In this mix, for your listening pleasure, I thought I’d slow things down, and stretch things out a little. Kind of get you all in the mood for some late night philosophy and spooning. I’m too cheap to ply all of you with booze so I thought I’d make you a mix tape, kind of give you a little something to ruminate on before I discuss the merits of an open view of love in this century and bum drinks off you all night. Hope that’s cool, ’cause we’re totally friends right broham?
Anyway, the background image for this tape is Sisters G from Gatochy’s flickr stream. I can think of no nicer image to go with the theme of “everything is better in pairs”. Except for maybe some extra-adorable mittens, but it’s Spring now and no more of THAT! Anyway, for the sake of not writing all over the lovely ladies’ faces, I just titled the tape “Pairs”.
Pairs are exactly what you’ll get on this tape. Let’s explore the contents, shall we?
Jesus and Mary Chain - April Skies
I listened to this song the other day on the way to work and it improved my mood like nothing else could at that very moment. Music to soothe the savage neurotic.
Jesus and Mary Chain - Darklands
The second J&MC track is one of my favorites. “I wanna move, I wanna go, oh I wanna go, do-do-de-do-do-doo…”
I went with one I’m unfamiliar with, to avoid the folly of ignoring deep tracks. It’s got a bit of a Velvet Underground feel. Check the pedigree though!
Jonathan Richman - Satisfied Mind
I chose this track because it’s a classic (1955 by Porter Wagoner), and Richman’s treatment of it is a great introduction to his style.
Jonathan Richman - Springtime in New York
Truth be told, all I can think of when I read this is Stephen King’s The Wastelands. It’s all those dreams about NYC they have.
From the sounds of this song, you can see where he fits with Richman and Donovan. Rich metaphor paired with a bare-hearted, literal approach combine for maximum enjoyment.
Rounding out this mix is Jeff with the rest of his usual band, Wilco, in a tune off of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. The opening violin reminds me of Yoshi’s Island.
I hope you all enjoy this! What are some of your favorite pairs of songs?
For those not in the know, the herpes references do have a legitimate precedent, namely the origin story of the band Godsmack’s name. Erna stated in a 1999 interview that “I was making fun of somebody who had a cold sore on his lip and the next day I had one myself and somebody said, ‘It’s a godsmack.’ The name stuck. We were aware of the Alice in Chains song but didn’t really think much about it. It’s a cool song and the name had meaning for us”. ~via wikipedia
They’re right. I’ve been smacked in the face by herpes crisps one (5,000) too many times. Now, I lie, drenched in a puddle of mud, SULLen and covered in sloppy joe. [Crawling in my Skin.] Through the mess, I’m screaming for the relief that only Shoutcast can afford.
How will I drag myself through the moist, oozing slit that is Monday without a little Stevie Ray Vaughn to carry me along? How shall I adequately pay homage to the upcoming dreams of Ether-and-Sour that Friday afternoon promises, without a little chair-dance-party-inducing DP? Without you and your [shoutcast] box, how would I have ever discovered the joys of Party Fun Action Committee and Cocorosie?
Admittedly, I’m not always logged on, but the solace that Shoutcast’s presence affords is the only thing that keeps me from tearing the face off of the greyface drones who play 3 Doors Down and Nickelback on the community radio for all of our listening pleasure. Please G. Reconsider. If not for the morale of your fellow comrades, do it to prevent the spread of herpes in the workplace.
My dear associate SlyFloyd has a very good handle on the hip-hop world, and has brought some really great artists to light. I, on the other hand, know approximately jack-squat about hip-hop with the exception of a few artists that I assume most folks have heard about already. (Talib Kweli, anyone?)
I’m far more interested with the obscure, the “noisy”, the psychedelic-inspired, and otherwise just generally quirky music.
In the four concert snippets above I feel tones of both Philip Glass - Einstein on the Beach in particular - and the kind of dizzy-handed wistfulness I’ve learned to love and respect from The Velvet Underground’s dreamier tracks. These musicians, centered around core member Tori Kudo, find themselves in the same psychedelic playground as the sisters of Cocorosie.
What got me turned onto the artist was a track found in The Wire #10, a sampler attached to the British music magazine of the same name.
MAHER SHALAL HASH BAZ POST OFFICE
Recorded in East Kilbride Arts Centre, Scotland, in May 2002, Blues Du Jour (Geographic) features 41 new compositions by Tori Kudo, the leader of Japan’s Maher Shalal Hash Baz. “Post Office” is one of Kudo’s most gorgeous songs; in his words, the story of a disappearing woman whose hope never vanishes. The track features Alison Mitchell (trumpet) and Katrina Mitchell (xylophone) from The Pastels, in addition to the sevenpiece Maher group which participated in the sessions.
As noted in the description above, “Maher Shalal Hash Baz” is the band name and somewhat of a pseudonym for Tori Kudo himself. But whatever does this psuedonym mean? Via Wikipedia -
Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz - “Hurry o spoil! He has made haste to the plunder!” or “Hurrying to the spoil he has made haste to the plunder” - was the second mentioned son of the prophet Isaiah, mentioned by name in Isaiah 8:1–3. The name is a reference to the impending plunder of Samaria and Damascus by the king of Assyria.
This group caught my eye as I was researching Cocorosie. Although this group steers far more towards the sensibilities of My Bloody Valentine and Sonic Youth than Cocorosie. It’s pleasant, uses harmonious vocals and delicious guitar distortion. I’m no technical expert, but I know what I like and this group passes all checks! (Plus, the 23 reference tickles my recent fancy in all things Discordia.)
The more I hear from this group the more impressed I am. I cannot even remember the last time music gave me chills like what I got from listening to this live performance.
Anyone who still reads at my “old location” knows that I’ve been having a bit of a family crisis. So yesterday while driving to the Portsmouth Regional Hospital, I was fussing with the radio, trying to find some kind of music that didn’t suck. This task is often challenging in this area, as they tend to play the same five Pink Floyd songs, and a mix of recent popular dreck. (I most often listen to 96.7 since they tend to have a pretty enjoyable mix of 60’s, 70’s and 80’s.)
However, periodically I’ll tune in to 106.1 - Portsmouth Community Radio - in time to catch some DJ’s set that introduces me to the interesting, oddball stuff I so thoroughly enjoy sometimes. Yesterday was one of those happy accident days. The two charming ladies setting up the records at the station that day played a unique track called “Japan” by a duo known as Cocorosie.
My immediate impression from the first 30 seconds or so was that Lamb Chop had grown up and started dropping a lot of acid. In two words: Far fuckin Out. As it went on I started to pick out the warm and quirky lyrics themselves, and the choice of instruments that fit the theme. The tune was relatively simple, but that wasn’t a shortcoming, it was a feature that made the song more accessible. At one point the song faded out, and I thought that the next song on the playlist was a lovely, operatic vocal song with minimalist instrumental background. As it turned out, that was an intermezzo of sorts. It was such a striking musical experience that I managed to remember the artist and song title hours later. (A rare feat for me, no matter how much I like what I hear.)
A quick googlin’ turned up one of my favorite lyrics sites: Always on the Run.net. They’ve got a brief bio, lyrics galore, and a couple MP3s available from the group (available from a small icon by their name on the main page).
Hit it up, check it out, and let me know what you think.
The obligatory “if you like” list:
The Flaming Lips
Ween
Poe
That one operatic song from The Fifth Element
Modest Mouse
Lamb Chop, grown up, on acid (not the actual band named Lambchop, mind you)
Some kids play in the sandbox. We play in the.... litterbox??? The RKNet staff is pleased that you decided to stop by. Currently this is a multi-author project, with a rotating cast of totally kooky characters. Contact giania [at symbol] gmail [dot] com if you'd like to play here too.
