Conqueror of the Moon

The Best Records of 2011

2012-01-04T17:07:00.000-08:00

01. Mike Viola | Electro de Perfecto

The ex-Candy Butcher, mostly known for singing the lead vocal on the track 'That Thing You Do' from the film of the same name, has delivered his best record in years. It's smart, song-focused, hook filled and thematically, a bit off-kilter. The arrangements & instrumentation have been honed down to the bare essentials of guitar, bass & drums, which has not been the case with recent efforts. To be honest, my first listen came across as somewhat dull, but it just kept getting better and better and better and better.....

02. Centro-matic | Candidate Waltz

Seamless, powerful, and songs that require repeated listens, Will Johnson has created his best record to date in an already deep catalogue.

03. Daniel Romano | Sleep Beneath The Willow

Written, recorded & played mostly by Daniel, these songs add up to the traditional country record of the year.

04. The Vinyl Skyway | Return of The Dead Surfer

Excellent "Sunday a.m." pop record, replete with strong melodies, hooks and well done vocals. While guitars jangle, vocals and counter harmonies twist and move, as if to summon their inner 'Byrds'. Just about every song was stuck in my head at some point or another. 'Misty Morning Fog' is easily one of the best songs of the year.

05. Richmond Fontaine | The High Country

Concept record (songs done with spoken word & instrumental interludes) set in a rural logging community in Oregon. This is a bleak record set in a world of madness, drugs & loneliness and offers no redemption. It does offer up the moving title track, one of my favorites of 2011, sung by Deborah Kelly of The Damnations. I also recommend picking up any of Willy Vlautin's three novels if you'rea fan of John Fante & Raymond Carver.

06. An American Underdog | Always on the Run

Andy Reed certainly knows his way around a song as he delivers the goods on this exceedingly tuneful record done at his very own 'Reed Recording Co'. I can't help but think of a "young" Jon Brion while listening to this, especially on some of the later tracks on the record. Expect to hear great things from Andy in the future.

07. Peter Bruntnell | Black Mountain UFO

In Britian they call him the godfather of UK Americana and why his songs should be taught in schools. Hyberbole or not, Black Mountain UFO isn't as complete as previous efforts and it took a few plays to kick in, but it contains excellent material and is a worthy entry into the Bruntnell book of songwriting.

08. The Booze | At Maximum Volume

I wanted to hate this record cos there wasn't a single, original thing about it. I caved. RIYL : The Stones & rock n roll.

09. Pugwash | The Olympus Sound

Thomas Walsh continues the trend releasing his fifth platter of Beatlesque, ELO power-pop, or variant thereof. He's a first class songwriter and the best kept secret in all of Ireland.

10. Hayes Carll | Kmag YoYo

I heard this for the first time in December, 2010 and kept coming back to it again and again all year. Country, honky tonk and songs of gravity and humour. Hayes is one funny mother-effer. What's not to like?

11. The Gourds | Old Mad Joy

They're back with their best record in years. This time they plugged in the electric guitars.

12. The Breakdowns | The Kids Don't Want To Bop Anymore

Perfect amalgamation of '77 New York City & 50's DooWop fabulous. Play it loud.

13. Jason Isbell | Here We Rest

I heard & read varying opinions on this all year, but finally took the plunge in mid November. I'm ostensibly dubious with just about every record I hear for the first time and this was no different. It came across as bland alt-country with paint by number chord changes. After a few plays, and then several more, things started to settle in. Makes me wonder if DBT miss his contributions. Alabama Pines, Codeine, Daisy Mae = some of his best work to date.

14. Gillian Welch | The Harrow and the Harvest

Some find it boring, repetitive and "old timey." As a friend of mine who likes the record pointed out, "the problem with modern music, is that there's too much of it and most of it just isn't good." I may not entirely agree, but here, that's not the case. After eight years, I 'm thankful Gillian & Dave decided to give us another platter of good songs.

15. Raphael Saadiq | Stone Rollin'

Throwback irony ? Retro? Call it whatever you want. It's my first taste of Mr. Saadiq and I'm not ashamed to say I love this record.

16. Dum Dum Girls | Your Only Dream

Guitar & surf beats drowning in reverb with a bit of Chrissie Hynde thrown in for good measure. It doesn't matter if the songs are delivered cleverly or not, cos this record delivers a lyrical punch to the gut.

17. Joe Henry | Reverie

Mining the same territory of recent efforts, Joe delivers another record of style and class.

18. Robert Pollard | Space City Kicks

The avuncular one from Dayton releases his poppiest records in years.

19. Fleet Foxes | Helplessness Blues

My interest in this somewhat waned over the course of the year, but I've been revisiting the last month or so and I've come to the conclusion that it surpasses their debut offering. If lush, orchestral folk is your thing, look no further. The title track is still one of the best of the year.

20. Tommy Keene | Behind The Parade

Power-popper from the 80's releases another record of smart, melodic, power chord, rock n roll.

Honorable mention :

Cirrone | Uplands Park Road

Italian power pop. RIYL : Badfinger and plenty of melody.

Daniel Tashian | Arthur

70's AM radio done the "right" way. I look forward to the new Silver Seas record.

Richard Buckner | Our Blood

Any other year, this would be Top 5 cos it's Richard Buckner. It does have plenty of redeeming qualities, mostly his delivery & lyrical content. As an aside, I wish someone would've asked him if it was necessary to employ that horrible sounding Fender Rhodes on just about every song.

John Moreland | Everything The Hard Way

RIYL : Lucero meets Slobberbone meets The Replacements.

The Phoenix Foundation | Buffalo

This record moves its way through several genres ending up with an epic, intelligent, pop record.

Ralph Covert & The Bad Examples | Smash Record

Three-chord, old school, Beatlesque pop. Fun record, not meant to be taken seriously. Just play the opener 'Big E Chord' and you'll be hooked.

Here's looking at you 2012

Pugwash Collection

2011-09-24T11:09:00.001-07:00

The Skinny :

Using the money from a compensation award following a childhood accident, Irish born Thomas Walsh set up a recording facility in a shed in his parents' garden. In the early 1990s, Walsh adopted Pugwash as a stage name and began recording some 150 demos to 4 track and, in 1995, one of those was named Demo of the Year by Irish zine Hot Press. In 1997 he signed a record deal with the now defunct Vélo Records and in 1999 released debut album Almond Tea. Within four weeks of its release it had been placed at No 23 in a list of the top albums of the millennium in Hot Press. In 2002, Pugwash released second album Almanac featuring contributions from collaborator Jason Falkner. Almanac was another collection of similarly melodic and retro-styled songs which invited comparisons to classic 1960s and 1970s pop. The record caught the ear of Andy Partridge, who would go on to name the single "Apples" as the most exciting track he had heard that year. In 2003, they returned to the studio to record a follow-up to Almanac and was involved with the setting up of 1969 Records with Daragh Bohan. The label would go on to release the next two Pugwash albums.
The recording of Pugwash's third album Jollity began after Walsh contacted Dave Gregory of XTC through a friend to ask Gregory to write some string arrangements. Impressed with the demos, Gregory readily agreed. After recording at Abbey Road Studios, Gregory introduced Walsh to Andy Partridge, following which Partridge went on to co-write the song "Anchor" with Walsh. Jollity was released on 1969 Records in Ireland on September 23, 2005 and was met with numerous glowing reviews.
Walsh announced he had started recording the follow-up to Jollity in May 2007. Later that month he revealed the working title of the record was 11 Modern Antiquities. The record was released on March 23 featuring contributions from Jason Falkner, Dave Gregory, Brian Wilson collaborator Nelson Bragg, Michael Penn and Andy Partridge. Partridge also co-wrote two of the tracks, "My Genius" and "At the Sea". Eleven Modern Antiquities was once again met with acclaim by critics. In January 2009, it was announced that Pugwash had signed a five-year deal with Partridge's Ape House label. The band's first release on Ape House was the compilation album Giddy, a collection of songs from Pugwash's four studio albums as selected by Partridge.

The new record, The Olympus Sound was released in August, 2011.

For what it's worth, Thomas Walsh is the real deal. If you can find their records, buy them. All of them.

RIYL : latter day XTC, Zombies, Beach Boys, harmonies a-gogo, melodies, superb songwriting and all the craft one would want in three minutes.

01. The Season of Flowers & Leaves
02. Apples
03. It's Nice to Be Nice
04. My Genius
05. Answers On a Postcard
06. Monorail
07. Fall Down
08. Cluster Bomb
09. Sunrise Sunset
10. Take Me Away
11. At The Sea
12. I Don't Like It But I Gotta Do It
13. Anyone Who Asks
14. Finer Things In Like
15. Two Wrongs
16. Following Down
17. Song For You
18. Everything We Need
19. Keep Movin On
20. Anchor

The Olympus Sound (2011)   5-7-12
Eleven Modern Antiquities (2008)   4-8-10-11-17
Jollity (2005)   3-20
Almanac (2002)  1-2-6-9-13-16-18-19
Almond Tea (1999) 14-15

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Boston Spaceships Collection

2011-06-05T12:15:00.001-07:00

With the new Boston Spaceships record, Let it Beard set to drop on August 1st, I've taken it upon my self to create an opener, an appetizer if you will of the Boston Spaceships back catalogue. It's pure rock n roll. Play it again & again & again.

Everything I've read about the new record is summed up perfectly here :

"Let's begin with a bold and yet entirely defensible premise: The new Boston Spaceships double album, Let It Beard, is the most ambitious, varied, sprawling — and yet entirely coherent— record that Robert Pollard has made in his entire career".

01 The Comedian
02 How Wrong You Are
03 Heavy Crown
04 Come On Baby Grace
05 Question Girl All Right
06 Canned Food Demons
07 Let It Rest For A Little While
08 Radical Amazement
09 Queen Of Stormy Weather
10 Meddle
11 Exploding Anthills
12 Winston's Atomic Bird
13 Go For The Exit
14 Freedom Rings
15 A Good Circuitry Soldier

File removed by request

#1-2-5-7-8-10-11-15 - Zero To 99
#3-6-9 - Planets Are Blasted
#4-14 - Our Cubehouse Rocks
#12-13 - Brown Submarine

Richard Buckner Collection

2011-05-11T16:41:00.000-07:00

After a five year wait, the new record from Richard Buckner, Our Blood is set to drop on August 2nd via Merge Records. As a result, I thought it high time to post a collection from a highly regarded songwriter and certainly one of the finest lyricists to ever grace a groove. Enjoy!

Goner With A Souvenir
Lil Wallet Picture
The Ocean Cliff Clearing
Faithful Shooter
Ariel Ramirez
4am
Jewelbomb
When Love Is Gone
Julia Miller
Fater
Town
Blue & Wonder
Born Into Giving It Up
A Chance Counsel
Firsts
A Goodbye Rye
Do You Want To Go Somewhere
Coursed
Put On What You Wanna
...& The Clouds've Lied
Emily Sparks
Boys, The Night Will Bury You
The Tether and The Tie
Song of 27
The Last Ride
Once

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#1,3,4,5,7,18,22,26 - Since (1998)
#2,6,10,16,24 - Devotion & Doubt (1997)
#9,21 - The Hill (2000)
#11,23 - Meadow (2006)
#13,19,20 - Impasse (2002)
#12,25 - Bloomed (1995)
#14,15 - Dents & Shells (2004)
#17 - Sir Dark Invader vs. The Fanglord (2005)
#8 - Real (Tom T Hall Tribute) (1998)

Peter Bruntnell : Black Mountain UFO

2011-04-05T18:28:00.000-07:00

ALL THE NEWS THAT'S FIT TO POST

Recorded in his home studio in Devon, "Black Mountain UFO" sees Peter finally making the great pop album he has always threatened to produce. It mixes West Coast harmonies with the requisite dab of psychedelia, all delivered in a characteristically British fashion (song titles name-check Reggie Perrin and Penelope Keith). The startling sleeve depicts the story which has emerged as the title track. A psych masterpiece, it sits comfortably on the album alongside other new Bruntnell classics like "St Christopher" and "Bruise On The Sky". The most interesting thing about Peter Bruntnell's music, and the reason for his devoted following, is the indefinable knack the songs have of locking into the listener's emotions, but no one quite understands how or why. There's no one else like him around, and now he's made the perfect pop record.

Courtesy of PeterBruntnell.net

Joe Henry Collection

2011-02-21T11:21:00.000-08:00

Revered among songwriters and pundits for both his music and producer skills, Joe has been making records for twenty-five years. From his early alt-country leanings (backed by The Jayhawks),to his more recent jazz excursions, Joe Henry oeuvre spans several genres while retaining class, integrity and a sense of adventurous spirit.

01 Richard Pryor Addresses A Tearful Nation
02 Stop
03 Rough And Tumble
04 Fat
05 Mean Flower
06 Curt Flood
07 Monkey
08 Skin And Teeth
09 This Afternoon
10 Civilians
11 Fuse
12 Trampoline
13 Angels
14 Ohio Air Show Plane Crash
15 Fireman's Wedding
16 Parade

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#1,2,3,5 - Scar
#4,6,7,8,11,13 - Fuse
#10 - Civilians
#12,14,16 - Trampoline
#9 - Tiny Voices
#15 - Kindness of The World

Yep

2011-02-08T16:07:00.001-08:00

01. Make It Always Be Too Late (J.Currie)
02. Crestfallen (J. Pernice)
03. Rocket Man (E. John, B. Taupin)
04. Just Getting By (J. Currie)
05. The Rain Song (M. Caputo)
06. Hesitating Beauty (W. Guthrie, J. Tweedy)
07. Sleeping With The Lights On (M. Bronleewe, T. Lassen)
08. Waterloo Sunset (R. Davies)
09. Noise And Confusion (A. Wauters)
10. So Sad (D. Everly)
11. Once (R. Buckner)

Yep

The game plan for the debut album by Yep seems straightforward enough. Al Chan (of The Rubinoos) and Mark Caputo (of Belleville) teamed up and cherry-picked some of their favorite songs from all over the pop continuum. They demonstrated great taste and impressive record collections in the process, creating a songwriters’ universe in which Don Everly, Ray Davies, Woody Guthrie, and Elton John stand shoulder to shoulder with Joe Pernice, Justin Currie, Teitur Lassen, Richard Buckner and Alan Wauters. The songs (ten covers and one Caputo original) are presented in rich, uncluttered arrangements. Around them guitars twang and jangle, occasionally kick up some distortion but never enough to kill the mellow buzz. Producer John Cuniberti finds the exact right balance between technologically pristine and organically natural.

And then those voices enter the picture, and suddenly nothing seems straightforward anymore. The vocals of Chan and Caputo wind around each other in such stunning harmony that they invoke a sense of utter timelessness. It’s like the Everly Brothers smashcut into a new millennium. And that’s not to suggest an old-fashioned approach. There’s no rose-tinted grasp at the past here, just as there’s no auto-tuned plasticity begging for mainstream approval; this is a simple, unadorned flexing of talent that should intimidate other singers and delight everyone else.

Some music just seems to stand outside of time, completely impervious to passing trends and fleeting style. It makes its own rules, defines its own sense of cool. A pantheon of greats already inhabits such rarefied air. Is it possible that Chan and Caputo have joined them? Yep. Yep. A thousand times Yep.

Andrew McEvoy

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The Best Records of 2010

2010-12-31T14:15:00.000-08:00

#20 volebeats | volebeats

Matthew Smith, Jeff Oakes & gang fuse their usual blend of psych-rock & country pop with sometimes mixed results.

#19 marah | life is a problem

I consider myself a big fan of the band, devouring each new record, hoping anyone who'd listen would know how great they are. Life Is a Problem, their first without guitarist brother Serge, is an exalted, ramshackle, mess of a record that has grown on me over the year. I didn't like it much at first and found it rather disappointing, but the ensuing months revealed a few truths. It has a lot in common with The Basement Tapes, brother Serge needs to get his ass back in the band, and Within The Spirit Sagging is one of the best tracks of the year.

#18   smoke fairies - through the light and trees

Debut record from British female duo Katherine Blamire and Jessica Davies. Haunting, downbeat, sparse, folk/vocal harmonies that weave through filtered folk traditions and blues riffery.
RIYL : Sandy Denny, PJ Harvey & Espers.

#17 the len price 3 | pictures

Complaining that this is 60's derivative guitar based pop is impertinent. The LP3 are writing catchy, cockney, upbeat songs that every beat combo has done since the days of The Kinks & The Beatles. What’s not to like?

#16 teenage fanclub | shadows

Shadows, the Fannies eighth proper release in twenty years is a worthy addition to the legacy of a group that deserves a spot in the RnR hall of endurance. The dependable quality with which they have created music the last twenty years is astonishing. Yes, the days of loud guitars (Songs From Northern Britain) and sing-alongs (Sparky's Dream) are gone, only to be replaced by a more comfy landing-place, one still tied to their classicist pop leanings.

#15 the national | high violet

Given the fact that I had issues with their other records, I consider this my first "real" exposure to the band. Bloodbuzz Ohio was the track that hooked me, and I still think of it as one of the best songs of the year. As for the rest of the record, cunning, cohesive, punchy and unwavering. Makes we wonder what they'd sound like without their drummer, cos he IS the straw that stirs the drink.. Vocalist, Matt Berninger seems comfortable staying within a particular vocal scale delivering his baritone melodies, and combined with his abstract lyrics, it seems to work.

#14   pernice brothers | goodbye, killer

At first, this short and very stripped down record felt like a lost Scud Mountain Boys record and a bit half baked when compared to older and lusher sounding affairs. The thing is, Joe writes brilliant songs with biting lyrics and after an initial ho-hum response I found myself playing the thing constantly. It might not be my favorite PB record, but it is yet another gem of a pop record by a guy that has yet to let me down.

#13 mary gauthier | the foundling

My first exposure to this was a couple of weeks ago, but in that time, it's left a big impression. Drawing upon her life, this autobiographical concept record is at times, painful to listen to. Rooted in her abandonment as a child, Mary delivers a musical tour de force that's both affecting and convincing. I'm sure this would have placed higher with more spins. Wow.

#12 bobby bare jr | a storm, a tree, a mother's head

How can you go wrong with My Morning Jacket as your backing band and your father co-writing a few of the tracks? This, Bobby's sixth release, finds him playful & profound, releasing his most personal to date, and, accordingly, one of his best, second only to the Young Criminals Starvation League.

#11 sunrise highway | s/t

Upbeat and lush, this 70's take on a classic pop format would have been right at home on AM radio sandwiched between The Beach Boys and The Raspberries. Great melodies, hooks and production.

#10 duncan maitland  | lullabies for the 21st Century

On this, his debut, Lullabies for The 21st Century, Dublin native Duncan Maitland is joined by Colin Moulding (XTC) on the opening track and Barry O'Brien of Slumberjet/Pugwash on a few others. Intricate and complex, these arrangements are far more than ear candy, but a study in pop smarts. Every track is crammed with details that will have you going back for more.
RIYL : Later day XTC, Beatles, Power Pop

#09   title tracks | it was easy

Power pop with all the typical influence, John Davis (Q and not U) has crafted an enthusiastic compact record full of friendly songs and good melodies that stays true to the album title

#08 the sadies | darker circles

Best absorbed and appraised as a whole. Darker Circles, the veteran roots rockers ninth official release is all about tone, atmosphere and vibe. If a Tele, B-bender, dread, sadness and something ominous is your bag, look no further.
RIYL: Clarence White era BYRDS.

#07 elvyn | the decline

Canadian pop never sounded so good. Imagine a slightly countrified Teenage Fanclub with stacked harmonies and songs.

#06 twin shadow | forget

I could not have imagined a record of this ilk charting this high, but these songs continue to surprise with every listen. I'm hearing a subtle nod to post-glitter Roxy Music, Power, Corruption & Lies era New Order and a big salty salute to Japanese icons, Yellow Magic Orchestra. While other similar music is "style" focused, George Lewis Jr. puts the spotlight on song structure. This is one of those records where the listener is rewarded with repeated listens.

#05 free energy | stuck on nothing

Infectious, cocksure, irony free, derivative, enthusiastic, lighthearted, corny, 70's style, charming, commonplace, fun,fun,fun, stadium rock. Nuff said. As an aside, I can't think of a record cover that stays truer to the music.

#04 robert pollard | we all got out of the army

My love for the avuncular one from Dayton, OH, continues with this glam-pop, not too-rough around the edges, record. This was one of four released by Bob in 2010, and by far his most consistent. There is a part of me, actually a big part that wishes he would parse down all his releases to perhaps one or two a year. I guess part of the fun is weeding through all the muck to hit that Pollard sweet spot. Silk Rotor/I Can See = the best one/two punch to launch a record in Twentyten.

#03 mike stinson | the jukebox of my heart

Hands down, country rock, whatever you want to call it, record of the year.

#02 spoon | transference

I simply don't understand the hate levied against this record. The melodies are challenging, but rewarding. The instrumentation still shows off a sparse, strong versatility. While their experimental side is practically a no-show, the band regulates its rock vs rock-lite side with songs such as Got Nuffin and Goodnight Laura. You might as well go ahead and add The Mystery Zone & Written in Reverse to those future best of Spoon Mixes, cos they're as good as anything they've ever done. Spoon continues their upward trajectory as a colossal band with considerable talent.

#01 the silver seas | chateau revenge

Harmony and Melody leads the way with this lavish, power pop, country rock, soft r&b (gulp) recording. Each track gives you something a little different held together by the musings of the most underrated songwriter on the planet, Daniel Tashian. Thinking it must be a fluke, I picked up 2007's High Society only to find, yep, no fluke. After an email exchange, I learned keyboardist/producer Jason Lehning is a major factor in the group, arranging most of the material. An indispensable record.

The Best of Damien Jurado

2010-12-09T16:13:00.000-08:00

Ohio
Tragedy
Honey Baby
Big Deal
Trials
Parade
Paperwings
Birdcage
Air Show Disaster
Medication
Simple Hello
Denton
Gillian Was a Horse
Zombies Of The Sea
I Can't Get Over You
Cloudy Shoes
Rachel & Cali
Sheets
Omaha
Hoquiam
Eyes For Windows
Letters & Drawings
Abilene
Window

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Obama Meets Bob Dylan

2010-10-14T10:05:00.002-07:00

You had Bob Dylan here. How did that go?

Here's what I love about Dylan: He was exactly as you'd expect he would be. He wouldn't come to the rehearsal; usually, all these guys are practicing before the set in the evening. He didn't want to take a picture with me; usually all the talent is dying to take a picture with me and Michelle before the show, but he didn't show up to that. He came in and played "The Times They Are A-Changin'." A beautiful rendition. The guy is so steeped in this stuff that he can just come up with some new arrangement, and the song sounds completely different. Finishes the song, steps off the stage — I'm sitting right in the front row — comes up, shakes my hand, sort of tips his head, gives me just a little grin, and then leaves. And that was it — then he left. That was our only interaction with him. And I thought: That's how you want Bob Dylan, right? You don't want him to be all cheesin' and grinnin' with you. You want him to be a little skeptical about the whole enterprise. So that was a real treat.

The Best Power Pop of 2009

2010-10-05T14:38:00.001-07:00

01 Queen Of Hearts - Bobby Emmett
02 Girl After My Own Heart - Roger Klug
03 Bird Using Bird - The Resonars
04 There's A Light - Reno Bo
05 All Of A Sudden - Telekenisis
06 Anymore - Outrageous Cherry
07 Don't Ask Me Love - The Madd
08 Hope It Doesn't Come My Way - Leave
09 Welcome To My World - Tony Cox
10 You Really Bring Me Down - The Antennas
11 Willing Reason - Cheap Star
12 Let It Rest For A Little While - Boston Spaceships
13 Love Is Real - Bobby Emmett

PART 1

14 Now Or Never - Marc Carroll
15 Damn! - Gidgets Ga Ga
16 Telephone Operator - The Leftovers
17 Tell Me When It's Over - Joe Pernice
18 I Can't Quit Her - Chris Richards & The Subtractions
19 Hi-Hat - Roger Klug
20 Try - The Madd
21 World Apart - The Resonars
22 Feel Real Love - Tony Cox
23 Let Me Play - Biscuit
24 All Used Up - Belleville
25 Jupiter Optimus Maximus - The Tomorrows

PART 2

Photo courtesy of PowerPop Review

Belle & Sebastian Collection

2010-10-05T13:45:00.000-07:00

As a result of two disappointing releases (including the brand new Write in Love) and their upcoming appearance at The Treasure Island Festival in SF, I was asked to put together a collection of their best tracks from 1995-2005. Ask and you shall receive.
Without further ado, I give you in all their twee glory, Belle & Sebastian.
Carry on lads.

The State I Am In
Dear Catastrophe Waitress
Wrapped Up In Books
Me And The Major
Step Into My Office, Baby
I Don't Love Anyone
The Loneliness Of A Middle Distance Runner
The Boy With The Arab Strap
Seeing Other People
If She Wants Me
The Stars Of Track And Field
Expectations
Get Me Away From Here, I'm Dying
She's Losing It
Like Dylan In The Movies
I Fought in a War
If You're Feeling Sinister
The Chalet Lines
The Rollercoaster Ride

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The Songs of Mike Cooley

2010-03-16T16:54:00.000-07:00

"I make more money off t-shirts. If you rip it, burn it, give it to somebody, and they come to a show and buy a ticket and a t-shirt, I profit more that way anyway, and then I've got a fan. Records are promotional items these days anyway"

What better way to introduce some songs from my 'favorite' Trucker, and one that can turn a phrase with the best of of'em.

Gravity's Gone
A Ghost To Most
Birthday Boy
Bob
3 Dimes Down
Space City
Self-Destructive Zones
72 (This Highway's Mean)
Loaded Gun In The Closet
Marry Me
Carl Perkins' Cadillac
Zip City
Sounds Better In The Song
Get Downtown
Women Without Whiskey
Daddy's Cup
Shut Up And Get On The Plane
Eyes Like Glue

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Sparklehorse Collection

2010-03-07T14:16:00.000-08:00

RIP Mark Linkous

Don't Take My Sunshine Away
Homecoming Queen
It's A Wonderful Life
Getting It Wrong
Painbirds
Weird Sisters
Piano Fire
Saint Mary
Shade and Honey
Rainmaker
Sea Of Teeth
See the Light
Spirit Ditch
Some Sweet Day
Saturday
Knives of Summertime
Most Beautiful Widow In Town
Heart Of Darkness
Someday I Will Treat You Good
Hundreds of Sparrows
Sad and Beautiful World
Gasoline Horseys
Junebug

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COTM's Twenty Delights of 2009

2010-01-11T16:54:00.000-08:00

With the benefit of hindsight I can see 2009 was a somewhat disappointing year in the music world. I found myself gravitating to more of what puts the "power" in pop, and less of the folk/indie stylings that's ostensibly everywhere these days. Not that I find it all uninteresting per se, it's just that the component that ties it all together, "the songwriting", seemed to be lacking and at times, was an embarrassing rehash. When I think of songcraft, I think of how it relates to succeeding at something three times.
For example, in Hockey when one player scores three times, it's called the hat trick.
What?
Let me explain.
When you have it, the hat trick of songwriting in any genre should consist of :
(1) Good lyric with gravity and/or humour.
(2) mellifluous and tuneful.
(3) Sung & played well enough that creates a vibe and/or energy.
Addendum to (3)- You can attain vibe and energy without, how can I say it, playing it not so cleverly. See (1977-1981) related artists for how this is done. I've always felt that the goal of every songwriter should be to display or exhibit some form of humanity, hence what it's like to be a human being.

So now it's now 2010 and I find myself lowering the bar "again" seeking some sort of fulfillment. Is all this because I have less of an expectation now or do they simply not write'em like they use to. Dunno. As for the hat trick theory, if two of three checkpoints are achieved, I'm pleased. Unfortunately most of the time, it's more like one or none.

As for this years list, my Top 20 does include a few stock Americana checkpoints in Tim Easton, Son Volt, Neko Case and The Dexateens as well as my professed love for all that is Pollardian. Some of the more ubiquitous releases this year (Animal Collective, Grizzly Bear ) I tried and tried and in the end simply resigned myself to the fact that they were just not for me. There were others (The Madd, Roman Candle, The Heartless Bastards, The Deep Vibration, Tony Cox, The Milk & Honey Band, The xx) I was intrigued by and actually liked quite a bit and could see with more plays the potential of making their way onto the list. Good stuff Maynard.

There were others that apart from a couple of good songs, I was disappointed in. (Wilco, Bob Dylan, Lucero, Justin Townes Earle, Hayden)

Now without further ado, I give you my favorite records of the year. The ones I reached for most during these troubled times, economic downturns, foreclosures, bailouts, the exploited and the downtrodden.

el goodo - coyote
boston spaceships - zero to 99/planets are blasted
reigning sound - love & curses
roger klug - more help for your nerves
son volt - american central dust
neko case - middle cyclone
tim easton - porcupine
outrageous cherry - universal malcontents
telekinesis - telekinesis
dexateens - singlewide
the resonars - that evil drone
robert pollard - elephant jokes
broadfield marchers - displayed in reflections
reno bo - happenings and other things
cheap star - speaking like an elephant
vetiver - tight knit
grant-lee phillips - little moon
gidgets ga ga - the big bong fiasco
bobby emmett - learning love
richmond fontaine - we used to think the river sounded like a freeway

COTM'S Cinematic Best of The Decade

2009-12-16T15:44:00.000-08:00

01. there will be blood
02. sexy beast
03. the straight story
04. dancer in the dark
05. downfall
06. city of god
07. the triplets of belleville
08. mulholland drive
09. amelie
10. no country for old men
11. amores perros
12. donnie darko
13. oh brother, where art thou
14. you can count on me
15. eternal sunshine of the spotless mind
16. magnolia
17. ghost world
18. punch drunk love
19. talk to her
20. irreversible
21. 21 grams
22. memento
23. good night and good luck
24. sideways
25. 28 days later

I know this is cheating but I'd like to add the Three Colors Trilogy directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski. They first debuted separately in the '90's, but released as a set in 2003. Even though one can view each segment of Three Colors trilogy on its own, they're best seen as one piece.

Guilty Pleasure Picks
Napolean Dynamite
School of Rock
Wedding Crashers
Almost Famous

Music Documentary
Bob Dylan - No Direction Home
The Ramones - End of The Century
Wilco - I Am Trying To Break Your Heart

The Best of Marah

2009-11-02T08:19:00.003-08:00

This set of working class, sweat-covered songs are from one of my favorite bands, the boys from Philly, Marah. Often called, "the last rock n roll band", Marah, led by Dave & Serge Bielanko are a band with an inimitable sound, built upon the best traits of rock, vintage country, and classic rock. (Serge left the band in late 2008 to be a full-time father). The following songs are culled from the following records, Let's Cut The Crap and Hook Up later Tonight (1998), Kids in Philly (2000), 20,000 Streets Under The Sky (2004), If You Didn't Laugh, You'd Cry (2005) and Angels of Destruction (2008).

Of the records represented here, one will be included in my forthcoming Best of The Decade. Venture a guess ?

Enjoy !

Fever
Formula, Cola, Dollar Draft
Phantom Eyes
Firecracker
For The Price of A Song
Rain Delay
Baby Love
Faraway You
Point Breeze
My Heart is the Bums on the Street
Round Eye Blues
Barstool Boys
The Catfisherman
The History of Where Someone Has Been Killed
Sooner or Later
The Hustle
City of Dreams
The Demon of White Sadness
Walt Whitman Bridge
East
Feather Boa
Pigeon Heart
Angels on a Passing Train

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Now Playing : Fall '09

2009-09-27T17:03:00.000-07:00

01. boston spaceships - zero to 99
02. reigning sound - love & curses
03. el goodo - coyote
04. son volt - american central dust
05. robert pollard - elephant jokes
06. broadfield marchers - displayed in reflections
07. neko case - middle cyclone
08. tim easton - porcupine
09. dexateens - singlewide
10. telekinesis - telekinesis

11. cheap star - speaking like an elephant
12. boston spaceships - the planets are blasted
13. outrageous cherry - universal malcontents
14. vetiver - tight knit
15. circus devils - gringo
16. deadstring brothers - sao paulo
17. richmond fontaine - we used to think the river....
18. bottle rockets - lean forward
19. chris richards & the subtractions - sad sounds of summer
20. lucero - 1372 overton park

Best of Robert Pollard (2006 - 2009)

2009-08-29T15:28:00.001-07:00

If it's Monday, that means there's probably some Robert Pollard news to share. Shoot, if it's any day of the week YOU KNOW there will be something Pollardian to share. 'Zero To 99', the new record from Boston Spaceships is set to drop on October 6th. It represents their second release this year and third in the last two years. This also represents the sixth record from Bob & Co. released in 2009 alone. WTF ? How does the inexhaustible deity of rock do it ?
I've heard from the 'Dayton Mafia' that this record will be quintessential Pollard, a record that holds its own alongside the widely acknowledged classics, Guided By Voices' Bee Thousand & Alien Lanes. As much as I'd like to believe it, this can't be true. No way. But we shall see.

If you're already a Pollard fan, you'll understand, and you'll enjoy this. If you already don't like him, then you'll continue in your misguided ways. There are many naysayers that simply don't get or understand him, and they're certainly entitled to their opinion. The typical response is they don't like his music for this or that, lack of gravity, nonsensical lyrics, incomplete songs, blah blah, blah blah blah. C'mon people, it's called Rock n Roll with great melodies. There are also some that feel Bob would benefit from an editor-in-chief. One to keep him in check and oversee that brain of his that contains 'The Book of Rock' Volumes 1-100. Truth be told, I'm somewhat ambivalent of this notion and find myself thinking about it probably more than I should. Buuuut after awhile I come to my senses, quickly jump down off the fence and proclaim f**k it, let him do what he wants. It's like 'learning how to hunt' (no pun intended), to pick and choose and find the treasures hiding deep within.

Which leads me to why I'm here -

The following will be the first-ever Robert Pollard compilation posted on Conqueror of The Moon.
I want to keep it current AND bring the rock.
The twenty tracks presented here were released after 'From A Compound Eye' & 'Normal Happiness'.

(2006-2009)

Things Have Changed (Down in Mexico City) **
Stiff Me **
Death of The Party $$
Symbols and Heads **
Miles Under The Skin ++
Heavy Crown ##
Gratification To Concrete ()
Canned Food Demons ##
Go For The Exit &
Johnny Optimist **
Queen Of Stormy Weather ##
Jimmy **
No Island *
The Original Heart ()
Beauty of the Draft $$
The Killers ^^
Tattered Lily **
The Naked Wall $$
(All You Need) To Know **
Wealth And Hell-Being ()

Robert Pollard - Elephant Jokes **
Boston Spaceships - Planets Are Blasted ##
Robert Pollard - The Crawling Distance *
Robert Pollard - Off To Business ()
Boston Spaceships - Brown Submarine &
The Keene Brothers - Blues and Boogie Shoes $$
Robert Pollard - Coast To Coast Carpet of Love ++
Robert Pollard - Standard Gargoyle Decisions ^^

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The Side Projects of Jeff Tweedy

2009-07-16T16:57:00.000-07:00

Not only is Jeff Tweedy Wilco's herr director, he’s also a member of Golden Smog, Loose Fur and with the help of Billy Bragg and the late Jay Bennett, helped create two records from pages of Woody Guthrie lyrics. Last but not least, Jeff was a member of Uncle Tupelo with Jay Farrar. That's quite the resume. The songs presented here (save for UT) are culled from the aforementioned projects, hard to find EP's, unreleased tracks, demos, and a special never-heard-before recording from the 'Guthrie' sessions. Also included is a more recent recording with the "new" band using more of Guthrie's lyrics. I'd like to veer off course a bit and say I'm extremely happy for Jeff's success the last few years. He's seemingly happier then ever before. Wilco's recent show at The Greek Theatre in Berkeley was perhaps the best they've ever sounded in the fifteen times or so I've seen them perform, both full band and Jeff solo. While all that would be perceived to be a good thing, I'm not so sure being in fine fettle works as well with that one thing that's pertinent to a band format. It's called the music. I've listened to Sky Blue Sky and Wilco (the album) countless times. They're seamless, safe, secure and as "snug as a bug in a rug." Dunno, maybe I just don't get it. At the Greek show they played the unexpected Box Full of Letters from AM and I was blown away. I was hoping Monday, maybe Casino Queen, even I Got You would follow, but they never came. After playing these rare tracks you may, like me, find yourself longing for 1999, Jay Bennett is stage right playing Airline To Heaven on his black Silvertone in a drop D tuning and all is well in Wilcoworld.

But I digress.

Enjoy !

The Ruling Class
Lost Love
Cars Can't Escape
When The Roses Bloom Again
Hey Chicken
Pecan Pie
Laminated Cat
Glad & Sorry
Wanted
Please Tell My Brother
Chinese Apple
Wreckroom
Venus Stop The Train
Radio King
Bob Dylan's 49th Beard
The Thanks I Get
A Magazine Called Sunset
Hummingbird (alternate version)
The Jollybanker

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Eels : Collection

2009-06-03T21:00:00.000-07:00

Mr. E's Beautiful Blues
Fresh Feeling
Love Of The Loveless
That Look You Give That Guy
Flyswatter
The Good Old Days
Rock Hard Times
It's A Motherfucker
A Daisy Through Concrete
Saturday Morning
Fresh Blood
Novocaine For The Soul
The Sound Of Fear
I Like Birds
I'm Going To Stop Pretending That I Didn't Break Your Heart
Trouble With Dreams
Dust Of Ages
That's Not Really Funny
Grace Kelly Blues
Daisies Of The Galaxy
My Timing Is Off
Hey Man (Now You're Really Living)
Things The Grandchildren Should Know

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Rolling Best of 2009

2009-05-31T14:09:00.000-07:00

01. son volt - american central dust
02. el goodo - coyote
03. the broadfield marchers - the inevitable continuing
04. tim easton - porcupine
05. outrageous cherry - universal malcontents
06. vetiver - tight knit
07. neko case - middle cyclone
08. cheap star - speaking like an elephant
09. dexateens - singlewide
10. telekinesis - telekinesis

11. the heartless bastards - the mountain
12. justin townes earle - midnight at the movies
13. the deep vibration - veracruz
14. hayden - the place where we lived
15. roman candle - oh tall tree in the ear
16. the milk & honey band - dog eared moonlight
17. wilco - wilco (the album)
18. m. ward - hold time
19. eels - hombre lobo
20. dangermouse/sparklehorse - dark night of the soul

The Best Of Jay Farrar

2009-05-02T11:28:00.001-07:00

With the stunning new record from Son Volt set to drop on July 7th, I thought it high time to up a few songs from one of my favorite songwriters, Jay Farrar. Simply put, his songs have a profound effect on me as both a listener and a songwriter. These songs are culled from both of his solo releases as well as the first six Son Volt records including three tracks from the soon to released American Central Dust.

Enjoy !

01. Medicine Hat
02. Tear Stained Eye
03. All Of Your Might
04. Windfall
05. Creosote
06. Dust of Daylight
07. Methamphetamine
08. Picking Up The Signal
09. Bandages And Scars
10. Hanging Blue Side
11. Ten Second News
12. The Picture
13. No More Parades
14. Highways And Cigarettes
15. Drown
16. Barstow
17. Outside The Door
18. Roll On
19. Cahokian
20. The Search
21. Cocaine and Ashes

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Bob Dylan : Together Through Life - April 28th

2009-03-13T17:08:00.000-07:00

YESTERDAY, MOJO HEARD seven of what may turn out to be ten or eleven Bob Dylan originals to be released by Columbia Records in April, possibly the week of the 27th in the U.S. and Europe. The album is not yet titled and final track selection, sequence and artwork are still being finalized. Sources confirm what many have already heard: French filmmaker Olivier Dahan, who directed La Vie En Rose, the blood-on-the-tracks biopic of Edith Piaf, asked Dylan to contribute something to My Own Love Song, a road movie starring Forest Whitaker and Renee Zellweger about a wheelchaired singer and pal who travel cross-country to Memphis. Bob offered up Life Is Hard, a gorgeous ballad with a descending melody line that is reminiscent of the Bing Crosbyish, early 20th Century pop that Bob displayed on both "Love And Theft" and Modern Times.

Although the facts remain a mystery, evidently Dylan had more to say, more to write, or simply had accumulated enough songs for a new album. It took him four years to follow 1997's Time Out Of Mind with 2001's "Love And Theft", and five twixt Love... and '06's Modern Times, so no-one expected a new one so quickly. Details are sketchy about precise recording dates and personnel but sources say that Jack Frost (Dylan's nom de studio) produced and the line-up features Bob on guitar and keys as well as his road band and David Hidalgo from Los Lobos on accordion. Other possible contributors have been floated but have not been confirmed.

Your correspondent first heard of the possible existence of an album of new material on Dylan encyclopedist Michael Gray's blog on January 22. The rumor quickly made the rounds of Bobsites, forcing skeptics to point to the alleged April release date as proof that this was an April Fool's joke. As recently as March 10, one naysayer posted on the New Yorker website that guesswork about the album's title was "the strongest evidence there won't be an album." After checking with a friend of Bob's who confirmed the rumor, arrangements were made with the appropriate gatekeepers. Drugged, blindfolded, and forced to switch transportation periodically, I awoke on a tropical island in a bamboo hut, sparsely outfitted with a lone stereo. Here's what I heard:

1) Beyond Here Lies Nothin' - A minor chord mid-tempo rocker. Like all the tracks and like Bob's last two albums, it's got a big, full, raucous, rocking sound, making the case that Jack Frost is indeed Bob Dylan's finest producer since the '60s and '70s. Likewise, his voice packs a punch; not the thin, reedy instrument that occasionally detracts during live sets. He's enunciating the lyrics with a fire and intensity we didn't hear on Modern Times. Hidalgo's soulful squeezebox is omnipresent here - and everywhere else.

2) Life Is Hard - The song that possibly buzzed his muse and encouraged him to write the others. "I need strength to fight that world outside," and "I'm on my guard / Admitting life is hard / Without you baby" are lines that leapt out in a paean to the notion that two are better equipped to weather tragedy than one. A forlorn twinkling mandolin and mournful pedal steel accentuate the deep blue lyrics.

3) My Wife's Hometown - Chicago blues has always been a huge influence on Dylan. From Bringing It All Back Home up through his most recent work, the ghosts of Chess Studios lurk inside the man from Minnesota. This one's reminiscent of Muddy Waters' I Love The Life I Live, I Live The Life I Love. Job loss is referenced (a topical theme, you may have heard), but Bob's black humour is in cheeky abundance: "I just want to say that hell's my wife's hometown" and "I'm pretty sure she'll make me kill someone," Bob sings and then laughs demonically at the end. Man, he's enjoying himself.

4) Forgetful Heart - Lots of tunes in minor keys on this record, including this one. A neat banjo barely audible in the mix and one of The Master's best lines ever: "The door is closed for evermore / If indeed there ever was a door."

5) Shake Shake Mama - More Chi-town chugga-lugga. Some artists retreat to servile reasonableness and bourgeois banality as they get older. Not Bob. He got Las Vegas out of his system at Budokan. "I'm motherless / I'm fatherless / Almost friendless too," he growls and you believe him.

6) I Feel A Change Coming On - Like Spirit On the Water from Modern Times, this one possesses a blithe jaunt and gorgeous melody. As in all his recent work, there are intimations of mortality ("And the last part of the day is already gone") but there's a devil-may-care wistfulness and a frisky sexuality in both lyrics and phrasing. Best lines: "I'm listening to Billy Joe Shaver / I'm reading James Joyce / Some people they tell me / I've got the blood of the land in my voice."

7) It's All Good - Propelled by a John Lee Hooker boogie rhythm with a stinging slide guitar, here's Dylan taking on human woes: social, political, personal. He itemizes crimes ranging from "politicians tellin' lies" to environmental illness ("a teacup of water is enough to drown"), urban degradation, murder and adultery and sarcastically and scathingly responds to each in the chorus with that hideous New Age cliché referenced in the title. More proof that Bob never really stopped writing "protest songs".

Other song titles that I didn't hear but have been mentioned elsewhere include If You Ever Go To Houston and This Dream Of You. Yet what I heard offered ample proof of an artist steeped in the past but thoroughly living in the present, cognizant of everything, not afraid to point fingers or laugh at fools or fall in love.

It's a powerful personal work by a man who still thinks for himself in an era of fear, conformity, and dehumanization. That it rocks mightily makes the message even more compelling. Whatever the hell it gets called, it'll be in the running for Best Album Of 2009.

-Mojo

Outrageous Cherry

2009-03-02T15:49:00.000-08:00

Matthew Smith of Outrageous Cherry & The Volebeats
- Detroit musician and producer extraordinaire.

With the release of a new record, Universal Malcontents, I thought it high time to put together a comp for the uninitiated. The songs reflected here, culled from a sizable output over the last fifteen years are nothing short of genius.
Having toiled in in the shadows for years, which is a shame, really, as the Motor City quartet’s string of 60's/70's, AM radio, psych/fuzz output has always been consistently good. (That said, I'm still trying to figure out why last year's best-of, Wide Awake in the Spirit World, didn't contain one song from 1999's inspirational Out There in The Dark.) This late in the game, the band could be forgiven for coasting on its considerable talents, but instead Universal Malcontents may be its best record yet. Led by Matthew Smith (who's also a member of The Volebeats) is more in the zone than ever before, whether on the glam-inflected opener, "I Recognized Her", the two minute brilliance of "Anymore", the shimmering psychedelic "Feels Like Shadows” or the sarcastic stomp of “It’s Not Rock N’Roll (And I Don’t Like It).”, Universal Malcontents is Outrageous Cherry’s most engaging record in nearly a decade. These tracks, as well as several from Out There In The Dark, and many others are all represented here.

Enjoy !

Pretty Girls Go Insane
Where Do I Go When You Dream?
Anymore
(You're Not) A Nice Girl
Saturday Afternoon
Easy Come, Uneasy Glow
Corruptable
I Recognized Her
Solid Sound Gangster
Why Don't We Talk About Something Else
I Wouldn't Treat My Enemies the Way You Treat Yourself
Georgie, Don't You Know
Togetherness
Pale Frail Lovely One
Feels Like Shadows
What Have You Invented Today?
I've Been Obsessed
Memory
Lord Have Mercy On Me
Stay Right Here for a Little While
If You Want Me
New Creature
Stay Happy
This Evening
Memphis Stereo
Trust
It's Rock 'N' Roll (And I Don't Like It)

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Neko Case ( for beginners)

2009-02-24T15:16:00.001-08:00

With Neko's new record, Middle Cyclone (which, by the way is fantastic) set to drop on March 3rd, I took the liberty of putting together a collection of tracks culled from every one of her releases (save for the live, Tigers Have Spoken) dating back to The Virginian, released on Bloodshot in 1997, up to the aforementioned Middle Cyclone.

Enjoy !

Hold On, Hold On
Deep Red Bells
Margaret Vs. Pauline
Blacklisted
Star Witness
Fox Confessor Brings The Flood
People Got A Lotta Nerve
Middle Cyclone
South Tacoma Way
Things That Scare Me
Never Turn Your Back On Mother Earth
Twist The Knife
Vengeance Is Sleeping
Porchlight
Stinging Velvet
Thrice All American
Mood To Burn Bridges
Set Out Running
Dreaming Man
Outro With Bees
Bought And Sold
Furnace Room Lullaby
The Next Time You Say Forever
Magpie To The Morning
Bowling Green
Prison Girls

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The Kids Want The Hits : Best of 2008 Part One

2009-02-11T17:57:00.001-08:00

Cruel Girl - The Red Button
Dark As Days - Army Navy
I'm Amazed - My Morning Jacket
Gratification To Concrete - Robert Pollard
Demoted - Prima Donna
Satt Att Se - Dungen
Why Do You Let Me Stay Here? - She & Him
The Strawberry Blonde - Mike Viola
Whose Authority - Nada Surf
Gamma Ray - Beck
Auctioneer - The Broken West
Digging The Fault Line - Brent Cash

Victor Jara's Hands - Calexico
Out On Your Own - The Dexateens
White Winter Hymnal - Fleet Foxes
Morning Tide - The Little Ones
Geraldine - Glasvegas
Old Home Movies - The Botticellis
It's A Shame - Hayes Carll
Suffering Jukebox - Silver Jews
Hard Livin' - Justin Townes Earle
Hallowed Ground - Will Quinlan & The Diviners
Same Place Holiday - Jim Noir

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Sunday A.M. Comedown : Best of 2008 Part 2

2009-02-10T17:40:00.000-08:00

Sun It Rises - Fleet Foxes
Trials - Damien Jurado
Something About Your Love - Mason Jennings
Tears All Over Town - A Girl Called Eddy
Moorestown - Sun Kil Moon
Sea Of Japan - Peter Bruntnell
Song To Bobby - Cat Power
Two Daughters and a Beautiful Wife - Drive-By Truckers
Such A Beautiful Thing - Chris Mills
Furr - Blitzen Trapper
Born Into A Light - Ryan Adams

Kid - The Dexateens
Barely Friends - Hayden
A Garland Of Song - The Owl Service
The Next Time Around - Little Joy
Little Tornado - Aimee Mann
Blue Ridge Mountains - Fleet Foxes
Lover's Prayer - Ida
The Only Way - Jim Noir
Prospectors Arrive - Jonny Greenwood
Bob - Drive-By Truckers
Willow Tree - Chad VanGaalen

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The Red Button

2009-02-10T12:15:00.000-08:00

01. Cruel Girl
02. She's About to Cross My Mind
03. Floating By
04. She's Going Down
05. I Could Get Used to It
06. Hopes Up
07. Can't Stop Thinking
08. Gonna Make You Mine
09. Ooh Girl
10. Free
11. It's No Secret

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A friend turned me onto this power pop gem and as a result, it's been in constant rotation for about a week now. After a little snooping around, it turns out this was on Jack Rabid's (Big Takeover) best records of the year as well as John Borack's best power pop records of all-time. This record is nothing short of a clinic in sheer pop velocity.

Here are a couple of quotes I found :

If The Red Button had been around in the '60's when I was producing I would have signed them to EMI. - Norman Smith
Beatles engineer (1962-1966) and record producer (Pink Floyd/Pretty Things) for EMI

Pop music the way God, Paul and John had intended.
- John Borack - Goldmine Magazine

The Best Records of 2008 (Part Two)

2008-12-31T10:58:00.000-08:00

11. Justin Townes Earle - The Good Life

A breezy mix of swing, shuffles, style and energy. See 'Hank Williams Senior' related artists.

12. Jonny Greenwood - There Will Be Blood (OST)

This unearthly, beautiful score adopts a personal language and in the process creates an entirely new dimension of the film experience.

13. Silver Jews - Lookout Mountain, Lookout Sea

Other than a couple of tracks, this is my first 'real' exposure to David Berman's Silver Jews. Vocally, he reminds me a little of Johnny Cash but that's where it ends. As a lyricist, he may be one of the best going.

14. Calexico - Carried To Dust

While not quite as good as previous efforts, Calexico find themselves re-exploring and expanding older ideas.

15. Brent Cash - How Will I Know If I'm Awake

Impeccably arranged, this slice of 'Bacharach-esqe' sunshine pop sounds like it could've been cut four decades ago. Should Brent's lyrics ever catch up to his ear for sonics, he could end up seated alongside the greats in the pantheon of pop wizardry.

16. Sun Kil Moon - April

More than a few good songs here, but nothing startlingly different. Overall, a little long for my tastes.

17. Army Navy - Army Navy

Oh sweet jangle, it's Davy Jones fronting a watered down version of Teenage Fanclub. More than a few 'highly' infectious melodies.

18. The Botticelli's - Old Home Movies

The debut release from San Francisco's Botticelli's is an easy to listen to, 60's flavored, California in the summer, pop record.

19. Benoit Pioulard - Temper

While a thematic connection is lost in the process, I do connect with his unique musical language that's part finger-picking, part noise and space, part lonesome frontier folk.

20. She and Him - Volume One

Zooey Deschanel (vocalist/songwriter) teams up with M. Ward to create a smart, nostalgic record full of classic pop & country melodies. While there's nothing new or original here, the record wreaks of charm. Bring on Volume two.

Records of Note :
Chad van Gaalen - Soft Airplane
The Felice Brothers - The Felice Brothers
The Broken West - Now or Heaven
Catfish Haven – Devastator
Black Mountain - In The Future
Lenine – Labiata
My Morning Jacket - Evil Urges
Beck - Modern Guilt
Todd Snider - Peace Queer
Will Quinlan & The Diviners - Navasota
Prima Donna - After Hours

Props to :
Bob Dylan - Tell Tale Signs - The Bootleg Series Vol.8
Neil Young - Sugar Mountain (live at Canterbury House)

Biggest Disappointment of 2008 :

Marah – Angels of Destruction

Anytime Marah releases a new record, it's a cause for celebration. That's how big a fan I am. What we have here are a couple of good songs and a barely enormous, merely huge, disapppointment.

The Best Records of 2008

2008-12-30T11:58:00.001-08:00

01. Drive-By Truckers - Brighter Than Creation's Dark

This sprawling two-record set is a near perfect snapshot of people living life on America's margins.

02. Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes/Sun Giant

I was so taken by their 'beard' inducing performance at San Francisco's Bottom of the Hill in June of this year, I traveled up to Portland in late July to see'em at The Doug Fir. In between shows I did find time to actually listen to the record - again, again and again. While I do prefer them in a live settting (the execution of their four-part harmonies are as good as I've ever heard), I find the record to be just short of perfection. What we have is a group of guys that use cross-pollination of sound to the fullest - folk, gospel, choral, rock and what the pundits like to call,"baroque harmonic pop." Musically, they're a modern day Band. Vocally, along the lines of CSNY & The Beach Boys. As for the MMJ/Band of Horses comparisons, I don't hear it. While the utilization of a piece of outboard gear (reverb) can create vibe and atmosphere, it will not write songs for you.

A classic for the new age.

03. The Dexateens - Lost and Found

Proficient, inspired, Southern garage rock. It’s not an exaggeration to say that they just might turn into one of the next great rock 'n' roll bands.

04. Peter Bruntnell - Peter and the Murder of Crows

Terrific, sparse arrangements. Bruntnell’s voice is his second finest asset, second only to his songwriting.

05. Hayden - In Field and Town

Cutting, poignant and spiteful, Hayden's conversational, wistful voice can make anything sound authentic.

06. The Tallest Man on Earth - Shallow Grave

With his ramshackle delivery, nimble fingerpicking, and whimsical lyrics, you get a sense that the Tallest Man on Earth has spent a lot of time absorbing Harry Smith's Anthology of Folk Music and The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan.

07. Robert Pollard - Is Off To Business

As the first full release for his new record label, Guided by Voices, Inc., this record is the start of a new era and if it's a sign of what’s to come, then Pollard’s long-time fans should rejoice.

08. Blitzen Trapper - Furr

A focused collection of rustic, freewheeling tracks that sound like the lovechild of The Dead and The Kinks.

09. Dungen - 4

Swedish revivalists, 'DOONG-un', continue to make genuinely great psychedelic music that seems to go relatively unnoticed.

10. Chris Mills - Living in the Aftermath

For fans of songcraft, hooks and flat out rock 'n' roll. I still wonder how in the hell no one knows who Chris Mills is.

The Best Records of 2008 (Part Two to follow)

Teenage Fanclub News

2008-12-01T17:33:00.000-08:00

I expect to hear any day now that The Fannies new record is in the can. I'm very excited about this and wanted to share.

Norman Blake - Mon Oct 20, 2008

We've nearly finished our new record. Still a couple of vocals to do, and the final mixes. We'll have it completed by the end of November.

Teenage Fanclub began work on a new record with Nick Brine producing in late August at Leeders Farm which is located in Norfolk, just outside of London. Brine was also the producer for Teenage Fanclub's last record, Man-Made, which was released on Merge Records in '05. Back in the fold will be original drummer Francis Macdonald. Francis first appeared on TFC's debut record Catholic Education and most recently came back on Man-Made. No word on whether the new record will be another Merge release, but it's early yet.

People Are Leaving's Rolling Top 20 of 2008

2008-10-07T11:29:00.000-07:00

drive-by truckers - brighter than creation's dark
fleet foxes - fleet foxes/sun giant (ep)
the dexateens - lost and found
peter bruntnell - peter and the murder of crows
the tallest man on earth - shallow grave
robert pollard - is off to business
blitzen trapper - furr
sun kil moon - april
benoit pioulard - temper
hayden - in field and town
sun kil moon - april
jonny greenwood - there will be blood - OST
silver jews - lookout mtn, lookout sea
chris mills - living in the aftermath
brett cash - how will i know if i'm awake
calexico - carried to dust
catfish haven - devastator
giant sand - proVISIONS
lenine - liabata
dungen - 4

Now Playing : October '08

2008-09-30T09:31:00.001-07:00

peter bruntnell - peter and the murder of crows
calexico - carried to dust
giant sand - PROvisions
dungen - 4
blitzen trapper - furr
catfish haven - devastator
the broken west - now or heaven
jim o'rourke - despite the water supply (7")
benoit pioulard - temper
dutchess & the duke - she's the dutchess, he's the duke
boston spaceships - brown submarine
the owl service - a garland of song
deerhoof - offend maggie

Listmania : Top 100 Records

2008-09-04T13:24:00.000-07:00

01 bob dylan - bringing it all back home
02 miles davis - in a silent way
03 the beatles - revolver
04 the rolling stones - sticky fingers
05 neil young - on the beach
06 the byrds - sweetheart of the rodeo
07 john coltrane - giant steps
08 bob dylan - highway 61
09 elvis presley - the sun sessions
10 bob dylan - blonde on blonde

11 the rolling stones - exile on main st
12 nick drake - bryter layter
13 joni mitchell - blue
14 bob dylan & the band - the basement tapes
15 son volt - trace
16 xtc - black sea
17 the genius of bud powell
18 townes van zandt - the late great
19 leonard cohen - best of
20 the beach boys - pet sounds

21 miles davis - kind of blue
22 the beatles - for sale
23 the flying burrito bros - gilded palace of sin
24 bob dylan - blood on the tracks
25 louis armstrong - the hot fives
26 chuck berry - the great 28
27 elvis presley - elvis presley
28 gram parsons - gp/grevious angel
29 badfinger - straight up
30 bob dylan - the freewheelin'

31 neil young - tonight's the night
32 the band - music from big pink
33 uncle tupelo - still feel gone
34 jeff beck - blow by blow
35 the beatles - magical mystery tour
36 stan getz - getz/gilberto/jobim
37 elton john - don't shoot me i'm only the piano player
38 fairport convention - liege & leaf
39 tom t hall – ballad of forty dollars/homecoming
40 frank sinatra - neil hefti's swinging brass

41 charles mingus - mingus mingus mingus mingus
42 xtc - skylarking
43 the kinks - something else
44 miles davis - workin with the miles davis quintet
45 nick drake - pink moon
46 billie holiday - lady in satin
47 dillard & clark - the fantastic expedition of
48 oliver nelson - blues and the abstract truth
49 charlie parker - with strings
50 the beatles - with the

51 george harrison - all things must pass
52 xtc - english settlement
53 the replacements - let it be
54 the clash - the clash
55 guided by voices - bee thousand
56 son volt - straightaways
57 aimee mann - bachelor #2
58 elvis costello - this years model
59 bobby bare jr - young criminals starvation league
60 scud mountain boys - massachusetts

61 richard buckner - since
62 teenage fanclub - bandwagonesque
63 sparklehorse - vivadixiesubmarinetransmissionplot
64 elliott smith - either/or
65 wilco - being there
66 the zombies – odyssey & oracle
67 nick drake - five leaves left
68 the works of sergie rachmaninoff
69 the ramones - the ramones
70 the dukes of stratosphear - chips from the chocolate fireball

71 doc watson - southbound
72 mississippi john hurt - today
73 wimple winch – the story of just four men
74 relatively clean rivers - relatively clean rivers
75 tom waits - mule variations
76 the raspberries - best of
77 jon brion - meaningless
78 be bop deluxe - axe victim
79 duke ellington - such sweet thunder
80 joe henry - scar

81 pernice brothers - the world won't end
82 spoon - kill the moonlight
83 the kinks - village green preservation society
84 pj harvey - stories from the city, stories from the sea
85 tim easton - special 20
86 neko case - furnace room lullaby
87 the flaming lips - the soft bulletin
88 david bowie - aladdin sane
89 sun kil moon - ghosts of the great highway
90 drive by truckers - southern rock opera

91 jim o'rourke - bad timing
92 marvin gaye - what's goin' on
93 joe pisapia - daydreams
94 iron & wine - the creek drank the cradle
95 robert pollard - from a compound eye
96 chet baker - chet
97 amy winehouse - back to black
98 chuck prophet - the hurting business
99 bill nelson - the love that whirls
100 bob dylan - time out of mind

YEAR - ARTIST - RECORD

2008-07-31T10:49:00.000-07:00

Recently, I was asked to compile a list of my favorite records by year. I agreed to it, with a caveat of needing extra time to peruse over my rather comprehensive list of records, cds, files (sorry), etc... I have to say it was hard. Very hard. Some years were a snap, other years, forget it. More of a daunting task. One thing I've discovered over the last year or so, is with so much new music readily available via download, purchase, or ahem, other means, it's ostensibly hard to play my old records. You know the ones I mean. They had the ability to be both moving and give some needed inspiration if that was what you were looking for. If you were lucky they'd tug on a memory and bring you back to that specific time or place when everything was good. I miss that. With little to no extra time in my day, I'll give a record a cursory listen, and if it's not doing it for me I'll move on to the next. The time spent giving a record a fighting chance of becoming transcendent has become less and less. It can take up to ten spins before a record comes together to make sense. It feels like I could miss out by blowing by things to quickly. Lately, just trying to enjoy music has given way to the business of computers, external hard drives and becoming an administrator of my own record collection. As my wife calls it, doing all that "music garbage". Going forward, I plan on taking a different approach. Have less, listen more, live life.

It's a brave new world for young moderns.

1959 - Miles Davis - Kind of Blue
1960 - John Coltrane - Giant Steps
1961 - Oliver Nelson - Blues & The Abstract Truth
1962 - Frank Sinatra - Neil Hefti Swingin Brass
1963 - Bob Dylan - The Freewheelin'
1964 - The Beatles - Meet The Beatles
1965 - Bob Dylan - Bringing It All Back Home
1966 - Bob Dylan - Blonde On Blonde
1967 - The Beatles - Sgt Pepper's
1968 - The Byrds - Sweetheart of The Rodeo
1969 - The Band - The Band
1970 - Nick Drake - Bryter Layter
1971 - Rolling Stones - Sticky Fingers
1972 - Rolling Stones - Exile On Main St
1973 - Elton John - Don't Shoot Me I'm Only The Piano Player
1974 - Neil Young - On The Beach
1975 - Bob Dylan - Blood On The Tracks
1976 - Jeff Beck - Wired
1977 - Ramones - Rocket To Russia
1978 - Elvis Costello - This Years Model
1979 - The Clash - London Calling
1980 - XTC - Black Sea
1981 - Japan - Tin Drum
1982 - XTC - English Settlement
1983 - Tom Waits - Swordfishtrombones
1984 - Replacements - Let It Be
1985 - Replacements - Tim
1986 - XTC - Skylarking
1987 - Dukes of Stratosphear - Psonic Psunspot
1988 - The Smithereens - Green Thoughts
1989 - XTC - Oranges & Lemons
1990 - Jellyfish - Bellybutton
1991 - Uncle Tupelo - Still Feel Gone
1992 - XTC - Nonesuch
1993 - Uncle Tupelo - Anodyne
1994 - Guided By Voices - Bee Thousand
1995 - Son Volt - Trace
1996 - Scud Mountain Boys - Massachusetts
1997 - Bob Dylan - Time Out of Mind
1998 - Richard Buckner - Since
1999 - The Flaming Lips - The Soft Bulletin
2000 - Neko Case - Furnace Room Lullaby
2001 - The Pernice Brothers - The World Won't End
2002 - Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
2003 - Sun Kil Moon - Ghosts of The Great Highway
2004 - Dungen - Te Det Lugnt
2005 - Son Volt - Okemah & The Melody of Riot
2006 - Robert Pollard - From A Compound Eye
2007 - The Capstan Shafts - Her Vs The Sad Cold Eventually

Fleet Foxes

2008-06-30T20:47:00.000-07:00

The debut long player from Seattle's Fleet Foxes has slowly been making its way up the ranks as a serious contender for record of the year. After last weeks tear inducing or should I say "beard" inducing performance at San Francisco's Bottom of The Hill they may have done just that. Absolutely amazing is what comes to mind and when I think about it, I haven't had a chance to say that for quite some time. Strong compositions, tight four-part harmonies soaking in reverb and a group of players as seamless as I've seen in five years or so. Stay tuned cuz these Fleet Foxes are onto something and remind me of a time when music was simple, eloquent and just plain good. See you in Portland on July 25th.

Robert Pollard Is Off To Business

2008-06-13T10:29:00.000-07:00

It is no surprise that Robert Pollard’s latest solo effort clocks in at around 35 minutes. What is surprising, though, is the fact that it takes him just 10 songs to get there. Rather than islandhopping around to as many snippets of sound as he can on his new album, Pollard settles into these songs and builds them out. This makes for not only some of his longest post-GBV offerings, but also some of his best.There is a charm to the way Pollard approaches his career. He, particularly of late, doesn’t take it too seriously and spends his time building a huge collection of albums that he wants to make. And while he shouldn’t take himself too seriously, there’s nothing wrong with getting down to the business of being a songwriter. Records can be fun and carefully crafted and even serious all at the same time, and Pollard seems to have remembered that fact on Robert Pollard Is Off to Business. These songs have a presence and heft to them due in no small part, to Todd Tobias’ role as producer and multi-instrumentalist on the album. This is easily his warmest and most inviting sound yet. The warm, classic-rock crunch of “The Original Heart” starts the album off with a punch, and shows that Pollard hasn’t forgotten how to weave his love for The Who into his own off-kilter brand of power-pop. “The Blondes” is a big ol’ rock ballad, and perhaps his best arrangement since “Edison’s Memos”. There’s also the punk-tinged, infectious punch of “1 Year Old” and the five-minute-plus “Weatherman and Skin Goddess”, which melds Britpop with arena rock . The wah-wah tinged "Gratification To Concrete" contain some of Bob's best melodies this side of The Keene Brothers "Death Of The Party" and makes for arguably the best track on the record. (On a side-note I'd like to add it's one of my wife's favorite songs and when it comes to Senor' Pollard, I'd don't hear the phrase "that's a really good song" too often) These songs show Pollard’s best effort yet at tackling different genres in his songs, filtering his wide swath of influences through his own uncanny knack for melody. He doesn’t try to make a psychedelic song here, or a punk song, or craft a rock opera. What he does is give us ten Robert Pollard songs, with those elements weaved throughout, the way he used to with GBV and his best solo stuff on Matador. Of course, Pollard doesn’t lose his goofy side in all this variety. He dips his vocals into his newly found cartoony bass briefly on “The Blondes”. (Rich Turiel, Pollard's manager, said Bob had scribbled, "sound like Pete Ham" (of Badfinger) on a piece of paper before cutting the vocal track. Robert Pollard Is Off to Business is a great return to form for Pollard. It has songs just as strong as anything on his Merge releases. As the first full release for his new record label, Guided by Voices, Inc., this album is the start of a new era and if this record is a sign of what’s to come, then Pollard’s long-time fans should rejoice.

The Original Heart
The Blondes
Gratification To Concrete
Weatherman and Skin Goddess
Wealth and Hell-Being

The Rolling Best of 2008

2008-06-12T09:35:00.000-07:00

drive-by truckers - brighter than creation's dark
fleet foxes - fleet foxes
robert pollard - is off to business
the tallest man on earth - shallow grave
sun kil moon - april
hayden - in field and town
the dexateens - lost and found
chris mills - living in the aftermath
jonny greenwood - there will be blood - OST
brett cash - how will i know if i'm awake

The Tallest Man on Earth

2008-06-11T10:44:00.000-07:00

It’s strange to think that it took a Swede to capture the spirit of American folk music, or at least come the closest to imitating it. But with the soon to-be release of Shallow Grave, the debut LP from Sweden’s own The Tallest Man on Earth, Americana has been given the Swedish touch. With his ramshackle delivery, nimble fingerpicking, and whimsical lyrics, you get a sense that the Tallest Man on Earth has spent a lot of time absorbing Harry Smith’s Anthology of Folk Music and The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan without the latter’s overt socio-political commentary. Like Dylan, who aped the musical and visual style of his pre-war forebears but later developed his own sound, the Tallest Man on Earth is a highly gifted singer-songwriter who may be a bit derivative, but what music isn’t?

10 songs in 30 minutes. I've been playing this non-stop for a week.

Enjoy !

HERE

Now Playing :

2008-05-21T21:38:00.001-07:00

robert pollard is off to business - robert pollard
mason jennings - in the ever
the botticelli's - old home movies
roger manning jr. - catnip dynamite
aimee mann - smilers
chris mills - living in the aftermath
bonnie prince billy - lie down in the light

He's Back

2008-05-06T18:35:00.000-07:00

If you've been by C.O.T.M. before you would know about my unprofessed love for everything Beulah. When San Francisco's own decided to call it quits five years ago after the release of Yoko, I wondered if I would ever again hear those melodies from principal songwriter/singer/guitarist Miles Kurosky. He made it perfectly clear you can take something only so far, and the beauty of it all is knowing when to get out. So he did. Unfortunately since, he's had to deal with hospital stays, health issues, and living in a constant state of convalescence. He's better now and apparently in fine fettle these days. So without further ado, here's An Apple For An Apple, the first track from his untitled solo record due sometime this year.

HERE

The Rolling Stones : Brussels Affair 10.17.73

2008-04-11T17:01:00.000-07:00

When I was a teenager I had a vinyl copy of this A+ sounding bootleg which I proceeded to play to death. It's long since been lost, loaned out without return or burned in a house fire on Thanksgiving, 1984. It was too long ago to remember which. In any event, I don't care cos I have it back in all of its Glimmer Twins glory. That aside, the Stones are presented here in two ways. One, at the height of their creative, musical peak and two, as the middle period Stones, with one of my all-time favorite guitarists in tow, Mick Taylor.

Brown Sugar
Gimme Shelter
Happy
Tumbling Dice
Heartbreaker
Dancing With Mr. D
Angie
You Can't Always Get What You Want
Honky Tonk Women
Midnight Rambler
All Down The Line
Rip This Joint
Jumping Jack Flash
Street Fighting Man

PART 1
PART 2

The Rolling Best of 2008

2008-04-05T16:44:00.000-07:00

drive-by truckers - brighter than creation's dark
hayden - in field and town
jonny greenwood - there will be blood - OST
the dexateens - lost and found
sun kil moon - april
brett cash - how will i know if i'm awake
fleet foxes - ragged wood
the felice brothers - the felice brothers
silver jews - lookout mountain, lookout sea
black mountain - in the future
marah - angels of destruction
nada surf - lucky
she & him - volume 1

Researchers Play Tune Recorded Before Edison

2008-03-27T18:37:00.000-07:00

For more than a century, since he captured the spoken words “Mary had a little lamb” on a sheet of tinfoil, Thomas Edison has been considered the father of recorded sound. But researchers say they have unearthed a recording of the human voice, made by a little-known Frenchman, that predates Edison’s invention of the phonograph by nearly two decades. The 10-second recording of a singer crooning the folk song “Au Clair de la Lune” was discovered earlier this month in an archive in Paris by a group of American audio historians. It was made, the researchers say, on April 9, 1860, on a phonautograph, a machine designed to record sounds visually, not to play them back. But the phonautograph recording, or phonautogram, was made playable — converted from squiggles on paper to sound — by scientists at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, Calif. “This is a historic find, the earliest known recording of sound,” said Samuel Brylawski, the former head of the recorded-sound division of the Library of Congress, who is not affiliated with the research group but who was familiar with its findings. The audio excavation could give a new primacy to the phonautograph, once considered a curio, and its inventor, Édouard-Léon Scott de Martinville, a Parisian typesetter and tinkerer who went to his grave convinced that credit for his breakthroughs had been improperly bestowed on Edison. Scott’s device had a barrel-shaped horn attached to a stylus, which etched sound waves onto sheets of paper blackened by smoke from an oil lamp. The recordings were not intended for listening; the idea of audio playback had not been conceived. Rather, Scott sought to create a paper record of human speech that could later be deciphered. But the Lawrence Berkeley scientists used optical imaging and a “virtual stylus” on high-resolution scans of the phonautogram, deploying modern technology to extract sound from patterns inscribed on the soot-blackened paper almost a century and a half ago. The scientists belong to an informal collaborative called First Sounds that also includes audio historians and sound engineers.
David Giovannoni, an American audio historian who led the research effort, will present the findings and play the recording in public on Friday at the annual conference of the Association for Recorded Sound Collections at Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif. Scott’s 1860 phonautogram was made 17 years before Edison received a patent for the phonograph and 28 years before an Edison associate captured a snippet of a Handel oratorio on a wax cylinder, a recording that until now was widely regarded by experts as the oldest that could be played back.
Mr. Giovannoni’s presentation on Friday will showcase additional Scott phonautograms discovered in Paris, including recordings made in 1853 and 1854. Those first experiments included attempts to capture the sounds of a human voice and a guitar, but Scott’s machine was at that time imperfectly calibrated. “We got the early phonautograms to squawk, that’s about it,” Mr. Giovannoni said. But the April 1860 phonautogram is more than a squawk. On a digital copy of the recording provided to The New York Times, the anonymous vocalist, probably female, can be heard against a hissing, crackling background din. The voice, muffled but audible, sings, “Au clair de la lune, Pierrot répondit” in a lilting 11-note melody — a ghostly tune, drifting out of the sonic murk. The hunt for this audio holy grail was begun in the fall by Mr. Giovannoni and three associates: Patrick Feaster, an expert in the history of the phonograph who teaches at Indiana University, and Richard Martin and Meagan Hennessey, owners of Archeophone Records, a label specializing in early sound recordings. They had collaborated on the Archeophone album “Actionable Offenses,” a collection of obscene 19th-century records that received two Grammy nominations. When Mr. Giovannoni raised the possibility of compiling an anthology of the world’s oldest recorded sounds, Mr. Feaster suggested they go digging for Scott’s phonautograms. Historians have long been aware of Scott’s work. But the American researchers believe they are the first to make a concerted search for Scott’s phonautograms or attempt to play them back. In December Mr. Giovannoni and a research assistant traveled to a patent office in Paris, the Institut National de la Propriété Industrielle. There he found recordings from 1857 and 1859 that were included by Scott in his phonautograph patent application. Mr. Giovannoni said that he worked with the archive staff there to make high-resolution, preservation-grade digital scans of these recordings. A trail of clues, including a cryptic reference in Scott’s writings to phonautogram deposits made at “the Academy,” led the researchers to another Paris institution, the French Academy of Sciences, where several more of Scott’s recordings were stored. Mr. Giovannoni said that his eureka moment came when he laid eyes on the April 1860 phonautogram, an immaculately preserved sheet of rag paper 9 inches by 25 inches. “It was pristine,” Mr. Giovannoni said. “The sound waves were remarkably clear and clean.”
His scans were sent to the Lawrence Berkeley lab, where they were converted into sound by the scientists Carl Haber and Earl Cornell. They used a technology developed several years ago in collaboration with the Library of Congress, in which high-resolution “maps” of grooved records are played on a computer using a digital stylus. The 1860 phonautogram was separated into 16 tracks, which Mr. Giovannoni, Mr. Feaster and Mr. Martin meticulously stitched back together, making adjustments for variations in the speed of Scott’s hand-cranked recording. Listeners are now left to ponder the oddity of hearing a recording made before the idea of audio playback was even imagined. "There is a yawning epistemic gap between us and Léon Scott, because he thought that the way one gets to the truth of sound is by looking at it,” said Jonathan Sterne, a professor at McGill University in Montreal and the author of “The Audible Past: Cultural Origins of Sound Reproduction."
Scott is in many ways an unlikely hero of recorded sound. Born in Paris in 1817, he was a man of letters, not a scientist, who worked in the printing trade and as a librarian. He published a book on the history of shorthand, and evidently viewed sound recording as an extension of stenography. In a self-published memoir in 1878, he railed against Edison for “appropriating” his methods and misconstruing the purpose of recording technology. The goal, Scott argued, was not sound reproduction, but “writing speech, which is what the word phonograph means.” In fact, Edison arrived at his advances on his own. There is no evidence that Edison drew on knowledge of Scott’s work to create his phonograph, and he retains the distinction of being the first to reproduce sound.
“Edison is not diminished whatsoever by this discovery,” Mr. Giovannoni said.
Paul Israel, director of the Thomas A. Edison Papers at Rutgers University in Piscataway, N.J., praised the discovery as a “tremendous achievement,” but called Edison’s phonograph a more significant technological feat. “What made Edison different from Scott was that he was trying to reproduce sound and he succeeded,” Mr. Israel said. But history is finally catching up with Scott.
Mr. Sterne, the McGill professor, said: “We are in a period that is more similar to the 1860s than the 1880s. With computers, there is an unprecedented visualization of sound.” The acclaim Scott sought may turn out to have been assured by the very sonic reproduction he disdained. And it took a group of American researchers to rescue Scott’s work from the musty vaults of his home city. In his memoir, Scott scorned his American rival Edison and made brazen appeals to French nationalism. “What are the rights of the discoverer versus the improver?” he wrote less than a year before his death in 1879. “Come, Parisians, don’t let them take our prize.”

The New York Times - March 27, 2008

1860: The Phonautograph Recording of 'Au Clair de la Lune'(mp3)
1931: Audio Excerpt from recording of the Same Song (mp3)

HERE

The Waxwings : Collection

2008-03-26T10:54:00.001-07:00

This now defunct Detroit quartet weren't exactly straight outta the garage. Imagine what sort of records Brian Wilson would have made if he had been chasing the Stones and Syd Barrett instead of McCartney and The Beatles.

Keeping The Sparks - Low To The Ground
While You Spiral - Low To The Ground
Fragile Girl - Low To The Ground
Sleepy Head - Low To The Ground
Firewood - Low To The Ground
Into The Scenery - Low To The Ground
Different Plane - Low To The Ground
Wired That Way - Shadows Of
Clouded Over - Shadows Of
Look Down Darkly - Shadows Of
Rifle Through - Shadows Of
Fractured - Shadows Of
Into Tomorrow - Shadows Of
Steady As Starlight - Let's Make Our Descent
Of Late - Let's Make Our Descent
It Comes In Waves - Low To The Ground

HERE

Now Playing :

2008-03-17T13:02:00.000-07:00

sun kil moon - april
the felice brothers - the felice brothers
the dexateens - lost and found
chuck prophet - dreaming waylon's dreams
silver jews - lookout mountain, lookout sea
r.e.m. - accelerate
she & him - volume 1
nada surf - lucky

Joe Pernice

2008-03-10T13:07:00.000-07:00

Back in the early 1990s, songwriter Joe Pernice used to be in a little-known but fashionable modern rock band called The Scuds. Night after night, they pummeled club audiences with amplified bar chords. Then, after the club would close for the night, they would retire to their guitar player's home, crowd around the kitchen table, and strum delicate country songs well into the morning. Pernice quickly realized this was the kind of music he really wanted to share with audiences, so his group renamed themselves the Scud Mountain Boys and introduced their fans to a whole new sound.
The Scud Mountain Boys enjoyed critical acclaim during their days with Sub Pop in the mid-'90s. Since then, Joe Pernice has recorded under a number of assumed names and borrowed styles. "Musically, I think I've always been a fan of classic pop melodies," Pernice says. "Lyrically, I think I tend to get a little dark at times. But there's not a lot of thought behind trying to put them together, it comes naturally." Pernice's lyrics have been so relentlessly dark at times, that some critics have chastised him for not easing up. "My lyrics, while honest, don't really reflect my everyday mood. I love to joke, I'm a pretty happy guy." He has his fans fooled. When they meet him, he says, they're often amazed that he's not bedridden.

Working Girls (Sunlight Shines) - The World Won't End
Water Ban - Yours, Mine & Ours
The Weakest Shade Of Blue - Yours, Mine & Ours
Bryte Side - The World Won't End
Baby In Two - Yours, Mine & Ours
In A Ditch - Massachusetts
7:30 - The World Won't End
There Goes The Sun - Discover a Lovelier You
Overcome by Happiness - Overcome by Happiness
Amazing Glow - Discover a Lovelier You
Saddest Quo - Discover a Lovelier You
Crestfallen - Overcome by Happiness
The Ballad Of Bjorn Borg - The World Won't End
Somerville - Live a Little
Penthouse In The Woods - Massachusetts
Bum Leg - Big Tobacco
Clear Spot - Overcome by Happiness
Breakneck Speed - Chappaquiddick Skyline
High As a Kite - Live a Little
Everyone Else Is Evolving - Chappaquiddick Skyline
Courage Up - Chappaquiddick Skyline
The Pill - Big Tobacco
Massachusetts - Massachusetts

HERE

Peter Bruntnell

2008-03-10T12:42:00.001-07:00

'Normal For Bridgwater' was the record that really made people start taking notice of Peter Bruntnell. Recorded in Boston with Bruntnell's band, along with Eric Heywood and Dave Boquist from Son Volt, the album was produced by Slow River founder and Rykodisc President George Howard. It soon became something of a classic - from Lay Down This Curse and By The Time My Head Gets To Phoenix to the heart-breaking Handful Of Stars. With Normal For Bridgwater, Bruntnell's beautifully detailed songs of longing and lonesome regrets established him as one of Britain's premier songwriters.
When asked the meaning of the title track Bruntnell offered "a couple who are friends of mine ran a particularly rough pub in Bridgwater (a small town in the UK West Country), and the landlady was telling me one day that the doctors in Bridgwater use the abbreviation NFB (= Normal For Bridgwater) when describing their test results for slightly disturbed local patients." His second record, 'Ends of the Earth' is a stunning album, and without a doubt the best thing Bruntnell has ever come up with in his relatively unprolific career to date. Didn’t imagine he could follow up “Normal for Bridgwater” without compromising? Think again. “Ends of the Earth” barely treads any new ground at all, but at the same time still manages to throw up some of the best tracks you’ll have heard in a long time. “Here Comes the Swells,” the album opener is a good introduction to what lies ahead - Bruntnell’s voice is his second finest asset, second only to his songwriting.

Handful Of Stars - Normal For Bridgwater
N.F.B. - Normal For Bridgwater
Tabloid Reporter - Ends Of The Earth
Here Come The Swells - Ends Of The Earth
By The Time My Head Gets To Phoenix - Normal For Bridgwater
Cosmea - Normal For Bridgwater
Ends Of The Earth - Ends Of The Earth
Lay Down This Curse - Normal For Bridgwater
One Drink Away - Ends Of The Earth
Darling I Suppose - Loose Sounds Of The Old West
Shot From A Spring - Normal For Bridgwater
Played Out - Normal For Bridgwater
Perfume River - Ghost In a Spitfire
Rio Tinto - Ends Of The Earth
You Won't Find Me - Normal For Bridgwater
Fear of Lightning - Ghost In a Spitfire
Forgiven - Normal For Bridgwater
Outlaw (May The Sun Always Shine) - Normal For Bridgwater

HERE

Colin Moulding of XTC

2008-02-28T19:54:00.001-08:00

With all the talk around Andy's Fuzzy Warbles releases (deservedly so I may add) the last few years, I figured it was about time XTC's bassist and secondary singer/songwriter Colin Moulding received some props. His bass playing, a cross between Paul McCartney and James Jamerson and his way of turning a vocal melody were key components in the evolution of the band over the course of 25+ years. XTC, a band known for their long-standing critical success may be no more as in November 2006, Partridge told the press that Moulding no longer had any interest in writing, performing or even listening to music. Partridge said he would not continue XTC without Moulding, and therefore has been forced to regard XTC "in the past tense."

01. Vanishing Girl - Psonic Psunspot
02. Grass - Skylarking
03. Generals And Majors - Black Sea
04. What In The World?? - 25 O'Clock
05. The Meeting Place - Skylarking
06. Making Plans For Nigel - Drums And Wires
07. Life Begins At The Hop - Drums And Wires
08. Runaways - English Settlement
09. Ball And Chain - English Settlement
10. Ten Feet Tall - Drums And Wires
11. Shiny Cage - Psonic Psunspot
12. In Loving Memory Of A Name - Mummer
13. The Affiliated - Psonic Psunspot
14. Big Day - Skylarking
15. Collideascope - Psonic Psunspot
16. Love At First Sight - Black Sea
17. Wake Up - The Big Express
18. My Bird Performs - Nonsuch
19. Bungalow - Nonsuch
20. Frivolous Tonight - Apple Venus
21. Boarded Up - Wasp Star

HERE

Teenage Fanclub (for beginners)

2008-02-11T14:04:00.001-08:00

In 1991, the record of the decade was released, Nirvana's Nevermind.
So, what album did Spin Magazine pick for its best album of 1991? Teenage Fanclub's Bandwagonesque. It's true. Look it up. They were the mega buzz band. They performed on SNL, Zines called'em the next big thing. Pitchfork would've said "Best New Music" if they existed. Alas, Pitchfork didn't exist, and alas Teenage Fanclub was not the next big thing. They continued to make records that I loved, but critics didn't. As a result they slowly faded but continued to put out a quality record every few years, each time featuring a few brilliant pop songs. I think critics get bitter at songwriters who are dependable and not rock'n'roll enough.

Sparky's Dream - Grand Prix
Ain't That Enough - Songs From Northern Britain
I Need Direction - Howdy
Mellow Doubt - Grand Prix
I Don't Want Control Of You - Songs From Northern Britain
The Concept - Bandwagonesque
What You Do To Me - Bandwagonesque
Neil Jung - Grand Prix
Start Again - Songs From Northern Britain
Winter - Songs From Northern Britain
It's All In My Mind - Man-Made
Everything Flows - A Catholic Education
Hang On - Thirteen
If I Never See You Again - Howdy

HERE

The Rolling Best of 2008

2008-01-27T14:19:00.001-08:00

01. drive-by truckers - brighter than creation's dark
02. hayden - in field and town
03. jonny greenwood - there will be blood - OST
04. black mountain - in the future
05. marah - angels of destruction

Best of 2007

2008-01-01T10:36:00.001-08:00

01. son volt - the search
02. spoon - ga ga ga ga ga
03. the capstan shafts- her vs the sad cold eventually
04. the sadies - new seasons
05. wilco - sky blue sky
06. jose gonzalex - in our nature
07. calexico - tool box
08. dungen - tio bitar
09. amy winehouse - back to black
10. babyshambles - shotter's nation
11. the dexateens - hardwire healing
12. robert pollard - coast to coast carpet of love
13. the broken west - I can't go on, I'll go on
14. rufus wainwright - release the stars
15. the earlies - the enemy chorus
16. the shins - wincing the night away
17. joe henry - civilians
18. deerhoof - friend opportunity
19. andrew bird - armchair apocrypha
20. jason isbell - sirens
21. robert plant & alison krauss - raising sand
22. jim white - transnormal skiperoo
23. earlimart - mentor tormentor
24. panda bear - person pitch
25. fountains of wayne - traffic & weather

Relatively Clean Rivers

2007-08-20T13:29:00.001-07:00

Jeff Tweedy's cited this one in a few interviews as one of the inspirations for some of the Sky Blue Sky material, "You Are My Face" in particular.

... lo and behold come 1975 and he yet again unleashes a privately pressed rural/psych rock gem under the name Relatively Clean Rivers that just seems so effortlessly and inventively produced. Usually by '75 I can't stand stuff like this, but my god! He's got backwards drums on here like it's still 1968. And on a country rock record no less! It works perfectly. All California sunsets and country living clean, you can feel the wind in this album, in the melodies and in the guitar lines. This is Grateful Dead-esque music for people who hate the Grateful Dead (and also those who love 'em). (OtherMusic.com)

First ever reissue. Former "Beat Of The Earth" leader Phil Pearlman assembled Relatively Clean Rivers in the early '70s and eventually recorded this excellent rural rock album in 1975. Although it should be easy to pigeonhole the sound of Relatively Clean Rivers, it is actually anything but. At times sounding like The Grateful Dead in all their American Beauty pomp, or CSNY circa DÈj‡ Vu, this tight, richly talented ensemble produces an album of almost majestic quality. The sound is superb, and clearly no time or expense were spared to produce an album which is probably the most flawless snapshot of Californian '70s under ground music that you will ever here. Originally there were 2 pressings of this unique album, each of only 500 copies each, and this is the first time that this, or any of Pearlman's other recordings has been reissued. An album highly recommended to anyone even remotely interested in '70s West Coast music or simply top-notch music in general.(Forced-Exposure)

Former Beat Of The Earth leader Phil Pearlman assembled this band in the early 70's. This is their sole and very rare album from 1975, and it's a long lost classic of US psychedelia. An overall rural West Coast vibe permeates an album that's filled with melodic rural songs, eastern jams, delicate drifting electric and acoustic instrumentals and backwards and electronic effects. Somewhere close to American Beauty era Grateful Dead, but with an added dose of New Tweedy Brothers styled fuzz and garage psych electronic experimentation, this is a release that deserves a listen by any serious US '60's psychedelic rock fan. (Freak-Emporium)

1. Easy Ride
2. Journey Through The Valley Of O
3. Babylon
4. Last Flight To Eden (inst)
5. Prelude (inst)
6. Hello Sunshine
7. They Knew What To Say
8. The Persian Caravan (inst)
9. A Thousand Years

HERE

Wimple Winch

2007-08-01T16:00:00.000-07:00

Great collection of songs from one of the finest British Freakbeat/Psych combos' ever. Robert Pollard has cited them more than once as a major influence.

Dig -

01 Marmalade Hair
02 Typical British Workmanship
03 Coloured Glass
04 Lollipop Minds
05 Three Little Teddy Bears
06 You're a Big Girl Now
07 Bluebell Wood
08 Those Who Wait
09 The Last Hooray
10 What's Been Done
11 Save My Soul
12 Everybody's Worried About Tomorrow
13 I Really Love You
14 Rumble on Mersey Square
15 Atmospheres
(BONUS)
16 Things Will Never Be the Same
17 That's My Baby
18 There's Not One Thing
19 Don't Come Any Closer
20 Half Past Five

HERE

Jazz Collection #1

2007-07-10T13:31:00.000-07:00

01. Stolen Moments - Oliver Nelson/Freddie Hubbard
02. So What - Miles Davis
03. Blue Train - John Coltrane
04. Just Friends - Charlie Parker
05. Corcovado - Getz/Gilberto/Jobim
06. Strange Fruit - Billie Holiday
07. West End Blues - Louis Armstrong
08. Naima - John Coltrane
09. King Porter Stomp - Benny Goodman
10. Smoke Rings - Glen Gray Orchestra
11. Chelsea Bridge - Joe Henderson
12. Hora Decubitus - Charles Mingus
13. Prisoner Of Love - Lester Young & Teddy Wilson
14. Dusk in Sandi - Bud Powell
15. You've Changed - Billie Holiday

HERE

The Capstan Shafts

2007-06-19T10:56:00.001-07:00

Dean Wells writes all the songs, records on a 4-track and plays all the instruments. His asthetic is VERY GbV (short songs and Bob-like song titles) but that's where it ends cos ironically enough he's more like Tobin Sprout. Other influences include Jeff Mangum & Ray Davies. His melodies stick to you like glue which is why The Shafts are all I've listened to for 3 weeks now. He's released (if you can call it that) 7-8 EP's, 5-6 full lengths. This collection of 30 songs is culled from Euridice Proudhon, Her Versus the Sad Cold Eventually & The Sleeved and Grandaughters of the Blacklist.

The Capstan Shafts - Collection
HERE

Camus on Art

2007-04-12T08:21:00.000-07:00

“Man may authorize himself to denounce the total injustice of the world, but he cannot affirm its total ugliness. There is a transcendence we experience, every beautiful thing is a promise of it that leads us to prefer this limited and incomplete world to any other. Art leads us to the origin of the revolt against the world, to the extent that it attempts to stamp its form on values in the perpetual process of becoming”

Beulah - Collection (of sorts)

2007-03-19T08:44:00.000-07:00

While I wait for ex-Beulah frontman & songwriter Miles Kurosky to put the finishing touches on his first solo record, I thought I would put up this collection of songs from one of my favorite bands who left this world just a bit too soon. One can only hope Miles keeps up that tradition of crafting near perfect pop songs.

01. Gene Autry #
02. If We Can Land a Man on the Moon, Surely I Can Win Your Heart *
03. A Good Man Is Easy to Kill #
04. Silverado Days *
05. The Aristocratic Swells *
06. Hey Brother #
07. Emma Blowgun's Last Stand *
08. Gravity's Bringing Us Down #
09. Landslide Baby +
10. Popular Mechanics for Lovers #
11. Calm Go the Wild Seas *
12. What Will You Do When Your Suntan Fades ? #
13. Warmer *

When Your Heartstrings Break * (1999)
The Coast is Never Clear # (2001)
Yoko + (2003)

HERE

Fountains of Wayne - Traffic and Weather

2007-03-16T13:37:00.000-07:00

If you prefer your FoW with a little less gravity and a bit more confection then this is the record for you. It has it all, late 60's early 70's influence, a little jangle, dare I say an 80's feel at times (listen to Someone To Love), some Gram Parsons thrown in for good measure, mix it all up with a dollup of indie and voila, the boys from New Jersey (Andy & Chris) have done it again. Good work gentleman.

Someone To Love
Revolving Dora
This Better Be Good
Michael & Heather at the Baggage Claim
Traffic and Weather

Son Volt - The Search ( 22 track extended)

2007-03-15T11:44:00.000-07:00

In addition to the disgustingly amazing new record from Son Volt, iTUNES is offering eight additional tracks as an exclusive download. I've been playing these quite a bit of late which led me to think that if anyone else were releasing "bonus" songs of this caliber, what a career builder they would make. What does all this mean ? Jay Farrar, one of America's finest songwriters. PERIOD. Coltrane Free, Waking World & Acetone Angels are a few of the standout tracks from this exclusive bunch. The proper release contains in my opinion one of the best songs of the year in Methamphetamine, one that over time will lay alongside Windfall & Tear-Stained Eye as classics from the Farrar oeuvre.

Methamphetamine
Coltrane Free
Waking World
Highways & Cigarettes(acoustic)

Robert Pollard - Silverfish Trivia

2007-03-14T20:41:00.000-07:00

Check out this great track from the new Robert Pollard Solo LP
Silverfish Trivia due for release on April 17th.

Circle Saw Boys Club

Dylan Hears a Who

2007-03-02T08:35:00.000-08:00

I just came across this and had to share. Classic...

Give it a listen here
In other Dylan news there's a newly remasterd version of D.A. Pennebaker's seminal documentary Don't Look Back that contains a bonus disc with new commentary and a bunch of unused footage that includes five never before seen full performances from that tour.

Wilco - Sky Blue Sky

2007-03-01T10:46:00.000-08:00

The Nonesuch effort drops May 15.

Tracklist:

01 Either Way
02 You Are My Face
03 Impossible Germany
04 Sky Blue Sky
05 Side With the Seeds
06 Shake It Off
07 Please Be Patient With Me
08 Hate It Here
09 Leave Me (Like You Found Me)
10 Walken
11 What Light
12 On and On and On

Richmond Fontaine - Thirteen Cities

2007-02-08T12:42:00.000-08:00

The new Richmond Fontaine record produced by JD Foster have enlisted the services of Joey Burns of Calexico and Howe Gelb of Giant Sand and have frankly, hit one out of the park. There's nothing like the lugubrious musings of one Willy Vlautin.

2007 : Now Playing

2007-01-26T16:16:00.000-08:00

Son Volt - The Search
Wilco - Sky Blue Sky
Dungen - Tio Bitar
Kings of Leon - Because of The Times
The High Llamas - Can Cladders
Ted Leo & the Pharmacists - Living With the Living
Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank
Andrew Bird - Armchair Apocrypha
Lucinda Williams - West
Earlies - The Enemy Chorus

Teri Falini - The Room

2007-01-25T13:02:00.000-08:00

'The Room', the follow-up to her angsty debut 'Sun Under Me', shows a level of songwriting that continues to grow which in my opinion was only alluded to on her debut. Listen to the tracks 'Cut' & 'Broken Man' from her debut for confirmation. While 'The Room' is more of a 'downer' record, there's something about it that draws me in and forces me to hit play again. Some great tracks here from the 'trippy' opener, 'Tangerine', the hooky 'Undressed', the tribal-esqe title track 'The Room' and my current favorite song of 2007, the epic 'My Father'. It's refreshing to listen to a female artist who's unlike anything I've heard. PJ Harvey comes to mind, the singer from Concrete Blonde perhaps. Still, you're nowhere in the ballpark.
Highly recommended (Amazon review)

Undressed

My Father

The Room

The Shins - Wincing The Night Away

2007-01-19T12:31:00.000-08:00

Once indie, now headed for the mainstream The Shins have created something quite unique. Taking their time in James Mercer's basement studio with help from Joe Chiccarelli, Wincing the Night Away might be the best Shins record to date.

Phantom Limb

Top 25 Records of 2006

2007-01-04T12:28:00.000-08:00

01. Robert Pollard - from a compound eye
02. Drive-by Truckers - a blessing and a curse
03. Sparklehorse - dreamt of light years in the belly of the mtn
04. M.Ward - post-war
05. Calexico - garden ruin
06. Benoit Pioulard - precis
07. The Keene Brothers - blues & boogie shoes
08. Minus 5 - gun album
09. Deadstring Brothers - starving winter report
10. Frank Black - fastman raiderman
11. Bob Dylan - modern times
12. Norman & Nancy Blake - back home in sulphur springs
13. Loose Fur - born again in the usa
14. The Hold Steady - boys & girls in america
15. Howe Gelb - 'sno-angel like you
16. Robert Pollard - normal happiness
17. Richard Buckner - meadow
18. Scott Biram - graveyard shift
19. Pernice Brothers - live a little
20. Tim Easton - ammunition
21. Gob Iron - death songs of the living
22. Midlake - the trials of van occupanther
23. Neko Case - fox confessor brings the flood
24. Destroyer - rubies
25. The Flaming Lips - at war with the mystics

Sun Kil Moon - Ghosts of The Great Highway

2006-12-07T10:07:00.000-08:00

If you do nothing else today go out and pick up 'Ghosts of the Great Highway'. It will be the best thing you do all day.