THAT TRUNCHEON THING

Goodnight, And Good Luck

2008-01-29T15:55:00.000-05:00

So, I guess we have a bit of an announcement to make, and probably long overdue, although I suppose the deafening silence over the past month has been something of a clue to some of you, and this won't come as much of a surprise. (Thanks to those of you who wrote us offline to ask what the hell was up. We're touched that we were missed.)

As we approached our first anniversary a couple of weeks ago, Rich and I started talking about whether we really wanted to keep this thing up. We've loved the ride that we've been privileged to take over the past year, and it's been a tremendous amount of fun sharing music and ideas, building a readership (ultimately about 10,000 folks a week, from every corner of the globe) and realizing that many of you came to visit regularly, or even every day. That's more humbling than we can ever express. But in the end, I think it's fair to say that TTT ended up being way more of a time commitment for both of us than we ever reckoned it would be -- we always said that we'd do this right, and update regularly, or not at all -- and as 2007 came to a close, and work and other life demands pulled on both of us, we independently started to question whether we still had the time or energy to do justice to the site. By the time we actually had the conversation over the holidays, it didn't take long to figure out that we had both reached the same decision -- that it's time to retire TTT, at least for the foreseeable future.

So, that's what we're going to do. We'll leave the site up for as long as we can (hey, it'll be like a time capsule for music in 2007), we'll keep all the links and downloads active for at least another couple of months (grab those Classic Bootlegs while you still can!), and who knows, maybe at some point one or both of us will catch the bug and start posting again. But with the turn of the new year, we find that we have other priorities that deserve our attention a little more than a music blog does. Each of us has two young children. Rich is thinking about writing a novel, and I hope he will, because I love to read anything he writes. And as of a few months ago, I've gone and fallen hopelessly in love, with the most beautiful, amazing woman I've ever met in my life. And there's some damn fine music in that, let me tell you.

That's the story. Our thanks to everyone who ever visited, commented or threw us a link, to the other bloggers who reached out and befriended us over the past year, and of course, to all the great artists that we got to write about. And my personal thanks, one more time, to everyone who responded with such kindness and generosity after my house was robbed last summer -- I still get a little overwhelmed when I think about that.

This was so much fun. Again, we thank you all for a great run.

Merry Christmas, Y'all!

2007-12-23T00:00:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas everyone, if indeed that's what you celebrate. I'm happy to report that Rich's house is in full-on X-mas mode, but before 2007 finishes circling the bowl, there's still time for a post or two from me. I had originally intended to develop some sort of a response to Frank's predictably stellar year-end list. We typically have only about 50% overlap, which I thought would give me entry to discuss those records that, in my opinion, he'd inexplicably left off. But I have to say that he pretty much nailed the three-point landing this year, so rather than simply stand by nodding, I thought I'd pull together a list of my favorite "under the radar" records of the year. So, without further adieu, here's Rich's Top Ten Favorite Off-The-Beaten-Track Records of 2007 (in no particular order):

Joe Strummer - The Future Is Unwritten
Sadly, 2007 was yet another year that Britney Spears was allowed to walk the earth, while Joe Strummer continues not to. One small consolation against that unexplainable set of circumstances was the release of Julian Temple's brilliant documentary Joe Strummer - The Future Is Unwritten (the trailer of which is here). Even if you already own everything Joe and The Clash ever released, this soundtrack is still a must-have. It's filled not only with Clash and Mescolaros music, but with music that influenced Joe, like Elvis, Eddie Cochran, Bob Dylan, MC5, and Nina Simone. As a bonus, many of the songs are introduced and described by Strummer himself. MP3: The Clash - "White Riot" (Alternate Demo Mix)

M.I.A. - Kala
I wrote about M.I.A.'s 2007 release Kala here. This is a record with worldly beats, political aspirations, feminine power, and punk rock attitude. M.I.A. is a reporter from a Third World CNN street beat bringing the sights, sounds, smells, and tastes from the world over right into your living room. You hear it straight from the people; from the aboriginie kids in "Mango Pickle Down River" to the Indian villagers in "Bird Flu." M.I.A. is the real deal. MP3: M.I.A. - "Bamboo Banger" from Kala

Burial - Untrue
My initial take on this record is here, which has held up: "With skittering electronic beats, ghostly keyboard washes, and soul vocal samples manipulated near the point of torture, Burial's Untrue sounds like some kind of aural missive from the next world, crackling and popping in the rain. This music is both haunted and haunting." MP3: Burial - "Near Dark" from Untrue

Blonde Redhead - 23
My earlier post on this record was entitled "The Sound of Dreaming," I think because the sound of this record feels like racing through some fever dream landscape where everything is familiar yet somehow disorienting. I can never quite grasp exactly what the lyrics are about, but that hardly seems to be the point. This is impressionistic territory, and it is a beautifully curious amalgam of guitars and whispered vocals. MP3: Blonde Redhead - "23" from 23

Mark Olson - The Salvation Blues
As described here, The Salvation Blues represented something of a return to form for former Jayhawk Mark Olson. Divorced from Victoria Williams and returned from the ensuing wilderness, Olson rediscovered his muse, and his old friend Gary Louris. The music on this record is both sad and hopeful Americana, hearkening to Hollywood Town Hall-era Jayhawks. And with Louris' contributions, these songs are more than enough to whet the appetite for the promised Olson and Louris collaboration scheduled for 2008. Hopefully, TTT will be around to blog about it when it comes out. MP3: Mark Olson - "Clifton Bridge" - from The Salvation Blues

Daft Punk - Alive 2007
One of my favorite records of 2005 was Kraftwerk's live album, Minimum-Maximum. One would not think that something as robotic and sterile as Kraftwerk would translate so well to a live recording. Daft Punk is also robot music, albeit music by robots apparently programmed for sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll. Daft Punk's live shows ain't nothin' but a party y'all, and this record is instant party, just add alcohol. Daft Punk is playing at my house. MP3: Daft Punk - "Around The World/Harder Better Faster Stronger" from Alive 2007.

Beirut - The Flying Cup Club
Surprisingly young Santa Fe native Zach Condon's band, Beirut, sound nothing like its name. Beirut's music has nothing to do with Lebanon. Rather, it evokes the Balkans and Gypsy troubadours, Eastern European folk music, and Old World themes. Think ukuleles, accordions, trumpets, and melodies from another century. The prolific band's high point so far may just be this crisp release, which plays like a soundtrack from an old foreign film. Gorgeous. MP3: Beirut - "Nantes" from The Flying Cup Club

The Perishers - Victorious
Earlier, I called this "a lush pop record that is a little reminiscent of Dire Straits to my ear, with a fair amount of Blue Nile mixed in (which is always a good thing). It's a fairly romantic mainstream sound that would appeal to fans of Coldplay and Travis; a sound you might not be surprised to hear in the soundtrack of some teenage television drama, which I understand has occurred. Don't let that turn you off. It's still a mature sounding record that deserves a broad audience. Very good stuff." MP3: The Perishers - "Midnight Skies" from Victorious

The Black Lips - Good Bad Not Evil
I have to give to some love to my Dunwoody homeboys The Black Lips. They have shocked New York and rocked everywhere else, and, in 2007, released the great psycho-psychedelic garage rock of Good Bad Not Evil and earned the title "Hardest Working Band at SWSX." With a live show heavy on such audience participation staples as urine, vomitus, and the odd flung beer bottle, this loud and rowdy band of brothers remind us what the spirit of rock and roll is supposed to be. Pure chaos. And since I grew up on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, I love that they ask the question, "Oh Katrina, why you gotta be mean?" MP3: The Black Lips - "O Katrina!" from Good Bad Not Evil

Lloyd Cole - Antidepressant
And last, but certainly not least, I'd like to end this post with a reference to what was the subject of not only my first post this year, but my first blog post ever, Lloyd Cole's beautiful middle-aged manifesto, Antidepressant. This is unquestionably the perfect record for those of us rockers who came of age in the '80s and refuse to admit that we're middle aged, in spite of the fact that our years, when doubled, stretch beyond the average human life span. At this point, to paraphrase Lloyd's apt lyrics, "Declining issues lead advances two to one, in slow trading." Nevertheless, we can take comfort in the perfect folk-pop of Antidepressant. "With my medication, I will be fine." MP3: Lloyd Cole - "Woman In A Bar" from Antidepressant.

So that does it, I suppose. I certainly could go on, but that's what we've been doing all year. For now, I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season and healthy and prosperous New Year. And thanks for stopping by TTT in 2007. I hope that it was worth your while. Thanks -- Rich

Frank's Favorite Records of 2007

2007-12-10T15:20:00.000-05:00

Time and current life circumstances (all of 'em good) won't permit me to do anything even remotely as elaborate as in years past, but here are the 20 new records released in 2007 that I enjoyed most, in alphabetical order. If either Rich or I posted a review here during the course of the year, I've linked to it, and if we didn't, I've linked to MetaCritic or some other resource that will give you the critical lowdown. (And if I'm not mistaken, Rich will be along in a day or two with the records from his list that didn't make mine.) Music makes for great holiday giving, so get out there and support all of these magnificent artists by buying their records.

RYAN ADAMS - Easy Tiger

ARCADE FIRE - Neon Bible

THE AVETT BROTHERS - Emotionalism

ANDREW BIRD - Armchair Apocrypha

BRIGHT EYES - Cassadaga

THE BROKEN WEST - I Can't Go On, I'll Go On

FEIST - The Reminder

THE GOOD, THE BAD & THE QUEEN - The Good, The Bad & The Queen

NICK LOWE - At My Age

THE NATIONAL - Boxer

THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS - Challengers

ROBERT PLANT & ALISON KRAUSS - Raising Sand

RADIOHEAD - In Rainbows

RILO KILEY - Under The Blacklight

THE SHINS - Wincing The Night Away

SPOON - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN - Magic

KANYE WEST - Graduation

THE WHITE STRIPES - Icky Thump

WILCO - Sky Blue Sky

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 23: Led Zeppelin - The Complete BBC Radio Sessions - Part 2 of 2

2007-11-27T14:00:00.000-05:00

Discs 1 and 2 (along with the artwork) are here. And if you thought they were great, brace yourself for these -- the entire session at the Paris Cinema in London on April 1, 1971, recorded for John Peel's "Sunday In Concert" program on BBC Radio One. Simply spectacular. Be sure to play it nice and loud.

LED ZEPPELIN - THE COMPLETE BBC RADIO SESSIONS (continued)

Disc 3:

01 John Peel intro
02 Immigrant Song
03 Heartbreaker
04 Since I've Been Loving You
05 Black Dog
06 Dazed And Confused
07 Stairway To Heaven

Disc 4:

01 Going To California
02 That's The Way
03 What Is And What Should Never Be
04 Whole Lotta Love
05 Thank You
06 Communication Breakdown

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 23: Led Zeppelin - The Complete BBC Radio Sessions - Part 1 of 2

2007-11-23T06:45:00.000-05:00

Time to get the Led out. With all the hype surrounding the release of the Mothership collection last week and their reunion show in London next month, not to mention Robert Plants's recent solo triumph with Allison Krauss, I've been listening to a ton of Led Zeppelin lately. That, in turn, made me realize that a Zep boot is long overdue in this series. There are scores of great recordings to choose from -- in fact Zeppelin probably joins The Beatles, Dylan and The Rolling Stones as the most bootlegged acts of all time.

But while any number of live recordings by the mighty Led Zep would certainly qualify for "classic" status, it's this massive 4-disc box set released by Empress Valley, collecting all of their appearances on BBC radio between 1969 and 1971, that I return to most often. (Some of this material appears, in slightly different form, on the official BBC Sessions release in 1997, but this set is far more exhaustive and about twice as long.) The performances are consistently spectacular, and with one exception (the March, 1969 appearance on Alexis Korner's "Rhythm and Blues" program in the middle of Disc 1, which is muffled but still very listenable), the sound quality is equally fantastic throughout.

We'll start with Discs 1 and 2, which compile the band's earliest (and bluesiest) sessions for various BBC radio hosts. Then I'll be back in a few days with Discs 3 and 4, on which you get the entire two-hour session that the band recorded for John Peel's "Sunday In Concert" show on Radio One in April of 1971, seven months before the release of Led Zeppelin IV, playing new songs like "Black Dog", "Going To California" and "Stairway To Heaven" to a small theatre audience (it's unsettling, in fact, to hear the latter get no reaction at all from the crowd), and at the absolute peak of their legendary powers.

This is just essential stuff. If you're having any doubts about wanting to devote your bandwidth to such a massive set, listen to the first track on Disc 1, a raunchy troll through "You Shook Me" that confirms what a stunning live act Zeppelin was from the very beginning, and I guarantee you won't be able to pass up the rest. Positively jaw-dropping.

LED ZEPPELIN - THE COMPLETE BBC RADIO SESSIONS

Artwork:
Front
Back

Disc 1 (1969):

01 You Shook Me
02 Communication Breakdown
03 I Can't Quit You Baby
04 Dazed And Confused
05 Alexis Korner intro
06 What Is And What Should Never Be
07 more chat
08 I Can't Quit You Baby
09 more chat
10 You Shook Me
11 Sunshine Woman
12 The Girl I Love Has Long Black Wavy Hair
13 Communication Breakdown
14 Something Else
15 What Is And What Should Never Be
16 Group interview with Chris Grant
17 Whole Lotta Love
18 Communication Breakdown
19 What Is and What Should Never Be
20 Travelling Riverside Blues

Disc 2 (1969-1970):

01 Alan Black intro
02 Communication Breakdown
03 I Can't Quit You Baby
04 Alan Black interview
05 Dazed And Confused
06 Interlude with Adrian Henry
07 White Summer-Black Mountain Side
08 You Shook Me
09 How Many More Times
10 White Summer
11 Black Mountain Side

I'll be back with Discs 3 and 4 early next week. Turn this up LOUD and enjoy.

Bodysnatchers

2007-11-21T17:21:00.000-05:00

The good folks at Stereogum have posted video and mp3s of the tunes performed during Radiohead's surprise in-studio webcast on November 9, including a cover of "The Headmaster Ritual" that is essential for Radiohead and Smiths fans alike. But for some reason, the band's wicked rip through In Rainbows standout "Bodysnatchers" is not among the songs that you can grab at the 'Gum. To complete an iTunes playlist of the entire webcast, I did my own capture of "Bodysnatchers" and then ripped it to mp3 at a super-high bitrate to match the tracks at Stereogum. Consider it my Thanksgiving gift to all of you.

MP3: Radiohead - "Bodysnatchers" (live in studio), from the November 9, 2007 "Thumbs Down" webcast

More Adventurous

2007-11-16T00:01:00.000-05:00

If we really wanted to bring you a knowledgeable discussion of electronica, we'd undoubtedly need to bring in a guest blogger. We're not. Now, I'm no connoisseur, but from time to time I encounter entries into the genre -- not that electronic music can really be accurately described as a single genre I realize, but bear with me, I'm using shorthand here -- that pique my interest. Here are a few:

Caribou is the nom de guerre of Don Snaith, who reportedly recorded his newest, Andorra, a dense, multi-layered wonder of neo-psychedelic pop, at home. I can't claim these comparisons as original thoughts, but there are those who invoke Elliot Smith's vocals, Brian Wilson's melodies, and '60s psychedelia as reference points. Those people would be right -- all colored by a modern DYI aesthetic.

Andorra, which I understand is something of a more pop-oriented departure from Snaith's earlier work, is a sonic tour de force -- one made for the headphones. It's a certifiable grower, albeit that rare grower with initial appeal. Be sure to check out the lushly romantic, Brian Wilsonesque "She's The One." Great stuff.

MP3: Caribou - "Sandy" from Andorra

I am completely blown away by UK's Burial. Although I'm certainly not hip enough to discuss the meaning of British "Grime," "2-Step," "Garage," or "Dubstep," as I have variously heard this music described, I can describe the sound as something like a Ghost In The Machine. With skittering electronic beats, ghostly keyboard washes, and soul vocal samples manipulated near the point of torture, Burial's Untrue sounds like some kind of aural missive from the next world, crackling and popping in the rain. This music is both haunted and haunting.

Adding to the cool mystery of this one-man band is that no one knows who Burial is. And he (or she) aims to keep it that way, and keep the focus on the music. The music is certainly worthy of that focus. The songs on Untrue flow from one to another with blurred distinction, and the whole record sounds very much like it is meant to be listened to in its entirety. Its sameness is never boring, but feels as deep (and as dark and cold) as the ocean.

MP3: Burial - "Near Dark" from Untrue

Camilo Lara's Mexican Institute of Sound may come from south of the border, but it specializes in smashing musical borders via a latin dance party. In MIS's new record Piñata, one can find aspects of Cumbia, Cha Cha Cha, Baile Funk, and other musical styles with which I have limited or no familiarity. Regardless, you don't have to be an ethnomusicologist to have fun with this stuff.

Obviously, Piñata is heavily influenced by Central American style, but it incorporates a club-friendly hip hop flair that will put the party right into your Margarita. If this doesn't get your toe tapping, I don't know what will. Go do a shot of tequila.

MP3: Mexican Institute of Sound - "Para No Vivir Desesperado" from Piñata

From Sweden With Love

2007-11-09T08:57:00.000-05:00

It was my Aunt Joyce who traced one of the roots of my maternal family tree back to Sweden, which delighted me for no other reason than that it seemed somewhat exotic. I didn't buy a Swedish car just because of this, but Aunt Joyce's genealogical efforts in some small way may have helped close that deal. Musically, we're in the middle of something of a Swedish invasion on these shores, so while I wait for the new Hives record to drop next week (why in the world hasn't Saab used one of their songs in a commercial?), here's a quick look at a few new releases from my Swedish cousins.

The Perisher's Victorious is a lush pop record that is a little reminiscent of Dire Straits to my ear, with a fair amount of Blue Nile mixed in (which is always a good thing). It's a fairly romantic mainstream sound that would appeal to fans of Coldplay and Travis; a sound you might not be surprised to hear in the soundtrack of some teenage television drama, which I understand has occurred. Don't let that turn you off. It's still a mature sounding record that deserves a broad audience. Very good stuff.

MP3: The Perishers - "Midnight Skies" from Victorious

On Our Ill Wills, Shout Out Louds channel The Cure in the latter's sunny, pop manifestation, setting tales of melancholy to jangly, imminently hummable melodic confections. For me, this record generates a fair amount of '80s nostalgia, but is most enjoyable without seeming overly derivative. Lead-off track "Tonight I Have To Leave It" was cooked using only a slight variation on the recipe for "In Between Days," and I'm ok with that. Songs like "Impossible" are damn near impossible not to sing along with after just a few listens. Shout Out Louds are a skilled bunch of musicians, with keen ears for melody and a talent for song structure.

MP3: Shout Out Louds - "Tonight I Have To Leave It" - from Our Ill Wills

Jens Lekman is something of an anomaly. On his new release, Night Falls Over Kortedala, he manages the seemingly impossible task of being twee and bombastic at the same time ("And I Remember Every Kiss"). He seems both earnest and tongue-in-cheek. He's Burt Bacharach and disco ("Sipping On The Sweet Nectar"), folkster and hipster. He's sweet, and maybe naively honest ("I'm Leaving You Because I Don't Love You"). He's clever with a lyric, and has a great sense of humor ("A Postcard To Nina"). He's a Swedish Jonathan Richman. He's a musical gentle giant and a complete breath of fresh air. This record is consistently smile-inducing, and often outright laugh-worthy, a thing of joy.

MP3: Jens Lekman - "Your Arms Around Me" from Night Falls Over Kortedala.

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 22: The Beach Boys - SMiLE

2007-11-07T06:56:00.000-05:00

Here's a mea culpa for my woeful inactivity over the past few weeks -- what can I say, I've got stuff going on.

For almost 40 years, the Beach Boys' SMiLE was the Holy Grail of bootlegs -- the great lost album of the rock era, and the work that both confirmed Brian Wilson's absolute genius as a singer, composer and arranger, and propelled him into the mental illness that would cripple him for the next three decades. It was analyzed, dissected, annotated and theorized to death, and hailed as both an unfinished classic -- better even than Pet Sounds -- and an artistic failure that didn't deserve to be completed in the first place. Of course, Brian finally recorded and released an updated and truly triumphant solo version of the record in 2004. So by now, most likely, you've heard SMiLE. What you may not have heard, however, is SMiLE sung by the Beach Boys circa 1966, which is something altogether different -- and, let's face it, what God and Brian (if, at the time, they weren't occasionally one and the same) originally intended.

There are literally dozens of versions of SMiLE: high profile bootlegs (by labels such as Vigotone and Purple Chick), collections of the fragments that have seen official release (most notably in the Good Vibrations boxset), scholarly reconstructions and frequently terrific fan mixes (seek out the ones by Wrightfan, who just loosed his seventh attempt at a definitive SMiLE on the bootleg trading community, and a mysterious fellow who calls himself D.J. Mic Luv) abound.

This particular version -- the so-called "Millennium Edition" released in Japan on the Dumb Angel label -- isn't the best, or even one of my favorites (to use the take of "Our Prayer" -- one of the most sublimely beautiful harmony exercises in pop music history -- that degenerates into laughter is sacrilege in my book), but it is among the most difficult to get ahold of. And, if nothing else, this version closes with a truly gorgeous edit of "Surf's Up," among the most perfect pop songs ever written, complete with a purely instrumental pass through the first two verses that serves as an overture, the "Woody Woodpecker" horn punctuations, Van Dyke Parks' brilliant lyrical wordplay ("canvas the town and brush the backdrop," "the music hall / a costly bow / the music all is lost for now"), and that classic, haunting vocal from Brian. If I could only hear ten songs again for the rest of my life, "Surf's Up" would be one of them.

THE BEACH BOYS - SMiLE (Millennium Edition)

Artwork (these are PSD files - download and open/print with a photo viewing program):
Front cover
Inside cover
Back insert

01 Our Prayer
02 Heroes and Villains (Barnyard Suite)
03 Child Is Father Of The Man
04 Wonderful
05 With Me Tonight
06 Do You Like Worms?
07 The Old Master Painter
08 Cabinessence
09 Good Vibrations
10 Vega-tables
11 Wind Chimes
12 The Elemental Suite (Look > Holidays > Mrs. O'Leary's Cow > Cool, Cool Water > Friday Night > Good Vibrations closing bit)
13 Vega-tables (reprise)
14 Surf's Up

Lucky Ones

2007-10-26T08:25:00.000-05:00

I'm not going to be able to offer much here that the indie kids don't already know. Broken Social Scene are a band, er, a collective, that I probably appreciate more than I actually listen to. When "It's All Gonna Break" popped up on my iPod this past weekend, I realized that's probably something that needs to be addressed. Kevin Drew is one of the founders of BSS, and for his first solo record, Spirit If . . . (which still involves various members of the collective, including the always lovely Leslie Feist), he trades on the brand name as "Broken Social Scene Presents: Kevin Drew". Not a bad move, considering the fact that it's a pretty solid brand.

Not unlike recent BSS records, Spirit is often a beautiful, sprawling mess, with Kevin Drew at the epicenter, coaxing beauty from chaos. What is slightly different from the typical BSS output is the relaxed nature of the music. While the opening track, "Farewell To Pressure Kids," trades in the same bombastic, baroque, whirlwind rock that is BSS's stock in trade, halfway through, it downshifts dramatically and turns the sonic three-note motif into a mellotronic prayer. This is followed by the profane "tbtf" (abbreviation for "too beautiful to [expletive deleted]"), which is actually a very pretty, if slightly twisted, ode to adoration, and "F-ked Up Kid," an acoustic meditation with the perfect level of ambient electronica hovering in the background.

And so goes this record. It's a ragged beauty, and it kind of reminds me of Thurston Moore's new one in the sense that, coming from someone who normally doesn't hesitate to unleash the noise, there is a fair amount of joy in melody and restraint. This is exemplified in song after song. It's not until the excellent "Back Out On The . . . " -- which would be at home in any Arcade Fire set -- that Drew turns the amps back up to 11.

A generous amount of real care in the production is also apparent, which makes Spirit a strong candidate for the headphones. All in all, Spirit If . . . deserves heavy rotation on your playlist.

MP3: Broken Social Scene Presents: Kevin Drew - "Lucky Ones" from Spirit If . . .

And speaking of Canadian musicians, Pop Headwound has news on the re-release of Destroyer's City of Daughters, along with a couple of MP3s.

Free Noise Among Friends

2007-10-18T00:08:00.000-05:00

Sonic Youth's chief noise merchant, Thurston Moore, steps outside the SY university on his new solo record, Trees Outside The Academy. The path doesn't lead too far from campus, but it does afford an interesting view of some familiar territory. Trees' style and song structure provide easily recognizable signposts to most devotees, but its instrumentation diverges just enough to lend a healthy breath of fresh air. Here, SY's tortured guitars are largely replaced by their finger-picked acoustic cousins, which, instead of dueling against one another, are set against a backdrop of tastefully arranged strings. Moore's voice, usually a smooth counterpoint to the waves of guitar-violence delivered by his day-job band, slides very nicely into the groove of this decidedly laid back approach.

The record opens with "Frozen Gtr," a song that would be at home on any recent SY record, and actually draws a hint of the ominous out of the violins. It's an excellent song to set the stage for this trip. Following that are "The Shape Is In A Trance," which is classic Thurston Moore, but turned way down, and "Honest James," which is probably about as close as Moore will ever get to folk music, but with lovely backing vocals by Christina Carter it's close enough.

Trees, which was recorded at J. Mascis' house, and to which J. contributed some excellent guitar work, is a remarkably consistent record. There are only a couple of missteps, including "American Coffin," which opens with a fairly standard SY barrage of distortion and devolves into fairly amateurish piano improv, and "Thurston @ 13," which isn't a song, but a recording of exactly what its title suggests. Nevertheless, there are plenty of standouts to be found. "Wonderful Witches + Language Meanies" is an outright rocker that would've been perfect for wife Kim Gordon had it made it to a Sonic Youth record, and "Never Day" has a bit of a lilting melody that sails gently on a soft current of big sound. My favorite track is probably "Fri/End," which is bright and nearly reaches the point of "popness" as it shuffles along like some lost Pavement track.

All in all, this is a very nice release that has achieved a pretty good rotation in my iPod. It's nice to know that even in middle age, a former youth can still be Sonic.

MP3: Thurston Moore - "Fri/End" from Trees Outside The Academy.

Check out the BBC's video interview about Trees below and stream a few other tracks here.

Come Gather 'Round, People

2007-10-17T05:54:00.000-05:00

Since we launched this blog over 10 months ago (!), I've tried to bring the occasional bit of BBC awesomeness to my fellow, deprived non-Brits. It's impossible to share it all, or even all of the truly excellent stuff that seems to flow out of The Beeb on a weekly basis. But this one, I just can't pass up. About 10 days ago, BBC Radio 2 broadcasted Dream Dylan Live, in which they aimed to put together -- from recordings spanning his entire career -- their approximation of the ultimate Bob Dylan concert. It's a neat enough concept as it is, but what made this program truly special was that it included four live recordings (obtained direct from the Dylan archives) that had never seen the light of day before. The end result is a really sweet listen. And some kind soul even made some artwork for it, which I pass along as well, in case you want to burn to CD and enjoy your Dylan in "take away" fashion, as they say in dear old Blighty.

DREAM DYLAN LIVE - BBC Radio 2 Presentation, October 6, 2007

Artwork:
Front cover
Back insert

01 Blowin' In The Wind*
02 Only A Pawn In Their Game*
03 The Times They Are A' Changing
04 Mr. Tambourine Man
05 Like A Rolling Stone
06 Maggie's Farm
07 All Along The Watchtower
08 Lovesick*
09 To Make You Feel My Love
10 Things Have Changed
11 The Groom's Still Waiting At The Alter*

*Previously unreleased

Killing The Blues

2007-10-08T21:35:00.000-05:00

One of the more intriguing projects that I've read about in recent weeks is the collaboration between Led Zep icon Robert Plant and bluegrass goddess Alison Krauss -- about as unlikely a pairing as I probably could have imagined. But it seems Plant and Krauss have had something of a mutual admiration society in the works for a while, and after years of talking about it, finally went into the studio together this year, with an amazing group of studio musicians (world-class players like Marc Ribot, Norman Blake and Patrick Warren), and none other than the great T-Bone Burnett producing, to record a selection of Americana covers by writers like Tom Waits, John Prine, Gene Clark, Sam Phillips, Townes Van Zandt, The Everly Brothers and Mel Tillis.

Well, I got an advance copy of the results -- a record called Raising Sand -- over the weekend, and I have to tell you, I am positively blown away. It is, without question, one of the finest records I've heard this year, a captivating trawl through an eclectic selection of country, blues, rockabilly and vintage pop tunes, written by some true masters, and gorgeously recorded by Burnett. Stunningly, though, it's the singing on these tracks that really makes this project something special. You expect Krauss to sound like an angel, and she certainly doesn't disappoint. In fact, her performances on Raising Sand, such as her languid take on Phillips' "Sister Rosetta Goes Before Us," are among the loveliest I've ever heard from her. But it's Plant's voice that truly astonishes here, with a warmth, beauty and delicate command that not only belie his years, but may truly mark the high point of his storied career. And the combination of the two voices -- at times Plant and Krauss trade leads, at others they are locked in sublime harmony -- is nothing less than mesmerizing, whether they're gliding elegantly through Prine's standard-in-the-making "Killing The Blues" or crooning like Gram and Emmylou on Gene Clark's "Through The Morning, Through The Night." Another highlight is "Please Read The Letter," a tune that Plant wrote with Jimmy Page in the late 90s, but that he, Krauss and these masterful musicians turn into something like a lost classic from 60s Nashville. Then again, literally every track on this record is a priceless little gem, simply not to be missed.

Raising Sand is out on October 23. Run, don't walk, to your record store that day.

MP3: Robert Plant & Alison Krauss - "Please Read The Letter" from Raising Sand

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 21: The Ramones - The Palladium, NYC, New Year's Eve 1979

2007-10-07T09:30:00.000-05:00

I've had The Ramones on the brain this week, maybe because I've been making my way through the excellent live DVD, It's Alive: 1974-1996, that was released last Tuesday. It features some classic footage of Da Brudders in their punk-pioneering heyday, including a few old TV appearances I'd only had in bootleg quality until now, and is highly recommended.

So -- and speaking of The Ramones in their heyday -- here's one of their most popular boots, a stereo soundboard recording from their show at The Palladium in New York on New Year's Eve 1979. The setlist hits the high points of their first four classic records, and even includes one song from End Of The Century, their album produced by the now-infamous Phil Spector, which at the time was about six weeks from being released (and is still my favorite Ramones record).

And, for those of you who weren't around back in the day, these guys didn't mess around, especially on stage. 32 songs in 66 minutes. Do the math. Gabba gabba hey.

THE RAMONES - 1-2-3-4 DIE (Live at The Palladium, New York - December 31, 1979)

Artwork:
Front cover
Back insert

01 Blitzkrieg Bop
02 Teenage Labotomy
03 Rockaway Beach
04 I Don't Want You
05 Go Mental
06 Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment
07 I Wanna Be Sedated
08 I Just Want To Have Something To Do
09 She's The One
10 This Ain't Havana
11 I'm Against It
12 Sheena Is A Punk Rocker
13 Havana Affair
14 Commando
15 Needles And Pins
16 I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend
17 Surfin' Bird
18 Cretin Hop
19 All The Way
20 Judy Is A Punk
21 California Sun
22 I Don't Wanna Walk Around With You
23 Today Your Love, Tomorrow The World
24 Pinhead
25 Do you Wanna Dance?
26 Suzy Is A Headbanger
27 Let's Dance
28 Chinese Rock
29 Beat On The Brat
30 We're A Happy Family
31 Bad Brain
32 I Wanted Everything

You Might Have Succeeded In Changing Me

2007-10-06T00:00:00.000-05:00

Word on the street is that R.E.M. are putting the finishing touches on a great new record. To tide us over until it comes out, we have a new CD/DVD, R.E.M. Live, to look forward to. It's the band's first live CD & DVD package, and it comes out October 16. Featuring 22 songs, it's a document of a February 27, 2005 concert, when the South's favorite sons played a show at The Point Theatre in Dublin, Ireland on their tour in support of Around The Sun.

Frank has already waxed eloquent on the meaning of this band to good post-punk Southern boys (and will do so again soon), so I will not attempt to repeat him here. Suffice it to say that R.E.M.'s sense of mystery and Southern mythology, in a time of great and exciting upheaval in popular music, gave us in the American South something of which we were so proud. They were every bit the equal to that awe-inspiring band from Ireland that emerged at approximately the same time, and against whom they were often favorably measured.

I will never forget my best friend Kenny, who at the time lived about 160 miles away, calling me on the day that Reckoning was released. The phone rang. I picked up and said hello. Kenny sang into the phone: "Seven Chinese brothers swallowing the ocean . . ." Naturally, I tunefully responded, "Seven thousand years to sleep away the pain." "Oh good! You bought it," he said. That's devotion, people.

YouTube: Trailer for R.E.M. Live

Ahhhhhhhh Hey, Hey, Hey!

2007-10-05T15:47:00.001-05:00

Apologies for the scant posts this week. If it isn't one thing these days, it's another. Plus, post-burglary, I'm still in the very early stages of rebuilding my digital music collection to a point where I actually have new stuff to share. Among the things that I realized, only yesterday, I had lost for good -- by which I mean, I had no version on CD to re-rip -- was "Cold Wind" by the Arcade Fire, a non-album track that only ever appeared on the final Six Feet Under soundtrack in 2005. But our buddy Scott happened to hear me mention this, and when I came to work this morning, there it was in my in-box. So thank you, Scott -- this is one I definitely didn't want to live without. And for those of you who don't have this in your own collection, here you go. It's so good it hurts.

MP3: Arcade Fire - "Cold Wind" from Six Feet Under, Vol. 2: Everything Ends

In Rainbows

2007-10-01T07:42:00.000-05:00

Holy crap, this was a shock this morning. More info at P4K.

I just forked over $80 for the deluxe DiscBox without even batting an eye.

MP3: Radiohead - "Bodysnatchers" (live at Madison Square Garden, June 13, 2006)

Talk About The Passion

2007-09-30T17:40:00.000-05:00

A quick note (and shameless personal plug) for readers in our part of the world:

On Sunday, October 21, 2007, the Athens Historical Society will present “R.E.M. in Perspective: An Athens History.” The event will be held at 2:00 p.m. in the historic Seney-Stovall Chapel at 201 N. Milledge Avenue in Athens, Georgia. The program will feature two previously unscreened vintage videos of R.E.M. and two panel discussions. The featured videos include an R.E.M. practice session recorded at Wuxtry Records in Atlanta, prior to the release of their first record, and an early performance at the 688 Club in Atlanta.

Biographer Tony Fletcher, author of Remarks Remade: The Story of R.E.M., will open the session with his observations on Athens’ place in R.E.M.’s history. A follow-up panel will discuss R.E.M.’s Athens musical and artistic roots. Among the participants will be artist and filmmaker Jim Herbert, producer John Keane and Wuxtry owner Dan Wall. Oh, and unbelievably, yours truly. A second panel will examine R.E.M.’s social, civic, political, economic and preservation impact on Athens and beyond. Scheduled participants are former Athens mayor Gwen O’Looney, community activist Tim Johnson, and historic preservation advocate Smith Wilson.

I hope a few of you can make it out to the event. To put you in the mood, here's the 7" single on Hib-Tone Records, recorded in the summer of 1981, that started it all:

MP3: R.E.M. - "Radio Free Europe" (Hib-Tone single - A side)

MP3: R.E.M. - "Sitting Still" (Hib-Tone single - B side)

Prove It All Night

2007-09-27T18:09:00.000-05:00

Diehard Bruce Springsteen fans probably already know that The Boss put the E Street Band through their paces at two open rehearsals at the Convention Hall in Asbury Park, NJ earlier this week, in advance of the massive world tour that starts in Hartford on October 2. (We're still waiting and praying for an Atlanta date in '08.) Tapes of those shows are now circulating, and while it's clear that the E Streeters have some rust to shake off (especially Clarence Clemons), there's also no denying the sheer thrill of hearing the band play together again, and you just know they're going to get nice and tight after a few dates. I'm not going to post an entire show, because only mediocre audience recordings are available (and TTT is all about the soundboard, baby), but here are the first two songs from the show just two nights ago, as Bruce & Co. open with their brand new single, then charge straight into a stone-cold classic from going on 30 years ago. Rust and all, it still brings a smile, and some goosebumps.

MP3: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band - "Radio Nowhere" (live in Asbury Park, Sept. 25, 2007)

MP3: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band - "Prove It All Night" (live in Asbury Park, Sept. 25, 2007)

Magic is out on October 2, and you can already stream the whole record here.

UPDATE: A. O. Scott profiles Bruce Springsteen and the Magic album in the New York Times.

Look Out, Kid!

2007-09-27T10:45:00.000-05:00

A message from our good buddy Tim at Baby Got Books:

Go here to make a Dylan message of your own, "Subterranean"-style. The new Dylan best-of collection is out on October 1.

Radio Cure

2007-09-25T21:03:00.000-05:00

Jango is a new webspace, currently in Beta testing, that allows users to set up, program and refine their own radio stations, by selecting favorite artists or genres, then share them with friends or other users. Songs stream in their entirety, the sound quality is nice, and once a user's preferences are established, the site even suggests other artists (s)he might like to try, a la Pandora. Jango is currently available on an invite-only basis, but they've given us access for the first 100 TTT readers who want to sign up (for free, of course) and give it a spin. Click here to get started, and let us know what you think in the comments. (The only major bug at this point is that the Jango player has a tendency to crash the Safari browser, so if you're a Mac user, you'll want to use Camino instead.)

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 20: Neil Young - Chrome Dreams

2007-09-20T06:00:00.000-05:00

If you need to come back, come back strong, I always say.

First off, my sincere thanks to all of you who expressed sympathy and offered music after my recent burglary experience. I never dreamed that TTT readers would respond the way they did to my misfortune, and it is no exaggeration to say that I was profoundly touched by the reaction and encouragement. So thanks, a million times -- as we say down south, y'all are the best. And once I get my musical bearings, I may take a few of you, especially you Atlanta locals, up on your generous offers. Special thanks, too, to my good buddy Rich, who carried the torch admirably during my 3-week hiatus. Rich, I'm prepared to shoulder some extra weight for a while to make it up to you. Thank you for being patient.

Second -- and as I was just about to say when I was so rudely interrupted -- it's about time for some classic Neil Young. Neil's been in the news in recent weeks after announcing that he will release a new album, Chrome Dreams II, on October 23. "Chrome Dreams Two?" many of you may have asked. "When was there ever a Chrome Dreams One?" And the answer is, there wasn't, because Neil's original Chrome Dreams is one of those great lost albums, from the further reaches of rock history, that never saw the light of day, except to boot collectors. The detailed liner notes from this particular version (the "Rust Edition", which draws from the very best sources) tell the tale better than I ever could:

Neil Young was on a creative high in 1975. By the end of the summer, Zuma was finished, though still not released. Yet Neil carried on recording his new songs. Sometimes he recorded solo and sometimes with Crazy Horse.

Lots of these songs would remain unheard by the public until quite a while later, but by late '75, Neil had already written and recorded versions of such future classics as "Like A Hurricane", "Powderfinger", "Sedan Delivery", "Pocahontas" and "Ride By Llama". He carried on recording in 1976. More great songs were put down on tape, such as "Will To Love", "Stringman" and "Campaigner".

Some of us may feel that the Long May You Run album with Stephen Stills robbed us of the natural successor to Zuma, but Stills always suspected that Neil was holding back his best stuff for his solo album. That solo album was a work in progress throughout this period. Titles were reported in the press: Ride My Llama, In My Neighborhood, American Stars 'N' Bars, Chrome Dreams.

When American Stars 'N' Bars was released in 1977, Neil had scrapped most of the material he'd been recording since late '75, replacing much of it with a series of rough hewn cowboy songs. Fun stuff to be sure, but had Neil committed the latest in a series of difficult to explain career suicides? Who else, except maybe Bob Dylan, would sit on a stash of such quality songs and not let the public hear them?

Tracks 1 to 12 of this compilation are thought to be the unreleased Chrome Dreams album, readied for release weeks before Neil recorded those country hoedowns and rethought his strategy. Some of these song titles will be more than familiar to you, but the actual performances may surprise you.

"Powderfinger" is performed as an unadorned solo acoustic song. "Sedan Delivery", a second song destined for Rust Never Sleeps, is presented in its pre-punked-up arrangement and, in many people's opinion, sounds all the better for that. You'll also find the definitive "Stringman", a song not given an official airing until Neil's Unplugged set, heard here in a 1976 live performance enhanced by subtle yet beautiful studio vocal and guitar overdubs. "Hold Back The Tears" is another solo performance, longer and more ghostly than its later remake for American Stars 'N' Bars. "Pocahontas" is the same performance as the one that made Rust Never Sleeps, but in its original "naked mix". "Too Far Gone" wouldn't be officially released until the Freedom album in 1989, yet here's a version from 14 years earlier, with Poncho Sampedro adding a tasty mandolin part.

The other six songs from the album were released unchanged on the albums American Stars 'N' Bars, Comes A Time and Hawks And Doves, yet you may still be able to pick out slight differences in the mixes. "Homegrown", for one, would seem to have a little more fire in the guitars. Have a listen and see what you think.

We've also chosen a select batch of bonus cuts to give you a further taste of just how creative Neil was during this fertile period. If the version of "White Line" (here retitled "River Of Pride", maybe because Neil forgot to sing the actual "white line" lyric) didn't make the Chrome Dreams shortlist, then its continued circulation among collectors is something of a mystery. Maybe it was pressed onto acetate as a possible contender for Decade, which Neil was also preparing at this time. Whatever the truth, it's a stupendous version of the song, recorded in 1975 with a loose and joyful Crazy Horse. Neil's remake for Ragged Glory in 1990 may have been fine, but it doesn't quite capture the spirit of this earlier version. "Campaigner" did make Decade, but not before losing one of its verses. You can hear the full-length version here.

Three live cuts follow. "No One Seems To Know" is an aching piano ballad that Neil once described as Part 2 of "A Man Needs A Maid". It's first class, but remains unreleased. "Give Me Strength" dates from an earlier, ill-fated album called Homegrown (an album that would have also featured "Star Of Bethlehem", the oldest cut in this collection) and is another lost classic. "Peace Of Mind" is heard as an electric rock song played with the Horse, and very different from the version Neil released on Comes A Time. And, as a nod to Zuma, we close with Crosby Stills Nash & Young. "Human Highway" was recording during the Stills-Young sessions in 1976. The song was always meant to be a CSNY track, but Neil had run out of patience by the Comes A Time LP.

Now you can have a glimpse of what might have been, which, come to think of it, is also true of the whole collection.

- Jules Gray (May 20, 2004)

NEIL YOUNG - CHROME DREAMS (RUST EDITION)

Artwork:
Front cover
Inside cover
Back insert

01 Pocahontas
02 Will To Love
03 Star Of Bethlehem
04 Like A Hurricane
05 Too Far Gone
06 Hold Back The Tears
07 Homegrown
08 Captain Kennedy
09 Stringman
10 Sedan Delivery
11 Powderfinger
12 Look Out For My Love

Bonus Tracks:

13 River Of Pride (a/k/a "White Line", Unreleased Studio Version, 27 NOV 75)
14 Campaigner (Unedited, Unreleased Studio Version, Summer 1976)
15 No One Seems To Know (Live, Tokyo, Japan, 10 Mar 76)
16 Give Me Strength (Live, Chicago, IL, 15 Nov 76)
17 Peace Of Mind (Live, Chicago, IL, 15 Nov 76)
18 Human Highway (CSNY, Unreleased Studio Version, April 76)

The Truth In One Free Afternoon

2007-09-18T14:30:00.000-05:00

On their fourth record, Challengers, The New Pornographers are all about dialing things back. That includes a fair amount of the exuberant energy that characterized their first three collections of ebullient, brilliantly-crafted pop music. In fact, Challengers is largely a muted, mellow affair, more ornate and orchestrated than its predecessors, but also far more rooted in emotion than in the simple, knee-jerk thrill of a killer chord change or soaring chorus.

But none of this is to say that Challengers isn't an excellent record. It is, in spades. On tracks like "My Rights Versus Yours" (previewed here back in June), "All The Old Showstoppers" and "Unguarded", head Pornographer Carl Newman continues to display his quirky mastery of the classic pop form, now and then employing his fine falsetto to terrific effect. And as never before, the contributions from second songwriter Dan Bejar, while steeped in his singular styles of wordplay and vocal phrasing, are every bit as accessible and catchy as Carl's songs -- in fact, his NYC travelogue "Myriad Harbor" features the most infectious, sing-along chorus on the record.

But of course, the Pornographers' not-so-secret weapon is the great Neko Case. Her harmonies elevate every song (especially Bejar's -- she truly is the Emmylou to his Gram) into special territory, providing the thread that gives the Pornographers some sort of signature "sound". And the two tracks on which she sings lead, the title track and "Go Places," are the absolute highlights of Challengers. The former, especially, is among the loveliest moments of Neko's career. It's Carl's tune, but once Neko wraps her exquisite voice around it, imbuing it with her unique brand of beautiful melancholy, she makes it completely her own. By the time she sings, "Whatever the mess you are, you're mine, okay?", I'm ready to run away with her (for about the 87th time).

And newest Pornographer Kathryn Calder (who also fronts the excellent Immaculate Machine) has an upfront, chill-bump moment of her own on the gorgeous, twice-repeated coda to "Adventures In Solitude". Any young female singer who can step up and impress in a band that also includes Neko has my immediate respect.

MP3: The New Pornographers - "All The Old Showstoppers" from Challengers

Something Apropos I Don't Know

2007-09-15T00:01:00.000-05:00

This is a confession. I am relatively new to Andrew Bird. While Frank can claim something closer to a personal relationship -- and Allen, another of our colleagues, is certainly on a backstage basis -- I (being the only contributer to this blog with a computer at the moment), until recently, only knew what I'd read about Andrew Bird, and own only his newest album, Armchair Apocrypha. That was remedied Thursday evening, when I caught up with Frank and Allen at Atlanta's Variety Playhouse for a full-on (sold out) Andrew Bird show. Thus, even though I feel least qualified to submit this post . . . here goes.

To paraphrase Prince and Sinead O'Conner, nothing really compares to Andrew Bird, and I am extremely glad (tired as I was after hanging out with Neil Finn the night before) that I made this show. Andrew Bird is actually something of a musical savant. A classically-trained violinist, he is even more impressive building the loops that create the illusion that he is backed by a small orchestra, switching as he does -- often on a dime -- between the violin and guitar. His music is otherworldly, although extremely sweet and surprisingly hooked-filled. Another aspect of his music that is somewhat unusual is his regularly featured whistling, which is on display far more often than even by Peter, Bjorn & John or Andy Griffith. The man can flat out whistle.

As a live act, Bird constructs layers of loops at the beginning of each song, and it is actually a thing of beauty to watch him launch them into action, traversing the stage to different microphones, pedals, and rotating speakers. In this respect, he is perhaps more craftsman than showman, but nonetheless endlessly entertaining. Most importantly, although his music is decidedly off the beaten path, it's not terribly challenging; its relatively accessible and terribly enjoyable. Added to that is a great voice that is equal parts David Byrne, Bryan Ferry, and Jeff Buckley. Not a bad combination.

Like growing up in Mississippi and having to see a hockey game live to appreciate its beauty, it really wasn't until I saw Andrew Bird live this week that I fully appreciated his incredible talent. Now I can't stop listening to Armchair Apocrypha, which, if you haven't heard by now, you simply must. And go see him live as soon as possible.

MP3: Andrew Bird - "Dark Matter" from Armchair Apocrypha

YouTube: Andrew Bird - "Plasticities" on the David Letterman Show

Don't Stop Now

2007-09-14T06:37:00.000-05:00

Atlanta was fortunate enough on Wednesday evening to be graced with the genius of Neil Finn and the re-formed Crowded House. On a night that brought the old-timers (like me) out to the Tabernacle, Neil ("Full of Zeal") did not disappoint. Just when opening act Pete Yorn had me questioning why it is that I even like live music at all (with his thirty or so guitarists on stage, all playing the same thing and all, except maybe the Elvis Costello impersonator, apparently even more bored than I), Crowded House immediately reminded me of the joy of live music.

Neil Finn is simply one of the all-time greatest songwriters (if there is anyone better at turning a melody, his or her name is probably Lennon or McCartney) and performers, and the band was in excellent form. It being the last proper show on the tour (of sorts -- I believe they're playing the Austin City Limits festival today), Neil's voice was a little worn, but the crowd was able and more than willing to join in and help out on the vocals. Mr. Finn seemed to take no small measure of delight in this, repeatedly engaging the effusive crowd in impromptu sing-a-longs between songs, and taking the time to teach the backing vocals to his exuberant students before a couple of the numbers. Needless to say, it was a warm reception.

The set (plus two lengthy encores) featured highlights spanning the band's incredible career, along with a generous dose of songs from their excellent new record, Time On Earth. If you haven't picked this one up yet, add it to your list of things to do. It's a mature offering, almost somber in some places (perhaps not a surprising reaction to original drummer Paul Hester's 2005 suicide), and in many ways reminiscent of some of Finn's best solo work (e.g., "Don't Stop Now"), yet has a few instant classics ("She Called Up") that could easily have been featured on an early Crowded House release. In short, Time On Earth sounds less like a reunion record than a band hitting a new found stride. Don't dream it's over, indeed.

MP3: Crowded House - "She Called Up" from Time On Earth

(Expect the Classic Bootleg Series to resume next week!)

I'm Becoming A Casual Business Man On Matters Of The Heart

2007-09-12T00:02:00.000-05:00

First of all, I'm happy to report that ~~Atlanta's finest were able to apprehend the miscreants who lifted Frank's belongings.~~ (Update: See Frank's Comment). I haven't heard yet whether any of the goods were recovered, but one way or another, I expect that we should be getting an update from him before too much longer.

A lot of really good music came out yesterday, but before we fall all over ourselves in a mad rush of new posts here at TTT (kidding), I wanted to make sure that a recent favorite doesn't fall through the cracks.

Seattle's Minus The Bear seem typically to be grouped in with the standard indie fair, although their new record, Planet Of Ice, is pretty far removed from it. Technical precision, complex time signatures, synthesizers, a tendency to avoid common (verse - chorus - verse) song structures, seven and eight minute songs, contrapuntal guitars; all of these are arguably somewhat foreign to your typical indie band, yet perfectly at home on Planet Of Ice.

In fact, throw the head phones on and MTB just may take you back to your lost days of prog rock, a trip that is surprisingly refreshing. As the band encourages the listener to "Take a step back, man / Take a step back and turn yourself around" on "Ice Monster," I found myself perfectly willing to comply. It's hard not to get sucked right in on the opener "Burying Luck," which somehow bears kinship (at least to my ears) to some of the less pop tracks on Ghost In The Machine.

The aptly named Planet Of Ice presents a cold emotional landscape, in which relationships are bargained ("A piece of you for a piece of me / It's hard coded") and the most sensual songs ("White Mystery") are underscored by near robotically precise guitar playing and somewhat passionless, but more than proficient singing. It all adds up to a sound that is distinctly different from the music that is normally discussed on blogs like this, a difference that I have found fairly addictive. Just pack a heavy coat before you set out.

MP3: Minus The Bear - "Ice Monster" from Planet Of Ice

A Life In Music Is A Life Beautifully Spent

2007-09-07T07:10:00.001-05:00

Luciano Pavarotti (1935-2007)

Music lost one for the ages yesterday. I don't think folks come to TTT for updates from the world of opera, but I spent a few years at Ole Miss singing it, and still call myself something of a fan. In those days, singing tenor was almost like an athletic endeavor for me, and Pavarotti was like Michael Jordan. Not for nothing was he called The King of the High C's. Goodbye, Maestro.

MP3: Passengers - "Miss Sarajevo" from Original Soundtracks 1 (U2 and Luciano Pavarotti)

YouTube: Pavarotti - "Nessun Dorma" (Live in Paris) from Turandot (Puccini)

This Is Where The Summer Ends

2007-09-03T20:26:00.000-05:00

I put the cover back on the grill this Labor Day evening and thought, well, that's it for summer. And even though the Atlanta temperatures are probably not going to play along any time soon, Labor Day for me pretty much heralds the end of the season. As much as I love autumn, I always hate to say goodbye to summer. Goodbye to swimming pools and beaches and hot, lazy days with nothing going on. Goodbye to white bucks and Seersucker suits (just kidding). Still, the turn of the season seems like an excellent opportunity to highlight a few records that I picked up over the course of the summer that, somehow or another, got a little lost in the shuffle initially, but later came to assert themselves with repeated listenings.

The Sea And Cake - Everybody. This record is butterfly-wing light and breezy, with interesting, gauzy guitar work and ethereal vocals that suggest a post-modern Mose Allison. At first listen, this record was just too delicate to stick, but it grew on me quickly, and became a "go to" album in short order. It comes highly recommended for convertables at sunset.

MP3: The Sea And Cake - "Up On Crutches" from Everybody

Ola Podrida - Ola Podrida. Another breezy stroll that should prove to be an equally good Autumnal soundtrack comes from Ola Podrida, which is essentially David Wingo, who has scored movies for indie-filmmaker David Gorden Green. This self-titled debut is a Southwestern acoustic treat that has also proved to be a grower that I've come back to time and time again this summer. The track included here, "Cindy," is a slow burner that is somewhat more intense than the rest of the record, and a definite highlight. Fans of M.Ward will be pleased with this album.

MP3: Ola Podrida - "Cindy" from Ola Podrida

Great Lake Swimmers - Ongiara. Last (for now), but certainly not least, is this record, which received a fair amount of attention in the blogosphere earlier this year, but for me was yet another grower that gained considerable strength over the course of the summer. This is a bit of gothic Americana with a softly lilting tenor and delicate, folkish background music not too far removed from Sufjan Stevens. Finger-picked guitars, accented with a gentle, stream-side banjo and minimalist percussion, cast a real spell that transports you to a simpler time. I recommend putting this on while sipping wine on a deck late at night while the rest of the family sleeps.

MP3: Great Lake Swimmers - "Changing Colours" from Ongiara.

Speaking of catching up, be sure and stop by Friend of TTT Pop Headwound and check out a plethora of MP3s that he's been meaning to post, but only now just getting around to. I know the feeling . . .

Police & Thieves

2007-08-28T06:58:00.000-05:00

I had a rough day yesterday, friends. Burglars broke into my house while I was at work and pretty well cleaned me out -- my computer, stereo equipment, my camera and iPod, my kids' Xbox 360, games and DVDs. Not to mention tons of personal information -- e-mails, passwords, tax returns, electronic receipts, web bookmarks, etc. -- that I pray isn't going to come back to bite me in the ass down the road. But the toughest loss of all, the one I'm still struggling to stomach 14 hours later? That would be the little 300GB Seagate external harddrive that contained every picture I've taken over the last 5 years -- every vacation, every kid's birthday, every concert, everything worth remembering -- not to mention every piece of music I've ever digitized, including literally hundreds of bootlegs. All of it, gone, just like that. The electronics they took is just stuff. But the contents of that harddrive, in very large measure, are irreplaceable.

So it seems that I'll be out of commission for a while, as any sort of music blogger anyway. (That whole "no computer, no music" thing does present a bit of an obstacle.) There are insurance companies to deal with, an iMac to replace, and then a mammoth music collection to start rebuilding from scratch. But I'll be back as soon as I can -- there are new releases to talk about, which I haven't been doing enough anyway, and hey, those sorry, thieving bastards didn't get everything, so the Classic Bootleg Series will be back as well. And I know Rich will continue to post when he can. So please hang with us, be patient if the content doesn't come as frequently as it has been for a little while, and give us a week or two to get back on our feet. As our patron saints, The Clash, once said, "I've been beat up, and I've been thrown out, but I'm not down, no I'm not down."

I Like Fish And Mango Pickles

2007-08-24T00:42:00.000-05:00

M.I.A. can probably be classified in countless genres, including rap, electronic, and dancehall (just to name a few of the more recognizable ones), but her attitude is straight-up punk rock. Born in London, but mostly raised in Sri Lanka, Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam, a.k.a. M.I.A., combines third world patois and British street slang into a grimy hip-hop bouillabaisse that sounds like nothing else -- nothing else on these western shores, anyway. I imagine that M.I.A. is the distilled embodiment of the archetype that Malcolm McLaren was trying to create with his Adam and the Ants double drummers and his Bow Wow Wow Burmese lead singer, Annabella Lwin. Only McLaren wasn't close, and M.I.A. gets there without even trying.

M.I.A.'s outstanding new record, Kala (named after her sister), is one of the most exciting and subversive albums I've heard in a while -- maybe since her last one, Arular (named after her Sri Lankan militant father). Kala (the record) was born in countries all over the world, including India, Jamaica, Japan, and Australia, and as a result, the international influences come fast and furious. From the aboriginal Australian children (the "Wilcannia Mob") featured in "Mango Pickle Down River" to guest "Afrikan Boy" who tears up "Hussel" (to the ultimately unnecessary appearance of American rapper/producer Timbaland in "Come Around"), this record feels like Around The World In Twelve Tracks.

Right from the get-go, she lets us know -- on "Bamboo Banga" -- that "M.I.A.'s coming back with power, POWER!", perhaps in answer to critics (see Pitchfork) who have wrongly suggested that she may be more the product of good producers than individual talent. Other highlights include the otherwordly "20 Dollar," which is based ambiguously on the bass line of New Order's "Blue Monday" and refers to the cost of AK-47s in Africa, where "stains," rather than chains, hang low on shirts. Also of note (especially to a blog so named as this one) is the excellent "Paper Planes," which is unambiguously based on the intro of The Clash's "Straight To Hell" and features a chorus of children singing "All I wanna do is . . . [insert the sound of gunshots and a cash register] take your mon-ey."

Kala, which is an unintended testament to Tom Friedman's The World Is Flat, is a must for the adventurous, or even the curious. Joe Strummer would be proud.

MP3: M.IA. - "Bamboo Banga" from Kala

YouTube: M.I.A. - "Birdflu" from Kala

Don't Call It A Comeback

2007-08-22T09:26:00.000-05:00

"The revolution will not be televised . . ." said Chuck D of Public Enemy, the voice of a generation of rap, once upon a time. Turns out, the revolution whereby rock was replaced by rap music -- at least as the music designed to keep the generation gap alive -- was highly televised, with ubiquitous gangsta videos brought to you by everyone from N.W.A. to Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre to Tupac to Jay-Z to 50 Cent and shoved down the throats of the youth of America. This is not what Chuck D had in mind.

That point is made, loud and clear, on the new offering from Public Enemy, who are celebrating their 20th anniversary with the release of How You Sell Soul To A Soulless People Who Sold Their Soul? Chuck D once accurately called rap "the CNN of the streets." (Personally, I always loved PE because I saw them as rap's version of The Clash). But things have changed over the last 20 years, and PE were not able to sustain the incredible level of scorched earth creativity they established on the classics It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back and Fear Of A Black Planet. And, like the rest of the news, rap has gone from reporting from the streets to highly predictable sensationalism.

On How You Sell Soul, Chuck D expresses his frustration and disappointment that rap's message went from "Fight The Power" and "Don't Believe The Hype" to "Gin And Juice" and "Big Pimpin'". Fortunately, that frustration has been poured into a new mix that allows Chuck D to capture a little bit of the old magic. Not surprisingly, PE's got plenty to say about the current administration, but most of the shots are fired back at the community.

Gone is Chuck D as the slick MC. He's been replaced by an older, angrier Prophet of Rage whose voice is a little more ragged and lot more in your face. Flavor Flav returns from the embarrassing reality shows to provide comic relief that's somewhat less novel after watching him swoon over a garish Brigitte Nielsen on The Surreal Life. Terminator X's blips, beeps, and sirens have been replaced by more traditional grooves, and the typical plethora of sound bites from Malcolm X, etc., have given way to self-referential samples from PE's rich history.

No matter. For my money, nobody does it better than Chuck D, and while How You Sell Soul may not quite reach the heights that PE attained years ago, it's still way better than 99% of the shite that rap has become. Bring the Noise indeed.

MP3: Public Enemy - "Harder Than You Think" from How You Sell Soul To A Soulless People Who Sold Their Soul?

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 19: Jeff Buckley - Glastonbury Festival 1995

2007-08-20T08:07:00.000-05:00

Although many of my musical heroes died much too soon, only two of them threaten to choke me up whenever I think of them. One is Elliott Smith, who I'm sure we'll get to at some point in this series. The other is Jeff Buckley.

Grace was nothing less than a revelation to me in 1994. Suddenly, and seemingly out of nowhere, there was this guy who wrote exquisite songs, could rock like Zeppelin, could melt even the steeliest resolve with a romantic ballad, and had the sweetest, most angelic voice I had ever heard. It was a stunning, near-perfect debut by an immense talent, it positively blew me away, and it was exciting to consider the prospect of watching Jeff grow and evolve, and to imagine the decades of great music that were surely in front of him. Then came that horrible week in May of '97 when he disappeared while swimming in Memphis, then turned up dead a few days later. I remember precisely where I was when I got the news, and again, I get rattled just thinking about it.

But less talk, more Jeff. Here's his tremendous turn at the Glastonbury Festival in June of '95, as recorded by the BBC. It's an exceptional tape, and the setlist is heavy on songs from Grace (which means it's great), with a then-unreleased song ("What Will You Say") and an MC5 cover tossed in for good measure. If only I had dozens or hundreds more Jeff Buckley shows, recorded over all the years since, to have to weed through and choose from. But even if I did, I bet this one would still be tough to top.

JEFF BUCKLEY - Live at Glastonbury, June 24, 1995

Artwork:
Front cover
Back insert

01 intro
02 Dream Brother
03 Lover, You Should Have Come Over
04 So Real
05 Last Goodbye
06 What Will You Say
07 Mojo Pin
08 Eternal Life
09 Kick Out The Jams
10 Grace

The Night Starts Here

2007-08-17T00:01:00.000-05:00

Montreal's Stars walk a fine line between the cinematic and the melodramatic, quite often (intentionally, one might suspect) blurring that line along their way in search of perfect chamber pop bliss. The band's new record, In Our Bedroom After The War, is certainly no exception. (As an aside, the record, set to be released next month, was made available via paid download only four days after it was mastered in an effort to thwart those nasty internet traders -- you know who you are).

As the title perhaps suggests, In Our Bedroom plays like a song cycle about battles, more often of the between-the-sheets variety than the in-the-streets kind. The songs are quite theatrical in nature, and could easily provide the soundtrack to some hip Off-Broadway show. As such, they are artfully constructed and arranged, with a primary basis in keyboard and piano structures, and peopled with interesting characters. Amy Millan and Torquil Campbell ably provide the thespian-inspired lead vocals, most often in tandem and neatly juxtaposed against each other, both within songs (e.g., her pleading desperation, his icy heartlessness in "Personal") and between songs (e.g., his defeated pessimist in "Life 2: The Unhappy Ending," her hopeful optimism in "Today Will Be Better, I Swear").

Stars seem to march to the beat of their own drummer, so to speak, although the influences are there. The chorus of the great "The Ghost of Genova Heights" would be at home in an '80s hit by someone like Level 42, while the title track and the aforementioned "Life 2" have Prefab Sprout written all over them. And one of the record's highlights, "Take Me To The Riot," is possibly the best Morrissey song I've heard in years. (I highly recommend that you Moz-heads seek it out).

Most of all, the record, in its entirety, feels like a cohesive set piece, served best by listening all the way through. It is sophisticated music, though treacly in some places ("Barricade"), charming in others ("My Favorite Book"), but ultimately, solid pop fare. Although technically "indie" I suppose, Stars come off more like a night at the theater than the stuff of college radio. Much more than a lovely diversion, In Our Bedroom After The War is among the most original and interesting records of the year.

MP3: Stars - "The Night Starts Here" from In Our Bedroom After The War

Stars' previous album, Set Yourself On Fire, comes highly recommended as well.

MP3: Stars - "Your Ex-Lover Is Dead" from Set Yourself On Fire

Red-Headed Woman

2007-08-15T17:42:00.000-05:00

I'll admit it -- I have a problem. I'm a hopeless sucker for a beautiful woman with a great singing voice. And for some reason, if that woman also happens to be a redhead, well, then I'm really in trouble. Neko Case, Jenny Lewis, Allison Moorer -- I am putty in their hands. (Or I wish I was, anyway.) So you'll have to pardon me for being a little rattled since Monday night, when I went to see Neko and Rufus Wainwright at The Tabernacle. I figured I'd be safe and sound at least through the opening act, A Fine Frenzy, which I knew nothing about. But on the stroke of 8PM, the lights went down, and out strode one Alison Sudol. I'll let the photos above and at that link speak for themselves, except to say that, if anything, they don't even do her justice. And then -- accompanied by herself on piano, with a bass player and drummer -- she started to sing, with a stunning, ethereal voice. Within 30 seconds, I was done. Toast. History. This girl (she's 22) has got the goods. Her songs are strong, too -- melodic and pretty, but with a hypnotic quality that recalls early Radiohead and Sigur Ros. The debut record is called One Cell In the Sea. So I know at least one thing I'll be picking up at Criminal this weekend. And, like kryptonite to Superman, I guess there's another red-headed singer before whom I am powerless.

MP3: A Fine Frenzy - "Rangers" from One Cell In The Sea

It's Business Time

2007-08-13T09:34:00.001-05:00

Rich has already mentioned what huge fans we are of the brilliant Flight of the Conchords series on HBO. As the cult of the Conchords continues to spread, I've been frustrated that so little of their music is available (crappy TV rips notwithstanding), and wondering why Sub Pop didn't get a CD out in time to coincide with all the buzz from the show. Word from Sub Pop now is that a full-length Conchords record won't be out until early 2008. But last Tuesday they did finally release an EP, The Distant Future, featuring three studio tracks (a teaser for the long-player to come) and two more songs recorded live. Still no studio version of "The Most Beautiful Girl In The Room" (a/k/a "Part-Time Model"), but for now, I guess it'll have to do.

MP3: Flight of the Conchords - "Business Time" from The Distant Future EP

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 18: The Band - King Biscuit Flower Hour 1976

2007-08-10T09:12:00.000-05:00

Of the groups that are indisputably among the greatest of all time, the most criminally underappreciated has to be The Band, due reverence for which still seems to come only from critics and a devoted group of obsessives (like me). As The Hawks, they backed Ronnie Hawkins in the early 60s, and then Bob Dylan on Blonde on Blonde and his incendiary 1966 tour. Retiring to a house called "Big Pink" near Woodstock, New York, they recorded the "Basement Tapes" with Dylan, and then, striking out on their own and rechristened The Band, more or less invented the music we now call Americana (even though psychedelia was the order of the day and all but one bandmember -- drummer/vocalist/Arkansan Levon Helm -- was Canadian). In the process, they gave us some of the finest, most timeless music of the last 50 years (including two literally perfect albums, Music From Big Pink and The Band) and graced us with three of the greatest singers in rock history: my main man Levon (whose memoir, This Wheel's On Fire, is a fascinating read, by the way), and the late, great Rick Danko and Richard Manuel (gone way too soon, bless both their hearts). I wish I had time to write more in the way of introduction. Damn, I do love The Band.

This is probably by favorite Band boot, a show recorded in July of '76, only four months before "The Last Waltz," for the old King Biscuit Flower Hour radio broadcast. The performance is tight, the recording is terrific, and the setlist looks an awful lot like a greatest hits collection (if only Danko had done "Stage Fright" that night). It just doesn't get much better than this.

THE BAND - King Biscuit Flower Hour (Live at the Carter Baron Amphitheatre, Washington, D.C. - July 17, 1976*)

[Sorry, all, but we got a complaint and had to take this boot down.]

Artwork:
Front cover
Back insert

01 intro
02 Baby Don't You Do It
03 The Shape I'm In
04 It Makes No Difference
05 The Weight
06 King Harvest (Has Surely Come)
07 Twilight
08 Ophelia
09 Tears of Rage
10 Forbidden Fruit
11 This Wheel's On Fire
12 The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
13 The Genetic Method
14 Chest Fever
15 Up On Cripple Creek
16 W.S. Walcott Medicine Show

*The August date on the artwork is incorrect.

Not Too Long Ago

2007-08-07T00:01:00.000-05:00

Nick Lowe has been referred to as the "Headmaster of British Rock." On his graceful new album, At My Age, this Headmaster gives a master class on how to age gracefully in the music business. Not too long ago, or so it seems to me, Mr. Lowe helped form the cutting edge of pop music, penning the classic "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love And Understanding," and teaching us that one has to be "Cruel To Be Kind" -- well, in the right measure, anyway. At this point in his career, At My Age represents not so much a victory lap as a comfortable stroll down memory lane.

Not to say that the songs on At My Age make any effort to reconstruct Lowe's Rockpile past. Instead, they settle into a more mature groove that, for lack of a better term, I'll call "country lounge." In many ways, this set is pleasantly reminiscent of some of the music that I remember my parents listening to when I was young, which was a sort of "citified" country, with touches of rock, jazz, and soul, and perhaps best exemplified in some of the music played by Charlie Rich ("Behind Closed Doors"), Ray Charles ("I Can't Stop Loving You"), and even Dean Martin ("Houston").

While the songs on At My Age sound like they were written, and even recorded, contemporaneously with the foregoing, that's not the sum of their charm. They're damn good songs, well-constructed and replete with the requisite hooks, both melodic and lyrical. Each one tells a story, often intertwined with the theme of looking back over a life fully-lived. Whether singing about turning a corner late in life ("A Better Man" and "Hope For Us All") or ruminating on past pain and loss ("The Club"), the songs paint deeply personal pictures.

In "Long Limbed Girl," the narrator comes across a long lost photograph of an all but forgotten girlfriend and wonders what became of her and whether her dreams ever came true. "I Trained Her To Love Me" is sung from the point of view of an aging misogynist whose agenda is to gain retribution for the perceived sins of the fairer sex by seducing them for the sole purpose of breaking their hearts ("Do you see the way she lights up, when I walk in the room? / That's good.") -- in essence, Cruel To Be Cruel.

Chrissie Hynde provides backing vocals on the glass-half-empty warning shot, "People Change," which suggests early 60s British pop. On the jazzy "The Other Side Of The Coin," it's not too hard to picture the Headmaster in the spotlight of a smoky lounge, simply requesting that any judgment of one who may have chosen to do it "My Way" be carefully measured. The sparkling "Love's Got A Lot To Answer For" is simply a timeless classic.

Clocking in at barely over half an hour, At My Age may wind up going to bed early, but it certainly leaves one wanting more. And while it may be that Nick Lowe has grown too old to rock and roll, he's not too old to show everyone else how to play the perfect encore.

MP3: Nick Lowe: "Long Limbed Girl" - from At My Age
MP3: Nick Lowe: "Love's Got A Lot To Answer For" - from At My Age

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 17: The Replacements - Putting On The Ritz (Live in NYC - 1987)

2007-08-01T22:00:00.000-05:00

With Rich already incommunicado on the left coast and myself headed to Chicago tomorrow morning for three days of beer, baseball and God-knows-what-else, I thought I'd better toss up another classic boot to keep you kids happy 'til next week. This one will have to do with relatively little introduction, but somehow I think it will, just fine.

In the 80s, The Replacements were the great little band that couldn't. Brimming with originality and passion, and armed to the teeth with Paul Westerberg's consistently brilliant songs, the band never achieved the levels of acclaim and adoration that their material deserved. In the early days, with the ferocious Bob Stinson on lead guitar, this was largely because they rarely played a show even remotely sober. (Of the three 'Mats shows I saw in college, one was absolute genius, and the other two were total disasters, with scarcely a single song played well, or even all the way through, before one or more bandmembers -- and Bob almost always -- passed out.) After Bob's tragic but seemingly inevitable death, Slim Dunlap ably took over on lead guitar, and while the shows thereafter lacked some of the early passion and reckless charm, they at least became more coherent and professional.

This tape comes from that later era, recorded at The Ritz in New York in July of '87 on the Pleased To Meet Me tour. With its excellent sound, the band's quality performance and an absolutely killer setlist that nicely balances songs from the band's entire career to that point (and in rapid-fire fashion -- the 25 songs fit on a single CD), this is among the best live recordings of this legendary band, which remains in my personal pantheon to this day. Westerberg was simply The Man, able to pen a punk anthem like "Favorite Thing" one day and then a perfect, romantic little pop song like "Kiss Me On The Bus" the next. If you're old enough to have been there, you know what I mean. If you aren't, you've got some catching up to do. (And, all you youngsters who've wondered why we call our periodic posts of leaked and advance tracks "Can't Hardly Wait," well, now you know.) Crank it up loud and enjoy.

THE REPLACEMENTS - Putting On The Ritz (live at The Ritz, NYC - July 27, 1987)

Artwork:
Cover insert - front
Cover insert - back
Back insert

01 I.O.U.
02 Nevermind
03 Hold My Life
04 I Will Dare
05 Lovelines
06 Can't Hardly Wait
07 Little Mascara
08 Swingin' Party
09 Bastards of Young
10 Within Your Reach
11 The Ledge
12 Waitress In The Sky
13 Sweet Home Chicago
14 Favorite Thing
15 Tommy Gets His Tonsils Out
16 Unsatisfied
17 Go
18 Nightclub Jitters
19 California Sun
20 Another Girl, Another Planet
21 Kiss Me On The Bus
22 Skyway
23 If Only You Were Lonely
24 Color Me Impressed
25 Takin' A Ride

Writing To Reach You

2007-07-30T19:01:00.000-05:00

While it's a nice enough listen with a few genuine highlights, the latest record from Travis, The Boy With No Name, never quite fired me up to buy tickets to their show here in Atlanta last night. But when free tickets fell into my hands on Saturday, there was no excuse not to head down to The Tabernacle to swelter in the heat and catch a band that used to captivate me on a regular basis. By the time the gig was over, I felt more than a little guilty that I hadn't purchased my tickets, at full price, the day they went on sale.

I simply had forgotten, after a good five or six years, what a tremendous live act these guys are. And on this particular night, in front of a smallish but adoring crowd that sang along to every word, they positively slayed, with the live setting giving many of Fran Healey's gloriously melodic tunes an urgency and edge (and some sheer volume) that their new album frankly could use a bit more of. And what tunes, too. The newer material sounded mighty fine, and the older songs -- especially "Writing To Reach You", "Turn" and "Why Does It Always Rain On Me?" from their best-ever album, 2000's The Man Who . . . -- struck me as something like timeless. They even busted out their classic Britney Spears cover -- which Fran said they were playing for the first time in ages -- and closed with a note-perfect version of "Back In Black". Yes, that "Back In Black".

In short, it wasn't just a good show; it was among the very best I've seen this year. The moral of the story: Whenever Scotland's favorite sons come to your town, don't you dare miss 'em.

MP3: Travis - "Battleships" from The Boy With No Name

Bonus MP3: Travis - "Baby, One More Time" (live at Glastonbury, 2000)

My Brightest Diamond

2007-07-29T15:37:00.000-05:00

Just a quick note for our Atlanta readers: Since opening in downtown Decatur scarcely a month ago, Wordsmiths, the new indie bookstore on the block, has established itself as not just a primo literary destination, but a musical one as well. The killer in-store performances continue this Wednesday afternoon, August 1, at 4PM, when Wordsmiths hosts a free, all-ages acoustic set by baroque pop princess and friend-of-Sufjan, Shara "My Brightest Diamond" Worden. Those of us who saw Shara open for Soof when he played the Fox back in September can confirm that she's a captivating performer with a gorgeous voice. If you can make it on a school-day, this outing is highly recommended.

MP3: My Brightest Diamond - "Something Of An End" from Bring Me The Workhorse

Let's Get Moving

2007-07-26T16:35:00.000-05:00

Leaving tonight for the West Coast, so it seems appropriate to post about one of my favorite West Coast artists. I shouldn't refer to Rancid as a guilty pleasure, because I have no reason to feel guilty about being such a fan. After all, they are sort of a modern day, California tribute to The Clash in many respects. And Rancid's leader, Tim Armstrong, is an unabashed Joe Strummer devotee -- nothing wrong with that. Not to mention that, in this new world of "punk rock" that is far closer to '80s hair bands than the Sex Pistols, Rancid still come correct.

I recently stumbled across Armstrong's new solo album, A Poet's Life, and a pleasant discovery it is. A Poet's Life is essentially a reggae album, but think old school reggae. It has a definite two-tone feel to it, which is not surprising, given Rancid's ska proclivities. (You remember "Time Bomb," right?) I understand that A Poet's Life was originally intended to be an internet giveaway to the fans, but its instant popularity and radio explosion (thanks, KROQ) forced somebody to rethink that plan.

As far as I'm concerned, A Poet's Life is the perfect summer record. While it's rooted in a time gone by, it still sounds thoroughly modern, with a notable hip-hop influence (and out-of-the-headlines references to Mogadishu and Baghdad). Plus, it sports one of the best aspects of Armstrong's writing style, a ready autobiographical nature. Even if his narratives are pure fiction, they always feel stridently real, and grounded in time and place. But the best thing about this collection of tunes is its ability to get you moving. I dare you not to tap a toe to this, at least. Better yet, crank it up and shake it around the room. Come on, its summer!

MP3: Tim Armstrong - "Into Action" from A Poet's Life
MP3: Tim Armstrong - "Translator" from A Poet's Life

More Adventurous?

2007-07-24T18:19:00.000-05:00

The Interwebs are abuzz -- and not necessarily in a good way -- about "The Moneymaker," the first advance track from Rilo Kiley's forthcoming Under The Blacklight, due out on August 21. With it's funky/sleazy attitude, throbbing bassline, simplistic lyrics and initially unrecognizable Jenny Lewis vocal, it's a stunning and, to some, worrisome departure in sound for a beloved indie band on their first major label outing. After numerous listens (and a few viewings of the video, which features fine-as-ever Jenny in the company of several L.A. porn stars), I have to say the tune is growing on me a bit (especially the bridge). But the burning question now is, did the band leak such an uncharacteristic track first in order to throw fans for a loop, or is the whole album going to sound like this? Well I've now heard two more tunes from UTL, and if the pattern holds, I've got news for you. But more about that later.

For now, what's the consensus on "The Moneymaker"? And, especially if you're down with it, are you a longtime RK fan with an open mind or are you hearing them for the first time?

MP3: Rilo Kiley - "The Moneymaker" from Under The Blacklight

UPDATE: Stereogum has UTB cover art and is streaming another new track, "Silver Lining," that is far less likely to freak out the faithful.

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 16: Fleetwood Mac - Nashville 1977

2007-07-23T06:00:00.000-05:00

Although it may be more guity pleasure than music geek chic, I have an abiding love for early Buckingham-Nicks era Fleetwood Mac, and rank the band's output from 1975's redefining Fleetwood Mac to 1979's Tusk -- apart from some of the Christine McVie tunes that, frankly, haven't aged too well -- among that decade's most enduring music. In between those two albums, of course, was the commercial and artistic juggernaut called Rumours, still one of the best-selling records of all time (over 30 million copies as of 2003) and one I crank up with surprising frequency to this day.

At bottom, though -- and while I think Stevie Nicks wrote some excellent songs over this period -- what made Fleetwood Mac great in the mid-to-late 70s (and on a few occasions since) was the spectacular songwriting and musicianship of Lindsey Buckingham. A true visionary wrestling with his ravaged heart, and a genius of a guitar player, the tracks he turned out over those three records still thrill and amaze me. And, as if that weren't enough to immortalize the guy, he also succeeded in pulling off one of the most effective acts of revenge against an ex-lover in the history of humankind: not only writing the gorgeously vicious "Go Your Own Way" about Stevie, but forcing her to stand next to him and sing the harmonies on it for the next 30 years.

This is the best boot from the Rumours tour, a fine soundboard tape from the May, 1977 show in Nashville. It has a couple of minor cuts (at the very end of "Gold Dust Woman" and beginning of "You Make Loving Fun"), but it's the best-sounding document of the mighty, mid-70s Mac that I know to be in circulation. Grab the whole thing -- but yes, you're allowed to skip "Oh Daddy," so long as you listen to "Never Going Back Again" or "The Chain" twice.

FLEETWOOD MAC - LIVE IN NASHVILLE - Nashville Municipal Auditorium, May 21, 1977

Artwork:
Front cover
Back cover

Disc 1
01 intro
02 Say You Love Me
03 Monday Morning
04 Dreams
05 Oh Well
06 Rhiannon
07 Oh Daddy
08 Never Going Back Again
09 Landslide
10 Over My Head
11 Gold Dust Woman

Disc 2
01 You Make Loving Fun
02 I'm So Afraid
03 Go Your Own Way
04 World Turning
05 Blue Letter
06 Second Hand News
07 The Chain
08 Songbird

My Lyrics Are Bottomless

2007-07-20T06:19:00.000-05:00

A little Friday humor. These guys claim to have invented rap music . . . back in New Zealand. I don't know about that, but this is hilarious. Check out the acoustic version here ("Sometimes when I freestyle, I . . . lose . . . confidence").

Check out Flight of the Conchords on HBO on Sunday nights. Maybe there is life after the Sopranos after all . . .

There's A Hope In Our Hearts

2007-07-18T00:14:00.000-05:00

Will there ever come a time when the opening measures of "Waiting For The Sun," the first song on Hollywood Town Hall, don't give me the chills? Probably not. The Jayhawks' first major label release is one of my favorite records of all time. It, along with the follow-up, Tomorrow The Green Grass, marked an impressive burst into the then-burgeoning "alt.county" music scene that still gets regular play around the TTT offices.

But for reasons beyond the scope of this post, it seemed that The Jayhawks 1.0 were over almost as quickly as they started, as founder (and my favorite Jayhawk) Mark Olson walked away from the band at the peak of their ascension to make music and be with his wife Victoria Williams. Even though Gary Louris bravely carried on under the established trademark, he did so in a decidedly different direction, and for whatever reason, I, as a fan, eventually parted company with all of the above. And while Rainy Day Music drew me back in to The Jayhawks, it turned out to be the band's swan song, and a fitting close. Following the Jayhawks' demise, a tour with Olson and Louris held the promise of a spark of the original magic, and we crossed our fingers.

Mark Olson's first actual "solo" record, The Salvation Blues, is at least in part the realization of that promise. Louris makes a significant contribution in both songwriting and backup vocals, and it sounds great to hear the boys back together again on new songs. Still, the most notable aspect of this record is its fantastic, unparalleled songwriting. I hereby nominate Mark Olson as this nation's new poet laureate. Having survived what one might surmise was a bitter divorce with Williams (Olson reportedly lost not only his wife but the beloved house he built in Joshua Tree, California) and two years of wandering and soul-searching, he has returned with a work of true beauty.

The Salvation Blues, in many respects, picks up where the original Jayhawks left off. It sounds a little more world-weary, maybe, but a fair amount smoother around the edges too, and to paraphrase Jerry Garcia, a touch of gray suits Mr. Olson well. The musicianship is impeccable, and the sound is authentic Americana, timeless and yet well-worn, and completely oblivious to anything like trends or current pop culture. It brings with it an understandable undercurrent of sorrow (e.g., "My One Book Philosophy"), but at the same time an undeniable spirit of optimism. And why not? Mark Olson has recaptured the original magic.

MP3: Mark Olson - "Clifton Bridge" - from The Salvation Blues

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 15: R.E.M. - Rising (Toronto 1983)

2007-07-14T05:44:00.001-05:00

I'm almost ashamed that it took me so long to get around to this one. I had the good fortune to grow up in Atlanta, graduate from high school in 1982, and attend college in North Carolina while most of my closest friends were (a) aspiring musicians and (b) going to school in Athens, Georgia. It was the perfect place and time to witness the infancy of one of the greatest rock and roll bands of all time, and to this day, I consider it one of the foremost blessings of my musical life.

To tell the whole story of my 80s obsession with R.E.M. would take a book. Suffice it to say that, from the moment I got the just-released Hibtone "Radio Free Europe" / "Sitting Still" single back to my teenage room in 1981 and needle hit vinyl, I knew my life had changed. I saw them live for the first time at a free festival show in Piedmont Park on May 14, 1982, weeks before my high school graduation. There were maybe 100 people on the grass in front of the stage. And it was mind-blowing. By the time I settled in at Duke University the following Fall, I had seen them several more times, the Chronic Town EP was out, and I just knew I was following the start of something very special. This was not just the best band from my hometown, or the best band from the South. This, I was already certain, was a band for the ages. And I was right.

I took it upon myself to become R.E.M.'s advocate on my Yankee campus in North Carolina, telling anyone who would listen that this was the next great American band, the next "best band on the planet". I became a DJ at the student radio station and slipped an R.E.M. track (or two) into every show. Murmur was released in '83 and the word spread more quickly. If they played anywhere near Durham, I was there, dragging the unconverted along with me when I could. I road-tripped to Athens to see them play the old 40 Watt and the Mad Hatter, and through my musician friends, eventually met and spent an evening or two on the town with Peter Buck. (I don't think he ever paid for a beer when I was around.) I bought every 12" import single to get the obscure b-sides, and saved every scrap of memorabilia (including the poster and gig flyer that hang in my study at home to this day). And when the band played two nights at Duke's Page Auditorium in September of 1984 -- shows that, oddly enough, were recorded for an official live album that was never released, and is now widely booted -- I was front and center both nights, like some proud little brother, and did the interview with Peter on the student TV station, even though I didn't work there, because no one else knew what to ask him. (In retrospect, I guess, the cool kids at school really weren't all that cool.) I could go on and on. But by the time I graduated from college in the spring of '86 and headed to law school in -- you guessed it -- Athens, Georgia, the story of R.E.M. was no longer even remotely obscure. Many of you probably have stories of your own.

But, oh yeah, I'm supposed to be introducing a bootleg. Choosing the best early R.E.M. boot is a tall order. Soundboard tapes of many of the very early shows -- at the 40 Watt and Tyrone's in Athens, at The Strand in Marietta, a sloppy '81 bar show in Greensboro, NC, the '82 Piedmont Park show that was my first, and even an '82 show in San Francisco -- circulate widely today, and are uniformly fantastic. And then there is the show at the Seattle Music Hall in June of '84, recorded for broadcast across the U.S., that many regard as the best R.E.M. gig ever. (It's certainly up there, for sure.) But by then the band had graduated from small clubs to theatres, and the experience of seeing them, while still powerful and amazing, had definitely changed a bit from the earliest days.

When I'm in the mood to hear a great early R.E.M. show -- one that best recalls the days of seeing them in a small, crowded, sweaty club, but with a setlist full of original (now classic) tunes and on the very cusp of breaking bigger -- I return again and again to this one, recorded at Larry's Hideaway in Toronto in July of 1983. It's not a perfect tape by any means. In fact -- and be warned -- there are a few brief cuts, some diginoise and other glitches here and there. But even with a flaw or two, this tape is spectacular -- a great band, at a thrilling time in their career, and on a particularly inspired night. From the chiming arpeggios pouring out of Peter's Rickenbacker, to Mike Mills' dextrous, innovative basslines, to Michael Stipe's singular baritone and oblique poeticism, the R.E.M. machine is firing here in all its early, post-punk glory. And, as I always tell people who've come to the band fairly recently, just listen to the mighty Bill Berry on this tape. He is the engine driving this train, and his rapid-fire playing on this night (as usual) is a marvel. I don't know how else to say it -- these guys were, and still are, something else. I may not have been at this particular show, but I was at countless others just like it. How freaking lucky am I?

Special thanks to my teacher and friend BED for blessing this post in advance.

R.E.M. - RISING - live at Larry's Hideaway, Toronto, Ontario, July 9, 1983

Artwork:
Front
Back (track list slightly incorrect, but close enough)

01 Wolves, Lower
02 Moral Kiosk
03 Laughing
04 Pilgrimage
05 Moon River
06 There She Goes Again > 7 Chinese Brothers
07 Talk About The Passion
08 Sitting Still
09 Harborcoat
10 Catapult
11 Pretty Persuasion
12 Gardening At Night
13 9-9
14 Just A Touch
15 West Of The Fields
16 Radio Free Europe
17 We Walk
18 1,000,000
19 Carnival of Sorts (Boxcars)

Blow Out That Cherry Bomb

2007-07-13T00:15:00.000-05:00

There was a sampled line in a Big Audio Dynamite (II) song that went something to the effect of "All anyone cares about anymore is rhythm and melody, rhythm and melody . . . " That song, of course, came out in the early 90s, well into the hip hop era, in which all anyone really cares about is rhythm; to hell with melody.

That being said, rhythm and melody, or perhaps "Rhthm & Soul," are what Austin's Spoon are all about. In fact, you'd be hard pressed to find anyone who does it better. Spoon's sixth album, Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, released Tuesday, is a perfect blend of accessibility and experimentalism, wrapped in spirited funk and highly infectious tunes. Indeed, there's something for everybody to tap a foot (or shake a booty) to here.

Spoon have always been a creative force to behold. On this new record, the band refines and expands on its distinct sound, and in doing so, takes its game to a whole new level. Unlike their previous outing, Gimme Fiction, which tended to plod along under the weight of heightened expectations, Ga Ga Ga (that's the hip, shortened title) breezes across the room like Paris Hilton at a paparazzi convention. The trademark staccato rhythms remain intact, but the tempos are a little more upbeat, the songs a little more loose, and there's a wicked amount of studio knob-twiddling in which the empty spaces are filled in with found sounds and exotic instrumentation.

The record opens with "Don't Make Me A Target," an overtly political protest song less notable for the venom that it spews at the current administration than for the fact that it sounds exactly like what one might expect John Lennon to be writing were he alive today. "The Ghost Of You Lingers," perhaps the most experimental song on the record, uses enough reverb to choke Neko Case in effectively conjuring the sound of multiple voices echoing in the poor protagonist's head as he suffers through a cinematic montage of aching memory.

These songs are followed by what in a perfect world would be a huge hit, "You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb," which bounces along to an almost Motown-esque rhythm that's hard not to be completely seduced by, fingers snapping, head shaking, and all. In the past, Spoon tunes could be almost stiff in their mechanical tightness, but "Don't You Evah" and "Finer Feelings" are good examples of how the band's new found looseness frees them to expand their palette. The record rounds out with probably the closest thing to a Spoon ballad, "Black Like Me," which is one of the best songs I've heard this year. I know it's still early, but if this record doesn't wind up on a few best-of lists this year, someone will have to explain it to me. This is must-have stuff.

MP3: Spoon - "Finer Feelings" from Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

Odds and Sods

2007-07-11T19:10:00.001-05:00

While you await the next bootleg in our series -- which I'll try to get up before I go on vacation this weekend -- there's some great stuff to be grabbed elsewhere:

Heather at IAFYAF offers the first of the five nights of "open rehearsals" that R.E.M. wrapped up in Dublin, Ireland last week. (You'll need to scroll down a bit to her July 7 post.) The band sounds tremendous, and from everything I've read, the more-or-less unanimous buzz on the new batch of songs that were debuted during these shows (sorry, Bertis) is that it's their strongest in years. I am seriously excited about the new record.

Another kind-but-anonymous soul has posted Nirvana's set at the 1992 Reading Festival for the taking. There's one less classic boot that we'll need to cover. (via GoldenFiddle)

And the mighty Stereogum got 12 bands, including the likes of John Vanderslice, Cold War Kids, The Twilight Sad and My Brightest Diamond, to record a tribute to Radiohead's OK Computer to commemorate that record's 10th anniversary. (Jeez, how the time does fly.) Better yet, Scott and co. are giving that collection away gratis, complete with artist commentary and cool cover art. We, and other humble music bloggers everywhere, can only shake our heads in awe.

Finally, you just have to get a load of the new Joe Strummer replica Telecaster about to be released by Fender, with a not-very-punk $900 price tag. Lord knows we worship Saint Joe here at TTT, and don't begrudge the Widow Mellor for making sure her kids are taken care of, but does anyone else think this is just a bit too cheesy? (Thanks to DJ Cayenne at BGB for the heads up on this one.)

Cool For Cats

2007-07-09T18:52:00.000-05:00

This past Saturday, 07.07.07, really was the luckiest of days for fans at an obscure music festival in Kent, England. While the bill for the Return To The Summer of Love Festival promised no more than appearances by Silverwood, Urban Spacemen, Cosmic Charlies and Barry "The Fish" Melton & The Green Ray (no disparagement of those fine acts intended), festival-goers were in fact treated to a surprise set by none other than the newly-reunited Glenn Tilbrook and Chris Difford of Squeeze. Warming up, no doubt, for their reunion tour of the U.K. and U.S., which kicks off this Thursday night in London, Messrs. Difford & Tilbrook treated the stunned crowd to acoustic versions of seven gems from their formidable catalog, and sounded as good as ever. (Truly, Tilbrook's voice -- among the finest in rock and roll history -- is still a wonder to behold, even though he turns 50 next month.) And to our good fortune, a taper was hooked into the soundboard. ~~Now if I could only find some pictures of the appearance to go with the tunes.~~

UPDATE: Pictures are here, here and here. (Thanks to David R. for sending them along.)

CHRIS DIFFORD & GLENN TILBROOK - Live at Hawkhurst, Kent, U.K. - July 7, 2007

01 Take Me, I'm Yours
02 Pulling Mussels (From The Shell)
03 Is That Love?
04 Tempted
05 Labeled With Love
06 Cool For Cats
07 Up The Junction

The One After 909

2007-07-06T06:26:00.000-05:00

Although it's receiving far less fanfare than another recent anniversary (in the States anyway), one of the most pivotal events in music history -- some would say the spark that ignited the last 45 years of popular culture -- happened 50 years ago today, on July 6, 1957. That was the day that 15-year old Paul McCartney attended a summer garden fete at St. Peter's Church in Woolton, Liverpool, where he saw a ragged performance by a group of teenaged skiffle musicians called The Quarrymen. The leader of that band, to whom Paul was introduced later in the day, was 16-year-old John Lennon. In a brief chat before the evening set, Paul showed John how he tuned his guitar, and accompanied himself on some Eddie Cochran, Gene Vincent and Little Richard tunes. Within 3 months, The Quarrymen had a new, left-handed guitar player, and the rest, as they say . . .

Of course this is all a much bigger deal in the U.K., and on June 26, the BBC broadcast a really nice hour-long special on this momentous anniversary, The Day John Met Paul, featuring interviews with Sir Paul, Cynthia Lennon, little brother Mike McCartney and original members of The Quarrymen, as well as -- get this -- a brief recording made on the fateful day. Charged, as I am, with bringing BBC goodness to deprived music geeks across the pond, I just had to snag a copy for the TTT faithful. Listen, learn, and think about how perfectly the planets had to be aligned, not just for these two young scruffs to meet 50 years ago today, but for them even to be alive at the same time, and in the same little part of the world. In my book, it's one of the miracles of history.

THE DAY JOHN MET PAUL - BBC special broadcast on June 26, 2007
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6

Happy Independence Day

2007-07-04T11:22:00.000-05:00

In Atlanta, about 60,000 of us celebrate the Fourth of July by running in the world's largest 10k race, the Peachtree Road Race. I will tell you, there's nothing like running 6.2 miles at 8:00 am and then heading straight to my favorite Atlanta pub, The Prince of Wales, and slamming a few pints and a great cheeseburger, all well before 10:00 am. It's a tradition, and one that makes Independence Day maybe my favorite holiday of the year. My buddy Roger and I just accomplished our annual mission of not dying, at least long enough to get another buzz on.

To celebrate, check the MP3 below of the Boss from his solo Ghost of Tom Joad tour in 1996 for a very different take on "Born In The USA." (And be sure to go to fellow Atlantan Captain's Dead to get the rest of this magnificent recording). I saw this show in Memphis, and I can say it's definitely on my list of top 10 concerts of all time.

MP3: Bruce Springsteen - "Born In The USA" - Live from the University of Akron (9.25.96)

Walking On The Moon

2007-07-03T00:10:00.000-05:00

As promised, an update on the trip to New Orleans to witness the return of The Police. Suffice to say that Sting and the boys comprised 1/3 of my favorite musical trifecta in the early '80s, along with The Clash and U2. Unlike the latter two bands perhaps, The Police never made it their mission to try to change the world, but were really about no more than composing near-perfect pop songs tastefully flavored with a dash of punk and ladle of ska.

On the way into town, Ms. Rich and I had just been discussing the fact that, even though The Police were hugely popular in their day, "the kids" today don't seem to be especially familiar with them, despite the fact that their music has held up remarkably well. This point was not refuted by our early-20s hotel desk clerk, who gave us a blank stare when we told her that we were in town for The Police concert. I said to her, it's the band that Sting used to be in a long time ago. She smiled and replied, "My mom likes Sting. Do you think he'll be there?" I smiled back and said that I was pretty sure that he would be there.

After an immediate run to Mother's on Poydras for gumbo, etouffee, and a Bloody Mary or two from "Elvis," we wandered around the Quarter, settling in on the patio at Pat O's, where we kept it simple, but nevertheless whiled a few hours away in alcohol and the afternoon sun. After a pre-show po-boy, our pumps were primed for an evening with some favorite musical memories.

And the boys were in fine form. I had seen them on their "farewell" tour in 1984, which I recall as being something of a spectacle. Saturday night's show was very different from that. It was The Police stripped to the basics: no backup singers, no keyboards, nothing fancy (except for the giant video monitors above the stage). Even the stage banter and audience interaction were kept to a minimum, save a nice reference to the resilient spirit of New Orleans and a generous amount of encouraged sing-a-longs. It was just the three musicians ripping through one of the greatest songbooks in rock, for roughly two hours and three encores.

Perhaps not surprisingly, the setlist did not deviate dramatically from their biggest hits, although there were a few slightly less well-trodden cuts like "Truth Hits Everybody" and "Voices Inside My Head," which melted into "When The World Is Running Down, You Make The Best Of What's Still Around." Another favorite was a wonderfully rousing extended version of "Regatta De Blanc," on which I pretty much lost my voice (to the delight, I'm sure, of those around me).

And even though Sting may have seemed a little subdued in the chorus of "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da," he genuinely seemed to be enjoying himself, as did Stewart Copeland (running as he did from drum kit to percussion station) and Andy Summers (attempting a few joyful, if ill-advised, mid-air splits). There even seemed to be some real camaraderie when Sting jokingly referred to "the Stewart Copeland Show" and "the Andy Summers Show" at that line in "So Lonely" that normally ends "welcome to this one-man show." They brought the house down with probably their biggest hit -- and maybe the biggest song of the '8os -- "Every Breath You Take," and then wrapped it all up with the song I left you with on Friday, "Next To You."

All in all, it was a spectacular night at the end of a perfect day. We followed the crowd back into the French Quarter afterward and made our way to that "Huge Ass Beers To Go" place, and then to our Bourbon Street balcony, walking on the moon.

MP3: The Police - "Truth Hits Everybody" (Live)
MP3: The Police - "Tea In The Sahara" (Live)

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 14: Miles Davis & John Coltrane - Scheveningen, The Netherlands - April 1960

2007-07-02T05:46:00.000-05:00

I've been meaning to detour into jazz territory for a while now, but first I needed to run down just the right version of this recording. This is the Miles Davis Quintet, recorded for a radio broadcast at the Kurhaus in Scheveningen, The Netherlands, in April of 1960. Of course, it's one thing to say that this is the Miles Davis Quintet, and quite another to remind you that tenor saxophone duties in that band were covered by a young man named John Coltrane. In fact, with the exception that neither Bill Evans (piano) nor Julian "Cannonball" Adderly (alto sax) were in attendence on this spring day in Holland, this is the same band that had recorded frequent best-jazz-album-ever candidate Kind of Blue less than a year earlier.

A more "vintage" (that is, older and more trebly) version of this recording has circulated for decades, but in 2005, it was re-broadcast in the Netherlands, presumably from the archival master tapes, and that's the version I'm giving you here. (The slightly obtrusive comments by the announcer at beginning and end are a small price to pay for near-pristine sound.) And the performance is nothing less than sublime. In fact, this is a perfect snapshot of the Davis Quintet at a pivotal point in its development, squarely between the distinctive "hard bop" sound that characterized its classic late 50s recordings (Cookin', Steamin', Workin' and Relaxin') and the "modal" colors with which Davis (first with Coltrane, and then without) essentially revolutionized jazz between 1959 and the early-to-mid 1960s. The contrast in styles is no more evident than on the stunning 17-minute version of "So What" that kicks off this set, and sets Miles' understated cool and impeccable tone against 'Trane's incendiary virtuosity. I hope that all of our readers who are jazz buffs, but also everyone who has enjoyed the brilliant musicianship that we have sampled at every step in this series, from classic rock to punk, and from power pop to indie rock, will take the time to appreciate that these cats -- as much as Bob Dylan and The Beatles a few years later -- were the giants, and true musical revolutionaries, of their day.

MILES DAVIS QUINTET (feat. JOHN COLTRANE) - Kurhaus, Scheveningen, The Netherlands - April 9, 1960

No artwork available (if you have some, please send it!)

Personnel: Miles Davis (trumpet); John Coltrane (tenor sax); Wynton Kelly (piano); Paul Chambers (bass); Jimmy Cobb (drums)

01 intro (circa 2005)
02 So What
03 On Green Dolphin Street
04 'Round Midnight
05 Walkin'
06 The Theme
07 outro (circa 2005)

Every Night My Dream's The Same

2007-06-30T13:05:00.000-05:00

The great John Peel may not be around to preside any longer, but the BBC still hauls the best bands in the world into its Maida Vale studio to record sessions that put American radio to shame. Last Thursday, BBC Radio 2 broadcast the Arcade Fire's visit to Maida Vale, recorded before a small audience on June 19. The band -- which already has a reputation for knocking radio sessions clean out of the park -- turned in another spectacular performance, and since it's a recording most of our readers would never get to hear otherwise (do you Brits know how lucky you are?), I thought I'd toss it up for your weekend pleasure.

ARCADE FIRE - BBC Studios, Maida Vale, London - June 19, 2007

01 intro
02 Keep The Car Running
03 No Cars Go
04 Haiti
05 interview pt. 1
06 Black Mirror
07 Neon Bible
08 interview pt. 2
09 Intervention
10 Antichrist Television Blues
11 interview pt. 3
12 Neighborhood No. 3 (Power Out) > Rebellion (Lies)

BONUS: Video of the performance is here.

Moon Over Bourbon Street

2007-06-29T11:56:00.001-05:00

Mrs. Rich and I are scooting out of town and heading over to the Big Easy to see The Police on Saturday night. Looking forward to hitting Mother's and maybe Emeril's NOLA too. I've been back to the Mississippi Coast since Katrina, but not to New Orleans. We were last there about a month before the storm, so this could be bittersweet. Check this space for an update. In the meantime, here's a blast from the past, back from when Gordon Sumner and co. were still lean and mean.

MP3: The Police - "Next To You" (Live)

It Takes Two, When It Used To Take One

2007-06-28T11:43:00.000-05:00

Big ups to Rich for keeping the TTT flame burning while I labor in my private little work hell. High on the agenda, when I come up for air, will be some discussion of the new Ryan Adams record, Easy Tiger, which came out Tuesday. For now, enjoy this clip of a shockingly scrubbed and clean-cut Ry-Ry with The Cardinals on the Letterman show last night, doing "Two" from the new disc. About which, much more later.

And the next boot, promise.

You Don't Know What Love Is

2007-06-27T01:22:00.000-05:00

Note: This is the obligatory White Stripes review that all music bloggers are required by law to post. For those of you who may live in a cave, The White Stripes released a new album last week, entitled Icky Thump. I don't want to spend too much time on this, for several reasons (ahem):

1. The White Stripes' record label has specifically asked us not to post any mp3s from this record. The White Stripes do not need any help from bloggers promoting this record, and I do not say that sarcastically;

2. Most of you reading this blog purchased this record approximately the day that it came out, have probably listened to it approximately twice as many times as I have, and could probably write a review that is approximately five times better than this one; and

3. This record is so good that not that much needs to be said about it.

First off, a confession. Although a big fan of White Blood Cells, I was actually beginning the process of writing them off after their last record, Get Behind Me Satan. I know it's blasphemy, but the Stripes were really beginning to sound like something of a novelty act to me. Having heard some good hype for Icky Thump though, I figured I'd check it out. Damn. This is one outstanding record. In the words of my friend Scott, "It's got bagpipes, man. Bagpipes!" That, it does -- on the folkish "Prickly Thorn, But Sweetly Worn" and Meg's fever dream "St. Andrew (The Battle Is In The Air)" -- bagpipes and so much more.

The widely-distributed title track is classic Stripes, but Stripes on steroids. This record is Jack and Meg writ large, with enough depth of sound that one hardly notices the drums/guitar-only novelty of their act (is it my imagination, or has Meg, like, really improved on the kit?). Of course, there's a fair amount of White Stripes eccentricity here as well; most notably, on the mariachi-inspired "Conquest", which Time magazine stupidly criticized as an "album-stopper," but is actually an excellent example of the quirkiness that sets the Stripes apart.

Other standouts include the Zepplinesque "Bone Broke," the outstanding headbanger "Little Cream Soda" (how can you not love the "oh well, oh well" lyric?), the blues ballbreaker "Rag and Bone" ("Meg, look at this place . . . this place is like a mansion!"), and the classically simple "Effect and Cause," which may be the best modern protest song that I've heard, even though that certainly is not its overt premise. Oh, and don't forget the psychobilly "Baby Brother," which I would probably post, if I could. But I can't, so I won't. Whatever, I still love this record.

Okay, I've already gone on longer than I intended. The White Stripes don't need us to help sell their record -- their record company has told us so. But this Icky Thump is good shit, what can we say . . .

YouTube: The White Stripes - "Icky Thump" from Icky Thump

Meet John Doe

2007-06-25T12:46:00.000-05:00

In general, people are not yet speaking of John Doe as an American treasure. Someday, that will certainly change, because he certainly is. Like Joe Strummer, John Doe, leader of the seminal L.A. punk band X, arose in the midst of the punk zeitgeist, but has always tapped into a far deeper vein of musical tradition than was initially superficially evident. Unlike the Clash, whose wheels came off at the height of their powers, X jumped the shark (see their 80s Hollywood-inspired cover of "Wild Thing") and kept going well past their prime. Nevertheless, John Doe deserves status as an elder statesman of American rock.

Following the end of X, John Doe quietly kept at it, finding his post-punk, alt-country-ish voice in a series of solo albums, the most recent of which, A Year In The Wilderness, beautifully paints a picture of Americana. On it, Doe ranges from the sublime ("The Golden State") to the earthy ("Unforgiven") and all blues-folk points in between. On the former, Doe is joined spectacularly by the great Kathleen Edwards, who plays a solid post-X Exene Cervenka. Also sharing duet duties are Aimee Mann and regular Lloyd Cole collaborator Jill Sobule.

While many of the songs on Wilderness would not sound out of place on records by say, Wilco or The Jayhawks (e.g., "Darling Underdog" or "A Little More Time"), a few are vintage John Doe, and could have been the staples of a modern-day X record (for example, the spooky "Hotel Ghost"). Some are just flat out rockers -- check out the bluesy stomper "There's A Hole," complete with rockabilly reverb on the vocals and mean slide guitar, and the celebratory "Lean Out Your Window," which makes for a killer last song of the last encore of the night.

John Doe certainly deserves discussion as an American icon, and A Year In The Wilderness certainly deserves your consideration.

MP3: John Doe - "Darling Underdog" from A Year In The Wilderness

YouTube: John Doe (w/ Cindy Wasserman) - "The Golden State"

Side With The Seeds

2007-06-22T06:33:00.000-05:00

You guys should know by now that we can never post about Wilco just once. Plus, it's been another crazy week, with precious little time for TTT, and I hate to start the weekend without providing some musical accompaniment. So, to close out our personal week of Wilco goodness -- and after this, we promise to move along to other things (for a while, anyway) -- here's their performance on NPR's World Cafe that aired last Friday, June 15, recorded at the WXPN studios in Philadelphia. Four tunes, with Jeff Tweedy and Nels Cline interviewed in between by host David Dye. Enjoy.

01 intro
02 Side With The Seeds
03 interview
04 Muzzle of Bees
05 interview
06 Sky Blue Sky
07 interview
08 What Light
09 outro

Maybe The Sun Will Shine Today

2007-06-20T09:28:00.001-05:00

So, it was a big day for Team TTT yesterday, as we got to knock off work early and attend Wilco's pre-show soundcheck. Then, after dinner and a few too many drinks, we headed back to Chastain Park Amphitheatre for the show itself, which was fantastic despite the 2-hour downpour that seemed to have been choreographed with Wilco's set. In fact, the soundcheck was cut short when lightning started to pop overhead after 30 minutes or so. But I did manage to snap a few crappy pictures before the lightning sent the band scurrying, and us to kill the next 3 hours with pitchers of Margaritas.

Ever Present Past

2007-06-18T05:53:00.000-05:00

I suppose it's something of a curse for Paul McCartney -- sorry, Sir Paul -- that he can never release a record and have it judged on its own merits instead of compared to glories past. Hey, I revere the man, but I'm as guilty about that as the next guy. So, while I can't say, unconditionally, that I think Memory Almost Full is a really good album, I can say that -- with a judicious bit of editing -- it's his best collection since 1997's Flaming Pie, and just maybe since Flowers In The Dirt in 1989.

First, let's dispense with the editing. The record is bookended by two songs that leave me reaching for the "skip" button. Leadoff track "Dance Tonight" is inoffensive, but also utterly inconsequential, with a simplistic melody and "tonight/alright/shout/about" rhyme scheme that my 10-year-old son could have whipped up. It's not awful -- and for some reason it's been deemed sufficiently charming to be selected as the first single -- but this is one of the three or four greatest composers in pop history we're talking about here, and I think it's beneath him. Meanwhile, the final track, "Nod Your Head," is just awful -- a mindless, misguided stab at thrash rock that only succeeds in making the great man sound clueless and out-of-touch.

But with those two exceptions, the remainder of Memory Almost Full is surprisingly strong, and in places even excellent. "Ever Present Past" -- which I hear as alluding, at least in part, to the very curse I mentioned above -- is quirky, catchy pop in the tradition of McCartney, McCartney II and some of the other solo work on which McCartney has written and played almost every note. "Only Mama Knows" is a terrific rocker, with an "Eleanor Rigby" string intro, and a sweet four-step chord change leading into the choruses that is vintage Macca magic. Elsewhere, songs like "You Tell Me" are potent reminders of what a great acoustic balladeer McCartney has always been. And the record closes -- barring the aforementioned abomination of a final track -- with an Abbey Road-style suite of songs that is consistently melodic, engaging and worthy of repeated spins, and in which the famous McCartney scream -- the voice he used on songs like "Helter Skelter" and "Oh! Darling" -- is revealed to remain in fine form at age 64 (now 65, as of today -- Happy Birthday, Paul). If you're not feeling nostalgic and genuinely touched by the time you get to "The End Of The End," another lovely ballad on which McCartney foresees his own passage to the "much better place" that John and George got to first, then you need to have your vitals checked.

MP3: Paul McCartney - "Only Mama Knows" from Memory Almost Full

BONUS: Writer John Colapinto talks about MAF and interviewing McCartney for a recent profile in The New Yorker.

Can't Hardly Wait

2007-06-16T13:27:00.000-05:00

JASON ISBELL - "Chicago Promenade" from Sirens Of The Ditch, out on July 10

THE MAGIC NUMBERS - "This Is A Song" from Those The Brokes, out on July 17 (in the U.S. -- out long ago in the U.K.)

IRON AND WINE - ~~"Boy With A Coin"~~ from Shepherd's Dog, out on September 25 [removed at label's request]

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 13: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band - Just In Time For Summer (Cleveland 1978) - Part 2 of 2

2007-06-15T09:00:00.000-05:00

As promised, here's the third and final disc of the 1978 Springsteen boot, Just In Time For Summer. The first two discs, artwork and back story are here.

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN & THE E STREET BAND - Just In Time For Summer - Live at the Agora Ballroom, Cleveland, OH, August 9, 1978

Disc 3:
01 Denny Sanders intro > 4th of July Asbury Park (Sandy)
02 Born To Run
03 Because The Night
04 Raise Your Hand > Kid Leo signoff
05 WMMS Station ID by Clarence Clemons
06 WMMS Station ID by Bruce Springsteen

The first installment has been downloaded by hundreds of you. So how about some comments? Are you diggin' it? Can I get a witness?

Many Thanks For Your Honest Opinion

2007-06-15T06:00:00.001-05:00

Hailing from Leeds, England, The Lodger tear pages from the books of fellow northerners The Smiths and The Housemartins, along with Scots Belle & Sebastian, on their debut record, Grown-Ups, which is chock full of that version of power pop that sounds so exquisitely British to my American ears. Grown-Ups sparkles with tightly-wound melodies, chiming guitars, and shot-gun, staccato rhythms, all of which add up to a distinct sound that smiles at you like the young son of an old friend.

The Lodger's clever lyrics are full of the melancholy that comes with bidding adieu to the carelessness of youth and shrugging to one's place in the line for adulthood. In contrast, the music jangles along with all of the optimism of newfound self-confidence and self-awareness. Even though The Lodger may draw inspiration from readily identifiable sources, any similarity to their predecessors in no way detracts from the freshness of the music on Grown-Ups. I have no idea what it's like to be a young Brit, but my romanticized idea of it (based on a lifetime of Anglophilic music fandom) sounds a lot like this.

MP3: The Lodger - "A Free Period" from Grown-Ups

YouTube: The Lodger - "Let Her Go" from Grown-Ups

I Feel It All

2007-06-14T06:00:00.000-05:00

Let me tell ya, life and work have been putting a serious damper on this blogging business. Here's hoping the near future allows us more time to write about new music -- or, for that matter, just to listen to some new music.

But The National rocked Atlanta hard last night -- guys, if you actually look us up, thanks again for the guestlist privileges -- and now I'm looking forward to Feist's visit to our town tomorrow night. If you don't already have her new record, The Reminder, you're missing out on another of the strongest releases thus far in '07. Here are three tunes and an interview with the lovely Miss Leslie, from her recent AOL Spinner session:

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 13: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band - Just In Time For Summer (Cleveland 1978) - Part 1 of 2

2007-06-12T05:43:00.000-05:00

Probably no artist in rock history has delivered live performances that are as consistently revelatory as Bruce Springsteen's, and when push comes to shove, most diehard fans of The Boss cite his 1978 tour with the E Street Band, in support of Darkness On The Edge Of Town, as the greatest of the great. In fact, it's tough even to select one boot from the '78 tour among the many that could credibly vie for "best Springsteen show ever" honors -- both of the September shows in Passaic, New Jersey are breathtaking, and the December show at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco (the first non-Beatles boot I recall getting my hands on, when I was in high school) is another absolute classic. But in a poll a few years back by the Brucelegs fan site, this recording -- of the show at the Agora Ballroom in Cleveland, Ohio on August 9, 1978 -- topped them all.

And sure enough, it is something else -- not just an astonishing performance, heavy on material from Darkness and Born To Run (with "Because The Night," which I still prefer to Patti Smith's version, in the setlist for good measure), but thanks to a live broadcast by Cleveland radio station WMMS, a near-perfect soundboard recording as well. It's also a marathon, as most Springsteen shows in this period were, clocking in at just under 3 hours, and requiring 3 CDs to hold it all. For that reason, this will be a two-part post -- grab the first two discs now, then come back later in the week for the third one.

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN & THE E STREET BAND - Just In Time For Summer - Live at the Agora Ballroom, Cleveland, OH, August 9, 1978

Artwork:
Front cover
Back insert

Disc 1:
01 Intro - Denny Sanders of WMMS
02 Intro - Kid Leo of WMMS
03 Summertime Blues
04 Badlands
05 Spirit In the Night
06 Darkness On The Edge Of Town
07 Factory
08 The Promised Land
09 Prove It All Night
10 Racing In The Street
11 Thunder Road
12 Jungleland

Disc 2:
01 Intro - Denny Sanders
02 Paradise By The "C"
03 Fire
04 Sherry Darling
05 Not Fade Away > Gloria > She's The One
06 Growin' Up
07 Backstreets
08 Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)

I'll post Disc 3 in a few days.

Download Festival

2007-06-08T07:48:00.000-05:00

For your weekend listening pleasure, download recent studio sessions by two of our favorite bands:

The Rawking Refuses To Stop has The National's May 24, 2007 "White Session" for Maison de la Radio in Paris.

And on May 23, The Features were in Cincinnati to record a studio session (featuring two brand new songs) for online radio station WOXY, which is now available at the station's blog, The Futurist.

Lay Your Head Down, In My Arms

2007-06-07T06:41:00.000-05:00

If there is an Internet buzz out there for Israeli-born and French-raised singer-songwriter Keren Ann, I have not yet stumbled across it. If there isn't one, let it begin here.

I can't claim to know that much about her just yet, but her new record, the eponymous Keren Ann, is a sweetly haunting affair. The music on this record, her fifth, develops slowly, set against minimal, folkish instrumentation, gossamer orchestral touches, and just the slightest hints of electronica. The pace and impact of the songs are often reminiscent of The Velvet Underground and the great Mazzy Star.

And like Hope Sandoval of the latter, Keren's honeyed vocals are light and seductive, and slide into your ears like a whisper. She comes across like a noir chanteuse, and it would be easy to imagine her songs playing during the closing credits of some black and white foreign film that ends in regret of some sort or another. Ultimately, this record may be heard as soporific to some, but keen listeners will find that it perfectly represents a smoky, "small hours" sound, full of ghostly shadows and washed-out still life paintings.

MP3: Keren Ann - "In Your Back" from Keren Ann

YouTube: "Lay Your Head Down"

Can't Hardly Wait

2007-06-06T06:43:00.000-05:00

As Rich and I both dig ourselves out of massive holes at work, enjoy more tunes from upcoming releases we're looking forward to:

JOSH ROUSE - "Hollywood Bassplayer" from Country Mouse, City House, out on July 31

KELLY WILLIS - "Don't Know Why" from Translated From Love, out on June 26

SPOON - "Don't Make Me A Target" from Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, out on July 10

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 12: The Who - Monterey Pop Festival, June 18, 1967

2007-06-03T13:34:00.000-05:00

A boot by the mighty Who is long overdue, and the fact that we're already focused on 40th anniversaries this weekend gives me yet another reason to start with this one, which is just days away from being a full four decades old.

It's a short one, but for a reason. When they took the stage on the third and final day of the Monterey Pop Festival in the summer of 1967, The Who had not yet blown up in the States, and thus were a hotly anticipated, but still relatively unknown, support act. (The Grateful Dead, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Scott "If You're Going to San Francisco" McKenzie and The Mamas & The Papas played later in the day.)

The Who had less than a half-hour to make an impression, but -- as this glorious recording confirms -- they made every moment count. They roar out of the gate with "Substitute" (one of the most perfect pop singles of all time), thunder their way through Eddie Cochran's "Summertime Blues" and then turn on a dime to deliver a surprisingly lovely version of the more delicate "Pictures of Lily," their timeless "anthem to wanking," before even 10 minutes have elapsed. Then it's around the turn and into the home stretch with a slightly sloppy go at "A Quick One (While He's Away)," Pete Townshend's first stab at "rock opera," early hit single "Happy Jack," and of course, the proto-punk finale of "My Generation." And if you've seen The Kids Are Alright, you know how that last song ends. Let's just say that Rickenbackers and drum kits are shown no mercy.

There are a lot of terrific Who boots (and I'm sure we'll get around to others eventually), but this is among my favorites -- it's a full, rich soundboard recording, the band is in ridiculously tight, ferocious form, and it captures them shortly before they became mired, for a couple of years, in the whole Tommy phenomenon, which to me was the least interesting (and at time even tedious) period for The Who's original line-up. Speaking of which, while Townshend, Daltry and Entwhistle are all at the top of their respective games on this recording, just listen to Keith Moon's playing. Focusing on Moon here is like lifting the hood on some monstrous machine and hearing the engine roar.

THE WHO - MONTEREY POP FESTIVAL - JUNE 18, 1967

(No artwork available - if you have some please send it!)

01 Substitute
02 Summertime Blues
03 Pictures of Lily
04 A Quick One (While He's Away)
05 Happy Jack
06 My Generation

It Was 40 Years Ago Today

2007-06-02T08:27:00.001-05:00

Although it comes in only about fourth on my list of favorite Beatles records, we wouldn't be much of a music blog if we didn't do something to honor this, the 40th anniversary of the U.S. release of the so-called "greatest album of all time" (the anniversary was yesterday in the U.K.). My guess is that most of us would debate that distinction, but there's no denying that Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band obliterated any constraints on what a pop band could accomplish in the studio, cemented the album -- rather than the single -- as the medium by which the best artists were expected to distinguish themselves, and ushered in the psychedelic, pseudo-Victorian aesthetic of "swinging London" that reverberated across the globe in the late 60s. There's also no denying that Sgt. Pepper is a fabulous listen, from start to finish, and contains some of The Beatles' most sublime and timeless music, "She's Leaving Home" and, especially, "A Day In The Life" -- certainly among the 3 or 4 most immaculate things a group of musicians has ever produced -- being the most obvious examples.

And for me, the record will always be a sentimental favorite because it was, very literally, the spark that ignited my lifelong obsession with music. When I was 9 years old, a 4th grade teacher was trying to demonstrate the use of unusual instrumentation in modern music -- I can't remember why -- and played "Being For The Benefit of Mr. Kite" in class, because of the tape loops of calliopes and carousels it has in the bridges. I was positively spellbound. It's my earliest memory of being floored and fascinated by a piece of music. For that reason alone, I will always have a special affection for Sgt. Pepper.

I considered making one of the collections of Sgt. Pepper outtakes the next bootleg in our series, but we've covered The Beatles already and there are too many great artists to sample before we start circling back to some. For now, here are snippets of takes 4, 5, 6 and 7 of "A Day In The Life", all recorded at EMI Studios, Abbey Road, London, on January 20, 1967:

MP3: The Beatles - "A Day In The Life" (reduction mix of takes 4-7) from Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 3 (1966-1967) (bootleg)

And a contemporary re-mix of elements (the animal sounds, a George Martin interview, John Lennon's demo, and an alternate studio take) of and relating to "Good Morning, Good Morning":

MP3: The Beatles - "Good Morning, Good Morning" (remix) from Men & Horses, Hoops & Garters (bootleg)

Also, The Times Online has links to quite a bit of Sgt. Pepper anniversary news, including the paper's original review of The Beatles' "gay new LP" published on May 29, 1967.

Finally, for anyone who's interested in the behind-the-scenes lowdown on the studio sessions that produced Sgt. Pepper, I can't recommend recording engineer Geoff Emerick's recent memoir, Here, There and Everywhere, strongly enough.

Can't Hardly Wait

2007-06-01T06:00:00.000-05:00

More advance tracks from records we're looking forward to:

THE WHITE STRIPES - "~~Icky Thump~~" from Icky Thump, out on June 19 [removed at label's request]

THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS - "My Rights Versus Yours" from Challengers, out on August 21

SUFJAN STEVENS - "In The Words Of The Governor" from Cue The Bugle Turbulent (CD accompaning The Believer's forthcoming 2007 Music Issue)

IMMACULATE MACHINE - "Dear Confessor" from Fables, out on June 12

And finally, I plan to have the next classic boot up by the end of the weekend. Stay tuned.

Raise Our Heavenly Glasses To The Heavens

2007-05-31T21:41:00.000-05:00

In 2005, The National's Alligator snuck up on me quickly -- to quote Robyn Hitchcock, "exactly like a crocodile, in search of a mirage across the undulating sand" -- and chewed its way squarely into the top slot of my "best of the year" list. Alligator delivered on a promise prior albums had only hinted at, and revealed the band as near, if not full, equals with the very best of their impressive influences.

As the release date (prior to the leak, anyway) for that record's follow-up approached, fans began nervously debating whether The National could possibly repeat their previous success. Boxer leaves no doubt, however, that any such worry was for naught.

When The National recently opened for Arcade Fire in Atlanta, they played to a crowd that seemed relatively unfamiliar with their work and on a stage poorly configured for their presentation. Only those who paid close attention would have been able to manage a glimpse of the bands' true power; power which is on ample display on the new record.

Boxer is a study in melancholia, set against lush and richly produced acoustic and electric guitar, piano, subtle orchestration, and some of the best drumming in recent memory. (Remember how good the drums sounded on October? The drums on Boxer are reminiscent of that). Lead singer Matt Berninger's boozy baritone swaggers through late night cityscapes and conjures the sound of a defeated contender. The songs are haunted by dreams unrealized, effortlessly rendered in downbeat poetry. Simply put, The National's lyrics may be about the best around these days: "Underline everything/I'm a professional in my beloved white shirt/I'm going down among the saints."

Although Boxer may lack the immediate catchiness of some of Alligator's standout tunes like "Mr. November," it is more consistent in the dark mood created across the course of the record, and more expertly played and produced. I expect some may be turned off by the depressive chord Boxer strikes, but those folks will be missing out. This record is something close to a masterpiece.

MP3: The National - "Mistaken For Strangers" from Boxer
YouTube: "Mistaken For Strangers"

You Are My Face

2007-05-29T06:09:00.000-05:00

I know I said I'd give the Wilco a rest for a while, but during their recent run of shows in Britain, the band taped an episode of Later With Jools Holland that aired in the UK on Friday night, and the performance of "You Are My Face," my favorite track from Sky Blue Sky, is just too gorgeous not to share:

How Her Heart Behaves

2007-05-28T13:00:00.000-05:00

When I reviewed her latest record back in February, I mentioned that I wish Norah Jones, with all that talent and allure at her command, would take more risks and attempt some edgier, more interesting material. But I guess it's okay to let Norah be Norah, as long as Leslie Feist is around.

On her spectacular new record, The Reminder, Feist (as she prefers to be known) easily outshines her more famous, multi-platinum contemporary as a purveyor of delicate, jazz-inflected pop. But while Norah's music has a certain, stately sameness to it, Feist flits -- and not just comfortably but commandingly -- from her own brand of dusky, late-night swing ("So Sorry" and "The Water"), to rambunctious indie rock ("I Feel It All"), to quiet Americana ("The Park"), to traditional, orchestrated pop ("My Moon My Man" and "1234") and soul ("The Limit To Your Love") without ever breaking a sweat. In lesser hands, such audacious genre-hopping could come across as gimmicky. But Feist either wrote or co-wrote every track on this record, so the overall impression here is of a supremely gifted artist at a creative peak, stretching her wings and reveling in the many types of music she and her talented friends are capable of producing together. (The record winds down with "Brandy Alexander," co-written with the incomparable Ron Sexsmith, and "How My Heart Behaves," a lovely duet with Eirik Glambek Boe of Kings of Convenience.)

In the end, though, what The Reminder showcases most plainly is that Leslie Feist has quietly developed one of the most gorgeous singing voices in modern pop music, recalling both Cat Power and, at moments, early 70s Joni Mitchell (two comparisons I do not throw around casually), but capable of summoning more power and stylistic range than either of those greats. It's a thrilling instrument to behold, plain and simple, and there seems to be nothing she can't tackle with it. That extraordinary quality, not to mention the 13 impeccably crafted and beautifully performed songs here, make this another early candidate for record of the year.

MP3: Feist - "I Feel It All" from The Reminder

Now You Don't Talk So Loud

2007-05-24T06:48:00.000-05:00

Today is International Talk Like Bob Dylan Day, so pinch your nostrils together, imitate those odd cadences, draw out those vowel sounds and get your inner Bob on today. Here, practice your talkin' with these:

MP3: Bob Dylan - "Talkin' John Birch Paranoid Blues" from The Freewheelin' Session Outtakes (bootleg), studio outtake, recorded 1962

MP3: Bob Dylan - "Talkin' World War III Blues" from Now Ain't The Time For Your Tears (bootleg), recorded May 7, 1965, Free Trade Hall, Manchester, UK

MP3: Bob Dylan - Message to Columbia Records Sales Meeting in Miami, from Thin Wild Mercury Music (bootleg), recorded May 12, 1965

Oh, and a Happy 66th Birthday to the great man himself, born on this day in 1941. But of course, he was so much older then, he's younger than that now.

RELATED: Today's edition of Slate features a collection of Dylan photos from the 60s and 70s, most of them by the wonderful Elliott Landy.

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 11: Neko Case & Her Boyfriends - John Peel Session 2000

2007-05-22T19:17:00.000-05:00

I usually like to jump around chronologically, which -- after Wilco's YHF demos, circa 2000-2001 -- would've meant something either really old or really recent. But since securing my ticket yesterday to see her show with Rufus Wainwright in August, I've had Neko Case on the brain. (Truth is, I frequently have Neko on the brain -- but that's another story.)

Some things are so sublime that they don't require a lot of explanation. Here's Neko at the top of her game, with her crack band (which means you get steel guitar god Jon Rauhouse and our lovely homegirl Kelly Hogan in the bargain), in the UK to support her second album, Furnace Room Lullaby. Several songs from that record get a workout, as do a few country, soul and gospel covers, including a goosebump-inducing take on Aretha Franklin's "Runnin' Out of Fools". This was Neko's only live appearance on the late John Peel's radio program, recorded in September of 2000 in front of an audience at the BBC studios in Maida Vale, London. In a matter of 35 minutes, she has them eating out of her hand. Lucky them.

Artwork:
Front cover
Disc (if you're so inclined)

NEKO CASE & HER BOYFRIENDS - BBC Studios, Maida Vale, September 13, 2000

(Sound is a little trebly, but the genius shines through.)

01 Set Out Running
02 Make Your Bed
03 Stinging Velvet
04 Favorite
05 Twist The Knife
06 Bought and Sold
07 Furnace Room Lullaby
08 Look For Me (I'll Be Around)
09 Runnin' Out of Fools
10 Lord, Don't Move That Mountain
11 Bowling Green

RELATED: Buy Neko's corset! (The one in the cover art.)

Talking With Fireworks

2007-05-21T08:06:00.000-05:00

I suppose I shouldn't be so surprised at how quickly and how deeply the debut record from Scotland's The Twilight Sad, Fourteen Autumns, Fifteen Winters, seeped into my consciousness. After all, this record contains a lot of the ingredients that I cut my own musical teeth on back in the 80s: soaring melodies, swirling guitars, grand emotions worn proudly on the sleeve, and an almost religious passion for the music. For those of you who, like me, grew up on early U2, the Alarm, the Waterboys, Simple Minds, and Big Country, this is so in your wheelhouse. That said, The Twilight Sad have a fair amount of 90s shoegaze thrown in for good measure, but the upfront baritone of lead singer James Graham cuts through the facelessness of that genre like a knife.

As if by second nature, The Twilight Sad churn out what Mike Scott once called "The Big Music," and Graham's thick Scottish brogue only adds to the drama. And to return to the Big Country comparison, Fifteen Autumns also serves up some of the best e-bowed guitar that you will have heard since The Crossing. The difference between then and now, however, is that on top of the long arcs that the band's guitars send heavenward, there is enough noise to evoke My Bloody Valentine and its progeny. The result is a tension, perhaps, between the sacred and the profane, between prayer and walls of noise.

This is a record that is satisfying on so many levels. It's emotionally exhilarating and anthemic. It bridges the space between quiet internal longing and expressionistic bombast. All of which is pretty impressive for a debut record from a few Scottish youngsters who sound wise beyond their years.

MP3: The Twilight Sad - "Cold Days From The Birdhouse" from Fourteen Autumns, Fifteen Winters
MP3: The Twilight Sad - "Walking For Two Hours" from Fourteen Autumns, Fifteen Winters

Can't Hardly Wait

2007-05-19T05:39:00.000-05:00

Before we become That Wilco Thing, let's switch gears. Here are tracks from a couple of releases we're looking for to:

RYAN ADAMS - "Everybody Knows" from Easy Tiger, out on June 26

CROWDED HOUSE - "Don't Stop Now" (webrip) from Time On Earth, out on July 10

SPOON - "The Ghost Of You Lingers" from Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, out on July 10

Maybe You Still Love Me, Maybe You Don't

2007-05-17T23:10:00.000-05:00

If it isn't clear enough already that Sky Blue Sky is the most polarizing record of Wilco's career, this cinches it for me -- welcome to our first-ever joint post. More than any other band, Wilco brought us together as friends and cemented our music-geek bond. We've seen the band together numerous times over the last few years, in Atlanta and on roads trips across the South, and it's fair to say that we're both tithing members of the Church of Tweedy. But we've had very different reactions to Sky Blue Sky (as have a lot of folks -- witness Pitchfork vs. PopMatters). So welcome to our own little version of Point/Counterpoint:

Frank's Take:

Unlike the three records that preceded it, Sky Blue Sky is not a grand artistic statement. It has no art-rock pretense or 60s pop pastiche, no bursts of feedback or radio interference, no ominous foreshadowing of disastrous events, no "American aquarium drinkers" who "assassin down the avenue." In a recent Billboard interview, Jeff Tweedy said that when the band set out to record its latest batch of songs, he asked himself, what record do I want to hear right now? And the answer was, "I want to hear somebody just sing me some songs."

That's precisely what Tweedy and Co. do on Sky Blue Sky. And as much as this delights the legions of fans who have aways preferred the early "alt country" Wilco of A.M. and Being There, it frustrates the hell out of newer fans who expect every Wilco record to top the last in sonic "experimentation." As Tweedy said in another recent interview, when Yankee Hotel Foxtrot came out, everyone asked him, "Where's the pedal steel?" Now the pedal steel is back, and everyone's asking, "Where's the noise?"

Well there's plenty of gorgeous noise on Sky Blue Sky. No, it's not their most complex or adventurous work -- and okay, it might even have one bum track -- but with that single (and arguable) exception, the record is never less than hugely enjoyable, and when it's good, it's as fine as just about anything this exceptional band -- and this one-in-a-million songwriter -- have ever produced.

The record is bookended, both musically and thematically, by two lovely Tweedy ballads, "Either Way" (which we previewed back in April) and "On & On & On." The former floats in on Tweedy's fingerpicked acoustic and a bed of shimmering Hammond organ, then peaks with swelling strings and a beautifully understated solo by new, virtuoso lead guitarist Nels Cline. But on the second track, "You Are My Face" (currently my favorite on the record), it's Tweedy who supplies the guitar pyrotechnics with a gutting, Neil Young-inspired solo that transforms this gentle folk song, with its airy, double-tracked vocal, into an adrenaline-fuelled plea. (It's at moments like this when I just can't comprehend the complaint that Sky Blue Sky "doesn't rock.") Elsewhere, "Impossible Germany," a live favorite since last summer, peaks with a three-guitar duel in which Tweedy and Cline are joined by multi-instrumentalist Pat Sansone. And anyone waiting for Cline to step out and really show his stuff has to be wowed by the blistering solo he turns in on the soulful "Side With The Seeds." "Walken" is not the most profound piece of music Jeff Tweedy has ever created, but the charms of its Southern fried, Little Feat vibe are awfully tough to resist. And the delicate "Please Be Patient With Me" is both unspeakably pretty and the most intensely personal tune Tweedy has ever released -- almost like eavesdropping on one of the conversations he and his wife must have had during his struggle with addiction a few years ago.

In short, and despite the fact that it's a relatively subdued ride from start to finish, I really love this record, and think it has given us at least eight new songs that deserve their place in the Wilco canon. (Of course, the very fact that I speak in terms of a "canon" when I talk about Jeff Tweedy and Wilco reveals my admitted bias.)

At the same time, the latest Wilco record is precisely that -- just the latest record by Wilco, until they make another one. Jeff Tweedy is not even 40 years old. Like Dylan or Neil Young, he's a career artist, and a love of his music is a relationship for life. (Maybe Sky Blue Sky is his Nashville Skyline, or his Harvest.) And I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that he's given me more music to enjoy, and to be thrilled and fascinated and moved by, than any other artist over the past decade. So, as another blogger so aptly put it earlier this week, if he wants to kick back and be mellow right now, I'll happily kick back with him.

Rich's Take:

"Be careful what you wish for," should probably be the theme of my post. Don't get me wrong. Of course I loved Yankee Hotel Foxtrot every single bit as much as any other self-respecting Wilco disciple, but by the time A Ghost Is Born revealed how the band had -- "ruined" is too strong a word -- changed "Spiders (Kidsmoke)" from the alt-country version they'd been playing live into a celebration of Krautrock, and inexplicably added about 12 minutes of machine hum to the end of "Less Than You Think," I was calling for Wilco to end the weird-for-weird's-sake and just play the damn songs. The beautiful, supremely melodic songs of one this generation's most gifted songwriters.

I have to admit that Sky Blue Sky has me apologetically asking if I could change my order. Now, Wilco has never really been overwhelmingly challenging, but there has long been something of an edge present in the band's music, an uneasy undercurrent that manifested itself in limited Sonic Youth outbursts of noise and disjointed, impressionistic lyrics that are often deeply evocative for reasons superficially unexplainable. Most reviewers will probably highlight that Sky Blue Sky represents a kind of maturity in the evolution of Wilco, but it's a maturity that comes at the expense of that "edge."

This is a most curious development. When Wilco signed the great avant garde guitarist Nels Cline to the lineup, I was excited about the sonic possibilities that this presented. And having seen him shred on Wilco standards several times in the last few years (and hearing him on the live album Kicking Television), I felt the Nels Cline version of the band portended a new dimension of artistic creativity. But Nels' guitar work on this record is, for the most part, decidedly subtle and disappointingly understated. It would say that it's the equivalent of signing A-Rod to play third base, only that metaphor doesn't hold up because A-Rod still gets to hit every once in a while, and these particular songs don't offer much for Mr. Cline to swing at.

I certainly don't mean to pan the record. Some of the songs on Sky Blue Sky are probably as good as anything Wilco has ever done. "Impossible Germany" would've been at home on either of the last couple of records, and "What Light," a new classic in the Wilco songbook, is probably that song that I intended to order up in my prior exhortation. It's still a Wilco record, which makes it way better than the vast majority of anything else that's out there.

Nevertheless, this record probably also has some of Wilco's least effective material. "Shake It Off," a herky-jerky jam that never really goes anywhere but does go on for far longer than is necessary, is probably my least favorite song that the band has ever recorded. A close second is Tweedy's hymn to sad domesticity, "Hate It Here," which dresses up in ill-fitting 70s soul that sounds either like something off of an unheard comeback attempt by Peter Frampton or an early Don Henley B-side. For the first time in my life, I'm routinely skipping over Wilco songs.

That 70s soul/soft-rock thing permeates the record. Songs like "Leave Me Like You Found Me" and "Walken" aren't bad, they're just not particularly interesting. And unlike previous Wilco records -- which routinely had me studying the lyrics, trying to decipher what Jeff was getting at, or simply admiring their inherent poetry -- here, the straightforward, earnest lyrics on Sky Blue Sky have me drifting off, thinking about that project at work or whether I'll have time to get my oil changed this weekend. I begin to recall that scene in I Am Trying To Break Your Heart when Jay Bennett sort of condescendingly explains that he needs to junk up Tweedy's songs with a bunch of noise and found sounds in order to keep them from sounding "like little folk songs," or words to that effect. I still don't believe that's entirely true, but a few of these may have benefited from some measure of sonic tinkering.

But then again, what do I know? Jeff Tweedy has made a career of giving his fans musical food that their palates aren't ready for, so it may just be that this record needs further digestion so that it continues to grow and insert itself in ways that aren't yet understood. If so, I'll be the first to circle back and admit that I was short-sighted. But at this point, and at the risk of damning it with faint praise, Sky Blue Sky can be summed up by referencing a line in the title track: "its good enough for now." It may not be my favorite Wilco outing so far, but it's still Wilco, and that's good enough for me.

MP3: Wilco - "You Are My Face" from Sky Blue Sky

Radio Cure

2007-05-15T05:47:00.000-05:00

Sky Blue Sky is out today, and we continue our Wilco release week coverage with the band's appearance on A Prairie Home Companion last Saturday night, from the State Theatre in Minneapolis. (We'll review SBS later in the week.)

01 Sky Blue Sky
02 Garrison Keillor chats with Tweedy > Muzzle of Bees > chat continued > What Light
03 When The Roses Bloom Again
04 Hesitating Beauty

(Webrip by DawgSong at the Via Chicago message board -- his turned out a bit better than mine.)

UPDATE: Greg Kot, author of definitive Wilco bio Learning How To Die, interviews the band in today's issue of PopMatters.

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 10: Wilco - The Yankee Hotel Foxtrot Demos

2007-05-13T16:00:00.000-05:00

With Wilco's new record, Sky Blue Sky, set for release this week, selecting the next entry in our series was (for once) a no-brainer.

The sessions that produced Wilco's pivotal Yankee Hotel Foxtrot album -- as infamously documented in Sam Jones' 2002 film, I Am Trying To Break Your Heart -- were a perfect storm of dysfunction. After delivering the brilliant dose of infectious, sun-dappled pop that was 1999's Summerteeth, the band embarked in a new and far more challenging direction that involved not just the writing of great songs, but an almost maniacal process of tearing down and reconstructing each one, sometimes over and over again, until -- after literally hundreds of hours in the studio -- some elusive, alchemic result finally revealed itself. Even a band in the best of mental health would have been stretched to its limits by this routine. And at the time, Wilco was anything but. Jay Bennett, a supremely gifted musician and songwriter with an equally pompous and irritating personality, had tired of playing second fiddle to Jeff Tweedy and was making a calculated power grab, alienating not just Tweedy but the rest of his bandmates in the process. Tweedy, meanwhile, already pathologically averse to confrontation, was at his absolute personal low point, firmly in the clutches of an anxiety disorder, chronic migraine headaches and an attendent addiction to prescription painkillers that had him struggling to maintain some semblance of control, and not just over his band.

What's most astonishing about the YHF sessions, then, is not that they were so fractious, but that they produced, in the midst of all that simmering acrimony and discomfort, such a wealth of gorgeous and stunningly inspired music. There is evidence enough of that in the record itself, which I consider to be Wilco's masterpiece and among the finest releases of the last 20 years. But what casual fans may not know is that the tracks that ended up on YHF represent only a small fraction of what the band recorded in this period.

The so-called "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot Demos" -- actually consisting of both true demos and completed-but-discarded studio tracks from the YHF sessions -- have been called "the great lost Wilco album." In fact, it sometimes seems that these recordings have inspired as much fawning praise from critics as the officially-released album.

The tracks fall into two basic categories. First, there are early, sometimes radically different versions of songs that ended up on the record. Indeed, fans who aren't wild about the sonic experimentation on YHF can find more straightforward renditions of some of the songs here.

Second, and even more stunning, are the songs that didn't make the cut at all, a number of them as good as just about anything in the Wilco catalog. It's not hard to guess why pop gems like "Magazine Called Sunset," "Alone" and "Nothing Up My Sleeve," all of which would have been right at home on Summerteeth, didn't fit in with what Tweedy was trying to accomplish with YHF, but that doesn't make them any less wonderful. "Not For The Season" is terrific, too, and was a longtime staple of Wilco's live set (they still bust it out on occasion), but it didn't make the grade either, perhaps because Tweedy had other plans for the song. (It ended up, sapped of most of its passion, as "Laminated Cat" on the first album by Tweedy's Loose Fur side project.) And "Will Not Let You Down" sounds like Wilco brought Exile-era Keith Richards in as a ringer one day -- it's rollicking fun, even if it had no natural place on YHF.

Yet, the omission of two of these songs from YHF defies explanation. "Cars Can't Escape" is one of Wilco's loveliest ballads, and although the band gave it away online to anyone who purchased YHF, and even toss it into their live setlist every now and then, they have never treated it as much more than a throw-away. I don't care -- it's among my all-time favorite Wilco songs.

But if these recordings do comprise some sort of alternate-universe classic, then "Venus Stop The Train" is THE great lost Wilco track. Achingly beautiful and hauntingly produced, it would have been an absolute highlight of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, and consistent in every way with the sound and ethos of that classic record. Instead, it has never been released, or performed live. Not even once. Until that far-off day when a career-spanning Wilco box set sees the light of day, this is the only way you'll ever hear this positively gorgeous song.

WILCO - THE YANKEE HOTEL FOXTROT DEMOS

Artwork (low resolution -- if you have better, please send it along):
Front
Back

01 I Am Trying To Break Your Heart
02 Ashes of American Flags
03 I'm The Man Who Loves You
04 Magazine Called Sunset
05 Reservations
06 Kamera
07 Not For The Season
08 Alone
09 Nothing Up My Sleeve
10 Venus Stop The Train
11 Car's Can't Escape (piano demo)
12 Poor Places
13 Will Not Let You Down
14 Heavy Metal Drummer
15 Instrumental No. 1
16 Instrumental No. 2
17 Instrumental No. 2 (take 2)
18 Kamera (alternate version)
19 Magazine Called Sunset (alternate version)
20 Alone (alternate version)
21 Not For The Season (alternate version)

And a bonus track, because the collection is simply incomplete without it:

22 Cars Can't Escape (finished studio version)

Finally, this isn't even all of it. Other tracks recorded during the YHF sessions but never released -- some of which circulate on a separate bootleg called The YHF Engineer Demos -- include "Corduroy Cutoff Girl" ("Instrumental No. 2" above, with lyrics added), an early version of "Handshake Drugs" (later re-worked and released on the follow-up to YHF, 2004's A Ghost Is Born), "The Good Part" (which returned to the Wilco setlist in 2006 and briefly looked like it was headed for Sky Blue Sky) and still other, entirely different versions of many of the YHF tracks. Perhaps a worthwhile subject for another day.

Odds and Sods

2007-05-09T06:14:00.000-05:00

Scottish band Mogwai provide the soundtrack for Zidane, a documentary portrait of the iconic French footballer (and head-butter) by Scottish film director Douglas Gordon, and we have a track to share. I am praying that this film gets a DVD release, at least, in the U.S. Vive Zizou!

MP3: Mogwai - "The Black Spider" from Zidane original soundtrack

The official site for The Future Is Unwritten, Julien Temple's documentary on TTT patron saint Joe Strummer, is up and running. The film was huge at Sundance this year, and opens in select cities on May 18. If the trailer is any indication, this will be a favorite music flick of all time.

In a move sure to draw a snide comment from Rich about their forthcoming record, Wilco will play A Prairie Home Companion this Saturday evening. U.S. readers can tune in to their local public radio stations between 6:00 and 8:00 PM Eastern to catch the performance, live from legendary Lake Wobegon. Sky Blue Sky is out next Tuesday, May 15, and if you purchase your copy at an independent record store you'll get some bonus goodies, as Jeff Tweedy will tell you himself.

The weekly Take-Away Shows at La Blogoteque feature videos of some of the finest indie artists around (Arcade Fire, Cold War Kids, Andrew Bird, The National, The Shins, Guillemots, My Brightest Diamond, Grizzly Bear) performing, busker-style, in public spaces in and around France. Bonus footage of six bands is also up this week to mark the first anniversary of the project.

And our Classic Bootleg Series will continue by no later than the end of this weekend. Promise. The next one's a must-have, kids, so don't miss it.

Get It On!!!

2007-05-08T00:00:00.000-05:00

Nick Cave's new side project (with current Bad Seeds members), Grinderman, is a testosterone-infused punk rock/blues mash-up extraordinaire. An early press release accurately described Grinderman as "fouled-mouthed, noisy, hairy, and damned-well old enough to know better." The band might also be described as Id Gone Wild. And, as Martha Stewart says, "that's a good thing."

Grinderman's self-titled debut album opens with two white-hot shots to the gut: "Get It On," and "No Pussy Blues." The former, which is linked below, is a raw, in-your-face exposition in rock and roll decadence, which, among other things, extols the virtues of "those who gave their lives so that we could Get It On." The latter, which is about exactly what you think it's about ("I petted her revolting little chihuahua and still she just didn't want to . . ."), and screams it from the rooftops in a hilarious, blue-balled celebration as straightforward and visceral as anything in blues or rock music.

Songs like "Depth Charge Ethel" and "Honey Bee (Let's Fly To Mars)" keep up the fat bass lines and dirty grind, but there are a few songs that vary the pace considerably, such as the Tom Waits-ish "Electric Alice," the artsy spoken-word "Go Tell The Women," and the title track, on which Nick channels Jim Morrison over a post-modern dirge. The record rounds out with the teeming menace of "When My Love Comes Down" and "Love Bomb," the latter of which sounds like what Talking Heads might have sounded like had they been leather-clad bikers instead geeky art school students. Grinderman is a real winner for that dirty rocker that's lurking deep down inside of you.

MP3: Grinderman - "Get It On" from Grinderman
MP3: Grinderman - "Love Bomb" from Grinderman

Also, check out the video for "No Pussy Blues" (parental discretion advised)

And as an added bonus, for a little historical perspective:

MP3: John Lee Hooker - "Grinder Man" from Everybody's Blues

Time Of No Reply

2007-05-07T12:42:00.000-05:00

I never thought I'd be announcing the arrival of "new" recordings by revered British singer-songwriter Nick Drake, but that's just what will happen on June 19, when the Drake estate will release Family Tree, a collection of acoustic demos, covers and other unreleased recordings that Drake made at home in the late 60s, before he secured a record deal and released his debut album, Five Leaves Left, in 1969.

Before his death from an overdose of antidepressants in 1974, Drake released three records of fragile, sublimely beautiful acoustic pop, but he died -- at age 26 -- in almost complete obscurity. Although his music was adored and his tremendous talent (as a songwriter, guitarist and singer) was appreciated by a small cult of hardcore fans, Drake's music didn't obtain any measure of mainstream awareness until the title track of his final album, Pink Moon, was used to wonderful effect in a Volkswagen commercial in 2000. That widespread exposure, coupled with the release of the outstanding Fruit Tree box set (comprised of his three studio albums, plus an extra disc of unreleased outtakes and rarities) cemented Drake's reputation, almost 30 years after his death, and revealed the tremendous influence that he has on singer-songwriters to this day. He was, more or less, the Sufjan Stevens of his day.

Many of Drake's early home recordings have been widely bootlegged for years, most famously on a release called Tanworth in Arden that is a staple of any good boot collection. But the sound quality on Family Tree promises to be noticeably better than the hissy, high-generation tapes that collectors have long passed around. This new release will also feature some uncirculated material -- namely, collaborations between Drake and members of his family -- that very few people have ever heard before.

Thanks to the good folks at The MuseBox, we've received a preview track from Family Tree, an early (and discarded) Drake original called "They're Leaving Me Behind". While it's not in a league with his classic studio material, it's an interesting peek at a brilliant artist still struggling to find his voice, and we're pleased to be able to share it.

MP3: Nick Drake - "They're Leaving Me Behind" from Family Tree

Living For The Future

2007-05-04T00:15:00.000-05:00

Cover albums, it seems to me, are often the refuge of artists with nothing left to say, or of those who are playing out a contractual string. There are some notable exceptions to that, but when I read that Patti Smith's first post-Hall of Fame record, Twelve, is a covers album, I didn't begrudge her that victory lap, but I did lower my expectations a little.

Twelve, while perhaps not a revelation, is still a very pleasant surprise. On it, Professor Smith gives a fairly straightforward tutorial on rock history, covering an eclectic range of artists from the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s. The songs are well-chosen and well-played. Both the production and her voice are warm and intimate, and the effect is killer; evocative of a late night private show to which you are incredibly lucky to have scored tickets.

Even as a punk-poet, Patti has never been a stranger to classic rock covers -- like Van Morrison's "Gloria" and Hendrix's "Hey Joe" -- and the classic crowd is represented here as well, with songs from Dylan ("Changing Of The Guard"), the Doors ("Soul Kitchen"), Jefferson Airplane (a spooky "White Rabbit"), and Neil Young (a lovely version of "Helpless"). Other older songs include a faithful cover of the Stones' "Gimme Shelter," and a somewhat surprising version of the Allman Brother's southern rock classic, "Midnight Rider." And even though "Within You Without You" is probably my least favorite Beatles song (which still places it way above most things), here it is set to a swinging 6/8 cadence that is most appealing.

The album also boasts some unexpected choices of more recent vintage, including a warm, stripped-down version of Tears for Fears' "Everybody Wants To Rule The World," and Paul Simon's 80s world-beat hit, "Boy In The Bubble." Patti and her band take the most liberties with their gorgeous version of Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit," the record's centerpiece. It's a virtual photographic negative of the original, played acoustically as a folk song, prominently featuring banjo and mandolin. I know, it sounds like some Hayseed Dixie parody, but in this bands' hands it's pure poetry (even inspiring Patti to interject some of her own) and illustrates the genius of Kurt Cobain, even without the distorted guitars and punk rock nihilism.

The record is rounded out with a smooth version of Stevie Wonder's "Pastime Paradise," which doesn't sound like typical Patti Smith territory, but serves as the perfect closer. I can't say that I've lived with it long enough to discern any overt theme in her selections, but the timelessness of all these songs render each of them, in its own way, immediately applicable to the present day, and beyond. And so too is Patti Smith.

MP3: Patti Smith - "Everybody Wants To Rule The World" from Twelve (Tears For Fears cover)
MP3: Patti Smith - "Smells Like Teen Spirit" from Twelve (Nirvana cover)

Chelsea Dagger

2007-05-03T06:35:00.000-05:00

Scottish trio The Fratellis have been dismissed by some as major label Arctic Monkeys clones or, worse yet, just another soon-to-be-forgotten act that was briefly lucky enough to have a catchy track ("Flathead") featured in an iPod ad. But after living with their debut, Costello Music, for a few weeks now, I have to give them more credit than that. Sure, they seem to have nicked the early Arctics template a bit -- tight, distinctly British pub rock brimming with killer riffs and big, sing-along choruses -- but it's not like that's a bad thing, and on more than a few tracks, they distinguish themselves nicely, with skillful songwriting and some great musicianship. "Henrietta" has enough hooks for three songs, single "Chelsea Dagger" is a rollicking good time, with a Gary Glitter drumbeat, T-Rex guitars and a chorus made to be chanted in unison by drunk lads in bars, and "Creepin' Up The Back Stairs" alternates between modern thrash and harmonies that would have been at home at the Cavern Club in early 60s Liverpool. Best of all, though, is the one true ballad, "Whistle For The Choir," which will surely have a place on any "favorite songs of the year" mix I may be putting together in 7 months or so.

MP3: The Fratellis - "Whistle For The Choir" from Costello Music

Every Time You Close Your Eyes

2007-05-02T11:40:00.001-05:00

The Arcade Fire were in town last night, and of course we were front and center -- we're fans, if you haven't noticed -- for what turned out to be a revelatory set. Even with the ludicrously high expectations I had after seeing them in 2005, I was blown away. I'm simply not articulate enough to convey the heart, passion and effort that they seem to pour into every song, putting not just their voices but also (in the case of Will Butler, who at one point tightrope-walked the ramped balcony support at the Atlanta Civic Center until he was perched a good 30 feet above the crowd, teetering precariously and maniacally pounding on a drum the entire time) their bodies on the line to ensure that the performance is nothing less than epic, and no one leaves disappointed. After seeing this show, one thing is certain in my mind: In addition to releasing two of the finest records of the past decade, the Arcade Fire join the likes of Radiohead, Wilco and My Morning Jacket as among the very best live bands on the planet.

Odds and Sods

2007-04-27T11:50:00.000-05:00

GoldenFiddle has the first look at Cate Blanchett as Bob Dylan (the circa '66 edition) in the forthcoming Todd Haynes biopic, I'm Not There (which, from the look of things, will be either terrific or a complete disaster).

The Traneumentary is a weekly podcast celebrating the unparalleled artistry and influence of John Coltrane, featuring interviews with such friends and admirers as McCoy Tyner, Terence Blanchard, Jimmy Cobb and (coming up) Sonny Rollins. It's 15 weeks in, with only 3 more to go, but all of the episodes are archived at the site and well worth a listen. ('Trane fans, stay tuned to our Classic Bootleg Series. I'm just sayin'.)

The reunited Crowded House will release a new record, Time On Earth, on July 2. The record was produced by Ethan Johns (Ryan Adams, Kings Of Leon, Ray LaMontagne) and Steve Lillywhite (U2, XTC, Morrissey). Guitar god Johnny Marr features on two tracks, including lead-off single "Don’t Stop Now," which will be available on iTunes on June 25. The record will also include Crowded House's take on the gorgeous "Silent House," which CH main man Neil Finn co-wrote with the Dixie Chicks. The Chicks' version of that song was among the highlights of their splendid Taking The Long Way album last year. Here, see for yourself:

MP3: Dixie Chicks - "Silent House" from Taking The Long Way

And music critic Sasha Frere-Jones, who's been on a tear lately, profiles indie it-girl Feist in The New Yorker, calling her new record, The Reminder (out next week), "radiant" and "luminous".

I'm A Punkrocker, Yes I Am

2007-04-25T23:28:00.000-05:00

Unlike jazz and the blues, rock tends to be relatively unfriendly to its aging statesmen. Depending on whom you ask, the Rolling Stones are both examples of and exceptions to this rule. For my generation though, we are only now getting to the point at which the punk rockers are getting old. We've already lost many of them, but a few are notably carrying on.

For me, the most vivid example of this is the 60-year old Iggy Pop, the Godfather of Punk, who, let's face it, has written some of the most blistering songs in the rock pantheon. In recent years, however, Iggy's output has been somewhat hit or miss but still occasionally worth checking out. I was one of those (maybe one of the few) who was more excited than nervous about the prospect of a reunited Stooges putting out new material, in spite of the overly slick and underwhelming new release from the New Your Dolls last year.

Unlike the Dolls, The Stooges latest release, The Weirdness, certainly doesn't suffer from the sheen of overproduction. The sound remains relatively raw, if not quite as powerful as you might remember. Worst of all (as you've probably read ad nauseum), the lyrics are surprisingly sophomoric, maybe even for The Stooges. I read where Iggy chided new bass player Mike Watt for making a bass line too interesting, because he wanted the new record to sound big and dumb. Simply put, Iggy managed to achieve this goal.

Contrary to the uniformly negative reviews that I've seen (and even my initial reaction), The Weirdness actually isn't a complete turn-off. In spite of the fact that my first listen was probably comparable to that feeling Ohio State fans get when their teams plays Florida in a national championship game (pick a sport) -- i.e., "this isn't going how I'd hoped it would" -- there's still stuff here you can use, like the first single, "My Idea Of Fun," and the title track, the latter of which kind of makes you wish Iggy and Bowie would try to get together again. Overall though, The Weirdness is a bit of a disappointment, but certainly not destructive to the band's "legacy," as most critics would have you believe. It is dumb though. That much is true.

Check out new and old Stooges and tell us if time is kind to the punk rockers. I've also thrown in Iggy's guest spot on Teddybears' new classic "Punkrocker." Oh, and be sure and check out Wolfgang's Concert Vault for a classic 1977 Iggy Pop concert at the Rainbow Theatre, now available for download! Yes!

MP3: The Stooges - "My Idea Of Fun" from The Weirdness
MP3: Iggy & The Stooges - "No Fun" from The Stooges
MP3: Teddybears (feat. Iggy Pop) - "Punkrocker" from The Soft Machine

That would have been a good place to end this post, but to continue the original theme for just a moment, it's worth mentioning briefly another of punk's elder statesmen, Mr. Mark E Smith, of The Fall, who have just released what must be their 312th record Reformation Post T.L.C. (actually, the 26th). I have to admit, I somehow always have a place for the unintelligible, scotch-soaked ramblings of the enigmatic Mr. Smith, and this new Americanized incarnation of the Fall (his previous band apparently abandoned him in the middle of the last tour) suits him well. Nothing on Reformation hits quite so immediately as did songs like "Pacifying Joint" from 2005's Fall Heads Roll, but The Fall are always a mess, bless their hearts, and fans of the band still have plenty of chaos to enjoy on this outing.

MP3: The Fall - "Over! Over!" from Reformation Post T.L.C.
MP3: The Fall - "Fall Sound" from Reformation Post T.L.C.
MP3: The Fall - "Pacifying Joint" from Fall Heads Roll

When They Kick At Your Front Door, How You Gonna Come?

2007-04-23T06:11:00.000-05:00

Arcade Fire got the full-blown hero treatment last Friday night on BBC2's Culture Show, of which I managed to snag a DVD copy over the weekend. The broadcast included two exclusive acoustic performances filmed on March 16 in the lobby of the Brixton Academy, where the band played that evening. In honor of that venue, one of them was a cover of The Clash's "The Guns of Brixton," with little brother Will Butler providing the lead vocal through a megaphone. It's a neat moment, as perhaps the best live band working today pays humble tribute to its counterpart of going on 30 years ago. So I thought I'd share it, along with the original, which also features a lead vocal by a bandmember (Clash bassist Paul Simonon) who rarely got to sing front and center.

Arcade Fire - "The Guns of Brixton" (live in the Brixton Academy lobby, March 16, 2007)

The Clash - "The Guns of Brixton," from London Calling

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 8: The Smiths - The John Peel Sessions

2007-04-22T09:00:00.000-05:00

So, kiddies, before he was the older ringer in Modest Mouse, Johnny Marr was in this other band.

The Smiths will always hold a special place in my heart. One of my most indelible music-related memories is the first time I heard them in early 1985, midway through my junior year of college. A buddy had a cassette of Hatful of Hollow in his car, and from the moment I heard Marr's chiming guitar and Morrissey's distinctive croon on "William, It Was Really Nothing," I was captivated. Literally before that first song had ended, I knew that I was falling under a spell that would stay with me for life. (I only got to see them once, at the Avalon Ballroom in Chicago in '87, just weeks before they broke up.)

The Smiths were also among the favorite bands of legendary British disc jockey John Peel. Peel had them perform live in the studio for his BBC Radio 1 program four times in a little over three years, between May of 1983 and December of 1986. And the performances on these so-called "Peel Sessions" were consistently terrific -- in fact, most everyone (The Smiths included) agrees that the radio versions of early tracks like "This Charming Man" and "Still Ill" are superior to the versions on the band's self-titled debut album (which itself was plagued with problems and recorded from scratch twice).

This boot compiles The Smiths' Peel Sessions in comprehensive fashion and good sound quality, and for those reasons alone, it's essential. The one glaring defect in the collection is that it mixes the tracks from the first two Peel Sessions, in May and September of 1983, rather than presenting them in chronological order. I've left the tracks in this inexplicable order to match up with the artwork, but if you prefer, and with minimal ingenuity, you can reproduce the order of the original broadcasts.

THE SMITHS - THE JOHN PEEL SESSIONS

Artwork:
Front cover
Back cover

01 Back To The Old House
02 Handsome Devil
03 Miserable Lie
04 Reel Around The Fountain
05 Still Ill
06 This Charming Man
07 This Night Has Opened My Eyes
08 What Difference Does It Make?
09 How Soon Is Now?
10 Nowhere Fast
11 Rusholme Ruffians
12 William, It Was Really Nothing
13 Half A Person
14 Is It Really So Strange?
15 London
16 Sweet and Tender Hooligan

The Sound of Dreaming

2007-04-18T06:00:00.000-05:00

Working silly hours lately has kept me away from this blog and from sleep as well. I did manage, however, to fall asleep the other night, with ear buds in, listening to the new record by New York's Blonde Redhead. My musical somnolence was induced not by a lack of interest, but by both fatigue and precisely the dreamy quality of this most excellent rock record.

Blonde Redhead comprises Kazu Makino (guitar and vocals) and twin brothers Amedeo (guitar and vocals) and Simone (drums) Pace, who formed in 1993 as acolytes of Sonic Youth. They are a band that I have been aware of for the past few years, but one I failed to dive into until the release of their new record 23. I understand that their earlier records may bear closer witness to the Daydream Nation, but from the sound of 23, this band has evolved into its own.

And a unique sound it is. My first impression was that they remind me in no small measure of one of my favorite esoteric bands of the 80s, Cocteau Twins, albeit (to paraphrase Joe Strummer) with guitars! There similarities are several. Kazu's bright vocals have a delicate, ethereal quality, and in her other-worldly soprano, the lyrics skitter back and forth across the line of intelligibility. This in no way detracts from the music, but rather adds to the mysterious character of the songs. (Remember how much fun you had back in the day trying to figure out what Michael Stipe was singing about?)

The songs really do have a dream-like quality in that the structures are familiar enough and the chord progressions logical enough that nothing sounds bizarre, but the melodies, shimmering instrumentation (see Cocteau Twins), and liberal use of minor chords are just strange enough to keep you slightly off-balance. The overall production is lovingly meticulous, which results in a certain sameness in the sound of the songs, but that sort of seems to be the point. The dreamy mood of the record is consistent throughout, which is satisfying. In many respects, this music is evocative of those strange 80s movie soundtracks by Tangerine Dream.

Ultimately, even though this record is just off-kilter enough that nothing is especially "catchy," I still have had a difficult time switching over to something else on the iPod. It is the essence of a record that reveals itself over repeated listenings, and I for one am looking forward to working my way backwards through their catalog. Check out the title track "23" -- maybe while you're lying down with your eyes closed.

MP3: Blonde Redhead -- "23" from 23

Note: Blonde Redhead will be at the Variety Playhouse in Atlanta on May 4.

There's One For You, Nineteen For Me

2007-04-17T06:00:00.000-05:00

MP3: The Beatles - "Taxman"

Any excuse to bust out one of the greatest basslines of all time. Just ask Paul Weller.

Tax Day Bonus: I'll send an MP3 copy of the Alternate Revolver bootleg to the first person who can tell me who played the blistering lead guitar solo on "Taxman" -- answer in the comments and don't forget to provide your e-mail address. If the winning entrant can also tell me the other Beatles track on which the same solo is heard (the mash-up on Love doesn't count), I'll send the Alternate Rubber Soul boot as well.

So, anyone scrambling to get everything filed today?

Would You Eat Them In A Box? Would You Eat Them With a Fox?

2007-04-16T07:27:00.000-05:00

Back in early March, we tipped you to a project called Dylan Hears A Who, which wedded the verse of Dr. Seuss to a dead-on imitation of Highway 61-era Bob Dylan, to amazing effect. It was a lovingly realized tribute to both artists, if not a skillful parody with something to say about the similarities between them. Now Salon profiles what happened when the folks at Dr. Seuss Enterprises got wind of things. Let's just say they weren't flattered. The site is now "retired" permanently -- which is an awful shame because it was brilliant in every detail, right down to the album art and liner notes. For those of you who missed out, I can't resist sharing one of the seven tracks.

MP3: Dylan Hears A Who - "Green Eggs And Ham"

Classic Bootleg Series Vol. 7: The Rolling Stones - Happy Birthday Nicky (Australia '73)

2007-04-14T14:08:00.000-05:00

About time we checked in with The Rolling Stones, don't you think?

In any debate about the greatest rock and roll tours of all time, the Stones' 1973 trek always seems to be in the mix. Setlists in this period were heavy with songs from Exile On Main Street, arguably the Stones' finest album (even though Goat's Head Soup had been released in the meantime), and with Mick Taylor on second guitar and lighting a fire under Keith Richards every night, they boasted probably their best-ever lineup.

It's also a tour that was heavily bootlegged, which made it tough for me to decide what to post first. The Brussels show in October (which we'll certainly have to return to at some point) is probably the most famous, because it was recorded for an official release that never happened, and sounds pretty amazing. But this boot, of two dates in Australia the previous February, gives Brussels a serious run for its money.

The Perth show on Disc 1 is a soundboard tape and sounds mighty fine, even though Mick Jagger's vocals are up a little too far in the mix. (The boot gets it's name from this show as well -- it was pianist Nicky Hopkins' birthday.) But it's the Sydney show on Disc 2 that's the real treasure. The first track starts with a patch from an inferior audience source, but just be patient -- at about 1:05, the sweet, nicely-balanced soundboard tape kicks in and will thrill you for the duration of the set. (It's a tad trebly, but hey, this was almost 35 years ago.) And just look at the sick setlists for these shows, especially on Disc 2. Only rock and roll, my ass.

THE ROLLING STONES - HAPPY BIRTHDAY NICKY (AUSTRALIA 1973)

Artwork:
Front cover
Back cover
Insert

Disc 1 (February 24, 1973 - Western Australia Cricket Ground, Perth, Australia):
01 Brown Sugar
02 Bitch
03 Rocks Off
04 Gimme Shelter
05 Happy
06 Tumbling Dice
07 Honk Tonk Women
08 All Down The Line
09 Midnight Rambler
10 Happy Birthday Nicky / band intros
11 Little Queenie

Disc 2 (February 26, 1973 -- Royal Randwick Racecourse, Sydney, Australia):
01 Brown Sugar
02 Bitch
03 Rocks Off
04 Gimme Shelter
05 Happy
06 Tumbling Dice
07 Love In Vain
08 Sweet Virginia
09 You Can't Always Get What You Want
10 Honky Tonk Women
11 All Down The Line
12 Midnight Rambler
13 band intros
14 Little Queenie
15 Rip This Joint
16 Jumping Jack Flash
17 Street Fighting Man

Can't Hardly Wait

2007-04-13T08:51:00.000-05:00

The demands of life and work have prevented me from posting much again this week. I believe Rich has been in the same boat. Until I can get another classic bootleg up (which I'll do by the end of the weekend), enjoy these tracks from upcoming releases we're looking forward to.

WILCO - "Either Way" from Sky Blue Sky, out on May 15

RUFUS WAINWRIGHT - "Going To A Town" from Release The Stars, out on May 15

JOHN DOE - "The Golden State" (featuring Kathleen Edwards) from A Year In The Wilderness, out on June 12