Sweet "netlabel" music from Pandoras.Box, via Clinical Archives. I found Arrows & Bows on this most excellent collection of "Creative Commons Music" - Rebel Music Volume One. Well, he says it is Arrows & Bows, but Jamendo, which has this player, says it is the song after that called "Next To Mine". Not sure who to believe, although it is singing about "I am the arrow and you are just the bow", so I'll believe Fernando! I'm downloading the songs now, but it is going very slowly.
- I'm Not In Love - 10cc (The Very Best of 10cc 1997)
- Sex Changes - The Dresden Dolls (Yes, Virginia 2006)
- Sunday - Bess Rogers (Decisions Based On Information 2007)
- Stop And Think It Over - Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles (Diamonds in the Dark 2007)
- Joanni - Kate Bush (Ariel - A Sea Of Honey 2005)
- A&E - Goldfrapp (Seventh Tree 2008)
- Kings And Queens - Loudon Wainwright III (A Live One 1979)
- 1952 Vincent Black Lightning - Richard Thompson (Rumor And Sigh 1991)
- Sweet Bird Of Truth - The The (Infected 1986)
- Every Passing Day - Goanna (Oceania 1985)
A mostly modern set this time around, with a few new wave classics thrown in for good measure. The 10cc song is a favorite from my high school years. The album (yes, children, I originally bought it on vinyl) it comes from (The Original Soundtrack) was a real favorite of mine at the time, although I can't say as I'm too thrilled with the other songs from the disc on this greatest hits CD. Oh well, tastes change. The Dresden Dolls are (were???) one of my favorite groups, local or otherwise, and Amanda Palmer is one of the cleverest musicians around. And Yes, Virginia is their strongest effort. Bess Rogers is a another wonderfully clever artist originally unveiled to me by W♥M, and this is a nicely syncopated song. I went Sarah Borges crazy when their second CD, The Stars Are Out, came out and I picked up Diamonds too. A local group who I have yet to see, sadly. I'm sure she puts on a whale of a show. I've been a huge Kate Bush fan since the early 80s, when I worked with a real Kate fanatic who went so far as to celebrate "Kate-mas", her birthday (July 30th). It was so great to have some new Kate stuff, after a very long wait (12 years!). Ariel is a fantastic double CD. Hmm, looks like it is also a female artist random 10, as we follow it up with my favorite cut from Goldfrapp's 2008 release. Ah, but then back to the wryly ironic in Loudon Wainwright. I've see him in concert a few times and he never disappoints (and never plays Dead Skunk). I was disappointed to find that Black Lightning wasn't on the 3 CD Richard Thompson retrospective, Watching The Dark. It's still a great collection, but Black Lightning should have been on it. It's a great story from a great storyteller. Speaking of storytellers, we move onto The The's Matt Johnson, who can certainly tell an intense story, as he does here. And finally, another song from my Oceania CD, bought in Australia. This is one of my favorite songs of all time, even.
Also picked up a couple of new CDs this week. First up is a local group called Passion Pit. I heard a good song on WZBC coming home from hockey and figured out it was either Passion Pit or Magic Magic. Then I saw Passion Pit's latest CD for only US$6 at Newbury Comics, so I thought it was worth a gamble. Unfortunately, it wasn't the right one. It turned out the great song I heard was from Magic Magic,and was their Over Your Heart song, which is really good. Passion Pit is okay, with this song being the highlight of the CD:
But even better is the Tyondai Braxton CD, Central Market. I've already introduced you to Opening bell here, but another excellent song is the centerpiece, an over 10 minute opus of modern orchestral pop:
Things I Loathe
- Seeing my girls sick. They are pretty tough kids - not complainers at all. So when they are sick, they are sick. And there's just not much to do about it, which is the worst feeling as a parent.
- Darkness at 5pm (and it'll get worse before it gets better)
Things I Love
- The look of Borderlands. Played about an hour last night and it seemed quite fun.
- Backstopping a shutout. Hey, it's only pickup hockey, but it is my first shutout, and against a team with our best player on it. Pretty cool.
- Discovering unique new music. Check out this song from Tyondai Braxton's Central Market:
- Settling in on the couch with R10.4 for an afternoon of football. We're addicted to NFL RedZone HD - "football porn" as one of my friends called it. Just all the good parts, with none of the commercials - heaven!
- Alexandra's Melody du Jour on WZBC Friday mornings, 7-9am.
- Svatba - The Bulgarian State Radio & Television Female Vocal Choir (Le Mystère des Voix Bulgares 1990)
- Roam - The B-52s (Time Capsule 1998)
- Railroad - Kasey Chambers (Carnival 2006)
- Boot Hill - Stevie Ray Vaughn (The Sky Is Crying 1991)
- Apple+Option+Fire - Hot Lava (2009 Bar/None Records Sampler 2009)
- You Can't Steal A Gift - El Perro Del Mar (From the Valley to the Stars 2008)
- You Like Me Too Much - The Beatles (Help! 1965)
- Sweet Water Pools - Screaming Blue Messiahs (Bikini Red 1987)
- Brand New Cadillac - The Clash (London Calling 1979)
- Masters of War - Bob Dylan (The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan 1963)
We're covering a lot of ground here, so we'll need to get started! First up are some mesmerizing female voices, in a CD that could be said to have ushered in the era of "international" sounds. Time Capsule is a solid greatest hits collection. The Australian country/rock/folk singer, Kasey Chambers, had one of my favorite CDs of 2008, collaborating with her husband, Shane Nicholson on Rattlin' Bones, so I picked up her previous CD, a more rockin' one. One nice thing about random play - you're reminded of CDs you haven't really listened to, and Carnival is one of them. Unfortunately for me, I wasn't really introduced to Stevie Ray Vaughn until it was too late, but The Sky Is Crying, a posthumous collection of tracks, is simply breathtaking. I'm a big fan of the Amazon MP3 (free!) sampler "albums", and the 2009 Bar/None Records one is a favorite. Unfortunately, it does't look like it is still available. Thanks to W♥M, I fell in love with El Perro Del Mar's super low key music and this is a very nice track. Help! is one of my favorite Beatles album and while you may not recognize the song title, I'm pretty sure you'll recognize the song. The short-lived and much lamented Screaming Blue Messiahs have shown up here before and this is another great song from a great CD. And speaking of great CDs, London Calling is certainly one of my "Desert Island" CDs - just an amazing collection of sounds, music, styles and beats. And finally, we'll go back even more, back to one of Bob Dylan's first CDs. Rougher and folkier, with some serious anger issues, and loaded with classics.
I have picked up a few new CDs, and they have each been wonderful in their own ways. The Black Heart Procession's Six is a wonderfully atmospheric effort, full of dark goth rock, witches, blood, rats and drugs. I really enjoyed their earlier song Not Just Words from The Spell and so when I saw this new effort on sale at Newbury Comics, in the fancy hardcover version, I just had to pick it up. It wasn't a mistake!
Even better is the amazing In And Out Of Control by The Raveonettes, a duo from Copenhagen. I just love this CD and the girls do too. Lots of poppy, jangly songs, whose very dark lyrics contrast sharply with the upbeat peppy rhythms, a dichotomy I just adore! With song titles like Gone Forever, Last Dance, Boys Who Raped (Should All Be Destroyed), and Suicide, you'd expect the dirges, a la Black Heart Procession, but instead you get noise-pop, driven by Sharin Foo's marvelously girlish voice. Last Dance dragged me in, but really every song here is solid.
Wow, how cool is this? I knew John's doggie clothing line was going to turn some heads! Please pass this post along to any and all who love doggies. These outfits are great gift ideas for the Holidays!! He will do custom orders.
Read The Daily News story here.
What's new with you? I want to know.
With me?
My sister Beth and her husband Alfredo welcomed a delightful new addition, baby Isaac, into their family at the beginning of the month. Yay!
Esther came to visit from England for about two weeks. We went to New York City. We went to Chicago. We turned 32. We ate and ate and ate. We laughed almost non-stop. I was sad to say goodbye.
My classes are kicking my butt, but in a good way; kicking me into shape intellectually. I feel as if I am slowly being shaped into a better scholar and a better thinker. With the exception of one class which is fairly dull, I am being challenged and pushed. As part of my undergraduate research training scholarship I am working with a faculty member who looks at teachers who become sexually involved with their students. I am delving into Shakespeare more deeply than ever before. I am researching medieval drama. I am learning data analysis and research methodology. I am soaking up brilliant literature and finding that my Current Political Ideologies class, in which we discuss philosophy and psychology more than we do politics, is really just inexpensive therapy. I love it all. This kind of stuff makes me love being a student.
Love it so much, apparently, that I am studying (in theory -- certainly not in practice) for the GRE so that I can -- with luck -- get accepted into the Master's program that I'm eyeing.
I am also, for the fifth time, teaching a class for gifted students through Purdue's Gifted Education Research Institute.
No matter how busy I am, my little ones -- as enchanting as ever -- still need me just as much. They also need those pesky quotidian necessities such as food, clean clothes, rides to activities and friends' houses, and someone to listen to the stories of their day. I'm not going to lie: finding a balance is hard. Fortunately, my little world is full of very supportive people and I am not afraid to admit to my limitations. I can call my mother-in-law, tell her I need help, and know that she will be willing to get on a plane and take over the reins at home for a while. She arrives in about two weeks.
Photos of Esther's visit to follow. In the meantime, here's a taste of NYC.
As I have mentioned before, my good friend John Vega has started his own doggie clothing line, fleas&biscuits.
He is going to be featured at a doggy fashion show, Pawject Runway, tomorrow night in Astoria at The Jumping Bulldog. Yay! His Oscar gets to be a model...
One of my best friends, Connie Smith, the creator and author of Local718, a blog about Queens, interviewed him recently as the first in a series of videos Connie will be producing about inspiring and creative people in Queens.
Enjoy!
A racy Anya Marina video, with her cover of Whatever You Like. For you Weeds fans out there, recognize any of the customers to this sex toy store?
- Some People - Goldfrapp (Seventh Tree 2008)
Here Comes The Sun - The Beatles (Abbey Road 1969)
Jesse The Goat - Joker's Daughter (The Last Laugh 2009)
Sweet Perfume - Les Sampou (Sweet Perfume 1999)
Moon & Stars - Jeff & Mycha Danna (A Celtic Romance: The Legend of Lladain and Curithur 1998)
Generator ^ Second Floor - Freelance Whales (Weathervanes 2009)
Another nice mix, going clear from the 60s to an as yet unreleased CD. We start off with a great followup CD from Goldfrapp, as I loved their Supernature CD. The Beatles is an old CD, not from the new pressings. The Mono box set is high on my wishlist. Joker's Daughter is a combo effort of a Greek folksinger and producer extraordinaire Danger Mouse. Some really unique sounds. Then we follow up with one of my favorite musical genres, swing; this collection is an excellent one. Les Sampou is a local folk / pop singer who does some really nice stuff. Of course, Bruce. Mycha Danna did the brilliant soundtrack for The Sweet Hereater, a DVD I bought before I even had a DVD player, I liked it so much. Some really nice Celtic music here too. The Freelance Whales are a group I first heard here on Stereogum and I loved their stuff. Their debut CD is supposedly coming out at CD Baby soon - can't wait! And yes, the randomizer put a whale song right after it, honestly! This is from Lou Reed's classic set of cynical songs. And finally, a good one from one of my top CDs of the 80s.
- Katy Blake - Adrienne (Katy Blake 2005)
- Scissor Sisters - Filthy/Gorgeous (Scissor Sisters 2004)
- Goanna - Some Kinda Magic (Oceania)
- Private Lightning - America/Burning Love (Live at the Paradise 1980)
- Voice of the Beehive - I Say Nothing (Let It Bee 1988)
- Fleetwood Mac - Rhiannon (Single Version) (Fleetwood Mac 1975)
- The Rolling Creekdrippers - In My Hour Of Darkness (Return of the Grievous Angel: A Tribute to Gram Parsons 1999)
- Pink Floyd - Waiting For The Worms (The Wall (Disc 2) 1979)
- J.J. Cale - Downtown L.A. (Anyway The Wind Blows: The Anthology [Disc 2] 1997)
- The The - This Is The Day (Soul Mining 1983)
Some interesting notes about the sources of a few of these songs. Rhapsody is why I got both Adrienne and the JJ Cale anthology. The former came about as I searched for a song for Adrienne, as we had an obvious song fo Rhiannon. Katy Blake is a folk artist and this is a pretty nice song about her daughter. Tommy James also has an "Adrienne" song. And I kept hearing great stuff on Rhapsody from JJ Cale and is low-key, lo-fi anthology is really solid.
The Goanna CD I bought in a Sydney record store and even AMG's Goanna page doesn't list it. There's a couple great songs on it though.
Private Lightning is a great local group from the early 80s and lots of recordings have been made available finally, including their one release.
Pretty funny that Rhiannon showed up in the Random 10, at the same time as Adrienne! And Soul Mining remains a favorite CD to this day.
My Groups
-
Ask for Advice Updated: Yesterday
Neighborhood
Explore friends, family, friends & family, or entire neighborhood.
Links from my Friends and Family
A web 2.0 life
Miscellanea » Archive » War...
With Barack Obama so far ahead in the polls some people a...
T-Shirt Hell: t-shirts, shi...
For those black Mondays.
Oh, how fast the Internets strike!
Graphical depiction of the difference between men & women...
