J's Indie/Rock Mayhem - 1st July 2009

[Welcome to another edition of J's Indie/Rock Mayhem. As usual for this summer, this week's show is filled to the brim with new music. I actually had to avoid some of it in order to work in some of my 4th of July themed songs, but that's how it goes. I can play more new music next week - it'll be a little dated to play more 4th stuff.

I want to share some awesome Greensboro related news - our good friends at Monkeywhale were recently named by Paste Magazine's website as one of the seven best out-of-context concert sites on the web. They were named along with other fantastic sites like Pitchfork.tv and The Black Cab Sessions - great series sites that operate on a much bigger budget. The fact that the Harvey's Kitchen series was named along with these shows just how great the work that Harvey and company are doing is compared to even some of the biggest names in music on the web. Congrats, guys!

Now, while the fuse is still lit, onward.]

J's Indie/Rock Podcast: 1st July 2009 Show

Theme Song - Peaches - "Rock Show"
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Sonic Youth - "Sacred Trickster" [from the eternal. short, punchy, kim gordon vocals. a combo that has yielded some awesome sonic youth songs over the years and this is no exception.]
the Decemberists - "July, July!" [from castaways and cutouts. since it was the first of july, it felt only fitting to dabble with some july themed songs during the show. same with the upcoming july 4th. so keep your eyes open.]
Meat Puppets - "Sewn Together" [the title track from their latest. a pretty enjoyable little record. is it bad that my expectations for late-period albums by bands is really a lot lower than for earlier work?]
Obits - "Widow of My Dreams" [from i blame you. man, i'm telling you, this record is hot. really, really hot.]
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Future of the Left - "I Am Civil Service" [from travels with myself and another. this record is quite good - i said it already, but this is future of the left hitting its stride. and as the tragically hip sang, "there's nothing uglier than a man hittin' his stride."]
the Tragically Hip - "Fireworks" [from phantom power. "you said you didn't give a fuck about hockey / and i never saw someone say that before." how quaintly canadian.]
Dinosaur Jr. - "Friends" [from farm. is this one of the best records of 2009? it's awfully, awfully good. that's for sure.]
Megafaun - "The Fade" [from gather, form and fly which is due out towards the end of july. i'm so excited to hear this whole album. these guys are phoenominal and this song will not leave my head.]
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Mos Def - "Auditorium" [from the new the ecstatic. slick rick does a guest verse on this and this may be one of my favorite single songs of this year. we'll be hearing more.]
X - "4th of July" [from see how we are. for cromer, who first got me to pull this out a few years ago on the 4th.]
the Pains of Being Pure at Heart - "The Tenure Itch" [from their self-titled debut LP. i'm so excited to finally get a chance to see them - this month at the pitchfork festival, at monolith in september and they're returning to chapel hill around that time as well.]
Sunset Rubdown - "Silver Moons" [from dragonslayer. i get what's really interesting about this music - and an obvious load of talent goes into it. but, and this is me being narrow minded, it sounds like a lot of other oddly structured indie rock and it just doesn't grab me emotionally at all. maybe it'll grow on me.]
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Wilco - "One Wing" [from wilco (the album). check out the really well written review over at aquarium drunkard. this is probably my favorite song on the album.]
Ryan Adams - "Firecracker" [from gold. it might be time that i give gold the second listen it's been begging for. it was always a bit slick for my taste - with songs like this and a handful of others being standouts.]
Son Volt - "When the Wheels Don't Move" [from american central dust which is due out next week. son volt is playing at the cat's cradle on sunday, september 13th. finally a chance to see them again and where will i be? yeah, out of town.]
Citified - "Pencil Me In" [from absence. check out the fantastic off the record post the band did over at aquarium drunkard talking about the fun and interesting spots here in greensboro.]
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the Handsome Family - "Junebugs" [one of the many love songs from honey moon. rennie sparks' lyrics are so sweetly macabre here that you can't help but marvel at the beauty of her lyrics.]
Slim Dunlap - "Hate This Town" [from times like this. both of slim's solo records are solid pieces of rock from a really awesome guitarist who, i think, never gets his due - hidden as he is in the long, towering shadow of bob stinson.]
the Minus 5 - "Smoke On, Jerry" [from killingsworth which is out later this month.]
Swirlies - "Who was in Scituate on the 4th of July?" [from strictly east coast sneaky flute music. this is later swirlies - 1998 to be exact. something awesome - and no longer any reason to avoid hearing this amazing band - pretty much their entire catalogue is available for download for free from the band's website. so while you can buy the records from emusic and other outlets, you can also get them for free, including probably the band's masterpiece, blonder tongue audio baton. amazing that they have the rights to all the music to be able to do that, honestly.]
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Cotton Jones - "Gotta Cheer Up" [by request. from paranoid cocoon.]
Stephen Malkmus - "Trojan Curfew" [from his self-titled debut solo album. there are some gorgeous, gorgeous moments on this record. this is one of them.]
Samantha Crain and the Midnight Shivers - "Devils in Boston" [an awesome rocker from songs in the night. if you didn't see her two live songs over at monkeywhale, go get 'em.]
Black Flag - "Rise Above" [from damaged. i knew this probably felt a bit incongruous, but i've been re-reading parts of our band could be your life and it just felt right.]
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Frankel - "Ticket Machine" [from anonymity is the new fame. gorgeous stuff, that frankel.]
Cursive - "From the Hips" [by request. from mama, i'm swollen. what an odd name. anyway, the lyrics to this song are like a thinking man's sexin'/dancin' song. or someone who thinks way too much, anyway.]
Sleeper - "Delicious" [from smart. so, while again perusing giant book sale over on wendover avenue, i discovered a couple of novels by louise wener, lead singer of sleeper. apparently she's on her third. i picked up a copy of goodbye, steve mcqueen, but haven't started yet. i'll let you know. i had a huge crush on her back in the day. her and justine frischmann of elastica. ye gads, those british women with songwriting chops.]
2 Live Crew - "Banned in the U.S.A." [the song the band recorded as a response to their double-platinum as nasty as they wanna be's ban in florida record stores. if you're not familiar with this whole debacle, it's one of the more interesting first amendment cases to erupt over music - dead kennedy's fight for the frankenchrist poster insert is another fascinating one - in recent time.]
Jay Bennett and Edward Burch - "Fireworks" [from the palace at 4 AM. a lovely song and going out with fireworks leading into the 4th.]

That'll do it for this week. I'll see you at 10 PM next Monday night for a slightly earlier edition of J's Extra Mayhem. Until then, take care.

Extra Mayhem - 30th June 2009

[Tonight's Extra Mayhem was a fun, but honestly underwhelming theme set, but a great Wholesale album. Who knew? I wanted to do something Michael Jackson related for the theme, so I went with "The King of Pop" as the theme - unfortunately, I don't think it worked as well as I'd hoped. The songs are great, I just don't think they tie in as well. I think "Green" has been the best theme week so far. I need to get back to that level.

Extra Mayhem next week will be on at 10 PM instead of 12 AM. Eric, the DJ in front of me, is going to be out of town, so I'm bumping up so I can get home a bit earlier. Any thoughts on whether the Wholesale album should be during the 10 PM or 11 PM hour?

Now, while I'm still awake, onward.]

J's Extra Podcast: 30th June 2009 Show

the Jackson 5 - "I Want You Back" [the theme is bookended by jackson songs - this is my all time favorite jackson 5 song, so it seemed fitting.]
the Heads with Michael Hutchence - "The King is Gone" [from no talking, just head. if you've never heard this record..well..i don't know that i'd recommend it. this was in the immediate aftermath of the talking heads breaking up and there was an ongoing fight about use of the name. so the band (minus david byrne) released an album as 'the heads' with various singers filling in for byrne. this isn't a bad song by any means - in fact, i quite like it - but the record on the whole is meh.]
Pavement - "No More Kings" [available on the wowee zowee: sordid sentinels edition, but also originally from the schoolhouse rock! rocks tribute album. pavement's take on an educational tune.]
Josh Ritter - "Leaves and Kings" [from his self-titled debut. that album has never won me over terribly, but there are some solid songs on it - this one included.]
Golden Smog - "Radio King" [from down by the old mainstream - the title phrase is included in this song. this is one of tweedy's sung songs.]
Luna - "Rhythm King" [from penthouse. a really amazing record if you haven't let it grace your ears. you'll thank me later.]
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Blur - "Pop Scene" [from modern life is rubbish, an album i've seriously considered playing for the wholesale feature some week. i love the guitar work in this song.]
Okkervil River - "Pop Lie" [from the stand ins. a gem of a catchy song from a gem of a great band.]
the Smithereens - "Top of the Pops" [from blow up. not the best smithereens song ever - i agree with the all music review that says it's about a minute too long - but it certainly gets at the point.]
Greg Dulli - "King Only" (live) [from live at triple door. a take on a song from the twilight singers' first album. it sounds much better here - i love the twilight singers, but have always been lukewarm on that first album.]
Randy Newman - "Lonely at the Top" [from sail away. i know there's a snarky nature to any randy newman song, but there's something genuine to the narrator's despair - something i have to imagine jackson felt as well.]
Michael Jackson - "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" [from off the wall. this is, quite possibly, my favorite jackson solo song. it's just ridiculously well put together and catchy.]

[Tonight's Wholesale album is one of those 'genre' defining albums you hear about from time to time. The 80s were an interesting time in country music that began to see the slow commercial dissolution of traditionalist country and the rise of the more pop-oriented sound that now dominates commercial country radio. But there were a handful of songwriters who refused to go down that road and they all began to emerge from places as expected as Texas (Nanci Griffith, Steve Earle, Lucinda Williams) and as unexpected as California. Although that's a touch misleading - Bakersfield, California had long been a hotbed for artists like Buck Owens and Merle Haggard. So it makes sense that this place would draw a hotheaded songwriter originally from Kentucky, by way of Ohio, named Dwight Yoakam.

But it wasn't just the country lineage that drew Yoakam in after a disheartening stay in Nashville. It was the fact that the local scene was packed with not just bands drawing on the 50s traditions of country, but also the classic traditions of rock and roll as well. X, the Blasters and Los Lobos (as well as other bands like the Dead Kennedys) played in the same clubs that Yoakam would frequent and this cross-breeding of traditionalist country and the snotty, outlaw attitude of punk and post-punk would end up growing a fearsome songwriter and musician in Yoakam.

Although the initial demos for his debut were recorded in 1981, it wouldn't be until 1986 that his debut album would drop on Reprise Records and help kickstart the "new traditionalist" movement that still has devoted followers today and segued perfectly with the budding "alt-country" movement that was about to see its most well known and influential band, Uncle Tupelo, get its start in just a few years. Tonight's Wholesale album is...]

Track Listing

1. Honky Tonk Man
2. It Won't Hurt [click here to listen]
3. I'll Be Gone
4. South of Cincinnati
5. Bury Me
6. Guitars, Cadillacs [click here to listen]
7. Twenty Years
8. Ring of Fire
9. Miner's Prayer
10. Heartaches by the Number

That'll do it for this week. Make sure to tune in two hours early next Monday night for Extra Mayhem and I'll be back this Wednesday with J's Indie/Rock Mayhem. Until then, take care.

J's Indie/Rock Mayhem - 24th June 2009

[Welcome to another edition of J's Indie/Rock Mayhem. It's a bit late, but I blame that on listener Heather inviting me out for trivia night at the Green Burro. I can't resist trivia - that's the Quiz Bowl player/coach in me. Tonight's show is chock full of goodness though.

If you haven't started checking out Extra Mayhem yet, please do. This week's was a humdinger of an episode with the theme of "green" and Big Star's Radio City played in its entirety. One whole classic album and a bunch of connected songs. How can you go wrong? Monday nights/Tuesday mornings at midnight on WQFS.

Now, while we can, onward.]

J's Indie/Rock Podcast: 24th June 2009 Show

Theme Song - Peaches - "Rock Show"
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Future of the Left - "Arming Eritrea" [from travels with myself and another. this album has been getting crazy good reviews and it looks like, on their sophomore effort, they've truly found their rhythm as a band. curses was good, but this is phenomenal.]
Mansun - "Negative" [from six. it takes some patience with prog rock ideas, but i love the first two mansun albums. this song is way up on my list of their best.]
Sonic Youth - "No Way" [from the eternal. if you didn't catch them playing this live on jimmy fallon earlier this week, go get it. it's an excellent performance.]
Patterson Hood - "Pollyanna" [from the new murdering oscar (and other love songs). this is one of my favorites - it's interesting to hear patterson's "solo" stuff with a full backing band.]
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J's Indie/Rock First Times - Jay Farrar - Click to Listen [i did an interview last week with son volt's jay farrar and here he talks about his first concert. if you'd like to read the whole interview, head on over to aquarium drunkard for the goods.]
Son Volt - "Down to the Wire" [from the forthcoming american central dust which is, seriously, really, really good. not been a big fan of son volt version 2.0 so far? this album might bring you back to the fold.]
Guided by Voices - "Glad Girls" [from isolation drills. one of the most sheer moments of pop abandonment in the GBV catalogue. ah, singles.]
Citified - "Dutiful Scout" [from the absence EP. such good stuff, this citified. i'm an unapologetic fan.]
Rock Plaza Central - "The Hot Blind Earth" [from in the moment of our most needing.. which just came out this week. i did an interview with the band which will be up on aquarium drunkard within the next couple of weeks. stay tuned.]
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Dinosaur Jr. - "Your Weather" [from farm which dropped this week. this is one of the lou barlow songs from the album and this record is fantastic. better than beyond. seriously.]
the Damnwells - "What You Get" [from bastards of the beat. what an awesome band these guys are. every album is solid and fantastic.]
the Bronzed Chorus - "Underpass Sunrise" [from i'm the spring. a seriously great song and i'm telling you, these guys are something. check out their myspace for more.]
the Minus 5 - "The Disembowlers" [from killingsworth which is due out in early july. it's a solid record - i'm not sure i'm as big on it as i was down with wilco and the self-titled record, but it's still really good.]
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Polvo - "Beggar's Bowl" [from the forthcoming in prisms which is due out in september. back on merge records and man, they sound good. check out the song over at stereogum.]
the Afghan Whigs - "I Keep Coming Back" [from gentlemen. a cover of the tyrone davis stone classic. the original is awesome, but dulli treats it right, that's for sure.]
Akron/Family - "River" [from set 'em high, set 'em free. just got word that they're going to be playing an awesome music festival, transfigurations, up in asheville, north carolina, august 13th through the 15th. mount eerie, bonnie 'prince' billy, the books, brightblack morning light and a few others. ought to be awesome.]
Kurt Vile - "Freeway" [from constant hitmaker. kurt will also be at the transfiguration festival. amazing.]
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Spiral Stairs - "Maltese Terrier" [from the forthcoming the real feel. spiral stairs, aka scott kannberg, formerly of pavement, is releasing his first official solo record - as opposed to the preston school of industry records he's been doing since pavement. the album's not out until october, but the matador records blog has this song up for download now. go snag it.]
Matthew Sweet - "Where You Get Love" [from blue sky on mars. you know, there are some solid singles on this record. would i recommend it to anyone who isn't a pretty big sweet fan? absolutely not.]
Fruit Bats - "My Unusual Friend" [by request. from the ruminant band. i like the email requests i get during the week. if there's something you want to hear, fire away: qfsmayhem -at- hotmail dot com.]
the Church - "Anchorage" [from the solid untitled #23. i'm really enjoying this record. they're playing up in maryland this weekend. closest they're coming to NC unfortunately.]
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the Roadside Graves - "Anthony's Gate" [from my son's home. this is definitely one of your must-hears for 2009. it's a solid, loping record that seems way too big (18 tracks) but by the time you're done, feels just right. amazingly crafted.]
Liz Durrett - "Wild as Them" [from outside our gates. aquarium drunkard is sponsoring a show at athfest this weekend. liz durrett will be playing there along with another band we'll see here in a second..]
Frankel - "Anonymity is the New Fame" [the title track from his new album. amazing stuff. fans of elliot smith and just well crafted, subdued pop music, come hither.]
Circulatory System - "Symbols and Maps" [from their self-titled album. they'll be playing at the AD sponsored athfest show this weekend AND at the aforementioned transfigurations fest up in asheville in august. super exciting.]
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Grand Archives - "Silver Among the Gold" [by request. from mind frankenstein. i need to hear a lot more of these guys, 'cos this song is...amazing.]
Samantha Crain and The Midnight Shivers - "Songs in the Night" [the title track from their latest. beautiful music that is well worth hearing.]
Jim White - "Jailbird" (live) [from a funny little cross to bear EP. i've been enjoying this live version especially since this EP came out. beautiful, sorrowful stuff.]

That'll do it for this week. I'll be back Monday night for Extra Mayhem. Until then, take care. RIP, Michael Jackson.

Extra Mayhem - 23rd June 2009

[Welcome to another Extra Mayhem. Tonight's theme was the color green. I've been aiming to tie in themes to current events, so this one was timed to tie in with the political situation currently going on in Iran. Green has been the color of the protesters who have been arguing for a recount and examination of the recent election results. So it seemed appropriate and turned into one hell of a show, especially combined with tonight's Wholesale album. The podcast of the theme show goes about half an hour longer than normal as I had a ton of stuff to fit in, but it was definitely worth it.

Now, because it's late and I would like to sleep at some juncture, onward.]

J's Extra Podcast: 23rd June 2009 Show

Kermit the Frog - "Bein' Green" [so, first off, i mislabeled the song on the podcast. i always assumed it was called "it's not easy being green," but i'm wrong. this was written by joe raposo for kermit to sing in the first season of sesame street and it's been associated with him ever since. i could be really correct and say jim henson was performing this, but c'mon people.]
Blitzen Trapper - "The Green King Sings" [from wild mountain nation. i do so enjoy blitzen trapper.]
Vic Mizzy/Eddie Albert/Eva Gabor - "Green Acres" [i wasn't sure at all how to label this. vic mizzy was the composer and, of course, the stars of the show, eddie albert and eva gabor, are the voices actually singing the song. my parents actually allowed me to move my bedtime back half an hour when i was younger in order to watch green acres on nick at nite. i still think it's a prime example of brilliant absurdist comedy.]
R.E.M. - "Green Grow the Rushes" [from fables of the reconstruction. to clarify from my utter confusion on-air, this was their third album. a very memorable r.e.m. guitar line if there ever was one, too.]
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Chris Stamey - "Shades of Green" [from travels in the south. i've always enjoyed this song a lot - it's very sentimental in its remembrance of recklessness. it reminds me of the song "rebellious" by kacy crowley.]
Deerhunter - "Green Jacket" [from microcastle. deerhunter is a pretty unique band - i don't care if their name gets confused with all the other 'deer' names.]
Type O Negative - "Green Man" [from october rust. you know, i'll stick up for type o negative. i know i only pull them out for certain theme shows, but i still enjoy playing october rust every so often. it's big, silly fun in a way that was never quite as showy and over the top as the same sort of big-rock mockery that marilyn manson styled himself with.]
Green Jelly - "Three Little Pigs" [from cereal killer soundtrack. a song that had my ear from the first time i ever saw the video on mtv back when i first started listening to music. compare the podcast to the video and see if you can catch the seamless editing job lyrically.]
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Charizma and Peanut Butter Wolf - "Red Light Green Light" [from their one and only album, big ideas. great early 90s hip-hop. and i like the conceit of the song, too.]
Sonic Youth - "Green Light" [from evol. i was just discussing with a friend earlier tonight how neither of us have any sincere love for early sonic youth. i know it's a failing on my part, but my top three sonic youth records are all from either the 90s or the 00s. and then this song popped into my set just to prove me wrong. not bad.]
Elvis Hitler - "Green Haze" [from disgraceland. an early form of the mash-up? i love the absurdity of this song and yet, it's so catchy and rockin'. credit warren defever who would go on to form the completely different and amazing his name is alive.]
Yo La Tengo - "Green Arrow" [from i can hear the heart beating as one. a lovely instrumental track.]
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Shakin' Stevens - "Green Door" [i've never heard another song by this guy, but i downloaded this years ago because it was the number one song in the UK on the day i was born. it's a throw-back sounding cut of rock and roll and pretty fun, really.]
Miles Davis - "Blue in Green" [from kind of blue. it being summertime, it'll be time to pull out kind of blue and to revel in its amazing tones. that album is an experience.]
Gist - "Greener Grass" [from the c81 compilation. we talked about c86 music a lot here recently, but before the NME put that comp out in 1986, there was an earlier post-punk heavy comp in 1981. back when i did a piece on c86 for aquarium drunkard, a person in comments was nice enough to link to their blog where they had made the c81 comp available. so go snag it if you're interested.]
the National - "Green Gloves" [from boxer. one of the band's finest moments, without a doubt.
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the Olivia Tremor Control - "Green Typewriters" [from ..dusk at cubist castle. on the album, "green typewriters" appears as tracks 12 through 21 and, indeed, the song does appear as 9 parts. landed smack in the middle, as it does, of an album full of hazy psychedelic pop, its shards of musique concrete and pop majesty are really affecting. i get kinda hyper when talking about this band, so better you just listen to all 23 minutes of it yourself.]

[Tonight's Wholesale album took a bit of debate to choose. Not because I was picking between bands, but because I was picking between albums by one band. Namely the first two records by Big Star. Both of them got a reissue this past week with the re-packaging of the 2-for-1 CD edition of #1 Record and Radio City, their first two albums, respectively. The new reissue doesn't add much to the first CD issue - a couple of single edits as bonus tracks - but at least they are back in print this way. A 4 CD box set of all of their albums plus a ton of outtakes and live recordings is due in the late summer.

Why did I end up going with Radio City? Two words: "September Gurls." On my list of perfect pop songs, it stands, nay, towers above so many - rivaled only, really, by the La's "There She Goes" in terms of pure, pop perfection. It's also a bit darker and more desperate than #1 Record. That album's pop-sweetness held it together - here the overall affect is much more unsettling and urgent. It's an amazing record that is an important piece of the power-pop puzzle. Tonight's Wholesale album of the week is..]

Track Listing

1. O My Soul [click here to listen]
2. Life Is White
3. Way Out West
4. What's Going Ahn
5. You Get What You Deserve
6. Mod Lang
7. Back of a Car
8. Daisy Glaze
9. She's a Mover
10. September Gurls [click here to listen]
11. Morpha Too
12. I'm In Love With a Girl

That'll do it for another Extra Mayhem. I'll be back on Wednesday for Indie/Rock Mayhem. Until then, take care.

J's Indie/Rock Mayhem - 17th June 2009

[And welcome to another rip-roaring edition of J's Indie/Rock Mayhem. Tonight's show was, to say the least, fiery and a lot of fun. Perhaps it was my new haircut that did it. Who knows. Alls I know is that tonight's show was a hum-dinger.

Don't forget to tune in to the weekly summer-only show, J's Extra Mayhem, Monday nights/Tuesday mornings from midnight - 2 AM on WQFS. A classic album in its entirety played during the first hour and a theme set of songs during the second. Take a read through this week's show to see the teaser for the Wholesale album for next week. You can also catch the podcasts of the theme hour and catch advance notices of the album and theme at the J's Indie/Rock Twitter. All the more reasons to connect yourself technologically to me.

Now, before I start dropping more anachronistic phrases, onward.]

J's Indie/Rock Podcast: 17th June 2009 Show

Theme Song - Peaches - "Rock Show"
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Animal Collective - "My Girls" [from merriwether post pavillion. i ended up being kinda middling about this album, but this song is still exemplary. it could be that animal collective just isn't my thing, despite all the plaudits.]
the Happy Mondays - "Kinky Afro" [from pills 'n' thrills and bellyaches. but speaking of my thing - the happy mondays most certainly are. if i hadn't covered this on extra mayhem a couple of summers ago, i'd be tempted to pull it out again for the wholesale album feature.]
the Henry Clay People - "Something in the Water" [from for cheap or for free. this ended up being autumn tone records night on the show. autumn tone is, of course, the label run by the head drunkard over at aquarium drunkard and they've been putting out some fantastic records this year. here's the first we encountered - these guys are seriously bound for great things.]
John Doe and the Sadies - "Detroit City" [from country club. doe and the sadies take on a mell tillis-penned classic. i was going to use this on extra mayhem with the theme from last week, but passed and brought it on over here instead. a great cover.]
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Dinosaur Jr. - "Over It" [from the forthcoming farm. man, i've said it before, but dinosaur jr. is easily in the best of reunion bands categories - this, their second post-reunion new album, is shaping up to be every bit as good as beyond was. check out the awesome video for this song.]
Adam Daniel - "Her Shake" [from blue pop. this was included on a mix tape i got years ago and it, seriously, is one of the finest pop songs i've ever heard. power-pop perfection.]
J's Indie/Rock First Times - P.O.S. - Click to Listen [i did an interview a few weeks ago with P.O.S. that should be running on aquarium drunkard in a little bit. here's where he talks about his first concert experience - a combination of two shows - one a little more cred worthy, one a little more cringe worthy. good stuff.]
P.O.S. - "Goodbye" [from never better. a seriously good album if you haven't picked it up. "low light, low life" is a contender for my single of the year, without a doubt.]
Black Moth Super Rainbow - "Tooth Decay" [from eating us. add it to your summertime jam playlist. i'm going to stop using that phrase now - 'summertime jam.' i don't even know anything about that - i need to host a party or something.]
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Future of the Left - "You Need Satan More Than He Needs You" [from the forthcoming travels with myself and another which is out next week. this album is really quite good and may be the band finally finding its legs after their solid debut. we'll be hearing more.]
Mansun - "Wide Open Space" [from attack of the grey lantern. in one of the more pretentious things i've done in my life, i purposely waited until i could buy this album in its original UK format - the US edition scrambled the running order and switched out one song for another. the album was designed with a sequence in mind and it ruins the flow of the record. that said, obviously, i was eventually very happy with my purchase.]
Obits - "Two-Headed Coin" [from i blame you. if you're a hot snakes fan (and really, if you're not, why not?) then make sure you're on top of this - rick froberg's new band and it's hot stuff.]
the Vaselines - "Son of a Gun" [from the new enter the vaselines 2 CD set from sub pop. a great retrospective of a great band.]
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Son Volt - "Dynamite" [from the forthcoming american central dust which, seriously gang, is really, really good. since son volt 2.0 started up, i haven't been immediately grabbed by any of their records, but this one is good. and good from start to finish.]
Rangeboy - "Sounds Like Summer" [a band that no longer exists, although it's main songwriter works now in a band called seamonster that is pretty snazzy as well. this is just unmitigated indie-pop sweetness though and a great song to kick off summertime.]
Citified - "Landlocked" [from the new absence EP. citified will be in raleigh at tir na nog tonight (thursday), in durham at pinhook on friday and in winston-salem at the garage on saturday. three chances to catch local goodness.]
Frankel - "When I Grow Up" [from anonymity is the new fame. the second autumn tone artist of the night and this record is seriously amazing - we'll be hearing tons more.]
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Wilco - "Country Disappeared" [from wilco the album. i've talked to some folks who were sort of underwhelmed by this album, but it's holding pretty solid for me. i'm liking it more than sky blue sky at least. but i sure would like to see them live again.]
Meat Puppets - "I'm Not You" [from the new sewn together. hate that i missed them at the cat's cradle, but this record is holding its own. quite good.]
Big Star - "The Ballad of El Goodo" (live) [from a little big star but also from the big star live album. this is the teaser for next week's wholesale album - it'll be a big star record, but which one? hint: it's not in space.]
the Damnwells - "55 Pictures" [from one last century. seriously, this album is really, really good. alex dezen is a masterful songwriter of those sort of plaintive, heartfelt songs. but he doesn't skimp on the lyrical heft. this is thinking-feller's pop music.]
>
Blair - "Hearts" [from the forthcoming die young which will be out on autumn tone records in august. all i can ever really say about blair is that i like her stuff a lot. and that i will not rest until i have her on my show. when i accomplish that, i wonder if it'll be like inigo montoya and killing the six-fingered man - it's like, where do i go after that?]
the Roadside Graves - "Ruby" [from my son's home. this is the band's fourth album, but their first for autumn tone and it's a doozy. my immediate response to this record was 'well, if you like the felice brothers, here you go.' and i think i'm right.]
the Replacements - "Within Your Reach" [by request. from hootenanny. i can live without your touch and die within your reach. what a great song.]
St. Vincent - "The Neighbors" [from actor. this record's a grower. it doesn't grab you immediately, but it plants its hooks in you from the get-go.]
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Rock Plaza Central - "Them That Are Good and Them That Are Bad" [from the forthcoming in the moment of our most needing.. i'll be conducting an interview with them tomorrow, so stay tuned for that.]
Sonic Youth - "Malibu Gas Station" [from the eternal. i'm pretty happy with this record and i think i would most definitely enjoy seeing them live again. i've seen them twice - one, transcendent, two, boring. what have been your live experiences with them?]
Steve Earle - "To Live is to Fly" [from townes. i picked up a copy of the van zandt biography titled after this song for $4 at the giant book sale store (llc) over on wendover where the circuit city used to be. you have to hunt, but there are some good bargains there. picked up an oral history of elektra records there as well.]

That'll do it for this week. I'll see you next Monday night for the next Extra Mayhem and then next week back here. Until then, take care.

Extra Mayhem - 16th June 2009

[Welcome to another Extra Mayhem. I had a ton of fun programming this week's show - especially the theme hour. Though it's kind of hokey and ultimately just an exercise in reaching for straws, but hey, what else are themes for? Though I'm still irritated that I didn't have enough time to grab some music from Kurt Rambis for the Los Angeles Lakers theme part of the show. Oh, well. There's always another day for Rambo.

Remember that in order to avoid copyright skirmishes, naturally, only the theme hour will be podcasted as sending out a copy of an entire album, even if it is only FM quality, is a bit beyond the pale. But I will have a couple of songs from each featured album up for download as well.

Now, while I'm awake, onward.]

J's Extra Podcast: 16th June 2009

Big Ditch Road - "Detroit City Mouse" [from the great dissent. so, the los angeles lakers were originally the detroit gems. in 1946 they were purchased for the princely sum of $15,000. but here they were but a tiny team in detroit. aww.]
the Detroit Cobras - "I Wanna Holler (But the Town's Too Small)" [from baby. they wanted to go to bigger and better things. detroit was too small...so off to...minneapolis? eh, whatever.]
J. Neas - "By the Time I Get to Minnesota" [i'm going to apologize ahead of time for slipping this in - one of my own songs, cheaply (very cheaply) recorded. but hey, minnesota and stuff. even if it is an ode to the replacements.]
that dog. - "Minneapolis" [from retreat from the sun. and the team goes, following its owner and future championships.]
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Telekinesis - "Great Lakes" [from their self-titled debut. they'll be at local 506 in chapel hill on thursday night. here's where the lakers got their name. so a set of songs about lakes. can anyone think of some other teams whose mascot is a vestige of their previous geographic location? the utah jazz, of course, are left over from new orleans. and the current new orleans team from the charlotte hornets. but who else?]
John Prine - "Lake Marie" [from lost dogs and mixed blessings. probably my favorite john prine song. is there video footage of prine on sessions at west 54th floating around out there on the web? his performance of this there was the first time i ever heard it and it was mesmerizing. sigh. thank you, internets.]
Sera Cahoone - "Baker Lake" [from only as the day is long. i was really fond of this record when it came out last year. i was stretching a bit in this set as it's really a tenuous connection of the word "lake" for these songs. oh, well.]
Grandaddy - "The Crystal Lake" [from the sophtware slump. classic grandaddy. interesting to see how this compares to jason lytle's new album.]
>
Lucinda Williams - "Minneapolis" [from world without tears. and of course, eventually they had to leave minneapolis. and they did. and lucinda sings it right. i love this song.]
Frank Black - "Los Angeles" [from his self-titled debut solo album. i've always had a mixed relationship with this song over the years. i've always been back and forth about this album, too.]
the Decemberists - "Los Angeles, I'm Yours" [from her majesty, the decemberists. hey, the team announces that they've arrived. aw, ain't that sweet?]
X - "Los Angeles" [the title track from their debut. was there any doubt i would pull this out? i sincerely hope not. what a band. i heard their set at the cat's cradle last week was fiery, per usual.]
>
Wire - "The 15th" [from 154. this recent championship was the 15th such for the lakers franchise, so i thought i'd celebrate with not one, not two, but three versions of this song. first the original.]
Mike Watt - "The 15th" [then a cover by the legendary mike watt from the WHORE wire tribute album from the 90s.]
Fischerspooner - "The 15th" [then with another really solid cover from fischerspooner's debut, #1. very good stuff.]

[Tonight's Wholesale album is from 1985. Whenever anyone talks about the Meat Puppets, it's inevitable that their stunning sophomore album, II, will come up in discussion. Especially in light of their contributions to Nirvana's Unplugged album which all came off of the II album. Equally heralded, but far less frequently mentioned, is the 1985 follow-up, Up on the Sun. In many ways, Up on the Sun is II's better - the playing is sharper, the lyrics more focused - the band doesn't sound like it's falling apart at every chord change. Yes, that's half the charm of II, but here the acid-fried country channeled through a punchy version of post-punk that dealt in hardcore and classical trappings is much more neatly framed. Yes, this album is a lot easier to swallow and I would argue that makes it better from a certain perspective.

Engineered by Spot, who of course did most anything released on SST in the early 80s, the album recalls the production style of some of the Minutemen's records for SST with the guitars popping off the record and slapping you around a bit as you listen, like bugs zooming around your head. The lyrics are endearing and charming as always, even if they get downright weird in spots and sickeningly simple in others. It's a thoroughly enjoyable album and this week's Wholesale album is...]

Track Listing

1. Up on the Sun [click to download]
2. Maiden's Milk
3. Away
4. Animal Kingdom
5. Hot Pink
6. Swimming Ground
7. Buckethead [click to download]
8. Too Real
9. Enchanted Pork Fist
10. Seal Whales
11. Two Rivers
12. Creator

That'll do it for this week. I'll see you on Wednesday evening for Indie/Rock Mayhem and until then, take care.

J's Indie/Rock Mayhem - 10th June 2009

[Welcome to another edition of J's Indie/Rock Mayhem. The shows these past few weeks have been just amazing with the amount of new, good music. You may have noticed the slow-down in older music being played. Usually I cycle back and forth between new and older material, but now I'm averaging only one older song per set. Amazing. This has been an avalanche year for music - and good music at that.

So, this is terribly self serving (then again, this is a blog..), but I have a few records up for auction on eBay right now that will be expiring on Friday morning - an At the Drive-In white vinyl Vaya EP, Crooked Fingers' Dignity and Shame with vinyl-only bonus tracks, the Happy Mondays' "Kinky Groovy Afro" 12" single, Radiohead's Amnesiac 10" double vinyl LP, Sleater-Kinney's One Beat with vinyl-only bonus 7" songs, Wilco's Being There sealed double-LP and Woody Allen's Volume 2 live stand-up album from 1965. There are a few others as well, so if you're in the mood to buy some good vinyl, cruise over and check it out.

Now, while the thunder is a-rollin', onward.]

J's Indie/Rock Podcast: 10th June 2009 Show

Theme Song - Peaches - "Rock Show"
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the New York Dolls - "'Cause I Sez So" [the title track from their latest. a classy and trashy little slice of raunch and roll. the dolls have aged well, despite only having two still living members of the original line-up and this record is about as solid as a reunion record gets.]
the Beastie Boys - "An Open Letter to NYC" [from to the 5 boroughs. the boys are dropping a new one, hot sauce committee, later this summer. it'll be good to hear some new non-instrumental stuff.]
Passion Pit - "Sleepyhead" [from manners. there are about three really amazing songs on this record and your mileage may vary with the others, but your summertime playlist is seriously in need of all three.]
Sonic Youth - "Anti-Orgasm" [from the eternal. i think this is the first single off of the album. check out aquarium drunkard's review of the album and snag yourself a copy of this song as well.]
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Yo La Tengo - "Periodically Double or Triple" [from the forthcoming popular songs which is due out later this summer. here's hoping this album continues in the winning streak of i am not afraid of you... do yourself a favor and see them live on whatever tour they throw together as well. it's a great experience.]
Teenage Fanclub - "Slow Fade" [from man-made, their most recent LP which is about 4 years old at this point. this record was pretty underwhelming even though it has some great songs on it, like this one. slow fade might be describing the back-half of teenage fanclub's career, sadly.]
Wilco - "You Never Know" [from wilco (the album). more good stuff from their forthcoming album. i'm liking it.]
Art Brut - "Alcoholics Unanimous" [from art brut vs. satan. you know, i think this record isn't holding up as well as i'd hoped. still some ripping good songs on it, though.]
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the Roadside Graves - "Far and Wide" [from the new my son's home which is out on autumn tone records, the label run by aquarium drunkard. this is the band's fourth album and from what i've heard so far, it's great. we'll be hearing a lot more. in the meantime, check out this post over at drunkard about the album.]
At the Drive-In - "Enfilade" [from relationship of command. as i mentioned at the top, i have their vaya EP for sale on eBay - a white vinyl edition, really nice. i love this song and has always been one of my favorites from this album, which turned out to be their last and boy, have i not been interested in their projects since then. jeez. but you better believe there was some serious singing along to this chorus.]
Obits - "Widow of My Dreams" [from the new i blame you. this is rick froburg (ex-drive like jehu and ex-hot snakes) and his new band and god, i missed this guy. this is some seriously good and classic rock and roll.]
Citified - "Dutiful Scout" [from absence. the band is playing here in greensboro this friday at the blind tiger along with our horse jethro and the garragan brothers. ought to be a treat.]
>
Dirty Projectors - "Stillness is the Move" [from bitte orca. this is the single version of the song, so a bit shorter than the album version, but still quite interesting. i don't know if it's exactly my cup of tea, but critics are eating it up so far.]
Circulatory System - "Yesterday's World" [from their self-titled album from 2001. this is another elephant 6 project that is awfully close in membership to olivia tremor control, though not the same. they're prepping a new album for later this year. good news for lovers of great psych pop.]
the Church - "Space Saviour" [from untitled #23. this is a favorite song of mine from the new one. a really solid entry into their catalogue.]
St. Vincent - "Laughing with a Mouth of Blood" [from actor. this song has been stuck in my head all night since playing it. this is a really great record.]
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Son Volt - "No Turning Back" [from the forthcoming american central dust. ledbelly references in a song can never go wrong. you can quote me on that. and this song delivers. this is a good record, y'all.]
Josh Rouse - "Women and Men" [from under cold blue stars. i had a long time listener to the station (she said she'd been listening since she was a teen - is in her 40s now) called in to ask about this one. josh rouse has a way of getting in people's brains. and this is one of my favorite songs of his.]
Avi Buffalo - "Summer Cum" [from echo residency. just found out this week that this band is playing the monolith festival in september. huzzah!]
Samantha Crain and the Midnight Shivers - "Long Division" [from their album songs in the night. check out both of the great videos that monkeywhale shot of these guys the other week. awesome.]
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Kurt Vile - "Freeway" [by request. from the album constant hitmaker. we're going to be hearing a lot more of this guy.]
Big Star - "Feel" [from #1 record, which i again misnamed on the show. there's a 4 CD big star box set that is due out in august with a lot of rarities and live performances tucked among the original three albums as well. gold. mine.]
the Meat Puppets - "Sewn Together" [the title track from their latest. they're going to be at the cat's cradle in carborro, north carolina on sunday, june 14th. go see the legends.]
Steve Earle - "White Freight Liner Blues" [from townes, earle's new record of covers of townes van zandt songs. steve earle conversed with aquarium drunkard via email in order to talk about each of the songs he covered for this record. it's a great read.]
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White Rabbits - "Percussion Gun" [the lead track from it's frightening. this is a better record than their debut. it's a good album.]
Rock Plaza Central - "Don't You Believe The Words of Handsome Men" [from at the moment of our most needing, or if only they could turn around, they would know they weren't alone. yes, you read that right. their new album drops next week. get excited.]
Grizzly Bear - "Foreground" [from veckatimist. yeah, this is seriously a contender for the best album of this year.]
Lucinda Williams - "Drunken Angel" [from car wheels on a gravel road. thought i'd go out on a serious classic that never gets old.]

That'll do it for this week. Make sure you tune in next Monday night at midnight for the next installment of Extra Mayhem. I'll be filling in for Mad Dog on the Friday Night Rock Party this Friday evening from 6pm - 8pm while he's off to Bonnaroo, so tune in for that as well. Take care.

Extra Mayhem - 9th June 2009

[So, after a year off, Extra Mayhem is back and better than ever. I've kept some things, altered some others, and all in all it'll make for some interesting late-night radio here in Greensboro and beyond. The show is going to be every Monday night/Tuesday morning from midnight to 2 AM. First, I've kept the Wholesale album of the week feature - and last night's was a doozy - but I've added a fun aspect to the second hour of the show: theme sets. Each week's second hour will have a theme that connects all of the songs played.

In order to avoid copyright skirmishes, naturally, only the theme hour will be podcasted as sending out a copy of an entire album, even if it is only FM quality, is a bit beyond the pale. But I will have a couple of songs from each featured album up for download as well.

Also, even though the show has reversed order this year - Wholesale album during the first hour, theme songs in the second - I will continue to blog the show with songs first, then album. Just makes it easier and more aesthetically pleasing.

Now, let's get going.]

J's Extra Podcast: 9th June 2009 Show

Drive-by Truckers - "Too Much Sex (Too Little Jesus)" [from pizza deliverance. tonight's theme was SEX. you read right. SEX. mainly in the titles of the songs. i didn't do an awesome job with this theme, mainly because i only came up with the theme idea last night. future installments will be better, but this was highly amusing all the same.]
the Gun Club - "Sex Beat" [from fire of love. a really dynamic song from a really dynamic album that was actually on the wholesale album feature back in 2006. the gun club is one of those bands you become somewhat obsessed with when you get into them.]
Alejandro Escovedo - "Sex Beat" [from bourbonitis blues. escovedo's take on the gun club classic is slower, darker and more ominous. where jeffrey lee pierce's original is a howling jittery song akin to teenage hormones, escovedo's is a look from people who are lost in their obsessions rather than running with them.]
Morphine - "Super Sex" [from yes. ah, morphine's music is just downright sexy anyway. so why not a song that just shouts it from the rafters?]
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Tool - "Prison Sex" [from undertow. i explain on the podcast that this was the song that inspired the theme for this week. i was relistening to this album last night and decided that, yes, it really is every bit as good as i remember. as much as aenima is usually heralded as their high water mark, for me it's this album. really, maybe, it was the videos that drew me into them in the first place, but who cares. good music.]
Girls Against Boys - "Kill the Sexplayer" [from cruise yourself. well, self explanatory. this song is sort of girls against boys in a nutshell, too. sound wise.]
the Vaselines - "Sex Sux (Amen)" [from enter the vaselines, the new 2 CD compilation released on sub pop. and the vaselines are touring this summer, so keep your eyes peeled.]
Tony Alvon and the Belairs - "Sexy Coffee Pot" [from the what it is 4 CD rare funk compilation. a really great mix of some lost funk classics.]
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My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult - "Sex on Wheelz" [from sexplosion! and really, how could any show with a sex theme be complete without something by my life..? this band really is an acquired taste, but anyone who can appreciate high camp ought to appreciate them. like a much darker, thicker and nastier version of the b-52's.]
Rock Plaza Central - "Sexyback" [yes, their cover of the justin timberlake song. their version is actually really well done and different. well worth hunting down as it isn't widely available.]
Kings of Leon - "Sex On Fire" [from only by the night. by request as it was something i sadly left off.]
Flipper - "Sex Bomb" [from generic. and really, the king of all 'sex' songs. a caller rang up to ask who this was, and then asked when it was from. when told 1982, he commented to his companion, "dude, this stuff is older than i am." always a good revelation.]

[Tonight's Wholesale album is from 1997 and is truly one of the albums that has lodged itself firmly in my brain for many and many a year. In It for the Money was Supergrass' sophomore album, following two years after the smashingly successful I Should Coco and over things like Steve Spielberg supposedly wanting to make a Monkees-esque television show with the band.

One big to-do in Britpop in the 90s was the comparisons made between the Beatles and Oasis. Oasis was proudly, supposedly, the most Bealtes-esque of the bunch, but for my money, where Oasis trafficked in the obvious surface sound-alikes of the Beatles, Supergrass nailed the Fab Four's fearless experimentation and divergent sounds with this album more succinctly than anyone else. Whether it was racing, harmonized rockers, or maudlin ballads or funky sounding experiements, the record was a hodge podge of classic British rock and roll, from stem to stern. So, without further ado, our first Wholesale album for 2009..]

Track Listing


1. In It For the Money
2. Richard III
3. Tonight [click here to listen]
4. Late in the Day [click here to listen]
5. G-Song
6. Sun Hits the Sky
7. Going Out
8. It's Not Me
9. Cheapskate [click here to listen]
10. You Can See Me
11. Hollow Little Reign
12. Sometimes I Make You Sad

That'll do it for Extra Mayhem - see you Wednesday night for Indie/Rock Mayhem and take care.

J's Indie/Rock Mayhem - 3rd June 2009

[Another fantastic edition of J's Indie/Rock Mayhem as we enter the summer season here at WQFS. My interview with the Diamond Center had to be cancelled due to them being able to get a show in Charlotte tonight, so maybe we'll have them on the show in the future. In exchange, ridiculous flash floods that made the city a hazard for awhile. Lucky for them they were elsewhere.

Awesome news - J's Extra Mayhem is back for the summer. If you remember Extra Mayhem from a couple of summers ago, it's an additional show where I pull out music I don't normally play on Indie/Rock Mayhem, plus devote one hour to playing a classic album in its entirety. This year the show is on Monday nights/Tuesday mornings at Midnight, so tune in next week for the first episode and enjoy the fun.

Now, while the flash floods subside, onward.]

J's Indie/Rock Podcast: 3rd June 2009 Show

Theme Song - Peaches - "Rock Show"
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Wilco - "Wilco the Song" [from wilco (the album). they really went all out on this self-titled issue. "wilco will love you, baby," indeed.]
Daisy Chainsaw - "Love Your Money" [from eleventeen. i think i mention it every time i play this song, but the video on beavis and butt-head was my introduction to the song. so there you go.]
Scott H. Biram - "Sinkin' Down" [from something's wrong / lost forever. exciting new music from the dirty ol' one-man band.]
Josh Ritter - "Right Moves" [from the historical conquests of josh ritter. if you follow the j's indie/rock twitter account, you saw me wax rhapsodic about how good ritter was at the cradle last saturday. literally the best i've ever seen him and this song was a definite highlight.]
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Bob Dylan - "Shake Shake Mama" [from together through life. i enjoy this album, though it seems like it's another wall. dylan kind of hit a comfortable spot following the awesome love and theft and he's stayed there without a lot of change.]
Passion Pit - "Make Light" [the lead track from manners. summer jam '09, i'm telling you, people.]
Citified - "Founded" [from the excellent new absence EP. they're going to do an off the record piece about greensboro for aquarium drunkard in the coming week or two, so stay tuned.]
Marilyn Manson - "Get Your Gunn" [from portrait of an american family. i twittered about this topic, but when dr. tiller was gunned down this past weekend, my musical thoughts went immediately to this song, inspired by the murder of florida abortion doctor david gunn. while the song isn't exclusively about that, it was on my mind and i rarely play any manson for obvious reasons, but i do enjoy his first three LPs, even to this day, so here you go.]
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Avi Buffalo - "What's It In For?" [a great band from long beach, california who also spent some time doing an off the record post for drunkard recently. great music and we'll definitely hear more.]
Supergrass - "Cheapskate" [from in it for the money. sunny summer days are here and this album is a perfect listen for just such occasions. i keep coming back to this record, even though i love all of supergrass' albums. this one is the perennial winner.]
St. Vincent - "Save Me From What I Want" [from actor. slowly this is becoming another of my favorite albums of this year. i missed her debut, but now we're getting somewhere.]
Jarvis Cocker - "Slush" [from further complications. this is the song that really sold me on the album as i neared the end of my first proper listen. it's already one of my favorite songs written by him - pulp or solo.]
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Sonic Youth - "Calming the Snake" [from the forthcoming the eternal. i'm liking this record more than rather ripped already. good stuff for fans.]
Samantha Crain and the Midnight Shivers - "Songs in the Night" [by request. the title track from her newest, out on my hometown, concord, north carolina's own ramseur records, former home to the avett brothers. we'll be hearing more. bonus: today (thursday), the fine folks at monkeywhale put up their live session with samantha. enjoy. it's awesome.]
the Church - "Deadman's Hand" [from untitled #23. 23 albums in nearly 30 years is pretty good, i must say, church. if you're a fan of their atmospheric albums like priest = aura, get on it.]
Blur - "This is a Low" [from parklife. someone over at pitchfork the other day called this possibly blur's finest moment and i can't really argue with them. this song has blown me away from the first time my 16 year old ears heard parklife and knew the type of music most of my peers listened to just wasn't going to cut it for me anymore.]
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Son Volt - "Jukebox of Steel" [from the forthcoming american central dust, which i misnamed on the podcast. my bad. it's due out on july 7th. a little more subdued than the last couple of son volt albums, but it's gaining traction with me. we'll hear more.]
the Streets - "Dry Your Eyes" [from a grand don't come for free. when this album came out, i really thought i was in for a future of amazing records from mike skinner, that he'd beaten the sophomore slump and was going places. didn't know this would be the last truly brilliant one. well, so far anyway. alas.]
Key Witness - "Pinebox" [by request via email. from seven across the sea. an interesting band that we ought to hear some more from. meanwhile, go check out some more and a review over at chrome waves.]
Jason Lytle - "Yours Truly, the Commuter" [the title track from his debut solo record. not a bad little song. i like this record. it's subtle and laid-back but good.]
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Grizzly Bear - "Two Weeks" [from the much ballyhooed veckatimest which debuted at #8 on the billboard top 200 album chart this week. which poses an interesting question: is indie music becoming that mainstream, or is it just getting easier to get into the billboard charts in the wake of the massive slump in music sales? this album did only shift 33,000 units to get to #8. that used to barely even get you a shot at the top 20, let alone the top 10.]
White Rabbits - "Midnight and I" [from it's frightening. and here's where they really sound like spoon. but you know what? who cares. this record is really good.]
Crystal Antlers - "Dust" [from tentacles. are 'crystal' bands the new 'deer' or 'wolf' bands this year? i was distracted while this was on, so i honestly can't recall much about it. noisy, catchy, potential.]
Blair - "Kamikaze" [from the forthcoming die young which will be out on autumn tone records later this summer. i've been playing this song on my show for some time, but blair has re-worked it for the album and this more subdued version is really lovely and now i'm torn. i like both versions a lot.]
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the Love Language - "Lalita" [from their self-titled album. i saw these guys live earlier this year and though i was distracted by interviewing megafaun at the time, what i heard was awesome. this album proves that i was right. we'll be hearing a lot more from this excellent north carolina band.]
the National - "Daughters of the Soho Riots" [from alligator. since i didn't get a chance to play them on the show last week before their sold out show in raleigh, i slipped them in this week. this was, for me, one of the highlights of last week's show. glad i finally got to see them as they were fantastic.]

That'll do it for this week. Make sure you tune in next Monday night/Tuesday morning at midnight for the first 2009 edition of J's Extra Mayhem. I haven't decided on the album yet, but believe that it'll be something you won't want to miss. Until then and next week, take care.

J's Indie/Rock Mayhem - 27th May 2009

[Welcome to another fantastic edition of J's Indie/Rock Mayhem. Tonight's show was awesome and a bit frustrating at the same time. I had a ton of new music to play again and couldn't get to it all because of tonight's really fun and enjoyable interview with Eating the Invaders and the Subterranean Bums, the two bands playing at the Dotmatrix Project show tonight, Thursday, May 28th, at the Green Burro in downtown Greensboro. It was a ton of fun having these guys up and the live performances are great. Make sure you take a listen down below.

I spent a bit of time at the end of the show tonight mourning the untimely and unexpected passing of Jay Bennett last weekend. Largely known for the dynamic instrumentation and sound that he brought to bear on Wilco across their amazing run of records between Being There and Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, Jay was also an amazing solo musician following his departure from the band. He will be missed.

Next week I'll have Lubbock, Texas' the Diamond Center up live in studio. I meant to get some of their music up on the show tonight, but wasn't able. Check out the link to their MySpace. This ought to be one of the most interesting in-studio performances I've had on the show. Next week will be something.

Now, while I recover from my brief interest in hockey to enter the long, hard slog to football season, onward.]

J's Indie/Rock Podcast: 27th May 2009 Show

Theme Song - Peaches - "Rock Show"
>
Jarvis Cocker - "Further Complications" [the title track from his latest. seriously. one of the best records of this year so far. plllleeeaasseee tell me i'll have a chance to see him somewhere this summer.]
Pavement - "Date with IKEA" [from brighten the corners. why did i mis-label this album two times? who knows. still a great song. the pavement cover band from joe g.'s cover band explosion last saturday was pretty sharp. but no "stereo?" i know it's obvious, guys, but it's obvious for a reason!]
Passion Pit - "Little Secret" [from manners. ladies and gentlemen, your summertime jam of '09. for real.]
Superchunk - "Learned to Surf" [from the leaves in the gutter EP. excellent next music - their first in eight years!]
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Citified - "Pencil Me In" [from absence. their new EP is finally available for purchase online. make sure you go grab your copy from eskimo kiss records.]
Teenage Fanclub - "Star Sign" [from bandwagonesque. i'm a little more partial to their later records simply because of the production, but the songs here are undeniable. ask me sometime about my 'misheard lyric' in this one. it's a doozy.]
Black Moth Super Rainbow - "Born on a Day the Sun Didn't Rise" [from eating us. look who's back! my summertime jam of '07! if you enjoyed dandelion gum, there's a lot to enjoy here, too.]
For Squirrels - "Orangeworker" [from example. a gorgeous song from a band that sadly was only able to make one record before tragedy took half the band.]

[Here's where the first interview began. Since the Subterranean Bums and Eating the Invaders share a few members, we interviewed them together, though each part of the interview focuses on a separate band. With the Bums we talked about the origins of their name, working across distance and how you fit your talents across multiple projects. Enjoy.]

the Subterranean Bums - "Monterrey (Shivers)" (live) [a really great song that let me know this night was going to be a good one. click here to listen.]
the Subterranean Bums - "Oklahoma Thunderstorm" (live) [and an even more fantastic song, this one being one that also appears on their forthcoming LP cloak and dagger, voice and brain. i really like this one especially. click here to listen.]

[Now the second part of the interview, here featuring Eating the Invaders. We got off on a bit of a tangent about Greensboro and its burgeoning music community. I know this keeps becoming a common thread of discussion in these Dotmatrix interviews and can be of only limited interest to podcast listeners outside the area, but oh well. Plus, I think the lessons we've learned about community and support and creativity here are things that can be applied anywhere, so listen all you children, a story we will tell. Plus we talked about band name origins and a few other things, but these guys are such good sports, I'll let the music speak.]

Eating the Invaders - "One Little Thing" (live) [i love the way the verses of this song seem disjointed and fractured, only to come barrelling together in the chorus. click here to listen.]
Eating the Invaders - "Carpet and Tile" (live) [this was the first ETI song i'd ever heard thanks to the fine folks at monkeywhale.com, so it was a welcome addition to tonight's show. click here to listen.]

the Subterranean Bums - "No Friend of Me" [an album track from their forthcoming release.]
Eating the Invaders - "Sink Up Zoo Avenue" [a rough recorded version of a song eventually bound for an eating the invaders record.]
Sonic Youth - "Antennae" [from the eternal. listen folks, this record is good. seriously. sonic youth fans, rejoice. it's another late-period classic from one of the greatest american bands to grace a stage.]
Dinosaur Jr. - "I Want You to Know" [by request. from the forthcoming album farm. frank sent this to me via email, but you can grab your own copy over at the band's website. the album drops june 23rd. will it be as good as beyond? we'll see.]
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Blair - "Rampage" [from the forthcoming die young, except this time, people, i'm not guessing haphazardly. i have in my hot little hand an advance copy of this album, due out late summer on autumn tone records. get excited. finally i have a timeline for bamboozling blair onto my show! start lining up the tour dates - you're coming to greensboro.]
Josh Ritter w/ string quartet - "Empty Hearts" [late last year josh ritter performed a couple of shows in ireland with a 24-piece orchestra and he augmented this with a few recorded tracks featuring him backed by a string quartet. you can take a listen to this and a version of "girl in the war" over at anyone's guess. he'll be at the cat's cradle in carborro, nc this saturday, may 30th.]
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Jay Bennett - "The Engines are Idle" [from whatever happened i apologize, a record jay released last year for free on the internet. you can download it by clicking here.]
Wilco - "Poor Places" (demo) [this is from the demos recorded for yankee hotel foxtrot and while this is decidedly less full than the eventual album version, it gives a great mock up of what was to come. you can grab these demos and another set of YHF demos here and here at aquarium drunkard for a limited time.]
Jay Bennett and Edward Burch - "Like a Photograph" [from the palace at 4 a.m. i included this song on a mix CD i made someone earlier this year. and it's a favorite of mine. rest in peace, jay.]

That'll do it for this week. Next week we'll be welcoming the Diamond Center into the studio for more live musical madness, plus tons of great new music. I won't be able to contain myself next week. So until then, take care.