j's indie/rock mayhem - 29th august 2007
[tonight's show was fantastic - and i don't mean that just in a selfish way. the music directors are back and there was a landslide of new music this week, some i didn't even get to. (sorry, everybodyfields! sorry, angels of light!) but the result was a awesome show of new rock and roll.
congratulations to michelle lanteri (wow - our first female winner? i can't remember). she correctly identified the sampled/hijacked music in m.i.a.'s song "20 dollar" as none other than "blue monday" by new order. and though he was too late to win the $15 gift certificiate to BB's new and used CDs and DVDs, nate kelly was right on the money when he identified both the "blue monday" sample and the lyrical lifting of the pixies' "where is my mind?" for the chorus. so big ups to him. i give the gift certificate away at the beginning of the third block every week, so make sure you tune in.
now, let's get down to brass tacks and golden rock. onward.]
J's Indie/Rock Podcast: 29th August 2007 Show
Theme Song - Peaches - "Rock Show"
>
Imperial Teen - "Shim Sham" [though i've honestly never purchased an album by them, i've always found imperial teen's singles to be absoutely infectious. going back to "yoo hoo" and previous album on's awesome opener "ivanka," this band has always had its pulse on slinky, nerve-twittering indie-pop. and this album doesn't seem to be any different. from the hair the tv the baby & the band.]
the Ladybug Transistor - "Here Comes the Rain" [from the latest, can't wait another day. this song reminds me of some later period belle and sebastian, with its twee undertones, but 60s pop perfect verses. i'm liking this album a lot.]
Rilo Kiley - "The Moneymaker" [from their new album under the blacklight. i heard this song a month or so ago and loved the different sounding direction rilo kiley was going with it. jenny lewis' vocal performances are consistantly the highlight of the band and she swaggers into this song like a non-chalant fireman, burning house crumbling around her, no worries all the same. and if you're into (clothed) porn stars acting in music videos, well, knock your socks off.]
Lazlo Bane - "Overkill" [from their debut, 11 transistor. this is a cover of the men at work classic and i was reminded of it by an early episode of scrubs that i caught the other day where, for some reason, for the entirety of the song, colin hay (of men at work) is follow zach braff's character around and playing this song on a guitar. he shows up as a patient, as a busker, even as a corpse in the morgue. amusing. and colin hay jumps in on this version as well, singing the final verse and chorus with the band.]
>
Caribou - "Eli" [from the new album andorra. a re-tread from sunday night's show, i know, but i haven't had a chance to soak in the album just yet and this song is gorgeous. elements of the paisley underground and beach boys perfection radiate throughout.]
the High Strung - "Maybe You're Coming Down With It" [from their latest, get the guest. the high strung have really stepped up their game, and though this 17 song album could've benefitted from a few trims, it's the strongest of their career. i can't wait to see them live again.]
the Rain Parade - "Ain't That Nothing" (live) [a live cover of television's classic. from the beyond the sunset live album - a bit of a hard to find release. this is the rain parade, post-dave roback, putting on a show in japan and tearing through some classics from their debut and the follow up EP. this cover is okay - it's a little too true to the original to be really that earthshaking, but it's a great band covering a great band's great song. good enough.]
the New Pornographers - "All the Old Show Stoppers" [from the new challengers. this album is definitely a grower - it doesn't have any of the blistering power pop instant hit classics that the previous three albums have had, but there are some great songs on this collection. if you come in expecting something closer to a.c. newman's solo album than the last new pornographers record, you'll be set.]
>
M.I.A. - "20 Dollar" [from the outstanding kala. this song is the one that officially won me over on this record - using the hook from "blue monday" as the undergirding for a song about cheap guns in africa, and then lifting a whole verse of the pixies' "where is my mind?" for the chorus? sheer genius.]
the Church - "Unified Field" [from the 2006 album uninvited, like the clouds. one of their best in a number of years.]
Robert Earl Keen - "Corpus Christi Bay" [i've probably started playing this song too much for my own good, but man, it really is a heart breaker, all the way to the last line of the last verse. it's a stunning piece of songwriting. from a bigger piece of sky.]
the Lemonheads - "No Backbone" [from their 2006 self-titled album. so, one of the first times in a long time i'm not playing something off the new dinosaur jr. album and i slap on a lemonheads song with j. mascis playing lead. indeed.]
>
Josh Ritter - "Real Long Distance" [a piano-pounding, all-out stomping rocker from the historical conquests of josh ritter. i've read reviews that talked about this album being ritter pulling back a little bit, songwriting wise, but i disagree. it seems like he's really letting loose and the result is, in my opinion, the best album of his career.]
Okkervil River - "Plus Ones" [from the stage names. and finally i understand the name of this song. within the lyrics are numerous references to other songs that involve numbers - and they're mentioned, just one number higher. 97 tears. 4 times a lady. 8 chinese brothers. you get the picture. play 'spot the references' as you listen and see if you can pick them all out. it's a brilliant song on top of all that.]
Guided by Voices - "Skills Like This" [by request. from the 2001 album isolation drills. man, that's a good record.]
the Replacements - "I'll Be You" [sort of by request. a caller on the sunday night show was talking about his love for this song, and why not? it was the 'mats only top 40 hit (#40) and from, in my opinion, a very underrated record of theirs. from don't tell a soul.]
>
A.A. Bondy - "Vice Rag" [as i mentioned in sunday's post, a.a. bondy, former leader of the band verbena, has a new solo album coming out on september 4th called american hearts. i'm pretty impressed with the two songs i've heard so far and you can catch them both over at aquarium drunkard's place.]
Wilco - "What Light" [from sky blue sky which, as much as i've enjoyed it, i haven't listened to much at all. it's probably wilco's least overwhelming record in quite awhile.]
Superchunk - "Detroit Has a Skyline" (acoustic) [from the cup of sand singles, b-sides, rarities collection. the original comes from their here's where the strings come in album. a great song that is well revisited in this format.]
Nina Nastasia and Jim White - "Late Night" [another track from the quite beautiful you follow me. again, for those tuning in, that's jim white of the dirty three, not jim white of..well..jim white.]
>
Liars - "Plaster Casts of Everything" [from the new self-titled album which, strangely, i could not locate a copy of in a retail store yesterday, its release date, to save my life. one big box retailer i called didn't even have it listed on its website. what's going on with this album? amazon has it, but, even my local indie retailer came up short. still, this is a great song and i look forward to hearing more.]
the Amps - "Tipp City" [so this is two odes this week to aquarium drunkard as he put out a love letter to kim deal and her various breeders/amps related post-pixies projects. it reminded me of how much i enjoyed my copy of the amps' pacer and that yes, "tipp city" is a great song.]
Crowded House - "Even a Child" [quick - name the guest guitarist on this song. yes, by the chime of the guitar you got it: johnny marr. another pretty decent number from the new time on earth. i've been pretty impressed with the re-united crowded house.]
Failure - "Stuck on You" [from fantastic planet. this was the first failure song i ever heard (again - thank you 120 minutes) and it's stuck with me (hah) over the years something fierce. a perfect circle, on their 2nd album, covered "the nurse who loved me" from this album (not too much of a stretch since maynard keenan and other members of tool had worked with failure's two main men, greg edwards and ken andrews, on the replicants' album and ex-failure touring second guitarist troy van leeuwen was a founding member of a perfect circle), but it remains a sort of buried classic of mid-90s 'alternative' music. a shame.]
>
Jason Isbell - "Dress Blues" [from the still very good sirens of the ditch. jason will be playing at local 506 in chapel hill next thursday, september 6th. and hopefully i'll be coming back with an interview. stay tuned.]
Thurston Moore - "The Shape is in a Trance" [from the forthcoming trees outside the academy, due out september 18th. i'm still really loving this song. it holds up to some repeated listening, that's for sure.]
Kathleen Edwards - "Six o'clock News" [the lead track from the still, oh-so-good failer. there's a reason this song had my jaw dropping from note one. check out this live, acoustic rendition from an AOL sessions thing. hat tip to mr. sun for laying that coolness on me.]
That'll do it for this week. I'll see you on Friday for the next Notes From Underground and then on Monday for the return of the album reviews. Until then, take care.
congratulations to michelle lanteri (wow - our first female winner? i can't remember). she correctly identified the sampled/hijacked music in m.i.a.'s song "20 dollar" as none other than "blue monday" by new order. and though he was too late to win the $15 gift certificiate to BB's new and used CDs and DVDs, nate kelly was right on the money when he identified both the "blue monday" sample and the lyrical lifting of the pixies' "where is my mind?" for the chorus. so big ups to him. i give the gift certificate away at the beginning of the third block every week, so make sure you tune in.
now, let's get down to brass tacks and golden rock. onward.]
J's Indie/Rock Podcast: 29th August 2007 Show
Theme Song - Peaches - "Rock Show"
>
Imperial Teen - "Shim Sham" [though i've honestly never purchased an album by them, i've always found imperial teen's singles to be absoutely infectious. going back to "yoo hoo" and previous album on's awesome opener "ivanka," this band has always had its pulse on slinky, nerve-twittering indie-pop. and this album doesn't seem to be any different. from the hair the tv the baby & the band.]
the Ladybug Transistor - "Here Comes the Rain" [from the latest, can't wait another day. this song reminds me of some later period belle and sebastian, with its twee undertones, but 60s pop perfect verses. i'm liking this album a lot.]
Rilo Kiley - "The Moneymaker" [from their new album under the blacklight. i heard this song a month or so ago and loved the different sounding direction rilo kiley was going with it. jenny lewis' vocal performances are consistantly the highlight of the band and she swaggers into this song like a non-chalant fireman, burning house crumbling around her, no worries all the same. and if you're into (clothed) porn stars acting in music videos, well, knock your socks off.]
Lazlo Bane - "Overkill" [from their debut, 11 transistor. this is a cover of the men at work classic and i was reminded of it by an early episode of scrubs that i caught the other day where, for some reason, for the entirety of the song, colin hay (of men at work) is follow zach braff's character around and playing this song on a guitar. he shows up as a patient, as a busker, even as a corpse in the morgue. amusing. and colin hay jumps in on this version as well, singing the final verse and chorus with the band.]
>
Caribou - "Eli" [from the new album andorra. a re-tread from sunday night's show, i know, but i haven't had a chance to soak in the album just yet and this song is gorgeous. elements of the paisley underground and beach boys perfection radiate throughout.]
the High Strung - "Maybe You're Coming Down With It" [from their latest, get the guest. the high strung have really stepped up their game, and though this 17 song album could've benefitted from a few trims, it's the strongest of their career. i can't wait to see them live again.]
the Rain Parade - "Ain't That Nothing" (live) [a live cover of television's classic. from the beyond the sunset live album - a bit of a hard to find release. this is the rain parade, post-dave roback, putting on a show in japan and tearing through some classics from their debut and the follow up EP. this cover is okay - it's a little too true to the original to be really that earthshaking, but it's a great band covering a great band's great song. good enough.]
the New Pornographers - "All the Old Show Stoppers" [from the new challengers. this album is definitely a grower - it doesn't have any of the blistering power pop instant hit classics that the previous three albums have had, but there are some great songs on this collection. if you come in expecting something closer to a.c. newman's solo album than the last new pornographers record, you'll be set.]
>
M.I.A. - "20 Dollar" [from the outstanding kala. this song is the one that officially won me over on this record - using the hook from "blue monday" as the undergirding for a song about cheap guns in africa, and then lifting a whole verse of the pixies' "where is my mind?" for the chorus? sheer genius.]
the Church - "Unified Field" [from the 2006 album uninvited, like the clouds. one of their best in a number of years.]
Robert Earl Keen - "Corpus Christi Bay" [i've probably started playing this song too much for my own good, but man, it really is a heart breaker, all the way to the last line of the last verse. it's a stunning piece of songwriting. from a bigger piece of sky.]
the Lemonheads - "No Backbone" [from their 2006 self-titled album. so, one of the first times in a long time i'm not playing something off the new dinosaur jr. album and i slap on a lemonheads song with j. mascis playing lead. indeed.]
>
Josh Ritter - "Real Long Distance" [a piano-pounding, all-out stomping rocker from the historical conquests of josh ritter. i've read reviews that talked about this album being ritter pulling back a little bit, songwriting wise, but i disagree. it seems like he's really letting loose and the result is, in my opinion, the best album of his career.]
Okkervil River - "Plus Ones" [from the stage names. and finally i understand the name of this song. within the lyrics are numerous references to other songs that involve numbers - and they're mentioned, just one number higher. 97 tears. 4 times a lady. 8 chinese brothers. you get the picture. play 'spot the references' as you listen and see if you can pick them all out. it's a brilliant song on top of all that.]
Guided by Voices - "Skills Like This" [by request. from the 2001 album isolation drills. man, that's a good record.]
the Replacements - "I'll Be You" [sort of by request. a caller on the sunday night show was talking about his love for this song, and why not? it was the 'mats only top 40 hit (#40) and from, in my opinion, a very underrated record of theirs. from don't tell a soul.]
>
A.A. Bondy - "Vice Rag" [as i mentioned in sunday's post, a.a. bondy, former leader of the band verbena, has a new solo album coming out on september 4th called american hearts. i'm pretty impressed with the two songs i've heard so far and you can catch them both over at aquarium drunkard's place.]
Wilco - "What Light" [from sky blue sky which, as much as i've enjoyed it, i haven't listened to much at all. it's probably wilco's least overwhelming record in quite awhile.]
Superchunk - "Detroit Has a Skyline" (acoustic) [from the cup of sand singles, b-sides, rarities collection. the original comes from their here's where the strings come in album. a great song that is well revisited in this format.]
Nina Nastasia and Jim White - "Late Night" [another track from the quite beautiful you follow me. again, for those tuning in, that's jim white of the dirty three, not jim white of..well..jim white.]
>
Liars - "Plaster Casts of Everything" [from the new self-titled album which, strangely, i could not locate a copy of in a retail store yesterday, its release date, to save my life. one big box retailer i called didn't even have it listed on its website. what's going on with this album? amazon has it, but, even my local indie retailer came up short. still, this is a great song and i look forward to hearing more.]
the Amps - "Tipp City" [so this is two odes this week to aquarium drunkard as he put out a love letter to kim deal and her various breeders/amps related post-pixies projects. it reminded me of how much i enjoyed my copy of the amps' pacer and that yes, "tipp city" is a great song.]
Crowded House - "Even a Child" [quick - name the guest guitarist on this song. yes, by the chime of the guitar you got it: johnny marr. another pretty decent number from the new time on earth. i've been pretty impressed with the re-united crowded house.]
Failure - "Stuck on You" [from fantastic planet. this was the first failure song i ever heard (again - thank you 120 minutes) and it's stuck with me (hah) over the years something fierce. a perfect circle, on their 2nd album, covered "the nurse who loved me" from this album (not too much of a stretch since maynard keenan and other members of tool had worked with failure's two main men, greg edwards and ken andrews, on the replicants' album and ex-failure touring second guitarist troy van leeuwen was a founding member of a perfect circle), but it remains a sort of buried classic of mid-90s 'alternative' music. a shame.]
>
Jason Isbell - "Dress Blues" [from the still very good sirens of the ditch. jason will be playing at local 506 in chapel hill next thursday, september 6th. and hopefully i'll be coming back with an interview. stay tuned.]
Thurston Moore - "The Shape is in a Trance" [from the forthcoming trees outside the academy, due out september 18th. i'm still really loving this song. it holds up to some repeated listening, that's for sure.]
Kathleen Edwards - "Six o'clock News" [the lead track from the still, oh-so-good failer. there's a reason this song had my jaw dropping from note one. check out this live, acoustic rendition from an AOL sessions thing. hat tip to mr. sun for laying that coolness on me.]
That'll do it for this week. I'll see you on Friday for the next Notes From Underground and then on Monday for the return of the album reviews. Until then, take care.
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