I know I know...I'm sorry for not keeping up with this better. I've been fairly busy with school and all that...but I suppose that's not much of an excuse. I apologize. I'm working on a couple of reviews that should show up within the next couple of days. I'm pretty backlogged, so they won't necessarily be brand new releases.
That being said, I hope this round of iPod Roulette will be something nice to read while you wait. If you want to join in on the fun, you can post your own results in the comment section.
Here we go:
1. "A Killer Idea" - Bill Hicks
This is actually the first time I've ever listened to Bill Hicks. You know what? This is a fantastic introduction. Tasteless? You betcha. But the idea of using terminally ill patients for better stunts in movies is pretty funny.
2. "A Quiet Little Place" - Seven and Seven Is
It's not a bad song. In fact, it might even be a good song. But, after the kind of music the 77's used to put out, I just expect something better from them. I suppose you could say it disappoints me a little bit, which is sad, because I think that, if you have never listened to the 77's before this, you might actually really enjoy this song.
3. "Mountain Halo" - The Appleseed Cast
How can anyone hate these guys? They have been releasing solid album after solid album over their (going on) 10 year career. This song can pretty much sum up what I love about them: noisy and delicate and huge, all at once. (If anyone is still calling these guys "emo", I will kick their heads off of their bodies.)
4. "You Will, You Won't" - The Zutons
This sounds like a song that The Zombies or The Animals would've recorded. I can definitely seeing myself stomping around to this in a club somewhere.
5. "Golly Sandra" - Eisley
This song just so happens to be my least favorite song from this album (Room Noises, their first). That's not to say that I hate it...it's just that the rest of the album is full of such amazing songs, that this one, less-than-amazing song doesn't sound quite as good. Still a fairly good song, though.
6. "A Better Song/Daughter" - Rilo Kiley
The more I listen to Rilo Kiley, the more I realize that I think I really like them. I can't put my finger on what it is about them that I like, but, apparently, that thing I like is the same exact thing that made me not like them at first (if that makes any sense at all). This song is fantastic, but I can't necessarily put my finger on what makes it fantastic.
7. "Soul Power" - The Smashing Pumpkins
This song is like some sort of metal-funk. It sounds like an old James Brown song that they remade...only they threw a whole bunch of huge, nasty guitars on top. Does it makes me want to shake my rump? You betcha.
8. "Martha" - Tom Waits
One of my all-time favorite songs. No one sings a song about lost love as perfectly as Tom can. If you think Tom Waits is nothing but a growling, snarling maniac, listen to this song five times in a row. This song is perfect.
9. "Mantra Slider" - Soundtrack of Our Lives
I think if this group was around in the '70s, they'd be a lot more popular than they currently are, and this song is a perfect example of that. A slow-starting rock song, that grows and grows into a borderline psychedelic/rock bloodbath by the end.
10. "Waiting" - The Rentals
One of my favorite synth/fuzz-pop bands. This song reminds me of driving on a sunny afternoon with the windows down.
Okay, now it's your turn...
2 comments:
Great game. Foszter's:
1. "Pony Up," Minus the Bear - what a fun band. Their song structures always change, but not so frequently as to define them as math rock. I imagine they've got to be one of the tightest bands around, which means their live show has to be incredible. This song doesn't change around that much but it gets into such a great groove.
2. "It Takes Two to Tango," Louis Armstrong. I have nothing to explain. Satchmo says it all. I can't think of music more appropriate for cold weather.
3. "Know Your Onion!" The Shins. I don't listen to this cd (Oh, Inverted World) as much, but it's really good. This song is one of the less stellar tracks. The vocals on every track from here sound like he's standing about 4 feet back from the microphone. Lends it a great lo-fi sound.
4. "Disaster in a Halo," Ours. I forgot about these guys, since I don't listen to 8 or more hours of music every day anymore. But I like this: the chorus is really reminiscent of early 90s tracks.
5. "Grace," Stavesacre. I have never heard this song before. Oh, how I long for the days when I'd listen to this band all day (0:40 in: hey, who told them they could do quiet verses?). Eh... this one's not a great track, which is probably why it's #8.
Thanks, Dusty.
I just want to note that you've got me into Tom Waits, because I like knowing what you're talking about what I read your blog, and Closing Time - as well as being an astonishingly apt name for this album - is beautiful.
1. "Cosmia" - Joanna Newsom
There's no substitute for Newsom's incredible voice, or her strange yet emotive lyrics. After just a few seconds, you're ushered into a room of dramatic sound. This whole album is like a musical, now frantic, now calm. At times it seems like the soundtrack to Hitchcock flick. The juxtaposition of a Dylan-esque reflection and a unique skill of whimsy which is all Newsom's own make this track -and all of her work - unforgettable. Who dares call folk music boring? (Also, her falsetto is delicious).
2. "World Town" -M.I.A.
Finding an artist I was referred to by Thom Yorke eclectic is hardly a surprise. I have mixed feelings about M.I.A. - something of my youthful hatred of 'urban' music is probably identifiable here. "World Town" is bouncy, but it sounds like a million other mediocre pop tracks right now. If anything, a track for dancing to - whatever that means.
3. "You Have Been Loved" -Sia
I'm not sure I understand why Sia is gaining quite so much popularity, but I like this song. It's not too interesting.
4. "Generique" - Miles Davis
I'm taken in by Davis, though I couldn't say how much this is because of the man himself or because I just don't listen to much jazz. I'm transported to downtown New York in the '50s - and maybe that's not where I'm supposed to be transported to because I don't know anything about jazz, Davis, New York, or the '50s - and I love it. I can't get enough.
5. "Decent Days and Nights" - The Futureheads
Disclaimer: I really like the Futureheads. Listening to this song makes me want to stand up and stomp around - 'lost on the way', as it were. There's little time to slow down and reflect on any deeper meaning in any of this band's songs, but so what? Listen to the staccato qualities of the guitar, the drumming and Hyde's voice.
6. "Black Star" - Radiohead
Notably, this is probably the song that got me into Radiohead, after, say, No Surprises. It's more typical of The Bends than any other album, because it's a more basic rock song than almost anything else by this band since Pablo Honey. Still, the knowing, sad drones of the guitar before every chorus, and the emotional commitment which seems to spring from both Yorke's fabulous vocals and, well, everything else, continues to inspire. I imagine Matt Bellamy has listened to this one or two times.
7. "Gravemakers & Gunslingers" - Coheed & Cambria
I was disappointed by Coheed's most recent album - all of the rush and heat of Good Apollo remains, but without the same firey passion. I could never listen to Good Apollo anything other than all of the way through, dropping everything I was doing, but this song passes easily as background music. Perhaps I've finally realised that all of their songs are the same (although I don't think so, because there is a momentary lift around two thirds of the way through). Coheed have been called emo-prog on steroids, and the formula has worked well for some time, but Sanchez seems to have hit his peak.
8. "The Limit to Your Love" - Feist
Feist's latest album seems to have been generally well-received, and with good reason, I think. I wanted to say that this is one of my least favourite songs by her, but I can't, because it's too cute. And then, just as its become almost too floaty, the piano and strings come in and make everything more serious again.
9. "My Wet Dreams" - Soko
I tend to dislike 'comedy songs', but there's a difference between them and good music which is funny. This is characteristic of Soko's casual comments on sex, underpinned by her seductive French accent. For my part, I wish more popular music had the line 'I love your dick!' in them. The simplicity of Soko's music is part of what makes these songs so catchy. One to watch.
10. "Why Can't I Be You?" - The Cure
This is a fabulous song to end on. Every re-imagining of this band I've heard appeals to me. Maybe it lacks the melancholy of some of Smith's greats, but "Why Can't I Be You?" is a good example of The Cure's diversity, and another good example of song which makes you stand up.
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