The Regular Express

Fang Island

2010-03-19T18:36:00.003+11:00

It's like the Fucking Champs met up with every motivational speaker ever and decided to host a bro-hug party.

Soft Pack

2010-03-11T16:12:00.002+11:00

This song is so simple and straightforward, it's perfect.

THE SOFT PACK "C'mon" MUSIC VIDEO from VIDEOTHING.COM on Vimeo.

Loudon Wainwright III - Album I

2010-02-12T14:03:00.004+11:00

This album, Loudon's 1970 debut release, is most similar to Album II due to the sparse instrumentation and melancholy tone. He's young, self-absorbed, and full of emotion and a histrionic whine. That aside, this album, and his early material in general, runs circles around just about any contemporary singer-songwriter.

While his humor isn't as prominent on this album as it is later on, it still exists on songs like "Uptown", a song about living in squalor in lower Manhattan. For the most part, though, the songs are brutally honest and poignant, a characteristic that Loudo sharpened in subsequent releases. "School Days" and "Glad to See You've Got Religion" are stand-outs in that department.

After listening to handfuls of his other albums, this is a bit of an anachronism. It's got all the qualities that Loudon's come to be known for, though the songwriting just isn't quite as sharp yet. But that youthful forcefulness, the freshness in his voice, the obvious desire to be recognized- these are the things that make this album worth it.

Loudon Wainwright III - Album I

Spoon - Transference

2010-02-05T21:10:00.002+11:00

I'll start out by saying that there are a couple of really good songs on here. "Got Nuffin", "Mystery Zone", and "Nobody Gets Me But You" especially stand out. "Got Nuffin", a song released last year on an EP is their staple barn-burner. "Mystery Zone" plays with a shimmery, echoed guitar which builds into the chorus with piano and (presumably Pro-Tooled) strings to create this creepy, "Twilight Zone"-esque warp. And "Nobody Gets Me But You" has one of the fattest bass riffs on a Spoon record to date.

But overall it's territory that Spoon have covered on each of their previous albums. It's diminishing returns. "Out Go the Lights" is a poor version of "Metal Detektor", "Written in Reverse" is the coupling of "Beast and Dragon, Adored" and "I Turn My Camera On", but with the conviction of neither. "Goodnight Laura" is a complete misstep, aiming for the sincerity of "I Summon You" and the chilling sobriety of "Paper Tiger" and completely falling short. It's missing artistic depth completely, and drips with mushy drabness. It would better suit a Ben Folds record. Even "Got Nuffin" is basically "Jonathan Fisk" rehashed.

I suppose more than anything, I'm simply disappointed. I've liked Spoon for a really long time, and after each subsequent full-length I've never felt like they've let me down. Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga is a great batch of pop songs, Gimme Fiction is a record with such immense depth, and Kill the Moonlight is a masterpiece all its own. Girls Can Tell was the album that initially got me hooked. Series of Sneaks, while not as interesting as the rest of the lot, still took on a straightforward sound of its own and ran with it. Transference, on the other hand, is a mixed bag that just simply doesn't live up to the reputation Spoon built for themselves. While I'll continue to give it its fair share of spins, I just don't see this thing becoming much of a grower.

machinemachine

2010-02-04T20:56:00.003+11:00

I heard a song on the radio today that I liked by a band called machinemachine. I went home to look them up, only to realize that it's a friend's friend's band, and that I saw them in September last year.

This particular song, called "Puberty Blue", sounds a bit like Sebadoh if Hey Mercedes-era Bob Nanna were singing.

Talking Heads

2010-02-01T12:30:00.002+11:00

Any band can only hope to have a live act half as good as this.

Laughing Clowns

2010-01-28T20:22:00.007+11:00

Australia Day was on Tuesday. Unfortunately I was unable to participate in any barbeques or particularly "true blue" goings-on. I had especially hoped to catch the Dirty Three/Laughing Clowns show down the road, but had to pass due to circumstances beyond my control. I was, however, fortunate enough to see the Laughing Clowns at ATP last year, and if they sounded anywhere near as good on Tuesday as they did last January, I'm sure they were quite a worthwhile opening act for the Dirty Three.

The Laughing Clowns rose from the ashes of the Saints, though despite their creative excellence, they never gained anywhere near the acclaim the Saints did. Fortunately, the band has regrouped to show the world (or at least the continent) why they deserved more attention than what they received in their youth.

Mr Uddich-Schmuddich Goes to Town is the Laughing Clowns second full-length (sort of), released in 1982, in the heyday of post-punk. Unlike other post-punk bands from that era, the Laughing Clowns focused especially on expanding their songs while toying with melodic phrasing and interplay amongst different instruments. Their lineup continually expanded and contracted with trumpeters, pianists, bassists, and saxaphonists throughout their existence. Though the word "jazz" is often thrown around in regard to this band, the Laughing Clowns are hardly jazzy. The jazz aspect comes more from their experimental nature than the band's sound. They're art-rock, through and through, and a real testament to the calibur of bands coming out of ol' Gondwana back in the early 80's.

Laughing Clowns - Mr. Uddich-Smuddich Goes to Town

Weekly Records

2010-01-21T13:25:00.004+11:00

1) The Fall - The Wonderful and Frightening World of the Fall
2) Loudon Wainwright III - Album I
3) Blunt Mechanic - Blunt Mechanic EP
4) Spoon - Transference
5) Squeeze - BBC Rock Hour

I'm reading this book called "1968", basically all about the different revolutions that went on around the world during that year. I may be the last person on earth to know this, but it was talking about how the non-violent protests led by Martin Luther King were predicated upon the authoritative side acting violently. Basically, they were going to towns to protest, and where mayors and police chiefs were nice/bumbling/smart, they reacted professionally and the protest received no media coverage. So MLK started targeting towns with hot-headed authorities in order to gain media coverage, and, therefore, public outcry. I.e., non-violent protests require violence. Apparently Ghandi embraced this, despite how paradoxical it is.

This has nothing to do with weekly records. Just an interesting thing I learned this week.

The Books

2010-01-19T10:37:00.004+11:00

The good thing about seeing a band that hasn't released a new album in nearly 4 years is that they'll likely play some new stuff. Well, I guess that isn't always good. Nobody goes to see Dylan to hear those hot Modern Times tracks (or anything post 1980, for that matter). But regarding the Books, new songs are totally welcome.

Two new songs were centered around old hypnotherapy tapes, whose production values were bad even for the 80's, and whose content was completely non-existent. This, of course, was perfect fuel for the Books, enabling them to extract some intensely funny sound clips. Another new track was called "We Bought the Flood", a slow, touching song featuring footage from pre-1930's videos. But by far the best unreleased track was called "A Cold Freezin Night", featuring clips from Talkboy tapes found in thrift stores. If you don't know what a Talkboy is, look it up. It's well worth 30 seconds of your time. Of course, children with tape recorders is a guaranteed recipe for sound collage success.

Of the released songs they selected, "Classy Penguin" and "8 Frame" from their DVD Play All were excellent. The former contained footage of the duo from their youth, as well as, well, other people from their youth, all just generally being youthful. "Smells Like Content" was one of my favorites from Lost and Safe, and while the video does little to enhance the song, it's interesting to note that the lyrics come from Nick's older brother Mark recording them on a tape while alone in the woods.

But hands down the best song is "Take Time". While the message is simple and cliched (hey, Carpe Diem, man), the video is pure uplifting goodness, featuring old people playing games, guttural laughs from African women, and a religious zealot dancing...dancing...dancing...falling over.

Because the Books don't exactly tour much (they never even played a show until after they released their third album), I highly recommend going to see them whenever possible, even if you can't really get into their records or have never even bothered to listen to them. Because the videos are such an integral part of each song, it's wholly necessary to experience their songs with video in sync in order to get the full experience. That aside, the guys just seem like seriously the nicest dudes ever, zero pretension, and funny as shit.

Food Inc./Zombieland

2010-01-17T13:18:00.006+11:00

I've been a bit under the weather since returning home, all achy bones and respiratory infection. So I stayed in last night, spending my Saturday night watching a double feature: Food Inc. and Zombieland. The movies couldn't be more different (though I guess they share a common theme of eating mammals). And after watching the two movies back to back, I can understand exactly why people eat the way they do: mindless pleasure and instant gratification is much more enjoyable than measured restraint and rectitude.

Firstly, Food Inc. This documentary explains the inherent issues in mass producing food, especially within a government system full of cronyism and regulations that were established to protect individuals, but manipulated to serve big businesses, who are constantly handjobbing most departments of the US government that are involved in regulating the food industry.

Fortunately the movie isn't so sermonizing that it isolates viewers; unfortunately it also doesn't offer any solutions. The movie uses imagery and basic information that generally speaks for itself. Conditions in feed lots and slaughterhouses are squalid. We know this. Food is processed to be unnaturally preserved. We know this. Nutrition values in most foods are waning due to their manipulated DNA. We know this. Fast food, modified food, processed food- it's all cheaper than eating organic food. We know this.

The general "green" movement has gained a lot of attention since the 90's. While some of it is so extreme as to be marginalizing, the majority of it is a welcome attitude where people have historically been driven by price incentives. But unfortunately, price is always going to be the main incentive for most people, and so the issue here is not awareness; it's the other green movement- dollar bills. While the movie discusses this, it definitely offers little in the way of solutions. Buy organic! Shop at farmers' markets! Read labels! That's all well and good, but until enough people do this to drive economies of scale in favor of more healthy eating, the majority will be eating Rodeo Burgers and Bacon Splattered Chicken Chips.

The movie has good intentions, and while its solutions are not the most inventive, it's still worth watching. Some segments are startling (if you eat beef, it's pretty damn likely that you're ingesting ammonia). It's also enough to make one livid with the US government and major food producers. Unfortunately it just doesn't empower enough to make much of a difference.

As for Zombieland. It is, as I said, mindless entertainment. But where other 2009 big budget action comedies (The Hangover, namely) are completely contrived and asinine, Zombieland's humor is enough to pull it through. While it's somewhat predictable, it's still just generally fun to watch. I like Woody Harrelson and I like Jesse Eisenberg. I like zombie movies and I like funny. Where could I go wrong?

I will say, however, that Shaun of the Dead, of which this movie is obviously derived from, is a much better film. The humor is just simply fresher. But it's been a number of years since that came out, and in Zombieland's case, the big budget, constant action, and production values help to make up for its contrivance.

There is effectively no point to this movie. It's eye candy, through and through. But who cares? After the hard-hitting and frustrating message in Food, Inc., this was exactly the type of comic relief necessary to balance my viewing and make my little double-feature a very enjoyable evening.

Paul McCartney and Wings

2010-01-16T17:29:00.007+11:00

I've just returned from a solid 2 1/2 week visit to some of the more remote areas of New South Wales and Tasmania. What a country.

Much of the time was spent driving through the country (I drove some 2000 kms) with my family, listening to family-friendly music. One such album was Paul McCartney's "Band on the Run".

This album is a classic (of course) and one of Macca's finest. It's an album of masterful composition. Though short on lyrical depth, it's nearly perfect otherwise. Nobody expects Paul to be a poet anyway.

In 1999, a 2-disc release was issued. The second disc is basically Macca talking about the songwriting process and a bunch of 80's sound check versions of the more popular songs from the album (which are, in a word, terrible). But it's worth listening to the dialogue for his American and Cockney accents and the general ego involved. I guess it also helps if you're as obsessive about this album as I am.

Band on the Run Disc 2

And for fun, here's a video of "Jet" from 1976. Nothing better than mulletted Macca and about 7 hired guns to round out your live presence.

Dismemberment Plan

2009-12-30T07:34:00.009+11:00

Fireworks? Or terrorist attack?

Well, another year is upon us.

While I don't much care for New Year's celebrations, I do particularly like the idea of a new year, especially with graduation and potential permanent residency on the horizon for the 2010.

Now I don't much care for Christmas-themed music (because it almost always sucks), but I'll admit I get down to a few songs about the New Year. One of my personal favorites is a Dismemberment Plan track from 1997 called "The Ice of Boston". In it, Travis Morrison narrates his own New Year's experience, choosing to forego the messy Boston streets for a little naked R&R.

This song always gives me a (figurative) chuckle, and I hope it does the same for you.

03 The Ice Of Boston by regularexpress

To the year ahead!

Best of 2009 (10-1)

2009-12-28T18:03:00.007+11:00

1) Yo La Tengo - Popular Songs

They've managed to retain their style for over 20 years, yet continue to sound fresh and adventurous. One of the best bands in existence.

Fun with fruit:

2) Superchunk - Leaves in the Gutter EP

This EP completely rocked my shit for like three months straight.

3) Neko Case - Middle Cyclone

I know of at least one contemporary female piano player that I like. And it doesn't hurt that she covers both Harry Nilsson and Sparks.

Horse whisperer:

4) Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest

This was the year in which we see Grizzly Bear become a household name, and for good reason.

Tripping balls:

5) Bill Callahan - Sometimes I Wish We Were an Eagle

Bill Callahan returns to his sparse, wry, and manically depressing songwriting. Because happy Smog just doesn't cut it.

6) Group Bombino - Guitars from Agadez Vol. 2

Unlike the first volume, this one is half acoustic, half electric. But it’s still completely raw and messy and awesome. What else would you expect from a Nigerien rebel group?

7) Piano Magic - Ovations

Girlfriend dump you? Take a bunch of ketamine? Paranoid that your heart is about to collapse into itself? Or just generally feel like offing yourself? Well, the good news is you’ve found your soundtrack.

8) Chrissy Zebby Tembo & Ngozi Family - My Ancestors

Technically a release from the early 70's, this album boasts simple melodies, fuzzed-out psych guitar solos, and heavy drums. This sounds a bit like Cream if they were Zambian and Clapton had any balls.

9) A.C. Newman - Get Guilty

Newman’s second solo album is more introspective than his first, but it’s still full of endless hooks and skillful songwriting. And it proves once again that he’s at his best when in total control.

10) Built to Spill - There Is No Enemy

It might not be Built to Spill's best album, but it's got everything they've come to be known for (namely, triple guitar beard attack). And props to them for including slide guitar again- "Hindsight" is a jam reminiscent of much of Doug Martsch's solo album.

Best of 2009 (11-20)

2009-12-28T18:00:00.003+11:00

11) Bell Orchestre - As Seen Through Windows

Horn-heavy orchestrated post-rock. Less doom and gloom than some of their contemporaries, it’s at times lilting, pastoral, and ethereal. Definitely more cohesive than their previous effort.

Seizure city:

12) Dinosaur Jr. - Farm

The original Dinosaur Jr. line-up once again prove that they're capable of sounding exactly the same as they did 20 years ago. And who doesn't need another Dinosaur Jr. record? But if you're a fan of Mascis's guitar solos, beware. This album only averages 1.5 solos per song.

Sk8rs:

13) Camera Obscura - My Maudlin Career

This sounds nothing like Belle & Sebastian! Where do people get this stuff? It's a girl singing...come on, Belle & Sebastian have a guy singer. A little wimpy one. So what if they're both Scottish bands. Wait, you're telling me that that little twee turd photographed one of Camera Obscura's album covers? And Belle & Sebastian have girls that sing too? Hmm. Did Wet Wet Wet release anything this year?

John McVie stand-in:

14) M. Ward - Hold Time

Last year's She & Him record didn't hurt M. Ward's cause at all. Hold Time features Ward's familiar songwriting and production skills, with a couple of cameos from everybody's mind-mistress, Zooey Deschanel.

Slow motion accident:

15) The Flips - That Girl Stacey 7"

Fresh out of Brew City, these girls marry the 60's girl-group sounds of the Shangri-Las and Martha and the Vandellas with the lo-fi aesthetic of the Vivian Girls (but much more classy and charming).

16) Mulatu Astatqe & the Heliocentrics - Inspiration Information Vol. 3

Steeped in the Ethiopian jazz that Mulatu came to patent and popularize, and coupled with the funk backbone of the Heliocentrics, this album is reminiscent of the Ethiopian Quintet’s Afro-Latin Soul.

17) Implodes - everything I heard on myspace

They released a cassette on plustapes this year, but since I don't own a cassette player anymore, it did me no good. Shoegaze guitar tones for creaming jeans.

18) Zombi - Spirit Animal

If this album were a spirit animal, it would be a shark being eaten by a rhinoceros being ridden by Geddy Lee.

19) Other Animals - Other Animals

Debut from Chicago-area dudes sounds like Explosions in the Sky, but with less explosions and more sexy guitars.

20) Tyondai Braxton - Central Market

Battles meets 20th Century composing. Complete with Wizard of Oz munchkin vocals (and even some human vocals).

Santa Baby

2009-12-22T21:10:00.001+11:00

Christmas is right around the corner, as I'm constantly reminded by the vast array of horrible Christmas songs and gaudy Christmas displays polluting the urban environment. I'm amazed and disgusted by the sheer amount of no-name and big-name performers cashing in on covering traditional Christmas songs, without any attempt at making a quality recording. Last year I posted a few Christmas songs that I thought were actually worthwhile, though they've since been lost in the internet ether. (If anybody wants me to share them again, just leave a comment).

It's come to my attention that one Christmas song is a bit more prurient than I had ever realized. People always mention "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" as being dirty, but "Santa Baby" is by far dirtier. (It's also despicably comsumeristic, which I thought was only a phenomenon that's come about in the last few decades.) But it's the overt sexuality that gets me on this song, with such lines as "come and trim my Christmas tree" and the constant pleading for Santa to "hurry down the chimney tonight". Dirty bird!

This is probably the most famous version, as sung by Eartha Kitt. It's funny how the coy and semi-conservative sexuality of music stars in the 50's and 60's is by far more appealing than the overtly desperate sexuality of the stars of today. All I can think of when I hear names like the Pussycat Dolls or Rihanna is a roaring case of the clap.

Real Estate - Real Estate

2009-12-15T12:14:00.005+11:00

This album is pretty chill, if totally overhyped.

The water theme on this album is really prominent- "Beach Comber", "Pool Swimmers", "Black Lake", "Green River", and "Let's Rock the Beach" (which doesn't rock at all). There's a pretty clear correlation between this theme and the music- it's summertime surf jams, all barbeques and limeade, rooftop parties and bike rides.

Real Estate is a relaxed, lo-fi album with good pop sensibilities. The singer is also a member of Ducktails, who shares a similar aesthetic of tropical grooves, relaxed jamming, and mountains of reverb. Maybe mountains isn't the right word, since all that reverb makes it sound like they recorded this stuff underwater (check out the vocals on "Pool Swimmers"). We'll say...eddies of reverb.

Much like Ducktails, some of the jammier songs on this album tend to lose me a little bit. since a lot of the songs are on the slower side of things, some of the jammy parts tend to plod along unconvincingly. Fortunately it picks up again about halfway through, starting with "Atlantic City", then "Fake Blues", and "Green River" (which is in no way related to the CCR song). "Suburban Beverage" starts out with a promising build-up, but eventually ends up in another half-baked jam. The album does end on a high note, with the inappropriately titled "Snow Days". It's all harmonies and slide guitars (and, from what I can tell, the only song with acoustic guitar), until it warps into a country jam, all drum rolls and fake endings.

As much as this album is generally decent, the main issue I have is that it's all a little same-same. The instruments, tone, and tempo are all the same song after song. So while a lot of the songs are good individually, they're not entirely memorable as individual songs. And while the album is generally good, there's too much idle jamming to make it memorable as a whole, replacing memorability with a vague notion of enjoyment.

Snow Days by regularexpress

Julian Casablancas - Phrazes for the Young

2009-12-10T11:02:00.005+11:00

So what can one expect from a solo album by the Strokes singer?

Songs sung in that typical strained croon. [✓][✓][✓][✓][✓][✓][✓][✓]
Songs about NYC. [✓][✓]
Songs about drinking. [✓][✓]
Songs about regret. [✓][✓][✓][✓][✓][✓]

So why is this different from a Strokes record? For one, the production is cleaner. Two, the songs are long. Three, it's a lot more varied than any Strokes record to date. There's the typical fast rock songs with berating keyboard ("Out of the Blue", "River of Brakelights"), Nashville gospel lament ("Four Chords of the Apocalypse", "Ludlow St."), straight-up pop songs ("Left and Right in the Dark", "11th Dimension"), and a couple of snoozers at the end ("Glass", "Tourist").

Incidentally, the pop songs and country laments are the best on the record. While both pop songs are synth-heavy, the underlying pulsating guitar in "Left and Right in the Dark" make this the best song on the album. And while "11th Dimension" (is that a reference to string theory?) is ear candy to the, er, 11th degree, it's a song that gets tiresome after multiple listens. But it's exactly at this point that following "Four Chords of the Apocalypse" and "Ludlow St" start to stand out. The former is the type of song featured in a romantic comedy, about three-fourths of the way through, when the lead characters have gotten into a fight and have both independently decided that they should get back together- female character looks vaguely sad while staring through a rainy window, male character walks the boardwalk alone, ruefully watching laughing couples, cue missed phone calls, an aborted flirtation with a blind date, and Drew Berrymore and Zac Efron are back together, more in love than ever. And Ludlow St, a song about dranking and the bitterness that so often accompanies a failed relationship.

The songs that sound most like the Strokes are ok, but they're in need of serious edits. All the songs on this album clock in at over 4 minutes, and about half are at least 5. If some of these songs were streamlined (really, who needs a mandolin solo? What is this, Medeski Martin and Wood?), they'd prove to be a lot more effective. This album- 8 songs, 40 minutes- would probably do better as a 5 song EP.

There's this guy Frank Sartor- he used to be Mayor of Sydney, now he's a member of the State Cabinet- who came to speak to my class. "It's all about managing expectations," he said. "If you give a girl flowers every day, she'll come to expect them. But if you only give her flowers once a year, you look like Don Juan." (I'm paraphrazing). And after the last Strokes record, this could have been half as good and still smelt like roses.

02 Left & Right in the Dark by regularexpress

Felt - Forever Breathes the Lonely Word

2009-12-07T15:15:00.007+11:00

Felt is one of those bands that I've always meant to listen to, but for one reason or another, just haven't. Someone once mentioned to me that Yo La Tengo, especially in their early years, were clearly influenced by Felt. Yep, they were right. If Ira Kaplan sang more like a mix between Lou Reed and Tom Verlaine, as Felt's main member Lawrence Hayward does, some of these songs would sound indistinguishable between the two bands. "September Lady" has it all- the Hammond organ, 80's treble-heavy arpeggio guitars, and soft female backing "oohs" and "aahs".

The first two songs on this album- "Rain on Crystal Spires" and "Down But Not Yet Out" are upbeat, catchy indie-pop numbers. The Hammond riffs are particularly stand-out on these tracks. "September Lady" changes the pace slightly with a more sentimental bent- it's Marquee Moon's "Guiding Light", if you will. "Grey Streets" is another impressive organ-heavy track with hooks galore.

Unfortunately, the album's centerpiece, "All the People I Like Are Those That Are Dead", doesn't get the job done. It starts slow, and ebbs and flows over its lengthy 5 minutes. Hayward whispers the chorus for much of the last few minutes. Whether it's in an attempt to be creepy or poignant is besides the fact- the song simply meanders. It's long in length and short on ideas.

After this track, it's a little difficult to get back into. "Gather Up Your Wings and Fly" returns to opening form with upbeat guitar and organ, and, once again, those same pleasant backing vocals. However, it's not quite as strong as the first half of the album. "A Wave Crashed on the Rocks" is a bit of a throwaway track. There's nothing wrong with it, it just simply doesn't stand up to the memorable tracks on this album. The closer "Hours of Darkness Have Changed My Mind" is another slow track with little to show for it. "September Girls" would have made a more appropriate closer, though the album is obviously front-loaded, and stuck at the back end that song wouldn't have gotten its just desserts.

Overall the album is definitely something to return to, if only for the upbeat pop songs. It's 80's and British in all the right ways. While the album tries a little too hard in some spots, the only real disaster is "All the People I Like Are Those That Are Dead".

Felt - Forever Breathes the Lonely Word

Fugazi

2009-12-07T11:42:00.005+11:00

Before I stray too much from that Fugazi post from last week, I also wanted to post this Peel Sessions recording from 1988. Two tracks from Fugazi, and two from the then yet-to-be-released Repeater.

Although the songs don't generally sound as clear as on record, they definitely highlight how fervent the band was live. Guy's songs are definitely the more intense ones- just check out the screeching guitar at the end of "Glue Man" to see what I mean.

There's not that much to say about this really, but assuming most Fugazi fans are pretty hardcore Fugazi fans, this is worth grabbing.

1) Waiting Room
2) Merchandise
3) Break-In
4) Glue Man

Fugazi - Peel Sessions 1988

Jack Rose

2009-12-07T10:36:00.005+11:00

While I'm on the subject of guitarists influenced by John Fahey, I'd like to pay respects to Jack Rose, an extremely talented solo guitarist who sadly died today of an apparent heart attack. While Rose was strongly influenced by Fahey, he also incorporated eastern music, especially raga, into his vast body of work, much like Sir Richard Bishop and Robbie Basho. Rose also played in a prominent drone band (as prominent as a drone band can be, I mean) called Pelt.

Rose was immensely talented, somewhat prolific, and hardly well-known throughout his 15+ year career. His music was characterized by its often dark style of folk and blues, the result of playing a 12-string slide guitar. There's a lot of solitude in his music, especially evident on the excellent s/t release on Tequila Sunrise. It was also released on CD after the LP version sold out, which is available here and here. I picked up that record without knowing anything about it really, and I've since invested serious hours into it.

Although much of his work is generally pretty haunting, here's one of his more upbeat ragtime songs off the Kensington Blues album.

07 Flirtin' With the Undertaker by regularexpress

M Ward - Transfiguration of Vincent

2009-12-07T09:57:00.003+11:00

M. Ward - Transfiguration of Vincent

This album is good, but not great. While it's similar in most ways to his more recent albums, it lacks the distinct charm and breeziness of Hold Time and Post War. What's immediately apparent on this album, both through the instrumentation and lyrics, is the degree of melancholy with which most of these songs are written. Songs of sorrow, sadness, and heartbreak are all too cliche for the sensitive singer-songwriter type, and without the constant guitar work that's become Ward's M.O., this album as a whole is not something I'd return to regularly with such better albums in his discography.

Not surprisingly, the stand-out tracks are the few upbeat numbers like "Duet for Guitars #3" and "Helicopter". The former is an instrumental John Fahey-esque jam, while the latter is a pretty straightforward folk-rock song with a melody line lifted straight out of Paul Simon's "Graceland". The album also features a horribly depressing version of Bowie's "Let's Dance", which, quite frankly, is a song that's only notable for its staccato guitar and percussion (which Ward does away with completely) and video of two teenage Aboriginals dancing in an outback bar, and then suddenly transferred to a busy Sydney street, being forced to do manual labor. For a video that makes such a strong statement, the song itself does not. And for a song with seemingly very little meaning, it's a strange choice for an acoustic cover whose foundation is the lyrics. On a high note, Ward definitely had his Grand Ole Opry style production down already on this album, which certainly makes this album worth a listen at least once.

Here's a video of the aforementioned "Duet for Guitars #3" (performed solo, as it were), which starts about 2:30 in after some pretty impressive jamming.

Fugazi

2009-12-03T09:50:00.006+11:00

I was hoping to post this yesterday, though work obligations prevented me from doing so. In the time between then and now, Pitchfork has gone ahead and stolen my thunder (which, I realize, I initially stole from Chunklet anyway).

This is 45 minutes of stage banter between Fugazi (really just Ian and Guy) and the crowd. Most of that banter is essentially crowd control and calling out excessively violent morons in the crowd. But they harp on these people better than stand-up comedians are sometimes able, and at the same time manage to exude such love and respect for their fans. It's entertaining, funny, affronting, and kind of life affirming at the same time.

Fugazi Talks Talk

Weekly Records

2009-11-30T17:07:00.005+11:00

A new feature for the Regular Express:

Aside from whatever singles/movies/fact/crap I decide to post about, I am also planning to select approximately 5-10 albums per week, give them a couple spins each, and offer an opinion of them. I've been doing this for a little while on my own, and it's allowed me to actively listen to the things I haven't given enough of a chance or new stuff that I've been meaning to listen to.

The records for this week include

Talking Heads - More Songs About Buildings and Food
Felt - Forever Breathes the Lonely Word
M. Ward - Transfiguration of Vincent
Lightning Bolt - Earthly Delights
Fela Kuti - Confusion/Gentleman
Real Estate - s/t

and possibly

Them Crooked Vultures - s/t
Julian Casablancas - Phrazes for the Young

And by the way, I got to see Lightning Bolt last weekend. Best show of the year. I felt like I was under water afterward. Three cheers for tinnitus!

Traveling Wilburys

2009-11-30T15:19:00.010+11:00

The ol' Regular Express is back on track.

I thought it apt to start again where I left off way back in June with another Jeff Lynne-related song.

The Traveling Wilburys were a 5 guitar band, featuring the dried up talents of Lynne, Bobby Dylan, Tom Petty, George Harrison, and Roy Orbison. In fairness, the Big O, despite being generally past his career prime, still had every bit of the talent that he possessed in the 50's and 60's, and probably had the most to do with the Wilbury's success upon releasing their first album.

Their first album, Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1, was generally acclaimed and recently reissued with the other volume, Traveling Wilburys Vol. 3 (the second volume is said to be Tom Petty's "Full Moon Fever", for which all the members contributed). I grew up listening to the first volume, but never really listened to Vol. 3 until recently. As Orbison passed away of a heart attack prior to the recording of Vol. 3, the album misses his presence. Lynne and Harrison attempt to ape his vocal delivery, but it simply doesn't stand up to the velvety voice of Mr. Orbison. The album is decent, though somewhat uneven, and doesn't quite stand up to the first volume. If he didn't sound like complete garbage before, Dylan is seriously phoning it in on this one (note the backwards baseball hat on the cover), but the other three were obviously capable enough songwriters, using this outlet to experiment with different 50's and 60's rock styles that prove mostly simple and effective.

My personal favorite from this album is "New Blue Moon", a Harrison-penned track that Dylan takes the verse vocals for. Fortunately, this song is all chorus, and it's probably the only track that Dylan is actually having any fun on. Where many of the other songs sound like watered-down blues and gospel (read: white), this one actually has a bit of real R&B flavor, what with the loose drums and sustained piano and whatnot.

Traveling Wilburys - New Blue Moon

09 - New Blue Moon by regularexpress

Electric Light Orchestra

2009-06-12T14:19:00.003+10:00

The last week or two I've been waking up with really strange songs in my head. Just the other day I was looking for this ELO song that popped into my head one morning (I almost wrote pooped into my head, isn't that FUNNY?). Songs seem to be coming up out of nowhere lately, dusting themselves off from the archival abyss in the annals of my brain, and taking center stage in my consciousness. It's not by choice, at all. Two days ago it was Goo Goo Dolls' "Slide", I shit you not. There's some messed up wiring going on in my upstairs, you know what I'm saying?

So I was looking for this song, and I wasn't really sure what it was called, but figured I had it on my computer. So I searched through all 9 GDing ELO albums on my computer, only to come up empty. But about a year ago, before I got a turntable in my possession, I bought the ELO album "Discovery" from a dollar bin somewhere. Discovery came out a couple years after their back-to-back masterpieces, but right before their disco cheeseball phase. At this point they were only borderline disco cheeseball. Anyway, voila! Song's called "Shine a Little Love".

Electric Light Orchestra - Shine a Little Love

As it's the first song on this particular record, it opens with the obligatory space-time warping synth sounds, before quickly shifting into a huge hook, laden with hand claps and searing violin work. Discovery is kind of a hit and miss record, but it's worth that crate dig and 100 cents for the few noteworthy tracks on the record.

Here's the sweet, sweet video for the song.

Check out those glittering vests! See what I'm saying about borderline disco cheeseball?

Medicine Head

2009-06-03T09:52:00.007+10:00

Back in my record store days, this great Dandelion Records single compilation(John Peel's record label) came in that first introduced me to the music of Medicine Head.

Although their later output treads toward the boogie side of British blues and folk, Medicine Head's early singles, off their debut New Bottles, Old Medicine, are right up the London equivalent to Tin Pan Alley. Bert Jansch, Jackson C. Franke, the softer personality of Peter Green, and John Martyn are all contemporaries. It's ambling, pensive, and warm folk music that all those guys did so well, and that nearly nobody has been able to do since.

Medicine Head - This Love of Old

And here's some of that boogie I was talking about:

Church

2009-06-03T09:16:00.002+10:00

So there's this band called Church, not to be confused with 80's and 90's (and, unfortunately, 00's) Australian rock band The Church, or the San Francisco punk band J Church. Just Church. I'm beginning to think bands have stopped trying to come up with decent names. It's become a reflex- SeeSomethingNameSomething. Women. Woods. Yacht. The Field. Church. As artists, aren't you meant to be creative? Adjectives, people!

So back to the music. Church are a Portland indie-pop band, through and through. I heard this song called "Happiness" a year ago, and because their name and obscurity made it difficult to find anything out about them, I gave up. But somehow I recently managed to stumble upon their myspace, and in honour of my great triumph, today I'm posting this "Happiness" song that I heard so long ago. It sounds a lot like Grandaddy, although their other stuff is more akin to The Minus Story or Menomena or something. Basically I just really like this one song. It's on an EP called Gold that came out last year on soHItek.

Church - Happiness

And here's their myspace, for the record.

Grizzly Bear

2009-05-23T16:36:00.004+10:00

New video for Grizzly Bear's "Two Weeks". With all the over-stimulating videos being made these days, it's nice to see technology being used for simple effect. And that simple effective has either turned the members of Grizzly Bear into real-life Wii people or LSD users. Just look at those dilated pupils and shit-eating grins!

Crystal Stilts

2009-05-21T10:23:00.003+10:00

Crystal Stilts released a 7" for a nice little tune called "Love is a Wave" nearly two months ago. In the time between then and now, they've managed to scrape together enough couch change to compile a video montage of 60's and 70's type things. Beaches and monkeys and drive-in movies.

The song sounds a bit like the Magnetic Fields if Stephen Merritt were a transsexual. Neat!

Dorothy Berry

2009-05-18T20:52:00.003+10:00

Tell me this song doesn't instantly make you feel good.

Dorothy Berry - You're So Fine

Lagwagon

2009-05-16T15:01:00.002+10:00

And while I'm going on about pop-punk from my younger years, it's probably an appropriate day to post this Lagwagon song.

I've spent this particular May 16th watching the Lost finale, failing miserably at the "Good Weekend" quiz in the Sydney Morning Herald, and reading bicycle articles. Nerdy, insular, and empowered, respectively. It's just another Saturday.

Lagwagon - May 16th

Japandroids

2009-05-16T14:45:00.006+10:00

It seems like that Japandroids album Post-Nothing has been out for a long time, but I didn't bother listening to it until the other day. I think it's actually only been out for maybe a few weeks, or a month or two at most. But it got a lot of hype, and I hate hype. I try to avoid listening to anything getting lots of hype that I wouldn't otherwise listen to, because

A) I like my music opinions to be my own, and
B) I don't trust people.

Hype: I don't understand how it hyppens.

If you were able to make it through that terrible pun, I thank you. When I first heard Japandroids, I was instantly reminded of something pop-punkish from my younger days. I was having trouble placing it though, and it was starting to eat away at me. It finally dawned on me: Japandroids are the lo-fi reincarnate of Brand New. Without all the spite and death threats, I guess.

So I figure I'll just binge on the couple of Post-Nothing tracks that I like and then be done with it. But for now, I'm quite enjoying it. Guilty pleasure of the year so far.

Japandroids - Young Hearts Spark Fire

The Embarrassment

2009-05-13T19:01:00.003+10:00

As an addendum to the last post, there's a Homestead compilation called Human Music that features a song by Big Dipper as well as lead singer Bill Goffrier's other band, the Embarrassment. The Embarrassment had broken up well before the assemblage of Big Dipper, but reunited during Big Dipper's prime. It was during this period in 1988 that Human Music was released.

The compilation features just as many Homestead bands as not, including a bunch of Flying Nun bands (the Clean, the Chills, the Verlaines, and the Tall Dwarfs) since apparently Homestead was Flying Nun's first US distributor. We haven't seen a New Zealand-U.S. collaborative powerhouse of media since...well...Flight of the Conchords. Rest In Peace.

Fun fact about this Embarrassment song- it was covered on an Ass Ponys EP in the mid-90's. You remember the Ass Ponys don't you? "Little Bastard"? Nothing like the heyday of 90's alternative music. Check out that killer goatee and Jncos on the lead singer.

The Embarrassment - Two-Week Vacation

Big Dipper - He Is God (which is an anagram for "hogs die", for whatever that's worth)

The only Embarrassment videos on Youtube either sound like garbage or are from their recent reunion tours, and I won't settle for either. So instead here's the video for Big Dipper's most popular song, "Faith Healer".

Big Dipper

2009-05-13T15:14:00.002+10:00

I haven't been so good about updating regularly, but I'm looking to fix that, I swear. We just got a Wii up in this bitch, and with that, papers and reports and speeches to prepare, a vegetable garden in need of nurturing, and baseball season in full swing, I get a little distracted. But I have good intentions!

I'm a big fan of The Best Show on WMFU. In the few years that I've been listening to it, one of the best things I've gotten out of it is an introduction to the band Big Dipper. Big Dipper come from Boston USA, and are a spin-off of a spin-off of Mission of Burma. It's like the indie/post-punk version of six degrees of Kevin Bacon. Ok, I admit, it's nothing like that.

Big Dipper put out a couple albums, signed to Epic, and as it is with the major label curse, broke up after only one Epic release. Fortunately the pure and mighty Merge Records released a retrospective anthology of the band's work just last year, giving them another moment in the sun. If you're a fan of college rock, you will like!

This track is off that aforementioned anthology, although I don't think it was released previously. From what I can gather, it was recorded after their Epic failure and then stowed away in an overhead compartment once the band took off on their separate life journeys. Get it? Like an airplane! Hey-o!

Big Dipper - Wake Up the King

The Flips

2009-05-02T15:06:00.005+10:00

Fresh out of Brew City, The Flips are a new 6 piece girl group that mix the songwriting style of 60's groups like Martha & The Vandellas and the lo-fi aesthetic of the Vivian Girls. Unlike the Vivian Girls, however, these girls are all class. Just check out their Brady-esque record cover!

The band recently released their debut, a 7" called "That Girl Stacey". The songs on this recording can be found on their Myspace page, or you can listen to the one I've got queued up for you below.

If these girls can get the quality of their recordings up to snuff, they definitely have some potential for upward mobility.

The Flips - I Still Wanna Be His Girl

Tactics

2009-05-01T16:16:00.004+10:00

Tactics were a late 70's/early 80's Australian post-punk group, originally out of the Canberra (where, like Rodney Dangerfield, they got no respect).

As I mentioned in my post about the Go-Betweens, I wanted to start delving into Australian music that I don't think gets proper recognition. Tactics are definitely one of those bands. I hadn't actually heard of them until earlier this year when my friend Andrew, the invisible third party in the electro-pop "duo" Walter Meego, turned me on to them.

It appears that their albums are near impossible to locate, as they're not even listed on Amazon or Allmusic. Fortunately a compilation was released a few years back entitled "The Sound of the Sound", compiling their first two full lengths as well as some live stuff and demos. A second volume was released last year, and those are both readily available on Amazon.

Tactics were formed in 1978 in Canberra, but quickly moved a few hours north to the urban sprawl that is Sydney. Band members came and went. Tactics' only constant was guitarist/vocalist Dave Studdert, who up and left Australia altogether in 1989 for the greyer skies of the UK, where, from what I can tell, he still plays in bands today.

Here is a track that I especially like from their first album My Houdini, called "No More Talking".

Tactics - No More Talking

Obits

2009-04-27T14:00:00.004+10:00

Wassup? I'm all settled in at the new place. I've been getting my education and gardening on, but now that we've got the internet up and running I have something to distract me.

Rick Froberg has been at it for a while now, first with Drive Like Jehu, then with Hot Snakes, and now back with Obits. John "Speedo" Reis and Froberg parted ways after an Australian Hot Snakes tour in 2005, and last year Reis' new outfit the Night Marchers released their debut album. Now it's Froberg's turn, as Obits released I Blame You in March on Sub Pop.

Prior to this release, Obits released a 7" with a song called "One Cross Apiece". The music is less aggressive than that of his former bands, but it's got a style all its own. Judging from this track, the band is more focused on melody (albeit still obsessed with Wipers-style guitar riffs) and less on charging through tracks with gritted teeth and bloody knuckles. But just like Hot Snakes, this band does their own ass-kicking. They just use swagger instead of fury to achieve it.

Obits - Once Cross Apiece

Taking a breather

2009-04-08T15:15:00.003+10:00

Dear friends,

I just want to let you all know that The Regular Express won't be updated regularly (or expressly) for a few weeks. The main reasons are school assignments and moving houses, both of which are very good and productive activities. Since this blog is neither of those things, it has been bumped down on my list of priorities while I straighten out all the chaos.

Don't fear, I have many good and bad things to share. For now, enjoy this old clip of Australian-turned California post-punker-turned world's funniest comedian, Neeeeeeeeeeeiiiiiill Ham-burg-er!

Cubs

2009-04-06T20:29:00.004+10:00

Boys and girls, get out your rally caps, sunflower seeds and your lucky Shawon Dunston Fleer rookie card. It's time. Starting tomorrow, housewives will start complaining about their Maury Povich being interrupted, vomit will readily appear on Lakeview sidewalks, and all the Jewish suburban diehards and fairweather fans alike will flock to Wrigley Field in a deep blue sea of disorderliness. Get ready for a season of dingers and disappointment, overpriced peanuts, and bad middle relief pitching!

The annoying sounds of Ronnie Woo Woo! (no relation to Bubb Rubb)
The mumbling curses of Ron Santo!
B-list celebrities singing the 7th Inning Stretch off-key (and 40,000 drunk morons doing the same, only a half second behind said celebrity)!

Let's GoooOOOOOO Cubbies!

The Mountain Goats - Cubs in Five

Score!

2009-04-04T18:11:00.003+11:00

Next week sees the release of Score! 20 Years of Merge Records. Much of the music on this label compilation is written by bands of years past, covered by bands of years present. There's plenty to get your mouth watering, with covers by Bill Callahan, Ted Leo, Broken Social Scene, Death Cab, etc. Hot shit indie bands. Now for pre-teens and parents alike!

The song I want to post this evening is a Shins cover of a Tenement Halls song called "Plenty Is Never Enough." I had never heard this song or the Tenement Halls before this release, but if I may judge a song by its cover, then I think the original is worth checking out (and since I'm posting the original video below, you don't have to put in much effort to do so). This is the first Shins release since their last long-player (as far as I know), and it comes out like much of their poppier work (think "Phantom Limb" or their cover of "We Will Become Silhouettes"). It's like a stroll in the park, rolling pastures and ladies in sundresses.

The Shins - Plenty Is Never Enough

As for the original version, it's urgent without the angst. Right up my alley.

Gang Starr/Big L

2009-04-02T11:23:00.004+11:00

I'm not the biggest expert on hip-hop, but I've always really liked Gang Starr (as well as the other solo and collaborative works of Guru and DJ Premier). Hard to Earn has staying power.

There's this track that I've always been really into by them. It's called "Work," off Moment of Truth. It may have been the first song I heard by them, I can't really remember. It just evokes memories of watching skate videos in my friend's basement after high school.
There are two versions of the song- the album release, and then another (sometimes referred to as a remix, which it is not, and sometimes as part 2) with a verse from the late Big L. In my opinion, a little Big L (get it?--------------------->) is never a bad thing. So hostile. He only released two albums before he was killed. I don't know if I've ever heard the first one, but The Big Picture has some great songs on it- Ebonics, Flamboyant, Holdin' It Down, Platinum Plus (produced by DJ Premier)...

I'm not sure where the part 2 version was released, but here it is, for your listening pleasure.

Gang Starr feat. Big L - Work Pt. 2

And also a Big L track from The Big Picture.

Big L - Holdin' It Down

Melvin Goes to Dinner

2009-03-30T18:39:00.004+11:00

Last night I got to watching Melvin Goes to Dinner again. I've seen it four times. It's my favorite movie (besides maybe Home Alone). It mostly stars a bunch of character actors, though it features cameos from Jack Black, David Cross, Bob Odenkirk (who also directed and produced it), Maura Tierney, Jenna Fischer, and that guy who plays Pete on 30 Rock. The guy who wrote the movie and stars as Melvin, Michael Blieden, played a special agent in Arrested Development along with the other male star, Matt Price. The two lady leads are Annabelle Gurwitch, previously the host of "Dinner and a Movie" back in the day on TBS, and Stephanie Courtney, who has recently landed a role as a switchboard operator on Mad Men.

These accolades aren't very impressive, I realize, but the movie is nothing but excellent and captivating from start to finish. Here is Jack Black's scene in the movie:

David Cross and Bob Odenkirk starred together in Mr. Show, which was usually fucking hilarious. But they also starred together in a Yo La Tengo video for what's probably their most famous song, "Sugarcube." As you probably know from reading this blog, I don't miss opportunities to write about YLT, especially when there's funny involved.

Yo La Tengo - New Music - More Music Videos

Little Feat

2009-03-28T20:01:00.006+11:00

Cocaine is a funny drug when it comes to music. It makes some artists actually create better music (Sly and the Family Stone), and it gives some artists the illusion that their music is better than it really is (Conor Oberst). Some artists, after kicking the habit, get bloated (John Mayer), and some die a cocaine death (Ike Turner). A lot of musicians have written songs about the pitfalls of cocaine (Phish, Bob Dylan). But it takes something special to write a song championing the love for such a notorious substance.

Enter: Little Feat (and possibly Van Dyke Parks). Little Feat were a Southern rock band in the 70's. The first time I had ever heard of them, it was on the recommendation of my dad.

One day a few years ago he mentioned this Little Feat to me. "Oh yeah, they were smokin'!" or something. "Ok cool, I'll have to...check them out...someday..." and then I didn't.

It wasn't until I saved a copy of Robert Palmer's Sneaking Sally Through the Alley from becoming dumpster food that I first got to know what Little Feat were all about. The backing band on this album are a couple dudes from Little Feat and a couple dudes from the Meters, and the first track is a cover of Little Feat's "Sailing Shoes". The cover is pretty funked out, with a heavy bass line and some sultry ladies complementing Palmer's soulful pipes. And then I still didn't seek out the original until I was at my parents' house last September. I was digging through some of my records, some of which got mixed in with my parents'. And there it was: 1972's Sailing Shoes, by Little Feat.

I was watching the Cubs trying to clinch the division with the sound off, and popped the old bird onto the platter. The original "Sailin' Shoes" is much more sparse than the Palmer cover. It's Southern, but not in that dumb rock Skynyrd kind of way. It doesn't try to rock at all. Laid-back slide guitar, plodding honky tonk piano, gospel chorus. In a word, this song owns.

I had my computer music on shuffle this week, and what should pop up but a Van Dyke Parks song entitled "Sailin' Shoes" from the same year as the Little Feat version. "What is this all about?" I asked myself.

Well it turns out, Parks probably had something to do with the writing of this song. He and Little Feat's frontman (and member of Zappa's Mothers of Invention) Lowell George were good friends. It seems a little odd, then, that Parks never got credit for the song.

So here are the three versions:

Robert Palmer - Sailing Shoes
Van Dyke Parks - Sailin' Shoes
Little Feat - Sailin' Shoes

Department of Eagles video

2009-03-26T09:43:00.004+11:00

It's always nice when people put a lot of effort into a music video. The new Department of Eagles video for "No One Does It Like You" features an astonishing amount of choreography, some pretty great costumes, and a whole lot of bloodshed. It's fun artsy fartsy, not to be confused with heavy artsy fartsy. You feel me?

Cat Stevens

2009-03-25T12:41:00.004+11:00

Matthew and Son, Cat Stevens' first album, is by far the least introspective of his releases. This album is full of AM-radio-oriented tracks, nearly all of which clock in at under 3 minutes. There are better Cat Stevens albums out there, but none with as much ear candy.

Some of these songs are certified hits. The album opens with the title track, which is one of the more dynamic tracks on the album. It has baroque pop written all over it, which signifies the rest of the album's style. The following track, "I Love My Dog", is a more contemplative affair. Interestingly, it features Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones on bass. It was Cat Stevens' first single, though it's not as well known as "Matthew and Son" or the third track, "Here Comes My Baby". This track seemed to gain in popularity after it was featured in Wes Anderson's "Rushmore". It was also covered by professional cover band Yo La Tengo on 1990's Fakebook.

The sugary sweet keeps cruising along on the next track, "Bring Another Bottle Baby". The song is a sexy French affair, which I can't help but think shaped the Flight of the Conchords song "Foux du Fafa".

Another significant track on this record is "I've Found a Love." Anyone familiar with Panda Bear's 2007 Person Pitch will recognize the guitar strumming and tambourine-tapping right after the chorus. Somewhere in the middle of that album's epicenter, "Bros", features that sample. Record nerds!

The rest of the album features songs that aren't quite as ambitious, though decent all the same. And there's the album closer, "I'm Gonna Get Me a Gun", which a bit unnerving. The title suggests exactly what the song is about, though it's no ballad. The music sounds a bit like the background for a Tom and Jerry chase. Weird stuff. Apparently it was written for a musical about Billy the Kid, but the musical was never produced. Strangely, despite not having any context, it was released as a single in the UK and never had any controversy along with it.

Cat Stevens - Matthew & Son (1967)

Yo La Tengo - Here Comes My Baby

Still Flyin'

2009-03-23T20:18:00.007+11:00

Still Flyin' should be given honorary Australian residency. They've toured the country twice in two years, they're friends with Architecture in Helsinki, recorded their debut long-player here, and have already released the album in Australia, while all those chumps in the US and Europe have to wait another month to get their hands on it.

Still Flyin' are known to party hearty. They're a fun band, plain and simple, and all of that excitement and life-affirming attitude is put into their music (along with a bunch of slang that I don't fully understand- "hammjamm"?). They don't sing about the tribulations, they sing about the party bus. It's kind of like a mix between Vampire Weekend and Architecture in Helsinki, with the collective properties of Broken Social Scene.

I should mention that the main dude's voice turned me off a little when I first listened to their recorded music, but this band has tons of people singing in it, and the energy and catchiness of it all are well-worth listening to, even if the dude isn't always pitch-perfect. And as I previously mentioned, they put on an insanely entertaining live show.

Here's a track off the forthcoming Never Gonna Touch the Ground. Even if you don't pick up this album, don't miss them live. Fun as hell.

Still Flyin' - The Hottchord is Struck

New Bill Callahan

2009-03-20T22:09:00.005+11:00

Here's a new song called "Eid Ma Clack Shaw." When Woke On a Whaleheart first came out, I remember thinking that a happy Smog just doesn't seem quite right. Eventually that album grew on me and I realized that I felt good to know that he felt good. But if this new track is any indication of the rest of the new album, he's back to the depressing nature of the bulk of his work. Although that makes for some great music, it's hard to see (or hear) your heroes in such pain.

In other news, there's a guy at my bridge club that looks exactly like Bill Callahan in 30 years.

Bill Callahan - Eid Ma Clack Shaw

Booker T and the MG's - McLemore Avenue

2009-03-20T20:49:00.005+11:00

Booker T and the MG's, most known as the Stax house band that brought the world Green Onions, were no stranger to cover songs. In 1970 they managed an entire album dedicated to covers of songs from the Beatles' Abbey Road. McLemore Avenue, named after the avenue that housed Stax studios, contains all but four of the original album's tracks (leaving out Maxwell's Silver Hammer, Oh Darling, Octopus' Garden, and Paul McCartney's closing ditty Her Majesty). Similarly to Abbey Road's second side, most of the songs here are arranged as medleys, which gives the album a lot of fluidity. What's interesting, though, is that the songs are not entirely replicated in their original sequence. "The End" fuses into "Here Comes the Sun" and "She Came in Through the Bathroom Window" turns into "I Want You (She's So Heavy)". It's quite a curveball for anyone that's listened to Abbey Road enough to know all the lyrics by heart (as millions of people surely do).

Although McLemore Avenue doesn't offer the variety or studio professionalism that Abbey Road does, it's a lot more groove-driven. The signature Booker T elements are there, including the constant organ whir, loose guitar solos, and tight rhythm section of Donald "Duck" "Double Chin" Dunn and Al Jackson Jr. Sure, McLemore Avenue is a bit of a novelty. But it's more fun and laid-back than the original and it's something new, yet familiar (like Coke Zero or any romantic comedy ever made).

I wish writing about principles of good governance was as fun as this album...

Booker T and the MG's - McLemore Avenue (1970)

Henry Cow - Unrest

2009-03-19T12:35:00.006+11:00

I really don't know much about Henry Cow. Unrest is the only album I've heard by them. But it's a masterpiece of an album, and even if the rest of their stuff is garbage (which it likely isn't), they deserve to be praised based on Unrest alone.

I do know two things about Henry Cow: they were contemporaries of the Soft Machine and they were a band, not just some guy named Henry. The album Unrest sounds a bit like Third-era Soft Machine (post-singing) but with more free-jazz overtones. There are basically two types of songs in this album- those that are dominated by frenetic drumming and wailing, scatterbrained guitar solos ("Bitter Storm Over Ulm," "Half Asleep; Half Awake," "Upon Entering the Hotel Adlon"), and those that take direction via the bassoon ("Solemn Music," "Linguaphonie," "Arcades"). "Deluge" combines elements of both song structures with the drums taking the forefront and atonal, Albert Ayler-esque bassoon passages in the background. From here, the album goes into dark, tortured territory. "The Glove" sounds like a full-moon midnight at an electro-shock therapy clinic, replete with caterwauling, unsettling bassoon, and snippets of agitated drumming harnessed to what sounds like a chimp playing piano. "Torchfire" is only slightly less unnerving, as it avoids the pained yelling in favor of schizophrenic guitar and keyboard solos.

Unrest, indeed.

Henry Cow - Unrest (1974)

Here's a video of the band playing Phil Ochs' "No More Songs," one of the most depressing songs from an arsenal full of depressing songs.

Camera Obscura video

2009-03-17T12:51:00.002+11:00

A few weeks ago I posted the new Camera Obscura single "French Navy," off the forthcoming My Maudlin Career. They've just released the video for the song. It's a damn fine indie pop number, and they're a damn fine indie pop band. Just look at how sharply they're dressed!

Richard Youngs

2009-03-17T11:53:00.004+11:00

Last night, I briefly mentioned the influence of Bert Jansch on British folk musicians. One such apprentice is Richard Youngs. Calling him a folk musician, however, would be greatly dwarfing Youngs' indulgences in a slew of genres, from experimental, raga, and noise freakouts to simpler folk and electronic works. My introduction to him was 2005's Naive Shaman, a body of amorphous and pulsing electronic sounds to complement his floating melodies. His voice is not unlike Jeff Mangum's (of Neutral Milk Hotel) at his most content, though traces of Jansch and Tim Buckley come through as well.

I was originally intending to post a song off Naive Shaman, but I've decided to keep with the folk theme of last night's post and go with a song called "Trees That Fall" off the 2002 album May. We're coming into autumn here. The air is cooling and getting a little crisper, and some folk tunes only seem appropriate for such weather. Of course, it would make sense for me to post something off his 2007 album Autumn Response, but, well, I can't, because I don't own it.

I will eventually get to some of his more experimental works another time, but for now, bask in the pastoral comforts of this song.

Richard Youngs - Trees That Fall

Needle of Death

2009-03-16T20:30:00.005+11:00

There's a song I'd like to share this evening by a Scottish fellow named Bert Jansch. He's had quite a prolific career, putting out dozens of albums on a myriad of labels as a solo artist as well as a fair few albums with Pentangle. "Needle of Death" was one of his most popular songs, released off his first album in 1965 before he took to playing with a group. The album also contains a song called "Alice's Wonderland," written by Charles Mingus. As is pretty evident when you listen to his recordings, Jansch influenced many important songwriters, including the recently-deceased John Martyn and the long-ago-deceased Nick Drake. Jansch is still alive and well.

Bert Jansch - Needle of Death

Yo La Tengo recorded it for their Today is the Day EP, released a few months after Summer Sun in 2003. Georgia Hubley takes the vocal duties and treats the song with the somber loving care it deserves. I think Yo La Tengo are generally better off when they're doing their own material, but in this instance, they do the song justice and then some. The entire EP is a little gem, one side smoking hot indie rock, the other a handful of more subdued and acoustic numbers.

I don't really feel like putting in the links to the usual informative sites, and I suspect nobody will have a problem with it since nobody comments on this thing anyway.

Yo La Tengo - Needle of Death

Go-Betweens video

2009-03-15T17:17:00.005+11:00

It's largely a video weekend here at the Regular Express, mostly due to me working a whole bunch the last couple of days. Time constraints, my friend.

Within this large coastal country, a band that gets very little recognition is the Go-Betweens. All the classic Australian bands get played on the radio constantly, and a lot of talentless contemporary bands are praised as a lot more permanent than the fleeting hot garbage that they are. But never do I hear Go-Betweens songs on the radio. I never hear other bands mention them as an influence, and they repeatedly go unmentioned on lists of important Aussie bands.

So I'm righting the wrongs of the world, one band at a time. This is the video for "Was There Anything I Could Do?" from the 1988 album 16 Lovers Lane, which is chalk full of goodies. This video is poking fun at other 80's videos, and is alternatively funny and horrifyingly gaudy.

And in case you can't handle Robert Forster's rouge, here's the track sans video:

The Go-Betweens - Was There Anything I Could Do?

Fleetwood Mac video

2009-03-13T14:02:00.005+11:00

Another old video. This time it's the s/t song from the album "Tusk" by Fleetwood Mac. The video is largely based around the making of the actual song with the USC Marching Band, which was no small (or cheap) feat. It includes a little morning wine, baton-twirling, and a cardboard cutout of John McVie. (Don't you love how wikipedia has horrible pictures of musicians well past their prime?)

Thin Lizzy

2009-03-13T11:46:00.005+11:00

The finest point in the evolution of music videos was early on when the short features shifted from a mock-live setting to something more directorially creative. Today we see music videos taken into a whole new faction of media, whereby videos tell a completely different story than the song itself or serve as a platform for showing off graphic design skills. The early 80's were a simpler time in the production of music videos, when the video served to enhance the meaning of the song through simple narratives.

Many bands that I cherish had fallen by the qualitative wayside by the time videos were becoming an artform. Not Thin Lizzy, though. They managed to put out some gems in that time period. It's hard for me to say what my favorite Thin Lizzy album is, but 1979's Black Rose probably gets the most spins.

The song "Sarah" was released as the third single off the album and is probably the poppiest hit Thin Lizzy ever put out. The song was written for Phil Lynott's daughter, and the video shows Sarah growing up before his very eyes and into a woman, then a Scott Gorham.

Bill Callahan/Smog

2009-03-12T10:42:00.007+11:00

Make no bones about it: I love Bill Callahan. He's hands-down my favorite solo artist and easily in my top five favorite musical entities. So the good news is that the forthcoming "Sometimes I Wish We Were An Eagle" is coming out in little over a month and today Stereogum has reported on the progress of said album.

For a couple weeks now I've been meaning to share the "Rock Bottom Riser EP" but am just getting to it now. It was the last release under the Smog moniker before he shed the shackles of Shmog-ery to become eponymous. The EP came out a year after "A River Ain't Too Much to Love" and features two album cuts ("Rock Bottom Riser" and "I Feel Like the Mother of the World") and two non-album cuts ("Bowery" and "Fool's Lament"). These latter two sewed the seeds for what was to become the country amblings of "Woke on a Whaleheart." The CD also contains videos for the album tracks, one of which features the big love of Chloe Sevigny and can be seen here:

EDIT: Link removed upon request- go out and buy it you filthy animals!
Rock Bottom Riser
1) Rock Bottom Riser
2) I Feel Like the Mother of the World
3) Bowery
4) Fool's Lament

Superchunk

2009-03-12T10:16:00.004+11:00

The new Superchunk EP, to be released April 7th, the year of our lord 2009, is currently available for streaming pleasure from Merge Rekkids.

It's been quite a long while since Superchunk has released anything proper, though Mac "the Knife" McCaughan has been at it with that other Superchunk-sounding project Portastatic and drummer Jon Wurster is also in that Mountain Goats band and, as always, making his patented phony phone calls on The Best Show.

Whenever I listen to Superchunk, it gives me a false sense of nostalgia for high school, even though I had never heard of either band while I was actually in high school. It just sounds like stuff I listened to in high school. In fact, I used to think Superchunk, and not Supergrass, were responsible for that "Alright" song off the Clueless soundtrack. Those were confusing times.

Neko Case Interview

2009-03-10T20:55:00.007+11:00

Last week, two of Chicago's major newspaper music critics, Greg Kot (rock critic for the Chicago Tribune and author of the Wilco biography "Learning How To Die") and Jim Derogatis (music critic for the Chicago Sun Times and key witness in the R. Kelly trial) interviewed a girl way out of their league when they got the lovely Neko Case on their radio program Sound Opinions. Not only is Neko totally stunning, remarkably talented, and the proud owner of a singing voice that would put most American Idol contestants to shame, but she's also got a great sense of humor and modesty to spare, as evidenced in this interview. Quite a catch, that girl.

In addition to talking about her newest recordings, she performs three tracks from the album Middle Cyclone- the title track, "People Got A Lotta Nerve," and the Harry Nilsson tearjerker "Don't Forget Me" with that other female insurgent country Chicagoan and Aqua Teen siren Kelly Hogan and guitarist Paul Rigby.

Neko Case Interview

EDIT: Link fixed!

Kings Go Forth

2009-03-09T20:58:00.006+11:00

Kings Go Forth are a three-part-harmony soul group out of Milwaukee (actually, they're mostly IN Milwaukee, as I'm not sure they've really played much outside of Chicago's little brother). Nevertheless, they create soul music that could easily be placed on the shelf next to Curtis Mayfield and the Temptations. In the last month or so they've put out their first release, a 45 with the tracks "One Day" and "You're the One." Both of these are stone-cold funk. They're a little raw and rough around the edges, though this only helps to make them sound authentically old, unlike the sterile "retro" sounds of Wino and the like. Check it out:

Kings Go Forth - One Day

Kings Go Forth - You're the One

Joe Lally 7/3/09

2009-03-09T10:50:00.004+11:00

A friend of mine alerted me to the fact that Joe Lally was playing at the Hopetoun this past Saturday night. I had heard his first solo album around the time of its release and wasn't all that impressed with it, but figured I'd tag along anyway. Hell, I was even pretty excited to go. First off, the dude was in one of the most influential bands ever. He's been touring for over 20 years, so it's probably safe to assume he knows his way around the stage. Thirdly, the show was only $12. Most local bands charge at least that much, and any international act coming out charges anywhere from $25-$100. Needless to say, I'm game.

I realized as I was sitting through the openers that I didn't really know what to expect. Is Joe Lally going to play bass by himself? Is there going to be any spoken word? Is he going to cover Fugazi songs? It ended up being a pretty straightforward (see: minimal) setup- drums, one guitar, one microphone, bass. To my knowledge he didn't play any Fugazi songs, or at least if he did I wasn't familiar with it/them. His set simply contained an even mix of songs from both his solo albums.

Like I said, I wasn't all that taken by his first solo album, 2006's "There to Here." But the music made a lot more sense in a live setting. There was no aggression, no punk raucousness. Without that "flair," all that was left were the DIY ethos, the alienation from society, discontentment with consumerism, imperialism, war, etc.

Lally's bass playing is pretty amazing. If you've ever listened to at least one Fugazi song, you know this. But what's more impressive is that he's actually capable of singing while playing. It's one thing to be able to sing while playing some guitar chords, but quite another to play poly-rhythmic riffs while singing an entirely separate melody line. Lally was backed by a couple of dudes in a band called Gallucci. Because Lally's bass was holding down the song, the guitarist was free to explore cacophonic noise, atonal shifts, and lulling squalls as he so desired. The drumming was purposeful if a little minimal, which I'm sure was exactly the point.

The encore was the only time they strayed from this arrangement. First Joe went into the audience to sing an a cappella anti-war song called "Sons and Daughters." It's a moving hymnal about the atrocities of war and the justification for killing people that are a little bit different from us for the sake of furthering our means. It's only more powerful without any music behind it. They also brought a saxaphonist on stage for a song called "Factory Warranty." When it could be heard it was good, but sound problems caused the sax to hardly be heard and the effort was underwhelmed.

Despite the minimal instrumentation, stoic vocals, and lack of stage antics and background vocals, my attention was still captured for well over an hour by an artist whose songs I hardly know. I can't even say that for bands that I really know and love! He's maybe not a guy I'd like to catch a ballgame with, but the show was a real testament to his music and way of life. All for $12.

Here's a performance of Joe doing "Scavenger's Garden" in Spain in late January 2009:

Bonnie Prince Billy

2009-03-06T12:48:00.003+11:00

Drag City is giving the world the new Bonnie Prince Billy video for "I Am Goodbye."

With the mandolin, fiddle, female backing vocals, and wah pedal, dude is starting to sound like 70's era Grateful Dead.

Ha ha, just fucking with you.

Pavement

2009-03-06T11:42:00.007+11:00

Nine years since their dissolution and Pavement continue to make headlines. Way to go guys. Just reunite already.

In 1999, just a month prior to Terror Twilight's release, the band performed on the BBC. Their set featured more than one, but less than six songs off Terror Twilight as well as a smattering of older songs. Packaged with three extra cuts from their set at the Glastonbury Festival that year, the album has been circulating as "Anybody Can Go." The sound on this bootleg is nothing if not stellar, which is certainly a relief from all the crappy video and audio clips from people's phones and cameras that get passed off as recordings these days.

Live Pavement is great because it straddles a line between "Awesome!" and "What the fuck?" Enjoy the demon voices and cooing on "Stereo."

Pavement - Anybody Can Go

1) The Hexx
2) You Are a Light
3) Here
4) Cream of Gold
5) Ann, Don't Cry
6) Stereo
7) Father to a Sister of Thought
8) Carrot Rope
9) Cut Your Hair
10) Trigger Cut
11) Shady Lane
12) Stereo
13) Range Life
14) Summer Babe

Trivia

2009-03-06T11:40:00.003+11:00

The Clearance Creamsoda Redial Trivia Team came in 5th last night. We'll get there one day.

Creedence Clearwater Revival

2009-03-05T10:47:00.010+11:00

They're a staple on the classic rock stations, an institution of "southern rock." They have a hatful of hits, ranging from blues covers to party songs to rueful traveling jams. Creedence Clearwater Revival are an especially impressive band when you consider that they made seven albums in just over five years, all of which are good.

The critic's pick is usually Cosmo's Factory, which contains six singles, a cover of "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," and quite possibly their best song ever, "Ramble Tamble." Willy & The Poor Boys is another critical winner and fan favorite, and it's no wonder with their two biggest hits, "Fortunate Son" and "Down on the Corner."

But the only album that is generally disregarded is far and away my favorite in the CCR catalogue. 1972's Mardi Gras. This album only contains one song (the underrated "Someday Never Comes") featured on that ubiquitous "Chronicle Vol 1" album. As a youngster, Chronicle was my introduction to CCR, as it probably was for most anybody that's ever liked the band. But when I finally got around the listening to Mardi Gras, possibly the reason I liked it so much was because it didn't feature those Chronicle songs. These are the deep cuts.

What's more interesting is that this is the only CCR album that doesn't feature Fogerty Tom, and still the only one to feature songwriting contributions from the other members of the band. I don't know if John's tank was running dry or if the departure of Tom left him to reflect on his controlling ways, but I'm personally glad Doug Clifford and Stu Cook got their moment in the sun. And what's more, Clifford never sulled his nickname "Cosmo" with racist banter (see: Michael Richards). With all that variety, and without any singles (but one), nobody can differentiate between what's good and what's filler. It's brilliant!

Where Creedence were always teetering on the line between country and swamp rock boogie, they plummet into the country depths here. "Lookin' For A Reason" and "Tearin' Up the Country" are pure country- the former as an ambling stroll, the latter as a Johnny Cash homage. "What Are You Gonna Do" and "Hello Mary Lou" are two of the most straight-forward pop songs here, as punchy as they are simple.

The real shining moments, in my opinion, are single contributions from each member. Doug Clifford's "Need Someone to Hold' is the closest the album comes to balladry, and Clifford's the guy to do it, having a (relatively) smoother voice than the other two. "Someday Never Comes" is, as I said, underrated. If another song on this album contains a hint of balladry, it's this one, though it quickly shifts into driving rock, and just as quickly back to a slow-tempoed lament. Lyrically it's one of Fogerty's best, addressing the grandeur and egregiousness of youth. It's also the only song that clocks in at over 4 minutes. And then there's Stu Cook's "Sail Away." His voice, in contrast to Clifford's, is rougher than Fogerty's, and his delivery is totally overblown. It's an abrasive country pop number about shirking adult duties by taking to the sea. It's an appropriate song for his voice.

There is actually another single on this album that I've totally forgotten about until now. The Fogerty-penned "Sweet Hitchhiker" is the last track on the album, and basically sounds like every other barn-burning CCR song ever. I think it's maybe the most unexceptional song on the album, though it managed to get to #6 on the singles chart in its day. Forget about that song for the moment and enjoy the revamped stylings of Creedence Clearwater Revival.

The worst album I have ever heard from a major rock band" - Rolling Stone

Creedence Clearwater Revival - Mardi Gras

1) Lookin' For a Reason
2) Take It Like a Friend
3) Need Somebody to Hold
4) Tearin' Up the Country
5) Someday Never Comes
6) What Are You Gonna Do
7) Sail Away
8) Hello Mary Lou
9) Door to Door
10) Sweet Hitch-hiker

And here's a little something from the Japanese CCR cover band, Clearance Creamsoda Redial...what'd he say?

Camera Obscura

2009-03-03T11:59:00.004+11:00

Another new Camera Obscura song:

Camera Obscura - French Navy

2 for 2.

Kalimba

2009-03-03T11:05:00.006+11:00

A few years back I took a class about the history of music. It was basically a class about chant, classical, and opera, none of which I'm all that into. But it was still one of the best classes I ever took in college, mostly because the teacher was really amusing. She's won dozens of awards for composition and holds a PhD in composition from the University of Chicago. She constantly traveled to attend and perform at music conventions around the world. I had kind of a big crush on her, even though she was in her mid-60's and married. She was Canadian, and after she had lived in the US for a certain period of time, she was eligible for citizenship, to which she said, "No way. I'm Canadian, honey." I like that sort of steadfastness.

On the last day of class, all the students in the class went to her apartment so we could play her instruments and she could give us an oboe demonstration. Also she fed us some finger foods and beer. Anyway, her apartment was this amazing musical playground. She had two pianos, a harpsichord, lots of wind instruments, a whole wall full of sheet music, and lots of little tchotchkes from Asia and Africa. One instrument that I totally fell in love with was something called a kalimba (also known as mbira or thumb piano). I played it for most of the night, coming up with little melodies and stuff. It's really easy to play and sounds something like a cross between tubular bells and a xylophone.

So anyway, my teacher told me that she got hers in Africa and I just assumed that Africa was the only place you could buy one. Wrong! I saw these really cheaply made ones in a store around Christmastime and it reignited that kalimba spark in me. Coincidentally, for Christmas one of my relatives got me an Amazon gift card. I bought some headphones and had a bit of money left over, so I started browsing around online. I ended up finding kalimbas on there and picked one up (along with Hungary's crowning achievement, a Rubik's cube).

So I got my kalimba today, and it's pretty spectacular. It was only $30 but it seems like it's put together really well. It's in tune, which is a plus, and the board is solid but fairly lightweight. It's extremely easy to play and it's a really good tool for coming up with melodies. Thumbs up, thumb piano!

Dismemberment Plan

2009-03-02T10:48:00.006+11:00

It's my first day back at school today, and to celebrate I considered posting Sting's "Brand New Day" or U2's "Beautiful Day." Oh wait, no I didn't.

Because it's been a few years since I finished my degree, I've forgotten about all the excruciatingly boring lectures, the late nights writing papers on coelacanths or copyright law. I'm still looking at it optimistically, like the world is my Silly Putty. That's right, I'm going to build your town one day.

So anyway, I've been on a bit of a nostalgic kick, thinking back to my first days on a college campus. I remember getting really into The Dismemberment Plan's "Emergency & I" right at the start of my first college semester, so what better way to start off my second-first-college semester, than with a track from that album?

Dismemberment Plan - Life of Possibilities

I was trying to figure out which other Emergency & I song I should post, but fuck it- this album rules. It's upbeat and manic and funny and bleak and depressing as hell all at once. Some of the best lyrics I've ever heard are on this album. One of the best bands I've ever seen was this band. "Spider in the Snow"? "Girl O'Clock"? You can't beat it! I'm starting to get way too excited about this album so I'll just end it here.

Dismemberment Plan - Emergency & I

1) Life of Possibilities
2) Memory Machine
3) What Do You Want Me To Say?
4) Spider In The Snow
5) The Jitters
6) I Love A Magician
7) You Are Invited
8) Gyroscope
9) The City
10) Girl O'Clock
11) 8 1/2 Minutes
12) Back And Forth

This is fucked up.

2009-02-28T21:17:00.003+11:00

In a relationship, you must always be planning ahead...

Magnetic Fields - The One You Really Love

Pharoah Sanders

2009-02-28T16:27:00.006+11:00

I've been living in Sydney for a little over a year. In that time I haven't managed to find any decent employment and have just been working odd jobs around the way. I've just come home from working at a restaurant. Without getting into a big diatribe about the service industry, I'll just say that this job bums me out. It's a bit of an existentialist nightmare, for one thing. But the larger issue is all the stress that everyone is under all the time and the disrespect for coworkers that stems from this stress. I've never really considered food service to be a serious occupation, so I don't really get too stressed at work. But as you may well know, it's difficult to work in an environment where everyone is yelling at each other and ordering people around.

What I find to be a really good remedy when I'm feeling down about this is to consider the grand order of things and the peace and positive energy that exist in the world. I turn to the deep thinkers, the enlightened ones. I always find it uplifting to listen to the meditative retreats of certain Impulse! artists like Alice Coltrane and Pharoah Sanders. The themes of these artists are usually love, meditation, spiritualism, and peace. I suppose these themes could sound really hokey if the music wasn't there to match. Fortunately, these are some of the greatest, most free-thinking jazz musicians ever, and usually the music says it far more eloquently than the words might.

I don't know a whole lot about jazz, and only within the last two years have I really started to "get it." When I was first starting to enjoy jazz I was introduced to Pharoah Sanders. He played with both John and Alice Coltrane in their prime periods, and has continued his own recordings into this decade. As a 69 year old he gets out a lot less than he used to, but he's still known to make an appearance at jazz festivals from time to time. The first recording that I heard by Pharoah Sanders was 1969's "Karma." Karma is largely comprised of a single track- "The Creator Has a Master Plan." In the first 8 minutes, Sanders' tenor sax is on display, first as bombastic chaos (as a friend once said, "This sounds like someone's running through a pack of loons."), and then as a more relaxed and uplifting 2 chord stroll. But from there, it's Leon Thomas' singing that really takes over. First it's a soothing refrain, but it eventually drifts away from structure and into freeform yodelling and spiritual prowess. The song grows into a serious freakout as Thomas begins to whoop and holler in a way that sounds nonhuman. Sanders complements this with his own hollering, only he does so through his instrument. They eventually come down to finish the song on a peaceful note with the same refrain as what started out this journey.

The other track, Colors, is more peaceful and contemplative. The track serves as a comedown from the epicness of "The Creator Has a Master Plan" with a babbling piano line and Thomas' soothing baritone. The drums never really play a rhythm, so to speak, but instead shuffle along in order to signify the ending.

Pharoah Sanders - Karma

Track Listing:
1) The Creator Has a Master Plan
2) Colors

Ahhhh.

Bell Orchestre

2009-02-27T15:26:00.007+11:00

When the first Bell Orchestre album "Recording a Tape the Colour of Light" came out, I remember it as being touted an Arcade Fire side project. This was 2005, after all, when you couldn't go two seconds without hearing the "Arcade Fire...awesome...best band....taking over..." Fair enough, I guess. After all, it IS an Arcade Fire-related project. But the Bell Orchestre are more closely related to their fellow instrumentalist Canadians Do Make Say Think or Godspeed You! Black Emperor.

Unlike DMST, however, the Bell Orchestre has a greater focus on percussion and/or horns (French horn, clarinet, trumpet, and perhaps my favorite, bass saxaphone) rather than guitars. And unlike GY!BE, there is no impending doom. Their first album has a sense of urgency without getting overwhelming, and stradles a fine line between beauty and chaos. With all these ingredients- a member of Arcade Fire, comparisons to heavy-hitting post-rockers, and a sound that is complex-yet-accessible-- you'd think they'd be an underground success, right? But when "Recording a Tape the Colour of Light" came out it was largely ignored, and I haven't heard mention of the band since. Again, I must say, the music industry is a fortuitous and fickle mistress.

Fortunately, the band is soon releasing a new album called "As Seen Through Windows." This album is similar in style to their first LP, though they've taken a step away from the urgency that was so pressing in "Recording a Tape the Colour of Light" and decided to build open planes of sound instead. They make better use of the band as a whole this time around instead of stringing together short solos for each instrument. This allows for a denser record that doesn't feel suffocating, but rather ephemeral and lilting. Think Rachel's, think Efterklang, think Sigur Ros with horns in place of vocals. It's music for late snowy nights, warm baths, and slow, slow death.

The title track:
Bell Orchestre - As Seen Through Windows

The music video for "Throw It On A Fire" (from "Recording a Tape the Colour of Light"):

Wilco - Roger and Out

2009-02-27T10:57:00.006+11:00

So, it's just been reported that Chicago's hometown heroes Wilco will release their 7th studio album (not counting the Mermaid Avenue albums) in June. With all that experimental talent in Glenn Kotche and Nels Cline, I'm hoping we don't get another dad-rock record like that Sky Blue Dump. I kid! That album wasn't the worst thing I've ever heard. But it certainly wasn't what I've come to expect from the band.

Anyway, when I heard that Wilco was coming up with some new shit, it jogged my memory. As a wee teen, I remember when downloading wasn't even an option, and then when Napster came to be, and it took three hours to download a song on your dial-up internet. If the connection was interrupted, by perhaps your mother or sister picking up the phone, the connection was lost and you'd have to start d/ling the song from scratch again. I also remember having nary a one record store in my town (KMart was the only option for CDs), and how it was a blessing to get a Best Buy gift card for Christmas. And then finally my friend Bryan got his license, and we'd get blazed after school and venture out to the bigger suburbs for a trip to Record Breakers.

On one particular visit, I noticed that they had a bunch of bootlegs for sale. In those days it was pretty risque to be selling unsolicited copies of anything because the RIAA still had command of the industry. I think Record Breakers eventually got caught and had to pay a big fine or something. But that wasn't my problem. My problem was that I was standing there, baked out of my skull, trying to decide on a Wilco bootleg or a bunch of stickers for my guitar case. I eventually decided on getting both the Wilco CD as well as a Grateful Dead sticker, that didn't turn out to be a sticker at all, but a decal (doy...stone chillin').

So anyway, nearly 10 years and many good and bad decisions later (one good one was to stop getting stoned), I'd like to share that Wilco bootleg with you, my internet friends and stalkers.

Wilco - Roger and Out

1) Someday Soon
2) Forget the Flowers
3) Far, Far Away
4) In Your Dreams
5) Out of Mind
6) Lonely 1
7) I Got You
8) Must Be High
9) Pick Up The Change
10) Wait Up
11) Not the Issue
12) Casino Queen
13) Box of Letters
14) Acuff Rose

Tracks 1-7 were recorded on Valentine's Day 1997 at T&G Studios in Philadelphia. Tracks 8-14 were from a concert in July 1995 at the Mountain Stage in Charleston, WA. The first 7 tracks are from Being There and the last 7 are off A.M., with the exception of Uncle Tupelo's "Acuff Rose" and "Wait Up."

Enjoy!

Group Bombino

2009-02-26T14:00:00.004+11:00

Sublime Frequencies has done it again- another release from the rebels of Niger. This time it's Guitars from Agadez, Volume 2, recorded by Group Bombino. Unlike the first volume, recorded by Group Inerane (which shares some members with Group Bombino), this one is half acoustic, half electric.

The first side is more folk-based and was apparently recorded in the desert with only hand claps as percussion. These acoustic songs remind me of some of those Yaala Yaala Records (Drag City imprint) releases from a couple years ago, and also some of the Lipa Kodi Ya City Council jams.

All of side 2 was recorded through generators. Side one is great in its isolation and message of hope, but side 2...damn. Raw, dirty, psychedelic, and full of life. This is powerful music, replete with messy guitars, ululating, chanting, and a strong rhythm. These songs are not exactly light listening. They have a heavy message to them, much as Fela Kuti's music did. This is music for the uprising. Again, I cannot stress enough how raw this stuff is. It's really unlike anything coming out of the western world. So, so, so good.

Group Bombino - Guitars From Agadez, Volume 2

Say it 10 times fast:
A1) Tenere
A2) Imuhar
A3) Kamoutalia
A4) Amidinine
B1) Boghassa
B2) Imouhare
B3) Issitchilane
B4) Kamu Telyat
B5) Eronafene Tihoussayene

Here's a 30 second film clip to give you an idea of how kickass this is:

There's a one time pressing of 1500 copies of this record and it's already sold out at the Sublime Frequencies website. You can still get it here, but not for much longer. Considering the first volume goes for around $100 on eBay, I'd strongly suggest grabbing a copy of this now. Even from halfway around the world I already got my grubby hands on one of these. Not to be missed!

Yo La Tengo/Condo Fucks

2009-02-25T10:49:00.023+11:00

Metro Chicago

("Yo La Tango" and "Lamb Chop.")............................(They got "Yo La Tengo" correct the second time, but RICK Brown wasn't so fortunate.)

Yo La Tengo are the absolute jam. Their creative restlessness, their balancing act of wearing their hearts on their sleeves without being wimpy, their ability to cross genres without flinching, and their willingness to cover any band they well choose...these are all exactly the things I want in a band. They don't bother with image, other than being nice, honest, creative music dorks. The music has always come first, baseball a close second. I'm a little surprised it's taken me this long to talk about them.

So when I heard that Yo La Tengo were putting out a garage covers record under the name "Condo Fucks," well, I couldn't have been more fucking condo-ning. For one thing, it means new Yo La Tengo. For another, it means they're still having fun trying something new, which, if I'm to infer correctly, means no end in sight. It also means we'll get Yo La Tengo pretending to be a raucous garage band covering The Small Faces, Slade, and The Troggs. Win win win.

There's a new video, err, photo montage of a bunch of Connecticrap, where "Condo Fucks" are supposedly from. I really like that in the press release for the new album, they didn't even bother coming up with an alias for James McNew. Georgia Condo, Kid Condo, and James McNew. Yeah, he's just kind of there, hanging out, playing bass. You know, whatever.

Check it:

Loud and obnoxious and gritty and awesome.

And for kicks, here're the two Dylan covers they contributed to the "I'm Not There" soundtrack.

Yo La Tengo - Fourth Time Around (Bob Dylan)
Yo La Tengo - I Wanna Be Your Lover (Bob Dylan)

Mardi Gras

2009-02-24T09:13:00.008+11:00

Today, on this very Fat Tuesday, I'd like to pay tribute to a holiday that is better than Christmas, Halloween, and 4th of July all skewered together and deep-fried in delicious. That's right, it's Mardi Gras! No work or school for a week! Hot funk (not to be confused with white-hot funk)! Cab drivers smoking doobs! Plastic beads! Breasts! Booze! Parades!

I remember one year (2003?) when Aaron Carter was the king of one of the parades (Bacchus?), and my old roommate and I were trying to hit him in the face with beads. Serves him right, the little twerp.

This year Bacchus actually got a first rate celebrity, Jim Morrison/Batman/Iceman himself, Val Kilmer.

Two things that best epitomize that New Orleans spirit are The Meters and some Mardi Gras Mambo.

The Meters - Hey Pocky A-Way

The Hawketts - Mardi Gras Mambo

Sam Cooke

2009-02-23T10:16:00.006+11:00

Once upon a time there was a little Christian boy named Samuel Cook. He sang all them Jesus songs in the church choir up in Chicago. But then he went prodigal, changing his name to Sam Cooke, singing that devilish secular music (Gershwin) and getting all mixed up with prostititties.

Fortunately Sam Cooke will always be most well-known for his sweet, smooth vocals and doo-wop love songs. A vast multitude of artists cite him as an influence or idol, such as Otis Redding, who covered "Wonderful World," "Change Is Gonna Come," and "Shake" on Otis Blue. I read an Otis Redding biography once and he was talking about how ashamed he was of his rough voice in comparison to Cooke's. He idolized Cooke so much that he stole those patented Huh's and Ha's that can so often be heard in Cooke's (and Redding's) songs. I guess we all live in somebody's shadow.

About two years before his death in December 1964, "Live at the Harlem Square Club" was released. It shows a more rowdy side to Cooke and his songs. It sounds like Cooke is having a really good time and has the audience eating out of his hand for the entire show. His vocals are a little less restrained than on record, which gives this album tons of energy. This album also shows off the handy sax work of King Curtis, an Atlantic/Atco studio musician who headed Aretha Franklin's backing band. This is a really great excerpt from a career by one of the greatest singers of all time.

Live at the Harlem Square Club, 1963

Track Listing:
1) Feel It
2) Chain Gang
3) Cupid
4) It's All Right/For Sentimental Reasons
5) Twistin' the Night Away
6) Somebody Have Mercy
7) Bring It On Home To Me
8) Nothing Can Change This Love
9) Having a Party

Here also is a video of Sam covering Dylan's "Blowing in the Wind," a song that consequently inspired Cooke to write "A Change Is Gonna Come."

Dinosaur Jr.

2009-02-21T17:53:00.010+11:00

I just came home from work to find out that Dinosaur Jr. have just signed to Jagjaguwar. This means, with almost utmost certainty, that Dinosaur Jr. will be releasing a new album soon. What this also means, with a lot less likelihood, is that there's actually the possibility that they'll go out on the road with new labelmates Richard Youngs and Oneida and get on stage for a rousing rendition of Sheets of Easter.

Back on reality planet, it's good to know that Dinosaur Jr. have decided to actually be a band again, and that 2007's Beyond wasn't just a one-off. Dinosaur Jr. had their heyday before I was really kicking it, so I'm quite pleased that they're still puking and crying their way into our hearts. I do remember when Q101 started playing "Feel the Pain" on the radio. It was one of a few good songs that they played then and now that it's 15 years later, it's the only good song that they still play. Man, that station stinks. Anyway, I doubt the new album will be another "You're Living All Over Me," but I'm sure it'll make a few "best of" lists (mine included).

Here's a video of them playing their 15-year single "Feel the Pain" on HBO:

And here's their cover of Peter Frampton's "Show Me the Way," which was originally on "You're Living All Over Me" but I think got pulled because of copyright or something.

Dinosaur Jr. - Show Me the Way (Peter Frampton cover)

You're what the french call, "Les incompetents."

2009-02-20T15:37:00.004+11:00

I've achieved a small victory today in (sort of) figuring out how to let readers listen to songs without having to download them. Certainly this is not impressive to anybody but me, but like I say, "Don't hate, congratulate."

Much of the music I've posted thus far is being hosted on rapidshare, which doesn't allow you to listen to songs first, so I'll have to find a better hosting site. I'll work out these kinks in no time, and then we'll be on the streaming superhighway.

I'd really like to figure out how to host the files myself or have them embedded, but this will have to do for now.

Lifter Puller

2009-02-19T15:17:00.010+11:00

Since my last post was largely about guitar-heavy bands, I thought I'd stay on the rock tip for this one.

Seeing the Hold Steady a couple weeks ago has got me thinking about how fortuitous the music industry can be. Considering the previous Craig Finn incarnation, Lifter Puller, was essentially the same band making essentially the same music, why is it that they got absolutely no press whereas the Hold Steady have been cult darlings since their inception?

My conclusions:

1) Internet

2) Pitchfork

3) Hype

4) Internet-generated pitchfork hype

Fortunately they're a band that's worthy of the hype of 1000 Taylor Swifts, so it's all good.

I've really enjoyed this Lifter Puller song for a few years and wanted to share it. It's only available on the Soft Rock album, which compiles every recording of Lifter Puller's art-scene-cock-rock ever made, with the exception of Fiestas + Fiascos (which I may post some day if you're lucky). It's also out of print and way overpriced.

Lifter Puller - Secret Santa Cruz

Touch and Gone

2009-02-19T12:57:00.009+11:00

I was a little disheartened to wake up today and find out that Touch and Go is phoning it in. It looks like all is not lost, as they'll still be operating as a label, at least to some extent. However, they're dropping the distribution side completely, which is a big hit for a few of the veritable indie labels of America. It's better explained here.

This news has got me thinking of all the bands T&G has provided us over the years, from the angular post-rock of June of 44, Slint, and Rodan to the angular punk of Big Black, Killdozer, and the Jesus Lizard, to the angular muddled dirges of the Black Heart Procession and Dirty Three. So much low end, all for naught! Just kidding. There were some pretty jams in there as well, with the likes of Rachel's, Blonde Redhead, and the prettiest girl at the ball, Ted Leo.

I was going to post a track that Ted Leo/Pharmacists released on a digital EP last year after the riots at the Republican National Convention, but some blogs around the way have gotten in trouble for it. Nothing like a little brute force and some copyright issues to sully a party. So instead I'll just post my most favorite Ted Leo song ever. After all, I don't think Lookout Records is coming for me anytime soon, right? Hey-o!

Ted Leo - Parallel Or Together?

I also thought I'd post this totally kick-ass Polvo song. This is "Can I Ride," which I think was their first single ever, and eventually found album release on Cor-Crane Secret, released on Merge and later by T&G. It's the song version of a brother-in-law, I guess. It's all in the family.

Polvo - Can I Ride (Polvo EP version)

Flight of the Conchords

2009-02-18T10:09:00.005+11:00

Flight of the Conchords is #2 in terms of TV comedy for me(30 Rock is firmly secured in the top spot). The writing is superb, the songs are really well done, and there are plenty of cameos by some really great (and not so great) comedians (Toddy Barry, Jim Gaffigan, Dmitiri Martin, Arj Barker, and Eugene Mirman, plus a spot by Daryl "Private Eyes" Hall).

One aspect of the show that I really enjoy is the way they make fun of Australians. I don't know that they're even making fun of Australians as much as they're mocking the Australian stereotype. I think the Australian stereotype is akin to the American stereotype of mulletted rednecks waving Confederate Flags and chowing down at IHOP and Denny's all the time. Needless to say they're unrepresentative, a bit depressing, and, if used properly, very funny.

Here's some footage of the great Aussie/Kiwi rivalry a la FotC:

This week's episode saw Jemaine accidentally shacking up with a pretty rough Aussie broad named Keitha (who's "got a tongue like a badger's arsehole"). Of course a lot of mockery follows and the guys end up right back where they started from (just like that Maxine Nightingale song).

If that's not reason enough to watch this episode, Michel Gondry directs the episode which features a very "Be Kind Rewind" style music video. If for some reason you can't watch the full episode, here's the music video:

Another winner from Camp Conchords.

Hall & Oates

2009-02-16T17:16:00.007+11:00

I will forever assert that Hall & Oates are more than just a punchline or the musical equivalent to Siegfried & Roy (There is some creepy resemblance though). Granted, both Hall and Roy have been the victims of animal attacks. The difference is that Hall overcame Lyme Disease (which, interestingly enough, was first diagnosed by ex-girlfriend/songwriting partner Sara "Smile" Allen, who once had a bout with Lyme Disease herself) while Roy can hardly walk and part of his skull is now housed in his stomach. True story!

Like I said, Hall & Oates are more than a punchline. I will always stand up for their abilities. But, they are still a punchline. In the words of Neil Hamburger:

Why did the farmer start a punk rock band?

He was tired of Hall N' Oates!

If that's not enough punchline for you, check out Daryl Hall's appearance in this B-Legit video:

Since we here in Sydney haven't seen the sun in 8 days and it looks like a slip and slide outside, I thought I'd offer up "Lady Rain" from 1973's Abandoned Luncheonette. A lot of people say that Hall & Oates are nothing more than a singles band, but this is a great album from start to finish.

Hall & Oates - Lady Rain

Harry Nilsson

2009-02-16T10:48:00.008+11:00

I wanted to write about Harry Nilsson because 1) Nilsson is one of my favorite songwriters ever 2) I was a little rushed to get up today and started singing "Gotta Get Up" for a few seconds before Emily joined in.

Much like most of today's songwriters, Nilsson never took himself too seriously and didn't stick to one or two styles of song. Rock songs? Check. Ballads? Check. Easy listening? Check. Children's songs? Check. Country? Check. Free-form jazz? Uh, ok, wouldn't go that far. Still, where his contemporaries (The Beatles, Cat Stevens, The Turtles [I guess he liked being contemporaries with animals]) only stuck to one or two of these styles, Nilsson managed to convincingly write and record in a myriad of genres, held together by his commanding presence as a singer. Only Randy Newman could be considered a rival, and nobody can stand that guy's voice for an entire album anyway.

Nilsson is known primarily for two movie songs- Midnight Cowboy's "Everybody's Talkin'" (later featured in Forrest Gump) and Nilsson Schmilsson's "Coconut," later featured in Reservoir Dogs. These songs highlight just part of the genius of Nilsson. He could do an airy, world-weary folk song (granted, he didn't write "Everybody's Talkin," but "I Guess the Lord Must Be in New York City" serves the same purpose) just as easily as a slow, percussion-heavy calypso song about hangovers.

Some of the greatest things about Nilsson aren't his songwriting, but his modesty and humor when handling his own talent. When Nilsson was recording with John Lennon for the Pussy Cats album, he ruptured a vocal cord and famously continued working because he didn't want Lennon to stop the sessions. As a youngster in 1960, Nilsson recorded a few tracks for $5 a piece. When he later became famous, the owner of the songs followed up with Nilsson as to offer proper compensation, Nilsson said he'd already been paid for the songs in 1960. Through 1968, he handled his own phones and often gave on-the-spot interviews.

Don't get me wrong. Nilsson did his fair share of partying and trouble-making. But at least he didn't go around smacking up his lady friend.

I want to share a few tracks that I especially enjoy, but I strongly urge you to dole out the $2.99 for most of his records.

Harry Nilsson - Jesus Christ You're Tall

Harry Nilsson - Ten Little Indians

Harry Nilsson - Poli High

Harry Nilsson - You're Breaking My Heart (explicit)

DJ Shadow

2009-02-13T14:52:00.006+11:00

I was/am a really big fan of the first two DJ Shadow albums Endtroducing... and Private Press. These albums are heady trip-hop classics. But I couldn't handle the left turn he took when he got into hyphy territory with The Outsider and the Bay Area EP. Strangely enough, my favorite song in the entire DJ Shadow catalogue comes from "The Outsider". "This Time I'm Gonna Try It My Way" is a funky soul masterpiece unlike anything else on the album. It's more Marvin Gaye and less third-rate club banger.

When the single was released, a contest was held wherein people could submit music videos and the winner would get to choose from a selection of dead presidents. The winning video is probably the best in quality, but I like this one for its simplicity:

A lot of them are on youtube and I encourage you to check out a few. It's not like you can really get sick of the song...

Here's the track as well, for your aural enjoyment:

DJ Shadow - This Time I'm Gonna Try It My Way

Vangelis - The Dragon

2009-02-13T11:16:00.003+11:00

I threw this record on last night as I was cooking spaghetti. Much like spaghetti, this record is a delicious mess. It was apparently recorded in 1971 with a couple members from Vangelis' earlier band, Aphrodite's Child, but didn't see release until 1978 on Charly Records, unbeknownst to Vangelis. He successfully sued the label and got the record pulled from stores. I don't know if it was ever released lawfully again or reissued on CD, but it's absolutely worth checking out. This isn't the uplifting Chariots of Fire Vangelis or the new age stylings of Jon & Vangelis. In short, this is not your mother's Vangelis.

The real winner on this album is the first track. Side-long "The Dragon" is a psych burn-out, complete with squalling guitars and electric violin. That dragon on the cover does a good job of portraying the impending apocalypse that is this song. The other two tracks are decent in their own right, but it's hard to follow such a magnificent jam with anything better (though "Stuffed Tomatoe" does get pretty scatter-brained after a few minutes). So good.

Vangelis - The Dragon

1) The Dragon
2) Stuffed Aubergine
3) Stuffed Tomatoe

-Cole

School of Seven Bells

2009-02-11T11:26:00.001+11:00

Just as I mention School of Seven Bells, what should pop up but a new video for "Half Asleep"? This is the proper single off last year's Alpinisms (buy it here).

From Stereogum, who got it from Pitchfork, who got it from the band.

I always thought the song was kind of dreamy, but this video is making me carsick.

-Cole

Camera Obscura

2009-02-11T10:55:00.001+11:00

Title track off the forthcoming Camera Obscura record. Is it possible to have sex with someone's voice?

Camera Obscura - My Maudlin Career

-Cole

ON!AIR!LIBRARY!

2009-02-10T13:59:00.001+11:00

I was cruising around on this very overcast day flipping between stations, and landed on FBi (besides the two classic rock stations, this is probably the only good radio station in Sydney). They were playing School of Seven Bells jam "iamundernodisguise." I think this song is absolutely wonderful. It has a melody that sounds like a church song from the Middle Ages. The Deheza twins have voices that alternately soar and lull, creating a great soundscape on top of the droning electronic rhythms put forth by ex-Secret Machines member Benjamin Curtis.

School of Seven Bells - iamundernodisguise

I first got into the music of Claudia and Alejandra Deheza when they were in a band called On!Air!Library! The mood back then was a little dreamier, moodier, and spaced-out. A mix of shoegaze, space rock, electronics, and jagged guitars made them lesser-known contemporaries of bands like Blonde Redhead, Portishead, and My Bloody Valentine. Here's my favorite song from their self-titled album:

On!Air!Library! - Bread

And the video:

Prettiest band ever.

-Cole

Laneway 2009

2009-02-09T12:03:00.001+11:00

One very good thing about Laneway Festival: even in 35 degree C (95 F) heat, there is quite a lot of shade going around. This is made possible by a number of large trees around the area, as well as a couple of rather large buildings. One very bad thing about Laneway: two of the four stages are located between said buildings in very narrow lane-ways. Here I was thinking the festival was named after Nathan Lane and his crazy effeminate ways.

Jack Ladder
Sydney's own Jack Ladder opened the festival at the Basement Stage. The Basement is a very dark, stuffy, underground, low-ceilinged venue. My thoughts on Jack Ladder: Oh good, it's not just him with an acoustic guitar! That would have been pretty boring. This music isn't too bad. Wow, he's REALLY trying to be Jonathan Richman. Did he just say "Turn a frown upside down"? These are the worst lyrics ever. This guy is a mega-dick.

Still Flyin'
I had heard about this band only in a Will Sheff interview. The way I understood it was that it was like a younger version of Broken Social Scene, with a revolving cast of musicians and more people on stage at any one time than could comfortably fit into a doctor's waiting room. I was only afraid that it might be a little too twee-pop for me. Fortunately, they're a 14-unit ska/reggae party band. At any given moment, only about 70% of the members were playing instruments. The rest were dancing/jumping/rolling around, passing a boogie board around the crowd, giving sweat-hugs to audience members, and singing backup on one of their many "brew-grooves." Possibly the best, and certainly most life-affirming, band I saw all day.

Born Ruffians
Finally we venture out into the light of day. This was where I first encountered this "laneway" situation. The band had already started playing, and there were maybe 150 people in front of us. The sound was bouncing between the buildings and it wasn't worth the effort. Food and beer instead.

Spiral Stairs
I had to make a decision between No Age and Spiral Stairs. No Age was playing at the same stage as Born Ruffians, and I wasn't sure I wanted to risk waiting around for a band that hasn't gotten very favorable live reviews. I'd rather see the Pavement dude on the big stage. About 15 other people made the same (wise) decision. Spiral Stairs, aka Scott Kannenberg, took to the stage on crutches. He announced that he had broken his foot in Perth two days before, yet he still somehow managed to move around more than a lot of bands with fully-functional legs. A couple of the new songs were a little off the mark, but the Preston School of Industry "single" "Caught In the Rain" went over quite nicely. The real highlights, of course, were the three Pavement songs- "Date With Ikea" and renditions of "Kennel District" and "Two States" with the Still Flyin' guys. I seriously thought dude was going to break his foot a second time during "Two States." I've never seen a man shake that fast.

I skipped out on Jay Reatard (again, laneway stage) for more beer and chillin. Oh and some feral douchies in line for the bathroom. Some broad snuck to the front of the line and tried getting into the toilet that I was first in line for. "Someone just went in there," I informed her. "Oh, well I'm just guarding it because I'm next." "Well actually, I've been waiting." "OH MY GOD! Chivalry is DEAD. Are you REALLY going to PUSH your way in front of a GIRL? I don't GET it with you guys. You have PEEENISES. In a couple hours you can just go ANYwhere." I did the right thing by making her feel bad and then going in front of her anyway.

Wait around for Stereolab at the main stage and catch some of Melbourne's Temper Trap. They're ok, but probably not something I'll go check out later. Their last song is a very sub-par cover of "Dancing in the Dark" that gets the sub-par audience screaming.

Stereolab
I finally got my chance to see the seminal Stereolab. I wasn't quite sure what to expect since they haven't been much of a band at all in the past few years. The band started out with some of the new cuts off "Chemical Chords." I didn't really get into this album much. It's just a little too poppy. I like my Stereolab experimental and kraut-ish. Fortunately the second half of their set was more to my liking, with songs like "Mountain", "Lo Boob Oscillator", and "French Disko". Also Laetitia Sadier made eyes at me more than once, and there is nothing wrong with a little sexy French to go with my indie rock.

El Guincho
This was the first and only act I saw all day on the other laneway-situated Red Bull stage. This stage basically presented DJs all day, though for some reason the organisers thought it fitting to advertise acts like Four Tet and Daedelus as live. Live, like, in person? Anyway, El Guincho played just about everything off "Alegranza" although sometimes it was actually difficult to distinguish between the songs because the BASS WAS VERY LOUD. So loud, in fact, that you couldn't hear vocals, keyboards, or samplers. It didn't seem to deter the crowd too much and everyone was dancing and generally having a good time...that is until 6:45 when everyone ran to see Architecture in Helstinky.

Architecture In Helsinki
After The Guinch, I made my way to the big stage where the Hold Steady would be performing in an hour. Originally the Drones were meant to be playing on this stage, and I had wanted to catch a little of them anyway because I'd heard good things. But then it turned out Architecture in Helsinki got the nod. Since I was planning to be front and center for Hold Steady, I sat through the last 20 minutes of AIH. My god, this band has seriously spiraled downward in the past few years. When did they turn into a cheesy 80's soft rock band? It even took me a while to recognise songs that I know, like "Do the Whirlwind" and "Heart It Races" because of long, meandering synth intros. Then I noticed that the Still Flyin' dudes were hanging out up there and putting AIH to shame with their dance moves.

Hold Steady
I pretty much expected to be transcended to a higher plane for this band. Their albums are decent, but everything I've ever read has said that these guys are THE rock band to see live. So the band comes out, the crowd goes wild, and they begin "Constructive Summer." Then I realise how many morons are in the crowd. Some guys start moshing and knocking people over, people are getting their feet stepped on, and kids are crowd-surfing and kicking unsuspecting victims in the face. It was hard to fully enjoy the music when I'm afraid I'm about to get a Volley to the head. As for the band, they played all the songs I wanted to hear, but it was basically note-for-note from the record. The band didn't seem to be having a lot of fun or really enjoying themselves, but what came across most was that more than anyone else at the festival, these guys are a professional band. Craig Finn is definitely a dynamic frontman, Tad Kubler has guitar hero written all over him, and Franz Nicolay is a virtuoso at piano and mustache.

So, how does this compare to ATP?
Better bands
More shade and buildings
More douches
Longer, faster moving toilet lines
Still Flyin'
So many bad tattoos
Worse stages
More beer

-Cole

Grizzly Bear

2009-02-05T17:50:00.001+11:00

We here at the Regular Express foam at the mouth for anything Grizzly Bear related. It's been a little while since they've released anything new (though there was that Department of Eagles record last year), so word of a release date or new songs being played live is like discovering a "bear"-ied treasure. Recently there have been a few new jams floating around that I'd like to share. They're all from a live show in Boston that the Grizz played in August. Why they're only making the rounds now, I'm not sure. This is the digital age! Lightning fast people, let's do it!

Aside from these new songs, there's a remake of "Service Bell," recorded with Feist, set to be released in about two weeks on the 4AD Dark Is The Night comp. Indie compilation of the century. Unfortunately I can't seem to find the new "Service Bell," so these live ones will have to do for now.

Grizzly Bear - 2 Hud
Grizzly Bear - Fine For Now
Grizzly Bear - Two Weeks

-Cole

Robert Palmer

2009-02-05T11:31:00.001+11:00

I think it's unfortunate that Robert Palmer always gets lumped into the "Dad music" category. It's understandable considering the major hits that he had- "Simply Irresistable," "Doctor, Doctor," and "Addicted to Love." These are all powered, cheesy 80's pop songs that go hand in hand with REO and ZZ Top on classic rock radio. What you wouldn't know from these songs are both Palmer's smooth, smooth grooves as well as his more contemplative, insightful side. Palmer's also been known to throw in a decent cover here and there, including Little Feat's championing of cocaine, "Sailing Shoes," Toots' "Pressure Drop," Gary Numan's "I Dream of Wires," and Marvin Gaye's "Mercy, Mercy Me." These covers SCREAM smooth/insightful.

I'd like to share what I think is Palmer's best track, and is probably in my top 20 all time favorite songs. The third track and first single off the (excellent) 1980 album "Clues," Johnny & Mary is a poignant tale of a doomed couple set to a drum machine and (what I can only assume to be) a highly phased bass riff. Top notch.

In September of 2003, Palmer got "layed" for the last time as his body was put to rest after a heart attack.

Robert Palmer - Johnny & Mary

-Cole

Holiday Road

2009-02-03T20:53:00.001+11:00

As I mentioned before, and will most certainly mention again, I really love Fleetwood Mac and nearly all Fleetwood Mac related things. The other day friend Mikey asked me if I had ever seen the video for Lindsey Buckingham's "Holiday Road." I realized that I had not. I went home that night and took a gander on youtube. It was not at all what I expected.

This video really gets me "under the skin." Ha ha! Get it?! If I had to watch it over and over, I think I would "go insane." Hey, this guy's on fire...

In actuality I really like the video. The song is a bit too poppy and upbeat considering most of Lindsey's other material, and I think the video shows some of that darkness we all know and love.

-Cole

Lipa Kodi Ya City Council

2009-02-02T21:32:00.001+11:00

A label called Mississippi Records has been putting out some incredible releases over the past few years. Apparently the label started around '03 or '04, but my first introduction was this album in late 2006. The record cover itself is a silk-screened piece of cardboard glued onto an old Latin Big Band sleeve. Attached is a photo of a Nigerian dude, wearing what appears to be traditional dress and a couple of reeds, playing electric guitar plugged into a generator. Needless to say, this record is mind-bogglingly good.

The first side consists of songs meant to be a celebration of life and death, sung in the colloquial language of southern Nigeria called Efik. The second side is in the official language of Nigeria, called Ibo, and celebrates the officers and members of a "cultural organisation" (whatever that means). Elements of reggae, gospel, ska, and highlife can all be found here, and for the most part it is a very upbeat compilation. The recordings are somewhat lo-fi, but not in that Times New Viking way where everything is distorted and it sounds like somebody is chewing granola in the studio and they accidentally put that way up in the mix and now you're listening to it because 1) you're punishing yourself 2) because you have no actual opinion of music and your "tastes" are learned. No no, it's lo-fi in the way that the songs have been recorded on a tape machine in the late 60's with limited equipment. The first two tracks are definite standouts, but I think the center of the album is track 6, a slow, peaceful gospel chant done by a bunch of missionaries and religious drummers. No, they're not referring to the drummers from Jars of Clay and PM Dawn (amusingly enough, when I clicked the link for the PM Dawn website, I was alerted that their site contains malware..way to go guys). I put this song on the mix CD I made my mom for Christmas, and now you can too!

LIPA KODI YA CITY COUNCIL

Track listing:

A1 Moussa Doumbi - Yeye Mousso
A2 Yaseen Mohammed and Saada - Lala Mpenzi
A3 Sami Kamar & The Black Diamonds - Egun Dide
A4 Kabushi and Mwenya - Mwe Baiyashi Centeleni
A5 Mbasela Kunda and William Monyanda - Nina Namusonda Sanguweji
A6 Noviciat De Soeurs Missionaires De Notre Dame D' Afrique & Four Religious Drummers - Yesu Ka Mkwebase
B1 Cabdulashi Iman Zamir / Xaaji Cusmaan / Nuur Maxamed Curuba - Siina Miiri
B2 Ester John / Mdawida Fadhili William* / Ben Nicholas / Fundi Konde - Mwanamali Wa Maridadi
B3 Frida Sonko - Gwenasobya
B4 Marehamu George Mukabi - Bibi Mama Ngani Mzuri
B5 S.E. Rogie - Do Me Justice
B6 Isaya Mwinamo - Lipa Kodi Ya City Council

This album is out of print on LP and probably won't ever be available on CD, so I'd suggest you grab this right here if you're even remotely interested. It should not, will not, cannot, let you down. Also get your hands on everything you can from this label. Their records are cheaper than dirt and always of a very high standard. "Always - Love Over Gold."

-Cole

L.A. Night

2009-01-29T14:52:00.001+11:00

When you're romancing with the lady, glass of wine in hand, chilling by the fireplace, and your Sade records are nowhere to be found, throw on this jam. It's called "L.A. Night" by a woman named Yasuko Agawa. I can't seem to find anything about her except her website, which is in Japanese. It doesn't stop me from enjoying the smooth.

Yasuko Agawa - L.A. Night.mp3

-Cole

Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac

2009-01-29T13:55:00.001+11:00

Here's a song from possibly the best album of the Peter Green era of Fleetwood Mac. I definitely gravitate more toward the powerhouse stylings of the McVie/Nicks/Buckingham trio, but I don't want to discredit the output from Green and associates. A lot of the Danny Kirwan material is exceptional as well. Really I can't say a bad thing about the band through their many, many lineup changes until after they broke up and reunited for "Tango in the Night" in 1987. Even that album has some great songs on it (though the production is pretty terrible). What I'm trying to say is, buy every Fleetwood Mac album you can get your hands on.

Anyway, here's "Closing My Eyes" from the 1969 album "Then Play On." It's a sparse, slow heartbreak ballad in the midst of a pretty great blues album (coming from a guy that doesn't like blues). Sadly it was Green's last album with the band as he suffers from schizophrenia and had some serious drug/alcohol problems. He released a few solo albums after his departure, most notably "The End of the Game," featuring a lot of messy guitar heroics.

Fleetwood Mac - Closing My Eyes.mp3

Also for your listening pleasure is the Green instrumental "Albatross," most recently featured in the movie "Man On Wire." John Lennon was such a fan of this song that he implemented the "feel" of it when writing his homage to Green- Abbey Road's "Sun King."

Fleetwood Mac - Albatross.mp3

-Cole

Triple J

2009-01-27T16:47:00.001+11:00

Triple J, the "great" Australian independent (government-owned) radio station that gave us that live Hot Snakes album a few years ago, hosted their annual "Hot 100" Countdown yesterday. Of the top five spots, two were Kings of Leon songs, two were MGMT songs, and one was some Australian band that was blatantly ripping off MGMT.

If the kids that listen to that station like that music and decide to vote for it, I have no problem. But why is it that most of media's top critics didn't bother mentioning Kings of Leon at all in their year-end reviews and lists, while MGMT was buried behind TV On the Radio, Bon Iver, Fleet Foxes, Deerhunter, Beach House, and Hercules & Love Affair? Again, I'm not commenting on the music itself, by why would only two bands corner the top 5 songs of the year?

Because Triple J operates much the same way that commercial radio does. They plug a very select few bands to no end, and ignore a lot of other music going on. In a world where there is practically unlimited resources for finding new music, crossing over genre lines, geographical boundaries, and major label/promotions influence, shouldn't the list be a little more varied? Maybe it has something to do with distribution, then. A lot of albums don't get a major label distribution deal here in Australia, so radio stations don't bother playing them. Of the aforementioned bands, only two had major label distribution: MGMT and Kings of Leon. In a post-major-label-industry, where supposedly listeners are dictating more and more of what's popular, Triple J, like nearly every radio station out there, is still operating with major label values in place. What makes this hurt a little more is that Triple J is supposed to be independent.

To their credit, they do make a concerted effort to play a lot of local music (and it doesn't hurt that the government forces them to). But in supporting local artists, there are plenty of very talented bands that, because of their geographical location, don't get a fair turn. A similar comparison would be that of affirmative action, except that the candidates aren't equal. Not by a long shot. In a lot of industries, I agree with regulation. In the music industry, I don't. Let the most talented artists get their due props, and the up-and-comers and down-and-outs will fall into place behind them.

Radio has never been a platform for promoting the "best" bands. Payola and cronyism have always played pivotal roles in radio. But we've been living in a hyper-aware world. Most people know of at least some corruption involved in the music industry, and can immediately circumvent such corruption by using the information superhighway. Most major labels are facing a financial crunch that's unrivaled by previous musical eras. They're turning to just about every sellable form of media to salvage their companies (ringtones, pre-loaded mp3 players, greeting cards, singing fish). So if there was ever a time for radio to change its tune, this would be it. Yet Triple J is still prescribing the music that people want to hear. And the kids are still eating it up.

THE LIST

-Cole

Silkworm/Crust Brothers/Bottomless Pit/Pavement

2009-01-24T22:12:00.001+11:00

So, firstly I'd like to say that I've just moved into an internetted house, which may or may not result in more frequent updating. I can't promise anything, but it's possible that you'll start getting more of my sass talk and cynicism. Lord knows Emily isn't up to any of that (or much of anything at all), so I'm carrying the burden on my own.

I'd like to rap about Silkworm, if I may. When I first heard this band, I thought little of them. They reminded me of Pavement without the good lyrics or interesting musical shifts. Somehow I listened to enough of them to come around, and I'm certainly glad I did. Their recent output as Bottomless Pit has cemented their ability to consistently prove themselves as underrated indie rock heroes.

It turns out the link between Pavement and Silkworm is more than just stylistic similarity. Last year saw the release of the Crust Brothers' Marquee Mark, a one-off collaboration of Silkworm and Stephen Malkmus. Not only do they cover 7(!) songs from the Dylan and the Band's Basement Tapes, but there's also a cover of "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" and Skynyrd's "Tuesday's Gone." If that isn't enough, Stephen also takes vocal duties on Silkworm's "Never Met a Man I Didn't Like."

The Crust Brothers - Marquee Mark
(You can buy it here)

Also here are a few Silkworm/Bottomless Pit songs, as well as Silkworm's cover of a Pavement song.

Silkworm - Bar Ice
Silkworm - Never Met a Man I Didn't Like
Silkworm - And Then... (Pavement cover)
Bottomless Pit - Dogtag
Bottomless Pit - Repossession

-Cole

ATP Sydney

2009-01-19T17:06:00.001+11:00

The day started off with a slow ferry ride across the Inner Harbour to Sydney's Cockatoo Island. This turned out to be one of the best places to hold a festival, as it was previously a prison, reformatory, industrial compound, and shipyard. It was kind of like Alcatraz. The crowd was decidedly older, which meant no 17 year olds lying on the ground in an ecstacy-induced seizure (thanks, Field Day!). What I thought was most interesting is that the people at the festival weren't there for a party, or to be seen, or to watch the newest flash-in-the-pan-one-hit-dance-band (whattup MGMT?), but actually wanted to listen to the bands.

Ah yes, the bands. Upon originally hearing of an Australian ATP, I creamed jeans. Then I heard Nick Cave was curating it, which meant absolutely nothing to me. Then I saw the lineup, and became increasingly disappointed to find that both the Dirty Three and Bill Callahan were only playing the Mt Buller show (as if anybody actually knows where that is). Still. Harmonia. Spiritualized. Michael Gira. Robert Forster. Fuck Buttons. It can't be too bad. Right? RIGHT?

Right. It wasn't too bad at all.

AFRIRAMPO
Two weird skinny Japanese girls wearing red boas and war paint, wanting to have party at Nick Cave's house...in Melbourne...with family. One deep-throated a beer bottle. Lots of yelling and jibberish. They also played music (and were surprisingly competent).

MICHAEL GIRA
Please have Akron/Family as backing band. Please have Akron/Family as backing band. Please have Akron/Family as backing band. What do you mean he's playing solo?? Three songs in and I left. Way too much negativity coming off that dude. Maybe he could take a hint from AKRON/FAMILY.

HARMONIA
"We are Harmonia. We are from Germany." Uh oh. Live German music? This could be a non-stop flight to bored city. Laptops?! Shit! Nothing good can come out of seeing a live German laptop band. They make very very good music, and the fun stops there.

LAUGHING CLOWNS
This was one of the best things I saw all day. I had never heard (of) this band before, and I will definitely be hearing more when I get a chance. Saxaphone, double bass, and regular rock band instrumentation. Fronted by ex-Saints guitarist who looks exactly like Rick Nielsen.

ROBERT FORSTER
I guess the easiest way to explain this guy's music is this: if you like the Go-Betweens, you'll like Robert Forster. If you think the Go-Betweens are underwhelming, you'll think the same of this dude. Good time summer fun guy plays no frills pop/rock songs in the vein of REM, Big Dipper, and most things on Flying Nun.

SPIRITUALIZED
This was probably my most anticipated act of the festival. Much to my surprise, they didn't play anything off the newest album except for "You Lie, You Cheat." Also to my surprise, they played "Walking With Jesus." I've only heard that song off the Spacemen 3's "Taking Drugs to Make Music to Take Drugs to" compilation, and hardly recognized it at first. Gone were the feedback and distortion, and present were slide guitar and gospel singers. This turned out to be a pretty great laid-back version of a song that has at least 10 different recorded versions. Now I love a good ear-splitting wall of guitar noise freakout, but fortunately there was plenty of that going on in the last ten minutes of the normally 4 1/2 minute "Take Me to the Other Side." The set was stellar, the backup singers were strutting in unison, and Jason Pierce was on target all throughout. I only wish they would have played longer.

Now it came decision time. Do we stay for another 4+ hours to watch Nick Cave (who I have nary an opinion on) and Fuck Buttons, or do we head home early and eat fish and chips? Fish and chips it is!

THE SAINTS
I caught a few minutes of the Saints while trying to decide what to do. Singer was smoking cigarettes in his pajamas and the guitarist is still wearing Rick Nielsen.

Cue ferry ride home and watching Michael Gira trying to evade paying the fare, only to get caught and act like a confused American tourist. Wah wah.

-Cole

Biz Markie

2009-01-16T07:47:00.002+11:00

In honor of the new profile photo, I thought I'd offer up a little video from the Biz Mark hisself.

-Cole

New Year - Seven Days, Seven Nights

2009-01-13T10:16:00.001+11:00

A video from The New Year's excellent s/t 2008 album. They must have talked to Puff Daddy about the best place in O'Hare airport to shoot a music video:

(Just go to 1:17 if you don't want to listen to this terrible, terrible song [but maybe watch the first :15 to watch that asshole fall of his bike])

-Cole

Kranky

2009-01-12T23:34:00.001+11:00

Mr. Flattop himself, Joel Leoschke, has just had some words with Pitchfork about Kranky Records.

Funny that he almost called the label Curmudgeon, because seriously, if I ever knew a churlish little codger of a man, Joel is it.

-Cole