tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11411398399668207482024-02-18T23:50:47.534-06:00there's NOTHING QUITE LIKE the blinding light...Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger209125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-7397031557508396932010-01-25T20:01:00.005-06:002011-09-06T19:39:06.008-05:00Shirley, You Can't Be Serious?Paul Shirley no longer writes music columns for ESPN. If you didn't hear, he made some controversial comments regarding the disaster situation in Haiti. I am not going to try and sum up what he wrote, but his entire post can be read <a href="http://www.flipcollective.com/2010/01/26/if-you-rebuild-it-they-will-come-by-paul-shirley/">here</a>. Obviously, that did not go over well in Bristol (or in the rest of America for that matter), and he was let go less than 24 hours later. (And <a href="http://www.flipcollective.com/2010/01/28/a-reaction-by-paul-shirley/">here</a> is his reaction to all the hoopla.) I always enjoyed his writing and will miss his columns. His piece a few months back about his iTunes and his agonizing over certain songs' respective play counts was really good. Mostly because it hit too close to home. But what I can't understand is how does a seemingly smart guy like Paul Shirley not realize that this sort of act would not fly with the notoriously-PC powers-that-be at ESPN? Even a micro-celebrity like Shirley had to know he didn't stand a chance with a post as incendiary as that one (whether taken out of context or not) with the current 24-hour blog/media cycle the way it is. Did that not cross his mind once while he was putting his thoughts together? Maybe it did and he just didn't care. But what became quickly obvious is that in the grand scheme of things he was probably pretty dispensable at ESPN. He's not exactly Bill Simmons. In fact, when I was discussing this matter with friends, <a href="http://www.blogger.com/profile/04593955689470953995">Scott</a> surmised that the meeting at corporate headquarters went something like this:<br /><br />Guy1: Paul Shirley stated that he wished Haitians would wear <span class="il">condoms</span>.<br />Guy2: Fire him. Have you tried that new deli on 43rd Street? The <span class="il">stromboli</span> is to die for.<br /><br />I suspect that this is pretty accurate. And I guess it's time to update the links.<br /><div><br /></div><div>--Alex<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-46038023800650745902010-01-18T21:12:00.002-06:002010-01-18T21:58:57.281-06:00R.I.P.: Jay Reatard<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ld4CIpBGrZI&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ld4CIpBGrZI&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Jay Reatard was a name that I saw all over the Internet a few years ago and summarily ignored because, come on, "Reatard?" No one who chooses that name voluntarily has any business putting out good music. I was also under the false impression that Reatard was part of one of the stupid hot-then movements that I didn't like. Freak-folk or lo-fi or whatever the hell Dan Deacon does or something. That all changed when I saw the cover of <i>Blood Visions</i>. Seeing a dude standing in his underpants against a white background covered in blood made me want to give his music a shot. (...What?). I bought <i>Blood Visions</i>, pressed play, and was impressed within 10 seconds. It's still one of the few albums I happily return to when I think I'm bored with everything else in my collection. <br /><br />When I heard the news on Wednesday that Reatard had died, I closed the door to my office and threw on <i>Blood Visions</i>. Listening to it made me sad until "Nightmares," my favorite song of his, came through my speakers. Then I remembered the great body of work that Reatard left, and was happy that my world is better because of it.<br /><br />--Jim PowersUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-3581691126675620012009-12-23T23:40:00.009-06:002012-01-08T08:44:53.487-06:00Merry Listmas From NQL: Best of 2009<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >A little later than usual, but here we present NQL’s annual best-of music compilation for 2009 from contributors and a few guests.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>I, for one, am ready for a new year.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>When I think of 2009, disappointment comes to mind: M. Ward’s snoozer <span style="font-style: italic;">Hold Time</span> following 2006’s excellent <span style="font-style: italic;">Post-War</span>, the sneaky-terrible <span style="font-style: italic;">Where the While Things Are</span> movie following that <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NOkQ4dYVaM">amazing trailer</a>, and the couple that crashed the state dinner following my belief that people who wanted to be famous did it the old-fashioned way, such as launching a runaway hot-air balloon from their backyard.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Wilco jumped on the “disappointment” bandwagon and released <span style="font-style: italic;">Wilco (The Album)</span> which received mostly positive reviews but I have no idea why.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>I guess the album was slightly better than <i>Sky Blue Sky</i>.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>But if Paramount was to come out with a <i>Godfather IV</i> and it was a tad more enjoyable than <i>Godfather III</i>, would that necessarily make <i>Godfather IV</i> a good movie?<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Of course not.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>(Oddly enough, I would still shell out a decent amount of cash to take in a Wilco show if they were to come to town anytime soon.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Their live shows never get old.) <span style="font-size:0pt;"></span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Bands like jj were cute for about five seconds and then I realized they were called “jj” and their novelty would not survive through next year. <span style="font-size:0pt;"></span>Honestly, is anyone going to be playing that jj album come this time next year?<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>(Oh, and don’t think I forgot about you, xx.)<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>I almost felt the same way about the Passion Pit album <i>Manners</i> but I kept playing it and playing it and it never really got old.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>And it sort of reminded me of last year’s <i>Oracular Spectacular</i> by MGMT.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Looking back, <i>Oracular Spectacular</i> was a fascinating album.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><span style="font-size:0pt;"></span>It had all the making of a one-hit wonder, a flash in the pan, two guys who would never to be heard from again until they resurfaced five years later broke and with major drug problems. <span style="font-size:0pt;"></span><span style="font-size:0pt;"></span>But nearly two years later, you go to a club, a baseball game, or turn on your television and you’re bound to hear that album.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>And that’s because it’s a good album, with good songs!<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>I could see the same thing potentially happening with <i>Manners</i>.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>(Though it should be noted, I talked with a guy who played a show with Passion Pit and he said they were extremely nice guys who could hardly play their own instruments, culminating in the drummer one time becoming frustrated and throwing his drumsticks to the ground.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>But that’s okay, we’re not counting down the top ten live or talented performers here.)<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>So there you go, <i>Manners</i> was a good album that was released in 2009.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Combine that with the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVs6X9yIM_k">amazing video</a> from Bob Dylan for his song “Must Be Santa” and maybe the year wasn’t half-bad.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>And what better way to find out than with a bunch of lists. <span style="font-size:0pt;"></span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><b><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"></span></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><b><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Best Songs of 2009<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"></span></o:p></span></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >10.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“Little Secrets” – Passion Pit<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >9.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“People Got A Lot Of Nerve” – Neko Case <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >8.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“1901” – Phoenix <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >6.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“Hysteric” – Yeah Yeah Yeahs<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >6.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“Daylight” – Matt & Kim<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >5.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“Great Defector” – Bell X1<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >4.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“There Maybe Ten Or Twelve…” – AC Newman<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >3.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“Cannibal Resource” – Dirty Projectors<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >2.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“My Girls” – Animal Collective<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >1.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“Wet Hair” – Japandroids <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >“Wet Hair” is comprised of three nonsensical and non sequitur lyrics.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>They are sung four times and then the next time around the guitar is sped up and the same lyrics are sung faster.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>It’s that simple.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>It’s that awesome.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>And it also contains the best lyric written in years: “These girls are raw!<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Bikini kill!<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>We need a ride to bikini island!”<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Honorable Mention: “My Body’s a Zombie For You” – Dead Man’s Bones; <span style="font-size:0pt;"></span>“Shampoo” – Elvis Perkins in Dearland; “Now We Can See” – The Thermals<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"></span></o:p></span></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><b><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Best Albums of 2009<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"></span></o:p></span></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >10.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>The Scotland Yard Gospel Choir - …<i>And the Horse You Rode In On</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Favorite Track: “Something’s Happening”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >9.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Cass McCombs - <i>Catacombs</i><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Favorite Track: “Don’t Vote”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >8.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Built to Spill – <i>There is No Enemy</i><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Favorite Track: “Life’s A Dream”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >7.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>The Antlers – <i>Hospice</i> <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Favorite Track: “Two”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >6.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Phoenix – <i>Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix</i> <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Favorite Track: “1901”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >5.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Yeah Yeah Yeahs – <i>It’s Blitz</i><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Favorite Track: “Hysteric”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >4.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Japandroids – <i>Post-Nothing</i><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Favorite Track: “Wet Hair”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >3.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>The Thermals – <i>Now We Can See</i><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Favorite Track – “Now We Can See”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >2.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Double Dagger – <i>More</i><span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Favorite Track: “Vivre Sans Temp Mort”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >1.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Animal Collective – <i>Merriweather Post Pavilion</i><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Favorite Track: “My Girls”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >When <i>Merriweather Post Pavilion</i> leaked early in 2009 and the blogosphere morphed into Lord of the Flies, and everyone was running around waving torches, losing their collective shit, and blowing each other, I wanted to dislike it on general principal. <span style="font-size:0pt;"></span>But it’s just too damn good.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><span style="font-size:0pt;"></span>At the 2:30 mark of first track “In the Flowers” the album kicks into high gear and doesn’t let up until closer “Brother Sport” is completing the victory lap.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>This is a summer album, an album to listen to while cleaning your kitchen, a “road trip” album, or any other “fill-in-the-blank” album you can come up with.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>And it was my favorite album of 2009.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Honorable Mention: AC Newman – <i>Get Guilty</i>; Dirty Projectors – <i>Bitte Orca</i>; Discovery – <i>LP</i>; Passion Pit - <i>Manners</i><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><i><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >--Alex <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Albums/songs:</span></b><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><br /><br />Animal Collective - <i>Merriweather Post Pavillion/Fall Be Kind</i> & "Summertime Clothes"/"What Would I Want? Sky". No measly words of mine could further the discourse surrounding these two (four?) slabs of amazing.<br /><br />Baroness - <i>Blue Record</i><br /><br />Big Boi - "Shine Blockas". Just release the dadburn album already.<br /><br />The Big Pink - "Dominos"<br /><br />Black Dice - <i>Repo</i>. Supposedly their "pop" album (whatever that means); if this is the state of pop music, something is right (or very wrong) in the universe.<br /><br />Burial & Four Tet - <i>Moth</i> 12". Each producer's aesthetic is apparent, but neither outshines/overwhelms the other, rendering it impossible to tell which is the "Burial" song and which is the "Four Tet" song, which I suppose is the purpose of collaboration.<br /><br />Circulatory System - <i>Signal Morning</i>. Welcome back, and please don't go away again.<br /><br />The Clientele - <i>Bonfires on the Heath</i>. Another excellent outing from a consistently excellent band--and for this reason I think critics undersold <i>Bonfires</i> a bit. If <i>Bonfires</i> does end up being the final Clientele album (I hope it doesn't), what a bow.<br /><br />Converge - <i>Axe to Fall</i> melted my face right off my head.<br /><br />Delorean - "Seasun". Song of the year.<br /><br />Dirty Projectors - <i>Bitte Orca</i>. This and Girls and AnCo and Baroness and xx are neck-and-neck-and-neck-and-neck-and-neck for AoTY, but if I were forced to pick one best, it would be Bitte Orca by a blowhole.<br /><br />DOOM - <i>Born Like This</i>. Universal beatdown!<br /><br />Girls - <i>Album</i>. Inspirational lyric: "You've been a bitch. / I've been an ass."<br /><br />Isis - <i>Wavering Radiant</i><br /><br />jj - <i>jj no 2</i>. Inspirational lyric: "The thought that you found takes you to town / Smashes your face, burns out your heart / then you go home and turn it into art."<br /><br />Kraftwerk reissues, especially Trans Europe Express--or, in German, Trans Europa Express.<br /><br />Lindstrom & Prins Thomas - <i>II</i>. My dog actually gets the proper amount of exercise when we walk to this album.<br /><br />Pelican - <i>What We All Come to Need</i><br /><br />Pissed Jeans - <i>King of Jeans</i><br /><br />Shackleton - <i>Three EPs</i>. "Mountains of Ashes" blows my mind every time. "Asha in the Tabernacle" too.<br /><br />Stone Roses s/t reissue. I always knew there was a great-sounding album somewhere in there.<br /><br />Super Furry Animals - <i>Dark Days/Light Years</i>. Bananas. More people should love these dudes than probably do.<br /><br />Wild Beasts - <i>Two Dancers</i>. I like Two Dancers just fine, but next time, please, <span style="font-size:0pt;"></span>a little more lyrical honesty.<br /><br />xx - <i>xx</i>. Sounds so huge yet there's almost nothing here.<br /><br />YACHT - <i>See Mystery Lights</i>. Inspirational lyric: "Protect your eyes / Read the comments and protect your eyes."<br /><br />Yeah Yeah Yeahs - <i>It's Blitz</i><br /><br />Anticipating: Goodie Mob reunion album; Big Boi's and Dre's solo albums; Magnetic Fields album (and concert in March); Spoon album; xx/jj concert in April<br /><br />"Discoveries": Franklin Bruno/Nothing Painted Blue; <span style="font-size:0pt;"></span>Jimmy Cliff, ska/rocksteady in general; D'Angelo; <span style="font-size:0pt;"></span>the Go-Betweens; Inspiral Carpets - <i>Life</i> (quite possibly the third-best Madchester/Baggy album, no big deal); <a href="http://www.littlewhiteearbuds.com/">Little White Earbuds</a>; Nick Lowe; Resident Advisor (and its podcast); Scritti Politti; Yaz<br /><br />Realization: I have no idea what's actually, commercially popular. In my universe, Animal Collective (for instance) is king. In the real universe, king is, apparently, Daughtry. Or maybe Shinedown. Guys: there's a band called Shinedown and they make platinum-selling albums.<br /><br />Should've Listened to More/At All but Didn't: Fuck Buttons (at all), Grizzly Bear (at all); Raekwon (at all); A Sunny Day in Glasgow (more)<br /><br />Statement: The ultra-lo-fi trend should just go to bed already, because it's bedtime. Overcoming self-imposed limitations seems to be the point of this movement/moment, but it is a stupid and annoying point, and you should make a different point. Neon Indian sounds like a locally produced commercial for a dentist's office. "Two-for-one crowns before December 31. Act now! Beep bloop deedle doo."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><br />Surprises:<br /><br />(1) Not much rap music this year (I love rap music). My tastes haven't changed, but this year I guess I mostly listened to older rap music, e.g., Goodie Mob (thx 4 reuniting btw), Run-D.M.C., Ghost/Rae/GZA, Nas, Hov.<br />(2) Lots of metal this year. But this year has been kind of a shitty year, personally, and metal made me feel good.<br />(3) How good the new Cornershop album is. FYI, Cornershop released an album this year and it's really good.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >--Brian Herrmann<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><b><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >The Best Albums of 2009<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >After much internal debate, I have come to this conclusion:<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>2009 sucked music-wise.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Initially, I believed that it may just be a symptom of age, priorities changing, getting engaged, preferring the company of my pets over strangers at concerts or bars, that I just was not enjoying music as much as I used to.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>I maybe attended three concerts this year, the best of which took place during the dawning hours of the new year.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>In the car, I listened to NPR and sports talk radio more often than music.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>I could hardly think of a music related article to contribute to this blog.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >But occasionally something would happen that would rekindle the love.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>More often or not it was hearing an album or song from years past.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>I still loved <i>that</i> music, and a track from TV On the Radio’s <i>Return to Cookie Mountain</i>, or discovering the brilliance of <i>Abbey Road’s</i> “lesser” tracks through the Remastered edition, or finding the perfect moment to listen to last year’s still excellent <i>You & Me</i> by The Walkmen, brought the love back.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >This helped me realize my relationship with music was not on its final legs.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>No, it was just that underwhelming tramp that was 2009 who was playing home-wrecker to my relationship with music.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>When compiling my top ten of 2009, I myself including many albums that I merely <i>liked</i>, and only a few that I <i>loved</i>.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>That said, the following albums are all very good albums, but the overwhelming enthusiasm I had for my Top Ten in years past is just not present here (as my descriptions would probably suggest).<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >10.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><i>Manners</i> by Passion Pit<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Kinda gay, but really good. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >9.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><i>World Painted Blood</i> by Slayer<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >A bit less falsetto than Passion Pit, but awesome nevertheless.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >8.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><i>xx</i> by The xx<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Bravo to The xx for making it nearly impossible to find this album on a file-sharing site.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>I look forward to their follow-up, “Hot Girl on Girl”.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >7.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><i>Travels With Myself and Another</i> by Future of the Left<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Andy Falkous continues using his bully pulpit of fronting a band to berate some unfortunate dude, known only to the listener by a first name.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>This time “Rick” bears the brunt of Falkous’s vitriol.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>I was a bit disappointed in the relative simplicity of FOTL’s output this time out, but a disappointing effort by FOTL is still one that got more plays from me than nearly any other release this year.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >6.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><i>Two Dancers</i> by Wild Beasts<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >You know those brilliant Dos Equis <i>Most Interesting Man in the World</i> commercials?<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>For some reason I think of those commercials when I listen to this album.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>(In other words, it’s a very interesting album and I just wanted to come up with a convoluted way to say as much.)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><span style="font-size:0pt;"></span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >5.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><i>Veckatimest</i> by Grizzly Bear <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >In a year where Puscifer releases an album entitled “C" Is for (Please Insert Sophomoric Genitalia Reference HERE)”, Grizzly Bear still manages to have the worst album title of the year.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“Two Weeks” and “While You Wait For the Others” are both outstanding tracks, and the album on the whole is extremely impressive.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Would be higher if it was not so….what’s the word…oh yeah, boring.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >4.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><i>Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix</i> by Phoenix<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >I really wanted to hate this album.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>I really did.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>I failed.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >3.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><i>Merriweather Post Pavilion</i> by Animal Collective<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >MPP’s high placement on this list is likely due to my experience the first time I listened to this album.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>To be more precise, the first time hearing “My Girls” was a revelation. The excitement from the moment of the initial “wooo” likely influenced my feelings for the rest of the album, glossing over some of the later tracks’ shortcomings.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Though not their best output, a great album nonetheless.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Also, the excellence of their late-in-the-year EP only bolsters the thought that much more interesting work is still to come from this collective of animals in the future.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >2.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><i>There Is No Enemy</i> by Built to Spill<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >An album that was perfect for the time it was released (early fall).<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>It is rare to hear a good straight-forward and gimmick-free rock album these days, let alone a great one.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>This coherent collection of mid-tempo guitar rock is one of the few albums I truly loved this year and honestly see myself coming back to in the years to come.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >1.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><i>Embryonic</i> by The Flaming Lips<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Wow.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >This album succeeds on a number of levels.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>First, when it appeared the Lips might be heading toward the land of Coldplay, U2, and Moby, they release this single-free album.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>A bold move in and of itself.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>I can guarantee you that “Gemini Syringes” or “I Can Be a Frog” will not be used to sell you a laptop.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >However the lack of singles and/or mainstream appeal is the least impressive of the impressive things about this album.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Like The Walkmen did with my favorite album of last year, <i>Embryonic</i> captures a mood and sound and perfectly adheres to this aesthetic for a full [A]lbum.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Here, the Lips have produced an album that from start to finish is everything a “psychedelic” album should be.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>I’m not talking “The Byrds” psychedelic, but Pink Floyd <i>A Saucerful of Secrets</i> psychedelic.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>To wit, you can practically see the acid-trip images of volcanoes erupting while listening to “Witch Mountain”.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Lastly, this album succeeds because it is, in a word: awesome.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Headphones on/off, on the home stereo, in the car, on vinyl, on a boat with a goat, it is awesome.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>If only there had been more albums like <i>Embryonic</i>, I would not have had to question my relationship with music.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Again, wow.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><b><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Songs of the Year</span></u></b><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" > <o:p></o:p></span></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >This list was actually tough to put together because despite being 2009 being underwhelming on the whole, there were a lot of excellent songs this year.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>Here’s the best of the best<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >10.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“Combination Pizza Hut/Taco Bell” – Das Racist & Wallpaper<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >9.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“The Czar” – Mastodon<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >8.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“Ecstasy” – jj<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >7.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“Woods” – Bon Iver<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >6.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“Hall of the Dead” - Isis<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >5.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“Two Weeks” – Grizzly Bear<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >4.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“Arming Eritrea” – Future of the Left<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >3.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“Listomania/1901” – Phoenix<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >2.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“Things Fall Apart” – Built <span style="font-size:0pt;"></span>to Spill<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >1.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>“My Girls” – Animal Collective<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >--Travis Newman<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><b><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Best Albums of 2009<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >1. Franz Ferdinand - <i>Tonight</i><br />I don't think <i>Tonight </i>was necessarily the best album of the past year, nor do I think it was the most ambitious, daring, or surprising. But when I look at all of the albums that were released in 2009, <i>Tonight </i>is my favorite. Usually a band goes down one of two paths with it's third album. The first path is for the band to be ambitious and to cause someone familiar with it to have a bit of a "WTF" moment on first listen. This is commonly referred to as the "difficult third album" and can either be either hugely successful (<i>OK Computer</i>) or a disaster (<i>Our Love to Admire</i>). The other path is for the band to simply build on and sharpen what came before. This way, while a little boring, is almost always successful for naturally good bands (<i>Wincing the Night Away</i>, <i>Urban Hymns</i>, <i>White Blood Cells</i>).<br /><br />With <i>Tonight</i>, Franz Ferdinand has accomplished the rare feat of trying to make the "difficult third album," but ending up with the perfect combination of the band's basic strengths with the right amount of experimentation. From the subtle charm of "Katherine Kiss Me" to the batshit crazy three minute laser outro of "Lucid Dreams," everything about this album just works. You get traditional Franz crowd-pleasing singles like "No You Girls" and "Ulysses," you get momentum-fests like "Bite Hard" and "Send Him Away," and you get tender little ballads like "Katherine Kiss Me." And while some of it may indulge in distorted bass, keyboards, and the influence of world music (all hallmarks of the "difficult third album"), it is always unmistakeably Franz Ferdinand and quite clearly my favorite album of 2009.<br /><br />2. Wild Beasts - <i>Two Dancers<br /></i>Wild Beasts are the most promising new band I have heard in a long time. Last year's great debut, <i>Limbo, Panto</i> (#4 on my best of '08 list), hinted at the band's potential. With <i>Two Dancers</i>, Wild Beasts realized that potential and somehow created some sort of new additional potential that I can't wait to see them meet, because I'm certain they will. If Jay Bilas described Wild Beasts as an NBA draft prospect, he'd say they had "tremendous upside potential potential." Then he'd probably say that putting these slight Brits on an NBA basketball court would cost a coach his job.<br /><br />The thing I love about Wild Beasts is that they are unique. So many new bands nowadays can be easily described by saying that they sound like X, but with a bit more/less Y, but Wild Beasts don't really sound like anyone else. They have two excellent singers, one with a gorgeous baritone (Tom Fleming) and another who can change from his signature falsetto to a deep growl on a dime (Hayden Thorpe). Their drummer beats away on various wood blocks and bongos (yes, bongos) with impressive precision, and their lead guitarist never really plays below the 15th fret. Combine all of this and you get standout tracks like "The Fun Powder Plot" and "This Is Our Lot," both high points of <i>Two Dancers</i>. The album is a gigantic leap forward for a band that already leaped once.<br /><br />If you can handle falsetto (and I understand if you can't) and like music, you owe it to yourself to give <i>Two Dancers</i> a listen. And if Wild Beasts come to your town, make time to see them because their live show is excellent. I saw them at the Mercury Lounge in New York earlier this year and it was the best show I've seen in some time. I really, really can't wait to see what they do next.<br /><br />3. The Flaming Lips - <i>Embryonic</i><br />I have a feeling that, a year from now, <i>Embryonic </i>will be my favorite album from 2009. I read reviews before I listened to it, so I expected a bit of a departure from <i>Soft Bulletin</i>-and-later Lips, but I did not expect <i>Embryonic </i>to be as raw and dirty and acid-rock-y as it is. It's initially shocking and a little unwieldy, but after a few listens, the structures reveals themselves and a listener can start to focus on more of the details, like the persistent, ominous bass line in "Powerless" or Karen O's awesome bit in "I Can Be A Frog." <i>Embryonic </i>isn't really a comeback album because the Lips never went anywhere and it's not a return to form album because it's not really standard Lips "form," but it's definitely different, and whatever it is, its ballsy, difficult, and, ultimately, very rewarding.<br /><br />4. The xx - <i>xx</i><br />This was my favorite debut of the year. The xx employs a very simple formula: bordering on spoken word lyrics over a drum machine, some guitar and bass, and a keyboard effect here and there. But the xx have two things going for them that plenty of other bands do not. First, the co-lead "singers" have badass voices. It doesn't hurt that they're British, which just sounds better. Can you imagine this music with American singers? I cannot. The second thing the xx has in spades is the gift of intelligent and complex song construction. They take their simple formula and put together short songs that feature multiple parts and little bits that make you smile, like a perfectly placed hand clap or the reprise later in a song of a riff from the beginning. I love those details. It's also difficult to switch between two leads in the same song and have it sound natural, but listen to "Crystalised" and "Islands" and tell me that the xx doesn't pull it off to sometimes thrilling results.<br /><br />5. Phoenix - <i>Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix<br /></i>How can someone not like this album? That's not a rhetorical question. I would actually like to know. "Lisztomania" and "1901" are perfect pop songs and "Love Like a Sunset" is the kind of unexpected, daring track that turns a good album into a great one. <i>Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix</i> reminds me of Vampire Weekend's debut last year or basically any Spoon album in that there is no fat on any of the songs and it's just really nice and fun to listen to.<br /><br />6. Morrissey - <i>Years of Refusal</i><br />Hands down his best album since <i>Vauxhall and I</i>, and with a few songs that count among his solo best ("Black Cloud," "Mama Lay Softly on the Riverbed"). It feels like he's been building to this for a few albums now. Hopefully he can keep his current momentum because Morrissey putting out good music is always welcome.<br /><br />7. Bat for Lashes - <i>Two Suns</i><br />I don't really know how to describe this album, and I think that's why I like it so much. It's easy to name-check Bjork and Portishead, maybe M83 and a little bit of the Knife, but dig a little deeper and it also sounds like it could be right at home as the soundtrack to a 1980's fantasy movie. It's also one of those albums that reveals something new upon each listen. I have a feeling that, in the future, I might listen to this album more than most of the others on this list.<br /><br />8. Cymbals Eat Guitars - <i>Why There Are Mountains</i><br />This album really reminds me of late 1990s Modest Mouse. And because late-1990s Modest Mouse is one of my favorite band time periods (or something), I really like <i>Why There Are Mountains</i>. Hopefully, their next album will sound more like early 2010s Cymbals Eat Guitars and will be just as good.<br /><br />9. Built to Spill - <i>There Is No Enemy</i><br />I agree with most of the music press that, "Goin' Against Your Mind" aside, <i>You in Reverse</i> wasn't very good, but I don't agree that <i>Ancient Melodies of the Future</i> was a disappointment. I mention this because <i>There Is No Enemy</i> has been labeled as Built to Spill's best since <i>Keep it Like a Secret</i>. I don't necessarily agree with that, but it is a solid Built to Spill effort, and a marked improvement over <i>You in Reverse</i>. But a solid Built to Spill album is usually excellent, and this one is no exception. I think it's a little mushy and indulgent, but the highlights are there: "Life's a Dream" and "Aisle 13" are both outstanding and this new stuff comes across live as good as their older, classic-period material. For my money, they're still one of the two best live bands on the planet (The Futureheads being the other).<br /><br />10. The Antlers - <i>Hospice</i><br />I saw these guys open for the Walkmen earlier this year before I heard this album and they came off as a pretty standard, solid, rock three piece. When I heard the album, I was surprised to hear what sounded like a completely different, and much more complex band. I like that - when a band's live show is very different from the album (this is different from when a band changes a lyric or two live (i.e. Morrissey) to try to switch it up a bit, which comes across as a little desperate). Anyway, that's neither here nor there. <i>Hospice </i>is a very good, very devastating album. Kind of an <i>I See A Darkness</i> for the 00s in that I realize how great it is, but I never want to listen to it. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; line-height: normal;"><b><u><span style=";font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Best Songs of 2009</span></u></b><b><span style=";font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" > <o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style=";font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style=";font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >"My Girls" - Animal Collective<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style=";font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >"Arming Eritrea" and "Lapsed Catholics" - Future of the Left<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style=";font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >"1901" - Phoenix<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style=";font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >"Two Weeks" - Grizzly Bear<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style=";font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >"Daniel" - Bat for Lashes<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style=";font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >"Happy As Can Be" - Cut Off Your Hands<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style=";font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >"Out of the Blue" - Julian Casablancas<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style=";font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >"Can't Get Over You" - Vivian Girls<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; line-height: normal;"><span style=";font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><b><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Best Albums of 10 Years Ago (1999)</span></u></b><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><br /></span></u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><br />1. Blur - <i>13</i><br />Their greatest album, and one of the decade's best.<br /><br />2. Flaming Lips - <i>The Soft Bulletin<br /></i>It was a big shock for 20-year-old me to hear this album from those guys who made that stupid Vaseline song. It's the high point of that late-1990s Dave Fridmann sound.<br /><br />3. Fiona Apple - <i>When the Pawn...</i><br />A pretty much perfect album and a career high point that I don't think she'll top.<br /><br />4. Bonnie "Prince" Billy - <i>I See a Darkness </i><br />It doesn't take many listens to realize how good this album is. I know this because I've only listened to it about 5 times before realizing that curling up into a ball and crying kind of sucks.<br /><br />5. Built to Spill - <i>Keep it like a Secret</i><br />Top to bottom excellent.<br /><br />6. Godspeed You! Black Emperor - <i>Slow Riot for New Zero Kanada</i><br />Quiet quiet quiet LOUD LOUD LOUD. Good formula.<br /><br />7. The Roots - <i>Things Fall Apart</i><br />For my money, the only popular hip hop band worth a shit outside of Outkast. Yes, I am white.<br /><br />8. Underworld - <i>Beaucoup Fish</i><br />"Moaner" is awesome.<br /><br />9. Gomez - <i>Liquid Skin</i><br />Gomez' unfortunate new stuff casts their old stuff in a poor light. I loved <i>Liquid Skin</i> when it came out, but like it less each time I hear it. I stopped listening to it before it dropped out of this list though.<br /><br />10. Red Hot Chili Peppers - <i>Californication</i><br />A perfect mainstream rock record. </span><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >--Jim Powers<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"></span></o:p></span></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><b><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Best Albums of 2009<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"></span></o:p></span></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >1. Baroness - <i>Blue Record</i><br />2. Built to Spill - <i>There is No Enemy</i><br />3. Dinosaur Jr. - <i>Farm</i><br />4. Pelican - <i>What We All Come to Need</i><br />5. Red Fang - <i>Red Fang</i><br />6. Passion Pit - <i>Manners</i><br />7. Wolfmother - <i>Cosmic Egg</i><br />8. Om - <i>God is Good</i><br />9. The Thermals - <i>Now We Can See</i><br />10. Dirty Projectors - <i>Bitte Orca<o:p></o:p></i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><i><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Honorable Mention: <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Code - <i>Resplendent Grotesque</i><br />Girls - <i>Girls</i><br />Discovery – <i>LP</i><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >--Matthew Schuhmann<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"><br /></span></o:p></span></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><b><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Favorite albums of 2009</span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">1.<i> Veckatimest</i>, Grizzly Bear<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">2.<i> Merriweather Post Pavillion, </i>Animal Collective<i><o:p></o:p></i></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">3.<i> Born on Flag Day</i>, Deer Tick<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">4.<i> My Maudlin Career, </i>Camera Obscura<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">5.<i> Middle Cyclone, </i>Neko Case<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><i><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">6.</span></i><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"> Elvis Perkins in Dearland<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">7.<i> Bonfires on the Heath, </i>The Clientele<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><b><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Favorite Shows of 2009<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">1. Dan Auerbach @ Mean Eyed Cat, Austin TX March 21. Hungover from Friday night, this daytime show was poorly attended. Auerbach wore shades to hide his bloodshot eyes and looked like he was fighting off urges to puke. Free beer and BBQ was handed to us. We were under a majestic 300 year-old tree at a bad ass joint in Austin. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">2. Nina Nastasia @ Hideout, Chicago July 26. She had complete ownership of the stage and the dead silent, transfixed audience during this recorded show.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"><span style="font-size:0pt;"></span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">3. The Walkmen @ Lincoln Hall, Chicago November 12. Hamilton Leithauser still poured every last ounce of his body into his songs in spite of a ho-hum audience. They dredged up some old goodies including “Another One Goes By” and “Thinking of a Dream I Had.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">4. Avett Brothers @ Calvin Theater, Northampton, MA. August 2.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">5. The Decemberists @ George Wein’s Folk Festival, Newport RI. August 1.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>I’m not really a fan of this band, but really, who can sound bad when you are<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span>drunk and watching million-dollar yachts and sailboats float into the sunset?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">6. Jeff Tweedy @ Beacon High School, NY March 28<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">7. Destroyer (solo) @ Empty Bottle, Chicago May 17. Dan Bejar’s strange songwriting sounded even cooler playing solo. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">8. Band of Horses @ Lollapalooza, August 9. Lou Reed went too long on the main stage which meant B of H came on late, which meant they only got about twenty minutes to play before Lolla big daddy Perry Farrell and his Jane’s Addiction came on. In a thumb-biting gesture to Jane’s, Band of Horses continued to play after Jane’s started. Ben Bridwell yelled “Fuck it, let’s keep on playing!” The crowd went wild and they played on until kicked off stage. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">9. Neko Case @ Riverside Theater, Milwaukee, WI April 25.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">10. Don’t know yet, but the Black Keys @ The Riviera on New Year’s Eve are probably going to be awesome to an expletive degree.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><b><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Biggest Disappointments of 2009 (at the risk of sounding like a negative nancy….): <o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><b><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"></span></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">1. Flaming Lips @ Pitchfork Music Festival. I had never seen FL live and was really excited. The highlight was when they entered the stage emerging from an enormous digital, swirling rainbow vagina. The rest was downhill and I’m not even a lesbian. Wayne Coyne talked too much and his slow-dance version of “Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots” sucked.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">2. Wilco <i>the Album</i>. I heard a caller on NPR’s Sound Opinions compare it to listening to a jackhammer, except that a jackhammer is more interesting. Ouch. But not untrue. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">3. Myself, for being too lazy to attend a few shows for which I had already bought tickets: St. Vincent @ the Metro, Atlas Sound @ Bottom Lounge. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">4. This should fall under “Performed As Expected” rather than being a true disappointment, but Conor Oberst (a.k.a. Bright Eyes) did himself a disservice playing alongside Jim James and M. Ward in Monsters of Folk. Mr. Eyes doesn’t bring much to the table. His voice is sallow and sounds like he’s been whipped. He has made a bazillion records. My sister and I have a longstanding joke where we clap really slowly for nominal accomplishments. Conor Oberst, my special applause goes out to you.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"><span style="font-size:0pt;"></span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">5. I don’t understand what Andrew Bird is talking about in <i>Noble Beast</i>. I once loved his clever word play but Mr. Smarty Pants has gone too far and now it’s over my head.<span style="font-size:0pt;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><b><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >Favorite Tracks of 2009<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><b><u><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" ><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"></span></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">1. “Sleepyhead” by Passion Pit<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">2. “Daylight” by Matt & Kim<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">3. “Fables” by the Dodos<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">4. “While You Wait for the Others” by Grizzly Bear<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">5. “Walkabout” by Atlas Sound<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">6. “Smith Hill” by Deer Tick<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">7. “Bluish” by Animal Collective<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">8. “Magpie to the Morning” by Neko Case<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">9 “We Own the Sky” by M83 <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">10. <span style="font-size:0pt;"></span>“Actor Out of Work” by St. Vincent<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">11. “Crystalised” by the xx<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';">12. <span style="font-size:0pt;"></span>Ukrainian Polka band cover of Kate Perry’s “Hot N Cold.” <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJfzo_VZUtg"></a><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJfzo_VZUtg">You will love this</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12px;" >--Audrey Wen<o:p></o:p></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-6183722881012924592009-12-20T23:48:00.004-06:002011-09-06T19:40:05.147-05:00Top Albums of the Decade, Vol. 2.0<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_PoDYGRIqGN8/Sy8MhVGOrMI/AAAAAAAAAuQ/MkiR5uXrYBQ/s1600-h/THS_BAGIA.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px; display: block; height: 320px; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417562643488484546" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_PoDYGRIqGN8/Sy8MhVGOrMI/AAAAAAAAAuQ/MkiR5uXrYBQ/s320/THS_BAGIA.jpg" border="0" /></a> <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" >The following is a list of around 25 of my favorite albums of the last decade as a follow-up to <a href="http://nothingquitelike.blogspot.com/2009/12/celebrating-2000s.html"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);">Jim's</span></a>. I tried to follow two rules when compiling this list. First, the album had to mean something to people. But second, the album had to mean something to me. Therefore, the first rule eliminated any music that barely anyone outside of myself found to be important or significant, and the second rule eliminated Grizzly Bear and Antony and the Johnsons. Enjoy.</span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" >1. The Hold Steady - <i>Boys and Girls In America</i><br />From the Hold Steady's catalog, most fans prefer <i>Separation Sunday</i> for its somewhat cohesive concept but for my American currency, <i>Boys and Girls</i> is their finest work, and my favorite album of the aughts. Plus, the beginning guitar riff on "Stuck Between Stations" is to this decade what the beginning of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" was to the 90's, and what the opening of "Sweet Child O' Mine" was to the 80's. At least to me.<br />Favorite Track: "First Night"<br /><br />2.<b> </b>The Arcade Fire - <i>Funeral</i><br />I remember being in school and having this CD in burned format sent to me in the mail from a friend in New Mexico. I had never heard them before, but it came with a note that pretty much said "just trust me on this one." I played it in my car and "Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)" just immediately slapped me across the face. After it ended, I hit "back" and listened again, and again, and again, or for however long it took me to get home. I liked the beginning of the album so much that it took me a few weeks before I heard some of the great later cuts like "Wake Up" and "Rebellion (Lies)." And this probably would have been my favorite album of the decade if it wasn't for "Crown of Love" and "In the Backseat." There's no room for filler at the top.<br />Favorite Track: "Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)"<br /><br />3. Kanye West - <i>The College Dropout</i><br /><i>808's and Heartbreaks</i> is pretty good and you should listen to it, but <i>The College Dropout</i> is one of the greatest albums of all time.<br />Favorite Track: "Through the Wire"</span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" > <o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" >4. Wilco - <i>Yankee Hotel Foxtrot</i><br />Like <i>Funeral</i>, <i style="">Yankee Hotel Foxtrot</i> has that first track ("I Am Trying to Break Your Heart") that has the special power to make sure you always remember where you were when you first heard it. I will also always be thankful for this album for its timing. Along with the Flaming Lips' <i>Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots</i> and some of those early Modest Mouse records, I had something to listen to besides the bands that played Lollapalooza circa 1993. (Not that there's anything wrong with Alice in Chains' <i>Dirt</i>.)<br />Favorite Track: "I Am Trying to Break Your Heart" (Favorite Track from <i>Dirt</i>: "Angry Chair")</span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" >5. LCD Soundsystem - <i>Sound of Silver</i><br />I was at a wedding last weekend and during the reception the DJ played "All My Friends." Someone remarked, "I think this song is perfect." I couldn't agree more.<span style=""> </span><br />Favorite Track: "Someone Great"<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><br />6. The Shins - <i>Chutes Too Narrow</i><br />This just feels like a perfectly crafted album. Every song is good, and seemingly placed in the perfect spot. In this age of singles and iTunes, if the idea of the "album" ever actually disappears, in talking to future generations I will bring up <i>Chutes Too Narrow</i> the same way old basketball coaches like to talk about the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikan_Drill"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);">Mikan Drill</span></a>.<br />Favorite Track: "Gone For Good"<br /><br />7. Broken Social Scene - <i>You Forgot It In People</i><br />When I first heard this record I remember listening to "Anthems For A Seventeen Year-Old Girl" and thinking, "I didn't know music was <i>allowed</i> to sound like that." And I was thinking that in a good way. This record has also held up remarkably well the last seven years and I don't think that will change in the next seven.<br />Favorite Track: "KC Accidental"<br /><br />8. Modest Mouse - <i>Good News For People Who Love Bad News</i><br />Trying to pick Modest Mouse's best record from the last ten years is almost like trying to figure out which is the best season of <i>The Wire</i>. There really are no wrong answers (except for maybe Season 5).<br />Favorite Track: "Blame It On the Tetons"</span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" >9. Frightened Rabbit - <i>The Midnight Organ Fight</i><br />Still the 85' Bears of break-up albums. And speaking of which...in a recent <i>RollingStone</i> resident "you're-very-smart-in-an-asshole-kind-of-way" writer Matt Taibbi wrote a short piece on the plague that is the Chicago Bears' quarterback. Overall, his three main points were correct. First, that the Chicago Bears have not had a good quarterback in a long time. Second, that Jay Cutler's initial season with the team has not gone according to plan. And third, that following his NFL career, OJ Simpson made some bad decisions. (I made that last one up, but that's about as equally obvious as the first two.) Everything else in the article screamed, "I'm Matt Taibbi and there’s a reason why I usually only write about politics." For one, he did the normal song and dance of listing several of the most inept players (Peter Tom Willis, Moses Moreno, Henry Burris, etc.) that have lined up behind center for the Bears post-Jim McMahon. And then he wrote something along the lines of, "...and now comes the worst of all, Jay Cutler." <i>Worst of all?!?</i> Hey Taibbi, Henry Burris used to throw passes with his eyes closed! Then, he stupidly wrote something about Erik Kramer (Bears' quarterback between 1994-1998) and how much he sucked. Well, Kramer was no Joe Montana, but even a mildly observant Bears fan would tell you that he by no means sucked. In fact, for a few years, he was a damn good quarterback. Lastly, Taibbi made some reference to Chris Chandler's (Bears' quarterback between 2002-2003) corpse which just came off as sounding like the biggest attempt to ape Bill Simmons since whenever I last did it. Poor show, Matt. Poor show. (<i style="">Update</i>: I wrote this on Saturday. On Sunday I went to the Bears/Ravens game and watched a completely beleaguered Cutler throw three interceptions and no touchdowns so perhaps Taibbi was right all along. Although I would like to point out that the Bears' number one receiver was injured and was also a defensive back in college.)<br />Favorite Track: "The Modern Leper"</span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" >10. The White Stripes - <i>White Blood Cells</i><br />See what's written above about Modest Mouse. The same thing is at play here.<br />Favorite Track: "Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground"<br /><br />11. Common - <i>Be</i><br />Common has very quietly been responsible for three classic hip-hop records: <i>Resurrection</i>, <i>Like Water For Chocolate</i>, and this one.<br />Favorite Track: "The Corner"</span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" >12. Okkervil River - <i>Black Sheep Boy</i><br />My favorite record from my favorite band from the last ten years or so.<br />Favorite Track: "A Stone"</span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" >13. Radiohead - <i>Kid A<br /></i>In one of Chuck Klosterman's books he makes the case that <i>Kid A</i> is sort of a track-by-track warning (or something) of 9/11, which would end up happening about 11 months after <i>Kid A</i> was released. Upon reading this I immediately listened to <i>Kid A</i> to see if I could figure out where Klosterman was coming from. I never really did, but I wasn't that upset about it because it gave me an excuse to listen to <i>Kid A</i>.<span style=""> </span>It’s hard for me to think of another album that so brilliantly mixes moods.<span style=""> </span><i style="">Kid A</i> is somber at times, hysterical at others.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><i><br /></i>Favorite Track: "Idioteque"<br /><br />14. The Walkmen - <i>You & Me</i><br /><i>You & Me</i> is so good I predict one of the following two reactions for their next release: First, it will be as good as <i>You & Me</i> and will cement the Walkmen as one of the best bands of this generation. Or second, the conventional wisdom will be that it is not as good as <i>You & Me</i>, while ignoring that it's actually a damn fine record. Those are the stakes when you set the bar so high, gentlemen.<br />Favorite Track: "In the New Year"</span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" >15. Spoon -<i> Kill the Moonlight</i><br />See what's written above about Modest Mouse and the White Stripes.<br />Favorite Track: "The Way We Get By"</span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" >16. The Wrens - <i>The Meadowlands</i><br />A track-list that is pretty much murderer's row: "Happy," "She Sends Kisses," "Ex-Girl Collection," etc. <span style=""> </span>It's a perfect pop record.<br />Favorite Track: "Ex-Girl Collection"<br /><br />17. Sufjan Stevens - <i>Illinois</i><br />The fact that this album would have been so hard to top may have been the primary reason why Stevens decided to scrap the idea of doing an album for every one of the 50 states. (Or maybe it was because the entire idea was completely ridiculous and unrealistic.)<br />Favorite Track: "Chicago"<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><br />18. Ryan Adams - <i>Heartbreaker</i><br />Though not as good as <i style="">Heartbreaker</i>, during a seven month span in 2005, Ryan Adams released <i>Cold Roses</i>, <i>Jacksonville City Nights</i>, and <i>29</i>. The first two are very good, and <i>29</i> certainly has the right to exist. How come no one ever mentions this?<span style=""> </span>If there's a more impressive and prolific output from any other artist I would like to see it.<br />Favorite Track: "My Winding Wheel"<br /></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" >19. The Mountain Goats - <i>The Sunset Tree</i><br />I am still a big fan of the Mountain Goats, but I don't think John Darnielle's recent material has come anywhere near this album. I emphatically tried to force myself into liking his latest product, <i>The Life of the World to Come</i> with little success. <span style=""> </span>The last time I gave it a try, I finally bailed and immediately listened to "Broom People" from <i>The Sunset Tree</i> and everything made sense again.<br />Favorite Track: "This Year"<br /><br />20. Destroyer - <i>Destroyer's Rubies</i><br />I was blasting Beyoncé's "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)" on my iTunes (and loving it, by the way) the other day and when the song ended I wasn’t paying attention and Big Black's <i>Atomizer</i> was next in line. After "Single Ladies" I wasn't quite mentally prepared for Big Black, and frankly, it scared me. I decided to scroll through my entire iTunes collection, and nowhere else was there such a dramatic shift from one artist to another. Not even close. What this has to do with <i>Destroyer's Rubies</i>, I have no idea.<br />Favorite Track: "3000 Flowers"<br /><br />21. Deerhunter - <i>Microcastle</i><br />Bradford Cox has proven to be one the best songwriters of the last decade and this is him at his best.<br />Favorite Track: "Nothing Ever Happened"<br /><br />22. Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion<br />Don't fight it, it really is good.<br />Favorite Track: "My Girls"<br /><br />23. TV On The Radio - <i>Dear Science,</i><br />It just keeps getting better, doesn't it?<br />Favorite Track: "Family Tree"<br /><br />24. Neko Case - <i>Fox Confessor Brings the Flood</i><br />From top to bottom, Ms. Case's finest work.<br />Favorite Track: "Margaret Vs. Pauline"</span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" >25. The Killers - <i>Hot Fuss</i>; The Postal Service - <i>Give Up</i> (tie)<br />It's hard to leave off two albums that are responsible for about a baker's dozen of the top hits from the last decade.<br />Favorite Tracks: "All These Things That I've Done" and "The District Sleeps Alone Tonight"</span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" >Best of the Rest: <span style=""> </span>The Decemberists - <i style="">The Crane Wife</i>; The Flaming Lips - <i style="">Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots</i>; Jay-Z - <i style="">The Blue Print</i>; The New Pornographers - <i style="">Twin Cinema</i>; Outkast – <i style="">Stankonia</i>; Rogue Wave - <i style="">Descended Like Vultures</i>; Smog - <i style="">A River Ain’t Too Much To Love</i></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><i style=""><o:p></o:p></i></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12pt;" >--Alex <o:p></o:p></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-64420021915880513142009-12-14T20:04:00.009-06:002009-12-14T21:17:24.091-06:00Top Albums of the Decade (And Some Other Things)<div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVPRw57PmPWBUVFePiEeoFwi1xfCr0oQ5OQPPIk9UuJrMEs43miC4yoi36n6oEvu9b5exNAjO_GY1QCQVjQs4uvU8mENg0Pb95UP_moFQtl9dLgD19bl6qXLkQxsSN8snDVy-ktFAN2TV0/s1600-h/kid+a.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 275px; display: block; height: 282px; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5415283252856277666" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVPRw57PmPWBUVFePiEeoFwi1xfCr0oQ5OQPPIk9UuJrMEs43miC4yoi36n6oEvu9b5exNAjO_GY1QCQVjQs4uvU8mENg0Pb95UP_moFQtl9dLgD19bl6qXLkQxsSN8snDVy-ktFAN2TV0/s400/kid+a.jpg" border="0" /></a>Earlier this year, <a href="http://nothingquitelike.blogspot.com/2009/08/top-20-songs-of-2000s-another-opinion.html">Jim Powers</a> and <a href="http://nothingquitelike.blogspot.com/2009/08/top-20-songs-of-2000s.html">I</a> each posted what we thought were the best and most definitive songs over the past ten years. Here, Jim makes his case for the top albums of the decade along with some superlatives. My response will be posted later this week, and the best of 2009 in songs and albums will also be coming soon. But until then, read what Jim has posted below and see what you think. I hear he likes Radiohead.<br /><br /><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12;color:black;" ></span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px;"><u>Albums of the Decade</u><br /><br />1. Radiohead - <i>Kid A</i><br />As easy a choice this decade as <i>OK Computer</i> was last decade.<br /><br />2. The Futureheads - <i>The Futureheads</i><br />This is an intensely personal choice. Sometimes I think this album was made just for me.<br /><br />3. Modest Mouse - <i>The Moon and Antarctica</i><br />Amazing, beautiful, and haunting fully-realized album from easily the best songwriter of my generation (and his excellent band).<br /><br />4. Animal Collective - <i>Sung Tongs</i><br />Every time Animal Collective puts out a new album, I think it will be their masterpiece. But every time I listen to that new album, I realize that they already created their masterpiece, and it is <i>Sung Tongs</i>. <br /><br />5. Clinic - <i>Internal Wrangler</i><br />As fresh-sounding today as when it came out.<br /><br />6. The Libertines - <i>Up the Bracket </i><br />Even without the tragic death-of-the-band story as context, this is a great collection of songs. <br /><br />7. The Knife - <i>Silent Shout</i><br />I still get cold chills when I put on this album and hear those first thee notes.<br /><br />8. The Strokes - <i>Is This It?</i><br />I think I might actually like <i>Room on Fire</i> better, but this one was the breakthrough.<br /><br />9. Interpol - <i>Turn on the Bright Lights</i><br />The high point of bands trying to ape Joy Division and the only really worthy imitator.<br /><br />10. Wolf Parade - <i>Apologies to the Queen Mary<br /></i>The keystone of late-decade Spencer Krug dominance. Props to Boeckner too, who I think is yet to fully realize his substantial potential.<br /><br />11. Art Brut - <i>Bang Bang Rock and Roll</i><br />I usually run when an album is described as "fun," but when I call this album fun, it's high praise. <br /><br />12. The Shins - <i>Chutes too Narrow</i><br /> There's no way anyone could have expected this watershed after the cute <i>Oh Inverted World</i>. <br /><br />13. Spoon - <i>Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga</i><br /><i>Kill the Moonlight</i> or <i>Gimme Fiction</i> could be here too. Somehow, on year-end lists, Spoon will be penalized for putting out so much good shit - kind of like when two guys from the same region split the Heisman vote.<br /><br />14. The Walkmen - <i>You and Me</i><br />Keeps getting better and better.<br /><br />15. Love is All - <i>Nine Times that Same Song</i><br />One of the best break up albums ever, but uplifting rather than depressing (looking at you, Bon Iver).<br /><br />16. Mclusky - <i>Do Dallas</i><br />I can't put into words how much I love Mclusky. If I could put greatest hits albums on here, <i>Mcluskyism </i>would be top 5.<br /><br />17. The Arcade Fire - <i>Funeral</i><br />Deserves all the praise it gets. <br /><br />18. Outkast - <i>Stankonia</i><br />Looks like it will be the last great Outkast album, sadly.<br /><br />19. The Hives - <i>Veni Vidi Vicious</i><br />Heavily influenced by Fetus Toast, these Swedes' studio output is excellent, but their live show is a can't-miss spectacle.<br /><br />20. The White Stripes - <i>White Blood Cells</i><br />I don't think Jack White has come close to topping this one.<br /><br />21. Liars - <i>They Threw Us In a Trench...</i><br /><i>Drum's Not Dead</i> is probably "better," but, unlike that album, I still listen to this at least once a month.<br /><br />22. Sleater Kinney - <i>One Beat</i><br />The only 9/11 album worth a shit. A very good, satisfying shit.<br /><br />23. Radiohead - <i>In Rainbows</i><br />Their most intimate album, and a nice little comeback after the slightly disappointing (yet still good) <i>Amnesiac </i>and <i>Hail to the Thief</i>.<br /><br />24. Bloc Party - <i>Silent Alarm</i> (and EP)<br />Too bad they kind of fell off a cliff, because this is pretty much a perfect debut.<br /><br />25. Destroyer - <i>Destroyer's Rubies<br /></i>One of the best singer/songwriter albums I've ever heard.<br /><br /><u>Decade Superlatives</u><br /><br />Best compilation: Guided by Voices - <i>Human Amusements at Hourly Rates</i>. The best distillation of Pollard's substantial genius.<br /><br />Best song: Outkast - Hey Ya!<br /><br />Best concert that I saw: Modest Mouse (the Shins opening) - Black Cat, Washington DC, September 28, 2001. This is one of those "I cant believe I saw X and Y play at Z shows."<br /><br />Best trend: The influence of the good stuff from the '80s.<br /><br />Worst trend: The lo-fi movement. Just because something sounds like shit on purpose doesn't mean it doesn't sound like shit.<br /><br />Best use of music in a movie: "Just Like Honey" <a href="http://videos.sapo.pt/TL3g31d6oMW0zkP6ufZ8">at the end of <span style="font-style: italic;">Lost in Translation</span></a>.<br /><br />Best band (taking industry stuff into account): Radiohead. Two classic albums, two pretty good albums, and the <span style="font-style: italic;">In Rainbows</span> release strategy.<br /><br />Best band (based on quality alone): Spoon. <i>Girls Can Tell</i>, <i>Kill the Moonlight</i>, <i>Gimme Fiction</i>, and <i>Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga</i> all in a row in one decade? Wow.<br /><br />Best video: Real World / Road Rules Challenge<br /><br />Most disappointing band break-up: Blur<br /><br />Most welcome reunion: (tie) Blur, Pink Floyd<br /><br />Best album cover: Andrew W.K. - <a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/1b/Andrewwet.jpeg"><i>I Get Wet</i></a><br /><br />--Jim Powers</span><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:'Times New Roman','serif';font-size:12;" ><o:p></o:p></span></div>NQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-69284151464334590352009-11-16T19:15:00.006-06:002009-11-16T19:33:07.307-06:00Review: PBS Independent Lens, “D Tour”<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:';">The PBS documentary opens with a brief introduction by the quirky Maggie Gyllenhall. and then dives immediately into the story of Pat Spurgeon, drummer of <a href="http://www.roguewavemusic.com/">Rogue Wave</a> and his illness, an unfortunate one-two kidney punch – he was born with a single healthy kidney that began to go into failure in his teens.<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>He does okay until he is in his twenties, scraping out a life as a miserly drummer in Indiana.<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>But after a string of flu-like illnesses from which he never recovers, his mother comes from California to rescue him. This was a critical move, born from none other than motherly spidey-senses that literally saves Spurgeon’s life. He then becomes dependent on daily peritoneal dialysis, a time-consuming procedure to filter and cleanse his blood. At this time he begins to play with Rogue Wave and as the band’s popularity rises, they are forced to make serious decisions on whether to allow Spurgeon to tour given his health. <?xml:namespace prefix = o /><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:';">Meanwhile we get a sense of Spurgeon’s passion for music. He never wanted to commit to any alternative careers in the chance that he would be able to find a great group to play with. So he carried on doing odd jobs and playing in uninspired bands until he found Rogue Wave. He is portrayed as a fairly simple and likeable guy, not particularly insightful or articulate, but clearly a man who is devoted to his craft and has a good understanding of his illness. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:';">In spite of the risk, the band decides to go ahead touring with Spurgeon. Scene after scene there are images of Spurgeon dialyzing himself in the back of a van, backstage, on a porch, in a living room with a dog chasing his dialysis bags. <span style="font-size:+0;"></span>To maintain a sense of privacy for Spurgeon, they encode talk related to dialysis, referring to his “D-Bags” and thus coining the term, “D Tour.” The story takes on an added layer as bassist Evan Farrell’s wife offers to donate her kidney to Spurgeon after finding out she is a perfect tissue match for him. Sadly, this possibility dead-ends as she is found to be unable to donate and Spurgeon is relegated to have to wait up to five years on a kidney match list. He faces the harsh reality that he may die before receiving a kidney.<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>The band then tours to raise awareness of Spurgeon’s plight. Some familiar rock faces emerge, including Ben Gibbard, John Vanderslice, Nada Surf, the Moore Brothers showing their support of the cause. <span style="font-size:+0;"></span>Throughout the movie you can see Spurgeon’s body change, sometimes slightly swollen and sallow-faced, but always undeniably thin. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:';">In a stroke of luck, or hitting the “organ lottery” (misunderstood by Spurgeon’s family as the Oregon Lottery) Spurgeon gets a perfectly matched cadaveric organ. In hours he’s whisked away to UCSF Hospital and gets his brand-spanking healthy new kidney. He recovers well. Happy ending, right? Hardly. In the same year, bassist Evan Farrell dies in an apartment fire. In a twisted turn of events, Farrell’s wife, who just a year prior offered her kidney to Spurgeon, decides to have her husband’s organs donated. The movie’s most poignant moments come when Farrell’s wife gets to meet the four recipients of her husband’s organs and when Spurgeon meets his donor’s family. (I cried like a baby during these parts.) <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:';">Interspersed in this weighty story line we hear bits of tracks from <i>Asleep At Heaven’s Gate,</i> which keep our soundbyte-trained ears perked and reminded me how it’s just a great album. The music took a relative backseat to the main focus of the movie that seemed to be more on Spurgeon’s illness, the organ donor program and the absolute heart-wrenching losses and the strange healing that can come from it.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:';"><span style="font-size:100%;">--Audrey Wen</span></span></p>NQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-56284110901169440582009-09-28T18:28:00.007-05:002011-09-06T19:40:38.538-05:00Members of The Scotland Yard Gospel Choir In Serious Van Accident<div></div>You may have read on <a href="http://blogs.suntimes.com/derogatis/">Jim DeRogatis's blog</a> or elsewhere that all six members of Chicago's the <a href="http://www.sygc.com/fr_index.cfm">Scotland Yard Gospel Choir</a> were seriously injured last Thursday in a van accident on I-65 while heading to a concert in Cincinnati. Bass player Mark Yoshizumi is still in the hospital. When I lived in Chicago I caught these guys a few times at Schubas and always had a blast at their energetic and just all around fun shows. In light of presumed hefty medical bills, their label <a href="http://www.bloodshotrecords.com/">Bloodshot Records</a> has set up a <a href="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=8469029">PayPal</a> account if you wish to make a donation. Or, go to iTunes and buy one of their albums. I highly recommend their latest <span style="font-style: italic;">...And the Horse You Rode In On</span>.<br /><br />--AlexNQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-15996196947969282922009-09-23T19:13:00.008-05:002011-09-06T19:41:05.710-05:00How Do You Determine A Concert's Worth?<div></div>We are currently living in times of a questionable economy, and with that questionable economy, most people take an extra second to evaluate certain spending decisions. I was in this position yesterday when I got online with the purpose of buying tickets to see the <a href="http://www.myspace.com/pixies">Pixies</a> at <a href="http://www.dar.org/conthall/">DAR Constitution Hall</a> on November 30. A tour which, by the way, is being promoted as a <span style="font-style: italic;">Doolittle</span> tour. (This information will become more important later.) Because of the band and venue, I knew tickets would be somewhat expensive. I was right, through <a href="http://www.ticketmaster.com/">Ticketmaster</a>, a singular ticket came in at $53.50 before any added charges. This probably means we are talking about at least a $70 price tag once all of the goggily-gook is piled on. (Before I go any further, this is not meant and will not turn into some rant on the Pixies or Ticketmaster for the presumed $70 ticket. )<br /><br />Once I saw how much tickets were, the fascinating world of economics started bouncing around my brain. Should I buy a ticket? Is $70 worth what I will be getting in return? Figuring there are plenty of people facing similar decisions, before doing anything rash, I decided to close my browser and break it down to determine the best course of action. Assume for all intents and purposes that I am your average person. I don't make a ton of money, but I make enough where I could spend $70 on a ticket if I really wanted to.<br /><br />Obviously to pay $70 to see a band, you have to like that band. Well, I like the Pixies. Now, they're not necessarily my favorite band, and I wasn't raised on their music. But I do like them enough to play them semi-regularly, and usually loud enough to earn the disdainful glare that my neighbor down the hall gives me when I see her in the building. (Is it possibly to play the Pixies<span style="font-style: italic;"> soft</span>? Of course not.) I own four of their albums. Strike that, I own three of their albums (<span style="font-style: italic;">Surfer Rosa</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">Doolittle</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">Trompe Le Monde</span>), with the fourth being a greatest hits compilation that I found for $1. I could have sworn I had <span style="font-style: italic;">Bossanova</span> somewhere but after rummaging through my music collection, it has come to my attention that I don't. Anyway, I like all of these albums and I love <span style="font-style: italic;">Doolittle</span>. Love it. It gets the most play of their stuff, and if I were to ever make a collection of my 50 favorite songs of all time (for all of our sakes, let's hope I don't), "Debaser" would probably make the cut. So, I certainly like the Pixies enough to satisfy this particular category, and the fact that they will be playing most or all of <span style="font-style: italic;">Doolittle</span> makes the show even more compelling. <br /><br />But there are still more issues to consider. Seventy bucks does not grow on cherry blossom trees. How about the venue? Well, I have seen two concerts at DAR Constitution Hall (My Morning Jacket, Smashing Pumpkins) and enjoyed myself both times. It is a very comfortable place and has pretty decent sound. I can not fathom any reason why this particular time would be different. Also, getting there and back is nothing more than a nice, brisk walk.<br /><br />(Quick side story: I lived in Dayton, Ohio, for three years and one of my good friends lived in a nice house in a nice, quiet neighborhood. Every so often, we would spend a weekend on his porch shooting the breeze and drinking a beer. One of his next-door neighbors was a nice unassuming woman who would pass by and say hello while she was walking her dog, or maintaining her garden. This woman we later found out was Kim Deal. I throw this in here because I love this story. My friend lived next door to a person who played bass for a band that I really liked and we never put two-and-two together probably because we've grown accustomed to assuming that rock stars don't spend their weekends planting flowers.)<br /><br />Two big questions out of the way and the only drawback seems to be the ticket cost. But I should probably mention that I can't really think of an acquaintance in DC that would be interested in tagging along. If I go, I will probably be by myself. Not a huge deal, in fact, I am kind of an old hand at this.<br /><br />Also, if my calculations are correct, November 30th is a Monday, which means I will have to work the following day. That sucks, but that also means I will probably purchase one less beer than I normally would. (Depending on the length of a show, I would normally purchase anywhere from two to four beers, give or take a substitute rum and Coke if I am feeling tired.) If I recall, drinks are in the $6-7 range. Subtract that from the ticket cost and now we're looking at around $63. Well, now I'm thinking, because the only other venue I could imagine the Pixies playing in town would be the 9:30 Club. Suppose they were playing there instead of DAR Constitution Hall. I would bus it there, and mostly likely try and cab it back (read the last paragraph of the previous post as to why). Being that it's not too far, the cab would probably cost $6-7, including tip. Not forgetting the $1.10 bus fare, bump the cab fare off the price, and all of a sudden, this ticket is in the $56 range just for the sheer reason that it's at DAR, and I can walk home and feel comfortable that no one is going to go all Avon Barksdale on me.<br /><br />See, this is kind of fun, isn't it?<br /><br />Another thing I considered was using my connections to somehow try and circumvent the price of the ticket, but then I remembered that I don't really have any connections. Maybe I could email someone in the Pixies camp to try and set up an interview or a show review in a lame attempt to get on the list. But I can't do that. For one, the chances of landing an interview with someone from the Pixies would probably be slim to none. And second, while I would love to talk with someone from the Pixies, it would never be so I could get into a show for free. That goes for any band. No, if I'm going to this show, this ticket is going to have to be purchased. <br /><br />I honestly started writing this without being completely sure what I was going to do, or where this post was headed. But about five minutes ago, something dawned on me and I think it's going to be the ultimate decider in what my final decision will be. I have never seen the Pixies, and this is huge. It's not as if the Pixies have countless tours left in them. When it comes to seeing them, we are probably all playing with house money at this point. And with that, I keep thinking back to January 2007 when I had the opportunity to purchase a ticket to see the Bears play the Seahawks in the NFL Playoffs during the Bears' march to the Super Bowl. After being conflicted, I said to hell with it, and paid an obscene amount that I really couldn't afford at the time. And you know what, it ended up being totally worth it. (I'm not going to print how much the ticket cost to save a lecture in case my mom reads this.) When I look back at it now, I don't think about how much the ticket was, I think about how great of a time I had. And while this concert might not have the flair of a game-winning Robbie Gould field goal, it certainly has potential to be great. And a few years from now, will I think about how much the ticket cost, or how great it was to see the Pixies? I can almost guarantee and am hoping it will be the latter, which is why I am going to buy a ticket. Right now. <br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">UPDATE: Tickets are gone. See what happens when you spend too much time thinking?</span><br /><br />--AlexNQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-87743543918404934142009-09-14T21:16:00.013-05:002011-09-06T19:42:39.258-05:008 Random (And Mostly) Musical Observations For Absolutely No Reason At All<div></div>1. When did Kurt Cobain become the new Prophet Muhammad in that it's a sin to duplicate his likeness on screen? So he's in the new Guitar Hero and he can oddly sing a Bon Jovi song. Who cares. Well, it looks like Courtney Loves <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009/sep/11/guitar-hero-upsets-nirvana-fans">does</a>. She has also lost her mind, because she clearly signed over the rights to Activision, makers of Guitar Hero, for them to use Cobain. How do I (and everyone else) know this? Because since she controls his estate, she would be the only one that would have the right to do this in the first place. Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic aren't behaving much better, and are apparently demanding that Activision "relock" Cobain's character so he can't sing other artist's songs. Again, I can't find a part of my brain that thinks they should even care. If I could unlock George Clinton on <em>NBA Jam</em> on my old Super Nintendo and dunk the ball from half court, then surely it won't kill Kurt Cobain to belt out "Livin on a Prayer" every now and then. As an old Nirvana fan, the only thing that ever bothered me about Kurt Cobain was that he was always presented, or seemed to present himself, way too serious and completely humorless even though I'm sure he wasn't. But we should all thank Love and the surviving Nirvana members for keeping this myth alive.<br /><p>2. I did not watch the MTV Video Music Awards the other night because the Bears' game was on and because it was the MTV Video Music Awards, but I did stumble across <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/09/14/mtvs-chest-dressed-who-we_n_285557.html?slidenumber=8#slide_image">this fantastic picture</a> of Joe Jackson (Michael's dad, not the guy who helped throw a World Series back in 1919 and didn't like wearing shoes) on the red carpet. If you ever wondered what a hybrid of Don Vito Corleone and Little Richard would look like after said hybrid decided to become a pimp, well, there you go. (And you know Jackson must look pretty ridiculous, when he looks even more ridiculous than his ridiculous looking date.) And speaking of the VMAs...<br /><br />3. ...I love Kanye West, but it's getting <a href="http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2009/09/13/kanye-west-storms-the-vmas-stage-during-taylor-swifts-speech/">harder and harder</a> to defend him. At least his apology on that new Jay Leno show seemed sincere. And, the <a href="http://pitchfork.com/news/36491-kanye-apologizesperforms-on-leno/">performance</a> that followed with Jay-Z and Rhianna was pretty great, too.<br /><br />4. Remember that Seinfeld episode with the Three Tenors where they kept referring to José Carreras as "the other guy?" I think the same thing is starting to happen with <a href="http://monstersoffolk.com/">Monsters of Folk</a>. I recently overheard someone telling their friend about this group on the bus. And he described them as Jim James, Conor Oberst, M. Ward, and "some other guy." Well, "some other guy" is actually Bright Eyes member Mike Mogis. (Please don't think I'm trying to cop a snobby attitude, I actually had to look it up myself. But now that we all know his name, let's keep calling him "some other guy." I like that much better, don't you?)<br /><br />5. If you're looking to start an argument with a group of friends, just send them the latest Paul Shirley <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/thelife/news/story?id=4474313">column</a> where he pretty much calls the Beatles' music average and boring, while at the same time paying the requisite respect to their influence and legacy. Suffice to say, I loved it. And speaking of which...</p>6. ...this idea of reviewing the Beatles entire recently reissued catalog is stupid. I know both <em>Paste</em> and <em>Pitchfork</em> have done this. I'm sure others have as well, but this is pretty much akin to watching <em>The Godfather</em> and then writing a review blathering on about how good it is. Thanks, but billions of people have already beat you to the punch.<br /><p>7. The <a href="http://www.930.com/">9:30 Club</a> sucks. Not the venue itself, but the actual process of trying to buy tickets from their website, which works about as well as the <a href="http://www.wbay.com/Global/story.asp?S=11129353">Bears' fake punt</a> the other night. The layout is just generally confusing, the system never remembers your password so you're forced to sign up for a new account with each purchase, and they add so many extra fees that it almost makes you want to swear off live music. The other day I purchased tickets for a Built To Spill show in October. The entire process seemed to take about half an hour, and to top it off, they charge $4 to mail you the tickets. And I'm not talking about having the tickets sent express or anything, I'm talking about the regular mail. I don't know how much stamps cost on their side of town, but over here it's still 43 (44?) cents.<br /></p>8. Backing up a few months, over 4th of July weekend I attended a birthday party for one of my friends. He's Polish and had traveled to Maryland that day to stack up on some "fine" Polish vodka. We consumed a lot of it. This will come into play later. Ever the playlist dictator, as the evening went along, I took control of his iPod and with his permission implemented myself as dj. Not necessarily an easy task when you're dealing with a music catalog that is 90% Polish. But I found a few party favorites and cranked them out and everyone had a good time. One of the songs I played was "1979" by Smashing Pumpkins. As the evening wound down, and 3am had passed, I decided to walk about 1.5 miles home rather than take a cab. (Stupid.) I also decided to listen to my iPod while making the journey. (Very stupid.) And, I decided to take side streets through a dodgy neighborhood so the street noise from the main roads wouldn't drown out my music. (So incredibly stupid, it's nearly beyond comprehension.) Still having "1979" in my head, I decided to play Side 1 of <em>Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness</em> which I had not listened to in quite some time. While listening to Track 13, "Porcelina of the Vast Oceans," I was reminded of a mid-October day in 1995 when I saw this band at the Madison Theater in Peoria, Illinois, just before <em>Mellon Collie</em> was released. They opened with this song, and I had obviously never heard it before, but I remember thinking it was just incredible. (Looking back, the song is good but I would hardly call it incredible.) As I was recalling this memory, a man appeared from nowhere, lunged at me, and I before I knew it, I was on the ground being robbed at gunpoint. Wallet, phone, iPod...gone. (I really hope that guy liked $4, crappy phones, and rock music because that's what he got.) Nevertheless, I can't help but laugh to think that the same "incredible" song back in 1995 would one day serve as the soundtrack for a gun being pointed in my face. Why I even put myself in that situation is beyond me, but I'd prefer to place the blame on my foolish love for music and the Polish vodka.<br /><p>--Alex<br /></p><p> </p><p> </p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-85548734024224231072009-09-01T19:09:00.015-05:002011-09-06T19:43:07.714-05:00The Killers--Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, Maryland<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_PoDYGRIqGN8/Sp3G8oqW2bI/AAAAAAAAAq0/fMgIJ496bvw/s1600-h/the+killers.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5376672275159767474" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_PoDYGRIqGN8/Sp3G8oqW2bI/AAAAAAAAAq0/fMgIJ496bvw/s320/the+killers.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />(Everyone hates Ticketmaster and I am usually no exception. But I am going to give credit where credit is due. I had ordered two tickets to see <a href="http://www.thekillersmusic.com/">the Killers</a> earlier this week at <a href="http://www.merriweathermusic.com/">Merriweather Post Pavilion</a>, which is located about 25 miles north of my apartment in Columbia, Maryland. Come three days before the show, I still did not have any tickets even though they had been ordered way far in advanced. I did not have the tickets because they were lost in the mail, along with a few other semi-important things that I needed. Upon calling the number that was attached to my confirmation email, I was immediately connected (without having to listen to even a single recording) to an overtly friendly and helpful woman who, in less than five minutes, saved the day with little questions asked and issued me two new tickets. All I had to do was show up at the will call window with photo identification and the credit card that I used to purchase the tickets. It was almost too easy. One might even call it an exercise in "convenience." And a lesser company would probably charge for such a...oh, shit...nevermind.)<br /><br />Anyway, I have been to plenty of outdoor music festivals in recent years, but had not been to one of these "cookie-cutter" outdoor amphitheaters like Merriweather Post Pavilion in probably ten years. But only the parking and seating situation at Merriweather is generic. The rest of it feels like a zoo. Literally. Yes, there are a lot of people, but there are even more trees that turn the surrounding area into a forest that is disturbed only by a nice stream of water, and a trail that leads to the venue. There are wooden signs nailed all along the campus trail that contain useful information for a Merriweather novice like myself. For instance, I learned in 1971 a "little known" Led Zeppelin opened for the Who at this very venue. That's a fun fact, but I had a feeling they were using the words "little known" a bit liberally. I was right. When I got home I checked Zeppelin's discography and learned that 1971 was the year they released their commercially celebrated <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Led_Zeppelin_IV">untitled fourth album</a>. This means they already had their self-titled debut, <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">II</span>, and <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">III</span> under their belt. Surely they were pretty well-known by this point, right? Or who knows, maybe most people left that show thinking, "Wow, the Who were great, but what was the name of that loud opening band again? And was that Janis Joplin singing? I thought she was dead!"<br /><br />We had lawn seats, and found a decent spot in shallow right-center field while opening act <a href="http://www.wolfmother.com/">Wolfmother</a> played. If you're unfamiliar with Wolfmother, just think Dragonforce meets the fictional band Stillwater from <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Almost Famous</span>. Confused? Hey, me too. But nevermind that, one great thing about Merriweather are the large screens affixed around the venue for the viewing pleasure of those in the lawn. They are almost so crisp and clear that you feel guilty if you catch yourself gazing at them instead of the stage, and you wonder if paying decent money just to see something that you could have watched at home on television was a stupid choice, but then you realize such an event isn't televised in the first place anyway, and it dawns on you that the last five minutes spent wondering whether staring at the screens cheapened the experience was a complete waste. (This thought sequence really did play out in my mind. I suck.)<br /><br />Another great thing about the video screens was between bands they displayed a reel of different texts that audience members were sending to a number finely displayed on the screen. Most were about the Killers (ex: "r we human?"), although one was a proposal (ex: "jen will u marry me? i luv u. chris") which seemed to lead to a series of mock proposals. I decided to get in on the action. I won't repeat what I sent but let's just say it was not posted. Even worse, I quickly got a text back that stated I had somehow agreed to be notified of all Merriweather events. Just what I needed. This better not be like the time last summer when I signed up to be notified via text of Barack Obama's running mate, only to be inundated for the next three months at all hours of the day with mindless text "alerts" and borderline spam.<br /><br />By the time the Killers took the stage it was dark, and we were sitting motionless on a blanket not buying beer. (Beer was in the range of $8 which explains why everyone was tailgating in the parking lot before the show.) The reaction to everyone in my vicinity when the band did finally emerge was almost astonishing. I saw friends hugging, girls immediately dancing. People just love this band. And the Killers crowd is much different than what I'm used to. I saw twelve-year-olds with their parents (probably why they wouldn't show my text), couples in their late 40s, pretty much all walks of life. I could have been at a baseball game and I would not have been able to tell the difference. Remember with the release of <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Sam's Town</span> when it seemed the Killers had set out to become the biggest band in America? Well, I think they did it.<br /><br />Also, I really like this band. A small fraction of their appeal is the contrarian nature of their bravado when compared to most bands I listen to. In the <a href="http://nothingquitelike.blogspot.com/2009/08/2009-lollapalooza-sunday-from-miles-and.html">Lollapalooza post</a> I wrote that I began to like the Killers as soon as everyone else decided they were no longer cool. This might not be entirely accurate. For starters, I am not sure those that dislike the Killers ever thought they were cool. They were always a part of the mainstream, even before <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Hot Fuss</span> blew up. In my world, they first took the form of a guilty pleasure. But after hearing "Read My Mind" from <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Sam's Town</span> and being unable to remove it from my head, I finally pushed all of my chips to the center of the table and decided I was all in. And I do respect the fact that the Killers welcome the idea of mass appeal at the possible expense of street-cred. But as stated, mostly I like their songs. There just aren't many bands with the lifespan of only three albums with this many hits.<br /><br />Even their songs that I wouldn't consider "hits" sound like hits in concert. For example, they opened with "Joy Ride" from their latest <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Day & Age</span>, which is a song I have never cared for, but I was completely sold with the disco-esque bassline and lead singer Brandon Flowers hitting every note with vocal chords that I wasn't even aware he had. And he's a great frontman, almost like a modern day Mick Jagger the way he struts around stage and owns the crowd. He's very pleased with himself and is certainly cocky, but there is a tongue-in-cheek element involved that makes it work.<br /><br />As for the rest of the set, if there is a Killers song that you like, they probably played it. A few that left an impression were "Somebody Told Me," and their latest hit "Human," which contains the unanswerable question "Are we human/or are we dancer?" <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Umm, yes?</span> You know, no one really has any clue what that lyric means, but if you listen to the song more than three times there is no reason to care because you will realize that the song is awesome. (And the fact that so many people still talk about that lyric makes it brilliant in my book.)<br /><br />Before the encore, they dusted off staples "Mr. Brightside" and "All These Things That I've Done," the latter of which included the appropriate "I got soul/but I'm not a soldier" sing-along from the entire crowd before the band sauntered off stage. They returned and played "Believe Me Natalie" which, if I recall, included pyrotechnics that from my vantage point seemed to be raining down on top of drummer Ronnie Vannucci. Subtle, the Killers are not, and probably never will be. Flowers then informed the crowd that they were going to play their final song as hard as they possibly could, and launched into "When You Were Young." This was my first time seeing the Killers so I was forced to take Flowers's word for it, but I would be shocked if what he said was disingenuous. That song is nearly a victim of its own grandiosity-it will never be able to be anything other than a closer.<br /><br />Like any good outdoor amphitheater, leaving Merriweather was complete hell as cars were stuck at a stand-still in the parking lot for a good hour. At one point I asked one of the girls I was with, "Can you tell if any cars are moving, or are we dancer?" (I was the only one that thought this was hilarious.) The cars were not even thinking of moving, so we were most certainly dancer. But had it not been for the accommodating people at Ticketmaster, we would have been nothing at all.<br /><br />--Alex<br /><div></div>NQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-75028621966865842492009-08-31T23:04:00.003-05:002009-08-31T23:10:44.798-05:00Top 20 Songs of the 2000s: Another Opinion<div></div><span style="font-size:100%;">Everyone has their list of the top 20 songs of the decade whether they know it or not. And everyone uses different criteria to make that list. My process was to take my subjective favorite songs from the decade and then try to pick the objective best 20 of those. While I didn't have a hard rule, I made an effort to keep it one song per artist for a little more variety. Thus, this isn't a true top 20. Also, the order would probably change on any given day. I'm kind of surprised that some bands didn't make the cut (The Strokes, The Knife, McLusky), but they will all certainly appear on any future albums of the decade list. Anyway, enjoy.<br /><br />20. "You Know You're Right" - Nirvana<br />Why: This might be cheating a bit because it was recorded in the '90s, but it's my favorite Nirvana studio song by far and, I think, their best. Listening to it makes me sad that we tragically didn't get to hear an album of this stuff.<br />Best Part: 0:57 - "Paaaaaaaaiiin!"<br /><br />19. "Paper Tiger" - Spoon<br />Why: It's an odd song, to be sure, built on a few austere organ chords. But because it is odd, it stands out on <i>Kill the Moonlight</i> and becomes that great album's heart.<br />Best part: 2:43 - "I will be there with you when you turn out the light."<br /><br />18. "Emily Kane" - Art Brut<br />Why: It's a perfect punk-pop song. Not pop-punk. That shit sucks.<br />Best Part: The last, fist pumping minute.<br /><br />17. "PDA" - Interpol<br />Why: I'm pretty sure I have <i>Turn on the Bright Lights</i> to thank for getting me into anything British from the '80s. It's a very big thanks. "PDA" is, by a nose, my favorite song from that album. <br />Best Part: 3:55 to the end. It's pretty.<br /><br />16. "Toxicity" - System of a Down<br />Why: It perfectly straddles the line between rock and metal and is a killer song in either genre.<br />Best Part: 3:02 - When Tankian's incredible voice comes back for an encore.<br /><br />15. "Kissing the Beehive" - Wolf Parade<br />Why: It's long, it's weird, it has some uncomfortable time signatures, and it has distinct parts, but it's probably the high point of Wolf Parade's lifespan, including anything they do from here on out.<br />Best Part: 10:27 - The reprise of the chanting first heard at the 3:36 mark.<br /><br />14. "Hounds of Love" - The Futureheads<br />Why: Best cover ever. <br />Best Part: 2:24 - When the drums reset everything and the Futureheads begin to tear through to the end.<br /><br />13. "The Grudge" - Tool<br />Why: Story time. I was in Myrtle Beach for post-exams when <i>Lateralus </i>came out. I went with two friends to buy it (along with REM's <i>Reveal</i>, and Weezer's <i>Green Album</i>) at some mall we found somewhere. One of these friends is a huge Tool fan and had been waiting for this album for, I don't know, six years or something. We got back to the house we were renting and went to separate rooms to listen to it on the Discmans (Discmen?) we brought for this one purpose. We must have started listening at about the same time because right after "The Grudge" ended on the copy I was listening to, my friend came into my room with the biggest fucking smile I have ever seen plastered on his face. I knew why. <br />Best Part: 6:58 - Maynard's scream. <br /><br />12. "Empty Cans" - The Streets<br />Why: Spoiler alert: he finds his money. It was in the TV. <i>In </i>the TV. Yes, you're right, that doesn't make any sense. And it doesn't matter.<br />Best Part: 3:30 - When the piano kicks in. Might be my favorite three notes of any song I've ever heard.<br /><br />11. "Kissing the Lipless" - The Shins<br />Why: <i>Oh Inverted World</i> was cute. This first song from its follow up was a statement announcing that The Shins were serious and were here to stay. <br />Best Part: 0:52 - When it, sort of shockingly, picks up.<br /><br />10. "A Certain Romance" - Arctic Monkeys<br />Why: It's a really, really smart song disguised as NME hype-of-the-week. Alex Turner is good.<br />Best Part: 2:06 - "There's only music so that there's new ringtones"<br /><br />9. "Postcards From Italy" - Beirut<br />Why: How did a teenager write this? God, this is heartbreaking.<br />Best Part: 1:08 - When the horns kick in.<br /><br />8. "Leaf House" - Animal Collective<br />Why: Play it in the fall when it's raining. You'll see.<br />Best Part: 2:00 - The abrupt change from sleepy to uplifting.<br /><br />7. "The Rat" - The Walkmen<br />Why: Needs no explanation.<br />Best Part: 2:30 - "When I used to go out I would know everyone that I saw / Now I go out alone if I go out at all"<br /><br />6. "Time For Heroes" - The Libertines<br />Why: Every decade, there's a song that just <i>sounds </i>like England. This is the '00s version.<br />Best Part: 1:24 - "There's fewer more distressing sights than that of an / English man in a baseball cap".<br /><br />5. "Reckoner" - Radiohead<br />Why: The best band of the decade's best song of the decade. This does not automatically make it the best song of the decade. Anyone using this logic (best player on best team) to vote for Mark Teixiera for AL MVP over Mauer is a fool and an asshole.<br />Best Part: The fade-out at the end.<br /><br />4. "Goin' Against Your Mind" - Built to Spill<br />Why: It's just fucking epic.<br />Best Part: 5:30 - "Thought it was an alien / turned out to be just God."<br /><br />3. "3rd Planet" - Modest Mouse<br />Why: While "Float On" is, understandably, the more popular song, "3rd Planet" is the band's best.<br />Best Part: 0:55 - "Your Heart felt good / it was dripping pitch and made of wood / and your hands and knees / felt cold and wet on the grass to me." One of my favorite lyrics ever.<br /><br />2. "Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)" - The Arcade Fire<br />Why: I've heard this song maybe a hundred times and it still gives me cold chills.<br />Best Part: 3:00 - When the tempo picks up again, this time for good. <br /><br />1. "Hey Ya!" - Outkast<br />Why: Lost of great songs have a simplicity that makes me think "I could have done that if I knew how to play a guitar/use Protools/use a 4-track." Not this one. It is expert and mad, complicated, unique, and perfect.<br />Best Part: 2:46 - "Shake it like a Polaroid picture."<br /><br />--Jim Powers</span>NQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-8222890847901250522009-08-26T18:12:00.006-05:002009-08-26T22:00:55.139-05:00Top 20 Songs of the 2000s<div></div>I mentioned in the last post that Pitchfork recently listed what they thought were the <a href="http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/7685-the-top-500-tracks-of-the-2000s-500-201/">top 500 songs of the 2000s</a>. It was a pretty good list, and as I was reading it I found myself thinking, "Yeah, that would be on mine," (or "Who the hell is Jackson And His Computer Band?"), and as this list was forming in my brain, I grabbed a pen and started to jot them down. Of the 30-35 that came to mind, 20 seemed to really stick out as songs that "define the decade." What does that mean? That means ten years from now they will all be lumped together on some terrible compilation album that can only be purchased by dialing some 1-800 number. No, actually, it really doesn't mean anything. These are just songs that I have a feeling I will remember. And these aren't necessarily my favorite songs of the decade, although some of them are, and the others I like very much (that was a prerequisite), but more like songs from 2000-2009 that I feel have the ability to pull numerous people into the wonderful world of music and are damn good. The number one song notwithstanding, there really is no significance to the order, it took approximately two minutes to put together and just seemed right at the time. This list is not comprehensive, and no less than five seconds after this is posted, some song will pop into my head that should have been on it, but I'll just save that for the comments. Feel free to do the same. Here we go:<br /><br />20. "Stuck Between Stations" - The Hold Steady<br />19. "Wolf Like Me" - TV On The Radio<br />18. "The Funeral" - Band Of Horses<br />17. "Last Night" - The Strokes<br />16. "Crazy" - Gnarls Barkley<br />15. "99 Problems" - Jay-Z<br />14. "Clocks" - Coldplay<br />13. "All My Friends" - LCD Soundsystem<br />12. "I Am Trying To Break Your Heart" - Wilco<br />11. "The Rat" - The Walkmen<br />10. "Chicago" - Sufjan Stevens<br />9. "Mr. Brightside" - The Killers<br />8. "Such Great Heights" - The Postal Service<br />7. "Float On" - Modest Mouse<br />6. "Idioteque" - Radiohead<br />5. "Do You Realize??" - The Flaming Lips<br />4. "Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)" - The Arcade Fire<br />3. "Paper Planes" - M.I.A.<br />2. "Hey Ya" - Outkast<br />1. "Fell In Love With A Girl" - The White Stripes<br /><br />"Fell In Love With A Girl" is not the best White Stripes song from the past decade. "Seven Nation Army" probably is. In fact, it probably isn't even the best White Stripes song from <span style="font-style: italic;">White Blood Cells</span>. "Dead Leaves And The Dirty Ground" might be. But this song matters more and here's why. I remember watching the MTV Video Music Awards in 2002 back when the VMAs were a total train wreck, but also extremely watchable if not completely unavoidable. (I presume they are now just a train wreck.) The usual suspects were there: Eminem, Nelly, Avril Lavigne, etc. But because of a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q27BfBkRHbs">pretty cool lego-like animated video</a>, so were the White Stripes. They seemed out of place, the song seemed out of place, and I loved it. Maybe it wasn't as monumental as my memory suggests, but at the time it seemed to hint that decent rock music was seeping back into the mainstream for the first time in about ten years. And if the other 19 songs are any indication, it is one of my earliest memories in what turned out to be a pretty good decade in music.<br /><br />--Alex CrisafulliNQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-47054459645135217382009-08-23T09:16:00.009-05:002011-09-06T19:44:54.634-05:007 Random (And Mostly) Musical Observations To End The Summer1. Well, it ended over two weeks ago, but Jim DeRogatis is still hammering away at Lollapalooza. (I think he has officially reached "curmudgeon" status.) He is now calling it...wait for it..."<a href="http://blogs.suntimes.com/derogatis/2009/08/a_few_thoughts_on_recent_headl.html">Wal-Mart on the Lake</a>." <span style="font-style: italic;">Well done.</span> I grew up in a town of 16,000, and had no idea all those years I was going to a "Lollapalooza by the Burger King" to buy socks. Maybe Lincoln, Illinois, is more hip than I ever knew.<br /><br />2. Walking around DC, I have seen a lot of these "Michael Jackson: August 29, 2008 - June 25, 2009" memorial t-shirts. Has anyone else noticed that MJ's picture on these shirts is usually circa <a href="http://www.thrillerbaby.com/images/the24yearoldin1983thatbecameasurrogateparentforcrawfordschildrencourtesyofthrillerbabydotcom.bmp">1984</a>, and not circa <a href="http://www.southdacola.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/michael-jackson-mugshot.jpg">2003</a>? Wonder why that could be? Hey, speaking of which...<br /><br />3. ...the night he died, I decided out of all the possible tributes that seemed to be everywhere, I would watch whatever MTV had whipped up. Seemed fiiting, right? Problem is, I realized at that moment I had no idea what channel MTV was on. I was going to search my DirecTV guide but then realized I didn't really care and just watched CNN. That's how far MTV has fallen. And it has been that way for awhile. I guess it doesn't really matter, Youtube has essentially rendered MTV obsolete anyway.<br /><br />4. Pitchfork recently unveiled what they considered to be the <a href="http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/7685-the-top-500-tracks-of-the-2000s-500-201/">top 500</a> tracks of the 2000s. Numbers 500-200 are worth a skim, 199-21 can be read if you have time, and check out their <a href="http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/7693-the-top-500-tracks-of-the-2000s-20-1/">top 20</a> because I thought they were pretty solid. Later this week, I'll post what I think are the top 10 or so songs of this decade. (Yes, hold on to your butts.)<br /><br />5. Staying on Pitchfork, the <a href="http://www.lala.com/">Lala</a> add-on to their revamped site is fantastic. Today, as I was reading Joe Tangari's <a href="http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/13374-humbug/">review</a> of the Arctic Monkeys' new album <span style="font-style: italic;">Humbug</span>, I utilized the Lala play feature along the way and thought to myself, "Tangari is exactly right. The song 'Potion Approaching' DOES in fact opt for Zeppelin-ish start-stop passages that read just like 'Achilles Last Stand' but recast as a Britpop tune before shifting completely into a seesawing, almost mild-like psychedelic mid-section." I couldn't have written it better myself. (Honestly, I couldn't have, album reviews are harder than they seem. I think I would rather tell an Aristocrats joke at someone's wake than have to write album reviews for a living.) And still staying on Pitchfork...<br /><br />6. ...I don't feel all that comfortable making light of this, since it is for charity, but I had to laugh when I read <a href="http://pitchfork.com/news/36292-jeff-mangum-draws-on-shirts-and-records-for-charity-auction/">this</a> story about an ebay auction for a shirt designed by Jeff Mangum. (For what it's worth, I'm not laughing at the charity, I am laughing at Ryan Dombal's c-jerk write-up.) Last I saw, the highest bid for the shirt was $305, with the proceeds going to help homeless children in Mongolia. And if a t-shirt that didn't look like it would survive more than three or four cycles in the wash just wasn't your thing, you also could have bid on a vinyl copy of Neutral Milk Hotel's first album <span style="font-style: italic;">On Avery Island</span>. Oh, but that wasn't all! What if I were to tell you that the record was autographed by Mangum, and (AND!!!) even had his thumbprint?! Might that be something you would have been interested in? Of course it would! The highest bid I saw was $164.27 and that was with nine hours to go. But sorry, the bidding is over. (Why was the autographed record going for so much less than the t-shirt?) And I know that the homeless problem in Mongolia is a pretty serious issue today for most Americans, so if you missed out on the auction, please check out this <a href="http://www.un.org/works/goingon/mongolia/homeless.html">link</a>. (Okay, maybe I am sort of making fun of the charity, and that makes me feel like a jerk. So honestly, click on that link, you'll learn some pretty interesting facts about homeless children in Mongolia. For starters, it appears Richard Gere may or may not be one of them.)<br /><br />7. Two things help heal the wounds of a disappearing summer. The beginning of football season (for all of us Bears fans, I must say, it's gonna be a good year, I can just tell), and fall concerts. For whatever reason, September and October just always seem to be stock-full with great shows. This was definitely true in Chicago, and it's still true in DC. I'm not sure if every band is trying to get one last tour in before winter rolls around, or if they're just looking to have a return to normalcy after a summer of music festivals, but my fall is pretty much booked and I am not complaining. So if you happen to live near a music venue, be sure to check out the schedule. Your favorite band is probably stopping by soon.<br /><br />--AlexNQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-45416197861640406152009-08-10T19:39:00.014-05:002011-09-06T19:46:32.387-05:002009 Lollapalooza: Sunday (From Miles and Miles Away)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0Y_UR2Q-vg2MVVE3TwkvYICrV2Arv2cgDXfMtnH_vf9PY7ou-ur9fLR_r0yoMzKIZvRIc6HPv1Cu8mekfC676H4ARvlRyx4dgSlgyMKO3-TiP42uhIXhk1yEpNY4KkKqF-sxYqySAm74_/s1600-h/lolla.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 240px; display: block; height: 185px;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368503129570103458" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0Y_UR2Q-vg2MVVE3TwkvYICrV2Arv2cgDXfMtnH_vf9PY7ou-ur9fLR_r0yoMzKIZvRIc6HPv1Cu8mekfC676H4ARvlRyx4dgSlgyMKO3-TiP42uhIXhk1yEpNY4KkKqF-sxYqySAm74_/s400/lolla.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="http://www.lollapalooza.com/">Lollapalooza</a> was this past weekend in Chicago. I heard it was a great time, but I wouldn't know. Well, not really. I was actually 700 miles away in Washington, DC, where this past Sunday it was a typical August day in the District: hot, humid, and feeling like hell. It was in the mid-to-high 90's and may have been the hottest day of the year. After spending the morning on a walk running some errands and braving the hellements, I said screw that, and headed indoors where my air conditioner was working at such a furious pace, it was actually yelling "fuck you" at every Smart Car that drove by.<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>I knew some of my friends were at Lollapalooza, and I also knew that <a href="http://www.iclips.net/lollapalooza2009.php">iClips.net</a> was video streaming portions of the festival. It was also hot in Chicago, and just because my friends were sweating themselves silly in Grant Park, didn't mean I had to be. I put on an old pair of Umbros (yep), grabbed a lemonade and tuned in. This is what I saw:<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>The first band I caught was <a href="http://www.theairbornetoxicevent.com/">the Airborne Toxic Event</a>. I have never really listened to this crew, and they seemed intriguing (sort of like Interpol only without the sharp looks and deodorant), but what struck me was how great the video feed was. Clear and crisp with great angles of the stage, crowd, and city. That's what I call production. For those wondering where the price of their ticket was going, it was so people like me who didn't buy a ticket could also enjoy the festivities. Thanks! And let me tell you, this is the way to take in a festival. Whenever I got bored with the Airborne Toxic Event, I would check out my fantasy baseball team (currently in 2nd place, no big deal), walk over to my kitchen and make a drink, or just lie down on my bed and take a power nap. This is the life. Oh, and if you think for a second that I wasn't texting my friends and asking them rather mockingly how the weather was at Grant Park, you're crazy.<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>According to iClips, <a href="http://www.myspace.com/dandeacon">Dan Deacon</a> would be featured next. This is something I really wanted to see. A lot of people said that his last album was really good, but I could never bring myself to listen to it. Deacon has just always seemed like one of those acts that needs to be seen and heard, and not just heard. (I have made a promise to myself to listen to a Dan Deacon record very soon.) After preparing a bowl of Edy's Double Fudge Brownie ice cream and returning to my computer, it came to my attention that the feed was down. I have no idea what happened, but do know that iClips user korm5421 was not happy about it. He posted about three or four angry messages. (If you scroll through the message board, you'll see that he was complaining nearly every five minutes the entire day.) By the time the feed rebounded, Deacon was onstage with what looked like an entire marching band, and he had somehow commanded the massive crowd to create a large hole near the center of the stage. One guy was in the middle doing some slow dance moves, and the surrounding crowd was mimicking him. Once the music got going, the crowd just erupted and went crazy. People were jumping, crowd surfing, and rioting. It kind of made me wish I was there, but that thinking ended with my next bite of ice cream.<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div><a href="http://www.kaiserchiefs.co.uk/">The Kaiser Chiefs</a> were up next. They did not sound well, and I headed to the living room and turned on the television where I was immediately treated to a live concert on HDNet by the Barenaked Ladies. Now seemed as good of time as any to stick my face in the fan. Luckily, I soon found <em><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097815/">Major League</a></em> on AMC. Great movie, but boy does it suffer without the curse words.<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>I faded in and out of sleep and eventually made my way back to my computer for the <a href="http://www.coldwarkids.com/">Cold War Kids</a>. It was at this point where I tried to watch the band and the movie at the same time. I wasn't accomplishing either objective so I turned off the television. As the band was playing "Hospital Beds" I noticed some guy crowd surfing. I know it has been said countless times, but it really does look douchey when someone is crowd surfing at a completely inopportune time. Really, it does. I learned this the hard way at GG Allin's funeral. (Too soon?)<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div><a href="http://www.snoopdogg.com/">Snoop Dogg</a> was next on the feed. Holla. The crowd looked absolutely enormous, and I don't think I have ever been in a crowd that big. At one point I think I heard Snoop (shockingly) say, "Put your motherfucking hands in the air," but I can't verify this because I was too engulfed in a mesmerizing profile about great white sharks on <em>60 Minutes</em>. Allegedly, the recent increase in shark attacks on humans might be connected to humans increasingly seeking out great white sharks. Yeah, and Snoop might be high. At the end of Snoop's set (great white sharks trump Snoop, but Andy Rooney does not), he led the crowd in an impressive chorus of "Na na na na/Na na na na/Hey hey hey/Snoop Dogg." Believe me, it sounded much cooler than it reads.<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>Fuzzy guitar lovin' <a href="http://www.silversunpickups.com/">Silversun Pickups</a> were stuck with the task of following Snoop. Always fun. I wasn't digging them at first, and even found lead singer Brian Aubert to be slightly annoying any time he tried to scream out a note. However, I thought they got stronger as they went on, and by the time they closed with "Lazy Eye," I was really feeling it. That's an incredible single, and they nailed it. (Although I texted my friend Bret who was there right afterwards to express my enjoyment, and he told me that he thought they sucked. Maybe just maybe, watching the festival over a computer in a different time zone doesn't exactly capture the experience.)<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>The next three hours were just filler for me (Portugal. The Man, STS9, Neko Case), until the day's headliners, Jane's Addiction and the Killers, were set to close out the weekend. The iClipse site was still listing the 11:30 cst timeslot as TBA, so I had no idea who I would get to watch, and rather than just spend the next few hours staring at my computer, I killed a couple of hours and watched <em><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0371746/">Iron Man</a></em> on Netflix. Cool movie.<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>One of the reasons I am sort of relieved I wasn't at Lollapalooza is because it would have sucked having to choose between <a href="http://www.janesaddiction.com/">Jane's Addiction</a> and <a href="http://www.thekillersmusic.com/">the Killers</a>. I love both. I realized I was a big fan of the Killers right about the same time it was decided that they were no longer cool. Interestingly enough, this same thing happened to me in high school with OJ Simpson. (Too soon?) But speaking of high school, Jane's Addiction, pretty much the namesake of the festival, was one of my favorite bands way back when, and I have never seen them. So I probably would have decided to linger near their stage, but man, it would have been a tough decision. Good thing at home I had iClipse to make the decision for me. Problem is, when the schedule popped up, it said we would be watching Jane's Addiction but only from 11:30 to 11:45. <em>Fifteen minutes?</em> We were given Bat for Lashes for an entire hour, but only get Jane's Addiction for 15 minutes? Oh, well. Also, the schedule was on central standard time, so this meant I had to stay up until 12:30 am. On a work night, no less. No matter, I was going to do it.<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>I grabbed a book and laid down on my bed to kill the final hour. I was naive, I didn't stand a chance. I think I fell asleep approximately ten minutes later, only to wake up around 2:15 am with all the lights and computer still on, and <em>3 Nights in August</em> lying on top of me. I got up and turned out the lights, and briefly considered playing a few Jane's Addiction tracks before officially calling it a night, but thought the better of it. Sometimes you just have to be there.<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>--Alex<br /></div>NQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-43498652858695466922009-08-05T19:44:00.011-05:002011-09-06T19:46:50.669-05:00Why Are Certain Chicago Music Critics Still Whining About Lollapalooza?<div></div>Ever since <a href="http://www.lollapalooza.com/">Lollapalooza</a> reinvented itself with the parnternship of Perry Farrell and C3 Presents and arrived at Chicago's doorstep in 2005, it hasn't exactly been welcomed with open arms by everyone. It seems every year on the heels of the festival the main music critics in town line up to take their shots, be it at the lineup, the corporate backing, or with misplaced comparisons to the Pitchfork Festival. Jim DeRogatis of the <span style="font-style: italic;">Chicago Sun-Times</span> seems to annually slam the festival, or, if he must, begrudgingly deliver compliments in a <a href="http://blogs.suntimes.com/derogatis/2009/07/previewing_lollapalooza_2009_t.html">backhanded fashion</a>. Last Friday, <em></em>Greg Kot of the <span style="font-style: italic;">Chicago Tribune</span> was the latest to get his digs in, with a piece entitled <em><a href="http://leisureblogs.chicagotribune.com/turn_it_up/2009/07/lollapalooza-promoters-still-searching-for-chicago-identity.html">Lollapalooza Promoters Still Searching for Chicago Identity</a></em>. Kot seems to argue that Lollapalooza hasn't done enough to embrace and identify with Chicago. He writes:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">But questions remain about how fully Lollapalooza has embraced and been embraced by Chicago beyond the considerable revenue it brings to the local economy. In staging the biggest annual rock festival in the city’s history on Chicago’s showcase property, C3 is held to a particularly high standard. So far it has executed a hugely successful festival with few hitches. But the organization remains at arm’s length from the city’s music community – more of a formidable interloper than a trusted accomplice.<br /><br /></span>Questions remain? Questions from whom? Probably not from those that bought the 225,000 tickets. Also, the fact that Lollapalooza has recently signed on to remain in Chicago through at least 2018 should quell any questions as to where their loyalties lie. And my guess is the last sentence in that paragraph stems from the "radius clause" that is in the contract for all of the bands that play Lollapalooza, which basically restricts them from playing local venues 90 days before or after the festival. I agree that these clauses are stupid and wholly unnecessary, but they are pretty typical for all large festivals. And the bands that play Lollapalooza never seem to have much trouble arranging an aftershow, or even playing the city a few days before or after the festival. The policy seems to be, ask the promoters if you can play, and they will let you play. If there has been a case of a band being refused a show after asking , I have not heard of it.<br /><br />Not saying that I would have heard about it. I am a mere casual observer and fan of live music, I am not on the inside, nor privy to some of the politicking that goes on in certain Chicago music circles. That being said, I wonder if the bitterness directed at Lollapalooza is less about the radius clauses and more about the promoters not kissing the right asses. And I am not wondering rhetorically, I am asking because I don't know. <span style="font-style: italic;"><br /><br /></span>What I do know is, I can't think of a single person that I have talked to that has had a negative experience at Lollapalooza since its rebirth in Chicago. The main (and nearly only) complaint that comes to mind is the size of the crowd, which can make it difficult to maneuver from stage to stage. (And the off-shoot complaint, which is that the large crowd sometimes results in poor or non-existent cell phone service.) <span style="font-style: italic;"><br /><br /></span>Even more stupid, in my opinion, is this idea that the festival hasn't fully "embraced Chicago." In recent years, Chicago heavyweights Wilco and Kanye West have headlined Lollapalooza. I seem to remember Lupe Fiasco on a stage as well. And even small time and relatively unknown local acts like Cameron McGill have been included. I guess Oprah needs to be invited to appease some of these people.<br /><br />I have heard others complain about the lack of Chicago "identity" at the festival. Oh, brother. Lollapalooza is stationed in Grant-freakin'-Park, under the glow of arguably the most beautiful skyline in the world. And second, does it really matter? Does the music not suffice? Last year everyone seemed to enjoy Radiohead just fine. Are you telling me it would be a much more fulfilling experience if everyone was up to their necks in stuffed pizzas and crooked politicians, too?<br /><br />Everyone should just enjoy Lollapalooza for what it is, which is a world-class, three-day rock music festival that is slowly becoming a staple of Chicago summers. The Chicago identity and mutual embrace will slowly come, and the kinks will slowly go. But in the meantime, speaking as a former Chicago resident not yet 18-months removed, just feel lucky to have something so great in your backyard.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">UPDATE: Almost right on cue, </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.suntimes.com/entertainment/derogatis/1706706,lollapalooza-day-one-2009-chicago-080709.article">here</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> is DeRogatis's annual whiny column from Saturday's Sun-Times. I am pretty sure it's the same article every year, he just changes the names of the bands. </span><br /><br />--AlexNQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-13900456441986778002009-07-23T18:09:00.009-05:002011-09-06T19:47:08.487-05:002009 Pitchfork Festival: SundayIn the five years (or four, if you are worried about semantics) of the Pitchfork Festival, I cannot think of a better day of music than what was offered last Sunday. The day started with Frightened Rabbit, who, last year, released one of my favorite albums ever, and ended with the Flaming Lips, who are one of my top-five favorite bands of all-time. Sandwiched between were about three or four acts that were as good as anyone I saw on Saturday. (Oh, and before we get started, a few people have asked me why there are no pictures. And the reason is, I am still trying to milk life out of the same camera that I <a href="http://nothingquitelike.blogspot.com/2008/07/2008-pitchfork-festival-union-park_24.html">dropped in a beer</a> during Dinosaur Jr at last year's festival. It still sort of works, but pictures taken during the daytime are very fuzzy and hardly viewable. My friend Brendan pointed out that if I am willing to purchase a plane ticket from DC to Chicago to attend this festival, it might be time to go ahead and pony up for a new camera. <em>Never!</em>)<br /><br />When writing about David Foster Wallace's highly-acclaimed novel, <em>Infinite Jest</em>, Walter Kirn of <em>New York Magazine</em> <a href="http://www.badgerinternet.com/%7Ebobkat/jest3.html">wrote</a>, "Next year's book awards have been decided...the competition has been obliterated." When it comes to break-up records, this is how I feel about <a href="http://www.myspace.com/frightenedrabbit">Frightened Rabbit's</a> <em>The Midnight Organ Fight</em>. (Side note: I will give anyone $50 if they can somehow credibly verify that they, in the last year, have walked into <a href="http://www.trystdc.com/">Tryst</a> in DC on 18th Street and not witnessed someone reading, trying to read, or pretending to read <em>Infinite Jest</em>. I'm not kidding, fifty bucks.) The album really is that good, and that is why we made sure we were at Union Park by 1:30. Frightened Rabbit opened with "The Modern Leper," which will sound like a hit song the very first time you hear it. But <em>The Midnight Organ Fight</em> is a break-up record through and through, and their excellent song "Good Arms Vs. Bad Arms" ends with the line, "I am still in love with you/Can't admit it yet," only conspicuously Hutchison didn't sing this part. I notice these things. They ended the set with a hard-charged "The Greys" which eventually morphed into something I didn't recognize. The band brought more energy than I was expecting or knew was capable from the Scottish four-piece, and before long only drummer Grant Hutchison was left on stage menacingly scowling at the crowd, and pounding on his drums before triumphantly throwing his arms up in the air, and strutting off stage. For something so inocuous and most likely forgotten by 95% of the crowd, it gave me goosebumps and may have been my favorite moment of the weekend.<br /><br />In between bands I spotted a skinny, raggedy kid with shaggy hair walking around with scissors and a sign that read "Cut my hair." Festival goers would randomly come up and grab the scissors and take a few snips. I saw him a couple of hours later and his hair looked great. And by "great," I mean "fucking awful." But hey, way to save $8!<br /><br />Ever watched a band from a distance and thought, "Wow, I am going to start listening to them more as soon as I get home"? This was my line of thinking during <a href="http://www.blitzentrapper.net/">Blizten Trapper</a>, who sounded excellent. What was amazing was how many of their songs from their last two albums stuck out in my mind as they were playing them. It really felt like hit song after hit song. And I believe they had the same time slot and the same stage as their fellow Brawny-Paper-Towels-sponsored band, Fleet Foxes the year before. I can almost guarantee right now there is a band from the Pacific Northwest with a propensity to grow decent beards, that is unknown at the moment, but is two months away from signing with Sub Pop, and four months away from an 8.7 rating on Pitchfork that will be on this stage at this time in 2010. It will happen, you just watch.<br /><br />And speaking of bands from the Pacific Northwest that will now be receiving more air-time in the Crisafulli household, <a href="http://www.thethermals.com/">the Thermals</a> gave me just what I wanted out of a band at a music festival. They were loud, energetic, and even played some covers. Hell, they opened with a cover--Sonic Youth's "100%." They also played some Nirvana, the Breeders, and Green Day. But most impressive, during their set was this guy that was standing in front of us with a yellow Michael Jackson t-shirt that danced throughout the entire set. He didn't stop once and danced well the entire time. <br /><br />If Hamilton Leithauser of <a href="http://www.marcata.net/walkmen/">the Walkmen</a> isn't the best frontman alive, then he is one of the best. Everytime he belted out one of his trademark wails, the crowd around me would "oooh" and "aaah" as if they were watching a 4th of July fireworks display. However, something happened during their set which I feel compelled to share. Right as the Walkmen started to play "The Rat," a guy next to me fainted. He just went out cold and hit the ground like a sack of potatoes. Luckily, I was standing next to a doctor (she requested not to be named, so we will just refer to her as Aud***). I immediately summoned Aud***'s attention, pointed out the guy on the ground, and assumed we were in good hands. Bad assumption. Aud*** took one look at him, and turned her attention back to the Walkmen. To her defense, "The Rat" is one of the best rock songs ever. But be that as it may, we had a doctor in the house, and the guy I saw that ended up finally attending to this poor sap was smoking marijuana moments before this happened. Aud*** will tell the story a bit differently, but this is exactly how I remembered it happening. (For those worried, the guy that went down came to a few moments later and after some water seemed okay and headed to a less crowded area.) As for the Walkmen, they played mostly stuff from last year's <em>You & Me</em> (voted <a href="http://nothingquitelike.blogspot.com/2008/12/nql-album-of-year-walkmen-you-me.html">best album of 2008</a> in some circles), only reaching back for the aforementioned "The Rat" and a few tracks from <em>A Hundred Miles Off</em>. They were great, but as I have said before, we expected that. <br /><br />Scott brought up an excellent point concerning <a href="http://www.ilovem83.com/">M83</a>. They had the same vibe that Spiritualized did last year. They were onstage, we were minding our own business, and about a third of the way through, everyone seemed to realize something great was happening. I was in this camp and will be listening to a lot more of M83. Leading non-crooner Anthony Gonzalez still needs some lessons in <a href="http://pitchfork.com/news/35978-video-m83s-anthony-gonzalez-kicks-slaps-security-guard-in-ohio/">throwing down</a> though.<br /><br />I still don't understand the fascination with <a href="http://www.grizzly-bear.net/">Grizzly Bear</a>, but you know what, God bless 'em because 18,500 hipsters can't be wrong. (Actually, they can be wrong, and often are wrong. Most notably every morning when they get up and pick out something to <a href="http://hipsterhunter.com/XVIII_files/seeing%20double%20hipsters%20coachella.jpg">wear</a>.)<br /><br />I had been excited for weeks to see headliners <a href="http://www.flaminglips.com/">the Flaming Lips</a> in this setting: Chicago, my favorite music festival, with friends, and under the glow of the <a href="http://www.suntimes.com/business/1668752,CST-NWS-willis16.article">Willis Tower</a>. Alright, so maybe not everything was perfect. But Willis Tower be damned, when Wayne came out in his patented rubber ball and surfed the crowd just before the band played "Race for the Prize," at that moment it was perfect. Unfortunately, perfection can be fleeting, and the Flaming Lips were actually a bit disappointing. They were participating in the "fans write the setlist" gimmick that was present on Friday, only Wayne didn't seem like he really wanted to be involved. Not that I can blame him, and I actually enjoyed it when he seemed to be mocking the entire premise. Problem is, that seemed to dominate their set, and I'm not sure they played more than nine songs. And I hated the way they played "Fight Test" and "Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, Part 1." Hated it. They were slow and stripped down, almost as if we were watching Wayne sing them acappella in the shower. And Wayne kept trying to get everyone to sing along, but that's pretty hard when the tempo is completely unpredictable. The following day, Jim stated, "I had to go home and listen to those songs to remember what they sounded like and why I actually like them. That's...that's not good!" No, no it isn't. They did hit "Bad Days" from my favorite Flaming Lips album, but even that sounded stale. (Wayne dedicated the song to <em>Sun Times</em> music critic/journalist Jim DeRogatis, who has written a biography on the Flaming Lips. DeRogatis was promptly booed. Imagine if the Bears were to win the Super Bowl and Brian Urlacher gave the game ball to Jay Mariotti. It was kind of like that. But do not feel sorry for DeRogatis, I am sure at this point in his career he can handle it.)<br /><br />I was starting to get restless and realized that they had only played a handful of song with twenty minutes remaining before the 10pm neighborhood curfew took effect. Not cool. What was cool was the Flaming Lips' set and stage show which is never disappointing, and the large screen monitors provided by Pitchfork that showed the enormous crowd that was still sticking around for the final act of what had been a long weekend. It was amazing how large the crowd was and I can definitely say there has never been a crowd like that at one stages in the, albeit brief, history of this festival. It was truly amazing. And the band did pick up momentum with their final two songs: "She Don't Use Jelly," which was accompanied by the video on the large screen behind the band, which was a nice step back in time, and "Do You Realize" which was deservedly voted number one in terms of songs fans wished the band to play. That song is nearly worth the price of admission alone, and though it wasn't a perfect Flaming Lips' set, it was a good note to leave on.<br /><br />--AlexNQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-33973466193918005452009-07-22T20:19:00.008-05:002011-09-06T19:47:35.401-05:002009 Pitchfork Festival: SaturdaySaturday's lineup of the 2009 Pitchfork Festival was a bit weak when compared to Friday and Sunday. Nevertheless, we made an honest effort to arrive at Union Park somewhat early. Jim and I were staying at a friend's place in Edgewater and took the Damen Bus the entire way. Is it really necessary for the bus to stop at every half block? Why doesn't the CTA just have it stop at every single residence along the way and get it over with. We could have gotten there faster had we walked backwards.<br /><br />No matter, we made it before 2:30, and that is when hardcore whatever band, <a href="http://lookingforgold.blogspot.com/">Fucked Up</a>, from Toronto was set to play. I wrote over a month ago (yet, just two posts ago) that Fucked Up's set was destined to be the highlight of the weekend, so I was filled with a decent amount of anticipation. They emerged, led by singer Damian Abraham who looks like the cross between a fat guy and another even fatter guy, and immediately launched into "Son the Father," which is most likely the best song from their 2008 album <em>The Chemistry of Common Life</em>. The crowd was pretty into it, and the band was doing their best to make sure the crowd stayed into it, but, unfortunately the sound was pretty weak. (This has been a slightly onerous reoccurring theme that pops up at every Pitchfork Festival.) I almost felt like it needed to be louder, especially Abraham's vocals. Other than that, things were fine, and like David Yow the night before, Abraham spent a decent amount of time in the crowd. He was even on top of the crowd at one point. Who said indie rock fans are weak? Abraham killed other time by chewing on beach balls and wearing one on his head. I thought he was pretty fantastic. He also awarded the crowd with a 9.9 Pitchfork rating and declared us better than the Animal Collective record (<em>Merriweather Post Pavillion</em>) which he claimed sounds like Phish. This killed me. I love Animal Collective, and I really like that album, but I also love a contrarian.<br /><br />Fucked Up ended their hour long set with several members of the band leaping into the crowd. We are talking pretty good leaps, too. Instruments in hand, and everything. Other than "Son the Father," the other song I remember sticking out fairly well was "Twice Born." They were not the highlight of the festival, but despite the shaky sound, they fought through it all pretty well. Fucked Up, my compliments. (I just did a Google search and found that the last sentence has never been printed anywhere before on the Internet. I am pretty proud to be the first.)<br /><br />Right after Fucked Up, Audrey sent me a text and asked if I had heard about <a href="http://www.myspace.com/thaxdouglas">Thax Douglas</a>. Word was spreading that Thax had died. It wasn't true, Thax is alive and well. I think everyone had just mixed Thax up with Walter Cronkite. Honest mistake.<br /><br />Somehow after Fucked Up, I was unaccounted for until the second half of <a href="http://www.myspace.com/feedelity">Lindstrom's</a> great set on the B stage. This is over a three hour window, and I have no idea what I was specifically doing during this time. I may have just been standing in line for the bathroom. For whatever reason, on Saturday, every bathroom line was out of control. It seemed as if the park was much more crowded than previous years, although I read that festival organizers stated that they sold the same amount of tickets as the previous year, and the bigger crowd may have been a result of the unseasonably cool and comfortable temperature. Meaning people were staying longer. That's plausible. And the lines for the bathrooms were rectified by Sunday as organizers scrambled to have more port-a-potties trucked in. And that is what makes this festival fantastic. The port-a-potties. No, but honestly, organizers do as much as they can to make sure everyone has a comfortable experience. It is crowded, but never scary. The lines for food, beer, and bathrooms can be long, but are rarely offensive. And the food is unbelievable. I never thought I would be able to eat so well at a festival. Fruits, vegetables, pizza, whatever you want, they have it.<br /><br />However, I think the main reason I don't remember seeing much music during this time was because I was catching up with friends that I had not seen in some time. And that might be my favorite part of this weekend. We were all somewhat near the stage where <a href="http://www.thepainsofbeingpureatheart.com/">the Pains of Being Pure at Heart</a> were playing, and they are a good band, but I was more interested in talking with my friends. Every year it's a reunion of sorts. They could put the worst possible lineup in front of us and we would probably buy a ticket and head out there. Hmmm, on second thought, perhaps we are morons.<br /><br />As mentioned, Lindstrom was pretty exciting, but we were mostly lingering near the stage for <a href="http://www.mattandkimmusic.com/">Matt and Kim</a> who were set to play shortly. I have always really liked Matt and Kim, especially live. They both need ritalin, and they played a lot from their latest album <em>Grand</em>, which is a step up musically and production-wise from their previous effort. But they still managed to squeeze in crowd favorites like "Yea Yeah," "5k," and "Silver Tiles." I originally regretted that I missed <a href="http://www.beirutband.com/">Beirut</a>, but, in turn, that would have meant missing Kim trying to dance Beyonce-style, and Matt rocking out not only the beginning to "Sweet Child O' Mine" but also the intro to "The Final Countdown." Clearly, I made the right call.<br /><br />Saturday was nearly over save for the headliner, <a href="http://www.americanmary.com/">the National</a>. I really like the National, they are a very good band, but they are not a headliner. We left halfway through their set, hit an outside patio in Wicker Park, and had some beers. We talked about whatever, and I began to think about the Flaming Lips.<br /><br />(Sunday rundown coming tomorrow...hopefully.)<br /><br />--AlexNQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-22005715869930933652009-07-21T21:24:00.005-05:002011-09-06T19:48:30.416-05:002009 Pitchfork Festival: Friday<p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%"><span>The last time there was a post on NQL, Michael Jackson was alive and the Cubs’ season seemed to be dead. Well, things have changed, and if morticians can </span><a href="http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2009/07/il_cemeteries.html"><span>dig up old bones in a graveyard</span></a><span>, certainly I’m entitled to exhume NQL. It is especially appropriate since last weekend was the annual </span><a href="http://www.pitchforkmusicfestival.com/"><span>Pitchfork Festival</span></a><span>. For the most part, I like Pitchfork. They commit some sins, but the festival is not one of them. It is far and away the best music festival I have been to, it is where this site was </span><a href="http://nothingquitelike.blogspot.com/2007/07/pitchfork-music-festival-2007-union.html"><span>born</span></a><span>, and therefore, it is time for a post. <!--?xml:namespace prefix = o /--><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%"><span>I hate flying, but my flight to my old Chicago home was surprisingly pretty painless. Any </span><a href="http://nothingquitelike.blogspot.com/2008/07/2008-pitchfork-festival-union-park.html"><span>disaster from last year</span></a><span> was avoided. I hit Union Park at what I thought was a decent time, but </span><a href="http://www.myspace.com/tortoise"><span>Tortoise</span></a><span> was long gone and Yo La Tengo was already playing. Not a huge deal, I have seen Tortoise plenty of times, and since two very long days of music were waiting for me, I could handle not seeing every single note played on Friday. Friday also featured a scenario where ticket holders were allowed to vote for what they wished to be the set list from each band. I am not wild about this scenario. I would rather hear what Yo La Tengo wants to play, and not what the guy standing on my right wants Yo La Tengo to play. But nevertheless, it is an interesting idea, and certainly would not detract much from the weekend. For those unaware, the Friday lineup was Tortoise, Yo La Tengo, the Jesus Lizard, and Built to Spill. It was like watching an old-timers’ game, except interesting and worthwhile. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%"><span>As mentioned, I showed up during </span><a href="http://www.yolatengo.com/"><span>Yo La Tengo</span></a><span>, and they happened to be playing “Autumn Sweater” from <i>I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One</i>. Good omen, I like that song. I looked around for my friends (my cellular phone was not working at the moment) before realizing I was in the wrong spot. I needed to go to </span><a href="http://www.thejesuslizard.net/"><span>the Jesus Lizard</span></a><span> stage. My old friend Jim from Louisville is the biggest Jesus Lizard fan I know, and as much as we all love Yo La Tengo, it was important to be front and center for what was about to happen on the other stage. Knowing lead singer and resident maniac, David Yow, has to be nearing 50, I was curious if he still had the antics in him that has made him somewhat legendary. (Speaking of which, I think David Yow has looked 50 for the past 20 years. Has he ever looked young?) It was kind of like watching an old athlete come out of retirement, but instead of wondering whether he could still throw a 50-yard spiral, I was curious if he still had the drive to leap off the stage, and crowd surf naked. It is a subtle difference. Convinced the Jesus Lizard’s first set in their hometown in some time could range anywhere from awesome to a complete debacle, I wanted to be close enough to make the call. It was pretty much both. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%"><span>The noisy rockers came onstage, Yow said a few things into the microphone about some upcoming shows that they are set to play at the Metro in November, the band started into their first song “Puss” from <i>Liar</i> and within seconds Yow flung himself into the crowd. It was great, and there are plenty of Youtube clips that captured the scene if you want to check it out. The twenty foot radius of rabid fans that formed around him was pretty much mayhem. I was being pushed, shoved, elbowed, stomped on, you name it, and I pretty much fine with it. And Yow kept his pants on for the entire show. Let’s call that a win-win. After about five songs, I had had enough and retreated just beyond the pit of grease balls who seemed to be enjoying their opportunity to anonymously try and hurt someone. As I watched the rest of the Jesus Lizard’s set, I noticed Jim near the front of the stage, for whatever reason, holding his shoes up in the air, but refusing to budge from his prime (or terrible, pending on your point of view) spot. As we found out later, during the roughhousing, Jim’s shoes somehow came off. So did his socks. The shoes were found. The socks were not. I cannot think of many other bands who could inspire those last two sentences. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you…the Jesus Lizard. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%"><span>I had never seen indie rock heroes </span><a href="http://www.myspace.com/builttospill"><span>Built to Spill</span></a><span> before this night. Well, shame on me. We somehow managed to get a decent spot near the right of the stage, although we were without Jim, who was still missing in action from the Jesus Lizard’s set. Luckily, a girl in front of us was inexplicably holding a crutch up in the air. I got Jim on the phone and told him to head for the crutch. About five minutes later and still no Jim, the girl put the crutch down. Me, along with several other people, reacted with a simultaneous “Noooo,” as apparently I was not the only one using it as a point of reference. She reluctantly agreed to put the crutch back up in the air. A guy in my group assured her it would only take him about an hour to find us. She sort of found that funny. (He never found us, and the crutch was lowered about ten minutes later.) <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%"><span>Built to Spill was fantastic and it may have been my favorite set of the weekend. They opened with “Liar” from <i>You in Reverse</i>, and kept pretty strong momentum throughout the set. Great beards, too. As mentioned before, since it was a “fans write the set list” night, they hit a lot of what would be expected: “You Were Right,” “Goin’ Against Your Mind,” “Strange,” etc. Very conspicuously absent was “Car.” Really? No “Car?” Are you telling me the masses of people did not vote “Car” as one of the top ten songs that would have liked to have heard Built to Spill play? Someone jumpstart those riots in Iran, we have some more voter fraud on our hands!<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%"><span>(Saturday rundown coming tomorrow...maybe.) <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt" class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%"><span>--Alex <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>NQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-73110613625943978452009-06-10T21:17:00.005-05:002011-09-06T19:48:57.776-05:008 Random (And Mostly) Musical Observations To Kick Off The Summer1. I am currently typing this on my laptop at Union Park in Chicago. I decided to show up a month-and-a-half early for the <a href="http://www.pitchforkmusicfestival.com/">2009 Pitchfork Music Festival</a> to squat my area near the stage for Fucked Up’s set. Is there any possible chance that won’t be the best hour of the festival? No, there isn’t. And that’s with a fantastic lineup, too. Good job, Pitchfork. Hey, speaking of which…<br /><br />2. …this particular <a href="http://pitchfork.com/news/35533-echo-chamber-kim-gordon/">article</a> on Pitchfork reporting that Kim Gordon criticized Radiohead’s pay-what-you-want scheme for <em>In Rainbows</em> made me laugh. Well, at least this sniveling line from staff writer Ryan Dombal did:<br /><br /><em>“Please don't make us choose between Radiohead and Sonic Youth!”</em><br /><br />Jesus. By the way, I kind of agree with most of what Gordon says, but look how the same Ryan Dombal handled the story when Robert Smith of the Cure <a href="http://pitchfork.com/news/34686-robert-smith-says-mean-things-about-radiohead/">said essentially the same thing</a> about <em>In Rainbows</em>. No, they don’t play favorites. I love it when two of their favored artists get in a spat. I remember when David Berman of the Silver Jews <a href="http://pitchfork.com/features/interviews/7519-silver-jews/">said not nice things about Radiohead</a>, and Pitchfork reacted like a scared nine-year-old boy hiding in his basement listening to his parents fight and just praying that it would all end soon. Good stuff. Also, on an almost completely unrelated note, I don’t know why, but it really bothers me how Pitchfork reviews always have a comma outside of the quotation marks for a song title. For example, look at how they used the comma after the song “Champions” from their <a href="http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/13161-the-ecstatic/">recent review</a> of Mos Def’s latest, <em>The Estatic</em>:<br /><br /><em>“…aside from the aforementioned Oh No and Madlib contributions, "Life in Marvelous Times" recycles Mr. Flash's beat for "Champions", his collaboration with French rappers TTC…”</em><br /><br />Come on, how do you screw that up? Pitchfork is the best and most influential independent music site on the web, but at the end of the day, they’re still the <a href="http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/home.html">Chicago Manual of Style’s</a> bitch.<br /><br />3. Former NBA journeyman, <a href="http://www.nba.com/playerfile/paul_shirley/">Paul Shirley</a>, has a great <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/thelife/news/story?id=4241919">column</a> on ESPN.com where he writes rather generally about rock music. I especially enjoyed <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/thelife/news/story?id=4222398">this particular column</a>. For whatever reason, I’d rather read about music from a non-music guy like Shirley than from the likes of David Fricke or Ryan Schreiber any day of the week. Good writing, non-music guys are more relatable and readable than 90% of good writing critics who actually have a background in music or music journalism. Just my opinion. Also note that Shirley is 6’10, which means there are a lot of angry people standing behind him at concerts. Hey, speaking of which…<br /><br />4. …he may have been standing just to my right at the Hold Steady concert this past Sunday night at the 9:30 Club. I was there with my brother and we were standing in the highest part of the balcony and there was a guy on the row below us who was still blocking a bit of my view. And I’m about 6’1 so it’s not as though I am small. It was fine though, he was only shielding me from Tad Kubler, and the show was amazing as expected. I told my friend Val that it may have been the best sounding Hold Steady show I have ever seen. She reminded me that I say that after every Hold Steady show I go to. What she doesn’t know is this time I meant it. When they came out for the encore, they played a cover of Minutemen’s “History Lesson – Part II.” It was a bit sloppy as Craig Finn tried to mix in lyrics that related to him and the Hold Steady, but we all loved it anyway.<br /><br />5. It looks as though the Smashing Pumpkins have found a <a href="http://hipstersunited.com/blog/archives/2009/06/smashing-pumpkins-the-next-generation-19-year-old-mike-byrne-in-position-to-succeed-chamberlin-as-bands-drummer.html">19-year-old drummer</a> to replace Jimmy Chamberlin. (Searching for something to say.)<br /><br />6. I have almost finished reading Chuck Klosterman’s first novel <em><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Downtown-Owl-Novel-Chuck-Klosterman/dp/1416544186">Downtown Owl</a></em>. If you’re a fan of Klosterman, you’ll probably enjoy this book, although not as much as his non-fiction material. (For me, it has been well worth the read for this line on page 184 alone: “People said Koombah looked like Rollie Fingers without the handlebar mustache. This meant he didn’t look like anyone.” Every other sentence could have been utter nonsense and I would have felt like I got my money’s worth for that line alone.) If you don’t like Klosterman, don’t bother. If you have never read Klosterman, start with <em>Fargo Rock City</em> and maybe work your way to <em>Downtown Owl</em>.<br /><br />7. If Phil Spector being acquitted of a murder he obviously committed would have saved me from seeing this <a href="http://idolator.com/5241522/phil-spectors-wall-of-hair-becomes-a-casualty-of-the-legal-system">picture</a>, I would have been all for it. And if I'm <a href="http://www.entertainmentearth.com/images/%5CAUTOIMAGES%5CTRT7HPDD08lg.jpg">Dobby</a> from the Harry Potter books, I sue.<br /><br />8. And finally, Jack, we’re sorry for stealing your <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sevres-babylone/292804107/">picture</a> of Bry Webb from the Constantines. Please forgive us. It (probably) won't happen again.<br /><br />--AlexNQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-24183622011894862752009-05-21T20:49:00.004-05:002009-05-29T13:45:59.477-05:00Album Review: Art Brut - Art Brut Vs. Satan<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3s3RWCjUj-Ti9aTCjhtRk77VK24YrTLKMey2sNyeR7ytKmcBnwKoI6yyUC69vzr3BuUYtaybmpVJXm00wegqJ9pIaIF3CdIlvOpkRz4yxTshLfxN31AMO2l49VPfpO0dRyLCCwkT3HCef/s1600-h/Art_brut_vs_satan.png"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338460039468352050" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; width: 300px; height: 298px; text-align: center;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3s3RWCjUj-Ti9aTCjhtRk77VK24YrTLKMey2sNyeR7ytKmcBnwKoI6yyUC69vzr3BuUYtaybmpVJXm00wegqJ9pIaIF3CdIlvOpkRz4yxTshLfxN31AMO2l49VPfpO0dRyLCCwkT3HCef/s400/Art_brut_vs_satan.png" border="0" /></a><br /><div><strong>Art Brut</strong></div><div><strong><em>Art Brut Vs. Satan</em></strong></div><div><strong>Rating: Satan wins.<br /><br /></strong></div><div><strong></strong> </div><div>I really, really wanted this album to be good. I absolutely adore <em>Bang Bang Rock & Roll</em> and like many other admirers of that album I was very disappointed by its follow-up, <em>It's a Bit Complicated</em>. I knew that it would be tough to capture the lightening-in-a-bottle spark of <em>BBR&R</em> on a second album, but <em>Complicated</em> came off as more stale and half-hearted than I expected it to be. I also knew that it would be tough for Art Brut to make a return-to-form third album because such a large part of their "form" was novelty, and, by definition, you can only have that once. <em>Art Brut Vs. Satan</em>, recorded in Portland with Black Francis, is an improvement over its immediate predecessor, but drives home that Art Brut is a one (very good) trick band.<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>One listen to "Alcoholics Unanimous" tells you pretty much all you need to know. It's a fine song and features a hung-over Eddie Argos demanding caffeinated beverages while explaining why he feels like shit. There's a nice little structure, some well-placed backing vocals, and an excellent use of the word "et cetera," but it just seems like the same old same old. What was it that Eddie said of songs about sex, drugs, and rock and roll years ago? Well, three albums in, he ended up being right. "DC Comics and Chocolate Milkshake" is also a nice, even sweet song, but if you replace the titular items with "Emily Kane," you have an almost identical and far inferior version of the <em>BBR&R</em> highlight. The rest of the album continues along those lines: they're all objectively good songs, but they all seem like worse versions of songs we've heard the same band play before.<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>Although I'm disappointed in the album, I still love the band even if they can only be enjoyed by listening to a five-year-old record and by seeing them live. I think the songs on <em>Art Brut Vs. Satan</em> will take on new life and be best enjoyed in concert because Art Brut is still the most fun live band on the planet, and Eddie's delivery works best when you can see his sublime ridiculousness in person. I'll report back after seeing them in a few weeks.<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>--Jim Powers</div>NQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-88175067711460261112009-05-18T20:22:00.004-05:002011-09-06T19:50:03.615-05:00NQL: Where No Posts For Nearly A Month HappensWe have suffered through a horrible hiatus of no posts. The reason: We’re now exclusively on Twitter where the pressures for long, thought-out posts are much less demanding. And for all of you that have been following the <a href="http://twitter.com/nql">NQL Twitter feed</a>, I hope you enjoyed my recent review of the new Wilco album, <em>Wilco (the Album)</em>. But in case you missed it, here it is:<br /><br /><em>If your dad liked Sky Blue Sky, then your grandpa is going to love this! LOL!!!<br /></em><br />So, what are you waiting for? Subscribe! Subscribe! Actually, that’s a joke (the Twitter part, at least). We are not on Twitter. And I wish I had a decent explanation as to why we took a three-and-a-half week vacation, but I really don’t. Part of it may lie in the fact that of the regular contributors, we have three lawyers, one doctor, one editor, and one guy studying to be a Unitarian Minister with a son due in July. We’re busy, but still, we’re not that busy.<br /><br />In fact, I was more distracted than busy. Often this last month, I would get home from work with every intention of writing about an album I was listening to, but would get swallowed up by sports and the evening would be history. The Bulls’ epic playoff series with the Boston Ninnies may have taken five years from my life, but it was completely worth it--even in defeat. And to reciprocate, it gave me an irrational hatred for the Celtics and <a href="http://http//www.nba.com/playerfile/rajon_rondo/">Rajon Rondo</a> which I foresee lasting for some time, and I couldn’t be happier about it. (For better or for worse, music doesn’t tug on your emotions like this. Sure, there are some hip-hop feuds, and Wayne Coyne was <a href="http://pitchfork.com/news/34765-coyne-on-arcade-fire-theyre-pricks-so-fuck-em/">mad</a> at the Arcade Fire for about <a href="http://pitchfork.com/news/35244-wayne-coyne-apologizes-to-arcade-fire/">five minutes</a>, but that’s about it.) In trying to think of the musical equivalent to <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/090501&sportCat=nba">Game 6</a> of the Bulls-Celtics series as it pertains to my life, all I could think of was seeing an unknown-to-me Okkervil River at Subterranean in the summer of 2005 right after taking the bar exam, and not many hours before I was set to head out west on a road trip with one of my childhood friends. Both were comletely unexpected, and both won't be forgotten. That night in 2005 got me back into music, and Game 6 got me back into pro basketball.<br /><br />Furthermore, baseball began and so did my first venture into <a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.mlb.com">mlb.com</a> audio, where you can get every baseball game on the radio streamlined to your computer for $14.99. There are 30 major league baseball teams, and each is scheduled to play 162 games this year. I don’t feel like doing the math, but that’s a lot of games...all for only $5 more than what <em>Wilco (the Album)</em> will cost when it comes out next month on iTunes. (If my fake Twitter post was any indication, I find one of these to be a much better deal than the other.)<br /><br />And as it stands now, I am engulfed in the Blackhawks’ Western Conference finals series with the Detroit Redwings. I haven’t missed a minute of the Blackhawks last five games even though, with an exception of <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/090501&sportCat=nba">Patrick Kane</a>, I learned most of their names two weeks ago. Does this make me a bandwagon fan? Probably. But I am not alone, and I genuinely like playoff hockey. Like the intensity, and I love the crowds. Also, am I the only one that has always had a problem with that (otherwise fantastic) song “<a href="http://www.lyricsdomain.com/20/the_postal_service/nothing_better.html">Nothing Better</a>” by the Postal Service for the following lyric alone?<br /><br /><em>I can’t accept that it’s over…<br />I will block the door like a goalie tending the net<br />In the third quarter of a tied-game rivalry.</em><br /><br />Huh? Hockey doesn’t have “quarters.” Even the most casual sports fan knows this. There are three 20-minute periods and that’s it. I love sports too much to have ever been able to get past this. Maybe Ben Gibbard was trying to be ironic, but I have never been one to give him the benefit of the doubt before so why start now. (And I just did a Google search, and I am definitely <em>not</em> the only one that has always had a problem with this lyric.)<br /><br />Oh, and on top of all these other distractions, some girl won the <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/horse/triplecrown09/news/story?id=4171779">Preakness</a>.<br /><br />Anyway, I apologize for the lack of posts. I would like to say that it won’t happen again, but it will. Nevertheless, with good weather upon us, and summer festival season just around the corner, we will try and step up our game. There is a lot of exciting stuff going on in rock music at the moment (<a href="http://www.myspace.com/japandroids">Japandroids</a>, for one), and if we can analyze and scrutinize even a fraction of it, I will be happy.<br /><br />In the meantime, please subscribe to our Twitter feed.<br /><br />--AlexNQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-24508488450015904922009-04-23T20:15:00.008-05:002009-04-24T05:48:14.396-05:00Album Review: Camera Obscura - My Maudlin Career<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcaMGjUtKRFe2x43oeG8J_g8R_As9vDKUfyQt4jhPM5j02CWrW9gcmJDM12Gdi0evHy0Z6esuWVegE2RWzhPuSsVhEXShfIRV_TCj_ThjKzASqmhyphenhyphenXeWvpgLTgXAMyXsgNQiVux8sNQUGU/s1600-h/Camera.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5328061660277895346" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; width: 215px; height: 215px; text-align: center;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcaMGjUtKRFe2x43oeG8J_g8R_As9vDKUfyQt4jhPM5j02CWrW9gcmJDM12Gdi0evHy0Z6esuWVegE2RWzhPuSsVhEXShfIRV_TCj_ThjKzASqmhyphenhyphenXeWvpgLTgXAMyXsgNQiVux8sNQUGU/s400/Camera.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><strong>Camera Obscura</strong></div><div><em><strong>My Maudlin Career</strong></em></div><div><strong>Rating: If after listening to this you still have testicles, you're doing okay.</strong><br /><br /></div><div><em>Now that the myspace.com phenomenon of internet music discovery has been well established, I recall that years ago I fortuitously came upon Camera Obscura in just that manner while perusing the bands listed on the Concrete’s site. But I bought My Maudlin Career at Permanent Records in Chicago on none other than Record Store Day, so a little “In your face!” to the digital music hand that fed me.<br /></em><br />I consider <a href="http://www.camera-obscura.net/">Camera Obscura’s</a> <em>Let’s Get Out of this Country</em> as an album that was part of a personal revival in my interest in the rock scene a few years back. It came alongside my discovery of other fantastically wimpy rock bands like Belle & Sebastian and Rilo Kiley. I fell hard for their poppy, sappy sound and their penchant for melodrama. After completely overdosing on it for months, I stashed it away for years and once again have been listening to it recently when I heard that <em>My Maudlin Career</em> was forthcoming. I’ve decided that it has staying power and thus made me excited for their next release.<br /><br />The album opens with a catchy and arguably their best number, “French Navy.” The next track flows nicely into the dreamy “The Sweetest Thing” that starts with back-up singers woo-woo-wooing and tambourines shaking. It makes you want to don a polyester, flowery 1960’s dress and take your sweetheart for a moonlit walk. Funny how music can whisk you away to a time and place you’ve never been to. A light country rhythm and slide guitar accompanies “Away with Murder” and closes with a melancholy violin. We get a mid-album break with “James,” a meditational, heartbreaker of a song. It definitely has a whiff of Belle & Sebastian. I was a bit disappointed with the closing track, “Honey in the Sun” because I think it was too reminiscent of “Lloyd, I’m Ready to be Heartbroken” from the previously mentioned <em>Let's Get Out of This Country</em>. It did not give <em>My Maudlin Career</em> the epic, sweeping closure that “Razzle Dazzle Rose” gave <em>Let’s Get Out of This Country</em>. This may be a bit nit-picky, but I felt the closer should have been “My Maudlin Career” for it being the title track and its echoy grandeur. Camera Obscura has once again nailed down the art of retro pop and it can be delivered to you in a beautiful watercolor album cover should you choose to go non-digital.<br /><br />But above all what stands out in <em>My Maudlin Career</em> is Campbell’s vocal styling, the band’s true piece de resistance. Campbell’s steely, paucity of expression belies her church-like voice. It’s fragile and also very soothing. In concert she sings like a reluctant member of a choir, and only shows occasional hints of anguish that indicate she actually is feeling something. It’s quite refreshing given the multitudes of stage acts out there that often detract from musicianship.<br /><br />After listening to My Maudlin Career ad nauseum, I notice I keep on reaching for the heavy handed bluesy rock of the Black Keys. You do run the risk of getting oversaturated with the girliness of Camera Obscura. So this review is a caveat for all the manly men out there. I have yet to meet a man who offered up that he likes Camera Obscura. So while you might not buy into this music all that much, at least you can woo your next rock babe at your nearest dive with this material.<br /><br />Shaping today’s rock music landscape you have at one end the cataclysmic, experimental jangle of Animal Collective and the introspective poetry of Elvis Perkins at another. On some vastly different part of the spectrum lies Camera Obscura with their simple formula: one lead singer/songwriter performs structured songs with a tame band. This Scottish band plays nothing up with that classic reserved, across-the-pond attitude. But if you strip away all the existential shit that we often tie to a band’s worth and just listen to this bittersweet orchestral pop, it’s really quite enjoyable.<br /><br />--Audrey Wen</div>NQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-58934407249503169382009-04-22T20:41:00.004-05:002009-04-22T20:57:43.514-05:00The Walkmen--Webster Hall, New York City<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-zD3Sh5dKTBTOjUheWEDT39Wu69GOGRcAfLLfJGUFQ7PeD4SBToiY4ltFybORof8zhsIzIKlzlS4XdYap1sjv1olaKJJlKLDgUDvfShQWuPHd10aJPtCqENoWNFgPMYuXiMWsSrPvbi4B/s1600-h/ham.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327696589596603826" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; width: 300px; height: 400px; text-align: center;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-zD3Sh5dKTBTOjUheWEDT39Wu69GOGRcAfLLfJGUFQ7PeD4SBToiY4ltFybORof8zhsIzIKlzlS4XdYap1sjv1olaKJJlKLDgUDvfShQWuPHd10aJPtCqENoWNFgPMYuXiMWsSrPvbi4B/s400/ham.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Up until last year, <a href="http://www.marcata.net/walkmen/">the Walkmen</a> were a band that I just kind of liked. I thought their first two albums were pretty good and don't think I ever listened to their third (the one with the horns) or fourth (that <em>Pussy Cats</em> covers album). The only time I sort of saw them live was at the 2006 Pitchfork Festival, where I paid about a quarter of my attention to their set while waiting for (I think) the Futureheads to play on the other stage all the way across the park. The Walkmen have played many shows in New York since I moved here later that year, but I never felt like I had to see them.<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>That all changed with <em>You & Me</em>, by far my favorite album of last year and one that I consider to be pretty close to a masterpiece. It's rare that I have the chance to see a band play in support of an album I love so much. I think that's because my favorite albums are growers, and I never fully appreciate them until whatever tour supporting them is through. So when I saw that the Walkmen were headlining a one-off show at Webster Hall in NY before their tour with Kings of Leon so soon after the release of <em>You & Me</em> but after the initial tour in support of it, I immediately bought a ticket.<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>I went to the show straight from work and was wearing a suit, which felt strange. I thought about leaving the jacket part of the suit at work, but realized that I needed to use its many pockets for my chattel, so I was one of those guys at a concert in a suit. When some other dude walked past me also wearing a suit while I was ordering a drink, we exchanged looks like "we both suck, but whatever." Suit solidarity, bitches. Anyway, I downed a few $8 Stellas and found a good standing spot to wear a suit and watch the openers. The first band to play was Brooklyn's <a href="http://www.myspace.com/theantlers">the Antlers</a>, a pretty standard three piece if you replace a bassist with a keyboardist. Their first song was an instrumental dirge that immediately put me off because I hate those bands that just go on stage and fight the audience with noise and feedback (<em>see</em> Black Dice). But after that first misstep, they emerged with a short set of very solid songs that the crowd seemed to enjoy. Next up was the critically adored Beach House, who are clearly very good, but also very boring. One of my friends described them as like Grizzly Bear (another very good, very boring band), but with a chick. That's just about right.<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>The Walkmen came on at around 10:15 and opened with a song I'd never heard before, which means it was either a new or one from album three or four. There was whistling in it. After that first number, lead singer Hamilton Leithauser, dressed in some sort of Member's Only looking jacket, explained to the crowd that it was the first time in a while that the band had played together and that they were going to play some new stuff. After noting that the next song was not one of the new ones, the familiar opening of "The Rat" put everyone on notice that, rust be damned, the Walkmen came to play. A quick word about "The Rat." Holy shit, that song is so good that I can't even think of what to say about it to do it justice. Apologies to "Hey Ya!" and others that I can't think of now, but "The Rat" is the best song of the oughts. If any band ever made a song as good as "The Rat" and did nothing else for their entire career, it would have been a successful career.<br /><br /></div><div>The rest of the setlist was really good. They played "Louisiana," "On the Water," "I lost You," and a lot of other tracks from <em>You & Me</em>. The first set closed with "In the New Year," which sounds better live than on record. The band returned for an encore of "Donde Esta La Playa" and an understated and gorgeous "New Country."<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>The Walkmen have great stage presence and put on a very, very good show. Leithauser is clearly the focus as he cuts an imposing figure on stage and has a perfect leaning-back-and-belting-it-out rock stance. The great thing about the stance is that its not an act - I think he actually needs to lean back to physically get some of those screams out. It's fun to watch - looks like he really tries. I bet he looks the same singing in a studio. The other star is drummer Matt Barrick. I always thought the drumming on the band's studio output was above average, but seeing this guy play live is something else. He is unbelievable. He can deliver driving, rolling beats ("The Rat") but can also be precise and improvisational (basically all of <em>You & Me</em>). I think he's the reason why <em>You & Me</em> reminds me in many ways of a jazz album. The greatest compliment I can bestow on any drummer is to compare them to Can's keystone Jaki Leibezeit. On <em>You & Me</em>, Barrick does just that.<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>About four or five songs into the show, Leithauser told everyone that he had turned 31 the day before (tax day) before the band broke into a very sweet, very light version of their first hit "We've Been Had". Standing there thinking about how this guy on stage turned thirty the same year I did helped me realize why I love <em>You & Me</em> so much: with that album, the Walkmen absolutely nail turning-thirty-angst. <em>You & Me</em> is filled with regret and hope (almost entirely summed up in "I Lost You" and "In the New Year"), which are precisely the same emotions I felt last October. This concert served to confirm that the Walkmen have made their masterpiece. I think the reason why it's not universally realized as such is because you have to be a little older to fully appreciate it.<br /><br />--Jim Powers<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div><em><span style="font-size:85%;">Photo by Jim Powers</span></em></div>NQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-87972493654304560232009-04-16T20:21:00.004-05:002009-04-18T07:47:34.662-05:00Wilco--The Pabst Theater, Milwaukee, WisconsinTwo nights ago (I'm admittedly under-motivated), <a href="http://www.wilcoworld.net/">Wilco</a> kicked off their string of spring and summer tour dates with the first of two shows at <a href="http://www.pabsttheater.org/">the Pabst Theater</a> in my home city of Milwaukee. It was their first show as a band of 2009.<br /><br />And, despite frontman Jeff Tweedy admitting they had “spent a lot of time not practicing,” in the weeks leading up to the show, I don't believe there could have been a single person in the audience that left without loving Wilco at least a little bit more.<br /><br />After a burrito and a chilly spring bike ride to the downtown venue, I settled in to my plush seat within a few songs of the start of the opening band, <a href="http://www.ahawkandahacksaw.co.uk/">A Hawk and a Hacksaw</a>. If you are unfamiliar (I was), the band is fronted by Neutral Milk Hotel's former drummer Jeremy Barnes, and has previously toured with Beirut and Olivia Tremor Control. From what I can gather, the group's lineup varies, but consistently features Barnes and a female violinist.<br /><br />On this particular Tuesday night four people took the stage. Barnes stood at the far left, playing his accordion, using some kind of small, extremely narrow kick drum with tambourines attached to the top for percussion, singing for one or two songs, and talking to the crowd when appropriate. On stage in a straight line next to him stood the violinist, a trumpet player, and a baritone player.<br /><br />Their songs were interesting and arguably unconventional, though they clearly channel styles that are hundreds of years old. I found them to be somewhat reminiscent of the Decemberists and Milwaukee favorite the Scarring Party. Something tells me they were not quite what most of the crowd was expecting.<br /><br />Nonetheless, I enjoyed their sound, especially when coupled with the classically beautiful atmosphere of the Pabst. Barnes, like most performers I've seen at the Pabst, took a moment to declare his admiration for the theater, but received some negative feedback in the form of boos when he chose to state his opinion regarding the low quality of the beer.<br /><br />If you've never been to the Pabst Theater, I highly recommend seeing a show there if you ever get the chance. It's a favorite venue of most Milwaukeeans, and the Pabst Theater Group (which operates two other venues) consistently does a good job bringing worthwhile shows to town. The Pabst was rebuilt after a fire in the 1890s, reopening 1895. It is a Wisconsin state historical site and national historical landmark. It was built in the style of a German opera house and features two large balconies above the main floor, gold painted molding, and a two ton crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling. Not only is the theater gorgeous, but its acoustics are better than most.<br /><br />Tickets to both nights of the show sold out in a flash. I bought my ticket within minutes of the start of the pre-sale, and still wound up all the way to the left side of the stage in row Q. Presumably, everybody in the audience really wanted to be there. By the performance they gave, I believe Wilco did, too.<br /><br />When Wilco finally took the stage, they went almost immediately into “Wilco the Song.” It took them a few songs to warm up to the excited, confident, well-woven way they would play most of their set, and this portion of the show felt to me like I was on an awkward first date with Wilco and the entire audience—nervous, not sure quite what to expect, but hoping for something great.<br /><br />It was already during this first song that I discovered that the man standing next to me apparently believed himself to be Jeff Tweedy. I opted not to drink at Wilco (despite a 16 oz. Pabst costing a mere $3-ha, Alex), and my sobriety proved it difficult for me to ignore this man's awful and mostly inappropriate singing.<br /><br />That aside, it wasn't long before I realized I was going to get more than I expected. During the second song, “Hummingbird,” Jeff Tweedy treated us to a little running man. After the third song, “At Least That's What You Said,” I began to notice how almost all members of the band were frequently changing instruments. And, during the fourth song, “Muzzle of Bees,” I noticed how their transitions between parts of songs left me wonderfully stricken.<br /><br />I also noticed that just a few songs in, Wilco was rocking songs like most bands only rock their last of the night.<br /><br />The band played a trio of songs off <em>Yankee Hotel Foxtrot</em> before Jeff Tweedy finally addressed the audience and delighted us all with his unassuming and amusing conversation. He had the privilege of throwing the first pitch at the Milwaukee Brewers' game the night before, and two of the band members ran in the sausage race that takes place on field during the seventh inning stretch at all Brewers' home games. Later in the night, Tweedy noted that his clothes smelled something like “mostaccioli schnapps” from the night before, and that he “didn't think it was fair that the chorizo had to run with a sombrero on.”<br /><br />Tweedy also talked a little bit about the band's upcoming album, informing us that it was as yet unnamed, but they were leaning toward Hemispheres. He asked if anyone wanted to appear on the cover of the new album naked, because “none of us will do it”. He was kidding, of course, but he later invited the audience to line up outside the theater before the next day's show for pictures that will appear in the liner for the upcoming album.<br /><br />After that it was right back to the rocking. Despite being somewhat desensitized to “Jesus, Etc.” because I've listened to it about a thousand times, I had goosebumps throughout it. Crowd favorite, “Handshake Drugs,” and one of my favorites, “A Shot in the Arm,” ended the official set.<br /><br />But, obviously, we hungry Wilco fans were not letting them off that easily. When the band came back for their first of two encores, Jeff Tweedy was sporting a Brewers hat that incited the Chicagoans (there were many) in the audience to boo. To this, Tweedy pleaded, “<a href="http://www.realitytvmagazine.com/blog/images/2008/06/king_rodney_celebrity_rehab.jpg">Can't we all just get along?</a>”<br /><br />The first encore was five songs, including, to my delight, “Theologians,” and “Heavy Metal Drummer.” I was impressed by the energy and skill that had gone into each and every song up to this point and the quality encore the band gave.<br /><br />After a five song encore, I doubted there would be a second. But the audience spoke, and after quite a few minutes of energetic cheering and clapping, the band reappeared for a four-song second encore.<br /><br />By the end of this encore, the band and audience both seemed to be in a state of satisfied exhaustion. The night ended with a lengthy and crowd-involved performance of “Kingpin,” where Tweedy subbed “Wisconsin” for “Pekin.”<br /><br />By the end of the show I was in need of a smoke, so I quickly shuffled out the emergency exit that an usher had opened on the side of the theater. I stood on the sidewalk, relatively alone, checking my voicemail and enjoying my cigarette before starting the long bike ride home. It was during this time that I got to see Jeff Tweedy run from another exit of the theater to his tour bus, which was parked right in front of me.<br /><br />After Tuesday night's show, I really wished I had bought a ticket for Wednesday night.<br /><br />--Jackelyn C. WicklundNQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141139839966820748.post-22228056673443333112009-04-12T22:13:00.004-05:002011-09-06T19:50:59.545-05:00Neko Case--9:30 Club, Washington, DCThe <a href="http://www.930.com/">9:30 Club</a> was in high spirits last Thursday. <a href="http://www.npr.org/">NPR</a> was in the house to cover <a href="http://www.nekocase.com/">Neko Case’s</a> second and last soldout show at the venue. And so was NQL. (I don’t know how NPR hits the town, but I took mass transit from Adams Morgan, and let me tell you this, the characters aboard the 92 bus would give even those rascals back in Chicago that ride the red line deep into the night the <a href="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/44/179420323_6667bf4c15_m.jpg">Willies</a>.) It was a classic contrast of styles. NPR often does live recordings of shows at the 9:30 Club to rebroadcast on their respected <a href="http://www.npr.org/templates/rundowns/rundown.php?prgId=37">All Songs Considered</a> program. NQL often attends live shows and complains about the price of beer.<br /><br />I arrived just before the opening act and ordered a quick Budweiser which cost an unconscionable $6. I had no idea who was opening but I knew it wasn’t Will Sheff of <a href="http://www.okkervilriver.com/">Okkervil River</a> because I would have remembered that. Imagine my surprise when Will Sheff entered stage right to modest applause. (I believe he was a fill-in for the original opening act, Crooked Fingers, who had to cancel.) Sheff played mostly new material, save for a great version of “Just Give Me Time” from Okkervil River’s <em>Sleep And Wake-Up Songs</em> EP. Everything else, other than <em>Black Sheep Boy’s</em> “A Stone,” came from their last two albums. Only about one-third of the audience seemed enthused, everyone else was chatting it up while waiting for the headliner. Sheff's songs sound better with his band than when performed solo, which says nothing other than the fact that the band that he fronts is amazing. Nevertheless, unexpectedly seeing one of my favorite songwriters perform a quick opening set for Neko Case is a pretty good deal. And I didn’t even have to go to Best Buy to <a href="http://nothingquitelike.blogspot.com/2009/03/neko-case-to-fans-indie-stores-f-you.html">purchase my ticket</a>!<br /><br />Neko Case took an annoying 45 minutes before hitting the stage with her fantastic band. She immediately apologized for wearing the same shirt from the night before. This is noteworthy because it reminded me of a time when I was debating with a few friends whether Neko Case is attractive. Keep in mind, this is a really stupid thing to even argue because she’s clearly very attractive. But one of my friends stated, “I don’t know, she just looks like the type of person who would have really bad body odor.” At the time, the statement was without merit and completely hilarious. Now, it might just be completely hilarious. <br /><br />They opened with “Maybe Sparrow” from 2006’s triumphant <em>Fox Confessor Brings the Flood</em>. Great song from an even better album. (Audrey Wen is going to rue the day she decided to bring <em>Furnace Room Lullaby</em> to the <a href="http://nothingquitelike.blogspot.com/2009/04/nqls-top-50-deserted-island-albums.html">deserted island</a> instead of <em>Fox Confessor</em>...) Some slight sounds problems were present at the beginning, but they were gone once we were three or four songs deep. <br /><br />Not long after the sound improved, some guy yelled “Don’t Fear the Reaper!” I don’t know who the guy was, but he should probably refund a fraction of my ticket cost. For the rest of the show, Case spent a couple of minutes between songs talking about the “Reaper.” Not the song, the actual Reaper. She talked about making out with the Reaper, breaking up with the Reaper, getting back together with the Reaper, doing who-knows-what with the Reaper. If it sounds confusing and stupid, it’s not because you had to be there. It felt that way to me, too. I urge everyone to listen to the <a href="http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=102641637">concert</a> at NPR’s All Songs Considered just so you can see I am not exaggerating. She name-dropped the Reaper about 75 times. Is there an inside joke about the Reaper that I am not aware of? And if there is, everyone else must have been in on it. Case seems to have the uncanny ability to make everyone in her audience laugh any time she says <em>anything</em> into the microphone.<br /><br />I probably shouldn’t be complaining. I have seen Case in concert before and know that the on-stage banter comes with the price of the ticket. She’s an engaging personality, but you start to get the idea that it would suck sitting next to her on an airplane. You’re trying to read a book; she’s trying to talk to you (not to mention the body odor).<br /><br />In between talking about the Reaper, they decided to play some songs. The title track from her latest effort, <em><a href="http://nothingquitelike.blogspot.com/2009/03/album-review-neko-case-middle-cyclone.html">Middle Cyclone</a></em>, stood out splendidly. Same with “Margaret Vs. Pauline” from <em>Fox Confessor</em>. But the highlight from where I was standing was “The Tigers Have Spoken,” because it’s a great song, and the video screen behind the band had some interesting shots of a tiger roaming around and just looking cool. It’s rare that I’ll watch a video screen instead of the persons in front of the screen performing the music, but that’s what I did. I believe before the song she mentioned that it was dedicated to the <a href="http://www.defenders.org/">Defenders of Wildlife</a>. But it may have been after the song, I don’t really remember because I was thinking about the Neko Case live album <em>The Tigers Have Spoken</em>, and how before the second track Case states, “This is a Buffy Sainte-Marie song,” in a sort of southern drawl that would make even Loretta Lynn blush. So, during her between song banter, I started trying to figure out if this was some sort of pose, or if she really talks like that. I don’t think she does, but my analysis was interrupted when, for some reason, Case yelled “We’re living on the Edge,” into the microphone, reminiscing the old Aerosmith song. This made me laugh, even though I had no idea what the context was. But I started to think about Aerosmith, mostly Aerosmith’s legacy. I can’t help but wonder how I would feel about them as a band had I been born ten years earlier.<br /><br />This is how I recommend taking in a Neko Case show. Listen to the songs, but while she’s talking about the Reaper, just let your mind wander. After they played “The Tigers Have Spoken,” I started thinking about Tiger Cubs and whether that was as far as I got, or if I ever attained the title of Cub Scout. This soon took a backseat to regretting the fact that I wasn’t positioned in the balcony or sitting down. I was close to the stage, but was starting to get a sore back and neck that comes from standing in the same place for two hours with your head slightly tilted back. I’m convinced this is why every music reviewer past the age of 40 has awful posture.<br /><br />Neko Case and Co. wrestled away my attention from Steven Tyler and the Pinewood Derby when they played the Harry Nillson cover “Don’t Forget Me,” which is also from <em>Middle Cyclone</em>. It sounded just as soothing and well orchestrated as it does on the album. Soon after, even though the show wasn’t over, I left because I had work the next day and I am lame. I can’t help but wonder if I would have left early had I been born ten years later.<br /><br />Probably not. But in the end, it doesn't matter, I had heard enough and was ready to go. And I wasn't the only one. The Reaper was on the 92 bus back home. <br /><br />--AlexNQLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03754323169186736177noreply@blogger.com3