TDDS - 2020 Shelter-in-Place on a Desert Island Music Draft - BONUS 5
- Thread starter VF21
- Start date
I can appreciate this perspective, but I also feel like it's tilting at windmills a fair amount. The music industry is so fractured now, and "popular music" is such a nebulous notion, that there isn't much of a granular insistence on anything the way there was in the 80's and 90's. Perhaps if one was to spend all of their time on Top-40 radio, they might arrive at that conclusion, but that's also not a recent phenomenon. The radio has been a haven for lyrical vapidity and sonic monotony for forty years now.
But in 2020, the very ideas of "the radio" and "the single" have become obsolete. The loudness wars of previous decades certainly resulted in a flattening of the EQ and a hyperactive approach to compression (I have a hard time listening to a lot of 90's music for precisely this reason), but music has opened up so much in the last decade, sonically speaking. As major record labels wield less influence, artists are able to be more selective about who produces their albums, and it's resulting in a much more diverse sonic approach to music across all genres, even amongst some of those more mainstream acts who's music could still be generously categorized as "radio fodder."
It's a fascinating time for lovers of music, as the fracturing of the industry has resulted in more culturally omnivorous attitudes towards music. Because genre allegiance has begun to dissolve, artists are able to be more open about their influences, and to push their music in more interesting sonic directions. We managed to climb out of the terrible TRL-influenced homogeneity of the late-90's and early 00's intact. And while the current environment isn't exactly a paradise, it is considerably less flat, boring, and payola-dependent than previous eras in music have been, and it's definitely more sonically diverse and, dare I say, human.
But in 2020, the very ideas of "the radio" and "the single" have become obsolete. The loudness wars of previous decades certainly resulted in a flattening of the EQ and a hyperactive approach to compression (I have a hard time listening to a lot of 90's music for precisely this reason), but music has opened up so much in the last decade, sonically speaking. As major record labels wield less influence, artists are able to be more selective about who produces their albums, and it's resulting in a much more diverse sonic approach to music across all genres, even amongst some of those more mainstream acts who's music could still be generously categorized as "radio fodder."
It's a fascinating time for lovers of music, as the fracturing of the industry has resulted in more culturally omnivorous attitudes towards music. Because genre allegiance has begun to dissolve, artists are able to be more open about their influences, and to push their music in more interesting sonic directions. We managed to climb out of the terrible TRL-influenced homogeneity of the late-90's and early 00's intact. And while the current environment isn't exactly a paradise, it is considerably less flat, boring, and payola-dependent than previous eras in music have been, and it's definitely more sonically diverse and, dare I say, human.
Simon and Garfunkel - Bridge Over Troubled Water - 1970
So I'm now totally confused about my pre-draft rankings. I've already multiple albums I was sure would be safe deep into the draft and, in all honesty, I'm starting to panic. So instead of whatever system I used to make the original list of potential draft picks, I'm going with the albums that had the biggest impact on my life at the time I first heard them. With that as the criteria, Bridge Over Troubled Water is a no-brainer for my next pick.
Track list:
1 Bridge Over Troubled Water
2 El Condor Pasa (If I Could)
3 Cecilia
4 Keep the Customer Satisfied
5 So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright
6 The Boxer
7 Baby Driver
8 The Only Living Boy in New York
9 Why Don't You Write Me
10 Bye Bye Love
11 Long for the Asking
The blend of songs on this album (especially the first side) is perfect. Slow, fast, soulful, fun... it's all there with the classic harmony of Simon and Garfunkel that actually gave me chills. I had this on both vinyl and cassette and it was always in my rotation to play during my daily commute to work.
When you're weary, feeling small
When tears are in your eyes, I'll dry them all (all)
I'm on your side, oh, when times get rough
And friends just can't be found
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down...
Let's just say this came out at a time when I really needed something like that to get me through some rough times.
From allmusic.com:
Bridge Over Troubled Water was one of the biggest-selling albums of its decade, and it hasn't fallen too far down on the list in years since. Apart from the gospel-flavored title track, which took some evolution to get to what it finally became, however, much of Bridge Over Troubled Water also constitutes a stepping back from the music that Simon & Garfunkel had made -- this was mostly because the creative partnership that had formed the body and the motivation for the duo's four prior albums literally consumed itself in the making of Bridge Over Troubled Water. The overall effect was perhaps the most delicately textured album to close out the 1960s from any major rock act. Bridge Over Troubled Water, at its most ambitious and bold, on its title track, was a quietly reassuring album; at other times, it was personal yet soothing; and at other times, it was just plain fun. The public in 1970 -- a very unsettled time politically, socially, and culturally -- embraced it; and whatever mood they captured, the songs matched the standard of craftsmanship that had been established on the duo's two prior albums. Between the record's overall quality and its four hits, the album held the number one position for two and a half months and spent years on the charts, racking up sales in excess of five million copies. The irony was that for all of the record's and the music's appeal, the duo's partnership ended in the course of creating and completing the album.
Looking back, all the signs are there that S&G were about to break up. So, although neither of them died, their collaboration did... another significant loss to my music scene at the time.
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Presented without comment (sorry, can't embed).
https://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/fans/n9497
https://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/fans/n9497
Burial - Untrue (2007):
01 Untitled
02 Archangel
03 Near Dark
04 Ghost Hardware
05 Endorphin
06 Etched Headplate
07 In McDonalds
08 Untrue
09 Shell of Light
10 Dog Shelter
11 Homeless
12 UK
13 Raver
Genre(s): Electronica, UK garage, ambient
Burial is the recording alias of William Emmanuel Bevan, a reclusive electronic musician from London. Untrue is his 2007 masterpiece, a collage of lo-fi compositions constructed on entry-level audio software, without the use of MIDI clocks or sequencers. It's electronic music produced in a rather analog fashion.
Bevan samples a wide variety of "found sounds" in pursuit of giving his beats a familiar and slightly ramshackle appeal. A flicking lighter. A creaking swing. A power-up from a Playstation video game. Sounds like these represent the aural palette of Untrue, but they come unmoored from our understanding of their familiarity in the context of the album's swirling synthesized strings and otherworldly soundscapes. Sampled male and female vocals also feature prominently on Untrue, but Bevan warps their nature and pitch-shifts them into genderless, emotive, mournful, angelic, illegible whisperings. Never has the human voice felt so alien and so achingly human at the same time.
His compositions are bathed in reverb, often backed by the sound of rainfall or the crackle of a vinyl record. As a result, there is an incredible warmth to Bevan's music in spite of the fact that it is created entirely through a computer screen. Much like my third pick in the draft, Chromatics' Kill for Love, this is an album that is deeply elegiac. It evokes a loss that the listener cannot quite identify. It is devastatingly beautiful and my desert island would surely be lesser without it.
01 Untitled
02 Archangel
03 Near Dark
04 Ghost Hardware
05 Endorphin
06 Etched Headplate
07 In McDonalds
08 Untrue
09 Shell of Light
10 Dog Shelter
11 Homeless
12 UK
13 Raver
Genre(s): Electronica, UK garage, ambient
Burial is the recording alias of William Emmanuel Bevan, a reclusive electronic musician from London. Untrue is his 2007 masterpiece, a collage of lo-fi compositions constructed on entry-level audio software, without the use of MIDI clocks or sequencers. It's electronic music produced in a rather analog fashion.
Bevan samples a wide variety of "found sounds" in pursuit of giving his beats a familiar and slightly ramshackle appeal. A flicking lighter. A creaking swing. A power-up from a Playstation video game. Sounds like these represent the aural palette of Untrue, but they come unmoored from our understanding of their familiarity in the context of the album's swirling synthesized strings and otherworldly soundscapes. Sampled male and female vocals also feature prominently on Untrue, but Bevan warps their nature and pitch-shifts them into genderless, emotive, mournful, angelic, illegible whisperings. Never has the human voice felt so alien and so achingly human at the same time.
His compositions are bathed in reverb, often backed by the sound of rainfall or the crackle of a vinyl record. As a result, there is an incredible warmth to Bevan's music in spite of the fact that it is created entirely through a computer screen. Much like my third pick in the draft, Chromatics' Kill for Love, this is an album that is deeply elegiac. It evokes a loss that the listener cannot quite identify. It is devastatingly beautiful and my desert island would surely be lesser without it.
The Second Annual Report - Throbbing Gristle (1977)
https://www.discogs.com/Throbbing-Gristle-The-Second-Annual-Report/release/70574
The Second Annual Report marks the inception of industrial music, one of my very favorite genres. I frequently attend, and on rare occasions perform at local experimental noise shows including Noisefest. Without Throbbing Gristle the scene and style so often heard at these shows may not even exist. The record consists of dark and heavy electronic soundscapes accompanied by ominous, reverberating vocals from Genesis P-Orridge. In four decades nobody has done it better than Throbbing Gristle.
https://www.discogs.com/Throbbing-Gristle-The-Second-Annual-Report/release/70574
Tracklist
01 - Industrial Introduction
02 - "Slug Bait" Recorded at I.C.A.
03 - Recorded at Southampton
04 - Recorded at Brighton
05 - "Maggot Death" Studio Recording
06 - Recorded at Rat Club
07 - Recorded at Southampton
08 - Recorded at Brighton
09 - The Original Soundtrack of the Coum Transmissions Film of "After Cease to Exist"
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Rage Against the Machine - The Battle of Los Angeles (1999)
(https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-battle-of-los-angeles-mw0000670986)
01. Testify
02. Guerilla Radio
03. Calm Like a Bomb
04. Mic Check
05. Sleep Now in the Fire
06. Born of a Broken Man
07. Born as Ghosts
08. Maria
09. Voice of the Voiceless
10. New Millennium Homes
11. Ashes in the Fall
12. War Within a Breath
I was supposed to go see Rage Against the Machine perform in New Mexico last week. They were co-headliners at Coachella this year too but Corona was having none of that! So this seems an appropriate moment to recognize how unique they were in popular music. From 1992 to around 2001 (when Clear Channel inexplicably used 9/11 as an excuse to pull all their songs from its stations) you could tune in to a mainstream FM radio station anywhere in this country and hear Zach de la Rocha rant about police brutality, income inequality, wars fought over resources, sham elections paid for by corporations, out of control defense budgets, misleading or false history curriculum in public schools, the colonization and extermination of indigenous people, and the homogenizing effect of televised mass-media. It was equal opportunity rage directed at injustice in all it's forms and it was incendiary and invigorating music that found an audience almost instantly.
The sad part about it is that in the 90s we believed (like the generation before us) that a musical movement would change the culture. It hasn't played out that way. All those kids with their fists in the air (myself included) grew up and faded into the silently complicit majority. Maybe it was only ever about generalized adolescent angst. Maybe Zach's anger was the part so many related to and found catharsis in, not the content of his lyrics. Whatever the case may be, every single injustice that Rage Against the Machine called out in their brilliantly composed and executed screeds is still alive and well today. Which begs the question, who will rise up to be this generation's Rage Against the Machine? Is there any among us with the will to take the power back?
Though I've lived in LA for 19 and a half years now, I'm an outsider here and always will be. There's a constant pull and push to my feelings about Los Angeles. On the one hand, it will never make sense to me how people in Southern California are absolutely obsessed with racial identity. Growing up in various places around the Bay Area and Sacramento I always lived in diverse cultural environments where we were more or less on equal footing economically and didn't see ourselves as separate. Either because of the geography or it's unique history or because of the constant movement of people in and out from all other parts of the country, I've become painfully aware that in this city you are what you look like and there's an unusually high degree of social pressure to make us all constantly aware that we're different.
As an outsider though, I can also appreciate what's great about having all these distinct cultures smashed together into one place. I've been to the worst parts of East LA, I've played blues music in a garage in Watts where I was the only white boy, I watched thousands march through the streets with Mexican flags to protest immigration legislation, I've skateboarded through gang territory and played pickup basketball with the neighborhood kids in South Central and everywhere I go people seem to wander up to me and just start talking. I have no idea why they do that, maybe because I listen. Anyway this is all just a long-winded way of getting to my point which is that to me there is no more quintessential LA band than Rage Against the Machine. I understood the visceral impact of their message as a teenager going to school in Carmichael but I didn't really get what they were so angry about until I moved here and lived in the middle of it. A lot of people in our world are struggling and just want better opportunities for themselves and their loved ones. While we disagree about the best ways to make that happen, the battle for the dignity of human beings -- all human beings -- still rages on and that's not politics it's just reality. I'm grateful that the people and places in my life have allowed me to see that.
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There's a few albums I'm really surprised are still around which has made things tough. I'm also really surprised between Cojc and VF plus the crew who probably spent a nice chunk of high school listening to The Eagle, not one Stones album has been picked so I've tip-toed around them in the side discussions and even my own Beatles pick because I probably rank them top of that Big 4. So here we go, ignoring the first one I discovered and the one everyone says is the best, I will go with the one with the most of my favorite songs and where Keith really shines. Plus it's just one of the most iconic album covers and I love those.
The Rolling Stones - Sticky Fingers
Brown Sugar, Can't You Hear Me Knocking and "Beach" (the proper title isn't going to make it past the swear filter) are three of my favorite rockers and then you have Wild Horses which is one of their classic ballads. But really this is top to bottom one of their best albums because it doesn't have any throwaways.
Side one
1. Brown Sugar
2. Sway
3. Wild Horses
4. Can't You Hear Me Knocking
5. You Gotta Move
Side two
6. ***** (ok, let's just call this one "Beach")
7. I Got the Blues
8. Sister Morphine
9. Dead Flowers
10. Moonlight Mile
Speaking of the Eagle, prior to that one of my first exposures to this was actually from the original classic rock station KZAP "Mom, He's doing it again!" ads. I believe these were national or maybe just whoever owned KZAP owned some stations in the Midwest but I can find this ad with KZAP on it but they overdubbed the song, so here it is as I remember for KSHE out of St. Louis.
The Rolling Stones - Sticky Fingers
Brown Sugar, Can't You Hear Me Knocking and "Beach" (the proper title isn't going to make it past the swear filter) are three of my favorite rockers and then you have Wild Horses which is one of their classic ballads. But really this is top to bottom one of their best albums because it doesn't have any throwaways.
Side one
1. Brown Sugar
2. Sway
3. Wild Horses
4. Can't You Hear Me Knocking
5. You Gotta Move
Side two
6. ***** (ok, let's just call this one "Beach")
7. I Got the Blues
8. Sister Morphine
9. Dead Flowers
10. Moonlight Mile
Speaking of the Eagle, prior to that one of my first exposures to this was actually from the original classic rock station KZAP "Mom, He's doing it again!" ads. I believe these were national or maybe just whoever owned KZAP owned some stations in the Midwest but I can find this ad with KZAP on it but they overdubbed the song, so here it is as I remember for KSHE out of St. Louis.
I guess I'm a bit surprised that no Stones album had yet gone, but for my own part though I'm a fan of many of their radio hits, I just never got into their albums - the one time I really tried a "classic" Stones album I found the entirety of the deep cuts just not speaking to me. Sticky Fingers was on my radar to give a try if it slipped too much farther just to see if it was better front-to-back than the other one I tried. I guess now that you've picked it I'll have to go through and see...
I had a back bencher picked out but knowing the demos of this group it will likely get snatched up. I left a few other things I really like on the table that may not survive but who knows. I know the latter half of my draft will likely just be spent waiting my turn. But there are 2-3 more albums I'd like to have first. And there's definitely a few other artists I'm waiting for an album or two to fall off so I feel better about my pick 
Let's call it the Marvin Bagley effect.
Let's call it the Marvin Bagley effect.I know everyone likes mostly what they grew up on. As in their teens and early 20’s what they and their friends listened to greatly influenced their taste in music.
For me yes that era of 10 years was that time frame for me and it sounds like the same for VF. Everyone from then on will always find some new sounds and groups they like and I will pick some of those. I’ll be honest when someone picks a group from the last 6 or 7 years I have to google it to learn more about them. With so many classic stations I gravitate towards those.
I find it comforting that music from both sides of 50 years ago still has its fans and favorites. I can’t say when I grew up there was anyone from the big band and jazz era I would listen too, well maybe one or two but that’s it.
Yes that other big group from my era just mentioned I left alone because no one else had touched them. yes there is one album I am particularly fond of from them that hasn't been mentioned.
Now I am more confused as for my next couple of picks should I stay stuck in my youth or move forward and snatch up some music that may surprise you.
For me yes that era of 10 years was that time frame for me and it sounds like the same for VF. Everyone from then on will always find some new sounds and groups they like and I will pick some of those. I’ll be honest when someone picks a group from the last 6 or 7 years I have to google it to learn more about them. With so many classic stations I gravitate towards those.
I find it comforting that music from both sides of 50 years ago still has its fans and favorites. I can’t say when I grew up there was anyone from the big band and jazz era I would listen too, well maybe one or two but that’s it.
Yes that other big group from my era just mentioned I left alone because no one else had touched them. yes there is one album I am particularly fond of from them that hasn't been mentioned.
Now I am more confused as for my next couple of picks should I stay stuck in my youth or move forward and snatch up some music that may surprise you.
Am I picking an album based on one song? Maybe. But not really. This album is overall an amazing rock album, start to finish.
Stargazer is arguably one of the best rock albums of all time. OF. ALL. TIME. Ronnie James Dio's voice is among the greatest in rock and roll.
1. "Tarot Woman"
2. "Run with the Wolf"
3. "Starstruck"
4. "Do You Close Your Eyes"
5. "Stargazer"
6. "A Light in the Black"
Stargazer is one of the best hard rock songs for those who also lean prog. Dio's voice was one of the most booming voices in rock, and you can hear it here as well. He also helped popularize the use of "\m/" in metal; so you're welcome. Ritchie Blackmore's guitar playing is, no pun intended, electric in every song. Check out "Starstruck" if you need 4 minutes of straight-up classic rock.
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Leaving 1991 for this one:
Daft Punk - Discovery (2001)
A favored album of mine, I totally whiffed on taking this the first time I participated in one of these, and got beat out for it the second time. It's a great album for listening to while you're on your morning walk or, if you have anxieties like I have, for filtering out the people around you, while you're at a public event (whenever we get back to that). Like most albums in this genre, it wasn't exactly a chart-topper, but it had a number of songs that were big hits at the club. It experienced a renaissance after Kanye West sampled "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" for his hit single, "Stronger." And, if you've ever been to a basketball game that's gone to multiple overtimes, chances are that you've heard "One More Time" at least once. Discovery peaked at #23 on the US charts, and was certified gold by the RIAA, but went platinum in the UK, Belgium, Denmark, France and Japan.
Track Listing (links provided to songs released as singles):
Source: Wikipedia
Daft Punk - Discovery (2001)
A favored album of mine, I totally whiffed on taking this the first time I participated in one of these, and got beat out for it the second time. It's a great album for listening to while you're on your morning walk or, if you have anxieties like I have, for filtering out the people around you, while you're at a public event (whenever we get back to that). Like most albums in this genre, it wasn't exactly a chart-topper, but it had a number of songs that were big hits at the club. It experienced a renaissance after Kanye West sampled "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" for his hit single, "Stronger." And, if you've ever been to a basketball game that's gone to multiple overtimes, chances are that you've heard "One More Time" at least once. Discovery peaked at #23 on the US charts, and was certified gold by the RIAA, but went platinum in the UK, Belgium, Denmark, France and Japan.
Track Listing (links provided to songs released as singles):
- "One More Time"
- "Aerodynamic"
- "Digital Love"
- "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger"
- "Crescendolls"
- "Nightvision"
- "Superheroes"
- "High Life"
- "Something About Us"
- "Voyager"
- "Veridis Quo"
- "Short Circuit"
- "Face to Face"
- "Too Long"
Source: Wikipedia
With my seventh pick in the Shelter-In-Place Album Draft I select:
Blackstar - David Bowie (2016)
Track Listing:
1 - Blackstar
2 - 'Tis a Pity She Was a Whore
3 - Lazarus
4 - Sue (Or in a Season of Crime)
5 - Girl Loves Me
6 - Dollar Days
7 - I Can't Give Everything Away
Take one of the biggest rock stars ever, saddle him with terminal liver cancer at the age of 68, and ask him to make one last album as a gift to his fans. I don't think this is what you would expect. Bowie, always the eccentric, goes out of the way to really deconstruct his music here, heavy on the droning sax, heavy on the drums, heavy on the noise and bizarre time signatures, and not at all the sound you'd expect from an end-of-career musician, who all so often seem to soften as they age. The album turned out to be released two days before Bowie died. I honestly had no idea that Bowie had been making music on and off through the 2000s, as it didn't get much recognition, but shortly after he passed a friend mentioned that he had been listening to Blackstar non-stop ever since. I immediately purchased it, and found it beautifully haunting. Few musicians really get a chance to make an epitaph, and Bowie nailed it.
The title track, with its incredibly odd video:
(PM Sent)
Blackstar - David Bowie (2016)
Track Listing:
1 - Blackstar
2 - 'Tis a Pity She Was a Whore
3 - Lazarus
4 - Sue (Or in a Season of Crime)
5 - Girl Loves Me
6 - Dollar Days
7 - I Can't Give Everything Away
Take one of the biggest rock stars ever, saddle him with terminal liver cancer at the age of 68, and ask him to make one last album as a gift to his fans. I don't think this is what you would expect. Bowie, always the eccentric, goes out of the way to really deconstruct his music here, heavy on the droning sax, heavy on the drums, heavy on the noise and bizarre time signatures, and not at all the sound you'd expect from an end-of-career musician, who all so often seem to soften as they age. The album turned out to be released two days before Bowie died. I honestly had no idea that Bowie had been making music on and off through the 2000s, as it didn't get much recognition, but shortly after he passed a friend mentioned that he had been listening to Blackstar non-stop ever since. I immediately purchased it, and found it beautifully haunting. Few musicians really get a chance to make an epitaph, and Bowie nailed it.
The title track, with its incredibly odd video:
(PM Sent)
Well into the MTV era and out of the sixties at least for this round.
So for my seventh round pick you need to fight for right to PARTY!!
The beastie boys licensed to ILL
Rhymin & stealin
The new style
She’s crafty
Posse in effect
Slow ride
Girls
Fight for your right
No sleep till Brooklyn
Paul Revere
Hold it now, hit it
Brass monkey
Slow & low
Time to get I’ll
So for my seventh round pick you need to fight for right to PARTY!!
The beastie boys licensed to ILL
Rhymin & stealin
The new style
She’s crafty
Posse in effect
Slow ride
Girls
Fight for your right
No sleep till Brooklyn
Paul Revere
Hold it now, hit it
Brass monkey
Slow & low
Time to get I’ll
With my seventh pick in the Shelter-In-Place Album Draft I select:
Blackstar - David Bowie (2016)
Track Listing:
1 - Blackstar
2 - 'Tis a Pity She Was a Whore
3 - Lazarus
4 - Sue (Or in a Season of Crime)
5 - Girl Loves Me
6 - Dollar Days
7 - I Can't Give Everything Away
Take one of the biggest rock stars ever, saddle him with terminal liver cancer at the age of 68, and ask him to make one last album as a gift to his fans. I don't think this is what you would expect. Bowie, always the eccentric, goes out of the way to really deconstruct his music here, heavy on the droning sax, heavy on the drums, heavy on the noise and bizarre time signatures, and not at all the sound you'd expect from an end-of-career musician, who all so often seem to soften as they age. The album turned out to be released two days before Bowie died. I honestly had no idea that Bowie had been making music on and off through the 2000s, as it didn't get much recognition, but shortly after he passed a friend mentioned that he had been listening to Blackstar non-stop ever since. I immediately purchased it, and found it beautifully haunting. Few musicians really get a chance to make an epitaph, and Bowie nailed it.
The title track, with its incredibly odd video:
(PM Sent)
Blackstar - David Bowie (2016)
Track Listing:
1 - Blackstar
2 - 'Tis a Pity She Was a Whore
3 - Lazarus
4 - Sue (Or in a Season of Crime)
5 - Girl Loves Me
6 - Dollar Days
7 - I Can't Give Everything Away
Take one of the biggest rock stars ever, saddle him with terminal liver cancer at the age of 68, and ask him to make one last album as a gift to his fans. I don't think this is what you would expect. Bowie, always the eccentric, goes out of the way to really deconstruct his music here, heavy on the droning sax, heavy on the drums, heavy on the noise and bizarre time signatures, and not at all the sound you'd expect from an end-of-career musician, who all so often seem to soften as they age. The album turned out to be released two days before Bowie died. I honestly had no idea that Bowie had been making music on and off through the 2000s, as it didn't get much recognition, but shortly after he passed a friend mentioned that he had been listening to Blackstar non-stop ever since. I immediately purchased it, and found it beautifully haunting. Few musicians really get a chance to make an epitaph, and Bowie nailed it.
The title track, with its incredibly odd video:
(PM Sent)
Walk through fire. Yola. 2019.
Soulful country album with restorative qualities. Really warm, generous, voice. Well produced. Wouldn't guess that she is from the UK as that is not her style at all. As well as her tiny desk (below), listened to her on the broken record podcast - has a really fun personality. Hope that she comes to Australia one day
1. Faraway look
2. Shady grove
3. Ride out in the country
4. It ain't easier
5. Walk through fire
6. Rock me gently
7. Love all night (work all day)
8. Deep blue dream
9. Lonely the night
10. Still gone
11. Keep me here
12. Love is light
Soulful country album with restorative qualities. Really warm, generous, voice. Well produced. Wouldn't guess that she is from the UK as that is not her style at all. As well as her tiny desk (below), listened to her on the broken record podcast - has a really fun personality. Hope that she comes to Australia one day
1. Faraway look
2. Shady grove
3. Ride out in the country
4. It ain't easier
5. Walk through fire
6. Rock me gently
7. Love all night (work all day)
8. Deep blue dream
9. Lonely the night
10. Still gone
11. Keep me here
12. Love is light
Speaking of country....if you like your music with a side of humor, you can't go wrong with Brad Paisley.
Brad Paisley - 5th Gear (2007)
https://www.allmusic.com/album/5th-gear-mw0000584945
My wife and I have seen him in concert three times (2006, 2015 and 2017) and loved every minute of each of them. He's a fantastic performer and infuses a lot of humor into many of his songs and his on-stage performances. In addition to my favorites Online (hilarious) and Ticks, there is the very touching Letter to Me, another funny one in I'm Still a Guy, and Waitin' on a Woman. The rest of the album is also really solid.
From allmusic:
He's not all fun and games - he has some very touching and poignant songs as well. My favorites tend to be the humorous ones though.
Track List:
1. Ticks
2. All I Wanted Was a Car
3. Online
4. Letter to Me
5. I'm Still a Guy
6. Some Mistakes
7. It Did
8. Mr. Policeman
9. If Love Was a Plane
10. Oh Love
11. Better Than This
12. With You, Without You
13. Previously
14. Bigger Fish to Fry
15. When We All Get to Heaven
16. Throttleneck
17. Outtake #1
18. Outtake #2
The video for Online is flipping hilarious starring Jason Alexander (from Seinfeld) and William Shatner (listen to the end - that is a high school band playing - he brought them to the CMA awards to play when he performed, too):
And a little bit of rocking country and funny pick-up line (live version):
Some pretty funny truths in this one (acoustic version):
A humorous song about police chasing him:
Brad Paisley - 5th Gear (2007)
https://www.allmusic.com/album/5th-gear-mw0000584945
My wife and I have seen him in concert three times (2006, 2015 and 2017) and loved every minute of each of them. He's a fantastic performer and infuses a lot of humor into many of his songs and his on-stage performances. In addition to my favorites Online (hilarious) and Ticks, there is the very touching Letter to Me, another funny one in I'm Still a Guy, and Waitin' on a Woman. The rest of the album is also really solid.
From allmusic:
He's not all fun and games - he has some very touching and poignant songs as well. My favorites tend to be the humorous ones though.
Track List:
1. Ticks
2. All I Wanted Was a Car
3. Online
4. Letter to Me
5. I'm Still a Guy
6. Some Mistakes
7. It Did
8. Mr. Policeman
9. If Love Was a Plane
10. Oh Love
11. Better Than This
12. With You, Without You
13. Previously
14. Bigger Fish to Fry
15. When We All Get to Heaven
16. Throttleneck
17. Outtake #1
18. Outtake #2
The video for Online is flipping hilarious starring Jason Alexander (from Seinfeld) and William Shatner (listen to the end - that is a high school band playing - he brought them to the CMA awards to play when he performed, too):
And a little bit of rocking country and funny pick-up line (live version):
Some pretty funny truths in this one (acoustic version):
A humorous song about police chasing him:
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There are about a dozen options here I want roughly equally, and still haven’t squared away what’s at risk or not.
So I’m taking something now I find so unique, I have no possible replacement.
The Underside of Power - Algiers (2017)
Punk. Gospel. Fusion.
In my mind that’s about as unique as generally mainstream music gets. Plus, this raw energy scratches an itch that’s been unsatisfied since the days of Rage.
Walk Like a Panther is one I go back to frequently on it’s own, but the whole album is one of simultaneous rebellion and hope. Something Rage rarely if ever offered.
Tracklist
1."Walk Like a Panther"
2."Cry of the Martyrs"
3."The Underside of Power"
4."Death March"
5."A Murmur. A Sign."
6."Mme Rieux"
7."Cleveland"
8."Animals"
9."Plague Years"
10."Hymn for an Average Man"
11."Bury Me Standing"
12."The Cycle/The Spiral: Time to Go Down Slowly"
So I’m taking something now I find so unique, I have no possible replacement.
The Underside of Power - Algiers (2017)
Punk. Gospel. Fusion.
In my mind that’s about as unique as generally mainstream music gets. Plus, this raw energy scratches an itch that’s been unsatisfied since the days of Rage.
Walk Like a Panther is one I go back to frequently on it’s own, but the whole album is one of simultaneous rebellion and hope. Something Rage rarely if ever offered.
Tracklist
1."Walk Like a Panther"
2."Cry of the Martyrs"
3."The Underside of Power"
4."Death March"
5."A Murmur. A Sign."
6."Mme Rieux"
7."Cleveland"
8."Animals"
9."Plague Years"
10."Hymn for an Average Man"
11."Bury Me Standing"
12."The Cycle/The Spiral: Time to Go Down Slowly"
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Speaking of country....if you like your music with a side of humor, you can't go wrong with Brad Paisley.
Brad Paisley - 5th Gear (2007)
View attachment 9696
https://www.allmusic.com/album/5th-gear-mw0000584945
My wife and I have seen him in concert three times (2006, 2015 and 2017) and loved every minute of each of them. He's a fantastic performer and infuses a lot of humor into many of his songs and his on-stage performances. In addition to my favorites Online (hilarious) and Ticks, there is the very touching Letter to Me, another funny one in I'm Still a Guy, and Waitin' on a Woman. The rest of the album is also really solid.
From allmusic:
He's not all fun and games - he has some very touching and poignant songs as well. My favorites tend to be the humorous ones though.
Track List:
1. Ticks
2. All I Wanted Was a Car
3. Online
4. Letter to Me
5. I'm Still a Guy
6. Some Mistakes
7. It Did
8. Mr. Policeman
9. If Love Was a Plane
10. Oh Love
11. Better Than This
12. With You, Without You
13. Previously
14. Bigger Fish to Fry
15. When We All Get to Heaven
16. Throttleneck
17. Outtake #1
18. Outtake #2
The video for Online is flipping hilarious starring Jason Alexander (from Seinfeld) and William Shatner (listen to the end - that is a high school band playing - he brought them to the CMA awards to play when he performed, too):
And a little bit of rocking country and funny pick-up line (live version):
Some pretty funny truths in this one (acoustic version):
A humorous song about police chasing him:
Brad Paisley - 5th Gear (2007)
View attachment 9696
https://www.allmusic.com/album/5th-gear-mw0000584945
My wife and I have seen him in concert three times (2006, 2015 and 2017) and loved every minute of each of them. He's a fantastic performer and infuses a lot of humor into many of his songs and his on-stage performances. In addition to my favorites Online (hilarious) and Ticks, there is the very touching Letter to Me, another funny one in I'm Still a Guy, and Waitin' on a Woman. The rest of the album is also really solid.
From allmusic:
He's not all fun and games - he has some very touching and poignant songs as well. My favorites tend to be the humorous ones though.
Track List:
1. Ticks
2. All I Wanted Was a Car
3. Online
4. Letter to Me
5. I'm Still a Guy
6. Some Mistakes
7. It Did
8. Mr. Policeman
9. If Love Was a Plane
10. Oh Love
11. Better Than This
12. With You, Without You
13. Previously
14. Bigger Fish to Fry
15. When We All Get to Heaven
16. Throttleneck
17. Outtake #1
18. Outtake #2
The video for Online is flipping hilarious starring Jason Alexander (from Seinfeld) and William Shatner (listen to the end - that is a high school band playing - he brought them to the CMA awards to play when he performed, too):
And a little bit of rocking country and funny pick-up line (live version):
Some pretty funny truths in this one (acoustic version):
A humorous song about police chasing him:
I see what you have here. You have both country and western.
On line is my favorite song he did and the video was probably one of the best ones I’ve seen. don’t tell my friends but Hey I like country music and if a couple I really like are still around I’ll be picking a few.
Great choice!!!
This is where I find myself at the moment...and I figure it's not worth taking the chance.
Eddie and the Cruisers - John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band - 1983
The movie came out in 1983, and while it was a box office flop, it wasn't long before it was a cult favorite. There was (and probably still is) a segment of listeners who thought it was a true story...with hints about various rockers who had passed being the inspiration for the film. In reality, the film was based on a novel by PF Kluge.
From Wikipedia:
Director Martin Davidson has said that the inspiration for the film came from a desire to "get all my feelings about the music of the last 30 years of rock music into it." He optioned P. F. Kluge's novel with his own money and at great financial risk. He wrote the screenplay with Arlene Davidson and decided to use a Citizen Kane-style story structure. He remembered, "That was in my head: the search."
Davidson made a deal with Time-Life, a company that was going into the movie-making business. However, it quickly left the business after making two films that were not financially successful. He was understandably upset and a couple of days later he went out to dinner and met a secretary who had worked on his first film. He told her what had happened to his film, and she gave his script for Eddie and the Cruisers to her business partners. In a relatively short time, a deal was struck with Aurora and Davidson was given a $6 million budget.
Shooting
In order to get a credible looking and sounding band for the film, (director Martin) Davidson hired Kenny Vance, one of the original members of (an undrafted band). He showed Davidson his scrapbook, the places the band performed, the car they drove in, and how they transported their instruments. Vance also told Davidson stories about the band, some of which he incorporated into the script. Tom Berenger has said that he did not try to learn piano for the film but did practice keyboards for hours in his trailer. Matthew Laurance actually learned how to play the bass through rehearsals.
Michael Paré was discovered in a New York City restaurant working as a chef. He said of his role in the film that it was "a thrill I've never experienced. It's a really weird high. For a few moments, you feel like a king, a god. It's scary, a dangerous feeling. If you take it too seriously ..."
Davidson had the actors who played in Eddie's band rehearse as if they were getting ready for a real concert. Pare remembers, "The first time we played together - as a band - was a college concert. An odd thing happened. At first, the extras simply did what they were told. Then, as the music heated up, so did the audience. They weren't play-acting anymore. The screaming, stomping and applause became spontaneous." Davidson recalls, "One by one, kids began standing up in their seats, screaming and raising their hands in rhythmic applause. A few girls made a dash for the stage, tearing at Michael's shirt. We certainly hadn't told them to do that. But we kept the cameras rolling." Additionally, New Jersey musician Southside Johnny was hired as a technical advisor for the film.
...Vance asked Davidson to describe his fictitious band and their music. Initially, Davidson said that the Cruisers sounded like (an undrafted band), but ...they have elements of Jim Morrison and The Doors. However, Davidson did not want to lose sight of the fact that the Cruisers were essentially a Jersey bar band, and he thought of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. The filmmaker told Vance to find him someone that could produce music that contained elements of these three bands. Davidson was getting close to rehearsals when Vance called him and said that he had found the band—John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band from Providence, Rhode Island.
Davidson met the band and realized that they closely resembled the band as described in the script, right down to a Cape Verdean saxophone player, whom he cast in the film. Initially, Cafferty was only hired to write a few songs for the film, but he did such a good job of capturing the feeling of the 1960s and 1980s that Davidson asked him to score the entire film.
Track list:
1 On the Dark Side
2 Mockingbird
3 Runaround Sue
4 Down on My Knees
5 Hang Up My Rock & Roll Shoes
6 Runaway
7 Boardwalk Angel
8 Betty Lou Got a New Pair of Shoes
9 Those Oldies But Goodies (Remind Me of You)
10 Season in Hell (Fire Suite)
There were only two real musicians in the fictional band. Michael "Tunes" Antune on the sax is one of them. His playing takes my breath away to this day. I'm glad to have this album on my island as a tribute to all those bar bands back in the 60s.
Eddie and the Cruisers - John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band - 1983
The movie came out in 1983, and while it was a box office flop, it wasn't long before it was a cult favorite. There was (and probably still is) a segment of listeners who thought it was a true story...with hints about various rockers who had passed being the inspiration for the film. In reality, the film was based on a novel by PF Kluge.
From Wikipedia:
Director Martin Davidson has said that the inspiration for the film came from a desire to "get all my feelings about the music of the last 30 years of rock music into it." He optioned P. F. Kluge's novel with his own money and at great financial risk. He wrote the screenplay with Arlene Davidson and decided to use a Citizen Kane-style story structure. He remembered, "That was in my head: the search."
Davidson made a deal with Time-Life, a company that was going into the movie-making business. However, it quickly left the business after making two films that were not financially successful. He was understandably upset and a couple of days later he went out to dinner and met a secretary who had worked on his first film. He told her what had happened to his film, and she gave his script for Eddie and the Cruisers to her business partners. In a relatively short time, a deal was struck with Aurora and Davidson was given a $6 million budget.
Shooting
In order to get a credible looking and sounding band for the film, (director Martin) Davidson hired Kenny Vance, one of the original members of (an undrafted band). He showed Davidson his scrapbook, the places the band performed, the car they drove in, and how they transported their instruments. Vance also told Davidson stories about the band, some of which he incorporated into the script. Tom Berenger has said that he did not try to learn piano for the film but did practice keyboards for hours in his trailer. Matthew Laurance actually learned how to play the bass through rehearsals.
Michael Paré was discovered in a New York City restaurant working as a chef. He said of his role in the film that it was "a thrill I've never experienced. It's a really weird high. For a few moments, you feel like a king, a god. It's scary, a dangerous feeling. If you take it too seriously ..."
Davidson had the actors who played in Eddie's band rehearse as if they were getting ready for a real concert. Pare remembers, "The first time we played together - as a band - was a college concert. An odd thing happened. At first, the extras simply did what they were told. Then, as the music heated up, so did the audience. They weren't play-acting anymore. The screaming, stomping and applause became spontaneous." Davidson recalls, "One by one, kids began standing up in their seats, screaming and raising their hands in rhythmic applause. A few girls made a dash for the stage, tearing at Michael's shirt. We certainly hadn't told them to do that. But we kept the cameras rolling." Additionally, New Jersey musician Southside Johnny was hired as a technical advisor for the film.
...Vance asked Davidson to describe his fictitious band and their music. Initially, Davidson said that the Cruisers sounded like (an undrafted band), but ...they have elements of Jim Morrison and The Doors. However, Davidson did not want to lose sight of the fact that the Cruisers were essentially a Jersey bar band, and he thought of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. The filmmaker told Vance to find him someone that could produce music that contained elements of these three bands. Davidson was getting close to rehearsals when Vance called him and said that he had found the band—John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band from Providence, Rhode Island.
Davidson met the band and realized that they closely resembled the band as described in the script, right down to a Cape Verdean saxophone player, whom he cast in the film. Initially, Cafferty was only hired to write a few songs for the film, but he did such a good job of capturing the feeling of the 1960s and 1980s that Davidson asked him to score the entire film.
Track list:
1 On the Dark Side
2 Mockingbird
3 Runaround Sue
4 Down on My Knees
5 Hang Up My Rock & Roll Shoes
6 Runaway
7 Boardwalk Angel
8 Betty Lou Got a New Pair of Shoes
9 Those Oldies But Goodies (Remind Me of You)
10 Season in Hell (Fire Suite)
There were only two real musicians in the fictional band. Michael "Tunes" Antune on the sax is one of them. His playing takes my breath away to this day. I'm glad to have this album on my island as a tribute to all those bar bands back in the 60s.
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Ital Tek - Bodied (2018):
01 Adrift
02 Become Real
03 Cipher
04 Lithic
05 Isolation Waves
06 Vanta
07 Across Time
08 Hymnal
09 Blood Rain
10 Prima
11 Fragility
12 Bodied
13 The Circle is Complete
Genre(s): Electronica, ambient
My next pick in this draft, like my last pick, comes from an electronic musician who calls England home. Ital Tek's Bodied was one of my favorite albums of 2018, and one of the best electronic albums of its decade, in my estimation. As time has passed, I've grown less enamored with music that contains vocal performances that aren't lyrically or vocally interesting to me. And I'm increasingly drawn to electronic and ambient works that inspire a sense of awe or joy or wonder or anger or grief or dread without the need for legible words.
I love music that is "cinematic," in that its makers compose with a sense of how their songs might evoke imagery, as if they're scoring a film that exists solely within their minds, but that the listener becomes privy to when they let their own imagination loose inside the contours of the album. Bodied is then the score to an unmade science fiction film, a haunting, hollowed out, foreboding piece of widescreen, Brutalist, speaker-rattling, synth-damaged minimalism, indebted in equal parts to Blade Runner and The Terminator. It is the sound of speeding away from an unseen threat across a future-shocked landscape, and for whatever reason, it is music filled with a sense of danger that I find the most comforting during times like these...
01 Adrift
02 Become Real
03 Cipher
04 Lithic
05 Isolation Waves
06 Vanta
07 Across Time
08 Hymnal
09 Blood Rain
10 Prima
11 Fragility
12 Bodied
13 The Circle is Complete
Genre(s): Electronica, ambient
My next pick in this draft, like my last pick, comes from an electronic musician who calls England home. Ital Tek's Bodied was one of my favorite albums of 2018, and one of the best electronic albums of its decade, in my estimation. As time has passed, I've grown less enamored with music that contains vocal performances that aren't lyrically or vocally interesting to me. And I'm increasingly drawn to electronic and ambient works that inspire a sense of awe or joy or wonder or anger or grief or dread without the need for legible words.
I love music that is "cinematic," in that its makers compose with a sense of how their songs might evoke imagery, as if they're scoring a film that exists solely within their minds, but that the listener becomes privy to when they let their own imagination loose inside the contours of the album. Bodied is then the score to an unmade science fiction film, a haunting, hollowed out, foreboding piece of widescreen, Brutalist, speaker-rattling, synth-damaged minimalism, indebted in equal parts to Blade Runner and The Terminator. It is the sound of speeding away from an unseen threat across a future-shocked landscape, and for whatever reason, it is music filled with a sense of danger that I find the most comforting during times like these...
For my 100th post ever on kingsfans I select Aida by Derek Bailey in the seventh round of the TTDS - 2020 Shelter-in-Place on a Desert Island Music Draft. All guitar players use their instrument as a tool to create music, but in doing so Derek Bailey transcends that act by creating a celebration of not just his music but the guitar itself. Using highly articulated picking, harmonics, and rapping across the strings, he allows the listener to focus on the fundamental sounds of the guitar by ignoring compositional conventions. It's just his fingers, the fret board, the strings, and the tone. And it is absolutely beautiful.
Tracklist
01 - Paris
02 - Niigata Snow
03 - An Echo in Another's Mind
Tracklist
01 - Paris
02 - Niigata Snow
03 - An Echo in Another's Mind
At the Drive-In - Relationship of Command (2000)
(https://www.allmusic.com/album/relationship-of-command-mw0000099225)
01. Arcarsenal
02. Pattern Against User
03. One Armed Scissor
04. Sleepwalk Capsules
05. Invalid Litter Dept.
06. Mannequin Republic
07. Enfilade
08. Rolodex Propaganda
09. Quarantined
10. Cosmonaut
11. Non-Zero Possibility
Okay so here's the story:
(https://www.allmusic.com/album/relationship-of-command-mw0000099225)
01. Arcarsenal
02. Pattern Against User
03. One Armed Scissor
04. Sleepwalk Capsules
05. Invalid Litter Dept.
06. Mannequin Republic
07. Enfilade
08. Rolodex Propaganda
09. Quarantined
10. Cosmonaut
11. Non-Zero Possibility
You're five kids from El Paso, TX. You've spent the last 7 years tirelessly driving all over the country in a beat up old van playing basement shows, bowling alleys, and clubs for a few dozen people at a time. You've just put out an album that's poised to become the next big thing. MTV is playing your new single in heavy rotation and everybody is talking about your explosive live show. What do you do now? Promptly call it quits of course! Although Cedric Bixler-Zavala, Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, Tony Hajjar, Jim Ward, and Paul Hinojos never really called it quits, they just fractured into two separate bands as if in some alternate reality where Bono and The Edge decided they were going to ditch their rhythm section and break out on their own and Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen said "oh yeah? Us too"
Just listening to Relationship of Command you can tell it was difficult to make. Every one of these songs is so stuffed full of ideas that it's no wonder the tension blew things apart. But as much as I enjoy these musicians in their other side projects, together as At the Drive-In is where everything came together in a perfect balance. Cedric's "Captain Ahab on the deck of the Pequod in a hurricane" vocals are front and center but Jim Ward's counterpoints are always perfectly placed. Similarly, Jim and Omar weave their guitar parts in and out of each other and manage to be both rhythmically driving and melodically unpredictable. Paul's Stingray bass honks and growls like I always wish recorded bass tracks would. And Tony calmly holds everything together from within the eye of the hurricane.
20 years later this is still an exhilarating listen, at turns ferocious and contemplative. Just when you think you've got them figured out they make a left turn on Invalid Litter Dept. into atmospheric ambient territory then wind it all back up again with some choreographed screaming. The singles are front-loaded but the second half of the album is arguably its stronger half, more creative and dynamic with songs that dance around and refuse to settle into one position for long. Cedric and Jim's tag team chorus on Enfilade might be my favorite bit, at least until that bass line kicks off Quarantined. Or maybe it's the haunted house piano noodling of Non-Zero Possibility. Who can say? I've only ever listened to this album one way: straight through from beginning to end.
Hmm, do I have anything personal to add about this album? It pretty much melted my brain the first time I heard it and I immediately went off in a frenzy searching for anything remotely similar. I've only seen them once live but it was the most insane show I've ever been to. As soon as the first song started the whole front of the crowd just exploded into a frenzy of people going nuts and slamming into each other. There were times when the force of the crowd physically picked me up an inch off the ground, moved me a few feet to one side, and then put me down again. By the end of the show I was drenched in other people's sweat. I remember thinking this is absolute anarchy and someone is going to get hurt but there was a moment a few songs in when somebody fell to the ground and the crowd spontaneously backed up and formed a protective barrier around them so they could get back up again, and then everyone promptly resumed thrashing around again. It was a beautiful moment and it made me realize that nobody there was trying to hurt anyone, it was just about being free and for the next 90 minutes or so I allowed my own ego to melt away and felt completely part of something for maybe the first time in my life.
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