skratch disc

Nick Lowe • Labour of Lust

2011-03-11T15:18:00.000-08:00

That this 1979 power pop classic has been out of print for so long is pretty amazing, considering Nick Lowe's Labour of Lust continues to thrill so many years later. Finally, YepRoc comes to the rescue with their second Lowe archival release (Jesus of Cool/Pure Pop for Now People was the first). And though it doesn't feel as substantial as the previous one, it is among the most important of

The Jayhawks • Hollywood Town Hall, Tomorrow the Green Grass

2011-02-16T11:50:00.000-08:00

It's the great Northern Minnesota raid! I don't know if they're from Northern 'Sota, actually, but I know The Jayhawks are back and that's a good thing. They put out a tremendous best of last year, Music from the North Country, and now American has reissued their first two releases on the label, Hollywood Town Hall and Tomorrow the Green Grass. I'll be upfront in saying that I didn't catch on to

David Lowery • The Palace Guards

2011-02-09T19:57:00.000-08:00

What I like best about David Lowery, who has incidentally fronted two of my favorite bands—Camper Van Beethoven and Cracker—is that he can effortlessly move from rockin' to weepin', poppin' to peepin', and runnin' to creepin', all within the confines of a normal length album. His first solo disc, The Palace Guards, doesn't rock as much as most of you will remember Cracker doing with "Low" and the

The Soft Boys • A Can of Bees

2011-01-27T07:47:00.000-08:00

1-2 "great to be here," "sure is" 3-4...YepRoc's new reissues of two great Soft Boys albums starts off with this intro to "Give It to the Soft Boys" on A Can of Bees (and continues with the Underwater Moonlight LP). Robyn Hitchcock's late '70s anglo rock band, hailed as being both punk and psych (a near collision of rock critic clichés), were a much overlooked group, only receiving their due when

Pretenders • Pretenders II

2011-01-18T10:52:00.000-08:00

The holidays and a little bit of travel kept me busy for the last month, and though there are some new releases I'd like to get to, I listened to this gem on the plane and I can't help but want to give Pretenders II it's due.Now I know most of you, if you're a Pretenders fan, like the first album better. And what's not to like about that album? Every song's a winner; it's hard to beat "Mystery

The Sonics • 8

2010-12-09T13:53:00.001-08:00

Yes, "8." I have no idea what the significance of the title is*, but I do know why this release is significant: It's the first release of new music from The Sonics in decades! And while there's only four new studio tunes, there are six new live recordings from their recent European tour (you only get four on the 10" vinyl).To see these guys live—even today!—is to experience rock 'n' roll the way

The Who • Live at Leeds [40th Anniversary Deluxe Box Set]

2010-12-02T14:17:00.001-08:00

It finally came the other day! A little over forty years after the concert was recorded at a "uni" in Leeds, England, The Who's legendary Live at Leeds is still hailed as one of the best live albums ever. Of course, when they finally put it out with the entire concert included (with the entire Tommy rockopera, even), it made it even greater. Now, they've released it in a be-all end-all edition

The Doors • The Doors [Mono Version]

2010-11-28T18:38:00.000-08:00

Another Record Store Day Exclusive (for Black Friday, that is), The Doors' first LP, The Doors, has been re-released in a limited edition mono pressing. Previously only available in a vinyl box set from a few years ago (and its initial '67 release, of course), it's another great example of how songs can benefit from being mixed in mono.The 180 gram audiophile pressing (made by the renowned RTI

Bob Dylan • "The Times They Are A-Changin'" b/w "Like a Rolling Stone" (7")

2010-11-27T18:51:00.000-08:00

Available as part of the under-marketed Record Store Day "Black Friday 2010" event, this Bob Dylan 45 showcases two songs from the Whitmark Demos box (side A) and from the Mono box (side B; best of CD reviewed below)."The Times They Are A-Changin'" is a wacky little version, apparently a publisher's demo (what they used to use to transcribe the music/lyrics for sheet music), with somebody playing

Bob Dylan • The Best of the Original Mono Recordings

2010-11-24T13:54:00.000-08:00

Times are tough, times are hard, here's your f'ing Christmas card. There's no Christmas music on it, of course, but Bob Dylan's The Best of the Original Mono Recordings is definitely a gift, even if you gotta buy it for yourself. I almost didn't buy it, but decided "what the heck?" I can't afford the box set, which is comprised of Bob's first eight LPs from 1962 to 1968, so I thought I'd at least

John & Yoko, Plastic Ono Band with Elephant's Memory (et al.) • Some Time in New York City

2010-11-23T08:32:00.000-08:00

Oh sure, I know what you're saying. You're saying, "Hey Gooch, I see you reviewed a bunch of those Lennon CDs there, but what about Some Time in New York City?" And you have proven how astute you are—I did, indeed, forget to include John & Yoko's 1972 release in my previous post. Well, forget isn't exactly true, because this often overlooked album, played by Lennon, Ono, the Plastic Ono Band with

American Music Awards 2010!

2010-11-22T18:52:00.000-08:00

Justin Bieber won Artist of the Year, Breakthrough Artist, Male Pop Artist of the Year, and his album won Best Pop Album. And old music fiends (some a lot like me) say there's no good music being made anymore!

John Lennon • Plastic Ono Band, Imagine, Mind Games, Walls and Bridges, Rock 'N' Roll, et al. [2010 Reissues]

2010-11-22T10:17:00.000-08:00

Well, well, well. Here we have a new batch of remastered John Lennon albums, and this time the wife didn't remix them or do anything to mess with them. The ones that streamed out last decade were all right if you want to hear something a little different (I thought Rock 'N' Roll was worth remixing, and was made stronger by remixing), but really, you don't want these to be fucked with. That being

New Releases Update • November 21, 2010

2010-11-21T15:38:00.000-08:00

THE FALL | Live at the Witch Trials [Deluxe Edition]Their first—and to me, best—album gets the deluxe treatment 31 years after its original release. Live at the Witch Trials, which isn't a live album at all, was recorded in a day in 1979 and showcased the first of seemingly dozens of Fall lineups. This 2CD edition includes the Bingo Masters Break-out EP, a ton of BBC John Peel live tracks, and

Ladies and Gentlemen, The Rolling Stones • Rollin Binzer (director)

2010-11-16T17:51:00.001-08:00

What makes a great concert film? Terrific music, for one. Great sound? Definitely. Interesting cinematography? Yeah. An historic event? Sure. And what makes a great concert film director? Someone who knows how to present the band, their music, and what it looks like on stage in a way that makes you want to see it more than once.So who is this guy, Rollin Binzer? Well, he's the guy who directed

David Bowie • Station to Station [Deluxe Edition]

2010-11-12T08:35:00.000-08:00

The return of the son of the Thin White Duke...? Station to Station was one of the many times over his career where David Bowie sought to reinvent himself. In 1976 it was more rockin' than Young Americans, more soulful than Diamond Dogs, and even considered "modern" (whatever that meant then).When I first came across this album (in the early '80s), I didn't really like much of it, save for "

Who Is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him)? • John Scheinfeld (director)

2010-11-10T19:08:00.000-08:00

One of the best music documentaries to come along in ages, Who Is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him)? shows all who see it just what made Nilsson the genius enigma he was. Director John Scheinfeld interviewed a zillion people who knew him (too many famous ones to note!), worked with him, were vexed by him, or just knew of him and put together a bio that is at once sad,

Badfinger • Magic Christian Music, No Dice, Straight Up, Ass

2010-11-09T10:44:00.000-08:00

It's been almost twenty years now since the first time Badfinger's albums for Apple were released on CD, and nearly forty since they first came out on vinyl. That a couple of these are of the best power pop records EVER shouldn't be news to aficionados, but it may be for those who vaguely remember "No Matter What" or "Day After Day," the two biggest singles for the band Stateside. The four of

Lynda Kay • Dream My Darling

2010-11-07T16:27:00.000-08:00

Lynda Kay's debut country album, Dream My Darling, is one of those releases that feels like a record that got stuck behind the stereo console for forty years, only to be treasured once its existence was rediscovered. It's very Patsy Cline-esque, save for the syrupy strings and Owen Bradley backing singers that make Cline's records sound so dated today. Think of k.d. lang minus the kitsch (though

Paul McCartney & Wings • Band On The Run (Archive Series 2010)

2010-11-07T14:51:00.000-08:00

When your team is losing 35-0 at halftime, it's time to turn to the stereogram. So I put on Paul McCartney & Wings' Band On The Run, the umpteenth reissue (albeit in "deluxe" fashion) of Macca's quintessential post-Beatles LP. Though I already had a CD reissue and the 25th anniversary reissue (which was released a year late) on both digital and vinyl media, I "needed" to get this one to add to

Special UPDATE for Mike Montgomery and Others Who Wonder Where I've Been

2010-11-05T20:26:00.000-07:00

Here it is, the beginning of November, and I haven't made a new entry since August. Well, my life has taken some interesting turns in the last few months, and though I'm loathe to go into specifics here, suffice to say, I am now just about settled into a new apartment. I finally got the stereo set up, with the 5.1 surround working via HDMI. I can finally get around to reviewing some stuff! On the

Peter Case • The Man with the Blue Post Modern Fragmented Neo-Traditionalist Guitar

2010-08-13T16:40:00.000-07:00

Our final archival review to celebrate "Peter Case Week." Next week I will post my interview with Peter, so stay tuned...Three years later, Peter Case releases his second solo album. A stunning companion to Peter Case, Blue Guitar doesn't really cover any new ground. Producers J. Steven Soles, Larry Hirsch and Case employ the same arrangements and production that T Bone Burnett did on the last

Peter Case • Sings Like Hell

2010-08-09T11:51:00.000-07:00

I heard it was only available in the L.A. area so I got a friend of mine to pick it up for me. You'd better make similar arrangements to get Sings Like Hell. Now whether you'll take that title as crummy or fucking brilliant is up to you. But I can tell you, being a professed Casehead [or is that "headCase"? – ed.], that this simple, acoustic CD captures the essence of Peter Case's art and lays it

Peter Case • Six Pack of Love

2010-08-07T12:31:00.000-07:00

Our unofficial Peter Case week continues with some reviews I wrote back in the '90s...For me, a new Peter Case album is more than that, it's a promise fulfilled. Not just because it's been two years since his last record, and not because it's miles better. It's because Case has made an album that takes all the best elements from Peter Case, and all the vibrancy and energy that made his work with

Peter Case • Wig!

2010-08-06T10:38:00.000-07:00

No, Peter Case isn't balding and trying out toupées. He's got a new solo album out, and it's a real corker (to use our Limey friends' parlance). After a 2009 that saw Case go through heart surgery without insurance AND the release of 4 Case-related albums (see The Nerves on this blog), the man recorded Wig! with DJ Bonebrake of X and some other friends. Just like most of his releases, it's very