Like I'm drunk behind the wheel

Got to give it up for a 90's classic. Not sure why I'm so obsessed with this song but I just think it's one of the best songs I have ever heard. I don't think the lyrics are especially brilliant nor is the music particularly noteworthy. It just evokes some weird emotional response when I listen to it. The song is "Out Of My Head" by Austin based band Fastball (fun fact they were originally called Magneto U.S.A.-glad they didn't go with that). The song is incredibly simple-the organ works really well with the piano and drums (the acoustic version is pretty good too-I'll post both). Enjoy the song.

"Out Of My Head" by Fastball from All The Pain Money Can Buy (1998)

"Out Of My Head" by Fastball (Acoustic)

-S

Dum bah did du dum

One of the best gifts I ever received was for my 18th birthday. It was 3 cases from my older brother. Each one contain a significant portion of his CD collection. I tirelessly worked at listening to all or some of each album. I found a ton of a great music is in there, on such a CD was from a band called Soul Coughing, which I had never heard of, it was one measly CD, a live album recorded at the 9:30 Club in D.C.

I'm not sure why I liked the album so much. But upon further reflection I think it was because of the tip of the tongue vocals (most of lead singers Mike Doughty's lyrics are on the spot slam poetry style) they also have this heavy upright bass sound with a intimate feel. The band is even less polished than some of the music I've been listening to, which is saying a lot. If there was ever a band that totally embodied rawness, this band might take that prize. They just sound so fresh that you'd think each track was totally free form and written just for that specific moment.

They have been described by critics as "slacker jazz" which I wouldn't have though of to describe a band on my own, but when you listen to a couple of their tracks it becomes incredibly obvious that it is very descriptive. They just have this feeling of we-don't-care-so-listen-if-you-want-to music. I won't post about each track because they are incredibly unique, so just listen and you'll see what I mean.

"Circles" by Soul Coughing from Lust In Phaze (2002)

"Janine" by Soul Coughing from Live At The 9:30 (1998)

"Maybe I'll Come Down" by Soul Coughing from El Oso (1998) *this ones my favorite*

-S

Lo-fi before it was cool

Another nice find from my slew of recent downloads: Elliott Smith.

*Note: This blog has posted about Elliot Smith before but "A" has not posted about him*

Elliott Smith started releasing albums in the early '90s up through the early 2000s (until his unfortunately early death in 2003 when he was 34-an apparent suicide), but he started composing and writing music when he was just a teenager. In true indie style, he started playing around with four-track recording, played in a couple bands, and first started releasing albums on an independent label until getting signed in '97.

Smith said one of his biggest influences was Bob Dylan, which you can definitely hear in the bluesy guitar and harmonica, but if you ask me, his music is also really reminiscent of Simon and Garfunkel, especially in the vocal style. It has just the right amount of hushed crooning and gentle harmony, although it's a little darker in terms of lyrics, which deal with a lot of Smith's personal issues, including his alcoholism, depression, and drug addiction.

It's definitely worth your time to listen through snippets from each of his albums and hear the way his music evolved, incorporating more and newer textures of sound and gaining even more melancholy complexity as the years went by. For now, here's "Condor Ave.," which he purportedly wrote when he was only 17 and then recorded for his first album, Roman Candle, released 1994.

"Condor Ave." by Elliott Smith from Roman Candle (1994)

"El Condor Pasa" by Simon and Garfunkel from Bridge Over Troubled Water (1970)

(I just couldn't pass up the parallelism.)

-A

Digging through and past the center

I wasn't really sure what to expect from The New Pornographers. I had heard of them before, but didn't know what I thought they were. I was handed their new album Together a few weeks ago. I popped it in and, to my surprise, I really enjoyed it.

It was a little like eating a Triscuit and expecting a Wheat Thin-I was totally caught off guard by this band. They have a pretty unique sound-if I had to put a name on it it would be like a more rock and roll-esque Polyphonic Spree (power-pop as their page suggests). The song I want to share is "Your Hands (Together)," its the title track on their album Together. I wouldn't say the track is representative of the whole album, but it certainly sets the pace. What I really love about this song is the fact that it just never lets up. I've been listening to it on loop (its how I write about the song of the day) and the difference between the end and the beginning isn't discernible. It kind of has a 90's rock feel, which is a little weird, but this band is definitely a new favorite.

Enjoy!

"Your Hands (Together)" by The New Pornographers from Together (2010)

-S

A little more stupid, a little more scared

The National just came out with a new album, High Violet, and even though they have been around since '99 I feel like I am still trying to figure them out. It isn't the like I don't enjoy their music, I think it is that there is a complexity in their music and Matt Berninger's voice. I just feel a little lost, and thus cannot pass any sort of judgment on them.


That being said, I have just listened to one of their new tracks, "Afraid Of Everyone," (a must listen) so far so good I guess. As I said before though, I'm still trying to figure them out, and what better way to do that they comment on another one of their songs. That song being "Slow Show."

It starts off with a very distressed guitar part that is extremely low key that conflicts with Berninger's low voice and relatively up beat lyrics. There is kind of a cognitive dissonance that comes with this song, I feel like I should be hearing something about it, and it is just on the tip of my tongue but I just cannot put it in too words, and I just cannot resolve it. I think, deep down though, that I do really enjoy this song, it is incredibly beautiful and well written, definitely a must for people who feel as I do though; a little confused and looking for direction in The National's music. If you were wondering where I can cite the song for being well written by the way check out this little gem: "Looking for somewhere to stand and stay I leaned on the wall and the wall leaned away," that is incredibly sad...

"Slow Show" by The National from Boxer (2007)

"Afraid Of Everyone" by The National from High Violet (2010)

-S

Bigger than guns and cigarettes, it's alcohol and cigarettes

The year is 2010, I don't think there is a single human being alive (other than those living under a rock, you know who you are) that hasn't heard Oasis' "Wonderwall." To be honest that's all I thought they had until I recently stumbled upon Oasis' earlier recordings, pre-What's The Story their 1995 hit album (it went platinum 4 times in the U.S. and 14 times in Britain). These recordings hit me like a truck, these guys are amazing, they are so much more than their comparably tame "Wonderwall" and "Champagne Supernova."

The first song I stumbled upon was called "Cigarettes and Alcohol," released in 1994 off of the album Definitely Maybe just over one full year before Whats The Story. This track gives off a distinct brit-punk feel (maybe a little bit of a Sex Pistols vibe) with a little bit of George Thorogood style guitar that gives this song some serious bite. It gives off a total high school angst vibe as Noel Gallaghers lyrics read "Is it my imagination Or have I finally found something worth living for? I was looking for some action But all I found was cigarettes and alcohol." Brilliant!


The second song was "Shakermaker" off of the same album. This gives off a very different vibe than "Cigarettes and Alcohol" in that it is far more towards the indie rock spectrum in the same vein as other indie rock groups of the 90's with that little bit of John Lennon like lyricism and vocal tones (in the psychedilic sense). They definitely backed off from the heavy guitar and really just turned the attitude down a notch for this song. It is a little bit of a head-nodder towards the end which I can sometimes appriciate in a song like this.

Clearly I have mis-judged you Oasis. You are far more than as song about a wall and star made of champagne. So this is me issueing my first blog apology (blopology?) for judging you by your #1-hit-singles. Clearly there must be some bands out there whos discography wallows in obscurity under the shadow of a #1 hit.

"Cigarettes and Alcohol" by Oasis from Definitely Maybe (1994)

"Shakermaker" by Oasis from Definitely Maybe (1994)

-S

Best song ever written?

I don't really give a song this distinction too often, but dare I say, this is the best song ever recorded. Originally recorded in Russia, this song made its rounds on an early 70's T.V. show in the Soviet Union.

Due to this circumstance, it did not make it to the U.S. until some time in the late 90's considering it took a few years after the end of the Cold War and the magic of the internet to unearth this classic song. I can't tell you I know too much more about the song other than that it is possibly the most beautiful song I have ever heard, in English or in any other language for that matter. Furthermore I only know the song by the title "Trolo".

I really hope you enjoy it as much as I did and pass it on, everyone needs to hear this musical masterpiece at some point in their lifetime.

"I Am Glad I'm Finally Going Home" by Eduard Khil (1976)

-S

Update: The mans name was Eduard Khil and the song was published in 1976 under the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic.

Further Update:


Tell Me This Man Is NOT A Pedophile

Dream obscene

I'm sure most people have heard of Chat Roulette at this point. If you haven't its a website that video connects you to random strangers, most are violently sexually assaulting themselves, however once in a while you meet someone pretty cool. I went out to find new music for my radio show and asked people on Chat Roulette what their favorite song was, looking up the songs one by one to see if my interests fell in line with others.

One such band I came across was Placebo. They are an Alternitive Rock band from London. As with most bands from London at the time (1994), they gave off the sound of bands like Oasis and The Smiths (two of the most popular Alt Rock/Indie Rock bands in the country at the time).

Up until that day on Chat Roulette I had not heard of Placebo from a girl in Minnesota, and I'm really glad I stumbled upon them. They do differentiate themselves somewhat from the rest of the Brit Rock scene but they do have the slightest tendency to sound generic at times.

Anyways, I hope you all enjoy these guys, I know they have become kind of an integral part of my music library.

"Meds" by Placebo from Live at La Cigarle (2006)

"Special Needs" by Placebo from Sleeping With Ghosts (2006)

-S

Come on in, we haven't slept for weeks

You know those bands that grow on you? For me, no band personifies this change better than The Mountain Goats. I started listening to them in 7th grade, and only to a measly three songs. I'm not sure how I heard about them or what drew me in but something just held me.

The first song I ever heard by them was "The Best Ever Death Metal Band In Denton". For the most part this song is pretty representative of the band. Lead singer John Darnielle started the band in the early 90's, recording with a very lo-fi sound (That he used up until 2002ish). I knew when I heard this song that this band was something special but I don't think I had the capacity to understand this at the time. When I was in 7th grade it was 2005 and The Mountain Goats had come a long way from the Lo-fi sound that I was used to, but I was a little behind the times.

I'm not sure I understood "The Best Ever Death Metal Band In Denton" at the time, all I knew was that it was the story of a high school metal band and that it ends with the lyrics "Hail Satan" (Not sure why but this felt so scandalous when I first listened to it).

The main message of the song is that when someone has a dream, you can't stop it by putting it down, our dreams live on no matter what. "When you punish a person for dreaming his dream don't expect him to thank or forgive you," Darnielle says it better wouldn't you say?

Anyway, here's the song, I won't tell you much more about the band because I want people to discover this band for themselves, they are truly amazing and definitely worth exploring more. I'll start you off a little though...

"The Best Ever Death Metal Band In Denton" by The Mountain Goats from All Hail West Texas (2002)

"This Year" by The Mountain Goats from The Sunset Tree (2005)

"Color In Your Cheeks" by The Mountain Goats from All Hail West Texas (2002)

— S

East Bay

Talking with a friend a couple years ago, I stumbled on this song. [editor's note: It's important to know that Spencer survived a brief electric bass career, during which he pestered his friends and family for ideas about songs to learn. After a while, a competition emerged. This little tune surfaced as a winner.] It's really rocking in the most basic sense of the word. It really just wants to make you rock out, if there ever was a song that exemplified it so well just going nuts. The song is "Journey To The End Of East Bay" by Rancid.

The song starts out with one of the funkiest bass lines I've heard in a long time and then break out with a strong guitar and then some really punk vocals. Besides just being a rockin' song, the lyrics are pretty stellar.

"But there was always an urgent need to belong
All these bands and all these people
All these friends and we were equals but
What are you gonna do when everybody goes on without you?" front man Tim Armstrong cries out.

All in all great lyrics, rocking tune, and, for some reason, a total feel good song. GO 90's PUNK!

Journey to the End of East Bay (Live) - Rancid (note: the bad-ass mohawk)

— S