J's Indie/Rock Mayhem - 25th February 2009

[Welcome to another fantastic edition of J's Indie/Rock Mayhem. I'm super proud of the music lineup from tonight's show. Lots of great stuff, some great requests and just some all-around great music. The delay in posting comes from me venturing out to see Brightblack Morning Light last night which, since I've been ill (as you'll hear on the podcast) and trying to rest, involved me not coming home to do the blog. Thus, the day's delay.

Now, while the gettin's good, onward.]

J's Indie/Rock Podcast: 25th February 2009 Show

Theme Song - Peaches - "Rock Show"
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the Heartless Bastards - "Out at Sea" [from the mountain. i haven't had a full run through this record yet, so johnnie helped hip me to this excellent track from the new album. boo on them for not coming through NC on the post-album release tour.]
the Afghan Whigs - "Gentlemen" [from their 1993 masterpiece gentlemen. seriously. never heard this album? remember those records, guys and girls, that made your geeky self actually feel cool in high school just by listening to them? well, here's one you missed.]
Evidence - "Rain or Shine" [from the layover EP. more goodness from the (ex-?)dilated peoples member. evidence has a unique delivery that holds up.]
Big Head Todd and the Monsters - "Resignation Superman" [by request. from live monsters. caller wanted to hear some early big head todd, but this song is originally from their 1997 album beautiful world. this live version isn't bad though - a band i kind of wrote off long ago. thoughts, listeners?]
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the Damnwells - "55 Pictures" [from one last century, their new album which is available to download for free! very good stuff. i do so love the damnwells. and you do too if you have any ounce of love for good pop roots rock.]
the Suicide Commandos - "Mosquito Crucifixion" [from ..make a record! their first LP. one of the earliest minneapolis punk bands, from 1978. don't tell anyone but i have this awesome framed poster advertising the release of their swan-song live album hanging in my writing/computer room. shhh!]
Her Space Holiday - "Sleepy Tigers" [the title track from their latest EP. catchy, catchy, catchy. and fun. i like it.]
Brightblack Morning Light - "Hologram Buffalo" [from their latest, motion to rejoin. hard to describe their music, but lovely to sink into.]
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1990s - "Vondelpark" [from their forthcoming album kicks. to be honest, i didn't give their debut, cookies, the time of day. and parts of this record are rubbing me a bit wrong, but i like this song, so i'll do some more digging before i cast them into outer dark.]
Jason and the Scorchers - "White Lies" [from lost and found. i played this because jason ringenberg (yes, as in jason of jason and the scorchers) will be playing this friday opening for charlie louvin at the berkeley cafe in raleigh. a caller told me that jason and fellow scorcher warner hodges were re-entering the studio to cut a new jason and the scorchers record. stay tuned on that.]
Charlie Louvin - "Darling Corey" [from ..sings murder ballads and disaster songs. if you didn't catch my interview with charlie louvin the other week, well, go do it. i'll be heading to raleigh tomorrow to catch a living legend at work.]
Fugazi - "Smallpox Champion" [from in on the kill taker. one of the designers responsible for the cover art of this record, jason farrell, talked with me via email for a piece about this album art over at aquarium drunkard. great insight about a great, great album.]
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Lake Inferior - "Spiders" [from their self-titled EP. seriously awesome north carolina music that i can't get enough of.]
the Owls - "Isaac Bashevis Singer" [from daughters and suns, their 2007 album. i like. i haven't heard them before and this was a complete accident, but i enjoyed it. we'll hear more.]
Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - "Good" [from their new self-titled album. the 'petrified old wood' line jars my ears a bit, but it's a catchy song.]
the Reigning Sound - "You're Not as Pretty" [from time bomb high school. i came to this album about 5 years late, but when i put together my 'best of the 00s' album list early next year, it will be on it. rest assured.]
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Vetiver - "Rolling Sea" [from tight knit. i'm so late to the vetiver party it's not even funny. but hopefully i'll be forgiven. this is very good stuff.]
Oasis - "Don't Look Back in Anger" [from (what's the story) morning glory? every so often i spend my street cred on WQFS and play something so completely commercial that i should blush. but this song is so seriously good, that i just had to. originally i was going to play its album mate, "cast no shadow," but went with this to pick up the pace. this is the song that turned my opinion of oasis around when i was 16 or so years old. i've never looked back.]
Jim Avett and Family - "Little White Church" [from their self-titled record. jim is playing tonight along with bruce piephoff as part of the dotmatrix series down at the green burro. it will be crowded and the show starts at 8. get thee down there.]
the Decemberists - "The Chimbly Sweep" [from her majesty, the decemberists. they'll be playing at raleigh's memorial auditorium in june, probably on the heels of their new album which, i believe, is due out in the spring. i need to finally go see them, don't i?]
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Beirut - "The Akara" [from the new march of the zapatec EP. beirut is a band i can only listen to every so often, but man, when i saw them live, what a show.]
Toad the Wet Sprocket - "Nightingale Song" [by request. from fear. the production of fear has kept it out of my toad-constant-playlist over the years, but the songs are still uniformly strong.]
Wavves - "So Bored" [from wavvves. look closely. there is a difference - an extra 'v' in the album title. what this comes down to is this: do you like times new viking and the vivian girls? then you'll probably like this album. hate those bands? then you won't like wavves. easy.]
Television - "Ain't That Nothin'" [from adventure. television - how do i love thee? let me count the immaculate guitar solos.]
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the Pains of Being Pure at Heart - "The Tenure Itch" [from their self-titled debut. december bound for the 'best of '09.' you can take that to the bank.]
Gram Parsons - "Streets of Baltimore" [from GP. i've been reading david meyer's fantastic biography of parsons, twenty thousand roads, so i thought i'd dig out some gram since it'd been a minute since i'd played any of his solo work.]
the Mekons - "Flitcraft" [from fear and whiskey. i've been slow to get into the mekons over the years, though my introduction to them, the completely overwhelmingly good mekons rock 'n' roll, ought to have immediately made me dive head-first into their ouevre.]
Tom Waits and Crystal Gayle - "Take Me Home" [from the one from the heart soundtrack, one of the most overlooked gems in waits' catalogue. if you're a fan of waits' wounded heart-sick loserish persona, his heartbreaking ballads, this is the album for you. and what sounds like a catastrophe waiting to happen - i mean, really, waits dueting with anyone? let alone crystal gayle - is a remarkably insightful pairing. take me home, you silly boy.]

That'll do it for this week. I'll be back next week with more hot rock - so until then, Go Heels!, and take care.

J's Indie/Rock Mayhem - 18th February 2009

[Welcome to another edition of J's Indie/Rock Mayhem. A solid night with a great interview with Winston-Salem's Caleb Caudle and one of his Bayonets, Daniel Allen. They're having their CD release show tomorrow night, Thursday, February 19th, at the Werehouse in Winston. Ought to be awesome. They played some great live songs which you can hear below.

Let's get on with it. It's a rainy day. Onward.]

J's Indie/Rock Podcast: 18th February 2009 Show

Theme Song - Peaches - "Rock Show"
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Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - "Streetlights" [from their new self-titled album. this was actually a request of caleb caudle who was there setting up as we started the show. jason and the unit will be at the lincoln theatre in raleigh this friday night. and so will i. oh, yeah.]
Suede - "Animal Nitrate" [from their self-titled debut. sleazy glam. gotta love it.]
Marc Olson and Gary Louris - "Saturday Morning on Sunday Street" [from ready for the flood. the chorus of this song is everything that is great about when these two guys sing together.]
the Soft Boys - "I Wanna Destroy You" [from underwater moonlight. robyn hitchcock and the venus 3 have a new record out, goodnight oslo, so i thought i'd throw on some old hitchcock in lieu of anything new.]

[Here's where the interview and live songs with Caleb Caudle and Daniel Allen took place. We talked about their history in music, putting the band together, recording the new album and a few other things. The live songs were a real treat - check them out below.]

Caleb Caudle with Daniel Allen - "Don't Let Me Go" (live in studio) [an unreleased new song. click here to listen.]
Caleb Caudle with Daniel Allen - "Our Heaven" (live in studio) [a track from the new album, stay on. click here to listen.]
Caleb Caudle with Daniel Allen - "Lost in the Wind" (live in studio) [another track from the new album. click here to listen.]
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Caleb Caudle and the Bayonets - "When the Moment Comes" [from the new album.]
Blur - "Beetlebum" [from their self-titled album. there was a time where i really didn't know what to do with this record. now, it's one of my favorite blur albums.]
the Henry Clay People - "End of an Empire" (live) [from the sirius radio aquarium drunkard sessions - check 'em out here. the henry clay people will be opening for the airborne toxic event at local 506 in chapel hill on friday, march 13th.]
Paul Westerberg - "Men Without Ties" [originally a b-side, it is available on the besterberg best of collection. a favorite of mine.]
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the Damnwells - "Bastard of Midnight" [from one last century. oh, man! i do so love the damnwells and their new album is out AND available for free! it's a good record. if you're a fan of the damnwells, well, you will be happy.]
Evidence - "The Layover" [the title track from his new EP. yes, this is evidence of dilated peoples. not the one of the two MCs from that group that i expected to hear a solo album from first, for sure.]
Supergrass - "Late in the Day" [from in it for the money. i'm a fan of supergrass and i have enjoyed all their albums in one way or another, but this one is still the tops for me. from front to back it's just a brilliantly structured raucous rock record. and this ballad is, well, perfect.]
the Joy Formidable - "The Greatest Light is the Greatest Shade" [from their new album a balloon called moaning which also, by the way is available online for free. what is it with bands giving away great albums?]
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Antony and the Johnsons - "Kiss My Name" [from the crying light. one of the more upbeat (in terms of having percussion) on the new album. good stuff.]
Archie Bronson Outfit - "Cherry Lips" [from derdang derdang. i hadn't heard of these guys until they were mentioned in an AV club inventory earlier this week and i got to see this video. i downloaded the album immediately.]
Fugazi - "Five Corporations" [from end hits. i've seen more references to fugazi this week by friends of mine than i've seen in several years. so i thought i'd buy into the apparent collective fanhood this week.]
the Pains of Being Pure at Heart - "Come Saturday" [another great song from their self-titled debut. spin. this. record.]
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the Heartless Bastards - "Early in the Morning" [from their latest, the mountain. we'll be hearing more.]
the Flaming Lips - "Kim's Watermelon Gun" [from probably my favorite flaming lips record, clouds taste metallic. i'm a big fan of that period of about three albums where the lips' early-years noise freak-out calmed down enough to get tuneful, but before the soft bulletin pretty much changed them for the rest of eternity.]
Lake Inferior - "How the Wars are Won" [from their self-titled EP. i'm thinking we need to have these guys down on the show sometime. great NC music.]
Jim Avett and Family - "Shall We Gather at the River" [from the self-titled record. jim will be playing at the green burro next thursday, february 26th, along with bruce piephoff. we might have an interview with them both on the show next week. stay tuned.]
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Beirut - "La Llorna" [from the march of the zapotec EP. something about conden recording a mexican funeral band? we'll see.]
Jim White - "Counting Numbers in the Air" [from the a funny little cross to bear live EP. you can read my review here. great music.]
Telekinesis - "Coast of Carolina" [from their forthcoming self-titled record. power pop is alive and well in 2009.]

That'll do it for this week. Make sure you tune in next week for more goodness - I'll see you at a show somewhere this weekend and until next time, Go Heels! and take care.

J's Indie/Rock Mayhem - 11th February 2009

[A really awesome show tonight. I had some wonderful calls including a really complimentary call from a self-proclaimed long time listener; I think the songs tonight really flow well and all-in-all made for some great music.

Next week on the show I'll have Winston-Salem's Caleb Caudle live in-studio talking about his forthcoming album Stay On. He's playing a CD release show at the Werehouse on Thursday, February 19th, the night after the interview. He'll be playing some live music for us as well, so I'm really looking forward to it.

Now, while I listen to the UNC/Duke game on the radio, onward.]

J's Indie/Rock Podcast: 11th February 2009 Show

Theme Song - Peaches - "Rock Show"
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Silver Jews - "My Pillow is the Threshold" [from lookout mountain, lookout sea. so, david berman called it quits back in late january. i'm sure he takes this stuff a lot more seriously than ryan adams, but still. a shame that he's decided to lay out right after such a fantastic album.]
Girls Against Boys - "Let Me Come Back" [from venus luxure no. 1 baby. i was lucky enough to see girls against boys a couple of times in their later days, but i can't even imagine what it was like to see them in the roaring early days.]
the Yardbirds - "Stroll On" [from having a rave-up. i'll admit that i've never spent a lot of time with the super groups of the 60s or a lot of that time period of music in general. i cast it all under 'classic rock' at some point (no comments about how wrong that is) and never looked back. but drunkard posted this awesome video of the yardbirds in this film and i loved the song. 'nuff said.]
Holy Ghost Tent Revival - "Down the Street" [from so long i screamed. more great music from this north carolina band.]
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the Mighty Underdogs - "Warwalk" [from droppin' science fiction. featuring a few guest rappers including chali2na, formerly of jurassic 5. not bad.]
Pulp - "Razamatazz" [i first heard this as a hidden track on the U.S. version of his 'n' hers. but it originally appeared on the pulpintro: the gift recordings singles collection. this is one of cocker's sharpest (and bordering on mean) songs from the period. endlessly good.]
M.I.A. - "20 Dollar" [from kala. i love this song and i thought i'd throw it up in honor of her performance on the grammys on sunday. plus it quotes the pixies and listener brooke, who called in to request for her husband jason's birthday, said she always enjoyed when i played the pixies. quasi-fulfillment.]
the Smiths - "Bigmouth Strikes Again" [by request. from the queen is dead. happy birthday, jason!]
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the Pains of Being Pure at Heart - "Stay Alive" [from their self-titled debut. seriously. why haven't you gotten this album yet? go get it. now.]
Marah - "It's Only Money, Tyrone" [from kids in philly. i don't think i was speaking out of school when i called this one of the best roots-rock albums of the past 20 years. it's their masterwork. without a doubt. their other albums are good. kids in philly is amazing.]
Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - "The Blue" [from their forthcoming self-titled record which is out next tuesday. they're playing at the lincoln theatre in raleigh on friday, february 20th and i'll be there.]
That Petrol Emotion - "It's a Good Thing" [from manic pop thrill. post-punk has these gems scattered all over its lifespan. bands that burned brightly for one moment, then had bursts of creativity and later nothing. i love this record.]
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Charlie Louvin - "Ira" [from his self-titled 2007 album. right before this i played an excerpt from my phone interview with charlie louvin. you can read the transcript over at aquarium drunkard. it really was a fascinating and interesting talk. he's playing at the berkeley cafe in raleigh on friday, february 27th and at the evening muse in charlotte on saturday, february 28th.]
Uncle Tupelo - "Acuff-Rose" [from anodyne. the first louvin brothers song i ever heard was uncle tupelo's cover of "great atomic power." so, since louvin talked about roy acuff being the first concert he ever saw, i thought i'd play this classic ode to the man himself.]
Animal Collective - "My Girls" [from merriweather post pavilion. and let me tell you (and brynn). i think i finally get it. i love this record.]
the Replacements - "Sixteen Blue" (live) [by request. from the shit hits the fans. long time listener (and caller) frank's oldest daughter is turning 16 tomorrow. and he wanted to hear this, originally from let it be. so naturally i couldn't find a copy. so i ended up going to the most infamous of replacements bootlegs - the one where they're so drunk that they barely make it through any of the songs. i have a treasured copy of the album from its original cassette run, but thankfully someone made me a CD copy a long time back so that i don't have to play that one. so i hope this worked, frank. a great song, even when the band is completely in their cups.]
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Lake Inferior - "Spiders" [from their self-titled EP. lake inferior was the first band signed to the UNC-chapel hill student record label, vinyl records. and a good pick they were. we'll be hearing more. in the meantime, head over to their myspace for more.]
the Delays - "Hey Girl" [from faded seaside glamour. note perfect pop.]
Caleb Caudle and the Bayonets - "When the Moment Comes" [from stay on. his album is out locally next thursday after his release show at the werehouse. we'll have him up on the show next week and i'm sure he'll play us some more new stuff.]
Guided by Voices - "Bulldog Skin" [from mag earwig! this was the first GBV song i consciously remember hearing - saw the video on 120 minutes. i'm rather fond of this album.]
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Jim White - "Stranger Candy" (live) [from the funny little cross to bear live EP. this is one of the previously unreleased songs from the EP and one of the most lyrically devastating, i think. it's an astounding performance.]
Del Amitri - "Tell Her This" [from twisted. i neglected to do much valentine's related stuff on the show this year, so this is my sop to that. one of my favorite love songs of all time. "tell her something in my heart / needs her more than even clowns / need the laughter of the crowd." beautiful.]
Foreign Exchange - "Daykeeper" [from leave it all behind. when pitchfork finally got around to reviewing this, they gave it a pretty positive review. it's growing on me as well, though it's interesting since it's a completely different album from their awesome debut. but it's solid. really solid. ignore the weird drop-out in the midst of the song's beginning. with all the wind whipping around tonight we experienced a momentary power surge and lost power for a split second.]
the Smithereens - "Strangers When We Meet" [from especially for you. classic smithereens from their debut LP.]
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Olson and Louris - "Saturday Morning on Sunday Street" [from ready for the flood. they played tonight at the carborro arts center. sure it was a good show. anyone go?]
Oakley Hall - "Angela" [from i'll follow you. i'm not sure why this song appeared in my head over the last week, but here i exercise it. for some period of time. oakley hall is too good to keep out of your head for long.]

That'll do it for this week. By the time I was done with this, the Heels finished stomping Duke 101-87. What a night. I'll be back next week with Caleb Caudle live in-studio and a lot of other great new music. Until then, Go Heels! and take care.

J's Indie/Rock Mayhem - 4th February 2009

[Welcome to another edition of J's Indie/Rock Mayhem. A fantastic, action packed episode tonight. I couldn't fit everything in that I wanted to play - that's a sign of a good week. Though I did awesome with what I was able to fit in. I forgot to mention, but in two weeks, Winston-Salem's Caleb Caudle (as in "and the Bayonets") will be live on the show talking about his new forthcoming album, upcoming CD release show at the Werehouse and playing some live music for us. Ought to be a great show.

I only found out about this after I got home, otherwise I'd have mentioned it on the show, but various sources are reporting that the Cramps' front man/lead psycho, Lux Interior, died over the weekend. Lux was at the front of one of the most consistently crazy and outrageous bands of the early psychobilly scene and is truly and without a doubt one of the great frontmen of all time. We'll do a tribute to him next week.

I talk about this later, but I really can't speak highly enough of the new Dark Was the Night charity compilation for the Red Hot Organization. Red Hot has been raising money for AIDS research and prevention for almost 20 years and has put out a litany of excellent compilations including one of my favorites of all time, the No Alternative compilation. Their new one is a 2 CD blockbuster that is being put out by the venerable 4AD label and will be out on February 17th. I'll be featuring a block of songs from each of the 2 discs, starting this week, leading up to the album's release. Consider picking it up for the good that Red Hot does for a lot of people and for a very worthy cause. Not to mention it's got some seriously awesome tunes on it.

Now, before I start ringing a bell and dressing like Santa, onward.]

J's Indie/Rock Podcast: 4th February 2009 Show

Theme Song - Peaches - "Rock Show"
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Heartless Bastards - "Brazen" [from all this time. the bastards have a new record out called the mountain and i will be bringing you tracks off of that as soon as possible. sadly they aren't hitting the old north state on touring for the album - but i'm sure they'll be back sometime.]
the Beastie Boys - "Johnny Ryall" [from paul's boutique which gets its all gussied up remastered reissue next week, though you can already purchase nice packages and downloadable versions from the beasties' website, including a free download of the 'commentary' track the boys did for the album about its recording. pretty sweet.]
A.C. Newman - "Prophets" [from the excellent get guilty. newman and the broken west will be playing at the cat's cradle in chapel hill on thursday, march 19th. i'm so there.]
Black Grape - "Reverend Black Grape" [from it's great when you're straight...yeah. as i say on the podcast, whodathunk that shaun ryder could come back out with this good of an album so long after the mondays fell apart at the seams. granted, the second black grape record wasn't nearly this good, but much in the same way that pills 'n' thrills and bellyaches pretty much excuses all of the mondays' numerous missteps, this album does the same for black grape.]
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The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - "Young Adult Friction" [from their self-titled debut. look for my review of this soon over at aquarium drunkard. like uptempo shoegaze and c-86 and sara records all thrown into one blender. classic without being overplayed. really great stuff.]
the Mighty Underdogs - "Escape" [from droppin' science fiction. this track features guest spots from mr. lif and akrobatik. the group is a mish-mash of lateef the truth speaker and gift of gab and a dj. i like the song - we'll have to hear more.]
Her Space Holiday - "Sleepy Tigers" [the title track from their latest EP. this band has been around for a hot minute and are still putting out good music. i must say.]
the B-52's - "Planet Claire" [from their self-titled debut. admittedly i heard them use the intro to this song as a 'button' on NPR the other day, so i mentally filed it away to pull out for tonight. i can never listen to this album too much.]
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Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - "However Long" [from the forthcoming self-titled album due out february 17th. jason is playing at the lincoln theatre in raleigh on friday, february 20th also with nc's own benji hughes opening. ought to be a hell of a show.]
Buffalo Tom - "Soda Jerk" [from big red letter day. i'm way late to the buffalo tom party, but they've become one of my favorite also-ran bands of the 90s in very quick order. i had "soda jerk" on a compilation tape i picked up at big lots when i was a teenager (i think it was called generation x) and never forgot how much i liked it. they still make good music.]
O'Death - "Lowtide" [from broken hymns, limbs and skin. these guys remind me of parts of slim cessna's auto club, reverend glasseye and a little of sixteen horsepower. it surprised me they weren't from denver also. i like though.]
Bon Iver - "Bracket, WI" [from the dark was the night compilation. one of many really awesome songs on this compilation. this is an unreleased track that is only available on the comp.]
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The Books with Jose Gonzalez - "Cello Song" [this set was devoted entirely to songs off of the first disc of the dark was the nightcompilation. this one features the books and jose gonzalez doing up nick drake's "cello song." a really nice interpretation.]
Grizzly Bear - "Deep Blue Sea" [all of the songs on the compilation, i assume, are previously unreleased as they were recorded specifically for the compilation. this is a really nice song.]
the National - "So Far Around the Bend" [the brothers dessner of the national produced the compilation and here their own band turns in a stellar song - as if there's such a thing as an un-stellar national song.]
Antony with Bryce Dessner - "I Was Young When I Left Home" [and antony slays this dylan song - antony doing dylan? as good as this sounds, i could do with a whole album of that.]
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Telekinesis - "Foreign Room" [from their forthcoming self-titled debut. i'll have to back off this for a bit since this album doesn't come out until april, but man is it ever good.]
Brian Eno - "Dead Finks Don't Talk" [from here come the warm jets. got one of my few calls of the night from long-time listener jack who was excited i was playing eno. i had a hard time picking tracks - there are too many good ones.]
Liz Durrett - "All of Them All" [from outside our gates. this makes two really good songs off of this album. i'm going to have to snag the whole thing soon.]
Jens Lekman - "Your Arms Around Me" [from nights falls over kortedala, the j's indie/rock # 4 album of 2007. i hadn't played jens much this past year, so it was time to pull out my favorite song from that record.]
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Charlie Louvin - "Darling Corey" [from the new sings murder ballads and disaster songs. charlie will be at the berkeley café in raleigh and the evening muse in charlotte on february 27th and 28th respectively. exciting? oh, yes. oh, god, yes.]
David Bowie - "The Man Who Sold the World" [by request. the title track from the album. i really do love nirvana's version from unplugged though.]
Jim White - "Jailbird" (live) [from a funny little cross to bear live EP. jim white is a joy to see live, so it's no surprise that this live EP is full of exactly the type of things that make jim's shows great - reworked versions of songs, great renditions, great banter and storytelling.]
Polvo - "Sense of It" [from cor-crane secret. polvo is playing saturday night, along with birds of avalon, at the pour house in raleigh. excited? you should be.]
Son Volt - "Out of the Picture" [from trace. this is truly one of those albums that you discover and re-discover throughout your life. that's the sign of a true piece of art.]

That'll do it for tonight. Hope you enjoy the show - I'll be back next week with more great stuff. Until then, Go Heels! and take care.