Music, Neverending Music

Red Sticker Collection
Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci - Introducing, 1994
Um, yeah. I like some of their stuff but this CD is a little nuts. Some good songs, some good melodies, some silliness. Reminds me a little of the early Thinkers Fellers Union Local 282 records but instead of being inspired by Cpt. Beefheart, this band was inspired by too much twee.

Youthlarge Brought These Home
Yura Yura Teikoku - Sweet Spot, 2005
Slice apparently has more of this and I’ve got to get more. It is addictive. Japanese craziness with all sorts of catchiness and toys. I can’t describe it so you’ll have to wait until you get the next Listmaker CD.

And they look damn cool to boot.


The King Khan and BBQ Show - King Khan and BBQ Show, 2005
King Khan and His Shrines - Smash Hits, 2003
Whether sounding like the Reigning Sound channeling Danny and the Juniors, the Dirtbombs, loving on the Cramps, doing a good job emulating Velvet Underground type freakouts, or just being simply King Khanlicious this Memphis band delivers the goods. It takes a lot to get me up and out of my chair to move around, but this band does the trick.

Sigur Ros - Takk..., 2005
After generating a whole hell of a lot of buzz a few years back, this band seems to have settled into its niche. No one really seems to pay too much attention anymore but they keep putting out good records but without the overwhelming hype. While I probably wouldn’t go out of my way to buy any more of their records, I do enjoy this one. Still the same soaring Sigur Ros you’ve always loved but this one seems a little more melodic and inviting. Hell, they even have some horns on this record.

Boards of Canada - The Campfire Headphase, 2005
Their first record, Music Has a Right To Children remains one of my favorites of the past few years. Their second album was more of the same, just not as memorable or good. And this latest one continues in the same vein. Similar but not nearly as good as the last. There are a few good songs but overall, they have traded in too many of their warm melodies for boring soundscapes. Sigh

Belle and Sebastian - The Life Pursuit, 2006
The first time I listened to this record I didn’t like it much. Now after a number of listens, I’m not sure what the hell I was thinking. This just might be my favorite LP of theirs since If You’re Feeling Sinister. I can’t believe it myself. This is a band that I’ve consistently enjoyed but wasn’t expecting tons from anymore. I’m not quite sure why I’ve felt this way since I still like all of their CD’s. But this new record erases any doubts I might have had about them.

Picking up where their last album left off, this album is a party, Belle and Sebastian style. 70’s AM Radiotastic to shake your malaised indie ass to. Yes, there’s one song that doesn’t float my boat much (“Song for Sunshine” - yes it is that kind of album) but hell I just listened to that and I might be warming up to that one too! There’s even a few classic sounding Belle and Sebastian type tracks if you missed the gang from the super mopey days. This is the kind of album with songs like “We are the Sleepyheads,” “For the Price of a Cup of a Tea,” and “Another Sunny Day” and you just don’t care. No “Shiny Happy People” cringing here, too much ass shaking going on. And then they top it off with “Mornington Crescent,” their “Waterloo Sunset” with the Sterling Morrison type guitar solos. Wait until Adam Brody gets ahold of this fucking record!

Amadou & Mariam - Dimanche A Bamako, 2005
I’m such an American sometimes. I do appreciate music from other lands, honest I do. I have some CD’s from African musicians and I like them. But listening to them is often more of an academic pursuit for me than anything else. That is, until I heard this record. I’m not sure why I like this so much other than it kicks ass. Maybe it is the short song lengths (3-5 minutes usually), maybe it is the amazing melodies, maybe it is their voices? I don’t know what it is but I love this record and am curious what their other stuff sounds like.

Young People - War Prayers, 2003
Young People - Five Sunsets in Four Days, 2005
Sparse fucked up lullabies of the melodically demented.

The first picture I found when I typed in young people to google images. Not the band, but a great picture nonetheless.


Oxford American’s 2005 Southern Music CD
This is an amazing compilation of 29 songs. I’m not quite sure what the story of this CD is other than the magazine Oxford American put it out and that the title about says it all. It is remarkable that out of 29 tracks, I love almost all of them. There’s Joe Tex, Howard Tate, Bessie Smith, Blind Willie McTell, Erma Franklin, etc, etc. There’s a live Elvis song, there’s a Buddy Holly song I’ve never heard before. There’s schoolchildren singing. There is a lot of amazing stuff from bands and people I’ve never heard of before. This CD was such an unexpected treat.

Cat Power - The Greatest, 2006
What a great idea this album is. Chan Marshall records in Memphis with veterans of the 60's and 70's soul scene. She's always had a lot of soul in her own crazy kind of way. Just like her covers record, this one ends up sounding very much only like a Cat Power record could. You can dress her up in different colors but she's still her own unique self. And this is a good thing. I will keep buying whatever she puts out year after year because I always end up loving it. This is no exception.

Sufjan Stevens - Songs for Christmas, Vols. 1-3
I'm not even sure what the story with these songs are. They haven't been officially released but they are all over the internet if you are interested in downloading them. 24 amazing songs. If Illinois has too many long songs but you still like yourself some Sufjan, listen to these songs. Short, sweet, and great. The old classic hymns are on here but there are also some great originals as well.

A John Waters Christmas, 2004
Oh man, why didn't he put another of these out this past year? Every year should be a John Waters Christmas! A mixture of sleaze, kitsch, Chipmunk classics, and even a Coctails song, this CD is a must have. I know Christmas has passed, but anytime of the year is a good one to listen to "Santa Claus is a Black Man."

Listen here.

Nothing says Christmas like John Waters.


Gifts
Merry Christmas 2005 from Team Plumley
A Hot Tub Eric mix is always a cause for celebration. Every single one is so damn good. This is no exception. Where does he find such great stuff? The Spike Jones track is a revelation. The Buck Owens song dazzles. The Charlie Brown stuff complements the Charles Brown quite nicely. Well done, Hot Tub, well done. Only 11 more months until I can start checking my mailbox for the latest installment.

The Ponys - Celebration Castle, 2005
I have their first record and like it well enough but it isn’t the first CD I’d think of to put on. I wasn’t planning on buying this but I kept hearing good things. So when it was offered as a free choice when I resubscribed to Magnet, I decided to take it. I can’t say I was disappointed by it but I can’t say that I really like the CD. Ho hum. I don’t know what it is that makes me not go rah rah for it. The singer’s voice? The barely above average songs? I don’t know but I do expect to get reamed by the garage rock elite for posting this.