TDDS - 2020 Shelter-in-Place on a Desert Island Music Draft - BONUS 5
- Thread starter VF21
- Start date
Interesting. Of all the albums to recommend to @Mr. S£im Citrus, a man who has admitted to minimal familiarity with most music while evincing a personal fondness for a particular strain of 90's R&B, I don't know that I would have been bold enough to directly suggest something from long-winded, hyper self-indulgent prog rockers. 
That said, I also don't imagine S£im will be all that compelled by much of what he'll find on my island, either, so... what do I know?
That said, I also don't imagine S£im will be all that compelled by much of what he'll find on my island, either, so... what do I know?
Interesting. Of all the albums to recommend to @Mr. S£im Citrus, a man who has admitted to minimal familiarity with most music while evincing a personal fondness for a particular strain of 90's R&B, I don't know that I would have been bold enough to directly suggest something from long-winded, hyper self-indulgent prog rockers.
That said, I also don't imagine S£im will be all that compelled by much of what he'll find on my island, either, so... what do I know?
That said, I also don't imagine S£im will be all that compelled by much of what he'll find on my island, either, so... what do I know?
@Löwenherz's First Five report card:
- OK Computer: Not my preferred brand of 90s rock, but it makes for good background music to level grind to.
- As a Hitchhiker's Guide fan, I feel like I may have built up unreasonable expectations for a song titled "Paranoid Android." Song wasn't bad, but it didn't deliver on what I had built up in my head.
- Nevermind: This is it, Chief! The so-called "Anthem of Generation X" title notwithstanding, this album is heat.
- "Come As You Are" goes hard. Also, shout out to #CaptainMarvel.
- Californication: I ****s with the Chili Peppers. I think my draft board should make it clear that this isn't my favorite RHCP album, but I can vibe to this. There's no one song on this album that grabs me, but it's a good listen.
- The ArchAndroid: It's entirely possible that I'm not capable of thinking deeply enough about music to be able to grok the "time-traveling, messianic android" theme, but I ****s with this album.
- "Locked Inside" goes hard. It reminds me of the very first Janelle Monáe song I ever heard, and I mean that as a compliment.
- "Wonderland" is a bop.
- "Say You'll Go" goes. It felt to me like a nod to the early-00s neo-soul style that I'm really into.
- ... Like Clockwork: Not my usual fare, but it was alright. Wouldn't leave the room if someone was playing it, but wouldn't go out of my way to listen to it a second time. "Smooth Sailing" was a bop. though.
@VF21's First Five report card:
- You Don't Mess Around with Jim: Not a fan. There's only one Jim Croce song that I like, and it's not on this album.
- A Night at the Opera: This is more like it. I ****s with Queen, and I enjoy this album. I wouldn't have picked it this high, but if it had somehow slipped to my pick in the fourth round, I would have called an audible.
- The Long Run: What I said about You Don't Mess Around with Jim? Yeah, go ahead and copy and paste that to this album, too.
- Cheap Thrills: Probably the most "You had to be there" album I've listened to in this draft, so far. I realize that there are people in my generation, and even younger, who weren't alive during this time period, but still "get" this music... but I'm not one of them.
- Willy and the Poor Boys: So, here's the thing, I really, really, really, really don't like John Fogerty's voice. Which, as you might imagine, makes it super difficult for me to fairly evaluate CCR.
When you get to mine feel free to skip the Beatles album since you already indicated you didn't like them and check out the Dirtbombs album I picked in Round 14. It is mostly garage-rocky covers of songs you are going to be familiar with save one or two and the original track. You may hate it but I think it will be fun. That, the Heatbreakers and the New York Dolls albums are a lot more indicative of my present tastes than my early picks, which were largely "albums most folks have heard of". I think the back half of my draft, or at least 10-16 are where the most fun is.
Three feet high and rising. De La Soul. 1989.
I loved this when I first heard it. Then I went through a period where, aside from the occasional listen to one of their (unnamed) later albums, didn't think too much about De La. But now I am finding value again in their fun, positive, creative approach. It's a daisy age.
I loved this when I first heard it. Then I went through a period where, aside from the occasional listen to one of their (unnamed) later albums, didn't think too much about De La. But now I am finding value again in their fun, positive, creative approach. It's a daisy age.
@Padrino's First Five report card:
- I'll Sleep When You're Dead: I can **** with this. Solid up and down. "Smithereens" slaps.
- [Untitled]: My initial reaction when the first track started was that I didn't want to bother with the rest of it... But, it settled down into something that was tolerable. I wouldn't go so far as to say that I liked it, but if I walked into a room, and somebody was playing this, I wouldn't jump out the window. "Wendy & Betsy" jams.
- Kill For Love: Left absolutely no impression on me, whatsoever.
- III: After serving aboard two aircraft carriers, I am incapable of falling asleep when it's quiet. This is a good album for falling asleep to. I assure you that I mean that as a compliment. "Eyes Closed" jams, though.
- Kodama: When the godfather described this album in his write-up as "equal parts blissful and haunting, soothing and chaotic, regal and despairing," I was expecting something that would be at home in Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, but it turned out to be more suitable for Fullmetal Alchemist, I think. It was aight.
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD) - Architecture & Morality (1981)
https://www.allmusic.com/album/architecture-morality-mw0000485972
My wife and I went to see OMD and two other 80's bands (not picked yet) in Ironstone Amphitheater last year, and we were not disappointed. I was more excited to see these guys than the headliners and they sounded great!
I was trying to figure out which album to select as their hits are spread among 13 studio albums. But this album has three of their songs I really like (not necessarily my favorite song of theirs, that one came out 12 years later) and has a good overall vibe to it that will work well in contrast to my other selections.
From Wikipedia:
From allmusic:
Track List:
1. The New Stone Age
2. She's Leaving
3. Souvenir
4. Sealand
5. Joan of Arc
6. Maid of Orleans
7. Architecture and Morality
8. Georgia
9. The Beginning and the End
10. Extended Souvenir
11. Motion and Heart
12. Sacred Heart
13. The Romance of the Telescope
14. Navigation
15. Of All the Things We've Made
16. Gravity Never Fails
https://www.allmusic.com/album/architecture-morality-mw0000485972
My wife and I went to see OMD and two other 80's bands (not picked yet) in Ironstone Amphitheater last year, and we were not disappointed. I was more excited to see these guys than the headliners and they sounded great!
I was trying to figure out which album to select as their hits are spread among 13 studio albums. But this album has three of their songs I really like (not necessarily my favorite song of theirs, that one came out 12 years later) and has a good overall vibe to it that will work well in contrast to my other selections.
From Wikipedia:
From allmusic:
Track List:
1. The New Stone Age
2. She's Leaving
3. Souvenir
4. Sealand
5. Joan of Arc
6. Maid of Orleans
7. Architecture and Morality
8. Georgia
9. The Beginning and the End
10. Extended Souvenir
11. Motion and Heart
12. Sacred Heart
13. The Romance of the Telescope
14. Navigation
15. Of All the Things We've Made
16. Gravity Never Fails
Last time with my final pick I chose something entirely for its ability to chill things out. With my penultimate pick this time around, my aim is something similar.
In Between Dreams - Jack Johnson (2005)
This was apparently the most popular album played by middle-aged dads driving their tweenagers to soccer practice in the mid-aughts. Easy, accessible, inoffensive listening for the 21st century, nestling nicely into the open arms of the lowest common denominator. The album equivalent of the dude at the dorm parties who always slings an acoustic guitar.
Is it weird that on a fundamental level, I find this album aggressively simple-minded, using skeletal instrumentation, and having lyrics with all the depth of a kiddie pool ... and I love it explicitly for those reasons?
There was a time not so long ago I thrived on classic surf rock because of its energy and minimalism. As I matured (debatable) and mellowed, I sought out a similar approach, but with a more chill vibe. Fortunately for me, that's the soundtrack of the Central Coast, and I was eventually introduced to a slew a folksy acoustic surf rockers peddling the same "pau hauna" serenade. There are many that came close to the high-water mark set in my mind, but In Between Dreams of all options crested it by being the captured essence of a beach bon fire party. Never about the message or meaning, just the vibe.
And that vibe is: don't think too much about it. Just flow with it and be chill brah.
"Staple it together and call it bad weather." That doesn't make any sense? It's OK, just chill brah.
"Time is just a melody. With all the people in the street. Walking as fast as their feet will take them" Wait, waaah ... nvm brah. Chill.
"But just maybe, laka ukulele. Momma made a baby. Really don't mind the practice. 'Cause you're my little lady." OK, seriously! ... no no, don't think about it. Chill, brah, chill.
Ah, that's more like it. Pau Hauna
Tracklist
1."Better Together"
2."Never Know"
3."Banana Pancakes"
4."Good People"
5."No Other Way"
6."Sitting, Waiting, Wishing"
7."Staple It Together"
8."Situations"
9."Crying Shame"
10."If I Could"
11."Breakdown"
12."Belle"
13."Do You Remember"
14."Constellations"
In Between Dreams - Jack Johnson (2005)
This was apparently the most popular album played by middle-aged dads driving their tweenagers to soccer practice in the mid-aughts. Easy, accessible, inoffensive listening for the 21st century, nestling nicely into the open arms of the lowest common denominator. The album equivalent of the dude at the dorm parties who always slings an acoustic guitar.
Is it weird that on a fundamental level, I find this album aggressively simple-minded, using skeletal instrumentation, and having lyrics with all the depth of a kiddie pool ... and I love it explicitly for those reasons?
There was a time not so long ago I thrived on classic surf rock because of its energy and minimalism. As I matured (debatable) and mellowed, I sought out a similar approach, but with a more chill vibe. Fortunately for me, that's the soundtrack of the Central Coast, and I was eventually introduced to a slew a folksy acoustic surf rockers peddling the same "pau hauna" serenade. There are many that came close to the high-water mark set in my mind, but In Between Dreams of all options crested it by being the captured essence of a beach bon fire party. Never about the message or meaning, just the vibe.
And that vibe is: don't think too much about it. Just flow with it and be chill brah.
"Staple it together and call it bad weather." That doesn't make any sense? It's OK, just chill brah.
"Time is just a melody. With all the people in the street. Walking as fast as their feet will take them" Wait, waaah ... nvm brah. Chill.
"But just maybe, laka ukulele. Momma made a baby. Really don't mind the practice. 'Cause you're my little lady." OK, seriously! ... no no, don't think about it. Chill, brah, chill.
Ah, that's more like it. Pau Hauna
Tracklist
1."Better Together"
2."Never Know"
3."Banana Pancakes"
4."Good People"
5."No Other Way"
6."Sitting, Waiting, Wishing"
7."Staple It Together"
8."Situations"
9."Crying Shame"
10."If I Could"
11."Breakdown"
12."Belle"
13."Do You Remember"
14."Constellations"
Thriller - Michael Jackson - 1982
Side One
Wanna Be Startin' Something
Baby Be Mine
The Girl is Mine (with Paul McCartney)
Thriller
Side Two
Beat It
Billie Jean
Human Nature
PYT
The Lady in My Life
Leaving everything else aside, it's about the music. And in 1982 this album rocked the world. (Personal anecdote to follow...)
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Kælan Mikla - Nótt eftir nótt (2018):
01 Gandreið
02 Nornalagið
03 Hvernig kemst ég upp?
04 Skuggadans
05 Draumadís
06 Næturblóm
07 Andvaka
08 Nótt eftir nótt
09 Dáið er allt án drauma
Genre(s): Post-punk, cold wave, dream pop, electro-punk
My penultimate pick in this draft comes from just a bit northwest of my previous pick. Kælan Mikla are a trio of young women who hail from Reykjavík, Iceland, and Nótt eftir nótt feels like an appropriate pairing with The Twilight Sad's IT WON/T BE LIKE THIS ALL THE TIME. I suppose it helps when Robert Smith has seen fit to take both bands on the road with him.
But Kælan Mikla were not always on the radar of one of the most influential voices in popular music across the last forty years. Their first performance didn't even take place at a typical music venue, but rather at a poetry competition at a local library in Reykjavík. Laufey Soffia (vocals), Sólveig Matthildur-Kristjánsdóttir (synthesizers) and Margret Rósa Dóru-Harrysdóttir (bass) were in high school at the time, and had no intention of forming a long-term band together. But the girls quickly discovered their spark when they received an overwhelmingly positive response from the audience.
"It was all really new to us," said Dóru-Harrysdóttir. "We had never played instruments or done anything before. People were so excited about it, and then we won the competition, to our own surprise. People started to ask us, 'Hey, you're in a band, right? You have to make more music!' And we were like, 'Hm, maybe we should try it.'" I am certainly glad they did.
"Nótt eftir nótt" translates to "night after night" in Icelandic, and this album carries with it the sickly weight of what occurs after dark. It may be sunny and warm here in northern CA, but this is music for the cold of its country of origin. It is ethereal, otherworldy, alien, even when accounting for the language barrier presented to an English-speaking audience. It is an album of texture, of mood, of sleepless nights, of bleary-eyed mornings.
01 Gandreið
02 Nornalagið
03 Hvernig kemst ég upp?
04 Skuggadans
05 Draumadís
06 Næturblóm
07 Andvaka
08 Nótt eftir nótt
09 Dáið er allt án drauma
Genre(s): Post-punk, cold wave, dream pop, electro-punk
My penultimate pick in this draft comes from just a bit northwest of my previous pick. Kælan Mikla are a trio of young women who hail from Reykjavík, Iceland, and Nótt eftir nótt feels like an appropriate pairing with The Twilight Sad's IT WON/T BE LIKE THIS ALL THE TIME. I suppose it helps when Robert Smith has seen fit to take both bands on the road with him.
But Kælan Mikla were not always on the radar of one of the most influential voices in popular music across the last forty years. Their first performance didn't even take place at a typical music venue, but rather at a poetry competition at a local library in Reykjavík. Laufey Soffia (vocals), Sólveig Matthildur-Kristjánsdóttir (synthesizers) and Margret Rósa Dóru-Harrysdóttir (bass) were in high school at the time, and had no intention of forming a long-term band together. But the girls quickly discovered their spark when they received an overwhelmingly positive response from the audience.
"It was all really new to us," said Dóru-Harrysdóttir. "We had never played instruments or done anything before. People were so excited about it, and then we won the competition, to our own surprise. People started to ask us, 'Hey, you're in a band, right? You have to make more music!' And we were like, 'Hm, maybe we should try it.'" I am certainly glad they did.
"Nótt eftir nótt" translates to "night after night" in Icelandic, and this album carries with it the sickly weight of what occurs after dark. It may be sunny and warm here in northern CA, but this is music for the cold of its country of origin. It is ethereal, otherworldy, alien, even when accounting for the language barrier presented to an English-speaking audience. It is an album of texture, of mood, of sleepless nights, of bleary-eyed mornings.
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Since the Accident - Severed Heads (1983)
https://www.discogs.com/Severed-Heads-Since-The-Accident/release/131552
Since the Accident is a wonderful and distinct combination of industrial music and synth-pop, while also incorporating a history of electronic music techniques and styles including tape recorder music and musique concrète. And call me crazy, but "Godsong" sounds like it could appear on a more modern trip hop record. Whether the record is showcasing music that could be played in a dance club, looping samples, or manipulating tape, it always sounds great.
https://www.discogs.com/Severed-Heads-Since-The-Accident/release/131552
Tracklist
01 - A Relic of the Empire
02 - A Million Angels
03 - Houses Still Standing
04 - Gashing the Old Mae West
05 - Dead Eyes Opened
06 - Golden Boy
07 - Godsong
08 - Epilepsy 82
09 - Exploring the Secrets of Treating Deaf Mutes
10 - Brassiere, in Rome
11 - Wasps
Dinosaur Jr. - Farm (2009)
(https://www.allmusic.com/album/farm-mw0000818219)
01. Pieces
02. I Want You To Know
03. Ocean In The Way
04. Plans
05. Your Weather
06. Over It
07. Friends
08. Said The People
09. There's No Here
10. See You
11. I Don't Wanna Go There
12. Imagination Blind
I nearly made it all 20 rounds without including an album from one of my favorite bands simply because I couldn't choose which of the 10 albums I own would make the most sense in this context. In an alternate scenario where we had to choose just one band/musical-artist to take with us and were allowed that artist's entire back-catalog I'd probably have to go with Dinosaur Jr. as my pick so it would be absurd not to include one of their albums here. But which one.... ?
Initially formed as a three piece in Amherst, MA in the mid 80s, lead guitarist/vocalist/songwriter J. Mascis and bassist Lou Barlow passive-aggressively hated each other for years until Lou was eventually kicked out of the band and Mascis continued slowly removing pieces until it was a solo project in all but name. By the time I discovered them around 2000/2001 it seemed the band had already run it's course and would never tour again. Then out of nowhere a reunion tour in 2007 led to new music and 4 albums later the resurgent Dinosaur Jr. continues pumping out brilliant albums one after another with no sign of slowing down.
This is the second release of that highly productive reunion period and while it's not necessarily representative of the band's work as a whole, it's one of the best starting points for the uninitiated. In their initial run, Mascis' mumbled off-key vocals were easy to point to as the reason they never took off in the mainstream like so many of their peers but he's cleaned up the production here and leaned into his strengths. You can expect a lot of crunchy rhythm guitar, melodic guitar solos that soar for minutes at a time, and lyrics overflowing with sad guy optimism. I've grown to love those vocals (and even picked up his solo acoustic albums) but with Dinosaur Jr. you come for the guitar playing and stay for everything else and while it's silly to rank guitar players, for my taste they don't come much better than J. Mascis who is in top form here. Word to the wise though -- if you ever get the opportunity to witness the sonic majesty of Dino Jr. in a live setting do not under any circumstances stand in front of J's amps! Stage Left is where you want to be!
I know you haven't made it to my top 5 yet @Mr. S£im Citrus, but if you manage to make it through all 2 hours of Billy Corgan's questionable vocal "talents" plus raw and raspy early career Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan "going for it" as a rock artist for the first time in his career and you're not already climbing up the walls cursing my name, feel free to throw in this disc as a little reward from me to you!
Also... if anyone is really bored or just likes what they hear in these clips, there's a Dinosaur Jr. Livestream today (4/29) @ 1pm PST : https://www.youtube.com/user/pickathon
Dinosaur Jr. - Farm (2009)
(https://www.allmusic.com/album/farm-mw0000818219)
01. Pieces
02. I Want You To Know
03. Ocean In The Way
04. Plans
05. Your Weather
06. Over It
07. Friends
08. Said The People
09. There's No Here
10. See You
11. I Don't Wanna Go There
12. Imagination Blind
I nearly made it all 20 rounds without including an album from one of my favorite bands simply because I couldn't choose which of the 10 albums I own would make the most sense in this context. In an alternate scenario where we had to choose just one band/musical-artist to take with us and were allowed that artist's entire back-catalog I'd probably have to go with Dinosaur Jr. as my pick so it would be absurd not to include one of their albums here. But which one.... ?
Initially formed as a three piece in Amherst, MA in the mid 80s, lead guitarist/vocalist/songwriter J. Mascis and bassist Lou Barlow passive-aggressively hated each other for years until Lou was eventually kicked out of the band and Mascis continued slowly removing pieces until it was a solo project in all but name. By the time I discovered them around 2000/2001 it seemed the band had already run it's course and would never tour again. Then out of nowhere a reunion tour in 2007 led to new music and 4 albums later the resurgent Dinosaur Jr. continues pumping out brilliant albums one after another with no sign of slowing down.
This is the second release of that highly productive reunion period and while it's not necessarily representative of the band's work as a whole, it's one of the best starting points for the uninitiated. In their initial run, Mascis' mumbled off-key vocals were easy to point to as the reason they never took off in the mainstream like so many of their peers but he's cleaned up the production here and leaned into his strengths. You can expect a lot of crunchy rhythm guitar, melodic guitar solos that soar for minutes at a time, and lyrics overflowing with sad guy optimism. I've grown to love those vocals (and even picked up his solo acoustic albums) but with Dinosaur Jr. you come for the guitar playing and stay for everything else and while it's silly to rank guitar players, for my taste they don't come much better than J. Mascis who is in top form here. Word to the wise though -- if you ever get the opportunity to witness the sonic majesty of Dino Jr. in a live setting do not under any circumstances stand in front of J's amps! Stage Left is where you want to be!
I know you haven't made it to my top 5 yet @Mr. S£im Citrus, but if you manage to make it through all 2 hours of Billy Corgan's questionable vocal "talents" plus raw and raspy early career Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan "going for it" as a rock artist for the first time in his career and you're not already climbing up the walls cursing my name, feel free to throw in this disc as a little reward from me to you!
Also... if anyone is really bored or just likes what they hear in these clips, there's a Dinosaur Jr. Livestream today (4/29) @ 1pm PST : https://www.youtube.com/user/pickathon
I also liked their single from a different album - the video where they golf through Manhattan. I could see becoming interested.
The Coathangers - Suck my Shirt
I don't really do festival shows often, but when I do there is always some band early in the day that blows me away and in 2016 at Project Pabst here in Portland, this was that act. Which is great because I overdid it on the recreational substances and completely ruined my enjoyment of the two headliners who were bucket listers for me.
The highlight of the set was probably their squeeky-toy number that is on the follow up album, but this is the one that I keep coming back to. All three of the gals in the band sing with guitarist Julia (Crook Kid Coathanger) and Stephanie (Rusty Coathanger) taking turns doing the leads which can often make them feel like two different bands.
This is evident right off the first two tracks, Follow Me and Shut Up where you go from a garage-punk sound with Stephanie's throaty vocals to the more surfy-pop track with Julia singing lead, and they combine to great effect on a track like Zombie during the chorus. There's a certain elegant simplicity to all the songs here where even after being a band for 8 years at this point and showing a lot of maturity/growth from where they started as a house party band, they could still encourage someone at home to pick up and play and give music making a shot. If you've seen I'm With the Band on Netflix, the Coathangers are kind of that without all the manufacturing of a band just to be on Netflix and takeover social media as some performance art experiment. This is like really good stuff that calls back to bands I can't believe haven't been drafted by the end of the 19th round so I guess I won't name. WTF?
Anyways, besides the aforementioned songs linked above, I also really like Adderall.
Track List
1. Follow Me
2. Shut Up
3. Springfield Cannonball
4. Merry Go Round
5. Love Em and Leave Em
6. Zombie
7. Smother
8. Dead Battery
9. Adderall
10. Derek's Song
11. I Wait
12. Drive
Hey @Spike, here's Mastodon in drag... and you're up...
I don't really do festival shows often, but when I do there is always some band early in the day that blows me away and in 2016 at Project Pabst here in Portland, this was that act. Which is great because I overdid it on the recreational substances and completely ruined my enjoyment of the two headliners who were bucket listers for me.
The highlight of the set was probably their squeeky-toy number that is on the follow up album, but this is the one that I keep coming back to. All three of the gals in the band sing with guitarist Julia (Crook Kid Coathanger) and Stephanie (Rusty Coathanger) taking turns doing the leads which can often make them feel like two different bands.
This is evident right off the first two tracks, Follow Me and Shut Up where you go from a garage-punk sound with Stephanie's throaty vocals to the more surfy-pop track with Julia singing lead, and they combine to great effect on a track like Zombie during the chorus. There's a certain elegant simplicity to all the songs here where even after being a band for 8 years at this point and showing a lot of maturity/growth from where they started as a house party band, they could still encourage someone at home to pick up and play and give music making a shot. If you've seen I'm With the Band on Netflix, the Coathangers are kind of that without all the manufacturing of a band just to be on Netflix and takeover social media as some performance art experiment. This is like really good stuff that calls back to bands I can't believe haven't been drafted by the end of the 19th round so I guess I won't name. WTF?
Anyways, besides the aforementioned songs linked above, I also really like Adderall.
Track List
1. Follow Me
2. Shut Up
3. Springfield Cannonball
4. Merry Go Round
5. Love Em and Leave Em
6. Zombie
7. Smother
8. Dead Battery
9. Adderall
10. Derek's Song
11. I Wait
12. Drive
Hey @Spike, here's Mastodon in drag... and you're up...
Based on your previous draft selections, I'd say we have pretty similar taste so there's a good chance you would like them! The earlier albums are good too they just lean more in a lo-fi shoegazey direction. His singing got a lot better over the years but I still have a soft spot for the early stuff, especially album #3. From your list, I just picked up "So Tonight That I Might See" and an album by Algiers so cheers for those picks!
The Coathangers - Suck my Shirt
I don't really do festival shows often, but when I do there is always some band early in the day that blows me away and in 2016 at Project Pabst here in Portland, this was that act. Which is great because I overdid it on the recreational substances and completely ruined my enjoyment of the two headliners who were bucket listers for me.
The highlight of the set was probably their squeeky-toy numberthat is on the follow up album, but this is the one that I keep coming back to. All three of the gals in the band sing with guitarist Julia (Crook Kid Coathanger) and Stephanie (Rusty Coathanger) taking turns doing the leads which can often make them feel like two different bands.
This is evident right off the first two tracks, Follow Me and Shut Up where you go from a garage-punk sound with Stephanie's throaty vocals to the more surfy-pop track with Julia singing lead, and they combine to great effect on a track like Zombie during the chorus. There's a certain elegant simplicity to all the songs here where even after being a band for 8 years at this point and showing a lot of maturity/growth from where they started as a house party band, they could still encourage someone at home to pick up and play and give music making a shot. If you've seen I'm With the Band on Netflix, the Coathangers are kind of that without all the manufacturing of a band just to be on Netflix and takeover social media as some performance art experiment. This is like really good stuff that calls back to bands I can't believe haven't been drafted by the end of the 19th round so I guess I won't name. WTF?
Anyways, besides the aforementioned songs linked above, I also really like Adderall.
Track List
1. Follow Me
2. Shut Up
3. Springfield Cannonball
4. Merry Go Round
5. Love Em and Leave Em
6. Zombie
7. Smother
8. Dead Battery
9. Adderall
10. Derek's Song
11. I Wait
12. Drive
Hey @Spike, here's Mastodon in drag... and you're up...
I don't really do festival shows often, but when I do there is always some band early in the day that blows me away and in 2016 at Project Pabst here in Portland, this was that act. Which is great because I overdid it on the recreational substances and completely ruined my enjoyment of the two headliners who were bucket listers for me.
The highlight of the set was probably their squeeky-toy numberthat is on the follow up album, but this is the one that I keep coming back to. All three of the gals in the band sing with guitarist Julia (Crook Kid Coathanger) and Stephanie (Rusty Coathanger) taking turns doing the leads which can often make them feel like two different bands.
This is evident right off the first two tracks, Follow Me and Shut Up where you go from a garage-punk sound with Stephanie's throaty vocals to the more surfy-pop track with Julia singing lead, and they combine to great effect on a track like Zombie during the chorus. There's a certain elegant simplicity to all the songs here where even after being a band for 8 years at this point and showing a lot of maturity/growth from where they started as a house party band, they could still encourage someone at home to pick up and play and give music making a shot. If you've seen I'm With the Band on Netflix, the Coathangers are kind of that without all the manufacturing of a band just to be on Netflix and takeover social media as some performance art experiment. This is like really good stuff that calls back to bands I can't believe haven't been drafted by the end of the 19th round so I guess I won't name. WTF?
Anyways, besides the aforementioned songs linked above, I also really like Adderall.
Track List
1. Follow Me
2. Shut Up
3. Springfield Cannonball
4. Merry Go Round
5. Love Em and Leave Em
6. Zombie
7. Smother
8. Dead Battery
9. Adderall
10. Derek's Song
11. I Wait
12. Drive
Hey @Spike, here's Mastodon in drag... and you're up...
Ghost - Meliora
Satan-Worshipping Pop Metal?
I guess I'm in. The hooks are indeed catchy, with nods to Sabbath as well as proggier melodies. You'll find yourself singing along, much in the way you used to in the 80s while listening to [redacted] before realizing they were about Christianity. Same thing here, but like, about Satan. Go figure.
Sure, it's cheesy. But dammit, it's actually pretty good.
1. "Spirit"
2. "From the Pinnacle to the Pit"
3. "Cirice"
4. "Spöksonat"
5. "He Is"
6. "Mummy Dust"
7. "Majesty"
8. "Devil Church"
9. "Absolution"
10. "Deus in Absentia"
Cirice is my favorite. That's a go-to for heavy metal karaoke at the Brutal Poodle on Tuesday nights. From the Pinnacle to the Pit is also a solid rocker. I've included a link to "He Is" - a live performance from the Grammys, so that you can get a full picture of what I'm talking about here.
With the finish line in sight, it's time to reach back for another favorite artist, but with another previously unselected album:
Jon B. - Cool Relax (1997)
Anybody who's followed me through the three album drafts that I've participated in should be able to figure out that I'm a big fan of 1990s R&B, and there aren't many albums that say, "This is 90s R&B" as much as Cool Relax: two songs that were written by Babyface, a hit single with a hip-hop feature (the last verse written by Tupac Shakur, before his death)... that's about as nineties R&B as it gets. When I look back on my naval career, in hindsight, it was clear that my favorite duty station was when I was stationed in Italy, even though I didn't think so at the time, and this is an album that reminds me of the better times when I was there. Cool Relax was Jon B.'s most commercially successful album, peaking at #33 on the US Charts, and being certified double-platinum by the RIAA.
Track listing (links provided to songs released as singles):
Favorite non-singles:
Source: Wikipedia
Jon B. - Cool Relax (1997)
Anybody who's followed me through the three album drafts that I've participated in should be able to figure out that I'm a big fan of 1990s R&B, and there aren't many albums that say, "This is 90s R&B" as much as Cool Relax: two songs that were written by Babyface, a hit single with a hip-hop feature (the last verse written by Tupac Shakur, before his death)... that's about as nineties R&B as it gets. When I look back on my naval career, in hindsight, it was clear that my favorite duty station was when I was stationed in Italy, even though I didn't think so at the time, and this is an album that reminds me of the better times when I was there. Cool Relax was Jon B.'s most commercially successful album, peaking at #33 on the US Charts, and being certified double-platinum by the RIAA.
Track listing (links provided to songs released as singles):
- "Shine"
- "Bad Girl"
- "Don't Say"
- "They Don't Know"
- "Can't Help It"
- "Cool Relax"
- "Are U Still Down" (featuring 2Pac)
- "Pride & Joy"
- "I Do (Whatcha Say Boo)"
- "Let Me Know"
- "I Ain't Going Out"
- "Let's Go (Interlude)"
- "Can We Get Down?"
- "Love Hurts"
- "Tu Amor"
Favorite non-singles:
Source: Wikipedia
For my 20th pick in the Shelter-In-Place Album Draft, I select:
Boston - Boston (1976)
Track Listing:
1 More Than a Feeling
2 Peace of Mind
3 Foreplay/Long Time
4 Rock & Roll Band
5 Smokin'
6 Hitch a Ride
7 Something About You
8 Let Me Take You Home Tonight
I didn't have quite as hard of a time deciding on my first 19 picks in the draft, but making this selection means a lot of worthy albums are going to get left out. Just the way it is. And I've got a list of...let's see...17 albums sitting there all trying to make that cut. But looking at my list, I felt like I had done a pretty good job of picking music that moves me with great lyrics and careful songwriting - the stuff of "great musicians" - and really didn't have a big selection of mindless stumble-on-some-great-guitar-licks-and-pump-out-some-radio-hits rock and roll. And in a flash of inspiration I dumped my list of 17 and knew right where to go.
Go to Boston.
I can't claim to be a huge fan of the band - I don't own any of their other albums and in fact, outside of one radio hit (not their other radio hit, that one was awful), I don't know/care for any of their other songs. But this album rocks. I nearly burned out this CD in college before diving into the early/mid-'90s "alternative" scene and pushing guitar rock to the back shelf. Well, time to pull this album back to the rotation! Boston basically has five rotation songs on rock radio, and three of them are the first three tracks on their debut record. I mean, they knew where their bread was buttered. I'll link "Peace of Mind" and "Foreplay/Long Time" - the two-and-a-half minute intro on the latter often gets cut off on the airwaves, but you pretty much know the rest. And I'll link "Smokin'" because epic keyboard solo.
Still, I think "More Than a Feeling" is probably their definitive song. You know it. Listen to it if you want a nice reminiscent smile.
Also, the spaceships on the cover that are either blowing up the earth or escaping the calamity are guitars. That's awesome, and I didn't notice it for years.
Boston - Boston (1976)
Track Listing:
1 More Than a Feeling
2 Peace of Mind
3 Foreplay/Long Time
4 Rock & Roll Band
5 Smokin'
6 Hitch a Ride
7 Something About You
8 Let Me Take You Home Tonight
I didn't have quite as hard of a time deciding on my first 19 picks in the draft, but making this selection means a lot of worthy albums are going to get left out. Just the way it is. And I've got a list of...let's see...17 albums sitting there all trying to make that cut. But looking at my list, I felt like I had done a pretty good job of picking music that moves me with great lyrics and careful songwriting - the stuff of "great musicians" - and really didn't have a big selection of mindless stumble-on-some-great-guitar-licks-and-pump-out-some-radio-hits rock and roll. And in a flash of inspiration I dumped my list of 17 and knew right where to go.
Go to Boston.
I can't claim to be a huge fan of the band - I don't own any of their other albums and in fact, outside of one radio hit (not their other radio hit, that one was awful), I don't know/care for any of their other songs. But this album rocks. I nearly burned out this CD in college before diving into the early/mid-'90s "alternative" scene and pushing guitar rock to the back shelf. Well, time to pull this album back to the rotation! Boston basically has five rotation songs on rock radio, and three of them are the first three tracks on their debut record. I mean, they knew where their bread was buttered. I'll link "Peace of Mind" and "Foreplay/Long Time" - the two-and-a-half minute intro on the latter often gets cut off on the airwaves, but you pretty much know the rest. And I'll link "Smokin'" because epic keyboard solo.
Still, I think "More Than a Feeling" is probably their definitive song. You know it. Listen to it if you want a nice reminiscent smile.
Also, the spaceships on the cover that are either blowing up the earth or escaping the calamity are guitars. That's awesome, and I didn't notice it for years.
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