Indier Than Thou

Amazing!

noreply@blogger.com (____________________) — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 13:22:00 +0000

Our dear friends the Lava Lamps are kicking ass and taking names! Nicely done!

94.9 CHRW Top 30

TW Artist Title Label
1 Lava Lamps Yellow Umbrellas Independent
2 The Black Keys Attack & Release Nonesuch
3 -- Portishead Third Island
4 -- Tokyo Police Club Elephant Shell Saddle Creek
5 -- Jason Collett Here's To Being HereArts & Crafts
6 Olenka Warsaw Girl Independent
7 The Pack A.D. Tintype Mint
8 CPC Gangbangs Mutilation Nation Swami
9 Teenage Head With Marky Ramone Teenage Head With Marky Ramone Sonic Unyon
10 Born Ruffians Red, Yellow And Blue Warp

Year List Things Pt 2: The Days of Yore

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 15:54:00 +0000

This actually has nothing to do with anything, basically, but I thought I'd put together a list of things that SHOULD have been on the list last year. Because, you know, they should've been on the list, last year. By last year, I mean '06, not '07 which is technically already the REAL last-year. My little Best of '07 thing will probably only be finished years from now. That's okay though, because no one reads this and because... because there's a writer's strike, yeah. Yeah.

Please click the link in the title of this post, by the way.

And now without further ado...

5. Paris Hilton - Paris
It reggae...! No, this isn't actually on this list because I want to make fun of it. I've nothing to make fun of here... it's great. I don't really like hearing everybody's bull about "oh she's famous for nothing and she's such a bad influence and she's a lazy rich whore and she's disgusting and everything she stands for is repulsive and - " well, shut up, assassinate her if it bugs you so much. Also, I can't remember if I put the Charlotte Gainsbourg album on last year's list (but I remember in any case that I was close to doing so) and people are allowed to genuinely like her without getting stuff thrown at them. Why's that? It's the same deal. Rich and successful daddy, lots of arguably undeserved cash, thriving or once-thriving-not-so-much-anymore supermodel career, unimpressive voice that's doctored quite a bit, most likely they don't write their own songs (I know Charchar doesn't and I doubt Paris does)... the only thing different is the sex tape. Or so you might think. Maybe that link's not quite as extreme as whatever Paris did, but still. The other difference is Charlotte being Eurotrash which is not as frowned-upon as it should be... instead, people seem to respect it. But really. Ew. Europe. Anyway, this album achieves everything it sets out to achieve (it's catchy, poppy, dancey, etc.) which is more than can be said for a lot of albums by all those Respectable Artists that seem to be all the rage lately.

4. Elton John/Lee Hall/Liam Mower/etc. - Billy Elliot: The Musical, Original Cast Recording
This is beautiful. Here, this speaks for itself:

Watch the whole thing! That's an order. If it doesn't give you the shivers then you have a heart of stone.

3. Tool - 10 000 Days
Admittedly this album had to be forced on me, practically at gunpoint, really. But something very good that can be said about it is that even when I was trying my very hardest to dislike it (I just don't want to look like one of those Bret-Easton-Ellis-obsessed, Bill-Hicks-teeshirt-wearing, drug-doing Edgy types, okay? Gosh!), I ended up... loving it. The guy's got a really good voice, really flexible, haunting, too - I mean, once you get past how annoying he probably is in person. The drums on this album are just...just...wow, you know? I usually don't give a shit about whoever's drumming, it's usually just some angry young man hitting things and that, but on this album...shiiit. According to a friend of mine this is "polyrhythmic drumming". No idea what the hell that means. But it sounds, um, exciting? Like lots of running horses! The lyrics can be lame though; so, so lame.

(But kind of funny, too! I was going read the whole list of comments looking for someone who responded to "try pulling your foot out of your mouth asshole!" with "what's a mouth asshole?" but it really just wasn't worth the trouble. But then like... is it your mouth's asshole?)

2. Beirut - Gulag Orkestar
The number one reason this made the list was that I like Beirut a lot, but don't feel like Flying Club Cup is going to be on my list for '07 just because, I dunno, this stuff is a little repetitive. I like it a lot but there's stuff I like more, so. So I'm putting this here just to prove I'm not ignoring it (and to tell all two people that read this blog that I think Zach Condon is the most attractive man alive).

1. Anathallo - Floating World
Pitchfork gave this a pretty nasty review. Like...really nasty. The Sufjan Stevens comparison and the comments about the lyrics are accurate enough that they sting... but seriously? Given what that stupid site says about Animal Collective, they should... well, they should shut up. I'll save the Pitchfork rant for another day (or maybe never, basically: the people working for Pitchfork Media all suck! Bah!), but hey, go ahead and read the review up there but imagine that everything they say about the album was meant in a good way. Then buy or download the album, and like it, because it takes a lot less effort to enjoy than "Marc Hogan" would have you think. It's great. Or if it isn't I'm just young, dumb and easily impressed. Both options are equally possible but I like the first better and because of the first two thirds of the second one (try and work that math out, whheeeeee) I think that you should agree with me.

And, Bonus!

Best of 2008 (maybe, who knows): The Mountain Goats - Heretic Pride
(oho! oho! such a hacker i am!)

Year List Things Pt 1: The Bottom Five

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 01:18:00 +0000

Just for the record, this used to be a bottom ten, not five. The list was padded by things that were actually genuinely awful, because, though I wanted space to complain about the five below, I didn't want them all so high up on the list, really. They weren't even BAD per se, I just love to whine. But then I realised I didn't really care enough to go beyond one word ("sucked") with the other five actual-bad ones and, I dunno, some of them I didn't want to admit having listened to. Oh, but just because I wanted to avoid being told I'm wrong becausethatmakesmeuncomfortableANYWAY, I gave Positive Polly her say against all the Negative Nancy stuff.

And here it is then. Sorry in advance.

5. Animal Collective - Strawberry Jam
Guys. The emperor isn't wearing any clothes. I can't stand how many people are completely smitten with this album...I think it's just noise. Just like getting punched in the ear repeatedly for much, much too long. Punched rhythmically, but still. Then that semimelodic highpitched tweedliness on I think every single track is kind of just like the ringing of your ears after you've been punched for too damn long. This punching motif thing is well-suited to the fact that of course my brother loves this album more than he's ever loved anything which is doubtlessly not very much, but still. This album is as much of a gruesome mess as its cover art.

But Positive Polly Says: Certain snippets of it are great. A lot of "Chores" is fine, most of "#1" and "Winter Wonderland" are bearable, and I really rather like all of "Derek".

4. Okkervil River - The Stage Names
They just stole the essence of some of the more second-rate Arcade Fire stuff and then made it greasier, a lot greasier (literally and beginning with the hair). For some unkown reason I actually expected really good things from The Stage Names and all it turned out to be was straight-up Boring to listen to. Apperently the lyrics are supposed to be "powerful" or some other such crap, but I don't care and can't find a way to make myself care. I still consider Okkervil River an incomprehensibly over-respected version of... The Spill Canvas or something.

Positive Polly: Good in-the-car-with-your-friends music, I suppose. Also my father loves Okkervil River, says they're good to listen to while running, and I kind of agree. SO what I mean is, this album does have a very nice energy to it...or...something...

3. The Bird and the Bee - The Bird and the Bee
Again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again... Where Nelly went wrong, The Bird and the Bee COULD have gone right: by shutting up.

Positive Polly: That's a completely invalid critique. It means...nothing. The "again and again"s weren't even typed out, they were COPIED AND PASTED. Per-THETic.

2. Feist - The Reminder
While typing that title, a particularly gruesome image popped into my head: a dozen crazy leering middle-aged valium-addicted hyenas pouncing on and tearing apart the young unsteady-legged antelope that's lagging behind the rest of the pack. I find Feist fans are viciously, viciously obsessed with this album and with defending it at all costs. But hear me out! First off I'll apologise for the fact that Feist fans aren't really all middle-aged valium addicts. In fact, the Big Deal with Feist is that she's supposed to appeal to everyone from my Rihanna-obsessed younger sister to the crotchety old guidance counselor at school who likes to limp about tearing down hallway decorations...and she does, she appeals to everyone. Why? Because her little ditties are so goddam playground-melodic, all conchord and no dischord, all perfectly and sweetly likeable with nothing intriguing to propel The Reminder forward past its overaccessible prettiness. Like Belle and Sebastian, but even simpler (if that's possible) and with less heart. It's like she TRIED to write the most hypermarketable, ipod-commercial-tailored album ever. Yawn.

Positive Polly says: But so CATCHY, and suuuuch good latte background music. Nice job, Starbucks!

And my idea of the worst thing to happen musically in two-double-oh-seven:
1. Corneille - The Birth Of Cornelius
Why? Why does this exist? There is no reason or justification for this monstrosity. None.

Positive Polly is in tears and thus currently unavailable for comment.

Back In Several Colours Including But Not Limited To Blackish

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 00:23:00 +0000

So as October draws to a Close, a couple very not magical things begin to happen. Leaves fall, and stuff. Homeowners offer you petty change to rake said leaves. Non-homeowners rake up those last bits of petty change they can panhandle before retreating into their Men’s Shelter treeholes for the colder months. Smashed pumpkins decorate the streets to pave the way for the garish Christmas lights to come. All the tech companies start hawking the next big craze for you shell out for in honour of the particular religious holiday you’ve chosen as justification for your pre-winter splurging. The rain of homework starts to pour in and I start using this blog for the procrastinatory umbrella that it is. Oye seasons.

Yeah, all of these things are kind of annoying but I think you’ll survive it. The reason for this banal little return of mine is mostly actually due to my love of 1. Lists, 2. Lists, and 3. Lists. Specifically, the kind that come at the end of the year – Top Ten Albums, Tracks, Annoying Things About Amy Winehouse, etc. I realize that there’s a good 2.25ish months’ worth of eartickling yet to come our way but the early bird gets the worm. That is to say, the person who starts doing this sort of thing before other people, is a person who…started doing this too early and will probably miss some stuff.

Um…

In summation, I’m going to start listing shit soon and I thought I’d warn you so you could get some good running distance in there or something. Also the title contains a link to the sleek and delicious revamped Hype Machine, and lastly here is this really wonderful video:

I'm so tired of America

noreply@blogger.com (Mosey) — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 03:36:00 +0000

"I'm going to a town that has already been burnt down."
Hey, this kinda sounds like a radiohead song...off kid a or something?
(click on title, sit back and enjoy.)

This Is Awesome!

noreply@blogger.com (Mosey) — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 21:06:00 +0000

All summer I've been working at the campus radio station here in London (CHRW 94.9). Part of my job is to decide which albums will go into the on-air studio for the DJ's to play and which go in the garbage. See, 20-30 albums are sent to the station each day and most of them are crap. Yesterday I put on this band I'd never heard called "The Coathangers". Most of the record was ok until the song called "Nestle In My Boobies" came on. This song is awesome.
(directions: click title for link, then rock out!)

Go Ga Ga For Spoon

noreply@blogger.com (Mosey) — Sat, 18 Aug 2007 22:31:00 +0000

First, I would like to apologize for the title of this post. I am sure that a million music journalists have used this lame type of pun for the new Spoon record entitled "Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga" but...I just couldn't help myself. And I wanted to...fit in or something. I've had second thoughts about writing a post about Spoon, because, I mean....are they really that indie? They are on MERGE-technically an independant label started by the band members of Superchunk in 1989, but, aren't they sort of common knowledge?? possibly not.
Obviously I decided to write the review due to the FACT that the record is soooooAMAZING. I LOVE "Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga". It's like "Summerteeth" era Wilco but Better. Lots of super strummy acoustic guitars and horns galore! I'm not sure about the second track-it doesn't seem to fit with the rest of the ga ga...kinda spacy and pointless...but the rest are GEMs! "Don't You Evah" is sooooo groovy. Kinda Dandy-Warhols esque and WOW the drums and WOW the bass and WOW the guitar and they all come in at different times and fit so well together like a stunningly executed square dance on a Saturday night in some rural small town Ontario. The real ga ga moment, however, is the Jon Brion produced "The Underdog". Did you need a reminder of how awesome 70's era Billy Joel is? This will remind you. But it's new, I mean it sounds cool, not too 70's....jeez, just buy the record already.
p.s. click on the lame title for the link!

Coming Soon...

noreply@blogger.com (Mosey) — Sat, 18 Aug 2007 15:40:00 +0000

ok, so it's been awhile but I've been busy. Soon I will get my act together and you will see posts about SPOON and THE RUSSIAN FUTURISTS. I know these aren't the newest of new releases, but the M.I.A. kinda sucks and I don't want to listen to it again to figure out why (well, it's club music and I guess it's supposed to be repetitive...).
Maybe I'll throw in THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS as well.
ta-ta,
Mosey.

CBC Fuse, and Ronderlin

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 22:02:00 +0000

CBC Fuse, which would probably be my most favourite thing in the world at this very moment.

Then, Ronderlin which is just about my second favourite thing.

The Magic That is Ohbijou!

noreply@blogger.com (Mosey) — Sun, 27 May 2007 03:17:00 +0000

So I saw this band open up for Great Lake Swimmers a few months ago, and we were all blown away. But they seemed like one of those bands that are awesome live, but maybe not so good recorded...you know, the kind of band that has a sort of UNRECORDABLE spark or something. I finally heard the record "Swift Feet for Troubling Times" last weekend (thanks Iain!!) and now must eat my words. The magic, I think, is captured remarkably well...it's lush and pretty and catchy and sweet. Lots of violins, harmonies, banjos and a clever title to boot. This is from their website: "Laying in bed, in a fit of unbridled happiness, hitting me like an unexpected sneeze, I looked at you and said....ohbijou.” aww...how romantic...another perfectly pertinent adjective for the magic that is OHBIJOU.
Favourite songs: The Otherside, The Woods.

Water!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 20 May 2007 19:01:00 +0000

In honour of May 24 and cottages and the like, here is this. Water, beaches, sailing, whatever. THOSE things. Those things the loser boating community can't experience because of this shit weather, which makes me pretty happy, though I'm sure the boaters don't care about that or anything else really (which is a boater characteristic, they all have it, even kayakers).

You know, I want a boat! If anyone has any information on how I could get myself one and live on it forever without getting attacked by pirates or sea police or water vehicle safety guys, it'd be nice.

This is a right "WAVE" of mp3's (ha, ha) and took seventeen years just to upload and link to, so there are no descriptions or anything.

1. Genessaret (Going Out Over 30,000 Fathoms of Water) - Anathallo

2. Water - Jason Mraz

3. Underwater's Where The Action Is - Kelley Stoltz

4. Whilte Waves - Shearwater

5. Paper Boat - Belle and Sebastian

6. It's As Clear - Let's Go Sailing

7. A Seafood Song - The Divine Comedy

8. Where There's A Will There's a Whalebone - Islands

9. Seaside - The Kooks

10. Sea Legs - The Shins

11. Between the Moon and the Ocean - Bon Savants

12. Ocean - poor Yorik

13. You're the Ocean - Teitur

14. Beach Song - Speechwriters LLC

15. Ride A White Swan - T. Rex

16. Moving Pictures, Silent Films - Great Lake Swimmers

17. The River - Marz (with an umlaut!)

18. My Love (Diplo Remix) - Justin TimberLAKE?!

19. Tidal Wave - David Gray

20. The Flood - Bishop Allen

21. The Great Salt Lake - Band of Horses

22. Stowaway - Tullycraft

23. Some Things Make Your Soul Feel Clean - Duke Special

24. Big Boat - M. Ward

25. Kaskaskia River - Sufjan Stevens

26. Catch The Wind - Donovan

27. Sailed On - Landon Pigg

28. Know Which Way The Wind Blows - The Postmarks

29. Heaven - Swimmer

30. I Know There's An Answer (Beach Boys cover) - Sonic Youth

On thirty-first thought, I don't know if the boating community would ever allow me to have a boat of any kind and I should probably forget about it and go back to my sad ghetto wall-painting dreams.

Bonus! The Ocean Doesn't Want Me - Tom Waits

Wolves!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 10 May 2007 01:14:00 +0000

This is a, um, wolf. C/O Google Images, where else. I especially like how that gisele...horse...thing just stands off to the side, like Dick Cheney in that one youtube video, or you know, the wolf's modeling agent. He's ready to make a hit on whoever tries to renegotiate his client's contract. However, the wolf's poses smack of stasis and his career will go nowhere.

Anyway, yes, of course, it's been noticed before. Wolves, or well, the word at least (both plural and singular...) are everywhere - everywhere! There are other words like that, too, that just kind of pop up in songs and song titles and band names and such, so watch out because this may become a regular thing - this week, wolves, next week: the sea. Maybe.

Anyway it took me about twelve years to figure out how to put up these mp3...things...so I hope this works for you.

Wolves at Night - Manchester Orchestra
I begin here with what is hands down my least favourite track on the list. I accindentally uploaded it with the rest of the stuff and it's got the wolf thing so I might as well leave it. It's all just noise, made even more grating and unpleasant to listen to by his nasally and awkward-sounding voice. Enjoy.

The Wolf - Miniature Tigers
Oh, the dreaded handclaps! Not only do I hate them no matter what the context, this is worse because the song already has this very marked, pounding, repetitive thumpy-ness about it. The lyrics are kind of lame, also... "I'm on your trail, I can smell your blood, I've had enough with unrequited love", okay. Kind of a weird metaphor. And then it seems he forgets the metaphor altogether to moan for a while about how "everyone's looking at you like they want to...everybody's looking at you like they want to..." want to what? Oh, go home with you. Sure, I want to take a wolf home, and have it in my bed, and share rabies with it (by the way the new Chuck Palahniuk book is not good). All things considered, though, I kind of like this one.

The Reputation of Ross Francis - My Latest Novel
Because I love this song, and the album it's on - which is of course called "Wolves". Oh, it's gorgeous. If there's one song here that you bother downloading, let it be this one (if you've not already of course).

Say Wolf in the Summertime - Page France
I apologise for the sound quality. Just imagine, though, how good it could sound on a proper recording, or how it would've been live - when he sings, "damn near fell in love..." or later, when the girl comes in, or, "why do you care when the notes go wrong/I'll sing it for me, it's my own damn song..." - this is absolutely the best spring/summer song, or at least, my favourite, for now. If only I could find a better version of it...

Bluebells - Patrick Wolf
You know.

The Bonsai Tree - Peter & the Wolf
Anyone I have shown this song to thus far has hated it...why!? It's so simple and sweet, and as absolutely lame as this sounds, if Bonsai trees could make music I say they'd sound a little like this. I was really fond of the Peter & the Wolf story with music when I was a kid (regretfully, I've got it only on vinyl and am too lazy for Limewire so no mp3's...), and I flipped when I found I liked this (band? guy?) almost as much. Again, this is a more or less seasonally appropriate song, I think. I love spring far too much for my own good.

Middle Distance Runner - Sea Wolf
You're A Wolf - Sea Wolf
Well then. This is all very folksy stuff, so I'm sorry if you hate it. I like Middle Distance Runner best but the other obviously has the more appropriate title. Is it May 8th yet? Sea Wolf's EP, Get To The River Before It Runs Too Low (lyrics from this very song! The second one, that is), comes out then. Not that I've heard more than maybe four songs, but I recommend it in advance but don't hit me if it sucks. I'd be excited enough to know the date today if I wasn't so broke, but hey.

Raised by Wolves - Voxtrot
I'm a hypocrite who can't think up enough wolf songs, kay, thanks, bye.

Things I Don't Know - Wolf Parade
I managed to keep Wolfmother out of this, and I held back on that one TV on the Radio song, but just couldn't keep away from both the Patrick Wolf thing and the obligatory Wolf Parade track. This is kind of new though, eh? I think? At least that's something.

And as it happens that is really all I have to say about Wolves. 'Night!

Sverige

noreply@blogger.com (Panda) — Tue, 01 May 2007 23:20:00 +0000

Sweden is home to your favourite and soon-to-be-favourite musicians:

El perro del mar, Peter Bjorn and John, Shout Out Louds, I'm From Barcelona, the Cardigans, Suburban Kids With Biblical Names, Dungen and the Sounds, to name but a few since there's way more.

For a country of 9 million, it's quite a powerhouse.

Listen here!

Jeremy Warmsley!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 29 Apr 2007 13:33:00 +0000

I love this man.

Happy Sunday morning.

best/crappiest band names of the week

noreply@blogger.com (Mosey) — Sat, 14 Apr 2007 23:19:00 +0000

PRIZE FOR BEST BAND NAME OF THE WEEK GOES TO:

get cape. wear cape. fly

PRIZE FOR WORST BAND NAME OF THE WEEK GOES TO:

To Separate The Flesh From Bone

MOST ANNOYING BAND NAME:

Alex Delivery. This is not some guys name, this is a dumb Billy Talent rip off (of a name, that is-I have no idea what they sound like).

Frank Turner - Sleep is for the Week

noreply@blogger.com (____________________) — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 03:36:00 +0000

So, perhaps you all know of this man. Perhaps not. He seems to be attracting a fair amount of critical attention. His self description runs as follows: "I like to consider myself part of a wider continuum of UK-based folk-influenced music."

Frank Turner's songs start out sounding like misplaced Oasis B-sides, but the lyrics are surprising and catchy, and the melodies are full of as many surprises as Neutral Milk Hotel's On Avery Island (and they are surprising in the same way: the sudden soaring up an octave and the unexpected dropping down one, the long, lovely sustained notes, etc.). It's just him singing and playing a guitar. Neat, me thinks. Your thoughts?

Winehouse Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Mosey) — Wed, 04 Apr 2007 05:28:00 +0000

Ok, I think I'm obsessed. I've just spent the last hour listening to all these solo acoustic songs on myspace and she's so fucking awesome!! There's all these videos of her singing while sitting in this retro green chair with some acoustic guitar player that we can't see for some tv show or something...and most especially, you should check out "you know I'm no good" amazing! I'm excited like I was about Feist or Cat Power...it's been awhile. The funniest thing is that when she sings she sounds like a old black american blues singer from the 1960's, but when she speaks in interviews, she sounds like sporty spice!
Here's another picture of this hot mama...wait, who the hell says "hot mama" anymore? Well, I'm bringing it back, baby!
I think she looks like her majesty P.J. Harvey in this pic...

OH MAI GAHD!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 02 Apr 2007 21:17:00 +0000

Eurovision!!! There's about one month until the Semi-Final and a record 28 songs have made it! 28, wow! Eurovision, wow!!!

Neophytes to the brilliance that is this song contest really should go here so the ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS "Song-O-Mat" (Finland spent the money it would take to afford the "ic" on Lordi's costumes last year) can tell them which song is their favourite. It's actually against the rules of Eurovision to just pick for yourself, and the rules of Eurovision are also more or less the law according to the European government. Or so I hear.

In any case, though at first I felt I should support Andorra's entry as it's in my language (waaaaaah!), it was actually too stupid to even handle. Like there's hilarious-Eurovision-stupid and then there's...this, which is just stupid.

So after I fasted for a week due to that little upset I continued my search for a favourite, and for a while decided that they're all just too hilarious this year. What with classically Eurovision song titles such as "LovePower", "Get A Life - Get Alive" and "Time to Party", and delightfully foreign/confused/out-of-date videos like this and this, it looks like Helsinki is going to host a really freaking solid Eurovision 2007...those 28 entries sure all do deserve to be here!

But finally, I settled on Teapacks' "Push The Button" (Isreal's entry), which at first worried me a bit because I'd heard, in passing, that it was actually going to be a genuinely good song? But no, no, thankfully, I'd heard wrong, and it was justly terrible and hence, AMAZING. Not only that, it looks as if these gypsies may be banned this year, because their groundbreaking Klezmer-meets-hard-rock-ish-techno is just a little to controversial, eh? Also I guess people were bit confused by random use of scat in inappropriate places, the singer's awkward torso-rocking, and the vaguely inuendo-ish sound of the group's name.

It's not weird, it's just crappy!

noreply@blogger.com (Mosey) — Sat, 31 Mar 2007 21:49:00 +0000

The Stooges- The Weirdness

This album sucks. It's like your younger brother started a punk band, and he's really excited about it and you overhear them practicing in your basement and when he asks you what you thought all you can say is "dude, you guys sound good, but...get rid of your singer." I even heard that Steve Albini didn't want his name on it as producer so they used the term "engineer" instead...
One good thing is that the album thankfully contains pics of Iggy with his shirt on (well, he has a jacket on but you can barely see his bare chest peeking through..phew). I didn't think any pictures of un-shirtless Iggy existed!
During the uber-crappy song called "My Idea of Fun", Iggy drones over and over: "My idea of fun/is killing everyone", and on the annoying "ATM", I think he's saying "money is simply the loot/gonna bullshit the bullshit up". It has been suggested that he's being trite on purpose-point taken, but if I wanna hear that crap I'll go down to the local shithole on a monday night (they save monday nights for the bands that suck) and shake my fist in the air to my little brothers new band...if I had a little brother.

I don't have time for this now but...

noreply@blogger.com (Panda) — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 05:34:00 +0000

Rubik are amazing. Fjord Rowboat, Harmonica, Yoko Casionos, Jenn Grant, Frida Hyvönen, Christine Fellows, Pipettes, the View and Metronomy are good.

Computers Are Crazy!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 20 Mar 2007 00:26:00 +0000

Even if you're not a Nine Inch Nails fan (and I kind of hope that you aren't!) THIS is worth checking out. You can imagine yourself that you are a big-name producer and that The Mayor will shortly pay a visit to your home and your fancy computer to give you a sash and some money.

Something else that's snazzy and computers-and-music-related is Loop Duplicate My Heart - Suburban Kids With Biblical Names[mp3] which I am quite sure you will have already heard but if you've not...there it is. But I warn you, it is littered with crappy handclaps.

Lastly there is a very long but interesting thing to read about music and the internet, if you at all care.

Amy Winehouse!

noreply@blogger.com (Mosey) — Sun, 18 Mar 2007 05:10:00 +0000

BACK TO BLACK
ok, so I know everyone's been talking about this chick for awhile, but I've always been a late bloomer, ok?? and in my defense, her last album sucked.
BUT THIS ONE'S STUNNING!
It's sorta retro-motown -girlgroup-r&b meets Miseducation of Lauryn Hill meets low-fi- Christina Aguilera-pop!....she can sing like nobody's fucking business!
and now I must excuse myself while I listen to the title track over and over and over again...I'M OBSESSED!
"we only said goodbye with words/I died a hundred times/you go back to her/and I go back to black"
(other notable tracks include rehab and tears dry on their own)

It's cold outside...we need to stay warm!

noreply@blogger.com (Mosey) — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 20:47:00 +0000

The Postmarks are my warm, cozy slippers. I want to cuddle with the postmarks by the fire on those cold winter nights. Maybe it's because they're from Florida, but heat seems to pulsate from my speakers while I listen. A hint of Postal Service, a dash of Frou Frou and a pinch of early Stars, I think. www.thepostmarks.com

...untitled?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 01:44:00 +0000

Here are some links because...well, I don't really know why, but I thought that since I found them pretty rad, you might, too!

First of all, there is THIS.

Not only is the video hilarious (Where did he get that suit fitted?! Why is he moving his hands like that...invisible gloves? What's the deal!), the one English comment pretty much makes my life.

Then, THIS. Which apparently, is old news, but it shocked/amused me! The two alternate sides to the story can be found here and here, and on a site referenced by the first article, that I lost the link to.

If you don't already know and don't feel like dealing with a whole lotta reading, basically, Owen Pallett/Final Fantasy's "This Lamb Sells Condos" is actually just vicious slander against this "Brad J. Lamb" character who does, in fact, sell condos. It appears that Brad Lamb is a bit of a dick --

"You know, the thing about music and me -- and this is kind of me in general -- I like stuff and I don't like stuff. I like people and I don't like people. It's not the kind of music I like. But apparently, it's a good song, apparently it's a song people like and I think it's won some awards, it's just not my kind of music and it doesn't appeal to me, regardless of the words." (Oh, sure, Brad...SURE.)

--but, Owen Pallett is a cutie! A truth exposed by both his photograph (durr) and this quote:

"I am a very fortunate person to have been blessed with wildly vivid emotions. I feel ecstasy and despair daily, usually more than once. Yesterday I played violin all day and cried myself to sleep with the joy at my good fortune. So, yes, I think there's a romanticism in my lyrics. I get teary-eyed over a good cup of coffee."

I mean, how can you not fall in love with that? Is it even possible?

Then, totally my favourite movie ever ever ever, by my new favourite guy-who-makes-movies, can be found here (La Jetee). The above photograph, apart from being meant to mock Kit a tiny bit, is from Sans Soleil, another movie made by the same guy (Chris Marker) some years after that other one. This is actually relevant to the whole "music" thing, I promise! Basically Sans Soleil is kind of, but not quite, a mockumentary, made by a made up guy called "Sandor Krasna", whose brother, "Michael Krasna" (also made up) does the making of the music! It's all very late eighties/early nineties kind of stuff that sounds all cheapy and tape-recorder-y, to match the messed-up-VCR effects on the actual vidoe stuff but it's totally the most awesome thing ever in the context of the movie!

In other news, happy birthday to my mother, who is ABSOLUTELY THE COOLEST PERSON EVER.

And just for good measure here is another thing I quite enjoyed. (thank you, hannah)

-Clara

The Drunken Speech of the Deposed Dictator

noreply@blogger.com (Panda) — Sun, 18 Feb 2007 05:02:00 +0000

In Tears of the Valedictorian, Frog Eyes have added Spencer Krug and made themselves listenable. Their previous efforts featured awesome song titles like "Our Lordship Has Devised a New Billing System" but, to enjoy the songs themselves you really had to immerse yourself in them, and if you did so, you risked going insane. While this danger still exists, it is, at least, no longer an arduous adventure. "Bushels" is a singularly great song; starting off with a fantastic piano line and then, as Carey and Spencer are wont to do, transitioning into an entirely different song, and then another one. There are still annoying bits and it's not going to be played at your local Shoppers' anytime soon, but this time it's worth the pain. What doesn't kill you makes you stranger. (For the opposite turn in fortunes, see the latest Modest Mouse)