J's Indie/Rock Mayhem - 26th January 2011

[Welcome to another edition of J's Indie/Rock Mayhem. Tonight's episode was underscored by a bit of sadness as the country legend Charlie Louvin died Wednesday at the age of 83 from complications of pancreatic cancer. I got the opportunity to interview Louvin in 2009 for Aquarium Drunkard and he was one of the more fascinating interviews I've had the chance of conducting in my years with AD. I celebrated his memory in the second half of the show, so I hope you enjoy that.

Tonight was also the debut of the new J's Indie/Rock Roundtable, a new monthly feature where I discuss and critique new releases with Ryan Snyder, music editor at YES Weekly. We discussed the new Destroyer album, Kaputt and the self-titled debut from Black Pistol Fire. We also talked about the upcoming festival season with a focus on the Coachella Festival. We'll be doing this the last Wednedsay of each month. I'd love to hear your feedback on this feature, so if you have any suggestions about the segment and how we can improve it, leave your thoughts in the comments or feel free to email me.

Now, while Satan is real, onward.]

J's Indie/Rock Podcast: 26th January 2011 show

Theme Song - Peaches - "Rock Show"
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Apex Manor - "Under the Gun" [from the year of magical drinking which i reviewed over at aquarium drunkard this week. i really can't speak highly enough of this record, so the real question is: when are the east coast tour dates, ross? and how can we get you to greensboro?]
Brian Eno - "Burning Airlines Gives You So Much More" [from taking tiger mountain (by strategy), still one of the most original and awe inspiring records of modern music. if you've never dipped your toe in eno, you could do much worse than to start here.]
the Smith Westerns - "All Die Young" [from dye it blonde. i'll tell you, this could be the little record that could this year. these boys have some seriously fun songwriting chops on board here. it's nothing new, but how well they do it is really awesome.]
Jim White - "Handcuffed to a Fence in Mississippi" [from no such place. jim's going to be at the southeastern center for contemporary art (SECCA) in winston-salem on saturday, february 19th as part of the new crossroads series. we'll be hearing more and i really can't wait. it's been far too long since i've seen jim.]

[So here's where we began the inaugural J's Indie/Rock Roundtable with Ryan Snyder of YES Weekly. The pattern for the segment is this: introduce the record, play a song, discuss the album some, play another, wrap up discussion and give our final up or down, yea or nay. Repeat. We also discussed the upcoming festival season and the things we're excited to see, so all in all it was a good experience. I'd appreciate feedback on the section: too much talking, too little, too vague, too specific? Leave your thoughts in the comments.]

Destroyer - "Chinatown" [from kaputt which i also reviewed at aquarium drunkard this week. all in all i really like this record, and i was happy that ryan and i came at this record from two different perspectives: one of us a fan, one of us decidedly not a fan.]
Destroyer - "Song for America" [also from kaputt.]
Black Pistol Fire - "Suffocation Blues" [from their self-titled debut due out in mid-february. an austin-by-way-of-canada duo that has put a nice little stamp on some bluesy rock and roll. take a listen to our conversation and see what you think.]
Black Pistol Fire - "Jezebel Stomp" [from their self-titled album.]
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the Veils - "The Stars Came Out When the Lights Went Out" [from the new troubles of the brain EP. i do so love the veils and it makes me quite happy that they've released this new EP. but where's the full length, finn? don't tease us.]
the Afghan Whigs - "Uptown Again" [from 1965. i'm licking my chops in anticipation of the new twilight singers record as well. february is going to be a good month for new releases.]
Lucinda Williams - "Convince Me" [from the forthcoming blessed. it looks like i'm going to get a chance to interview ms. williams. stay tuned.]
Josh Ritter - "Right Moves" [from the historical conquests of josh ritter. you know, it's been too long since i've seen messr. ritter and band live. i need to fix that, posthaste.]
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Caleb Caudle and the Bayonets feat. Caitlin Cary - "I Don't Think Heaven Would Take Us (If It Couldn't Have Us Both)" [a new single from the bayonet boys featuring a duet between caleb and caitlin cary! really awesome, guys. caleb and the boys will be at krankies in winston-salem this saturday, january 29th.]
Dirty Gold - "California Sunrise" [from the forthcoming roar EP being released on autumn tone records. check out the video at AD and you can pick up the single on iTunes now.]
Birds of Avalon - "Invasion" [from their self-titled record. seriously, this might be one of the great rock and roll records of this year.]
the Jayhawks - "The Man Who Loved Life" [from sound of lies, one of my favorite jayhawks records. one of my first pieces for AD was about that album.]
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the Louvin Brothers - "Satan is Real" [the title track from one of the greatest records in country music. the harmonies between charlie and ira are just otherworldly at times and this song is one of countless examples of it.]
the Byrds - "The Christian Life" [from sweetheart of the rodeo. gram parsons-era byrds covered this louvin classic. it wouldn't be the last time parsons would dip his toe in the louvin's inspirational river, but it certainly ranks as one of the finest moments.]
Uncle Tupelo - "Great Atomic Power" [from march 16-20, 1992. this might have been my introduction to the louvins, but i think that's probably the case for a lot of younger country fans who got into the music via alt-country. of it's time and yet transcending it.]
Charlie Louvin - "Ira" [from his 2007 self-titled record. a touching, beautiful song about his late brother, some 42 years after his death. the aged and still powerful voice of charlie louvin is simply magical. it still gives me chills listening to this song.]
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Filthybird - "Gravity" [from songs for other people. great greensboro rock and roll.]

That'll do it for this week. I'll be back next week with a normal, two-hour extravaganza of new and classic music. Until then, take care.