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

[Welcome to another edition of J's Indie/Rock Mayhem - the Thanksgiving special. As always, my show falls on the day before the Thanksgiving holiday, so it's up to me to spend two hours talking about things for which I'm thankful. This year's show is pretty fun and chock full of great stuff.

I'll keep it short and sweet - jam on this stuff while you jam on some stuffing. Onward.]

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

Theme Song - Peaches - "Rock Show"
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A.C. Newman - "Like a Hitman, Like a Dancer" [from get guilty. one of my favorite singles - of course, any newman album is a single factory.]
Obits - "Widow of My Dreams" [from i blame you. again, a single factory from this year. love this record.]
the Replacements - "Little Mascara" [from the re-issue of tim from earlier this year. i sometimes forget how great this song is, and people rarely mention it as one of the album's best songs, immediately overshadowed as it is by "left of the dial" and "here comes a regular." but great it is.]
Built to Spill - "Hindsight" [from the excellent there is no enemy. this album is chock full of great singles, too. that's my focus tonight, isn't it?]
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Real Estate - "Beach Comber" [from their excellent self-titled debut. the thankful theme of this set is bands i learned about on the 'net this year. this is a prime example of a recent pick-up. of course, where do i hear most bands this year? it's not so exceptional anymore.]
Egyptian Lover - "What is a D.J. If He Can't Scratch" [from on the nile. not only did i hear this on the 'net, but it also sets up another thing i'm thankful for: sampling.]
Charizma and Peanut Butter Wolf - "Red Light Green Light" [from big shots. this song uses a sample from egyptian lover's song to excellent effect. rest in peace, charizma.]
Echo and the Bunnymen - "Think I Need It Too" [from the new album the fountain which is quite good. quality bands that are around this long still making good records make me very happy.]
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Frightened Rabbit - "Swim Until You Can't See Land" [from their forthcoming, still untitled album due out early next year. this is already available as a single oneMusic and from other places. the theme of this set is great concerts i saw this year and these guys blew me away at the pitchfork festival.]
Lambchop - "Slipped, Dissolved and Loosed" [from OH(ohio). i talked last week about what a great live show these guys were at the merge records 20th anniversary festival - totally stealing the show from the headlining acts, planted firmly in the middle of the night as they were.]
the Low Anthem - "Home I'll Never Be" [from oh my god, charlie darwin. easily one of the most beautiful live shows i've seen in years and if you can see these guys live, get on it.]
Vic Chesnutt - "Coward" [from at the cut. not only one of my favorite albums of this year, but one of my favorite live shows. vic and his band was in rare, amazing form when i saw them at halloween.]
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Bear in Heaven - "Lovesick Teenagers" [from beast rest forth mouth. the late competitor giving a run for the top 5 albums of this year? you bet. this set had the theme of requests by friends who i am thankful for. this goes out tochris.]
James McMurtry - "Talkin' at the Texaco" [from too long in the wasteland and this goes out to jeremy. he was inspired by the new stephen king novel which apparently makes numerous references to this.]
Blackalicious - "Deception" [from nia. this goes out to michael who requested it weeks ago and i'm a bad friend and am just now getting around to it. love you, man.]
Arlo Guthrie - "Alice's Restaurant Massacre" [and this goes to rachel who requests this so her family can listen to it at thier annual night-before thanksgiving family get together. and why not?]
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Telekinesis - "Great Lakes" [from their self-titled debut. this was a sampling of this week's aquarium drunkard best of the decade albums. this album isn't on the list, but it's unquestionably on the list of the best of 2009.]
the Constantines - "Soon Enough" [from tournament of hearts, the decade review of which you can read here.i've never listened to them much, but i love this song.]
the Roots - "Quills" [from phrenology which you can read about here. this was the piece i wrote about for this week. seriously one of the best albums of the decade, hip-hop or not.]
the National - "Fake Empire" [from boxer. i often feel guilty if my favorite song from an album is the opener, as ifi'm slagging the rest of the album. but holy crow "fake empire" is just such a perfect song. read the decade piece and see for yourself.]
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Lemonheads - "The Outdoor Type" [from car button cloth. i mistimed my close to the show, but i did want to play this, one of my favoritelemonheads songs. during the 4 o'clock hour that i covered today i played the lemonheads' "rudderless" from it's a shame about ray, but i'll play the lemonheads all the time. good stuff.]
Beck - "Harry Partch" [long story short, this is the most awesome response to a diss i've ever heard. read the whole ridiculousness here and then try not to think beck is most assuredly the man.]

That'll do it for tonight's show. I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving and we'll (hopefully) be up here next week with the guys from Lake Inferior. Until then, Go Panthers!, and take care.

J's Indie/Rock Mayhem - 28th October 2009

[Welcome to another edition of J's Indie/Rock Mayhem. My show was a little far away from Halloween this year to go all out on the Halloween theme. In fact, it'll be that way for the next couple of years, but fear not, I still laced the show with some Halloween themed bits of fun. Hope you enjoy.

If you haven't been following our Decade posts over at Aquarium Drunkard, you really ought to check them out. The four main writers are going through their favorite albums of the decade between now and the end of the year, and we're having a blast. I'm playing tracks from each of the albums that go up during the week here on the show, but the articles are even more interesting, so go catch up if you haven't been following along.

Now, while there's still talk of a winning season for the Panthers...somewhere...onward.]

J's Indie/Rock Podcast: 28th October 2009 Show

Theme Song - Peaches - "Rock Show"
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Girls - "Lust for Life" [from their self-titled debut. you know, obviously stolen titles are kind of endearing in a way. the 'mats' let it be, for instance, and the title of this song is no exception. it helps that it's a really great song. helps a lot, actually.]
Mclusky - "Without MSG I Am Nothing" [from the difference between me and you is that i'm not on fire, one of my contributions to this week's decade pieces over at aquarium drunkard. click here to check it out. i love this record - every nasty, snarky, caustic bit of it.]
George S. Irving - "The Hearse Song" [from a audio reading of scary stories to tell in the dark. this series was essential reading when i was growing up, and it still is. remember that woman? yeah, i thought so. i thought i'd insert a few of these throughout the show as is my usual want during the halloween season.]
the Raveonettes - "Breaking Into Cars" [from in and out of control. i need to give this album a listen, really. i hadn't written the raveonettes off or anything, but i'd become progressively less interested in their work over the years, but i like everything i've heard off this so far.]
the Reigning Sound - "Stick Up for Me" [from the excellent love and curses that came out a little earlier this year. great classic sounding rock and roll. this and the obits record may be the best straight up rock albums this year.]
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Finn Riggins - "Wake" [from vs. wilderness. this is a downright fun record and though they aren't gracing us here in the east coast with any tour dates right now, if you get a chance to check them out, it's a fantastic show.]
Adam and the Ants - "Antmusic" [from kings of the wild frontier. so one of the great things about eMusic striking a deal with sony is access to sony's back catalogue at eMusic's really awesome prices. thus, this album. there's a dated sound to adam ant, but you know what? it's still terrific music.]
George S. Irving - "The Slithery-Dee" [from scary stories to tell in the dark. it came out of the sea, you know.]
Nirvana - "Molly's Lips" (live) [from the new gussied-up reissue of their debut album bleach. added on to the remastered album is a complete live show from 1990. it's got great sound quality and catches the band at their energetic early peak. and here they are tearing through their excellent cover of the vaselines' classic that wound up on incesticide. not a bad thing to pick up for big fans.]
the Vaselines - "Son of a Gun" [from enter the vaselines. so why not follow-up a cover with an original? nirvana also covered this vaselines song on incesticide and i'm fairly sure i might never have heard the vaselines without nirvana. weird circles music moves in.]
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Lake Inferior - "Addressing Parents" [from the forthcoming pegasaur 10" EP. they'll be having an EP release party at local 506 on thursday, november 12th and if you want to catch one of north carolinas best newer bands, this is the show to see. for real.]
Fugazi - "Cashout" [from the argument, another of aquarium drunkard's decade albums. read about it here. i love this fugazi record. if the band never recorded another album, it would be a fitting end to their career together. it's a perfect synthesis of everything they had developed over their years together.]
George S. Irving - "Room For One More" [another from scary stories to tell in the dark.]
Mos Def - "Auditorium" [from the ecstatic. featuring a killer verse from slick rick. this will be on my year-end best singles show no question.]
Echo and the Bunnymen - "Shroud of Turin" [from their latest the fountain. it doesn't sound quite like the old echo, but man, it's actually really good. the two songs i've heard at least. here's to bands growing older gracefully.]
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Vic Chesnutt - "Philip Guston" [from at the cut. vic, along with the band that recorded this record - the silver mt. zion orchestra, guy picciotto (from fugazi) and members of godspeed you black emperor - will be at the soapbox in wilmington this saturday night, halloween. and so will i. i really cannot wait to see this show.]
Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs - "And Your Bird Can Sing" [from under the covers vol. 1, their beatles cover from that covers album. sweet and hoffs will be at the carborro arts center on thursday, november 5th. i believe there are tickets still available - i guess they'll be doing mostly music from their new album of 70s covers.]
George S. Irving - "Wait 'Til Martin Comes" [from scary stories to tell in the dark.]
the Low Anthem - "Dignity" [their cover of bob dylan's "dignity" which you can get as a free download if you sign up for the band's mailing list. not a bad trade if you ask me.]
the Alcazar Hotel - "Lucky" [a great song from chapel hill's alcazar hotel who will be playing here in greensboro tomorrow night as part of this month's dotmatrix project free concert at the green burro downtown starting at 8pm. they'll also be joined by the fantastic pinche gringo, so get thee down there. this will be the last dotmatrix show of 2009 as they take a two month break to recuperate.]
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El Perro Del Mar - "Gotta Get Smart" [from the new love is not pop, sarah assbring's third album as el perro del mar. the early reviews on this thing are good, so we'll hear more. i like this song.]
Tiger Bear Wolf - "I Can't See the Light" [from their self-titled record which was also named as one of aquarium drunkard's decade - best albums of the decade. read about it here. are people just coming alive to this band? i got a call tonight raving about this song and how nasty and awesome the guitars were. i agree. i've agreed since this band started. greensboro, represent.]
Wade Denning and Kay Lande - "Halloween" [from halloween - songs and stories. this isn't available on CD, but thankfully vinyl rips of it exist. my elementary school music teacher had us listen to this every halloween. when i found a copy i nearly fainted.]
Lucero - "The Devil and Maggie Chascarillo" [from 1372 overton park. i like this song a lot, people. a whole lot. lucero will be at the visulite theatre in charlotte on tuesday, november 17th.]
Q and Not U - "So Many Animal Calls" [from different damage, my other entry this week in the decade list over at aquarium drunkard. read about it here. i sorely miss this band. a lot.]
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Paul Westerberg - "Ghost on the Canvas" [from pw and the ghost gloves cat wing joy boys EP. i haven't played this song off the EP yet and i guess it's perfect for the halloween show. hey, ghosts, alright.]
A.A. Bondy - "Oh the Vampyre" [from when the devil's loose, bondy's fantastic sophomore album from earlier this year. fit the theme well also. huzzah for themes.]
Califone - "Alice Marble Gray" [from all my friends are funeral singers. i really like califone a lot, if it hasn't been apparent on the show from time to time. their new one is still getting into my head, so we'll hear more.]
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J's Indie/Rock Halloween Mash-Up - "War of the Great Dancing Macabre Pumpkins" [a mash-up i put together years ago that has become an annual staple here on the show. it takes music from romantic composer, charles camille saint-saens, and his "danse macabre" piece and dialogue from the original war of the worlds radio broadcast and a vinyl recording of it's the great pumpkin, charlie brown. enjoy the weirdness and fun. happy halloween!]

That'll do it for this week. I'll be back next week with more awesome music and some nice memories of seeing Vic Chesnutt. Until then, Go Panthers!, and take care.

Extra Mayhem - 10th August 2009

[We're winding down the summer here on Extra Mayhem, so I wanted to make sure these last weeks were special. Tonight's Wholesale album was a doozy, to be sure, and the theme from tonight's show was...hot...to say the least.

I'll keep it short tonight and get crackin'. Onward.]

J's Extra Podcast: 10th August 2009 Show

the Afghan Whigs - "Somethin' Hot" [from 1965. so tonight's theme was 'hot thing,' inspired by prince and by the hot weather we've had in these early, dog-days of august. immediately i thought of this song and, well, here it is.]
Cheap Trick - "Hot Love" [from their self-titled 1977 debut. i haven't really enjoyed this album as much as i have even the records immediately following it. it's a bit rough and less catchy than their later, more polished stuff. give me the big cheap trick.]
Beck - "Hotwax" [from odelay. viva la hotwax. i've been listening to or had foisted upon me a lot of beck recently. that's not a bad thing, mind you.]
Ini Kamoze - "Here Comes the Hotstepper" [from the pret a porter soundtrack. i honestly never could've thought i'd be playing this song on WQFS, but when i typed in the keyword 'hot' to search my harddrive for songs, and this was the first song that came up, how could i not play it?]
Le Tigre - "Decepticon" (BBC Sessions live) [okay. so, an apology as on the podcast i call this song "hot topic." why do i do that? because the meta-information on the mp3 that i ripped from the cd was mislabeled and said this was "hot topic." i also failed to notice it wasn't. so, yeah. goof. great live track though.]
Guided by Voices - "Hot Freaks" [from bee thousand. dedicated on the air to satisfied '75 since a) he loves gbv, b) he loves this song as the annual blog-curated showcase at SXSW is named after it and c) i can do what i want. great song.]
Mitch Hedberg - "Hot Air Balloons" [this is part of a bit from do you believe in gosh? this was the posthumously released album that came out last year. "here's my license. it's the scissors. snip. later." love it.]
the Hold Steady - "Hot Soft Light" [from boys and girls in america. this is probably my favorite hold steady album and songs like this go a long way towards reinforcing that. jeez.]
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Jurassic 5 - "Red Hot" [from feedback. i've rarely been as disappointed in an album as i was in feedback. it's just as well, no offense, that j5 broke up after this because, really, c'mon. i will defend their first three LPs with ferocity. but this one..no. this song is quite good though.]
Prince - "Hot Thing" [from sign 'o' the times. i just wrote a piece about this album over at aquarium drunkard. it's a crazy, unique. sprawling and vivacious record and seriously required listening if you consider yourself open minded at all to music.]
Simple Minds - "White Hot Day" [from sparkle in the rain. i'll tell you, it's hard to dig into 80s music sometimes because of how dated the instrumentation is. and there's something about that decade specifically that the type of instrumentation used just did not carry over very well to other times. so, the great songwriting is sometimes lost amidst dealing with the sound. simple minds is a great example of that as they are, honestly, a great band. or were. or something.]
Sleater-Kinney - "Hot Rock" [from the hot rock. this was s-k's somewhat challenging follow-up to the groundbreaking dig me out and it's a bit more cerebral and less immediate than its predecessor. of course i'm drawn to it as a result.]
His Name is Alive - "Hot Tonite" [from the nice day EP. i received a nice his name is alive-related gift from my friend chris yesterday and i'll probably be sharing some of it with you on the wednesday show. stay tuned.]
the Soft Boys - "I Got the Hots" [from underwater moonlight. robyn hitchcock and company explaining how they do, indeed, have the hots. like curry for a corpse. or something. whatever.]
Rock Plaza Central - "The Hot Blind Earth" [from the excellent new at the moment of our most needing. rock plaza central is a pretty amazing band, i must say.]
Yo La Tengo - "Don't Say a Word (Hot Chicken #2)" [from electr-o-pura. what a gorgeous song. i'm pretty sure they played this when i saw them at the carborro arts center last year. when georgia sings, we listen.]
Wilco - "Poor Places" (demo) [this is from the yankee hotel foxtrot demos. i love this version of "poor places" as it shows the song as a much more sprightly and traditional version, versus the song as it became on the record. both versions are pretty stellar if you ask me.]

[Tonight's Wholesale album of the week is one of those true stand-alone masterworks of modern music. The La's released one, and only one, album and it was a doozy. Spinning off one of the most perfect pop songs ever written in "There She Goes," the rest of the album is a concentrated slice of trad-pop in the grand British traditions of the band's influences. Lee Mavers, the main architect of the La's sound, has been making noise about a follow up record for close to two decades now, but it has never surfaced. If he actually did, what sort of expectations would surround it? Would they be realistic? Would he have any hopes?

What this record does, and does well, is rehash and give individual voice to the best music of the previous 30 years in pop in England. The Stones, the Beatles, the Kinks, even the Jam are represented in fleeting sounds and snippets woven together into a distinctly British tapestry of pop. It's a timeless sounding record that could just have easily been created in the 60s, 70s, 80s or 90s and that gives immense credit to the band for creating such a unique and yet indebted piece of art. Tonight's Wholesale album of the week is..]

Track Listing

1. Son of a Gun
2. I Can't Sleep
3. Timeless Melody [click to listen]
4. Liberty Ship
5. There She Goes [click to listen]
6. Doledrum
7. Feelin'
8. Way Out
9. I.O.U.
10. Freedom Song
11. Failure
12. Looking Glass

That'll do it for this week. I'll be back on Wednesday night for Indie/Rock Mayhem - tons of new stuff to parse through, so get set for a great show. Until then, take care.

Extra Mayhem - 13th July 2009

[Welcome to the last Extra Mayhem for the month of July. Next Monday, I'll still be in Chicago visiting friends post-Pitchfork festival and the following Monday I'll be at a teacher's workshop out of town. So the next scheduled Extra Mayhem will be Monday, August 3rd. Make sure you catch it as there will only be a few remaining in the summer.

My apologies about the podcast - I neglected to start it on time and accidentally cut off the first half of the first song. Didn't mean to cleave the Monkees - honest. As another advance warning also, this week's Indie/Rock Mayhem podcast will be a couple of days late going up as well. Again, podhosting limitations. I'd pay more money, but I mean, I'm already putting a chunk of change per month into hosting this stuff for you people. No one's complained, so I'll assume you're awesomely patient. Thanks a lot.

I don't say this much, but thank you, thank you, thank you to the people who download and listen to the podcast each week. The fact that that many of you do that on a weekly basis makes all the work I put into it each week completely worth it. Thanks, folks.

Be sure to follow me on Twitter as I'll be updating pretty frequently while I'm at the Pitchfork Festival. Now, before I go on any longer, onward.]

J's Extra Podcast: 13th July 2009 Show

the Monkees - "I'm Not Your Stepping Stone" [from more of the monkees. tonight's theme was "this is not," which is kind of ambiguous, i realize. but the idea is songs that declare that "(noun/pronoun) is not (adjective/verb/noun/pronoun)" or some acceptable, grammatical modification of that set up. this is the first of three versions of this classic song. can you spot the others? play along!]
the Minus 5 - "I'm Not Bitter" [from down with wilco. yeah, he's not bitter. not at all. i love the tounge-in-cheek obviousness of the lyrics to this.]
the Emergency - "Not Angry" [from doo lang doo lang. you know, the more i listen to the emergency, the more i get to like them. this is from what (sadly) seems to be their last full-length album.]
Blitzen Trapper - "Not Your Lover" [from furr. i can't wait to see these guys this weekend. so, my question is, if he's the subject of the song's lover when he's awake, why are his dreams all messed up and bizzaro? that has to suck. even if he is a moonwalkin' cowboy of some variety.]
10,000 Maniacs - "I'm Not the Man" [from our time in eden. this is like the racial-injustice version of "long black veil" or something? but it's good that natalie merchant reminded us that she, indeed, is not the man.]
Camper Van Beethoven - "I Know I'm Not Wrong" [from one of the more fun things in cvb's oeuvre, a complete re-recording of fleetwood mac's tusk album that they did when snowed into a cabin somewhere at some point. it's really quite good.]
Minor Threat - "I'm Not Your Stepping Stone" [from complete discography. did you spot it?!?! yup. the second version of the hart classic. i, literally, cannot decipher a single word ian mackaye is barking in this song, so it's just as well i started out with the monkees' version to give you some idea of what's going on. this song was the go-to cover for most punk bands in the 70s and 80s i notice.]
Del Amitri - "Not Where It's At" [from some other sucker's parade. ask me sometime about my theory about this song and what it's about. hint: sex. extra hint: what the guy with the hat says.]
Blonde Redhead - "This Is Not" [from the melody of certain damaged lemons. ah, the inspiration for tonight's theme. actually, to be completely honest, bob dylan's "i'm not there" was the inspiration and, ironically, i decided not to play it. so the title of this song became the best representation.]
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Loudon Wainwright III - "I'm Not Gonna Cry" [from last man on earth. i'm a big fan of this album, even though you haven't seen me play much, if anything, off of it. it's wainwright's lament following the death of his mother back in 2001 and it's a really stellar album.]
the Housemartins - "We're Not Deep" [from now that's what i call quite good. if you've never heard the housemartins, do yourself a favor and go pick up the people who grinned themselves to death. you're welcome in advance.]
Emily Dickinson - "Because I Could Not Stop for Death" [okay - to be fair, this is not a recording of dickinson actually reading her poem. it's some random lady. but, the poem title did fit into the theme, so here it is.]
the Sex Pistols - "I'm Not Your Stepping Stone" [from the great rock 'n' roll swindle. if you said this was the third instance of this song tonight, you're right! way to go! rotten's lyrics are a bit more discernible than mackaye's, but, you know. whatever. their version of "substitute" is better.]
Little Brother - "Not Enough" [from the vastly underrated the minstrel show. one of my favorite things about this album is how much time is devoted to rapping about how people never heard their critically fellated/commercially invisible debut. go on, phonte. let it out.]
the Velvet Crush - "Why Not Your Baby" [from teenage symphonies to god. their version of the gene clark classic and from an equally amazing album. man, it's good.]
Willie Nelson - "It's Not For Me to Understand" [from yesterday's wine. jeff, mr. deeds, i hope you're reading this so that you see i do, indeed, play willie on my show.]
Presidents of the United States of America - "We Are Not Going to Make It" [from their self-titled debut. this is a definite first for me, playing this band on the show. but this is a quirky, fun song that fit right into the theme again. all in all, their debut is a pretty solid record. not something life changing, but fun to put on when you want toe tapping music.]
Toad the Wet Sprocket - "I Will Not Take These Things For Granted" [from fear. i do, seriously, adore this song. i have often cringed at the production on this album - it's highly dated and over-studio-ized - but it works really well on this song and on a few others, ("is it for me," "all i want").]

[Tonight's Wholesale album of the week is one of those albums that really helped define my teenage years in terms of the music I listened to. While my entry to this band was the album that came after it, this was the record that truly solidified my desire to one day visit London and understand, as best I could, the culture behind it. Granted, I would finally be there well after the rise and fall of Britpop, but it still affected my notion of all things British and I probably threw out a lot of terms in high school that I had no clue what they actually meant. I mean, I did spell color with a 'u' for many years. Insert mockery of J's teenage self HERE.

I also decided on this record because of the band's recent reunion - which may have already drawn to a close. After playing a festival this past weekend, Damon Albarn said it was their last gig. Whatever that means. Alas - no North American dates?

Parklife is an album with grand ambitions. Not only does it set out to cover most of the major musical styles post-British Invasion, it also sets out to diagram British culture and society in general. Here is where Blur's long-time comparison to the Kinks comes in. Much like Ray Davies before him, Damon Albarn had a keen eye for social dissection and his characters and narrators are sometimes broad, but hardly ever completely unsympathetic or not understandable. In the end, Parklife is built on layer after layer of a half-century almost of British culture. The results are a masterwork that is still as breathtakingly enjoyable and unique 15 years later. Tonight's Wholesale album of the week is..]

Track Listing

1. Girls and Boys
2. Tracy Jacks [click to listen.]
3. End of a Century
4. Parklife [click to listen.]
5. Bank Holiday
6. Badhead [click to listen.]
7. The Debt Collector
8. Far Out
9. To the End
10. London Loves
11. Trouble in the Message Centre
12. Clover over Dover
13. Magic America
14. Jubilee
15. This is a Low
16. Lot 105

That'll do it for this week. See you Wednesday night for J's Indie/Rock Mayhem. Until then, take care.

Extra Mayhem - 6th June 2009

[Tonight's Extra Mayhem is a labor of love that I spent most of this week planning. I abandoned the more direct sense of 'current events' theme for the theme hour, though it is summertime and the sun is definitely prevalent, so tonight's theme is "Here comes the sun." I had to whittle down several hours of music in order to get to tonight's final collection which comes in at about one hour and twenty minutes, so another extra-long theme hour podcast for y'all.

Due to podcast hosting storage limitations, and a couple of extra-long theme sets, this week's Indie/Rock Mayhem Podcast may not go up until Friday, July 10th. Apologies in advance for the inconvenience in reception.

I don't have anything else to add, so before I do, onward.]

J's Extra Podcast: 6th June 2009 Show

the Jayhawks - "Waiting for the Sun" [from hollywood town hall. i planned these songs out to, more or less, track the rise of the sun to the set of the sun. feel free to criticize my placement, but i figured this was about as good a song as any to open with. plus the new jayhawks' best-of hits stores this week.]
the Beatles - "Here Comes the Sun" [from abbey road. see? get it? waiting..here comes...brilliant.]
Belle and Sebastian - "Another Sunny Day" [from the life pursuit. this was the song that officially won me over as a fan of belle and sebastian. i liked the much fuller sound of this album and it made me go back and re-listen to their more classic material with a different and more appreciative ear.]
Primal Scream - "Deep Hit of Morning Sun" [from evil heat. first off, what a great song title. second, this, is an album i've rarely given any time to. when it comes to primal scream, it's either screamadelica or it's vanishing point or its, well, nothing. but this, and its predecessor, the loud and agressive XTRMNTR, are things i've long been meaning to explore further.]
the Clientele - "These Days Nothing But Sunshine" [from god save the clientele. are these guys capable of making anything other than the most gorgeous music you've ever heard?]
Beck - "Sweet Sunshine" [from mellow gold. this was one of the tracks i was most excited about playing this week. would beck, as an artist, take off now like he did in the 90s if he dropped an album like this? timing is everything.]
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Buffalo Tom - "Sundress" [from sleepy eyed. this song didn't have as big of a 'sun' theme presence, but, i love buffalo tom and this song is simply fantastic. so i played it anyway.]
Matthew Sweet - "Looking at the Sun" [from girlfriend. i like this next little sequence of songs, but thematically and sonically.]
Catherine Wheel - "Judy Staring at the Sun" [from happy days. i've always enjoyed this song a lot, even if the album it's from is pretty middling.]
the Seahorses - "Blinded by the Sun" [from do it yourself. you know, this album gets slagged a lot, but it's got some right good songs on it. yeah, it's no stone roses, but hey, not bad.]
Ray Charles - "That Lucky Old Sun (Just Rolls Around Heaven All Day)" [from modern sounds in country and western music. this is a bonus track from the expanded edition released in 1988.]
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Archer Prewitt - "Way of the Sun" [from wilderness. a lovely little tune from a gorgeous record. if you were never quite sure what to do with the sea and cake, well, here's an easier entryway.]
Chester, Sifl and Olly - "Seasons in the Sun" [so, yes, this is from the defunct mtv show sifl and olly which, upon watching again on youtube, is obviously much more funny to teenagers. that crescent freshness just hasn't held up. well, i still quote it to people.]
the Ramones - "California Sun" [from leave home. ah, the ramones. live this song is even better.]
the Close - "Sun, Shine" [from sun, burn. the close are a band i saw a handful of years ago and they really impressed me. and this album, too, was really solid. they kind of dropped off the planet though. this album came out in late 2006 and it's been silence since.]
the Godz - "Lay in the Sun" [from contact high with the godz. deranged folk music is the best way to describe this. these guys sound like they can barely play their instruments and it's so bizarre and addictive.]
Johnny Cash - "You Are My Sunshine" [from the third disc of the unearthed box set. it makes sense to have someone playing this song, right?]
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the Velvet Underground - "Who Loves the Sun" [from loaded. this song was the inspiration for this week's theme and it's a humdinger. i have to admit that i only finally bought loaded this week. i've owned the other three velvets records for years, but finally bought the final piece of the puzzle.]
Giant Sand - "Flying Around the Sun with Remarkable Speed" [from giant sand is all over the map. a pretty underated late-period giant sand record and a really sharp song as well.]
Jim White - "Crash Into the Sun" [from transnormal skiperoo. the song is funky as hell - especially the "woooo"'s that follow the word "crash" in the chorus. infectious.]
M.I.A. - "Sunshowers" [from arular. this is what a pop song should sound like, folks. do you salt and pepper your mango?]
that dog. - "Retreat from the Sun" [the title track from their final album. now that's a reunion i could stand to see.]
the Kinks - "Waterloo Sunset" [from something else by the kinks. when i knew i wanted to wrap these songs around a theme of sunrise/sunset, i knew this would be my final song. gorgeous.]

[Tonight's Wholesale album is by a band that has had an odd trajectory through American indie music. Their 1983 debut album was a huge hit and spun off several hit singles, one of which is a certifiable legend of a song. They then did what any genuinely unique band would do - turned right around the next year and put out an alienating, dark and claustrophobic follow-up that signed their commercial death warrant.

1984's Hallowed Ground is a stark, darkly raging and slightly humorous trip through Gordon Gano's dealings with religion. And when I say that this album signed the Violent Femmes' death warrant commercially - seriously, name me one radio single that still gets any amount of play that isn't off of their self-titled debut. But commercial success (arguably - and boy, there's a topic for you) doesn't determine artistic quality and while there is a similar feel to most of the Femmes' music, there's something very unique about this album. Having the country and folk musical influences channeled through the unique voice of Gano and the airy structure of the Femmes' music is certainly a boon for the album.

Hallowed Ground is not a record that is widely known outside of more dedicated fans of the band. Certainly anyone who has heard their music casually is more likely to pick up their self-titled debut or what-college-student-in-the-90s-didn't-own-a-copy-of-the Add It Up best-of collection, which does feature songs from this album. But really, these songs most likely slipped by between the drunken party shouts of 'why can't i get just one screw?!' Now, without further ado, tonight's Wholesale album of the week is...]

Track Listing

1. Country Death Song
2. I Hear the Rain [click to download.]
3. Never Tell [click to download.]
4. Jesus Walking on the Water
5. I Know It's True But I'm Sorry to Say
6. Hallowed Ground
7. Sweet Misery Blues
8. Black Girls
9. It's Gonna Rain

Violent Femmes - "I Hear the Rain" (live) [from a bootleg of a triple j radio broadcast of a show in melbourne in 1990. you can download the entire performance over here for a limited time. if you're a fan of the band, it's a top notch boot with australian fans going nuts for the band. really fun.]
Violent Femmes - "Hallowed Ground" (live) [this is from the same concert recording. enjoy.]

That'll do it for this week. I'll be back on Wednesday night with J's Indie/Rock Mayhem. Until then, take care.

Extra Mayhem - 30th June 2009

[Tonight's Extra Mayhem was a fun, but honestly underwhelming theme set, but a great Wholesale album. Who knew? I wanted to do something Michael Jackson related for the theme, so I went with "The King of Pop" as the theme - unfortunately, I don't think it worked as well as I'd hoped. The songs are great, I just don't think they tie in as well. I think "Green" has been the best theme week so far. I need to get back to that level.

Extra Mayhem next week will be on at 10 PM instead of 12 AM. Eric, the DJ in front of me, is going to be out of town, so I'm bumping up so I can get home a bit earlier. Any thoughts on whether the Wholesale album should be during the 10 PM or 11 PM hour?

Now, while I'm still awake, onward.]

J's Extra Podcast: 30th June 2009 Show

the Jackson 5 - "I Want You Back" [the theme is bookended by jackson songs - this is my all time favorite jackson 5 song, so it seemed fitting.]
the Heads with Michael Hutchence - "The King is Gone" [from no talking, just head. if you've never heard this record..well..i don't know that i'd recommend it. this was in the immediate aftermath of the talking heads breaking up and there was an ongoing fight about use of the name. so the band (minus david byrne) released an album as 'the heads' with various singers filling in for byrne. this isn't a bad song by any means - in fact, i quite like it - but the record on the whole is meh.]
Pavement - "No More Kings" [available on the wowee zowee: sordid sentinels edition, but also originally from the schoolhouse rock! rocks tribute album. pavement's take on an educational tune.]
Josh Ritter - "Leaves and Kings" [from his self-titled debut. that album has never won me over terribly, but there are some solid songs on it - this one included.]
Golden Smog - "Radio King" [from down by the old mainstream - the title phrase is included in this song. this is one of tweedy's sung songs.]
Luna - "Rhythm King" [from penthouse. a really amazing record if you haven't let it grace your ears. you'll thank me later.]
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Blur - "Pop Scene" [from modern life is rubbish, an album i've seriously considered playing for the wholesale feature some week. i love the guitar work in this song.]
Okkervil River - "Pop Lie" [from the stand ins. a gem of a catchy song from a gem of a great band.]
the Smithereens - "Top of the Pops" [from blow up. not the best smithereens song ever - i agree with the all music review that says it's about a minute too long - but it certainly gets at the point.]
Greg Dulli - "King Only" (live) [from live at triple door. a take on a song from the twilight singers' first album. it sounds much better here - i love the twilight singers, but have always been lukewarm on that first album.]
Randy Newman - "Lonely at the Top" [from sail away. i know there's a snarky nature to any randy newman song, but there's something genuine to the narrator's despair - something i have to imagine jackson felt as well.]
Michael Jackson - "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" [from off the wall. this is, quite possibly, my favorite jackson solo song. it's just ridiculously well put together and catchy.]

[Tonight's Wholesale album is one of those 'genre' defining albums you hear about from time to time. The 80s were an interesting time in country music that began to see the slow commercial dissolution of traditionalist country and the rise of the more pop-oriented sound that now dominates commercial country radio. But there were a handful of songwriters who refused to go down that road and they all began to emerge from places as expected as Texas (Nanci Griffith, Steve Earle, Lucinda Williams) and as unexpected as California. Although that's a touch misleading - Bakersfield, California had long been a hotbed for artists like Buck Owens and Merle Haggard. So it makes sense that this place would draw a hotheaded songwriter originally from Kentucky, by way of Ohio, named Dwight Yoakam.

But it wasn't just the country lineage that drew Yoakam in after a disheartening stay in Nashville. It was the fact that the local scene was packed with not just bands drawing on the 50s traditions of country, but also the classic traditions of rock and roll as well. X, the Blasters and Los Lobos (as well as other bands like the Dead Kennedys) played in the same clubs that Yoakam would frequent and this cross-breeding of traditionalist country and the snotty, outlaw attitude of punk and post-punk would end up growing a fearsome songwriter and musician in Yoakam.

Although the initial demos for his debut were recorded in 1981, it wouldn't be until 1986 that his debut album would drop on Reprise Records and help kickstart the "new traditionalist" movement that still has devoted followers today and segued perfectly with the budding "alt-country" movement that was about to see its most well known and influential band, Uncle Tupelo, get its start in just a few years. Tonight's Wholesale album is...]

Track Listing

1. Honky Tonk Man
2. It Won't Hurt [click here to listen]
3. I'll Be Gone
4. South of Cincinnati
5. Bury Me
6. Guitars, Cadillacs [click here to listen]
7. Twenty Years
8. Ring of Fire
9. Miner's Prayer
10. Heartaches by the Number

That'll do it for this week. Make sure to tune in two hours early next Monday night for Extra Mayhem and I'll be back this Wednesday with J's Indie/Rock Mayhem. Until then, take care.

Extra Mayhem - 23rd June 2009

[Welcome to another Extra Mayhem. Tonight's theme was the color green. I've been aiming to tie in themes to current events, so this one was timed to tie in with the political situation currently going on in Iran. Green has been the color of the protesters who have been arguing for a recount and examination of the recent election results. So it seemed appropriate and turned into one hell of a show, especially combined with tonight's Wholesale album. The podcast of the theme show goes about half an hour longer than normal as I had a ton of stuff to fit in, but it was definitely worth it.

Now, because it's late and I would like to sleep at some juncture, onward.]

J's Extra Podcast: 23rd June 2009 Show

Kermit the Frog - "Bein' Green" [so, first off, i mislabeled the song on the podcast. i always assumed it was called "it's not easy being green," but i'm wrong. this was written by joe raposo for kermit to sing in the first season of sesame street and it's been associated with him ever since. i could be really correct and say jim henson was performing this, but c'mon people.]
Blitzen Trapper - "The Green King Sings" [from wild mountain nation. i do so enjoy blitzen trapper.]
Vic Mizzy/Eddie Albert/Eva Gabor - "Green Acres" [i wasn't sure at all how to label this. vic mizzy was the composer and, of course, the stars of the show, eddie albert and eva gabor, are the voices actually singing the song. my parents actually allowed me to move my bedtime back half an hour when i was younger in order to watch green acres on nick at nite. i still think it's a prime example of brilliant absurdist comedy.]
R.E.M. - "Green Grow the Rushes" [from fables of the reconstruction. to clarify from my utter confusion on-air, this was their third album. a very memorable r.e.m. guitar line if there ever was one, too.]
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Chris Stamey - "Shades of Green" [from travels in the south. i've always enjoyed this song a lot - it's very sentimental in its remembrance of recklessness. it reminds me of the song "rebellious" by kacy crowley.]
Deerhunter - "Green Jacket" [from microcastle. deerhunter is a pretty unique band - i don't care if their name gets confused with all the other 'deer' names.]
Type O Negative - "Green Man" [from october rust. you know, i'll stick up for type o negative. i know i only pull them out for certain theme shows, but i still enjoy playing october rust every so often. it's big, silly fun in a way that was never quite as showy and over the top as the same sort of big-rock mockery that marilyn manson styled himself with.]
Green Jelly - "Three Little Pigs" [from cereal killer soundtrack. a song that had my ear from the first time i ever saw the video on mtv back when i first started listening to music. compare the podcast to the video and see if you can catch the seamless editing job lyrically.]
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Charizma and Peanut Butter Wolf - "Red Light Green Light" [from their one and only album, big ideas. great early 90s hip-hop. and i like the conceit of the song, too.]
Sonic Youth - "Green Light" [from evol. i was just discussing with a friend earlier tonight how neither of us have any sincere love for early sonic youth. i know it's a failing on my part, but my top three sonic youth records are all from either the 90s or the 00s. and then this song popped into my set just to prove me wrong. not bad.]
Elvis Hitler - "Green Haze" [from disgraceland. an early form of the mash-up? i love the absurdity of this song and yet, it's so catchy and rockin'. credit warren defever who would go on to form the completely different and amazing his name is alive.]
Yo La Tengo - "Green Arrow" [from i can hear the heart beating as one. a lovely instrumental track.]
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Shakin' Stevens - "Green Door" [i've never heard another song by this guy, but i downloaded this years ago because it was the number one song in the UK on the day i was born. it's a throw-back sounding cut of rock and roll and pretty fun, really.]
Miles Davis - "Blue in Green" [from kind of blue. it being summertime, it'll be time to pull out kind of blue and to revel in its amazing tones. that album is an experience.]
Gist - "Greener Grass" [from the c81 compilation. we talked about c86 music a lot here recently, but before the NME put that comp out in 1986, there was an earlier post-punk heavy comp in 1981. back when i did a piece on c86 for aquarium drunkard, a person in comments was nice enough to link to their blog where they had made the c81 comp available. so go snag it if you're interested.]
the National - "Green Gloves" [from boxer. one of the band's finest moments, without a doubt.
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the Olivia Tremor Control - "Green Typewriters" [from ..dusk at cubist castle. on the album, "green typewriters" appears as tracks 12 through 21 and, indeed, the song does appear as 9 parts. landed smack in the middle, as it does, of an album full of hazy psychedelic pop, its shards of musique concrete and pop majesty are really affecting. i get kinda hyper when talking about this band, so better you just listen to all 23 minutes of it yourself.]

[Tonight's Wholesale album took a bit of debate to choose. Not because I was picking between bands, but because I was picking between albums by one band. Namely the first two records by Big Star. Both of them got a reissue this past week with the re-packaging of the 2-for-1 CD edition of #1 Record and Radio City, their first two albums, respectively. The new reissue doesn't add much to the first CD issue - a couple of single edits as bonus tracks - but at least they are back in print this way. A 4 CD box set of all of their albums plus a ton of outtakes and live recordings is due in the late summer.

Why did I end up going with Radio City? Two words: "September Gurls." On my list of perfect pop songs, it stands, nay, towers above so many - rivaled only, really, by the La's "There She Goes" in terms of pure, pop perfection. It's also a bit darker and more desperate than #1 Record. That album's pop-sweetness held it together - here the overall affect is much more unsettling and urgent. It's an amazing record that is an important piece of the power-pop puzzle. Tonight's Wholesale album of the week is..]

Track Listing

1. O My Soul [click here to listen]
2. Life Is White
3. Way Out West
4. What's Going Ahn
5. You Get What You Deserve
6. Mod Lang
7. Back of a Car
8. Daisy Glaze
9. She's a Mover
10. September Gurls [click here to listen]
11. Morpha Too
12. I'm In Love With a Girl

That'll do it for another Extra Mayhem. I'll be back on Wednesday for Indie/Rock Mayhem. Until then, take care.

Extra Mayhem - 16th June 2009

[Welcome to another Extra Mayhem. I had a ton of fun programming this week's show - especially the theme hour. Though it's kind of hokey and ultimately just an exercise in reaching for straws, but hey, what else are themes for? Though I'm still irritated that I didn't have enough time to grab some music from Kurt Rambis for the Los Angeles Lakers theme part of the show. Oh, well. There's always another day for Rambo.

Remember that in order to avoid copyright skirmishes, naturally, only the theme hour will be podcasted as sending out a copy of an entire album, even if it is only FM quality, is a bit beyond the pale. But I will have a couple of songs from each featured album up for download as well.

Now, while I'm awake, onward.]

J's Extra Podcast: 16th June 2009

Big Ditch Road - "Detroit City Mouse" [from the great dissent. so, the los angeles lakers were originally the detroit gems. in 1946 they were purchased for the princely sum of $15,000. but here they were but a tiny team in detroit. aww.]
the Detroit Cobras - "I Wanna Holler (But the Town's Too Small)" [from baby. they wanted to go to bigger and better things. detroit was too small...so off to...minneapolis? eh, whatever.]
J. Neas - "By the Time I Get to Minnesota" [i'm going to apologize ahead of time for slipping this in - one of my own songs, cheaply (very cheaply) recorded. but hey, minnesota and stuff. even if it is an ode to the replacements.]
that dog. - "Minneapolis" [from retreat from the sun. and the team goes, following its owner and future championships.]
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Telekinesis - "Great Lakes" [from their self-titled debut. they'll be at local 506 in chapel hill on thursday night. here's where the lakers got their name. so a set of songs about lakes. can anyone think of some other teams whose mascot is a vestige of their previous geographic location? the utah jazz, of course, are left over from new orleans. and the current new orleans team from the charlotte hornets. but who else?]
John Prine - "Lake Marie" [from lost dogs and mixed blessings. probably my favorite john prine song. is there video footage of prine on sessions at west 54th floating around out there on the web? his performance of this there was the first time i ever heard it and it was mesmerizing. sigh. thank you, internets.]
Sera Cahoone - "Baker Lake" [from only as the day is long. i was really fond of this record when it came out last year. i was stretching a bit in this set as it's really a tenuous connection of the word "lake" for these songs. oh, well.]
Grandaddy - "The Crystal Lake" [from the sophtware slump. classic grandaddy. interesting to see how this compares to jason lytle's new album.]
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Lucinda Williams - "Minneapolis" [from world without tears. and of course, eventually they had to leave minneapolis. and they did. and lucinda sings it right. i love this song.]
Frank Black - "Los Angeles" [from his self-titled debut solo album. i've always had a mixed relationship with this song over the years. i've always been back and forth about this album, too.]
the Decemberists - "Los Angeles, I'm Yours" [from her majesty, the decemberists. hey, the team announces that they've arrived. aw, ain't that sweet?]
X - "Los Angeles" [the title track from their debut. was there any doubt i would pull this out? i sincerely hope not. what a band. i heard their set at the cat's cradle last week was fiery, per usual.]
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Wire - "The 15th" [from 154. this recent championship was the 15th such for the lakers franchise, so i thought i'd celebrate with not one, not two, but three versions of this song. first the original.]
Mike Watt - "The 15th" [then a cover by the legendary mike watt from the WHORE wire tribute album from the 90s.]
Fischerspooner - "The 15th" [then with another really solid cover from fischerspooner's debut, #1. very good stuff.]

[Tonight's Wholesale album is from 1985. Whenever anyone talks about the Meat Puppets, it's inevitable that their stunning sophomore album, II, will come up in discussion. Especially in light of their contributions to Nirvana's Unplugged album which all came off of the II album. Equally heralded, but far less frequently mentioned, is the 1985 follow-up, Up on the Sun. In many ways, Up on the Sun is II's better - the playing is sharper, the lyrics more focused - the band doesn't sound like it's falling apart at every chord change. Yes, that's half the charm of II, but here the acid-fried country channeled through a punchy version of post-punk that dealt in hardcore and classical trappings is much more neatly framed. Yes, this album is a lot easier to swallow and I would argue that makes it better from a certain perspective.

Engineered by Spot, who of course did most anything released on SST in the early 80s, the album recalls the production style of some of the Minutemen's records for SST with the guitars popping off the record and slapping you around a bit as you listen, like bugs zooming around your head. The lyrics are endearing and charming as always, even if they get downright weird in spots and sickeningly simple in others. It's a thoroughly enjoyable album and this week's Wholesale album is...]

Track Listing

1. Up on the Sun [click to download]
2. Maiden's Milk
3. Away
4. Animal Kingdom
5. Hot Pink
6. Swimming Ground
7. Buckethead [click to download]
8. Too Real
9. Enchanted Pork Fist
10. Seal Whales
11. Two Rivers
12. Creator

That'll do it for this week. I'll see you on Wednesday evening for Indie/Rock Mayhem and until then, take care.

Extra Mayhem - 9th June 2009

[So, after a year off, Extra Mayhem is back and better than ever. I've kept some things, altered some others, and all in all it'll make for some interesting late-night radio here in Greensboro and beyond. The show is going to be every Monday night/Tuesday morning from midnight to 2 AM. First, I've kept the Wholesale album of the week feature - and last night's was a doozy - but I've added a fun aspect to the second hour of the show: theme sets. Each week's second hour will have a theme that connects all of the songs played.

In order to avoid copyright skirmishes, naturally, only the theme hour will be podcasted as sending out a copy of an entire album, even if it is only FM quality, is a bit beyond the pale. But I will have a couple of songs from each featured album up for download as well.

Also, even though the show has reversed order this year - Wholesale album during the first hour, theme songs in the second - I will continue to blog the show with songs first, then album. Just makes it easier and more aesthetically pleasing.

Now, let's get going.]

J's Extra Podcast: 9th June 2009 Show

Drive-by Truckers - "Too Much Sex (Too Little Jesus)" [from pizza deliverance. tonight's theme was SEX. you read right. SEX. mainly in the titles of the songs. i didn't do an awesome job with this theme, mainly because i only came up with the theme idea last night. future installments will be better, but this was highly amusing all the same.]
the Gun Club - "Sex Beat" [from fire of love. a really dynamic song from a really dynamic album that was actually on the wholesale album feature back in 2006. the gun club is one of those bands you become somewhat obsessed with when you get into them.]
Alejandro Escovedo - "Sex Beat" [from bourbonitis blues. escovedo's take on the gun club classic is slower, darker and more ominous. where jeffrey lee pierce's original is a howling jittery song akin to teenage hormones, escovedo's is a look from people who are lost in their obsessions rather than running with them.]
Morphine - "Super Sex" [from yes. ah, morphine's music is just downright sexy anyway. so why not a song that just shouts it from the rafters?]
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Tool - "Prison Sex" [from undertow. i explain on the podcast that this was the song that inspired the theme for this week. i was relistening to this album last night and decided that, yes, it really is every bit as good as i remember. as much as aenima is usually heralded as their high water mark, for me it's this album. really, maybe, it was the videos that drew me into them in the first place, but who cares. good music.]
Girls Against Boys - "Kill the Sexplayer" [from cruise yourself. well, self explanatory. this song is sort of girls against boys in a nutshell, too. sound wise.]
the Vaselines - "Sex Sux (Amen)" [from enter the vaselines, the new 2 CD compilation released on sub pop. and the vaselines are touring this summer, so keep your eyes peeled.]
Tony Alvon and the Belairs - "Sexy Coffee Pot" [from the what it is 4 CD rare funk compilation. a really great mix of some lost funk classics.]
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My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult - "Sex on Wheelz" [from sexplosion! and really, how could any show with a sex theme be complete without something by my life..? this band really is an acquired taste, but anyone who can appreciate high camp ought to appreciate them. like a much darker, thicker and nastier version of the b-52's.]
Rock Plaza Central - "Sexyback" [yes, their cover of the justin timberlake song. their version is actually really well done and different. well worth hunting down as it isn't widely available.]
Kings of Leon - "Sex On Fire" [from only by the night. by request as it was something i sadly left off.]
Flipper - "Sex Bomb" [from generic. and really, the king of all 'sex' songs. a caller rang up to ask who this was, and then asked when it was from. when told 1982, he commented to his companion, "dude, this stuff is older than i am." always a good revelation.]

[Tonight's Wholesale album is from 1997 and is truly one of the albums that has lodged itself firmly in my brain for many and many a year. In It for the Money was Supergrass' sophomore album, following two years after the smashingly successful I Should Coco and over things like Steve Spielberg supposedly wanting to make a Monkees-esque television show with the band.

One big to-do in Britpop in the 90s was the comparisons made between the Beatles and Oasis. Oasis was proudly, supposedly, the most Bealtes-esque of the bunch, but for my money, where Oasis trafficked in the obvious surface sound-alikes of the Beatles, Supergrass nailed the Fab Four's fearless experimentation and divergent sounds with this album more succinctly than anyone else. Whether it was racing, harmonized rockers, or maudlin ballads or funky sounding experiements, the record was a hodge podge of classic British rock and roll, from stem to stern. So, without further ado, our first Wholesale album for 2009..]

Track Listing


1. In It For the Money
2. Richard III
3. Tonight [click here to listen]
4. Late in the Day [click here to listen]
5. G-Song
6. Sun Hits the Sky
7. Going Out
8. It's Not Me
9. Cheapskate [click here to listen]
10. You Can See Me
11. Hollow Little Reign
12. Sometimes I Make You Sad

That'll do it for Extra Mayhem - see you Wednesday night for Indie/Rock Mayhem and take care.