The Sadies - "In Concert, Vol. 1"

Ah, The Sadies. Canada’s favorite sons (Mike Belitsky on drums, Sean Dean on bass, Dallas Good on vocals and guitar, and his brother Travis on guitar, vocals, and fiddle) have come back once again to remind America of her musical heritage. Had Gram Parsons joined The Ventures rather than The Byrds, we might have heard proto-Sadies. As it is, we had to wait. It was worth it.

Comets On Fire - "Avatar"

When last we’d heard from Comets On Fire, they’d sort of painted themselves into a corner. Their 2004 release, The Blue Cathedral, pretty much destroyed all matter in the universe, down to the sub-atomic level. Where do you go from there? Post-annihilation, what’s left for an encore?

So it is that with the new album, Avatar, the Comets have backed off a bit on the whole cosmic annihilation thing, aiming instead for devastation on a slightly smaller scale – namely, the melting of individual brains. Or, if we leave out the hyperbole, what we have here is a slightly less intense (and therefore more accessible) experience.

Thee Emergency - "Can You Dig It?" / Cansei de Ser Sexy - "CSS"

As an American – one born and raised in California, I might add – I have been beaten over the head with the idea that summertime is funtime, virtually from Day One. And as a kid it didn’t really take much to get me to buy into that idea, since summer meant being sprung from the drab purgatory of school into the Technicolor world of baseball, swimming, blowing shit up on the Fourth of July, and just generally screwing around. What’s not to like?

Danielle Howle - "Thank You, Mark"

From the “second chances sometimes pay off” department: the first time I spun Danielle Howle’s Thank You, Mark, I got about two and half songs in before giving up. She just seemed so overwhelmingly stiff, sterile and dry. Fortunately, I gave the album another spin and stuck with it this time. I don’t know if the horn section brought the bourbon with them, but when they show up on the swing number “Oh Swear”, Howle loosens up considerably. I think she needed something that was missing from those first couple of cuts, something for her to push against.

Country Teasers - "The Empire Strikes Back"

I have a memory of a house party I attended, back in about 1985, ’84, somewhere in there. Not a huge, raucous thing, but a small gathering of maybe 15 – 20 friends, most likely after a show. We’d been drinking most of the night, and those who partook of the various herbs provided by the host had been doing so just as long. We were relaxed. Or we were right up until the moment one of my friends (we’ll call him Loki, as he was something of a trickster) slipped a copy of Lou Reed’s Berlin album on the turntable. For those of you unfamiliar with that particular outing, the Pitchfork review sums it up nicely: “a package of ten spiteful, depressing tracks about poverty, drug abuse and suicide.” Being a bit of a Reed fan at the time, I recognized it right off. Most of the folks there had no knowledge of Uncle Lou aside from “Walk On The Wild Side”, though, and Loki knew it. Not at all sporting of him, but it was interesting to watch the scenario play out.

Asobi Seksu - "Citrus"

Here’s an example of the online musical ecological system functioning as it was meant to: I first heard of Asobi Seksu on a few different mp3 blogs; I downloaded a couple of tracks, based on the descriptions; I was sufficiently intrigued to buy and download Citrus from eMusic; now I’m reviewing it online. The system works when you let it. Suck it, RIAA.

Mixing Pop & Politics, Part II: Neil Young's "Living With War"

There is a time when the operation of the machine becomes so odious, makes you so sick at heart, that you can't take part; you can't even passively take part, and you've got to put your bodies upon the gears and upon the wheels, upon the levers, upon all the apparatus, and you've got to make it stop. And you've got to indicate to the people who run it, to the people who own it, that unless you're free, the machine will be prevented from working at all! – Mario Savio

Some of you may recall that a about a month and a half ago, in the course of a piece on Kelefa Sanneh’s coverage of anti-war/protest music, I mentioned that I stopped listening to Damien Jurado because of his political views. Dana was somewhat surprised by this, and asked me what my objection was. I couldn’t recall the details right then, only that it was due to do an interview with Jurado I’d read in Paste magazine. Curious, I did a quick Google search for the interview in question; turns out it ran in issue #15, which I think came out sometime in early 2004. (I’ve probably still got the magazine at home, but my, um, archives aren’t quite as searchable as one might like. Piled rather than filed, if you follow me.) Anyway, it turns out that he wasn’t quite as foaming at the mouth as I’d recalled. In fact, he comes off fairly level-headed. What put me off him was this:

Built To Spill - "You In Reverse" / Howlin' Rain - "Howlin' Rain"

Despite all that revisionist “year zero” rhetoric that flew around the music world in the late seventies – early eighties, there actually was some decent music made between, say, 1967 and 1974. It was that knife’s edge moment before rock disappeared up its own asshole for awhile. There was still some rock and roll energy at play from time to time; the mighty garage sound was loosening up and stretching out, but it had yet to devolve into the flaccid noodling, endless navel-gazing and general pomposity that forced the punk rock revolution, such as it was, to occur. Bands were realizing that the heretofore holy 3:30 boundary could be cracked without causing the music to fall off the edge of the earth. That usually didn’t happen until you reached the thirteen minute mark, give or take.

Dresden Dolls, "Yes Virginia"

For any innovative young band who's achieved some success with their debut CD, the second album is an important milestone. Everywhere are critics, record labels, and fans ready to pounce on an effort that doesn't live up to a wide gamut of disparate expectations. Will it repeat the formula that made the debut successful ("You stopped innovating!") or will it head in new directions ("You're losing your core audience!"). Will it invite mainstream acceptance ("Sell out!") or will it turn up its nose the masses ("Whatever happened to...")? Or will it just, you know, suck?

Ali Marcus - "Matchbooks, Diamonds, Mixtapes"

A singer/songwriter, alone, with just a voice and an acoustic guitar between themselves and the universe. Aside from being simple, economical, and highly portable, there is the potential for a lot of power in that scenario. Given those who have gone before and set the standard – Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Leonard Cohen, and on and on – you can see why performers are drawn to the form. The thing is, though, unless you’re a really good writer or an incredibly magnetic performer – unless you’re on a par with those folks, in other words – you’re just gonna be another face in a very large crowd.

Aaron McMullan - "75mg"

This is my second pass at this piece. The first one was about 500 words along, give or take; a couple of hours of work (plus some fucking-around time), anyway. Just as I was thinking “Y’know, I oughtta back this up”, the computer crashed and wiped the whole thing out of existence. Which is kinda funny, see, because the premise of the thing was how advances in technology has made the promise of the DIY (Do It Yourself) movement of the late 70s – early 80s a reality, in large part. Heh.

Kelly Stoltz - "Below The Branches" / Invisible Eyes "Laugh In The Dark"

It’s time once again to dive into the pile of review possibilities and see what we come up with. Today we’re gonna be exploring the twin poles of psychedelia. Grab your thorazine, kids, and let’s go!

Victor Scott - "Happy Days" / The Elected - "Sun, Sun, Sun"

Hey, I’m back! Didya miss me? What? You thought I was dead? Ha! No such luck, mes amis. Here’s the deal: my mind and body split up for awhile (“creative differences”, y’know), but they’ve decided to give it one more try. So here I am.

There’s been a bit of a backlog in my absence, so I hope you don’t mind if we double up on the reviews for a bit until we’re caught up. And if you do, well, “tough shitty” said the kitty when the milk went dry. (That will never get old for me.) On tap today, we’ve got the amiable pop fizz of Victor Scott’s Happy Days and the flat, bland syrup of Sun, Sun, Sun by The Elected.

The quality's rubbish and there ain't no sleeves

You'll notice that I didn't post a "Best-of" list for 2005. I'll tell you why: 1) Everyone knows that my favorite album, before it was recorded even, was the Silver Jews' Tanglewood Numbers; 2) My memory is terrible and it would be one of those situations where someone asks you what your favorite ice cream flavor is, and you capriciously answer "Peppermint Stick," even though it's at best only your seasonal favorite*, and then everytime you see that person they bring you a gallon tub of Peppermint Stick ice cream; 3) Why should my opinion matter to you, dicknose?

For that matter, why bother? What is the the future of music, anyhow?

So You Want To Be Entertained? Please Go Away - The "Best Of" 2005

“Best of” lists are one of those year-end traditions that nobody really cares about yet everybody expects, kinda like office parties and that ribbon candy so beloved of 85-year-old women. To my mind, such lists are just about as worthless as tits on a boar, to borrow my father’s phrase. Still, I feel a certain obligation to weigh in.

Rogue Wave - "Descended Like Vultures"

Sub Pop, the label most associated with the, um, grunge sound of the Great Pacific Northwest back in the 90’s, has lately become the home of a raft of gentle, off-kilter pop bands. This is either indicative of the music savvy behind the label or a sign of the apocalypse, depending on your sensibilities. Not that every band on the roster has gone all poppy – there’s still Comets On Fire, and Kinski, and none other than frickin’ Mudhoney, for gosh sakes – but The Shins and the Fruit Bats certainly lean that way, as do the subject of today’s review, Rogue Wave. Their new album, Descended Like Vultures, is what’s on the plate today. Let’s dig in, shall we?

The Constantines, "Tournament of Hearts"

The plan was solid. Don't question the plan. I would listen to the new Constantines record. If I didn't like it, then I would write a long, annoying essay about what's wrong with indie rock. If I did like it, then I would just write about that. Simple! But what do you write about when you're utterly indifferent? So, this would require mental somersaults, or, what other people might call "effort."

Big Star - "In Space"

Chances are that if you read this site on anything like a regular basis, you already have some sort of history with Big Star. REM, The Replacements, and Teenage Fanclub have all acknowledged their debt to the band, and countless others have suckled at the teats of #1 Record (1972), Radio City (1974), and Third/Sister Lovers (1978). It is through these groups that most of us have come to know and appreciate what could rightfully be called the band that helped launch both alternative rock and power pop.

CocoRosie - "Noah's Ark"

It occurred to me the other day that I haven’t reviewed a lot of women artists. That’s just sort of the way things have shaken out, but I figured I should take steps to balance things out a bit. As I was casting about for possible subjects, I recalled that I’d seen a lot of positive reviews of CocoRosie. I’d never actually heard them myself, but hey, it’s always a good idea to expand the boundaries, right? I’ve found some really good music by taking a chance on something based on word-of-mouth and/or reading reviews. (That’s why I do what I do here – I’d like to put a little something back, if you follow me.)

When I put the idea to Dana, she positively lit up. Well, OK, I don’t know if she really did that, since we live on opposite sides of the continent and mostly communicate through email. She did seem inordinately excited about the prospect, though, and all but demanded that I follow up.

Given the green light, I hopped on eMusic and downloaded the new album, Noah’s Ark.

Freakwater, "Thinking of You"

I'm terribly late with this review, but considering this is Freakwater's first album in six years, I guess I'm right on schedule. I've been listening to it for a month now and it's been burned in my mind. This is a good thing.

The Ramones - "Weird Tales of the Ramones"

“Teenage Lobotomy” is the single greatest rock & roll record ever made, bar none. From the opening beats of Tommy’s tom-tom and Joey’s “Lobotomy!” chant to the devastatingly abrupt finish, it is two minutes and one second of sonic perfection. C’mon, it’s got everything you could possibly want from the genre – sex (“all the girls are in love with me / I’m a teenage lobotomy”), drugs (“DDT did a job on me / now I am a real sickie”), violence (has anyone ever punished a guitar quite as fiercely as Johnny?), humor (“guess I’ll have to break the news / that I got no mind to lose”), poetry (“guess I’m gonna have to tell ‘em / that I got no cerebellum / I’m gonna get my Ph.D. / I’m a teenage lobotomy”). What else could you possibly want?

All Tomorrow's Party - "Yoo Doo Right, Yoo Doo Slide"

The press release that came with my copy of Yoo Doo Right, Yoo Doo Slide, the new album from All Tomorrow’s Party, mentions that singer/guitarist Tetsuro Kitame has been called “the Asian Jim Morrison”. Having heard the disc in question, I have to wonder what sort of drugs were involved in the making of that statement. For one thing, his writing is not nearly pretentious enough to qualify. Also, his voice is nothing like that of the Bozo Dionysus – he really sounds like the guy from Fountains of Wayne at times. So that generated a little head-scratching.

Bob Mould, "Body of Song"

Bob Mould has never been the edgiest of post-punk icons. Throughout his career, from his debut in the 80s with Hüsker Dü, through the Sugar records and solo work of the 90s, Mould has always favored a pop flavor over the raw energy of some of his contemporaries. So it's no surprise that Body of Song (Yep Roc), Mould's return to his roots (after the sojourn into electronica that was 2002's Modulate) is actually more of a return to the middle.

Kingsbury Manx - "The Fast Rise and Fall of the South"

Summer is slowly drawing to a close. For people like me who can’t stand the heat (and the accompanying short tempers it tends to inspire in all and sundry), this is a great boon. Frankly, fall cannot come fast enough.

I understand that I am in the minority here. For most of you, the end of summer is something of a drag. It signals the end of vacation, the return to school, the switch from alchopop to malt liquor. And while I don’t share your pain, I do sympathize. (Which is more than some of you can muster for those of us who do not welcome the return of the Big Light In The Sky every June. Let’s be honest.) So, in the spirit of public service, I offer a few coping tactics for the autumnophobic among you:

Flotation Toy Warning, "Bluffer's Guide to the Flight Deck"

[Author's note to readers: I was out sick yesterday and missed the #1HS staff meeting where it was announced that hate week had begun. I wrote the following review under the impression that it was still ignorance week.] When I read the promo copy and saw Floatation Toy Warning favorably compared to The Flaming Lips and half a dozen bands I'd never heard of, I knew I was in trouble. It didn't help when I later read that they opened for Air at a French music festival.

All You Need Is Hate

My lovely hostess here at #1HS has proclaimed this to be the Week of Hate. Sadly, this comes about twenty years too late for yours truly.

There was plenty of music I hated, back in the day. Bile and spleen were what kept me going, more often than not, especially while I was working retail. I worked in record stores, yes, but in small towns and/or suburbs. I, personally, bought the only copy of Under The Big Black Sun that we sold. Ever. On the other hand, Air Supply and Christopher Cross fucking flew off the shelves. Each copy I rang up was yet another personal insult. If the Death Rays that shot from my eyes had had any effect at all on the endless stream of soulless consumers, I’d have been a lot happier. As it is, I didn’t even singe anyone.

Fruit Bats - "Spelled In Bones"

Pop rock is sort of the Rodney Dangerfield of the music world these days. Not quite hard enough for the hardcore rock & rollers, yet too much so for the… well, what’s the modern equivalent for the Top 40 crowd, the folks who listen to the hits of the day? Anyway, they don’t dig it either. I find this somewhat ironic, given that this sort of thing ruled the charts back in the days when people in their twenties had first-hand knowledge of new Beatles songs on the radio. Now it’s mostly down to music geeks and old farts trying to hang onto that last glimmer of their faded youth. I fall into both those categories, myself, so ordinarily I’d be perfectly suited to tell you about the Fruit Bats new album, Spelled In Bones. I’m kinda in a non-pop frame of mind these days, but I’ll take a whack at it anyway.

Spoon - "Gimme Fiction"

Minimalism, taken to its logical extreme, often ends up folding in upon itself. Eventually you’re left with the sound of nothing happening - entropy, if you will. And that’s fairly hard to dance to. This is where Spoon come in. Their stripped-down indie-pop and Motown-esque funk (yep, that’s right), as featured on Gimme Fiction, will let you shake your ass to the heat death of the universe.

Can’t ask for much more than that, now, can ya?

Kinski - "Alpine Static"

Kinski? No. Well, sorta, but no, not really. Kinski? Nope. Kinsey? OK, now you’re not even trying.

Kinski, my friends, is a band from Seattle, consisting of Chris Martin on guitar, Lucy Atkinson on bass, Matthew Reid-Schwartz on guitar and flute, and Barrett Wilke on drums. And before you run off at the mouth with an ill-advised use of the g-word*, let me assure you that they ain’t one of those. What they are is less easy to pin down. Rock & roll, to be sure, but that covers a wide variety of sins, as they say. They’re somewhere between psychedelia and experimental music. For lack of a better term, let’s call it “art garage”. That’ll work as well as anything else.

The Coup, "Party Music"

Indulge me for a moment, people. Yeah, this is four years old. But when it came out in 2001, it got more attention for its controversial album cover--which, incidentally, predated the 9/11 attacks--than its tracks.

The Hot Rollers - "Got Your Number"

Garage rock: there are those who claim it to be the ultimate expression of what rock & roll was meant to be. The rest of us just dig it ‘cuz it’s loud and horny, generally speaking.

John Doe - "Forever Hasn't Happened Yet"

Back when I was a kid, Johnny Cash had a TV show. I haven’t seen any of the episodes since they first ran, so all I have to go on is some 35-year-old memories*. From what I recall, though, it was a really good program. It was pretty restrained for the television of its day. The late 60’s – early 70’s were the heyday of the variety show, which consisted of wacky “comedy” skits in between musical numbers by such cutting edge artists as Steve Lawrence and Edie Gorme. Some of you younger kids aren’t gonna recognize those names, so let me put it this way: you’ve heard of the time Elvis shot his TV set? Steve and Edie were what he was watching.

Vic, "The Get Down"

Check this out. This is my friend Vic, the only resident of Houston, TX, who doesn't drive an SUV. He knocks the socks off those 504 Boyz.

The Charming Snakes, “Ammunition”

Any band with the word “Snakes” in its name better have some serious goddamned chops (viz. Hot Snakes), I thought snarkily as I hit play.

Sleater-Kinney - "The Woods"

Artistically speaking, there’s not much worse than getting stuck in a rut. Stagnation is the enemy of art, and inevitably leads to ruin. Unless we’re talking about AC/DC, of course; in that case stagnation is their art, and inevitably leads to Angus Young running around in short pants and a school blazer. And him in his fifties! Otherwise, though, it’s a definite hazard for those few bands that make it past the five year/three album mark. Actually, I have a theory about that…

Various Artists, "Marty Thau Presents 2 X 5"

Hey kids, it’s time to dust off the Wayback Machine again and go forward into the past! Let’s set the controls for the New York of 1980 and, um, yeah, let’s go ahead and bring that Glock, too. Can’t be too careful.

The Konks, "The Konks"

There’s a lot to be said for our modern, a-go-go world. While it’s true that we don’t have the flying cars or the vacation homes on the moon we’d been promised when I was a kid, this computer I’m typing on is pretty cool, for one thing. And, y’know, heart transplants and velcro and Altoids and such, they’re all very good. Especially the Altoids.

Cobra Verde, "Copycat Killers"

I have this romantic idea of what Cleveland is like, right? It’s easy to believe that some fantastic scene is playing in NYC or LA or Detroit, because those cities have their own reputation. But Cleveland is a bit like the brainy girl in the John Hughes movie, the one that no one realizes is actually a babe until she takes off her glasses and shakes her hair down. (Which is also to say that, just as the brainy girl was always beautiful, of course Cleveland has had an excellent music scene for years and years…and more’s the pity that I never noticed.)