I’ve been meaning to do something similar to this for years now. Essentially, I want to induct bands and/or specific albums into what I will call the Indie Canon: those artists and albums that have already exhibited staying power and/or independent scene importance as well as the indie zeitgeist that will hang around if all goes well. After all, a canon is Continue reading
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Spreadsheeting
3 OctIt’s not a hobby. I have an unhealthy obsession with spreadsheeting.
Anyone who knows me well knows that I am a disorganized, dumpy piece of shit. That is true for the most part; however, I spend a lot of time organizing the things that I actually care about (i.e. music, movies, books, video games etc…)
My DVD’s are organized alpha by title and sequestered into movies, box sets, television, documentaries and music. In similar fashion, my books are Continue reading
The Auteurs – New Wave
29 Sep
New Wave by The Auteurs (1993)
This debut album has a slew of great tracks. The Auteurs, unlike Oasis and Blur, find themselves amongst a number of other Britpop bands that never made a [big] name for themselves in the US: namely Suede, Pulp and Denim. (I feel like I need to start a Britpop band named “Flannel”…who’s with me?) The Auteurs’ sound, Continue reading
last.fm Adult
27 SepI have had a last.fm account for almost two and a half years now. I started one at the recommendation of a friend after the untimely death of my first external hard drive, Gigi. When I purchased my current hard drive and “re-acquired” the bulk of my albums, I thought it might be fun to track my musical life going forward. I am a total statistic shill and so a last.fm profile seemed like a must have. Of course I would have had a vague idea as to Continue reading
Human League Show 9/23/2011
26 Sep
The Setlist:
1. Never Let Me Go
2. Open Your Heart
3. Sound of the Crowd
4. Heart Like A Wheel
5. The Lebanon
6. Egomaniac
7. Empire State Human
8. Night People
9. Human
10. Love Action
11. All I Ever Wanted
12. Tell Me When
13. Mirror Man
14. (Keep Feeling) Fascination
15. Don’t You Want Me
Encore
16. Being Boiled
17. Together in Electric Dreams
I never thought that I would get to see the Human League and so this past Friday was a total treat. That being said, the concert followed a disastrous 6 1/2 hour car-ride from Albany to NYC thanks to being gridlocked in New Jersey traffic. I missed the opener, Men Without Hats. I can’t say that I care. There was a major novelty factor there, but I’m not sure that I could have stomached a 40-minute set by a legitimate one-hit wonder. For all I know they played a 40 minute “Safety Dance.”
I arrived at the Best Buy Theater at 8:55 drenched (from rain in case there was any question), which gave me just enough time to order three tall-boys at the bar and catch the second half of “Never Let Me Go.” I have to admit…they sounded phenomenal. I was also pleased that a band that was touring to promote a new album wasn’t afraid to have their set span their catalog. Despite their popularity reaching the US in singles like “Don’t You Want Me” and “(Keep Feeling) Fascination,” the Human League had much greater success across the Atlantic. And honestly, what I’ve heard off of their new album is not bad at all.
Phil Oakey was a little less androgynous than usual. He, now bald, began with an occupied Europe-esque pleather frock and then changed into a white frill-less tunic. I have to admit, Susanne Sulley looked pretty GILFy in her white applique dress. The background visuals were great. Most memorably: sheep tourists visited international monuments during “Sound of the Crowd,” clips of Fritz Lang’s “Metropolis” looped during “Heart Like A Wheel,” and a warp scene from Super Mario 3 was spliced into a black and white romance flick for “Together in Electric Dreams.” There was definitely some Tron in there too…
I, like everybody else, raged when they sang “Don’t You Want Me” (I apologize for my drunken, tone-deaf singing on the video…I had a few more tall-boys under my belt at that point), but I have to admit that that song is still one of my favorite pop songs of all time regardless of its relegation to the realm of one-hit wonderdom in the US.
Overall, the concert was very entertaining despite the car ride down and the hot mess behind me who dumped her whiskey and soda all over my back before nose-diving in a puddle. I did try to help her up until she got combative. “Leave me alone I’m fine!” Ok, bitch, sit in a puddle.
Early on in the concert, Oakey humbly remarked that the band members were all fans of their rock contemporaries like Television and T. Rex, but they were looking for something that people would not only enjoy, but could dance to. It was synth-pop, and they spearheaded the movement.
Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti – Before Today
19 Sep
Before Today by Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti (2010)
I was introduced to Ariel Pink’s Worn Copy and The Doldrums in college by my glorious roommate, Robakabob. Before Today isn’t a complete departure from the Ariel Pink that I knew and loved [parts of], but it is certainly a more focused and market-saavy approach. It is technically Pink’s 10th album. His albums prior to Before Today were often sprawling, lacked consistency and were even unlistenable at times—not unlike his mentor Continue reading
The Olivia Tremor Control – Music From the Unrealized Film Script, Dusk at Cubist Castle
11 Sep
Music From the Unrealized Film Script, Dusk at Cubist Castle by The Olivia Tremor Control (1996)
The Olivia Tremor Control’s first album, Dusk at Cubist Castle, is a psych pop tour de force. It is supposed to be the soundtrack for an unreleased film about two girls, Olivia and Jacqueline, and an apocalyptic quake in California. The album offers a wide range of genre exploration: neopsychadelia, indie rock, lo-fi, folk, Krautrock, surf rock and noise. The first time I listened to it, I expected Continue reading
David Bowie: Repo Man
5 Sep
In 1977, David Bowie teamed up with Iggy Pop to “co-write” and produce The Idiot. The Stooges had been defunct for about three years and Pop, thanks to copious amounts of drugs, was also defunct. With Bowie’s direction, The Idiot was a great success and was able to effectively keep Iggy Pop’s name on the pop/rock radar. Continue reading
The dB’s – Stands for Decibels
4 Sep
Stands for Decibels by The dB’s (1981)
This debut album is experimental and mercilessly catchy. Chris Stamey (formerly of The Sneakers) and Peter Holsapple take a creative approach to the blossoming genre of power pop. Stamey’s post-punk/psychedelic leanings and love of playing with sound(s) are reined in by Holsapple’s more conventional, simple songwriting that is at the same time completely infectious.
The album starts off with a powerful Continue reading
Sound Ordinance
31 AugAccording to an electronic sign on Lark Street, the City of Albany now has a sound ordinance for “loud, audible music” playing in cars. Not five minutes after I saw that sign, flashing lights came up behind me on Madison Avenue while I was blaring Gary Numan. I turned the music down at once and stopped at a red light with the officer behind me. When the light turned green, I slowly pulled over to the right. The officer passed by me and sped off down the hill. My heart rate slowed back down and then I just felt like an asshole. I couldn’t help thinking, however, how cool it would be to have a ticket for blasting “The Pleasure Principle.”
the self-hating hipster 