Monday, July 27, 2009

Honey's Dead.


Here's one I haven't heard in a while. Remembered it when transferring music to the laptop for ipod purposes. Apparently it's hard to find the cuts from the album on the net and not shitty live videos. But here's Reverence which I really dig as well as Sugar Ray which I dig a lot too so it all works out.













While I'm on the Scottish music here's another. Check out this guy.

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Oldie But Goodie.


Of course we all know Mr. Jones and Round Here. But how about Raining In Baltimore, Rain King, Perfect Blue Buildings and Anna Begins?

Two Classics In Their Own Ways...


I mean come on. Examples to be had here. Check this one out while you're at it too please.















Buddy fuckin' Holly. Come on now. Everyday? Peggy Sue? Those are the easy ones.

Two Good Mashups.


Jaydiohead. Pretty self-explanatory. No Karma.
Change Order. Optimistic Moment. 99 Anthems.















Another self-explanatory one. I really dig this one a lot specifically a couple of tracks. This being one of them. But this one is my absolute favorite, easy.

Random Raps.


Smif N Wessun's 1995 effort Dah Shinin' . They were later known as Cocoa Brovaz. Anyway, albums is good, check that shit. Wrektime is probably my favorite off the album. Timz N Hood Chek is good as well.














Solillaquists Of Sound are on Strange Famous Records and they are pretty good. Check 1. Check 2. Check 3.



















I honestly don't remember where this came from or why I have it. Never really listened to it much, but I remember kinda liking it so here it is for your enjoyment. Anyway read about dude here. He's got beats from RJD2 and Prefuse 73 on here which is probably why I picked it up. Examples here and here.

Pelican.


Post-metal is what this apparently is. Pretty good summation I suppose because it sounds like post-rock mixed with metal. If you've heard Isis it's kinda similar but sans vocals.
Anyway check out Last Day Of Winter and March To The Sea.

Phil Ochs.

"Phil Ochs was a U.S. protest singer (or, as he preferred, a topical singer) and songwriter who was known for his sharp wit, sardonic humor, earnest humanism, political activism, insightful and alliterative lyrics, and haunting voice. He wrote hundreds of songs in the 1960s and released eight albums in his lifetime.

Ochs performed at many political events, including anti-Vietnam War and civil rights rallies, student events, and organized labor events over the course of his career, in addition to many concert appearances at such venues as New York City's Town Hall and Carnegie Hall. Politically, Ochs described himself as a "left social democrat" who became an "early revolutionary" after the protests at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago led to a police riot, which had a profound effect on his state of mind.

After years of prolific writing in the 1960s, Ochs's mental stability declined in the 1970s and eventually he succumbed to a number of problems including bipolar disorder and alcoholism, and he took his own life in 1976."


So with that, here's his 1965 album I Ain't Marching Anymore.



Notable songs include the title track (seems to be a trend as of late) and Draft Dodger Rag, which is a pretty hilarious one.

The Smiths.

Morrisey eh? Not much to say about dude that hasn't already been said a billion times over, especially on the internet. Anyway, bastard wrote lotsa good shit and here's some of it.


Came out the year I was born. Shit's real good, but my first foray into them was The Queen Is Dead. Check out How Soon Is Now? which I'm sure you've heard unless you were dead before 1985, fucking sonically solid song from the guitar to the bass line and of course the singing. Since I can't seem to find any other album versions on youtube you can have this Radiohead cover of The Headmaster Ritual which is the opening track of this album.










The Queen Is Dead. Easily my favorite album by them and actually probably one of my favorite albums period. I Know It's Over being probably my favorite track off the album. That runs into Never Had No One Ever which is followed by Cemetery Gates either. Second to last song on the album has always been a favorite of mine and can be found here.

Nick Drake.

Another one of those you should probably already be up on this posts. If not do a little light reading. Anyway, here goes his 3 albums and Time Of No Reply.



First up is the debut of course. Album opens with Time Has Told Me. River Man runs right behind it. Another good one is Day Is Done.















Next up is the second effort Bryter Layter. Check out Northern Sky and One Of These Things First.
















Pink Moon. You'll probably recognize the title track from a VW commercial a while back. Which Will is another worth checking out. Aaaand randomly lets go with Parasite.














Time Of No Reply. 1986 compilation featuring outtakes, alternate versions and such. Title track is quite good as is Black Eyed Dog. His cover of Been Smoking Too Long is a favorite of mine as well.

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Sage Francis.

Just got done seeing Sage kill it at Rock The Bells where he referenced some funny events I was present for that had happened outside of the show the first time I was lucky enough to see him. They gave him a small spot on the second stage which was a poor choice since he was possibly the best performance of the day and certainly the first good performance of the day.

First up are his three solo efforts and the Non-Prophets (him and Joe Beats) album Hope.








































































Next are five/seven mixtapes (of which someone sweet was kind enough to quickly provide me with three). The missing two are the first which is all but unavailable and the latest which is available for free on his website.












































































And last but not least are an EP and two live albums (thanks for the second by the way).











































Just-Ice & Nas.




































Andrew Bird.

Gonna finally get around to seeing this guy for real at the end of October. Saw him for a little bit at Bonnaroo, but it'll be good to see a total performance of his.



































Update of Justin Vernon Cache.

So Justin Vernon is the man behind Bon Iver, and I'm a pretty big fan of everything he's done. The Hazeltons record someone sweet was kind enough to direct me to after a bit of searching. Still haven't found his records released under JD Vernon or Mount Vernon, but I'm trying.


"The band began as friends from Eau Claire, Wisconsin, evolving from Justin Vernon's early band Mount Vernon and takes its name from Justin Vernon's two middle names. The members first met at the H.O.R.D.E. Festival in 1997, bonded at a Wisconsin jazz camp, and played together in various combinations before finally playing as DeYarmond Edison in 2002. The band's style is a blend of folk and Americana sounds with more modern atmospheric and electronic elements. DeYarmond Edison recorded two albums while in Eau Claire, a self-titled album and Silent Signs.

After a period of success in Eau Claire's music scene the band decided to move to Raleigh, North Carolina to begin a musical career in a new location. The band experienced some success in Raleigh, but eventually broke up because of tensions caused by different musical directions and philosophies and personal reasons. The breakup also occurred subsequent to Vernon falling severely ill with a form of mononucleosis that damages the liver.

Following the dissolution of DeYarmond Edison, Vernon eventually returned to Wisconsin to live in his father's cabin, and over the course of 3 months of isolation, he produced what became the Bon Iver album For Emma, Forever Ago. The remaining members DeYarmond Edison formed Megafaun, eventually releasing their own album Bury the Square."































Also since I can't seem to find a cover, here's a link to another Deyarmond Edison album "The Bickett Residency".


During the Deyarmond Edison days Vernon recorded a couple of solo albums which can be found below.








And if you don't know Bon Iver by now, shame on you, but here's their full length and EP so you can remedy it.




Monday, July 13, 2009

Batch Of Randomness.


We'll start with Death From Above 1979's only studio album "You're A Woman, I'm A Machine". Dudes broke up in '06 and it's a shame because I dig the album, and it also makes for good running music. They make some pretty good noise for being two dudes and mainly utilizing drums and a bass guitar with some synth thrown in. Anyway, I dig Black History Month, Sexy Results, as well as Blood On Our Hands for taste tests.










Strange Geometry is a 2005 album by London's The Clientele. Dudes are known for reverb heavy sound and dudes breathy and distinctive vocals. Since K Got Over Me is good and we'll go with I Can't Seem To Make You Mine as well.













2006 EP by blues rock group The Black Keys. These are all covers of songs by Junior Kimbrough whom I keep intending to grab some albums by and never do. Anyway, some sexy songs on this EP. Work Me for example. Nobody But You is a good one as well. Aaand we'll finish with Meet Me In The City.

Blasts From My Past.

First up are two albums from Eels. More or less the outlet for Mark Everett with an ever rotating cast helping dude out.



Released in 1998 and written as a response to his sisters suicide and mothers fatal battle with lung cancer, shit's a little bleak. Album starts off with Elizabeth On The Bathroom Floor, a song composed using one of his sisters final diary entries. Followed with Going To Your Funeral and Cancer For The Cure. Also of note is Climbing To The Moon which is about visiting his sister in a psychiatric facility.












This guy came out in 2000. Third album they did. Good shit here and right here. Oh and of course there is always this one. Plus you can't forget It's A Motherfucker.















Concept album from Cursive. Shit's about a couple (as evidenced by the cover I'd assume). Roughly patterned around Kasher's divorce. The Casualty is a good one, as is The Martyr.














Another concept album by Cursive. This one essentially being a Pinocchio story, only with love and empty sex. Art Is Hard is a standout track as are The Recluse and Driftwood: A Fairy Tale.














What do you know, another concept album by Cursive. Well, loosely at least. This one revolves around a small town and deals with religion and hypocrisy. Album opens with Opening The Hymnal/Babies (the latter half of which manages to have stuck that "baby baby baby" line in my head since I first heard it). That's followed by Dorothy At Forty, which is then followed by Big Bang. Those should give a fair indication as to the subject matter and sound.