Two Records That Are Completely Unrelated.

Pretty big disparity really.


Debut from The Boy Least Likely To. The genre on this is Twee. The best description I've heard of Twee is that you'd be embarrassed to have it blaring if you were in your car with your windows down and had to stop at a light. It's basically ultra happy sounding shit, however I dig it a lot and it usually cheers me up which doesn't usually happen from happy music. Check this and this (which is unfortunately unfinished).











Common's Be. I mean it's Common so it's not going to actually be bad unless it's Universal Mind Control. Also the production was done (by a half a million people) in an homage to Dilla which it isn't even close to but you can hear it. This is an awesome song despite being too short. Here's another.

Gang Of Fugazi?

Fugazi's debut full length. Can't really go wrong. Taste. Test.
















Debut from Gang Of Four. Post-punk style shit. Youtube apparently has nothing but shitty live stuff so here and here will have to suffice.

Two Best Of Deals

The fuckin' Animals. Duh. Here and here if it's necessary.
















The fuckin' Four Tops. Aduuuuh. Here and here if necessary.

Death Metal By The Eagles?

Josh Homme's (Queens Of The Stone Age, Kyuss) other project. On this one instead of doing the front man gig he plays drums. Anyway, they do a cover of Stuck In The Middle With You that I enjoy. Sample time.













Second effort. Not gonna bother with the third because it's not very good. Try this one out.

Beginner Indie...

...but it's good.


Fourth effort by Death Cab. Not my favorite but it contains this, and is an otherwise solid effort.















Next effort after that. Again Death Cab so it doesn't need much explaining. Contains Soul Meets Body and I Will Follow You Into The Dark in case you missed them the billion and a half times they got played, but also contains this.













Latest effort. Cath, yadda yadda, honestly haven't listened to it, but it's up here because I have it and may as well throw it in there if someone wants it.

Took Me Long Enough...

...but here are some people that probably talk funny to us 'mercans.


Second effort from these Scottish bastards. Well technically only one Scottish bastard, but he does have a band of other Scottish bastards behind him. Anyhow, it's good chamber pop/indie pop or whatever similar genre you wanna slap on it. You've likely heard a song or two by them somewhere, High Fidelity being a possibility. Think Simon and Garfunkelish, only not. So
anyway, it sounds like this.










More from Scotland, only this time it's two bastard brothers and it's IDM. Anyway, this is their first major release and still my favorite that they've done. Also one of my favorites as far as IDM goes besides Boom Bip's Blue Eyed In The Red Room which if I haven't already upped I'll later throw in this post. Sample to be found here as well as here.











This guy is Irish so you know he talks funny. He also makes really good albums and follows them up with ones that are subpar in comparison (save for Rootless Tree). You've certainly already heard his shit on TV or in a coffee shop (or even Ikea) but here and here and here are places you can go for songs to hear.

...and so with that I dig out the old dusty book full of words strung haphazardly together into what I call songs. Time capsules of days long since forgotten and days I've long since wished to forget. Indelibly etched into book upon book as permanent record. I'm not quite sure what it is that stirs inside of me that compels me to touch page to pen despite not often being happy with what you could call the results. It is however generally the product of a great deal of unease or a modicum of sadness. Kinda ironic when something you use to cope ends up stirring up the same feelings oftentimes upon your spontaneous and sporadic returns to it. And yet and still something hits me and I mire line upon line and page upon page with the garbage spilling from my mind. I think it's part of an unspoken necessity to create something tangible in a vain attempt to affect and change the world, or really just a plain desire to create, to make something out of nothing even if the something ends up being construed as nothing. That and there is just something oddly soothing in the written word, especially when coupled with returning to what's familiar even when sometimes it's painful. Thankfully things seem to be looking up, which generally begets far more sporadic returns but generally a better product. Here's hoping...

eh.

Bye bye Bonnaroo.




Hello Virginia you lengthy bastard you.




Back to work for me.

So Bonnaroo...

Uh, no updates after I got there, that should be pretty evident of the time that was had. Sights seen are as follows:

Gomez
Bela Fleck
Grizzly Bear
Ani DiFranco
Beastie Boys
Phish

Bon Iver (easily my favorite)
Elvis Costello
Heard Springsteen's set from the tent with no apparent option of not hearing it
Little bit of NIN doing Terrible Lie much to my surprise
Ben Harper

AA Bondy
Ted Leo
Brett Dennen
Erykah Badu
Andrew Bird
Band of Horses (close second)
Phish (both performances were certainly the best performances put on which I was pretty surprised by but will continue to admit to my own dismay)


Anyway, the fucking mutant mud on that farm was unlike any other mud I've ever encountered and enjoyed flipping between either stealing my shoes or making me slide around like more of a jackass than I normally am so eventually going barefoot was the only recourse. Sleeping in a tent in the heat isn't quite as miserable a picture as it's painted out to be, but company may have played a role in that much as it does in most situations. EZ Up style canopies are definitely lifesaving devices in the godawful TN sun.

While the best parts of the week consisted of laying in the grass listening to amazing music by amazing artists the top two said moments were definitely Bon Iver (whom despite the best efforts of the blazing sun and complete lack of unoccupied shade not found underneath a funny hat or bandanna was probably as close to a perfect moment as I've had in quite a while) and Band Of Horses for whom the weather was nearly as beautiful as the company kept for the past two weeks.

Really though I'm beat and thus I don't feel like rambling on and on about Bon now and probably won't ever return and do so as I've already told most of the important and/or funny shit, but should you ever go please do everyone who is naive enough to sign up to clean after the festival a favor and pick up your goddamn cigarette butts. It's miserable enough with a lazy bitch yelling at you without having to pick up half a million of those goddamn things. Also, bring lots of sun screen.

Despite the best efforts of long ass lines and lackadaisical safety volunteers we are here.

Virginia is apparently the longest state in the union and filled to the brim with homicidal truckers and apathetic police dispatchers. Four hours away.

Biblical plauge style flash floods, worst detours ever that lead to the scariest places ever, and some real wierdos, and I haven't even gotten to Bonnaroo yet.

Bonnaroo?

Yes please.

Tea For The Tillman?

If you don't know or I haven't said it before Tillman is the drummer in the hypebeast that is Fleet Foxes, but this is rather different from them. Think more early Elliott Smith.



J. Tillman's 2006 deal "Long May You Run, J. Tillman"

Same idea as the Cancer and Delirium album I posted a little bit ago, only a bit more lo-fi and intimate. Good shit, I promise. Just grabbed it last night but House Arms Built seems to be my favorite thus far.






Latest effort (2009) by Tillman. Vacilando Territory Blues. Definitely a bit more produced, but not in a bad way, just a lot more clear sounding. Also worth checking out.

The Odd Couple.

Another stellar effort from Will Oldham as per usual. Dude has pumped out a goddamn ton of albums and all that I've managed to hear are on point.

Here is a song called Cursed Sleep, only one I could seem to find that wasn't a terribly recorded live version.











Cage's second effort Hell's Winter. Also in the RAR is a second disc that's got all the instrumentals on the album. I'm pretty certain the new album is gonna be terrible if what I've heard so far is any indication, so enjoy while it lasts.

Anyway, check some samples here and here.

Brand New.

Good effort at bringing back legitimate emo which (ironically?) makes me quite happy.



Deja Entendu. The jump between this and their album before it (think Taking Back Sunday style) is pretty amazing really. Good to know that even a band that makes a mediocre debut can wind up surprising you. Check this shit out and maybe this one while you are at it.



Furthers the homage to legit emo, and quite well. Much darker, and drawn out. Examples to be found here as well as here.




Here's a little post-hardcore while I'm naming genres. Think ATDI style but with probably more nonsensical lyrics and just as much fun. Anyway here it is, Bear Vs. Shark's second effort, Terrorhawk.



Go here.

Kitty Cats.

Two random albums I picked that happen to both be artists named Cat.




The Cat Stevens album everyone knows and most love. Wild World, Where Do The Children Play? and such stuff.




Includes a her version of the traditional Moonshiner as well as Metal Heart and Cross Bones Style.

Essential for properly enjoying your summer.

A little Blind Melon goes a long way. A lot of Blind Melon is the best thing you can do for your day. That rhymed and I'd express it's utter homosexuality in a three letter word, but that'd rhyme too and then I'd just have to end my life.




S/T effort containing what sadly became their one and only big hit. Fuzzy classic rock influenced deal.

Goodness is contained here. Tough to pick a favorite but that's pretty close.




Soup. Darker lyrically and musically. Diverse instrumentation. Recorded blocks from where Hoon later overdosed. Sad times.

The two best songs on the album maybe be found here and here.



Posthumous effort Nico, named for Hoon's daughter. Good covers of Steppenwolf and Lennon, and speaking of covers this album cover has for some reason been a favorite of mine for years now. It also contains two of my favorite songs they ever put out.

This and this guy here are those two songs.


Now go sit in the goddamn sun and play these albums as loud as you possibly can.

Change is pointless.

If you are seemingly incompetent.