We're Leaving at Five In The Morning - We Could Get Better Mileage

I write this in my second hotel room of the trip in Western Colorado. Today's drive was made even more transcendent through repeated listening of Popol Vuh's Coeur de Verre, which could not leave my CD player as ventured through the Rockies. One listen, even without seeing the movie would explain why. Download it!


Yesterday's drive, though, was through Iowa. Probably my least favorite state thus far, but I would never have dared say that to Arthur Russell!

Russell, who died of AIDS in 1992 was a genius, and if you don't beleive me beleive the likes of Jens Lekman, the Talking Heads, and even the K.L.F. who sampled his "Go Bang!" while he was still alive! He is the unifiying force of all the great music that was happening in Manhattan in the late seventies with punk/new wave, the avant-garde, disco, and minimalism. All of their influences are heard on this record, like most of his available releases is a posthumous compilation. This one may not be the best, but its general sound unifies his vast skills better than others while still remaining cohesive. That, and it contains what I would consider one of the greatest pieces of music of all time, "That's Us/Wild Combination." That piece, like many of his songs is made up of two very distinct parts that gradually unify and then disassemble, also heard in his disco classic "Is It All Over My Face?" The record also includes some great dronier tunes that still have his kind of pop and disco sensibility like the title tracks and "The Platform on the Ocean." Others are a New Wave dance party for the eccentricly genius, most notably, "Calling All Kids."

Russell was a legendary perfectionist who spent nearly all his time working on and recording his music, especially in his last days. That being said, anything you think could be better in these songs probably has been done and recorded. Hoprefully it will be released one day as well.


Arthur Russell - Calling Out Of Context (2004)

The cover photo may have been perfect for the release's time, but Russell's trucker hat is not the result of a prescient sense of fasion, but rather a relic of his Iowa roots which he always held dear.

Just Need A Future That's Possibly Bright

Well, first things first: A few words for MJ. As we all know by now Michael Jackson died today. Regardless what you may think of him he gave the world some great music and there never has been, and even less likely, will be a performer like him. His relatively young death, I suppose, an end as tragic as his last decade and a half. Let us remember him for all the joy he brought us. ...and don't forget that Farrah Fawcett died as well.

One of Jackon's most devoted followers...

...is tonight's topic once again as his music and words motivates me along this tedious journey to L.A. on which I have embarked (this being written in a motel in Iowa near Omaha).

As many know, Ariel Pink has more music than has been re-released and widely distributed, originally making CD-Rs which were eventually composited into his "proper" albums. This is one of the best examples as its title was re-used with maybe about half of the tracks with ones from its original companion FF>> and others added. Unfortuantely, many of the best tracks were omitted, including Pink's theme song "Beverly Kills (Freaks with the Golden Heirs)," the epic "Express, Confess, Cover-Up," and our namesake "I Wanna Be Young," whcih was eventually included on Oddities Sodomies, vol. 1. Some of the more familiar numbers from the widely avalable version are absent, but still this is the better version, as FF>> is essential as well. One of the greatest tragedies of the widely-avalable version is the absence of some covers including a rendition of ideol R. Stevie Moore's "Shedon'tknowwhattodowithherself" (no spaces in Pink's version) and Strawberry Alarm Clock's "Birds in My Tree." This album is ever more proof that Ariel Pink is a more consisten artist than the more pompous critics would admit, and this oroginal version is essential for any fan of Pink's, particularly one who can absorb his more eccentric work.

I did, however, include "Politely Declined," which takes it's place as the other track 5 - it is not on FF>>.


Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti - Scared Famous (Original CD-R Version)

Will You Play With Me?

To call Bülent Ortaçgil (pronounced Boo-lent Or-tach-geel) the Turkish Cat Stevens would be an oversimplification, but it is a good indicator of what to expect from this album.

About two and a half years ago my friend Will gave me the track "Suna Abla," which within about a week was played over a hundred times (that being from whenever I finally got around to listening to it.) Naturally, I had some trouble acquiring any more of the artists work until I was lucky enough to find an actual CD copy of this at Amoeba in Berkley (notably, I also found a vinyl copy at Amoeba in Hollywood which I somewhat regret not buying.) After that purchase the same kind of obsessive rotation occured because this album is a masterpiece. Every tracks is a hypnotic winner which more than just language to distinguish it from English language folk of the same era. Unlike some of his later work made years later after his return to chemistry the arrangements are very simple usually just with acousitc guitar, and some piano and bass. Some *heavier* tracks like the wonderful "Olmalı Mı Olmamalı Mı" and "Şık Latife" do add a bit of a change of pace. Despite the exotic language Ortaçgil conveys not only remarkably powerful emotion but a rare kind of childlike innocence in both vocals and instruments. Simply put this is an album of transcendant beauty, even if you are for some reason put off by music in other languages. Along with the others previously mentioned, the title track and "Dört Kisili Düs" are just otherworldly gorgeousity. The album is brilliantly structured with bookend tracks that pull you in and in most cases leave you ready for yet another spin.


Bülent Ortaçgil - Benimle Oynar Mısın (1974)

In other news, Jeff Hanson, one of the few recent artists that I like died recently. It was some kind of freak accident - I don't know what, that occurred in his apartment. He was only 31. I recommend his self-titled second album from 2005. Maybe I will put it up later.

Please Make Me Feel The Beat, You're the One That Drives Me Wild

While I did not take this picture, I could have.

The story with Gary Wilson is that he is from Endicott, NY and released the album You Think You Really Know Me, recorded in his parents' basement in 1977. It was a bizarre, smooth set of outsider music all about unrequited love. Unrequited love to the degree of almost stalking. It is cool though, Wilson comes from a tradition of sleazy lounge music as seen in such titles as "Groovy Girls Make Love At The Beach" and "6.4 = Makeout." After 1980, though he kind of disappeared whilst the album made huge impacts on the likes of the PNW underground and Beck, whose "Where It's At" not only name drops Wilson but shows a clear influence from him. In the early part of this decade Wilson resurfaced as there was a desire to re-issue his first album. He was working in an adult cinema and performing in a lounge band in San Diego. Then he started recording again.

This album picks off where he left off 27 years earlier, which is particularly depending on which album you hear first. Really, the only change here is the addition of his sped-up voice as the alter-ego. Here are more songs from the stalker's point of view even including some of the same characters as in the first album. In this regard some of the best tracks are "Linda Wants To Be Alone," "Gary's In The Park," and "Gary Saw Linda Last Night" - both of which are some of the most exciting parts of his show. Both tracks also come from Wilson's uniquely Endicott voice, namedropping the local geography also heard in "Newark Valley" and the instrumental tribute "She Makes Me Think of Endicott." As creepy as it can get at times, this is a fun set of loungey outsider pop.

Wislon still performs lounge music on the side and it seems like his live band may be the same. When I saw them last summer many members looked very old, as in older then Wislon himself (he is in his mid 50s) - a telltale sign of a lounge band. Still, those guys were a lot more fun, original, and rock 'n' roll than any under-30 band I have seen.


Gary Wilson - Mary Had Brown Hair (2004)

Blasting Off To Jimmy's House!

All great things start somewhere. The greatest thing in Rock 'n' Roll started right here in 1987.

Well, maybe not since Guided by Voices did release an EP, Forever Since Breakfast prior, but this is the first whole album. Pollard started off his prolific career with a series of scarcely available (essential you had to know the band personally) albums, most of which are quite good - though obviously not up to the transcendent beauty of the later work. This really is a noble debut despite that Pollard and cohorts had not yet found their exact voice and at times the songs are noticeably (to the untrained ear) a little derivative. R.E.M. in particular is an undeniable influence, especially on the albums two best cuts "Hey, Hey, Spaceman," in which Pollard's vocals are unusually Stipe-esque and the DIY anthem of "Hank's Little Fingers." The whole album really does forshadow the band's whole career with exellence in songwriting and eccentricities such as the remarkably short lengths and stylistic splicing. Unlike some other early albums, this one even got some presence on the career-spanning best of with closer "Captain's Dead." Pollard's exploration into a more diverse oeuvre is even evident in the epic "Portrait Destroyed by Fire" and instrumental "Crux." The Lo-Fi art was only in its nascent stages here perhaps due to Tobin Sprout's temporary absence (he was living in Florida, but had already passed through the ranks), but considering the commonality of cheap recording by the time this was made widely available, that is negligible.

Do not be put off by the band's obscurity at the time of its release - this is just as worthy as any other GbV album and has enough classics to keep it in rotation. It is available only as part of Box. The question "What keeps Big Daddy happy?" is in reference to Jimmy Pollard's pet rooster on the cover (great story about the photo). It is the same line from "Don't Stop Now."


Guided By Voices - Devil Between My Toes (1987)

God In Heaven, Won't You Help Us, Please

The most surprising thing that I ever heard about Emitt Rhodes was that this very album was EVERYWHERE at one point in time. Of course, the guy telling me this may have just been being a jerk as he charged me something like $15-20 for a not-quite-spectacular condition at Cheapo Records in Cambridge. However, considering the four years I had spent absorbing this rare masterpiece I hold no regrets on that purchase.

This album is often described as what Paul McCartney's solo records should have sounded like - I would agree, despite no negative feelings about many of his solo albums. There is a definite specifically McCartney Beatles vibe here and if you have a problem with McCartney even within the Beatles you really have to leave... obviously. This is the perfect pop album of its time, as it should be considering Rhodes' pedigree with L.A. pop group Merry-Go-Round (whose influence is heard directly on The Bangles) he splices the major influences of UK and Los Angeles guitar pop of the era here. What is extra cool is that Rhodes played and "produced" everything on here on a four-track, placing him among the likes of early one-man bands as Todd Trundgren, R. Stevie Moore, and yes, McCartney himself.

It is a true shame that these days the only people that know Rhodes are the geekiest of music lovers and die-hard Wes Anderson fans (myself both), whose The Royal Tenenbaums featured the short "Lullabye" (as per recomendation of Jason Schwartzman!?). The rest of the songs are of that quality, in particular "Promises I've Made" and the one-two punh of "With My Face On The Floor" and "Somebody Made For Me," so be sure to pick this up becasue it's either here or a long, expensive search... or another blog, I'm sure. Essential for fans of Big Star, The Beatles, and the Yelllow Pills series.


Emitt Rhodes - Emitt Rhodes (1970)

Come Hither To Me Under The Canopy

They say that Jonathan Fire*Eater's lack of success was due to their over-hyping from new label Dreamworks. Despite a track on the Dead Man On Campus soundtrack, it is quite hard to believe that today as the only people that remember them are hipsters aged 28-35. Not long after discovering the offshoot Walkmen and wanting roughly the same thing, only better, I discovered them and have never manged to succede in finding any material copies of their work.

I suppose the world would not yet ready for a quintet of good-looking, privileged, and very hip New Yorkers for another four years. Regardless, they were a remarkably talented band that really set the stage for what would be going on a few years later. After meeting at St. Alban's School in the D.C. area the members all dropped out of college and moved to New York to form this band. The group developed a unique sound with a vintage tone lead by Farfisa organ and a heavy beat that reflected a contemporary attitude and modern influences as well. They released two even rarer independent (I have not heard them) albums before being signed to Dreamworks. With Calvin Klein using them as models and opening for the likes of blur and Pulp the deal was remarkably generous worth over a million and including complete creative control and a dental plan. The complete creative control really paid off... for us, the listener.

Keeping with the title, opening track "When the Curtain Calls For You," sets the stage (pun) for the rest of the album balancing eerie tones with high energy vintage underground rock 'n' roll much like "These Little Monkeys" does. The band goes into full-on eerieness on the classic "A Night In The Nursery" and has given the theme song to ever subsequent summer in "Bipolar Summer." This album is a masteripiece that deserves a quality re-issue and surpasses everything the band would do without Stuart Lupton in the Walkmen.


Jonathan Fire*Eater - Wolf Songs For Lambs (1997)

You Just Wanna Know

KINO is known as the greatest Russian band of all time. I don't know enough to argue otherwise, but they are one of my favorites of any geography, regardless.

Here is their first and probably my favorite of their albums. It is a raw set of underground (as in hiding from the authorities) St. Petersburg Postpunk/New Wave. It is not as apparent here, as on their later work, but band leader Viktor Tsoi's top influence was a black market copy of Duran Duran's first album. Here, though the arrangements focus more on (mostly acoustic) guitars than on elecctronics (or anything else on that matter.) Though, unfortunately the proficiency is not strong as lead guitarist Yuri Kasparyan had yet to join. However, I think the songwriting is perhaps the strongest and this was the first album of theirs I really fell in love with. The eerie "Devero" is one that really seaps into you - I woke up one morning into my dark closet of a room in Boston with that sirculating in my brain not long after hearing it the first time. It is the second track, though, "Proso Khochesh Ty Znat" that I see as the stongest track of the set. Thelament over the common Russian affliction of alcoholism "Moi Druzya" and children's song "Aluyminiyeviye Ogurtsy" also stand out as some of the best. Granted though, what detracts from this album is the presence of some filler tracks, so don't feel disappointed if you have to skip some - other albums, such as the posthumous masterpiece Chyorniy Album (The Black Album), don't have any of those. Either way, this is a great place to start and I, of course, would reccomend this to anyone curious about music on the other side of the Iron Curtain.

Western listeners should know that Viktor Tsoi holds the kind of regard in the former USSR that John Lennon, Kurt Cobain, Ian Curtis, and Bob Marley hold in the West. ...Only combined. He died tragically in a car accident outside of Riga (now Latvia) in 1990. He is also one of the most accomplished Eurasians (half Korean) in history.


KINO - 45 (1982)

The titles here are in Russian, so here is a link that has translierations and translations along with their respective lyrics to not just this, but all of thier records.

In music news, though, something sad. Chris Knox of Tall Dwarfs, Toy Love, and his own solo career has suffered a stroke. He survived, but there are very few details about it. He is only 56 years old.

Tell Me, Where Does Your Mind Grow?

Okay, this is just the Three O'Clock in 1983

Before the Three O'Clock there was the Salvation Army. Essentially they were the same band, though. The group, which featured Michael Quercio(at times going by "Ricky Start") and Gregg (later known as Louis) Gutierrez formed in Carson and was forced to change their name by the actual religious/charity organization... but not before being signed to the Minutemen's New Allience label and releasing the "Happen Happened/Mind Gardens" single and a self-titled album (which had, excempting the titles, the same album art). The releases made some waves as the liner notes quote eventual Three O'Clock drummer Danny Benair recounting hearing "Mind Gardens" on Rodney on the ROQ while still a member of the Weirdos. It should be noted that the band was signed by New Allience in November 1981, when Quercio was a mere 18 years old.

The sound is wuite different from the band they originially formed into being more in tune with a garage/punk sound than the jangly new-wave psych at which The Three O'Clock would excel. The songwriting is all Quercio's despite Gutierrez' presence in the group - however those already familiar with the last two Three O'Clock records should make no assumptions as this has nothing in common with their clean, 80s sound. Though I am a fan of both Quercio eras, he had yet to come into himself at this point lyrically. The lyrics resemple more psychedelic rambling than the darly whimsical ambiguity of his later work. Despite this, the most exemplary tracks "She Turns to Flowers" and "Happen Happened" stand out as some of the finest. This collection which contains all of the band's work under the Salvation Army moniker is prime example of the early Paisley Underground sound. And why shouldn't it? This was around the time that Quercio coined that term in the first place.


Befour Three O'Clock - Happen Happened (1992)

Little I Need to Know and Little I Need to Find

The Bats are one of my absolute favorite bands and this record is, likewise, one of my all-time favorites.

It is pop perfection in every way by a band just as perfect. The songwriting is tight, the playing is tight, and the way every member works together is unparalleled. This is best seen in the vocals harmonies of guitarists Robert Scott and Kaye Woodward, who on their own are not remarkable vocalists but work together so well it is transcendent. Additionally, Paul Kean is one of my favorite bassists and his lyrical style really fits with the Bats' freewheeling sound, perhaps even more so than it did in his Toy Love days. However, instrumentally the album' secret weapon is Alastair Gilbraith (of the Rip) whose often-multi-tracked violin parts have a way of seeping into your brain and allowing the pure pop to shine though. This diverse geling is no more evident than on the opening track "Treason," which I would argue as the greatest pop song of all time - though it is surely up for debate.

Like anyone else from the Flying Nun roster, the Bats' influence on 90s US indie rock is unmissable - just check out the melancholy "Tragedy" for a large portion of Yo La Tengo's work. The record may not move beyond the realm of jangly pop, but why should it? It runs the gamut in terms of mood which the Bats really have a talent of expressing. It spans all the way from the happy-go-lucky tone of "Round and Down" to the dark and forboding "North By North" (the theme to Australian TV series The Hollow Men).

Also included are some early tracks (the magnificent "Trouble in This Town" through the classic "Made Up In Blue" which are as strong as the subsequent album. Also, it should be noted the Bats are still around putting out quality music, so all the more reason to check them out at their peak!


The Bats - Daddy's Highway (1987)

The Sound Track Of My Dreams

I first heard this group about three years ago when this album's "Sound Track" was included on a MOJO compilation called The Roots of Punk which also included CAN, the Stooges, The Groundhogs, and Mott the Hoople. When this track came on, though, my first thought was "Is this arena rock?" My second was "I don't care if it is - it rules!" The third: "This is the most Vincent Gallo thing I've ever heard."

Later my friends and I found this video:

which is constantly taken off and then put back on youtube.

Not much later I managed to find this album at the local Borders... and SHIT was it amazing!!

Bill Nelson is a guitar virtuoso. Unlike everyone else who fits that description, though, he writes good songs. This is an amazing pop album with wonderful instrumentation that for prog-rock is somehow very un-pretentious. This is over-the-top 70s rock at its finest - big, fun, and showy. The two aforementioned songs are both fantastic - "Sound Track" for its epic qualities and "Maid in Heaven" for its catchy pop accessibility. Both emit all the energy you could want from the style. The big production deserves as much credit as the songwriting, instrumentation, and energetic band, and why not as it was produced by Roy Thomas Baker (of "Bohemian Rhapsody" fame)? Naturally, there are a lot of similarities in the big sound, so this should not be missed by any fan of that style.

Also, be sure to COMPLETELY disregard the AMG review.

Be Bop Deluxe - Futurama (1975)

It may never be known if Matt Greoning is a fan.

I'm From Brisbane and I'm Quite Plain

The Late Grant McLellan and Robert Forster, looking unusually foppish.

Perhaps the one good thing about music in this decade has been the return of a lot of classic artists of the 70s and 80s. The Go-Betweens were one such band and their final album is one of the best. Released in 2005 this was an unexpected final masterpiece due to McLellan's unexpected death by heart attack three years ago at the age of 48.

There is a noticeable maturity to the already precocious band, which at that point only featured the original duo of McLellan and Forster from the classic lineup. That said, it's clearly the same artists and the classic sound is intact - at least that of the later, and often considered best, period. Both songwriters are in top form, but despite highlights like the opner "Here Comes A City," McLellan really dominates. His composition "Finding You" stands amongst "Cattle & Cane" and "Streets of Your Town," as one of his absolute finest and "Boundary Rider" was in fact the song that turned me into a Go-Betweens fan. His death was a true tragedy, but at least McLellan left on a very high note.


The Go-Betweens - Oceans Apart (2005)

Also, here is the first single the band about the original The Omen starlet. It is very rare, very good, and a great way to bookend this amazing band's career. Also, it is from where this article's title comes.

The Go-Betweens - "Lee Remick" (1978)

Stop For A While

As I wrote over a year ago, the Feelies are the greatest gift New Jersey has given to music. Since that article I even got the privilege of seeing them with Yo La Tengo in Montclair, so I thought I should give credit to a large part of what made that show one of the best I have ever seen.

Coming out a whole eight years after the group's fantastic debut Crazy Rhythms this album shows the band catching up with their many followers like R.E.M. (whose Peter Buck lended a hand in production), Rain Parade, and many more. The opening two tracks, "On the Roof" and "The High Road" were the same that opened their set, and while I was hoping for "The Boy With The Perpetual Nervousness" to commence a more contemplative set, this choice was perfection. The band set the stage for a truly "groovy" show. These songs, like this whole album gives the effect of the Grateful Dead to the indie rock/jangle popper. It is a bit of a change of pace, being more straightforward than the debut, but is no less interesting and the beat that kicks it off keeps in their brilliant percussive tradition. This is a great album to chill-out to, the perfect persciption for someone looking for hippie vibes without all those damned hippies!

Glenn Mercer and Bill Million's chemistry is as alway spot-on and their songwriting is as tight as their guitar dynamics that still resonate with the same passion as their nerd-clad holiday shows at Maxwell's. Luckily the new cast of supporting players is as strong (I would argue even stronger) than their Crazy Rhythms cohorts. Some people may overlook the Feelies' 80s and 90s works, but if you as me, all their records are essential and I can assure you their skills have not waned. When I saw them they debut some all new songs that stood up to the rest of the career-spanning set. Expect even more greatness for this band in the future.


The Feelies - The Good Earth (1986)

Pushed To A Wall The First "Punk" Record.

That is mostly because, perhaps only since I am from New Jersey, that the word "punk" evokes the image of a fat, middle-aged New York area man yelling at a bunch of overgrown teenagers something like "get off my car punk!" The Dictators, straight out of the outer Burroughs (including some of the last whites to live in the Bronx!) certainly were who this man would be yelling at.

Some of the best elements of punk rock are found here including an unbeatable and racy sense of humor in tracks with in-your face titles like "Back to Africa" (catch the Clash's inspiration at the end) and "Master Race Rock." The lyrics end up not carrying the white supremacist message one may assume from the titles. The band carried on some Nazi imagery later in their career with a flair that their UK counterparts could only dream of since many of the members were Jews. Other song topics cover the punk way of life stemming back to the Beach Boys with the classic closer "(I Live For) Cars and Girls" being the prime example along with any street punk theme song "Teengenerate." The band covers much of the same topics of New York artists not typically associate with punk rock like doo-wop, but with a hilarious way of not sugar-coating it best seen in the Friday-night anthem "Weekend." Pop covers are another wonderful element here with "I Got You Babe" being done by two men with enough sense of humor to highlight a true love for the song. Basically, they were coming from the same exact place as the Ramones, but with less image construction, and in my opinion, a bit more sincerity. This record is pure fun.

However, the Dictators cannot be mentioned without "Handsome" Dick Manitoba. The band's mascot and "secret weapon" serves mainly as a background vocalist on this record, but his energy is what propels the band into greatness, as the cover should show you. Think Rob Tyner with the flair of a pro-wrestler. The Dictators can also be connected to metal to a certian degree, not only in the fact that in 1975, this album was surely placed in that catergory. During one of the band's many long hiatuses lead guitarist Ross "The Boss" formed humor-metal band Man-O-War.

Perhaps needless to say the other "Boss" Bruce Springsteen is a huge fan.


The Dictators - The Dictators Go Girl Crazy! (1975)