NEIL LESLIE DIAMOND was cool long before RICK RUBIN decided to go all back-to-basics "JOHNNY CASH" on his ass. He's not known as the Jewish ELVIS for nothin', folks....[MP3] "Solitary Man" [1966]
[MP3] "Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon" [1967]
[MP3] "Sweet Caroline" [1969]
[MP3] "If You Know What I Mean" [1976]
[MP3] "You Don't Bring Me Flowers" [w/BARBRA STREISAND] [1978]
[MP3] "Love on the Rocks" [1980]
[MP3] "America" [1980]
[MP3] "Evermore" [2005]
Seems I've been getting my decades a bit discombobulated lately....
Sunday's way-back-machine offerings have recently shifted from the '60s to the '70s, while the last batch of Zip-File downloads were oriented toward the '80s. Now, just to keep things all unpredictable and "edgy," I've gone ahead and cobbled together a couple more '60s compilations for your listening pleasure. To tell you the truth, I think they're pretty groovy. I hope that you'll agree....
Left-click [HERE] to download you some grooviness.
Portal to previous '60s mixes [HERE].
THE '60s #4 TRACKLIST >>>
1 the temptations/get ready
2 the exciters/tell him
3 the four tops/i can't help myself (sugar pie, honey bunch)
4 the supremes/love child
5 the ventures/"hawaii five-o" theme
6 the byrds/turn! turn! turn! (to everything there is a season)
7 creedence clearwater revival/who'll stop the rain
8 the kinks/waterloo sunset
9 peter & gordon/i go to pieces
10 marianne faithfull/as tears go by
11 herman's hermits/no milk today
12 gerry & the pacemakers/don't let the sun catch you crying
13 chad & jeremy/a summer song
14 the righteous brothers/you've lost that lovin' feelin'
15 dionne warwick/what the world needs now is love
16 otis redding/sittin' on the dock of the bay
17 sam the sham & the pharoahs/wooly bully
18 the animals/don't let me be misunderstood
19 the jimi hendrix experience/all along the watchtower
20 procol harum/a whiter shade of pale
21 elvis presley/suspicious minds
22 frankie valli & the four seasons/big girls don't cry
23 little peggy march/i will follow him (chariot)
24 the searchers/love potion no. 9
25 lou christie/lightnin' strikes
26 petula clark/my love
27 maurice williams & the zodiacs/stay
28 lesley gore/maybe i know
Eleven years after "Novocaine for the Soul" became a staple of the MTV Buzz Bin, MARK OLIVER EVERETT's EELS are still plugging along, still insinuating dark-edged ire and irony into the popular culture. Indeed, Everett's compositions have found their way into everything from kids' films to horror flicks; sitcoms to crime procedurals. Perhaps it's his penchant for toy pianos, music-box FX, and play-that-funky-music-white-boy percussion that helps to sweeten his more acidic literary efforts. And there can be little doubt that he picked an ideal time to ply his trade as a deadpan troubador. One can easily imagine Jerry Seinfeld listening to Eels while eating his cereal. And both the British and American characters on "The Office" could use this music as inspirational backdrop for updating their resumes. Or their suicide notes.
January 15, 2008 will see the simultaneous release of MEET THE EELS (ESSENTIAL EELS 1996-2006) and USELESS TRINKETS -- the latter a two-CD, one-DVD compilation of b-sides, soundtrack offerings, and unreleased extras.
So, at this time of officially-sanctioned looking-back and taking-stock, it seems wholly appropriate to walk our way back over Eels' career (with the concluding "Part 2" to come on Monday).
EELS on MySPACE.
From the LP WITH STRINGS: LIVE AT TOWN HALL, 2006 >>>
[MP3] "Pretty Ballerina"
[MP3] "Dirty Girl"
From the 2-LP BLINKING LIGHTS AND OTHER REVELATIONS, 2005 >>>
[MP3] "Old Shit/New Shit"
[MP3] "Losing Streak"
[MP3] "Railroad Man"
[MP3] "Hey Man (Now You're Really Living)"
From the LP SHOOTENANNY!, 2003 >>>
[MP3] "Saturday Morning"
[MP3] "Lone Wolf"
From the LP SOULJACKER, 2001 >>>
[MP3] "Souljacker, Pt. I"
[MP3] "That's Not Really Funny"
CITIZENS HERE AND ABROAD are a dream-popping San Francisco foursome who eschew verse-chorus-verse conventionalism for a more eccentric, circuitous sound. Fortunately -- like the proverbial blind squirrel -- they do happen upon some sustenance every now and again, with ADRIENNE ROBILLARD's cool-as-a-young-good-looking-corpse vocals leading the way. CITIZENS HERE AND ABROAD on MySPACE.From the LP WAVING, NOT DROWNING, 2006 >>>[MP3] [VID] "Accelerator"[MP3] [VID] "Stranger"From the LP GHOSTS OF TABLES AND CHAIRS, 2004 >>>[MP3] [VID] "Appearances"[MP3] "Enter the Elevator"
Australian twee? Who knew?AGNES KAIN, that's who -- the boy/girl duo from the Sydney suburbs whose darker edges and sharper elbows only emerge after a Tooheys or two (or ten). For the most part, though, they're a perky pair -- partial to bouncy basslines, piano, and handclaps. Every now and again: a touch of tambourine... a squiggle of violin. One guesses they've never heard an AC/DC song in their life -- unless BELLE AND SEBASTIAN or YO LA TENGO or DRESSY BESSY or somebody ever took a swing at "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" (which one or both or all of them absolutely ought to).The songs below sound a smidgen too similar for my tastes, but -- as I consider them the two best efforts on Agnes Kain's debut LP (KEEP WALKING OR I'LL KILL YOU) -- they needs must suffice....
AGNES KAIN on MySPACE.
[MP3] "Puddles & Mud"
[MP3] "All Time High"
[Nothing like a nice, 13-hour power outage to throw a wrench into the ol' posting schedule. So... here will be some songs. Later, there oughtta be some more... electricity-willing.]GOLDFRAPP's new CD, SEVENTH TREE, will be released February 25, 2008. It dials down the "dance" from their two previous efforts, choosing to walk a more subtle, mellow path. Quite a sudden sea-change. Bound to piss some people off.GOLDFRAPP on MySPACE.From the LP SEVENTH TREE, 2008 >>>
[MP3] "A&E"
From the LP SUPERNATURE, 2006 >>>
[MP3] "Ooh La La"
From the LP BLACK CHERRY, 2003 >>>
[MP3] "Strict Machine"
From the LP FELT MOUNTAIN, 2000 >>>
[MP3] "Utopia"
For this thirtysomething blogger, "You're So Vain" will always be the pinnacle of CARLY SIMON's career. It don't matter to me [see BREAD, below] whether it's dishing on JAMES TAYLOR, MICK JAGGER, CAT STEVENS, KRIS KRISTOFFERSON, or Warren Beatty; it's a cracklin' good tune, however you slice and dice it. (Just ask JANET JACKSON; she'll tell you. FASTER PUSSYCAT, too. QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE. LES SAVY FAV. And many, many others so vain they probably think this post is about them....)
[MP3] "You're So Vain" [1972]
[MP3] "That's the Way I've Always Heard It Should Be" [1971]
[MP3] "The Right Thing to Do" [1972]
[MP3] "Coming Around Again" [1987]
(Simon's quite succulent James Bond theme, "Nobody Does It Better" [1977], is right [HERE], if you haven't already grabbed it.)
Now, I'm not necessarily suggesting that '90s/'00s pastoral Britpoppers TRAVIS have organized their career around becoming the modern-day incarnation of '70s American soft rockers BREAD, but, I mean, come on.... have you listened to THE MAN WHO lately? Such sweet, pretty, peaceful cheese (and -- other than vegans and the lactose-intolerant -- who doesn't love a nice piece of cheese every now and again?).
[MP3] "Make It With You" [1970]
[MP3] "If" [1971]
[MP3] "Sweet Surrender" [1972]
[MP3] "Diary" [1972]
Please left-click [HERE] to download this month's loveably motley lot.
Portal to previous monthly mixes [HERE].
NOVEMBER 2007 TRACKLIST >>>
01) THE PIXIES/Here Comes Your Man
02) EARLIMART/Happy Alone
03) SHOUT OUT LOUDS/You Are Dreaming
04) SAMBASSADEUR/That Town
05) TOM PETTY/Down South
06) ONETWO/Sequential
07) BLOC PARTY/Flux
08) WOODPIGEON/The Alison Yip School for Girls
09) MILBURN/Lipstick Licking
10) THE HOT TODDIES/HTML
11) LACROSSE/No More Lovesongs
12) SISSY WISH/Beauties Never Die
13) GHOSTS/Musical Chairs
14) WIRE DAISIES/Gay Boy [radio edit]
15) MATT POND PA/Giving It All Away
16) THE 1900s/The Medium Way
17) ARCADE FIRE/Ocean of Noise
18) MGMT/Time to Pretend
19) BLACK BOX RECORDER/Rock 'n' Roll Suicide
20) McALMONT AND BUTLER/Falling
THE AFTERNOONS are from Cardiff, Wales and traffic in indie power-pop. I'd thought that their album ROCKET SUMMER was a 2007 release, but it turns out that it's been around since '05. It was new to me, in any case.The title track evokes BIG STAR and down-tempo FOUNTAINS OF WAYNE, while "See You Again" is gently-chugging piano pop in the vein of KEANE. Won't set the world on fire, but nice enough stuff nevertheless.
THE AFTERNOONS on MySPACE.
[MP3] "Rocket Summer"
[MP3] "See You Again"
Bad morn rising. So I'm going to let the never-ever inaccurate WIKIPEDIA introduce you to today's artist: "JAY-JAY JOHANSON (born 1969) is a Swedish musician and singer-songwriter, best known for his easily recognizable melancolic [sic] vocals and his androgynous looks. His music has been generally considered to integrate the trip-hop genre until he deliberatedly switched his sound to a more electroclash-oriented direction with the 2003 release ANTENNA." 'Twill have to suffice....(But don't let the "trip-hop" label deter your downloads. That's not a genre I've much trucked in in the past, and this post signals no significant shift in my musical tastes or intentions. Thus, indie-pop will continue to hold sway -- at least until I go through my acid-jazz phase, which is tentatively scheduled for September 2011.)
JAY-JAY JOHANSON on MySPACE.
JAY-JAY JOHANSON continent hopping >>>
Nov 30 2007 8:00P/Minsk/BELARUS
Dec 4 2007 8:00P/FRIBOURG/Le Transformateur/SWITZERLAND
Dec 5 2007 8:00P/BASEL/Das Schiff/SWITZERLAND
Dec 6 2007 8:00P/BERN/I.S.C./SWITZERLAND
Dec 8 2007 8:00P/GUADALAJARA/MEXICO
Dec 13 2007 8:00P/MOSCOW/B1/RUSSIA
From the LP LONG TERM PHYSICAL EFFECTS ARE NOT YET KNOWN, 2007 >>>
[MP3] "Time Will Show Me"
[MP3] "Tell Me When the Party's Over/Prequiem"
From the LP RUSH, 2005 >>>
[MP3] "Mirror Man"
From the LP ANTENNA, 2003 >>>
[MP3] "On the Radio"
[MP3] "Automatic Lover"
From the LP POISON, 2000 >>>
[MP3] "Colder (I Want You No More)"
From the LP TATTOO, 1998 >>>
[MP3] "Friday at Rex"
BONUS TRACK >>>
[MP3] THE TEA SERVANTS/"I Wanna Be Jay Jay Johanson"
The name of the band is THE KINDNESS KIND. Which is a shame. I mean, really really a shame. I mean, shame on the Kindness Kind for calling themselves the Kindness Kind.
(I'm so upset by this, I'm going to stop writing this post. Right now. As an act of protest.) (Except to suggest that these people immediately change their name to MOHAMMED THE BEAR. It's cute and timely but mostly cute.) (They might want to leave Khartoum off the concert itinery, however. This is no small consideration.)
MOHAMMED THE BEAR... er... THE KINDNESS KIND in their native Seattle >>>
Nov 30 2007 5:00P/NECTAR w/The Most Serene Republic! FREE!!!!!/Seattle, Washington
Dec 7 2007 8:45P/ACT THEATRE - w/Kate Tucker & the Sons of Sweden (CD RELEASE)/Seattle, Washington
Dec 29 2007 7:00P/EL CORAZON - w/Siberian, Colonies/Seattle, Washington
[MP3] "Quiet Words Are Quiet Words"
[MP3] "The Rain Came Late"
For our posting purposes today, TOAD THE WET SPROCKET qualifies as half a "dead band." Despite officially announcing their dissolution in 1998, they've continued to tour together. On practical, economic grounds, one can only suppose. No shame in that.
Apparently, there is still an audience for the sort of light, vaguely rootsy rock that bubbled up in the wake of R.E.M. losing its religion. Toad the Wet Sprocket -- along with COUNTING CROWS, GIN BLOSSOMS, LIVE, and so on -- were there to provide a "softer" alternative to the alternative (read: NIRVANA & PEARL JAM-styled grunge and GREEN DAY & OFFSPRING-styled pop-punk). Not the most impressive of legacies, perhaps -- but one that's proven to be more resilient than we might have predicted back in the day.
TOAD THE WET SPROCKET on MySPACE.
TOAD THE WET SPROCKET on the road in early '08 >>>
Jan 17 2008 8:00P/Jannus Landing/St. Petersburg, Florida
Jan 18 2008 7:30P/HOB Orlando/Orlando, Florida
Jan 19-24 2008 8:00A/The Rock Boat VIII/Miami, Florida
Jan 25 2008 6:30P/Ann Arbor Folk Festival/Ann Arbor, Michigan
Jan 26 2008 6:30P/Ann Arbor Folk Festival/Ann Arbor, Michigan
From the LP DULCINEA, 1994 >>>
[MP3] "Fall Down"
[MP3] "Something's Always Wrong"
From the LP FEAR, 1991 >>>
[MP3] "All I Want"
From the LP COIL, 1997 >>>
[MP3] "Crazy Life"
In recent weeks, I've been re-listening to a series of this year's CDs as a prologue to my eventual Top 12 (or so) Albums of 2007. I know you can hardly wait for the final tally; the air is thick with anticipation (metaphorically-speaking, at least). Unlike some early-bird, eager-beaver bloggers, however, I will wait until this calendar year has actually come to a close before compiling my final line-up. You just never know what through-the-roof behemoth or under-the-radar overachiever might be waiting in the wings for a December 18th or 31st release.
(On the other hand, the wait for the always much-sought-after Plague of Angels Best of November mix is almost over. Look for it Friday.)
One 2007 LP I just eliminated from Top 12 (or so) consideration this past weekend is TEGAN AND SARA's THE CON. As indie-pop efforts go, it's perfectly okay. It's just that I thought the identical twins from Canada's Calgary were better on 2004's new wave-y SO JEALOUS. The songs were stronger; the melodies more memorable. Still, THE CON is a worthwhile follow-up, and those of you out-and-about in my beloved Ann Arbor today can catch the ladies live and in-person.
TEGAN AND SARA on MySPACE.
TEGAN AND SARA, world-travelers >>>
Nov 27 2007 12:30P/Borders In-Store/Ann Arbor, Michigan
Nov 28 2007 8:00P/St. Andrews - SOLD OUT/Detroit
Nov 29 2007 8:00P/Portage Theater - SOLD OUT/Chicago, Illinois
Nov 30 2007 8:00P/Pantages Theater - SOLD OUT/Minneapolis, Minnesota
Dec 3 2007 8:00P/Showbox - SOLD OUT/Seattle, Washington
Dec 4 2007 8:00P/Crystal Ballroom - SOLD OUT/Portland, Oregon
Dec 5 2007 8:00P/The Senator/Chico, California
Dec 10 2007 8:00P/Metropolis Fremantle/Fremantle, Western Australia
Dec 12 2007 8:00P/Forum Theatre - SOLD OUT/Melbourne, Victoria
Dec 13 2007 8:00P/Enmore Theatre - SOLD OUT/Newtown, New South Wales
Dec 15 2007 8:00P/Tivoli Theatre - SOLD OUT/Fortitude Valley, Queensland
Feb 22 2008 8:00P/Concorde/Brighton
From the LP THE CON, 2007 >>>
[MP3] "Relief Next to Me"
[MP3] "Back in Your Head"
From the LP SO JEALOUS, 2004 >>>
[MP3] "Walking With a Ghost"
[MP3] "I Know I Know I Know"
From the LP IF IT WAS YOU, 2002 >>>
[MP3] "Underwater"
Birmingham, England's OCEAN COLOUR SCENE carved out a small slice of the '90s Britpop pie, primarily on the strength of 1996's critically-acclaimed MOSELEY SHOALS. Like friends and contemporaries OASIS, they owe a very conscious debt to '60s rock and pop.Their latest album, ON THE LEYLINE, came out (rather quietly) earlier this year.OCEAN COLOUR SCENE on MySPACE.
From the LP ON THE LEYLINE, 2007 >>>
[MP3] "I Just Got Over You"
[MP3] "You'll Never Find Me"From the LP MOSELEY SHOALS, 1996 >>>[MP3] "The Circle"
Based solely on the photographs on their MySpace page, one might assume that Oakland, CA's THE HOT TODDIES are just a gaggle of girls lookin' to live la vida loca. Will flash for beads. And mojitos.While this may, in fact, be the case, it should be noted that HEIDI, ERIN, SYLVIA, and JESSICA are also pop musicians. On their new LP, SMELL THE MITTEN, the proceedings lean toward the cheeky. If you're in the mood for a bit of evil-carnival twee ("Anais Nin..."), or just have a hankering to hear what THE CHIPMUNKS would sound like doing a '50s doo-wop lament ("HTML"), then you've come to the right place.THE HOT TODDIES shakin' their moneymakers >>>
Dec 1 2007 6:00P/Vets Hall/Santa Cruz, California
Dec 20 2007 8:00P/Bottom of the Hill - (18+!!)/San Francisco, California
Jan 4 2008 9:00P/The Uptown/Oakland, California
[MP3] "Anais Nin vs. the Pirates of Santa Cruz"
[MP3] "HTML"
When I was in the second grade at Lewis Cass Elementary School in 1977-1978, there was an unpopular girl by the name of Kelly Biega in my homeroom class. For the most part, she was just ignored. On Valentine's Day, she was the only person who didn't receive a card. Not a single one. After school, on the sidewalk walking home, "Step on a crack and you love Kelly Biega" was the boys' constant, taunting refrain. "Step on a crack and you have to kiss Kelly Biega." I'm sure I said those things myself. I'm sure I made avoiding those cracks in the concrete a mission in my life. To do otherwise would have made me a pariah. And who could bear that at the tender age of seven?One day in class, without anybody particularly noticing, Kelly Biega slipped into the girls' bathroom that adjoined our classroom. Minutes later, our spelling lesson was stopped cold by the sound of her voice -- high-pitched and shrill -- "You're ugly! You're ugly! You're ugly." Though we couldn't see her in there, the picture was clear. She was shouting at herself in the mirror. Over and over and over and over. "You're ugly!"I remember the teacher (Miss Magda) going in, quieting Kelly Biega down, leading her out. Out of the bathroom and out of the class. I remember that that was the last time we ever saw Kelly Biega. The rumor was that her parents had pulled her out of school and moved to a different city. Just like that. Gone.A few years ago, I was glancing through some old photographs when I came upon my second-grade class picture. I remembered all of the names and faces -- 15 boys, 15 girls, give or take. And there was Kelly Biega, smiling shyly, light brown hair with a barrette in the shape of a daisy. I looked at the other girls in the picture. I looked at the other boys. And it was so incredibly clear that it stunned me: Kelly Biega was beautiful. By all rights, she should have been the most popular girl in the class. She should have been drowning in Valentine's Day cards. She should have been our lodestar. Instead, we made her our pariah. The butt of our jokes and the myth and monster at the heart of our games. We drove her to that bathroom mirror that day. We drove her away. Around the time that all of that was happening, JANIS IAN had her biggest hit -- the sad-sack, melodramatic-to-the-point-of-parody smash "At Seventeen." Listening to it now, my head thinks it's an awful song; my heart feels it's a work of genius. And I can't help remembering Kelly Biega. As the teacher led her out of the classroom that day, was she about to embark on a new beginning or had she reached the end? Was it all just a cry for help or a declaration of surrender? Did she even make it to 17, in that new school, in that different city? I'm sure I'll never know, and it's the not knowing that haunts me, even 30 years after the fact....
[MP3] "At Seventeen"
[MP3] "In the Winter"
[MP3] "Lover's Lullaby"
[MP3] "Tea and Sympathy"
The Plymouth colonists celebrate the first Thanksgiving with the Wampanoag people. Afterward, tribal chief Massasoit [seated left-center, with tallest & most abundant head-feathers] speaks highly of the turkey, maize, and mussels, but heaps highest praise on settler Josiah Bacardi [standing right, with hunting sword, lobstertail helmet & "Ye Olde Worlde's Greateste Grandpa" mug] and his "devilishly addictive, crisp as a New England breeze" rum & cranberry concoction.
The younger members of the Lancaster family share a good laugh at the expense of their dog-loving, Alzheimer's-suffering grandparents, Joseph & Irene. Suffice it to say, that's not a turkey ol' Joe's about to carve!Today is the day we Americans get even fatter than we already are chasing our collective tryptophan fix sitting on our collective fat ass watching Cowboys conquer and Lions lie down. As for me, I'm gonna have a tuna-fish sandwich. Maybe some soup. Total Cranberry Crunch cereal for dessert. Then, I'll either take a nap or call 911 and commit Suicide-by-Cop. Whichever suits me at the time.
Since I'm sure more than half of this blog's usual visitors will be AWOL today, I'm going to risk doing something different. Which is to say: I'm going to deluge you with classical music until I've put you in a holiday mood (kinda sorta maybe).
Fact is, a little non-pop-rock-blah-blah-blah may make for a welcome respite, so here goes....
This is an American holiday (our Canadian friends celebrate Thanksgiving on an entirely different day, and do so by sacrificing mooses to the hockey gods), so it only seems sporting to exhume a couple of American composers' corpses & compositions & so forth:
[MP3] COPLAND, AARON (1900-1990)/"Fanfare for the Common Man" [3:04]
[MP3] COPLAND/"Hoe-Down" ["Beef, it's what's for dinner!"] [3:17]
[MP3] COPLAND/"Saturday Night Waltz" [4:22]
[MP3] BARBER, SAMUEL (1910-1981)/"Agnus Dei" aka "Adagio for Strings" [Wherefore art thou, Tom Berenger?] [6:14]
BACH, JOHANN SEBASTIAN (1685-1750) wasn't American and probably would have been fashioning intricate hymns to Hitler if he'd lived during the Third Reich, but he sure as hell knew his way around a hummable, uplifting tune....
[MP3] BACH/"Sleepers, Awake!" [4:03]
The same can be said for MENDELSSOHN, FELIX aka "Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" (1809-1847). The "same" as in "knew his way around a hummable, uplifting tune," not the same as in "fashioning hymns to Hitler," seeing as Mendelssohn was Jewish and all.) Fact is, I've been meaning to post the following overture for ages aka "eons" now. There's a secondary theme in there that more or less mirrors a fairly famous melody from a fairly famous favorite band of mine. Be the first to identify the band (and song), and I'll send you a right purty prize (providing you provide an e-mail address).
[MP3] MENDELSSOHN/"Hebrides Overture" aka "Fingal's Cave" [9:52]
WINSTON, GEORGE (1949- ) isn't a classical musician. "New age," more like. He is, however, American. And I have a soft spot for the subsequent little song-suite, which seems oh-so-apropos for the season....
[MP3] WINSTON/"Thanksgiving" [4:04]
[MP3] WINSTON/"Variations on the Kanon" [PACHELBEL, JOHANN (1653-1706)] [5:21]
[MP3] WINSTON/"Carol of the Bells" [3:56]
There. Now didn't that make you feel all tingly and "cultured"? This is MICHAEL aka "MOLOTOV" aka "FURLEY" aka "MAALOX" aka "JOE GILLIS" (1970- ), signing off from a PLAGUE of ANGELS (2005- ).
Until tomorrow....
Seems I've been getting my decades a bit discombobulated lately....
Eleven years after "Novocaine for the Soul" became a staple of the MTV Buzz Bin, MARK OLIVER EVERETT's EELS are still plugging along, still insinuating dark-edged ire and irony into the popular culture. Indeed, Everett's compositions have found their way into everything from kids' films to horror flicks; sitcoms to crime procedurals. Perhaps it's his penchant for toy pianos, music-box FX, and play-that-funky-music-white-boy percussion that helps to sweeten his more acidic literary efforts. And there can be little doubt that he picked an ideal time to ply his trade as a deadpan troubador. One can easily imagine Jerry Seinfeld listening to Eels while eating his cereal. And both the British and American characters on "The Office" could use this music as inspirational backdrop for updating their resumes. Or their suicide notes.
Australian twee? Who knew?
[Nothing like a nice, 13-hour power outage to throw a wrench into the ol' posting schedule. So... here will be some songs. Later, there oughtta be some more... electricity-willing.]
For this thirtysomething blogger, "You're So Vain" will always be the pinnacle of CARLY SIMON's career. It don't matter to me [see BREAD, below] whether it's dishing on JAMES TAYLOR, MICK JAGGER, CAT STEVENS, KRIS KRISTOFFERSON, or Warren Beatty; it's a cracklin' good tune, however you slice and dice it. (Just ask JANET JACKSON; she'll tell you. FASTER PUSSYCAT, too. QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE. LES SAVY FAV. And many, many others so vain they probably think this post is about them....)
Now, I'm not necessarily suggesting that '90s/'00s pastoral Britpoppers TRAVIS have organized their career around becoming the modern-day incarnation of '70s American soft rockers BREAD, but, I mean, come on.... have you listened to THE MAN WHO lately? Such sweet, pretty, peaceful cheese (and -- other than vegans and the lactose-intolerant -- who doesn't love a nice piece of cheese every now and again?).
Please left-click [HERE] to download this month's loveably motley lot.
Bad morn rising. So I'm going to let the never-ever inaccurate WIKIPEDIA introduce you to today's artist: "JAY-JAY JOHANSON (born 1969) is a Swedish musician and singer-songwriter, best known for his easily recognizable melancolic [sic] vocals and his androgynous looks. His music has been generally considered to integrate the trip-hop genre until he deliberatedly switched his sound to a more electroclash-oriented direction with the 2003 release ANTENNA." 'Twill have to suffice....
The name of the band is THE KINDNESS KIND. Which is a shame. I mean, really really a shame. I mean, shame on the Kindness Kind for calling themselves the Kindness Kind.
For our posting purposes today, TOAD THE WET SPROCKET qualifies as half a "dead band." Despite officially announcing their dissolution in 1998, they've continued to tour together. On practical, economic grounds, one can only suppose. No shame in that.
In recent weeks, I've been re-listening to a series of this year's CDs as a prologue to my eventual Top 12 (or so) Albums of 2007. I know you can hardly wait for the final tally; the air is thick with anticipation (metaphorically-speaking, at least). Unlike some early-bird, eager-beaver bloggers, however, I will wait until this calendar year has actually come to a close before compiling my final line-up. You just never know what through-the-roof behemoth or under-the-radar overachiever might be waiting in the wings for a December 18th or 31st release.
Birmingham, England's OCEAN COLOUR SCENE carved out a small slice of the '90s Britpop pie, primarily on the strength of 1996's critically-acclaimed MOSELEY SHOALS. Like friends and contemporaries OASIS, they owe a very conscious debt to '60s rock and pop.
Based solely on the photographs on their MySpace page, one might assume that Oakland, CA's THE HOT TODDIES are just a gaggle of girls lookin' to live la vida loca. Will flash for beads. And mojitos.
Two years after being diagnosed with breast cancer, dance diva/pop princess KYLIE MINOGUE is back from the brink with X, the 10th studio album of her 20-year career. Release date: November 26.
PANTS YELL! are three dudes from Massachusetts who want to put their peanut butter in your chocolate (or... you know... vice versa). Betcha they listen to THE PIXIES and THE SMITHS. Scruffy indie-pop for a Friday afternoon.
The Plymouth colonists celebrate the first Thanksgiving with the Wampanoag people. Afterward, tribal chief Massasoit [seated left-center, with tallest & most abundant head-feathers] speaks highly of the turkey, maize, and mussels, but heaps highest praise on settler Josiah Bacardi [standing right, with hunting sword, lobstertail helmet & "Ye Olde Worlde's Greateste Grandpa" mug] and his "devilishly addictive, crisp as a New England breeze" rum & cranberry concoction.
The younger members of the Lancaster family share a good laugh at the expense of their dog-loving, Alzheimer's-suffering grandparents, Joseph & Irene. Suffice it to say, that's not a turkey ol' Joe's about to carve!
