to their limited song selection, they invited all of us to a bowling encore. The idea wasn't even discussed between us as we embarked on the long trip home. For me, it was like a connecting flight back to northeast Ohio. First, back to Danny's rendezvous point in Bowling Green, then back to Landis' in Tiffin for the night layover, until I could finally return homeward in the morning. Ah, but please, don't watch me dancing.
More on the Deerhunter show next time. For now, the Planet Pluto would like to spread some Holiday cheer in the form of Low:
And what do you know, here's the best Christmas EP you could ever ask for. You can add it right alongside Sufjan Stevens' Songs for Christmas EPs, Vince Guaraldi's A Charlie Brown Christmas and whatever other themed albums you may employ for the holidays. Perhaps I'll discuss mine next time we meet. After all, themes are even in the dreams of the rich. Everybody loves them for all their priceless joy. It's a little joy for the holiday. A joy of wonder, joy of light. You should listen to Low tonight.
Oh, what the hell, here's more Alf to the tune of Blitzen Trapper's Furr-y standout "Saturday Nite":
It's already been a month since I saw my last concerts of the year, excluding local shows. First, on Sunday, November 11th, I ventured out to Detroit with friends to witness a quaint Little Joy show. If you're unfamiliar, Detroit is the home of Communist America. Erm, I mean, Comerica Park, which, in turn, is the home of the Detroit Tigers. It's a warm, fuzzy city with steam heaters in sewers that gave us a homeless welcome. The venue was called the Magic Stick, although we weren't sure quite where it was. An option would be asking the homeless welcomemat man where the Magic Stick is, but he might've thought we were wizards. Ah, Detroit. The only city in America to unite Mexicantown and a Bridge to Canada. Don't ask, at this point, I was merely reading the signs. Also, after we parked at the nearby McDonald's, we stopped in for a restroom break. I held the door for a person who was supposedly thankful. Yet, afterwards, I saw that the door read the same words: 'Thank You'. For all I know, he might've been reading the door, instead of genuinely thanking me. If the door read 'Push', he might've said that instead. We may never know.
What we do know is that Joni Mitchell's voice is like a trumpet, and that's a good thing, according to Danny's comment as we listened to her 1971 album, Blue.
Either way, we found it, The Magic Stick. An indie bowling alley/bar with the concert in question upstairs. We partook in some billiards while Little Joy's tourmates The Dead Trees played with more bark than bite. Oh, I kill me.
Yes, I even have an Alf stuffed doll. Anyway, billiards took a turn for the insane when these three subsequent events happened:
1) Danny's cell phone fell on the pool table in front of my shot.
2) I blew a ball during my turn in the way of Landis' shot.
3) Danny hit a ball at Landis' broken finger (he had punched a cow on his farm that kicked him; don't ask, it's an udder rediculous story) while he was pointing something out.
I know, I know, we're practically the three stooges. I mean, there was even a girl asking us how much bowling cost. We explained that it was eight dollars for an hour of play, etc. After a brief discussion as to how this ranks in pricey-ness, I jokingly told her to quit using up our hour! To paraphrase Michael Scott from the Office (US edition), "I may be mean, but sometimes the ends justify the mean." Okay, well it was meant to be a joke, I promise. I mean, some of us laughed.
Little Joy, also known as Los Hermanos singer/guitarist Rodrigo Amarante, The Strokes drummer Fabrizio Moretti and multi-instrumentalist Binki Shapiro, took the stage conveniently not long after we finished our billiard'ing. It was a small crowd, so they implored us to pull up chairs and bar stools. Then, in a little over a half hour, they had expired their entire output, consisting of one half-hour long debut LP, and even knocked off this warm cover of Helen Shapiro's "Walking Back to Happiness". They made some jokes of their own, brought us a 'lotta' joy with their summer-tinged, bossa nova lovers rock. It's easy to enjoy the easy breeze of Shapiro's kind voice, like it was the steam emitting from the sewers. A nice touch to a dirty scene. Amarante pulls his weight with some great numbers, too, even if his voice is strangely Strokes-ish. This show was the convincing point where I knew they were one of the rare side projects to get it right, and also one of my favorite albums of the year. More on that later. Yet, after their brief set, due to their limited song selection, they invited all of us to a bowling encore. The idea wasn't even discussed between us as we embarked on the long trip home. For me, it was like a connecting flight back to northeast Ohio. First, back to Danny's rendezvous point in Bowling Green, then back to Landis' in Tiffin for the night layover, until I could finally return homeward in the morning. Ah, but please, don't watch me dancing.
More on the Deerhunter show next time. For now, the Planet Pluto would like to spread some Holiday cheer in the form of Low:
And what do you know, here's the best Christmas EP you could ever ask for. You can add it right alongside Sufjan Stevens' Songs for Christmas EPs, Vince Guaraldi's A Charlie Brown Christmas and whatever other themed albums you may employ for the holidays. Perhaps I'll discuss mine next time we meet. After all, themes are even in the dreams of the rich. Everybody loves them for all their priceless joy. It's a little joy for the holiday. A joy of wonder, joy of light. You should listen to Low tonight.
Oh, what the hell, here's more Alf to the tune of Blitzen Trapper's Furr-y standout "Saturday Nite":
Sunday, December 7, 2008
The Bulwark, the Bulldozer and Those of Us Left Over
I don't want to change this world,
nor any others. This is not an imitation
of the oft-slandered sloth,
but a call to keep the world as is.
I'll take it used, refurbished, an open present
on some forgotten Christmas.
I'll take the display model, the only one worth saving.
The only gift worth giving.
The reused mistletoe over a bed of miscreants.
I'll take it, scratches and dents intact,
sans the instruction manual.
Instructions are like reading the Bible,
and I could give a psalm about change.
So here's the second
coming of my proclamation.
I don't want to change
this goddamned world. If it
were perfect,
I'd be bored;
and as sportswriter Red Smith
wrote as a recap for the 'shot heard 'round the world',
"the art of fiction is dead.”
With invention in the gas chamber,
the ‘inexpressibly fantastic’ breathes life
disguised as small changes for the homeless earth.
The day that the earth heals,
finds shelter from our storm, and fiction dies
will find me keeled over
on my side.
Only idealists are on the earth's side,
and I don't even like baseball,
but I do like Emerson from what I've heard.
Living is a condition, a contradiction,
and it wouldn't be right if a few weren't starving.
If ancient forests weren't dying.
If species weren't vanishing.
If people weren't overpopulating.
If cheese weren't molding.
I'd continue,
but
I'd fear I'd
be caught in an open field
and skinned alive
by the same members of such animal rights
groups that frown upon these matters
by the hands of others.
It's not my earth to lose, but if I do, it's taking me
with it too. Hand in unlovable
soil. Letting the Lucullan dirt
seep through my fingers
and right back to the earth. Exactly
as I left it. With some
improvements. A monument
of our time spent together.
With the piss stains of urban decay
together with the earthworm humus
stench among us.
And I've
overwelcomed
my stay.
Editor's Note: I'm not the only cynical person. I was listening to the Mountain Goats' "No Children" where a major key is conflicted with the lyrics: "You are coming down with me / hand in unlovable hand / and I hope you die / I hope we both die". After the last line, a mother looked to her child smiling and commented, "This is a nice song, isn't it?" Ha. Ah yes, the shared moments.
nor any others. This is not an imitation
of the oft-slandered sloth,
but a call to keep the world as is.
I'll take it used, refurbished, an open present
on some forgotten Christmas.
I'll take the display model, the only one worth saving.
The only gift worth giving.
The reused mistletoe over a bed of miscreants.
I'll take it, scratches and dents intact,
sans the instruction manual.
Instructions are like reading the Bible,
and I could give a psalm about change.
So here's the second
coming of my proclamation.
I don't want to change
this goddamned world. If it
were perfect,
I'd be bored;
and as sportswriter Red Smith
wrote as a recap for the 'shot heard 'round the world',
"the art of fiction is dead.”
With invention in the gas chamber,
the ‘inexpressibly fantastic’ breathes life
disguised as small changes for the homeless earth.
The day that the earth heals,
finds shelter from our storm, and fiction dies
will find me keeled over
on my side.
Only idealists are on the earth's side,
and I don't even like baseball,
but I do like Emerson from what I've heard.
Living is a condition, a contradiction,
and it wouldn't be right if a few weren't starving.
If ancient forests weren't dying.
If species weren't vanishing.
If people weren't overpopulating.
If cheese weren't molding.
I'd continue,
but
I'd fear I'd
be caught in an open field
and skinned alive
by the same members of such animal rights
groups that frown upon these matters
by the hands of others.
It's not my earth to lose, but if I do, it's taking me
with it too. Hand in unlovable
soil. Letting the Lucullan dirt
seep through my fingers
and right back to the earth. Exactly
as I left it. With some
improvements. A monument
of our time spent together.
With the piss stains of urban decay
together with the earthworm humus
stench among us.
And I've
overwelcomed
my stay.
Editor's Note: I'm not the only cynical person. I was listening to the Mountain Goats' "No Children" where a major key is conflicted with the lyrics: "You are coming down with me / hand in unlovable hand / and I hope you die / I hope we both die". After the last line, a mother looked to her child smiling and commented, "This is a nice song, isn't it?" Ha. Ah yes, the shared moments.
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