Hack may, in fact, be the only album to sample a Walt Disney read-a-long album and James Brown on the same track. The fact that it works is just the icing on the cake.
XTC‘s The Big Express pulls into the top 100 station at number 82. Roughly in the middle of the band’s discography, The Big Express successfully melds the awkward New Wave-y XTC nicely with the more lush, Beatlesque XTC to come.
Picking my favorite XTC album or albums is sort of like trying to choose my favorite limbs or organs. Yes, when absolutely necessary, I could choose. That’s not to say that I’d be happy losing any of them. Continue reading “The Big Express” by XTC (No. 82)”
Where I mostly go for straight-forward classic rock, hard rock, or alternative, Hallucination Engine mostly instrumental, or only features background chants or singing – and much of that not in English, so that the vocals are also treated as another instrument or texture in the fabric of the song. Continue reading ““Hallucination Engine” by Material (No. 83)”
If you ever need an album to derive inspiration from at the gym, Weight is your friend. The Rollins Band’s 1994 Weight is the Rollins Band at its most accessible, but losing none of its hardness.
“Disconnect” starts relatively placidly, Rollins speak-singing about wanting to get away from the noise of other people before putting the song abruptly into high gear. Rinse, repeat. It’s the best anthem for the weary. Continue reading ““Weight” by Rollins Band (No. 84)”
The Minus 5 may be one of the best bar bands ever assembled. Made up of a rotating cast of alt-rock heroes like former R.E.M.’er Peter Buck and drummer Bill Rieflin, and headed by Scott McCaughey of the Young Fresh Fellows, the self-titled The Minus 5 is a loose, rollicking set of songs that practically beg to be performed live.
I can thank Robyn Hitchcock for my introduction to The Minus 5. Several members of The Minus 5 (Buck, McCaughey, and Rieflin) backed Hitchcock on his 2006 album Olé! Tarantula as “The Venus 3,” and I had the chance to catch the bands in Seattle, playing the Crocodile Cafe in November 2006. So I nabbed The Minus 5 too, to see what they had to offer. Quite a lot, as it turns out. (Spoiler alert, this isn’t the only time Hitchcock or Buck will appear in the top 100.)
The Jayhawks are usually categorized as “alternative country” or “country rock,” but neither label suffices to describe the band at its full power. Hollywood Town Hall, released in while founding member Mark Olson was still with the band, is definitely a snapshot of The Jayhawks operating on all cylinders.
Like R.E.M., The Jayhawks span multiple genres and audiences. Any cut from Hollywood Town Hall would be equally at home alongside 90s alternative rock, on a classic rock station, and would probably pass just fine on modern country stations as well. (I’m probably a bad judge of what fits on modern country, though.)
Before I owned this album, I’d happily empty my pockets of change – or beg my parents for a quarter – to put “Magic Man” on the jukebox. To this day it feels a little like cheating* that I can just play “Magic Man” any damn time I want.
What can I say about The Who‘s Tommy that hasn’t already been said? Since its release in 1969, Tommy has been written about nearly as much as Sgt. Pepper. Tommy was a peak moment for a band that has had enormous impact on rock and roll, and broke new ground in several ways.
Arguably the first “rock opera,” Tommy spanned two LPs, and takes the unusual approach of telling a single (if somewhat muddled) story over the span of its 24 tracks.
This isn’t exactly in the “going uphill to school both ways, in the snow!” territory, but here’s something kids today can’t relate to: buying an album, cassette, or CD in its entirety without hearing more than one or two cuts.
But that’s exactly how I built most of my music collection in the 80s: scraping up enough money for one album at a time, and taking a chance on whether I’d like the entire thing, or just one or two singles. So when a band released an album that was all singles, that was the obvious choice.
And that’s exactly what Squeeze’s Singles – 45’s and Under is, an album of the band’s singles from 1978 to 1982. Twelve radio-perfect slices of new wavy goodness.
Yes, I’ll admit that 45’s is a bit dated. Like a fly trapped in amber, 45’s is a beautifully preserved specimen of slickly produced Britpop.
“Pulling Mussels (From the Shell)” and “Black Coffee in Bed” are the songs that just about everybody in the Karaoke bar will belt out along with you after a few beers. “Mussels” is a a rip-roaring pop/rock piece with more than a little Beatles influence.
“Black Coffee in Bed” starts off with a faux-soul keyboard intro, and winds into an impassioned song of “loss and regret” according to Squeeze’s Chris Difford. You might just catch that Elvis Costello is in the background. At a bit more than six minutes, “Coffee” is the longest track on 45’s by nearly two minutes.
Most of the songs on 45’s are short, to-the-point, and engineered for radio. It’s a great pick-me-up album, or to sing along with on a long car drive.
“Tempted,” a song about being caught out cheating, is probably my favorite cut on the album. Great harmonies, perfect tempo, and it effortlessly captures the regret of realizing the loss of a relationship through your own stupidity.
“Is That Love?” is a snarky, short little gem with a lovely and economical guitar solo. It moves along at fever pitch until winding down softly.
From start to finish, 45s is bright, easily accessible, unapologetic pop music meant to attack the charts. Bundled together in one easy collection, it’s a go-to album when I want something fun and comfortable.
Not only do The Barenaked Ladies put on one hell of a live show, they also have impeccable taste in opening bands. I’ve seen BNL live four times in the past five or six years, and they haven’t missed yet. The past two years, they’ve had legends like Colin Hay, OMD, Howard Jones, and the Violent Femmes, but in 2013 it was a little-known Canadian duo by the name of Whitehorse.
Whitehorse is Melissa McClelland and Luke Doucet, who have also had solo careers before getting together as Whitehorse.
It took about, oh, maybe thirty seconds before I was completely hooked by the band. When playing live, they make extensive use of loops and multiple instruments to get a full sound. It’s fascinating to watch them perform, building the layers to their songs — while at the same time, their songs are completely irresistible.
Naturally I snagged their albums immediately after the show, and The Fate of the World Depends on This Kiss has become one of my all-time favorites.
From the first track, “Achilles’ Desire,” which kicks the album off with sinewy guitar and Doucet’s impassioned delivery, all the way to the last strains of “Mexico Texico” Fate of the World is a rewarding journey.
Singly, Doucet and McClellan have great voices. Sparks really fly when they sing together, though. Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham have nothing on this pair. Well, maybe not nothingbut my money’s on Whitehorse.
Check out this video for “Devil’s Got a Gun.” The album version is a little cleaner and a bit richer sound-wise, but their live in the studio take is just as electric.
“Cold July,” is a beautiful and haunting piece that will stick with you for days afterward. Be forewarned, Fate of the World harbors a number of earworms. I usually have “Cold July” stuck in my head for at least a week after listening to it.
“Jane” is a slinky little number with some excellent guitar and bass work. Echoes of surf guitar and complex bass make this one so much fun.
There’s a little tinge of rockabilly here and there, and more than a little 60s/Beatlesque tinge to some of the frills in “Out Like a Lion.”
“No Glamour In The Hammer,” brings the groove and more irresistible bass work. Actually that sounds like there’s a limited amount of groove on the album, which couldn’t be further from the truth. Just listen to “Radiator Blues” and you’ll see what I mean.
For a two-piece, Whitehorse manages to develop a lush, complex sound that holds up to repeated listening. They do have a little additional help in the studio, but they did an amazing job recreating that complexity live as well.
Meeting Whitehorse
Oh, in addition to being a ridiculously talented duo, they’re also super-nice in person. After turning in a blistering set, they came out to sign merch in the lobby before BNL took the stage. In addition to signing CDs they were kind enough to let me get a picture with them while I fanboyed out about their set.
Fate of the World is on Spotify, Google Play Music, and other services – so you’ve no excuse not to check them out. If their success is commensurate with their talent, this pair is going to take over the world.
