... so i've been caught somewhere in between endless hours of work, traffic, "Wait, Wait, Don't tell me", Sambuca, movies at the Mayan, Facebook, New Year's events, Taibbi, bad news, Buddyhead, good news, lucrative employment ventures, old friends, new friends, playoffs, losing bar credentials, avoiding the fam for no good reason, bad weather, people leaving for Portland, early morning phone calls, late night phone calls, making plans, canceling plans, news from KC, shows here and there, youTUBE, showers, shows unattended to, stuff written, stuff read, Chicago updates, food eaten, food yet-to-be-eaten, celebrations, mountains, the BBC, planned and acknowledged births, unemployment, unplanned and unknown births, marriages, divorces and divorcees, sad days, bar-nights, management restructuring, resume restructuring, pictures of New York and the many people there, Boddington's, on-line classes, brief bouts of depression, lottery tickets, the lovely, lovely one, Snow, birthdays, political commentary, the Blood, Glenn Beck, McSweeney's, Howard Zinn, Vice's do's and don'ts, the Economist, Star Wars on VHS, a rekindling of sorts, ignoring swine-flu, waiting on a belated spring and an even more belated Summer whilst posting various pages of Adbusters all over my bedroom...
And after all that, you get this.
Ok... As of May 2nd... 2009? I'm going to put a part of what was supposed to be a post that began God knows how long ago... and so I guess you could say this thing is really a Frankenstein of sorts...
not sure 'what-is-the-what' on this one... it's hard to begin again.
I've blown a very great opportunity and need to get back to it... but that's hardly something worth griping about now. Thank god they have a 'revolving door' policy of sorts. Not that it was that great to begin with, but lest we forget, I'm pretty damned awesome.
So yeah... back to this...
There was supposed to be stuff that still isn't included, but much like anything else I have to do with, it's incomplete. Still, it's a blog and there are millions of them. So yeah... felt like doing something and these are supposed to be living, breathing documents of sorts, so bring it to life, content, content, content, etc., etc.
Bits will be added here and there as I catch up to an old idea about things and how they happen. Still... probably not going to be filling you in on the specifics. Who knows when the past is the past and the present is the present? And maybe someday we'll talk about a trip to England that took place almost a year ago.
Added notes can be found with the kind–of 'bulleted' points represented by the *
Also, can anyone be a DJ these days?
Seems so.
Keep an eye out for 'the blood,' 'without the body there is no crime', 'Orphans' and 'a promise and a space for it'. You know when I know. You'll know it when you see it. From here on out, it's the past. It's history. December 5th, 1955. Can't you see I'm serious?
It's been a year and this whole post has been way overdue. But at the same time, it's kind of a work in progress. Confused? I'm an idiot in the world. In a more specific sense, I'm no one. Welcome to the new world of unaccountability and those who don't get paid for being experts on any given subject. Makes this stuff all too easy.
And I do love that phrase... "I Digress".
So... For example:
"If anyone knows how to put Matt Taibbi on a milk carton, let me know... I'm not hyper-linking that shit. Figure it out... Guy may be dead/writing a new book... who's to know?"
*He's alive. He can be found. He knows more than you do about stuff you wish you knew about.
Or rather:
"When the world ends in 2012 and we're all left with our dicks in our hands, this guy is going to be at exit-lip of Volcano 452 yelling between palmed hands, "I told you so!" Makes you nostalgic for movies written by John Patrick Shanley."
And then there was:
"I acquire a lot of 'new' music the 'old' way... via the local and next-county-over library... sorry kids... i'm fucking broke and not in any position to be receiving new 'anything' from anyone..."
*which helps explain why I'm not 'current' or keeping with any sort of agenda... that kind stuff is beyond me and I'm sort-of fine with that.
"So I get what I can when I can... and continue to do whatever I want with what I have. And yet, I'm distracted as easily by shotguns, regular employment, traffic lights, sexual intercourse and the like. No one reads this anyway."
*b-i-n-g-o.
"I would love to involve you in a discussion about Girl Talk, the Hold Steady, Kings of Leon, the Epilogues, TV on the Radio and 3OH!3, but, that's not what I'm here for."
*...
"Maybe someday I'll talk about why England has a leg up on the States from now until eternity.... and why I feel the world is ending slowly in a way we cannot stop. Really, it's all coming down... Man. Read this before proceeding any further... REALLY. HEY GUY. IN THE SUIT/SWEATPANTS. I'm not speaking Greeks. We're speaking your language in very specific letters. No hyperlinks. There it is in all it's glory. Stick with it like Peanut butter. Never buy cheap handle vodka. Never buy boxed wine. Doesn't include the speakers. Doesn't include the amp."
*Told you. More of the same. Think of this as mostly being a purge of sorts.
"Strangely enough... the only band... among all of the metal bands I have in my library.... that has a song pertaining to the end of the world... it's a band from the '60s talking about a woman's love being the end of the world... they nailed it then... they have it nailed now... what's wrong with us... what's wrong with me? Good god. It's going to end after I'm dead. I don't know... how? But it will? It will. Not afraid... it simply will end. With me. Forever and ever. Good god."
*Box wine.
"doesn't include 'best of' 2008 crap. probably never will. this is the soundtrack to the waning moments of summer '08 that include (but are not limited to) trips to England, loss of employment, removal from the pitch, declining interest in musical performance..."
*and doesn't mention the unexpected deviation from your normal bell-curve into a very close visit to hitting bottom... more on that in the future.
"also, as an added bonus you can look into what i thought was important enough to care about while I was freezing my ass off looking for jobs when I wasn't sleeping, drinking or cursing Carl Peterson into relative oblivion. also, at this point in time, the jayhawks are quite possibly on a win-streak until big 12 play... but who knows... we beat a ranked team of 'volunteers'... whatever that means... but i'm excited nonetheless..."
*note: even my 'belated update' is umm... belated... KU just lost to Baylor in the Big 12 Tournament... chances of even making it to the sweet 16 looked dire... still... thought about placing a bet... it's a bit more exciting when they're long shots... odds were good... IF they won. But this was March. They lost to Michigan State in the tournament. I survived and also chose not to throw a fit whilst appealing to a friend's advice that I not fight the guy next to me even though he quite clearly stole a barstool from yours truly. Very much growing up. Very much hitting bottom.
*also, let's clear something up. this is usually crap I was listening to at some point... for whatever reason, and usually doesn't reflect validity or any other source of meaning. it just is. i wish it was more random than it comes across. my disappoint is likely similar to yours.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
[ The Knife ]
Deep Cuts
Uh. Hmm. Remember when bands from Sweden reminded you of Socialism/Metal/Anorexia/Suicide? This is how/why the single was invented... or rather, how it came into being as some kind of viable marketing tool for 'bands', 'artists' or whatever this is. Jesus Christ... take this band, give them more drugs and use a four-track and we might have a baby that doesn't make anyone squeamish. Show up to the venue snowblind and be ready to convert wrist from "pinball" to "finger-bang"*... just nod your head... be excited. Make one of your dumber friends download 'Heartbeats' and include it on a mix-tape and then... congratulations... you've just purchased "Deep Cuts". Maybe ask them to include 'Is It Medicine' if you've had an erection lasting more than four hours. It does not matter what the other 10-20 songs are on said mix-tape. Really. I spared you having to listen thirteen-year-old throwaway music set to steel drum patterns. Congratulations. Do not steal this record.
*I have no idea what that means.
[ Bonnie Prince Billy ]
I See A Darkness
Two things: One, any money that you've earned thus far should get kicked back to Neil Young at some point... Not even sure how that would work, considering how many fucking albums you've released thus far. Two... This guy should be waaaaayyyy more wealthy than he is. One thing though, Junebug sucked. Hard. Great cameo. Almost saw you. Somehow, this guy is probably more famous than Will Oldham. Strange and stranger and strangest things to come.
[ Cat Power ]
Jukebox
The Greatest
Twice I have walked into some kind of hipster establishment and embarrassed myself by asking if they had managed to get a hold of some Duke Spirit bootleg that I don't have. (It's possible... kids have released a million various singles/EPs/what-have-yous... it's what they do... They're British.) A lot of this stuff is... Meh. No really... you could write off most of 'The Greatest' if you wanted to... But then you'd have to say 'Where is My Love' or 'Metal Heart' are trash... and that'd be... unfair... I mean... Girl goes off and inspires no-talent-Portuguese-speaking ne'er-do-wells to say "Ket-Pow". Dumb. Actually, let me sum this up reaaaal quick. Bitch has no identity. Hear that? None. Still, she loves the sauce and plays cover songs well-enough... and that ain't half bad.
[ Ink & Dagger ]
The Fine Art of Original Sin
"DID YOU KNOW THAT ERIC WARHEIM WAS IN THIS BAND AT ONE POINT?!!" I've said that to far too many people at this moment in time. More importantly, Don Devore played bass in the Refused and was/is in the Icarus Line. Take your pick. Get fucked. No, really... Go out, get loose, and sit on a big one. Reciprocate as often as necessary.
[ Rocky Votolato ]
Makers
Elliott Smith is dead, but Rocky is a close second. I'm not going to mention his brother here because... what's the point? I've met this guy and yeah... he's ok. Always able to remind you of the Pacific Northwest at the best of times and the other 300 days out of the year.
[ Tegan and Sara ]
The Con
Lesbian twins from Canada. I'm not sure if that's true. I might have gotten some information wrong here... but does it matter? Just because it strikes a nerve does not mean we cannot act appropriately... Or rather... "If it itches, scratch it."
[ Jeff Buckley ]
So Real: Songs From Jeff Buckley
I'm tired of people telling me about the urgency and importance of being into the Smiths despite being an avowed heterosexual. Morrissey has to hawk his wares to Latin Americans who swoon over him when they're not brow-beating dudes listening to faux-metal whilst wearing eye-liner. As a friend of mine recently quoted: "Dante said that the hypocrites get to wear cloaks made out of lead forever... so you know... enjoy that." So The Smiths crossed over the pond and hit hard here... And what does Buckley have to show for it? Reminds me of Burning Airlines and Radiohead. Seriously... The Sky Is a Landfill? Done and done. Starting a band? Start here.
[ Buzzcocks ]
S/T
I hate going out into public to do much of anything, but if I have to see another 'Exploited' anything on someone's yet-to-be-broken-in jacket I might start driving around town naked with a harpoon-gun. As kosher as Christmas. As serious as Cancer.
[ Bright Channel ]
S/T
Self-Propelled
Sigh. If the Denver music scene were a cave, it would be slightly illuminated by various candles that are lit and subsequently go out without rhyme or reason. Which would be ok and kind of peaceful to think about if the cave weren't filled with all of this other noise that kept you from finding your way around in the dark. Okay. Train-wreck metaphor over. I got to see the Swayback open for A Place To Bury Strangers, but the bill would have been complete with Bright Channel in the middle the slot. And that's all I have to say about that.
[ Saves the Day ]
Under the Boards
I got a copy of this record and have completely forgotten why. Something that makes you think of the phrase 'staying power' and how it most definitely does not apply here. Probably won't be following up on this one and neither should you. It's okay, just let it go. You're old enough now.
[ Woody Guthrie ]
The Asch Recordings
This Machine Kills Fascists. Probably the only thing I remember having to listen to in a History of American Music class in college that I gave a shit about... that wasn't Santana, Pete Seeger or Phillip Glass. And that was in 2002. Do you wanna know what kind of garbage I was listening to back then? I don't.
[ Drive Like Jehu ]
Yank Crime
So after this record Mike Kennedy went on to make bombs or meth or something, but wasn't in Hot Snakes and that's all that really matters. Think how much cooler Mark Trombino would have been if he became a very-average geologist instead of flooding the world with bands like Finch and the Starting Line. That's right... relative, but complete obscurity is still cooler than having had a hand in any album those assholes ever put out.
[ !!! ]
Louden Up Now
I'm still not sure what's going on most of these records that these dudes put out. Any single that represents the 'peak' of a band's career that relies heavily on the movie Footloose is usually a lose-lose. There's some kind of golden rule at work here that has to do with bands that put effort into their name than anything else they actually 'do'.
[ Herman's Hermits ]
Their Greatest Hits
Oldies stations have been seemingly re-formatted in Denver to play other decades that never produced anything that should fall into the 'oldies' category, which means you have to go out and either search for originals in used record bins or just buy 'best of' compilations that never seem to sit right with you. 'Odessey and Oracle' is a good example of a record that fits this weird contrariety, in that you don't envy the guy who has to pick which songs don't make it onto the 'best of' Zombies record. There's a herd of bands like the Hermits that always surprise me when I find out they weren't killed by plane crashes or diet pills. On my next day off when I feel like sitting on a patio and getting day-drunk for like, eight hours... I'll probably bring this along with some 'best of' Archies record and feel just fine about myself.
[ Basement Jaxx ]
Remedy
I listened to some pretty wack shit in high school simply because I really liked magazines and trusted music journalists. I can't imagine how weird it must be to grow up with regular, full access to the internet, social networking sites and other garbage when you're barely capable of dressing yourself in the morning. Thought this would bring about some kind of nostalgia, but then remembered that I actually bought Moby's 'Play' from a record store because I thought "Oh he covered a Mission of Burma song and is into animal rights"... This is still the only time I've thrown up in my car while driving.
[ Rocket From the Crypt ]
Scream Dracula, Scream
Just cut and paste what I said about Drive Like Jehu here. The sentiment's the same. And I'm still listening to Herman's Hermits so don't harsh on my mellow kiddos. "I thought you don't like horns in bands? Aren't these guys practically a ska band?" Wrap your car around a tree.
[ McLusky ]
Come on guy. Who hasn't pissed on the other and started a band before on that premise alone? Get with the program and figure it out. "EVERYWHERE I LOOK IS A DARKNESS!" I've been to Cardiff and beside the horrible 'fast food', they have Brains Beer everywhere and that shit slides down smoother than a big one on a smart one. (SLANG.) Really though, good music. Aspire to do something like this, even if you barely know what you're doing. Kids have your number, and can find you at a moments notice. Expect more from music. Start here. Hope to expect to hit between the eyes and give you yet another reason why you don't listen to the radio. A thorough understanding of the song "She Will Only Bring You Happiness" is now required at most Divison I Universities these days... or so I heard...
[ Foo Fighters ]
One By One
There's Nothing Left to Lose
In Your Honor
S/T
This is 50% catching up and 50% nostalgia. It's still my opinion that the Colour and the Shape set the bar too high for these dudes who take their often bland rock-and-roll/whatever pretty seriously... even now. Yet, there's only about four songs worth listening to on each album after One By One and the one came out in '99 was crap... for the most part. Make your own mix-tape... something for everyeone.
[ The Sounds of Animals Fighting ]
The Ocean and the Sun
So this comes out of Rx Bandits? Eh... Somewhere at the start of all this... before the civics lecture in a time machine part, but after the Turkish woman reads VCR instructions aloud I'm thinking... Do I like this? And then 'Another Leather Lung' hits and I'm sold. Who cares if there's a two minute interlude that may be the dumbest thing ever put to record. Gender confusion. Dumb back stories and on Epitaph no less. Huh.
[ Moving Units ]
Dangerous Dreams
Stuff like this has been relegated to high school mixers and ice cream socials at this point, yet it still remains in the bowels of my computer like a lump in the back of my throat. Like ska, but with worse fashion. Appropriate soundtrack for that thing that happened at city college that we don't talk about. Steal maybe. Do not purchase.
[ Eagles of Death Metal ]
Peace Love Death Metal
It's good to know that rock stars still exist and they can still find work.
[ The Concretes ]
Layourbattleaxedown
Swedish. Good enough. Not very memorable. I'm both intimidated and beguiled by people who listen to a very narrow trench of music that encompasses stuff like this. Great songs to kick off starting that commune you haven't got around to yet. Friends only. Must play an instrument/bang a drum.
[ Beulah ]
Yoko
The Coast is Never Clear
"Fuck. Isn't pop music supposed to be popular? Who is this popular with? It's almost as if you would listen this to counter-balance carrying a gun in public or, say, driving your car into a supermarket. Hearts of Palm must be stoked these guys are still making records. On Yoko, the suck factor is dialed down a bit, but that's not saying much. This whole band is like if Jeff Tweedy jumped in a time machine, went all the way back to 1965 and kidnapped the Beach Boys and forced them to write throwaway songs for some kind of "let's see how many instruments we can cram into one LP" project. The only stand-out on either album is "My Side of the City," where the music has some cognizant resemblance to something that won't piss you off.
[ The Stone Roses ]
s/t
"Soundtrack music - the upbeat stuff doesn't work for me as much as say... the depressing as fuck stuff... reminds me of cranberries stuff... can't imagine they didn't get it from the stone roses... there's a lot of interesting ideas at work here, but yet there's also much to be desired. Silly love songs with way too much delay and reverb/reverse effects... ad nauseam. This stuff probably sounds great if you're really, really loaded and it's meandering enough to come across as a bit too much of variety... coherent it's not... the bits and pieces that do work get picked up or stolen and hauled away by throwaway acts that won't be remembered by next week. The problem lies in that most promising beginnings end up going awry at some point, much to the non-chagrin of everyone who really wants to love the stone roses. Also, I'm pretty sure Scarborough Fair came before "Elizabeth My Dear" A rip-off is a rip-off. Downright meandering and boring at parts, I can't hang with this.
[ Rogue Wave ]
Descended Like Vultures
This is like an ice cream truck that serves nothing but shit sandwiches and ballsack popsicles that your friends keep wolfing down because they're so consumed by the bells and whistles of said 'truck' they won't stop to see what it is they're eating. Every now again, I catch up to the truck just to see watch this hooting, hollering shit-show and then I see a bunch of idiots running around with shit-staches and sticky, smelly fingers and I say to myself, "not yet."
[ RJD2 ]
Dead Ringer
Since We Last Spoke
What you can expect to hear at all gay bars on Mars in the not-so-distant future. Participation may vary.
[ The Fiery Furnaces ]
Gallowsbird's Bark
Blueberry Boat
EP
Bitter Tea
Widow City
See all those fucking albums up there? I'm still wondering while I felt it necessary to listen to all of them too. Hopefully you feel like I do.
[ A Place to Bury Strangers ]
s/t
This band is loud as fuck. Word. A throwback to a lot stuff I've been listening to anyway. What makes all the echoes and overdrive effective is the way in which they're used or utilized to manipulate distance and detachment while maintaining your attention. This shit never gets boring and makes you wonder if your brain is on fire. Kids are also stoked on feedback and songs about kicking your head in. Cool. Put your stereo in your window and bum out your neighbors if nothing else. Also a good way to have a conversation with your lawn mower and other kitchen appliances. Highly entertaining.
[ Brian Eno ]
Ambient 1 Music For Airports
BORRRRRRRING. I don't care about what he did with David Byrne either. Sure to be on everyone's 'best of' '08 lists. Jesus.
[ Signal to Noise ]
Kodiak
Someone talked to me once about how a loved one stopped listening to music when their best friend died. They couldn't stand music anymore because it just reminded them of their loss and gave them the pits. Signal's a lot like that to me. Except no one died. And they don't remind me of anyone who might have died. And I still listen to music. Kind of. Wait, what does this have to do with anything? Let's just say that there won't be a brick in the street or a bench in the park anywhere in this town commemorated to the memory of this band and that makes me miserable.
[ Alkaline Trio ]
Agony and Irony
Dear Matt... Why don't you dedicate the rest of your life to only playing Popes covers, stuff from 'Maybe I'll Catch Fire' and whatever Ani DiFranco song you haven't tried to sneak by us yet... This album was fucking awful. Cool? Cool. Love, Everyone.
[ Cold War Kids ]
Robbers and Cowards
Loyalty to Loyalty
Both great albums. Hope these guys don't get sucked into oblivion like everything else that's good. I said something about MGMT to where I inferred that they were the best thing I heard in awhile... comparing them to Muse or something stupid. No... No... No... If there's talk and words worth writing that surround anyone who really deserves it, it's these fellas from Fullerton. Plus, they with Sound Team a while back... Which is an immediate sell for me.
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