J's Indie/Rock Mayhem - 29th October 2008

[Greetings and welcome to the annual J's Indie/Rock Mayhem Spook-tacular! A lame name for a really fun show. Last year's show was actually on Halloween, so it was a bit of a disappointment to do this year's two days before, but I was still in the spirit and loaded down the show with goodness. Plus, since I ended up having to stay an hour over, I got to actually play all the Halloween music I wanted. So even you, podcast listeners, are in for an extended show. 2 1/2 hours, in fact.

Next week I'll be broadcasting my interview with Linford Detweiler of Over the Rhine. They're playing here on Guilford College campus on Friday, November 7th, as part of the Guilford Homecoming week festivities. I had a great time talking with him a couple of days ago via phone, so I think you'll enjoy the interview as well.

Now, before they trick me for not treating you, onward.]

J's Indie/Rock Podcast: 29th October 2008 Show

Theme Song - Peaches - "Rock Show"
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Brian Eno and David Byrne - "Strange Overtones" [from everything that will happens will happen today. i really can't get enough of this song. funky and vibrant and everything a collaboration between these two ought to be.]
Blitzen Trapper - "Black River Killer" [from furr. it's time to start thinking about the top 25 albums list for the end of the year and man, this album is going to be a tough competitor.]
Ryan Adams and the Cardinals - "Fix It" [from cardinology. i'm liking this album so far, though again, nothing jumps out at me. while the cardinals have certainly honed and focused adams in a way not seen in some time, it feels sometimes like some of the fire is gone as well.]
TV on the Radio - "DLZ" [from dear science. i need to get this album, don't i?]
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the Streets - "The Escapist" [from everything is borrowed. one of my favorite songs on the album and a definite best single of the year.]
Wade Denning and Kay Lande - "Halloween" [from halloween: games, songs and stories. this was a treasured, yearly bit of music from my elementary music classes taught by ms. bracey. whenever i thought of the holiday for years, i hummed this song to myself.]
the Flaming Lips - "Halloween on the Barbary Coast" [from hit to death in the future head. a standard of the halloween show. i'm not big on this lips album in general, but this song at least is pretty righteous.]
Siouxsie and the Banshees - "Halloween" [from the 1981 album juju. i, admittedly, haven't listened to much siouxsie and the banshees which is something i ought to rectify, but this fit right in.]
Type O Negative - "Halloween in Heaven" [from dead again. i can't go a halloween without playing type o negative. they're just too much fun. in a 'wow, how are you not a parody' sort of way.]
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Deerhunter - "Nothing Ever Happened" [from microcastles. this song was highly regarded by some posts i've read across the web and it's no joke. this album is for real.]
the Advantage - "Ghosts and Goblins" [from their self-titled record. this band does nothing but cover music from 8-bit nintendo games and this is, of course, the theme music from ghosts and goblins. fitting, right?]
the Gun Club - "Ghost on the Highway" [from fire of love. this showed up on an emusic list of haunted songs and, really, anything jeffrey lee pierce wrote is haunted in its own way.]
Woody Allen - "Down South" [from woody allen: stand-up comic. a great bit about woody, a ghost costume, being in the deep south and hilarity ensuing with some klansmen.]
Suicide - "Ghost Rider" [from their self-titled debut. so why not a song about ghost rider? this song is more entertaining than the nicholas cage movie was, i gather.]
Henry Cowell - "The Banshee" [a performance from piano music. this is a dynamic composition that you can read about here. it's as unique a piece of music as you're likely to hear in your lifetime. breathtaking in many ways, too.]
George S. Irving - "The Big Toe" [and the return of irving's readings of scary stories to tell in the dark. these books were so important to me growing up and they continue to be an influence on the type of stories that i pay attention to and watch for.]
Tom Waits - "Big Joe and Phantom 309" (live) [from the dime store novels vol 1: live at ebbet's field 1974. this song originally appeared on waits' album nighthawks at the diner, but tells the classic 'ghost driver' story. think large marge.]
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Alejandro Escovedo - "Sister Lost Soul" [from real animal. i felt like opening the sets with new music threw off the flow a little, but this one, title wise, at least fit in.]
Jurassic 5 - "Remember His Name" [from power in numbers. a classic 'whodunit' in the form of a story that eventually reveals that the person in question is...death. who knew?]
George S. Irving - "Room for One More" [another from scary stories to tell in the dark about a man who finds himself beckoned by death. good thing he knows to turn away.]
Joy Division - "Dead Souls" [from permanent. "they keep calling me," sings curtis. yeah, the dead keep calling you. just like in the story.]
Becky Miller - "Because I Could Not Stop for Death" [a reading of the emily dickinson poem about death showing up with a carriage to take you on your merry way. i thought it tied in nicely with the irving story.]
the Ramones - "Pet Sematary" [from 1989's brain drain. recorded for the film of the same name and from an album with only two great songs ("i believe in miracles" and "merry christmas (i don't wanna fight tonight)"), it's easy to get lost. cheesy fun.]
Bauhaus - "Bela Lugosi's Dead" (live) [from the 1979-1983 vol. 1 album. this version is originally from the press the eject and give me the tape live album and is a pretty awesome rendition of this song. i think i'll go watch ed wood now.]
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Times New Viking - "Sick and Tired" [from the stay awake EP. was anyone else as surprised as i was to hear this band perform at the pitchfork festival? they're nothing like these records - dense noise and pop buried beneath. they're pretty melodic live. they'll be playing this sunday night at the cat's cradle in carrboro alongside deerhunter.]
George S. Irving - "Alligators" [again from scary stories to tell in the dark.]
DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince - "Nightmare on My Street" [from he's the dj, i'm the rapper. a ridiculous song in which the fresh prince encounters freddy kruger and things go from there. the freddy voice is admittedly amusing. if only they'd gotten robert englund to actually do the voice on the song as well.]
Nina Simone - "I Put a Spell on You" [from the best of nina simone. no one sang it like nina and this version of the screamin' jay hawkins classic is divine, to be sure.]
the Dream Syndicate - "Season of the Witch" (live) [yes, the donovan song. covered here on the day before wine and roses, an early live recording done before they had even done their debut LP. they run through some great covers and songs that would appear on days of wine and roses and generally sound pretty awesome. they tear this song apart and it's better for it. trust me.]
Squirrel Nut Zippers - "Hell" [from hot. the best song they ever recorded? i don't know, but i can't ever get enough of it. it's clever and catchy and just a tremendous song.]
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Charles Camille Saint-Saens/Orson Welles/Charlie Brown - "War of the Great Dancing Macabre Pumpkins" [my self-composed mash-up of saint-saens' "danse macabre" and vocal snippets from the radio broadcast of the war of the worlds and a vinyl recording of it's the great pumpkin, charlie brown. i still love hearing how the emotions of the conversation actually somewhat match the music. my favorite being sally's tirade at linus over missing halloween as the music descends into the sad, depressing closing section. good stuff.]
George S. Irving - "The Slithery-Dee" [from scary stories... "the slithery-dee / he came out of the sea / he ate all the others / but he didn't eat...sluuuuuuurp!"]

That'll do it for this week. Tune back in next week for my interview with Linford Detweiler of Over the Rhine and more new music as we begin our descent towards the end of the year best-of show. Until then, Go Heels (Panthers bye week!) and take care.