J's Indie/Rock Mayhem - 6th February 2008

[The beginning of another semester and another fantastic start for J's Indie/Rock Mayhem. Tonight marks the four year anniversary of the show in the Wednesday night, 6 PM time slot. I've grown pretty attached to this time and love the benefit of getting to be there each week. Next January will mark not only the five year anniversary, but will be only a number of months away from my ten year mark as a DJ. Time flies.

Congratulations to Donald who correctly named three computer type fonts in order to win this week's $15 gift certificate to BB's New and Used CDs and DVDs. We give away the certificate every week at the beginning of the third set, so tune in for your chance to answer the trivia question and win.

Now, while I sit here and try to mentally make Carolina's shots go in the basket, let's go. Onward.]

J's Indie/Rock Podcast: 6th February 2008 Show

Theme Song - Peaches - "Rock Show"
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Drive-by Truckers - "That Man I Shot" [from brighter than creation's dark. this is one of the two iraq war-themed songs on the album, in addition to the stunning "the home front." i have to say, this record has not let up in entertainment value. excited to see them in asheville at the orange peel on march 29th? you bet.]
Social Distortion - "So Far Away" [the lead track from their self-titled album. even though their music can sound pretty similar most of the way through, this record in particular is a powerful blast of greaser-styled punk. i have fond memories of driving a good bit to this album. you know the type of songs i'm talking about. yeah, you do.]
the Rock*A*Teens - "Car and Driver" [by request. from sweet bird of youth. i've heard of these guys before, but never heard them. this album was released in 2000 on north carolina's merge records. i'll have to check out more.]
the Whigs - "Hot Bed" [from mission control. am i looking forward to seeing them open for the truckers in asheville? you bet i am. can i imagine a hotter rock show in 2008? not so far.]
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the Magnetic Fields - "California Girls" [from distortion. so stephin merritt said he wanted to out-jesus and mary chain the jesus and mary chain. well, this is not psychocandy but it's a damn good record from everything i've heard.]
Big Ditch Road - "All the Way to Idaho" [from the jackson whites EP. if you missed my interview with darin wald of big ditch road last week, well, go listen to it.]
Pop Will Eat Itself - "Wise Up! Sucker" [from this is the day..this is the hour..this is this! i'll never get tired of the culture junkie references strewn throughout this album. it's worth repeat listens just to dig through them all.]
Bob Mould - "Old Highs New Lows" [from district line. this is easily one of the most mainstream sounding songs i've heard bob mould produce in quite some time, but you know what? i think if you were responsible for helping to create zen arcade, new day rising and copper blue, you get a lifetime pass.]
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Times New Viking - "The Wait" [from rip it off. this record is beyond filthy-dirty. fuzzy, distorted and warped beyond belief, this is for the devotees of serious lo-fi. seriously. and man is it good.]
Black Mountain - "Wucan" [from in the future which i reviewed this week. one of the best albums of 2008 - and this song in particular. that little nasty guitar lick that runs intermittently through the song? that's the stuff psychedelic dreams are made of. oh, man.]
the Leatherwoods - "How Can I Miss You?" [from topeka oratorio which i reviewed this week. this was former jayhawks drummer tim o'reagan's band. this is, as i spoke of in the review, a clever little byrds-ian pop song. good stuff.]
Molly McGinn - "Black Paper Silhouette" [from girl with slingshot. molly is a greensboro musician and her stuff is a great mix of americana, country and vague folk and rock leanings.]
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the Helio Sequence - "Hallelujah" [from keep your eyes ahead. i remember an album by these guys a few years back that i enjoyed, but this song is really spectacular. we'll be hearing more from this album.]
Yo La Tengo - "Tom Courtenay" [from electr-o-pura. i haven't spent a lot of time listening to early yo la tengo, but after seeing them recently on their 'freewheelin' yo la tengo' tour, i dug into their back catalogue and came out with some amazing stuff. this song especially.]
Cat Power - "Ramblin' (Wo)man" [from jukebox. chan marshall's cover of the hank williams sr. classic. a little bit of gender swapping. does anyone take issue with pronoun gender swapping in cover songs?]
Olivia Tremor Control - "I Have Been Floated" [from black foliage animation music - volume 1. i guess i've spent a lot of time listening to neo-psychedelic music of late and these guys are no exception. between this and dusk at cubist castle, they were a truly amazing band.]
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Citified - "Read Like a Number" [from the forthcoming the meeting after the meeting. greensboro rock and roll and so, so good.]
the Twilight Singers - "Forty Dollars" [from powder burns. i love the beatles allusion in this song - the sweet, innocent song lyrics nestled into the sinister world of greg dulli. there's a reason i put this album way up on my list of the best albums of 2006.]
the Pogues - "Streets of Sorrow / Birmingham Six" [from if i should fall from grace with god. i played this song for my british lit. students this week, part of me doing a weekly thing on fridays where i play some british rock music to give them something modern to hear while we read anglo-saxon literature. this song is, of course, largely about a famous group of Irishmen who were incorrectly incarcerated for an IRA-linked bombing in the late 70s. great song.]
Marah - "Wild West Love Song" [from angels of destruction! i like this song a good bit - snazzy and snakey, that opening guitar bit. drags you right into the song's flow from the get-go.]
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Jim White - "Blindly We Go" [from transnormal skiperoo. is this maybe the best album of jim's career? it's possible. it's really, really good.]
Okkervil River - "Our Life is Not a Movie or Maybe" [from the stage names, one of my favorite albums of 2007.]
Midnight Oil - "Sell My Soul" [from diesel and dust. i really enjoy midnight oil a lot. they're not a band that i run into fellow-fans that often with, but when you do, you know that they really understand. i have a cassette copy of their really fantastic unplugged appearance (one of the earliest on the show) thanks to meeting another fan.]
Paul Westerberg - "As Far As I Know" [from folker, westerberg's most recent LP. i was pretty underwhelmed by this record for the most part, but i haven't listened to it much since it came out. i recently gave it another listen and found it a better listen than i remember. we'll see.]
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My Bloody Valentine - "Glider" [by request. from the glider EP.]
Chris Bell - "You and Your Sister" [from i am the cosmos. i don't know why this ended up in my head this week, but it did. gorgeous music from the sadly short lived co-founder of big star.]
Teenage Fanclub - "Everything Flows" [from a catholic education. the first song on their first LP, it announced the beginning of a really tremendous band. plus, reading about some early philosophy recently, 'everything flows' is a summary of the philosophical ideas of democritus. those crazy guys in teenage fanclub - so smart.]

That'll do it for tonight. Carolina lost, but I'll blame it on Ty Lawson being unable to play. We'll get 'em back later this season. I'll see you on Friday for the Notes from Underground column and for the new album reviews next week. Until then, take care.