6 September 2012

 

Elvis Costello and the Attractions - Armed Forces - 1979 - There is only one true king of rock, and it is Elvis... Costello. I don't know who you thought I was going to say, but "Accidents will Happen," "Oliver's Army," and "Busy Bodies" are really good tracks. It is surprising that there are songs that stand out since they are all so good.

5 September 2012

 

Doris Day & Andre Previn - Duet - 1962 - Weird album. The cover really says it all, Doris' goofy smile and and Andre is looking at her thinking "why did I do this?" pensive and sorta french sounding jazz mixed with dorky MGM musical vocals. Again... weird.

4 September 2012

 Dave Brubeck - Brubeck Plays Brubeck - 1956 - This is improvisational Jazz, it is sort of like stream of consciousness music, one minute he plunks away happily and then plunges into a moody attitude. Just feel it bro. You might also recognize his style from some Charlie Brown cartoons.

 M83 - Saturdays = Youth - 2008 - Like their name seems to suggest M83's sound is sort of a throwback to synth heavy 80's pop, but there is also a deep shoegazer aesthetic. It sounds like a magical dream world populated by unicorns, luck dragons, and Molly Ringwald. It has all the pretentious yet serious sadness of youth. It's like a musical version of a John Hughes film.

 Loretta Lynn & Conway Twitty - Country Partners - 1974 - this is one of those "so cheesy it's good" albums. You can really tell that they have fun singing and recording together even if the pedal steel saturated songs get a tad annoying.

 Wendy O Williams - Kommander of Kaos - 1986 - This music would really be a lot cooler if Motorhead hadn't done it first. But that isn't the point, Wendy O is all about the visceral and material world of explosions, chainsaws and car crashes.

Hans Wurman - The Moog Strikes Bach - 1969 - Moogs are awesome (and yes i will correct you if you don't pronounce it "mogue" like "rogue") the best track is "Toccata and Fugue in D Minor." Sometimes though this guy uses the mod wheel a bit too much for my liking.

3 September 2012

 Country and Western Album - Forum 7G-501 - 1960 - It is obvious the selling point was the tearful southern style of Patsy Cline, but there is a whole slew of other stuff, some silly, some serious, all country & western. YEE-HAW!

 Blue Öyster Cult - Agents of Fortune - 1976 - The sheer amount and quality of mustaches that went into the making of this album makes it worth-while. I always get sentimental hearing "Don't fear the Reaper" because I remember Steve Tye playing an acoustic version at a show in a garage. The song following "E.T.I." really rock also.

Ray Charles - Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music - 1962 - Nothing makes Country 7 Western sound better than when it is sung by a, R&B / Jazz singer. "You Don't Know Me" is heartwrenchingly good. The only thing that would make this album better would be if there were no WASP / Disney backup choir on every song.

 Lionel Hampton - Swingin' With Hamp! - 1956 - This album is pretty fun Jazz. My wife said it was a little chaotic, which I can see since when I hear it I think of Tom & Jerry cartoons. It's Good none-the-less.

 

Johnny Cash - Greatest! - 1959 - Let me start by saying that I have way too many Johnny Cash albums (which you will soon see). This one always catches my eye first though. It doesn't have my favorite songs, though there is a Roy Orbison song, but it is still good.

2 September 2012

 Yes - Sorcerer's Apprentice - 1975 - This is some kind of rare live recording from the Hollywood bowl on a Norwegian record label.

 5ive - 2001 - instrumental metal? Heavy does not come close. It is like two yeti warriors charging on wooly mammoths into a battle to the death with bazookas and machine guns in slow motion. Some call it sludge metal, I call it beautiful.

Hum - Electra 2000 - 1993 - If most emo bands emerge from hardcore or punk beginnings, I think Hum are metal emergent emo. There is waveringly sung emotion but with incredibly distant, slow, and heavy music.

28 August 2012 (Eno day)

 

 The Apples in Stereo - #1 Hits Explosion - 2009 - Do you get the reference in their name? They are the Beatles reincarnated in America in the nineties. The best way to describe this band (I think) is optimistic. They take the serious things seriously (like awesome rock songs) and the unimportant things with a grain of salt. They are probably the best band to listen to if you are in a bad mood.

 David Bowie - Low - 1977 - I think that Brian Eno's influence on this album is very obvious. Many of the songs are a bit darker, maybe less tongue in cheek as Bowie's typical faire. Lots of spooky synths and "sonic landscape" tracks.

 DEVO - Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! - 1978 - Again Brian Eno's fingerprints are all over this album (he produced it) but his touch turns songs to gold. Devo is funny in a robotic nerdy way, but also serious which is kind of scary. They cover The Rolling Stones' "Satisfaction" which is awesome, and I think that "Mongoloid" is just about one of the best songs ever written.

 Fripp & Eno - No Pussyfooting - 1973 - ENO again! I would call this experimental, but it is typically categorized as ambient. It is basically two tracks of guitar & synth sounds recorded on tape loops. Highly conceptual and complex atmospheric layers of shimmering and growling sonic waves.

Neutral Milk Hotel - In the Aeroplane Over the Sea - 1998 - Elephant 6 is a record label co-owned by the singer from this band and the singer from The Apples in Stereo, interesting, huh? It is sometimes difficult to know whether to laugh or cry at these songs. Some are so sad but absurd at the same time, others are so energetic yet express a deep longing. Maybe that is why this album is amazing. "The only girl I ever loved was born with roses in her eyes."

Led Zeppelin - II - 1969 - With all the immediacy of the cavalier poets, this album resonates loudly with uncontrollable emotion. It really is heavy blues with some psychedelic solos. The best part is the obscure references to Tolkien's fantasy novel. Magical.    

26 August 2012

 Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix - 2009 - This is a pop album, an inventive, fresh, comfortable, interesting, evocative pop album. These french guys are basically a boy band minus the spray tan, bleached hair, and horrible songs. In fact, they are so good it makes me want to sell all of my instruments and take up knitting.

 The Dead Milkmen - Beelzebubba - 1988 - I think that it is fitting that I bought this at a public library book sale, if you look closely you can see the "discard" stamp. I think that the best way to describe them is as if Bevis and Butthead learned to play guitars and started a punk band. I don't even know if you can call it punk though. I think that they are just trying to be stupid and funny and happen to be a band. I mean with songs about drinking bleach, living in a trailer park, different smells that emanate from the human body, and numerous mocking references to rock bands like the Who, the Beach Boys and the Beatles... you have to laugh out loud, and I do.

Elvis Costello & the Attractions - Get Happy! - 1980 - Not necessarily a continuous string of hits, in my opinion, but still a characteristically awesome album. It is kinda weird, the track listings on the sleeve doesn't match the one on the disk.