Assesments

Mission Of Burma: Like the Minutemen, they aren't so much punk as acoustic rock and as much as I hate to say it, this didn't draw me in. The guitars on All world cowboy romance were quite impressive, but overall it didn't have the catchy hook of a "Shit from an old notebook" or the smooth softness of "Do you want New Wave or do you want the truth"

Young Marble Giants: Now this? Incredible- these guys flirted with everything from pre 8 bit noises on "The Taxi"(Seriously, these guys coulda been video game composers if they wanted to) to simple guitar pop on "Wurlitzer Juke box" t0 the60s spaghetti western guitar sound on " Choci Loni" and the lady's voice makes it all even more unnerving. No wonder they didn't record another album, it probably couldn't top this one! Bravo kids, bravo!

Next up: Imperial Bedroom and Crazy Rhythms.

In which I peruse selections from the Pitchfork various best album of the (insert decade here)

I went to bed early last night and with not much to do, I decided to check out Pitchfork's picks for best albums of the 70s, 80s, and 90s- here's the ones picked out as most intriguing either due to a lyric sample or description alone:

80s:
Imperial Bedroom-Elvis Costello: apparently, this was quite the personal album. Oh, and I have to thank him for producing Rum,sodomy and the lash of course.
Fear and Whisky-Mekons- described by Eric Carr as a " drunken redneck lecturing on socialist economic policies" I am in!
Signals, Call and Marches- Mission to Burma: Academy fight song is a catchy sonovabitch(okay, it's not on this album, but still) and That's when I reach for my revolver packs an emotional wallop(why the fuck hasn't it been used in some remake of Hamlet?) so why else wouldn't you want to listen?

Crazy Rythyms- The Feelies: Being impressed with their cover of Paint it Black,making the sitar filled classic into a low key yet rallying cry for raining on people's parades(I assume) and their original Boy with Perpetual nervousness, I decided to check out the rest of their album. Oh and Brendan reid says they were a precursor to Weezer only obviously not as creepy as River Cumuo(let's hope)

And don't the Kids just love it- Televison Personalities:Pitchfork sez these guys invented Twee, but to me, stuff like This Angry Silence or Part time punk highlights something darker: it's basically a much sadder version of Charlie Brown. Twee's actually more cheerful even when it talks about relationship problems

Colossal Youth-Young Marble Giants: The final Day is a short, disturbing gem, and apparently, the morbidly fascinating idea of the apocalypse haunts the rest of the album too:

Though the album's spare, perfectly placed strokes of guitar, bass, organ, and voice would have more of an effect on mopey slowcore types and basement four-trackers, the ineffable thing about the Giants' music was how simultaneously haunting and cheery they could be. "Eating Noddemix" is music for brushing your teeth to the morning after an apocalypse, and the inimitable "Wurlitzer Jukebox" is a dance track for the last man on earth, with a geiger counter relentlessly ticking out the beat. Om, baby, yeah. --Brendan Reid

Brushing teeth?A Geiger counter? Oh Boy!

E2-E4-Manuel Göttsching. The last name alone sold me

70s:

Band of Gypsies- Jimi Hendrix: Never heard this one, nuff said.

A tribute to Jack Johnson-Miles Davis: Not a fan of boxing,but this somehow intriguied me

Historie de Melody Nelson-Serge Gainsbourg: Apparently a very creepy album about Serge's ladyfriend. Sounds like another precursor to Pinkerton

I'll do the 90s list tomorrow, but today's selection I chose to download Young Marble Giants' Colossal Youth and Misson Of Burma's Signals, Calls and Marches. My reviews will come soon.

Book O Mormon

Didn't get to see the musical,but I got the broadway cast recording and shall be listening to it. Methinks "Fuck you, God" may very well be on par with that of The Pogues' gallows humor, vulgar semi religious anthems such as Sickbed of Cuchulain or Sally Mcleanne, but we shall see.

read this man's blog

it's good

Doug Fieger, you wicked dead bastard

Why? Why in god's name must My Sharona be so fucking catchy enough for me to listen to it three times in a row? I think I'm gonna listen to it a fourth time..ooh yes.
Is their first album actually in any good?

oh Drunksongs blog-

How I miss thee

Along with Something I learned today, 7 inch punk, and Born in the basement(where'd that one get off to?), this blog opened me up to a whole slew of punk sub genres. It took a long, long time for me to determine who exactly my favorites were(the selection was overwhelming and back then, I could only judge whether I liked it or not based on "catchiness"),but they certainly introduced me to good stuff like Descendent's 'Merican and The Specials. God bless them.

Boys of Summer

This is the only Eagles associated song I will ever tolerate; it's an interesting parallel to songs The Descendants, particularly Silly Girl and Hope, all of which lament onof lost love, but Henley represents the regret that comes later in life. Rather than simply obsess over the girl who got away and vow that he's the only one for her, Henley pines for her while also realizing his juvenile foolishness("Don't look back, you can never look back"). Sure, he's still in love with her, but at least he's honest about his behavior, if not necessarily outright self loathing. There's a similar structure in Pulp's Common People(I'll get to that one later); Jarvis starts out berating his supposed love interest about how lower class people live, but as the song builds , he turns inward, revealing his hatred for himself and the way his life turned out. While Milo Ackerman had a whole 20 years or so in front of him during Milo Goes to College 40 something Henley was trapped between the nostalgia of youth and embracing a sad existence as an adult in the bleak year of 1985.