Here's the playlist for the Breakfast of Champions radio show that occured on Thursday, June 28th, 2007
(8:00am - welcome to another edition of the Breakfast of Champions)
Mono Men - "Ain't No Friend of Mine"
The Mongrel Puppy - "You Quit Me"
Monks of Doom– “Unexplained Murders"
Monorchid– “Poison Test"
Monotract - "California Aki" (background music)
(8:15am - we continue our exploration of the WMBR record library with the letter M)
The Monochrome Set - "The Mating Game"
Mommyheads - "Cactus Farm"
The Moles - "Breathe Me In"
Mofungo - "Memory"
Monosov Swirnoff - "Ver. 1" (background music)
(8:30am - take a break for the Band of the Week)
The High Llamas - "Literature is Fluff"
The High Llamas - "Leaf and Lime"
The Mom & Dads - "You Are My Sunshine" (background music)
(8:45am - Our section this week is roughly in the middle of the MO's)
The Monkees - "What Am I Doing Hangin' 'Round?"
Mod Fun - "I Fell"
Monica's Interval - "Medicine Ball"
Moev - "In Your Head"
Monitor - "Herb Lane Theme" (background music)
(9:00am - new music hour surfaces!)
Digitalism – “Digitalism in Cairo”
Chromeo – “Momma's Boy”
Damiak– “Faificun” (concert report music)
(9:20am - concert report completed, we continue with new music)
Memphis – “In The Cinema Alone”
Feist – “Brandy Alexander”
Meg Baird – “The Waltze of the Tennis Players”
Ann Magnuson – “Art Professor”
Laura Veirs – “Black Butterfly”
(9:40am - more stuff to write on a post-it note for further consideration)
Bellavista – “Carve Our World”
Fields – “If You Fail We All Fail”
Velcro Stars – “Hiroshima's Revenge”
Boo and Boo Too – “Everyday I Saw You In Egypt”
(9:55am - that's all folks)
Pissed Jeans – “Secret Admirer”
Thanks again for listening to WMBR, this program is archived on their website for another two weeks (just in case you missed it).
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Back on the Breakfast of Champions Thursday, this is the June 21st playlist.
(8:00am - glad to be back here on the Thursday edition of the BoC)
Julie London - "No Moon At All"
Lois - "Bonds In Seconds"
Longshoremen - "State Line"
Looking Glass - "From Stanton Station"
Alan Lomax and the Dupree Family - "Raise a Ruckus"
Jeffrey Lohn– "Duck Dance" (background music)
(8:15am - if you remember, we've been exploring small sections of the WMBR record library during the first hour)
The Long Ryders - "Gunslinger Man"
Roy Loney and the Phantom Movers - "Act Of Love"
The Lonely Boys - "It's Only Love"
The Long Blondes - "Darts"
London Symphony Orchestra - "Bohemian Rhapsody" (background music)
(8:30am - let's take a break for the band of the week)
Eric's Trip - "My Bed Is Red"
Eric's Trip - "September"
Eric's Trip - "Allergic To Love"
Loggins & Messina– "Honky Tonk Part II" (background music)
(8:45am - this week's section is around 'LO')
Loop - "Fade Out"
Lone Cowboys - "Easy Targets"
The Lonely Trojans - "Priorities"
Lone Star - "The Bells of Berlin" (background music)
(9:00am - keeping with tradition, the 9 o'clock hour will be dedicated to new music)
The Mary Onettes - "Void"
Future Conditional – “Substance Fear”
Artanker Convoy – "Ejector" (concert report music)
(9:20am - continuing with the new music after the concert report)
Spoon – “You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb”
The Chrysler – “It Was 1982”
Decomposure – “Hour 7”
Flunk – “Two Icicles”
(9:40am - more new music my friends)
Suzanne Vega – “Zephyr & I”
The Knack UK – “Time Time Time”
The Golden Boys – “Remember Georgia”
Shearwater - "Seventy-Four, Seventy-Five"
(9:55am - closing out the show)
Arks – “Maginot”
Thanks for listening to WMBR 88.1FM, if you missed the program a streaming archived version will be available for two weeks hence.
(8:00am - glad to be back here on the Thursday edition of the BoC)
Julie London - "No Moon At All"
Lois - "Bonds In Seconds"
Longshoremen - "State Line"
Looking Glass - "From Stanton Station"
Alan Lomax and the Dupree Family - "Raise a Ruckus"
Jeffrey Lohn– "Duck Dance" (background music)
(8:15am - if you remember, we've been exploring small sections of the WMBR record library during the first hour)
The Long Ryders - "Gunslinger Man"
Roy Loney and the Phantom Movers - "Act Of Love"
The Lonely Boys - "It's Only Love"
The Long Blondes - "Darts"
London Symphony Orchestra - "Bohemian Rhapsody" (background music)
(8:30am - let's take a break for the band of the week)
Eric's Trip - "My Bed Is Red"
Eric's Trip - "September"
Eric's Trip - "Allergic To Love"
Loggins & Messina– "Honky Tonk Part II" (background music)
(8:45am - this week's section is around 'LO')
Loop - "Fade Out"
Lone Cowboys - "Easy Targets"
The Lonely Trojans - "Priorities"
Lone Star - "The Bells of Berlin" (background music)
(9:00am - keeping with tradition, the 9 o'clock hour will be dedicated to new music)
The Mary Onettes - "Void"
Future Conditional – “Substance Fear”
Artanker Convoy – "Ejector" (concert report music)
(9:20am - continuing with the new music after the concert report)
Spoon – “You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb”
The Chrysler – “It Was 1982”
Decomposure – “Hour 7”
Flunk – “Two Icicles”
(9:40am - more new music my friends)
Suzanne Vega – “Zephyr & I”
The Knack UK – “Time Time Time”
The Golden Boys – “Remember Georgia”
Shearwater - "Seventy-Four, Seventy-Five"
(9:55am - closing out the show)
Arks – “Maginot”
Thanks for listening to WMBR 88.1FM, if you missed the program a streaming archived version will be available for two weeks hence.
Sunday, June 17, 2007
The June pace is indeed slowing down as predicted, but there's still a towering stack of new releases ready to fuel the commentary portion of this blog.
Carina Round – “Want More”
There’s a passing similarity to PJ Harvey's vocal style here, but where PJ would layer on the devil snake moan blues Carina pastes in some post-punk vibes. Has that way-too-professional major label sheen to the package, so I won't feel guilty about being pulled into their lair. The trill she slathers across every drawn out note is darn annoying. Spun this as the show closer on 6/11/07.
Ann Magnuson – “Art Professor”
Ann’s new album is called Pretty Songs and Ugly Stories. Unfortunately there’s too much of the former and not enough of the latter. The album is made up of lushly produced AAA pop songs for the most part, surprising in their unabashed attempt to please a seemingly mainstream crowd. However, this spoken word gem is everything I adore about Ann, a possibly true/possibly false remembrance of her art school days that uses an intriguing situation as a set up for a revealing response, eventually creating more questions that it ever answers.
Metric – “Soft Rock Star”
So the story is … these Canadian retro-new wave poppers recorded a debut album that nobody wanted to put out. But now that they have some money-making steam behind their No-Doubt-without-the-ska-beats sound this first record makes it way to offical status. This particular tune has a Broadcast/Delgados feel to it from the press-a-note-and-hold keyboards to Emily Haines’ tweaked vocals. Only the occasional jangly guitar gives it away. Played on 6/11/07.
Moonbabies – “Don’t Ya Know?”
Another Swedish band that’s enthusiastically trumpeted by Parasol, see below for example #2. Moonbabies are a one-song-an-album band for me and here’s the one song, dancefloor pop with insistently robotic drums and a guitar that is only able to show up in short bursts behind super-sugar-coated female vocals. It runs just short of 4 minutes but my patience was taxed by 2:30 as the same idea was repeated over and over and over and over …
The Chrysler – “It Was 1982”
There’s a certain Spanish vibe to this tune, the guitar is not flamenco but it has a similar sweep. The Swedes can skillfully cadge whatever sounds they please and here it’s mated with a rollicking handclap driven pace. Quotes Neil Young’s “Only Love Can Break Your Heart” in the breakdown. Personally not sure about some of the 60’s folk-pop aspects on the lp but there are definitely at least a few songs to love.
Loveninjas – “The End of a Dream”
There’s much to like about the Loveninjas. After all they’re on Labrador, a label that rarely fires a blank. But the vocals hold me back here, there’s a certain edge of emo earnestness which occasionally surafces through the otherwise pleasantly expressive Swedish bleat. Musically it’s super-tight rapid-fire indie pop from the Poole school of execution, the kind I unabashedly love. But with these gentleman, I can’t quite pull the trigger.
Minus Story – “Parachute”
Didn’t find much to like on this new Minus Story disc, the fractured songs struggle to coalesce into anything meaningful. It has an unscripted feel to it, the songs never find a consistent pace though an airy tone is present throughout. This selection is the most cohesive they get, and the last half of the song sounds like a tacked on instrumental running counter to the vocal portion of the first half.
Velcro Stars – “B-Side of Love”
A rather unassuming indie pop band that could comfortably wear a 1991 copyright instead of 2007. The breadth of their first full length suggests they’ve been socking away ideas for quite a long time, but when time came to edit down the running order the though of excluding even one song was far too heartbreaking. Surprising then the consistent high quality on display despite the rather humble aspirations. Sounds like they had a whole heap of friends to draw upon for the occasional backing instrument.
Get Him Eat Him – “Diminutive”
Rhode Island area supergroup (members are recruited from Dismemberment Plan and the Wrens amongst others) that thanks WMBR in the liners. Don't ask, I dunno. Earnest power pop vocals mated with ebullient pop/rock stop/start music. For some reason I just can’t love it … too precious perhaps? The songs want me to really really like them, they’re almost offended by my lack of enthusiasm for their enthusiasm. Played a different track on 6/11/07 in hopes of changing my opinion … didn’t work.
The Lodger – “You Got Me Wrong”
Nobody’s happier to see Slumberland putting out music again, though I’m not sure this band is worth that comeback release honor. Simple pop in the Boyracer vein, plenty of energy but not much passion as they execute it cuter than I’d like. Spun on 6/11/07.
The Intellectuals – “Go To The Beach With Cinnamon Girl”
Very similar to Pittsburgh’s the Kill-A-Watts, even more impressive considering they’re actually Italian. Traded guy-girl vocals behind a garage punk setting with some organ thrown in there for spice. Plenty of slurred English-as-a-second-language lyrics to make you wonder what the heck they’re saying beyond the part of the oft-repeated chorus that aligns with the titles. Loose and fun, one of the places where my taste and Joanie’s will intersect.
The Knack – “Time Time Time”
No, no, not the 70’s power pop Knack, this is the 60’s UK psych-pop version. There’s a new Rev-ola disc chronicling the brief career of this band, and since the compilation was named after this song it seemed like a good bet. Solid mid-tempo tune, it seems like you can hear every string on the very precise guitar. Plenty of background vocals chiming in with the lead as well. Very likable.
Decomposure – “Hour 7”
Odd, just odd. I have no other way to describe it … the torn cardboard handmade packaging, the rather simple naming convention (if you haven’t guessed this is the 7th song on the album), the glitch-pop songs. The leadoff track on his first record had an amazing killer chorus, but the overwhelming speed of the beats made me weary. There’s a similar vibe here, the impressively intricate construction of vocal upon vocal upon vocal interrupted by rapid fire beats machine-gunning the heart of the songs. Obviously the work of a mad genius, I’m slowly getting comfortable with it.
Montag – “No One Else”
Their previous record was much more extemporaneous than this effort … here we have cohesive songs with vocals and lyrics. This particular song falls into the Ulrich Schnauss school of new wave with ebullient Hammond-esque synths and chimey foreground and backing vocals repeating basically the same three words over and over. Fluffy I admit, but delicious nonetheless. Played on 6/11/07.
Diagram Brothers – “Bricks”
Another re-issue compilation, this one from LTM covering these Buzzcocks contemporaries. Putting the art into art-punk or the wave into no-wave, the rhythms are sparse yet jerky with song titles ranging from succinct to dissertation. Could've used some better production but I'm sure they did the best with what they had. If you've ever come up short with uses for some extra bricks laying around the year this song has plenty of ideas for you.
Mansbestfriend – “Spin The Humans”
Modest experimental record or Anticon side project? In this case both, as the cut-and-paste construction has a laid back “oh what the hell, just release it” vibe. Very much appreciated the inside liner notes which detailed the sources for each of the samples as well as some thoughts around the music. Overall the album is underbaked but this combination of a youtube sample of a boy’s plea for peace from the Middle East (the region, not the club) and Wheel of Fortune struck a chord. Has A Silver Mt. Zion type of feel to it, but with a beat.
Arthur & Yu – “The Ghost Of Old Bull Lee”
Had a tough time finding a song I liked in full … there are pieces and parts of each which are interesting but as a whole it’s always sabotaged by some cutesy xylophone part or steel drums or whatever 'gosh that would be so neat' touch they tossed in the mix. One of those records that finds itself incredibly interesting, I feel like the principals have a chapter’s worth of jumbled artist statements which need to be shared to truly understand it. Instead I’ll just press the eject.
Artanker Convoy – “Ejector”
Quite a few viable background music discs came in, including this one melding some free-form jazz with psychedelic jamming. Sounds rather tedious when written down like that but I predict I’ll find some time for them during the concert report.
The Dynamics – “I Don’t Want Nobody To Lead Me On”
We received a reissue of this LP on Hacktone, so I grabbed the opening track of horn-laded late 60’s soul. I’ve often said this period and style of music has a brilliance hitrate of about 50%, this album falls right into that definition. Strong vocals with equally impressive execution.
Meg Baird – “The Waltze of the Tennis Players”
Ok when I’m using the word folk here I’m not talking about faux-folk or any of the tree-hugging types trying to populate the term’s definition. This is straight up acoustic guitar and lilting vocals with some lovely backing. This one’s an obscure cover, there are a few others as well as some traditionals and originals too.
Centro-Matic – “All This Fresh Mutiny”
The first two songs are the killers on this new import-only ep from these WMBR favorites. This one bats leadoff, its a sparse haunted track with percussion that either mimics a heartbeat or oncoming thunder, a guitar where you literally can hear every string ekeing out its sorrowful note, and some piano, bells and strings to punctuate the maudlin energy. Needless to say the 2nd track is a storming alt-country rocker. Both are worthy of the repeat button.
The Golden Boys – “Remember Georgia”
Some Neil Young throwbacks crunching out solid roots rock with plenty of spiraling guitar solos and even a little harpsichord in this particular song. Sounds like it was recorded live in an Elks Lodge somewhere. What it lacks in fidelity is made up with volume, this tune sprawls across its aural canvas with an earned importance.
Bellavista – “Carve Our World”
What I hoped Black Rebel Motorcycle Club would be when I first heard the concept. Has the drawling vocals, the rat-a-tat drums, the Swervedriver guitar hooks. If you like a rock sound that’s druggy and massive yet with plenty of pace here’s a band to investigate. If the Brian Jonestown Massacre actually wanted to try and snag a decent deal this is what they’d attempt.
Carina Round – “Want More”
There’s a passing similarity to PJ Harvey's vocal style here, but where PJ would layer on the devil snake moan blues Carina pastes in some post-punk vibes. Has that way-too-professional major label sheen to the package, so I won't feel guilty about being pulled into their lair. The trill she slathers across every drawn out note is darn annoying. Spun this as the show closer on 6/11/07.
Ann Magnuson – “Art Professor”
Ann’s new album is called Pretty Songs and Ugly Stories. Unfortunately there’s too much of the former and not enough of the latter. The album is made up of lushly produced AAA pop songs for the most part, surprising in their unabashed attempt to please a seemingly mainstream crowd. However, this spoken word gem is everything I adore about Ann, a possibly true/possibly false remembrance of her art school days that uses an intriguing situation as a set up for a revealing response, eventually creating more questions that it ever answers.
Metric – “Soft Rock Star”
So the story is … these Canadian retro-new wave poppers recorded a debut album that nobody wanted to put out. But now that they have some money-making steam behind their No-Doubt-without-the-ska-beats sound this first record makes it way to offical status. This particular tune has a Broadcast/Delgados feel to it from the press-a-note-and-hold keyboards to Emily Haines’ tweaked vocals. Only the occasional jangly guitar gives it away. Played on 6/11/07.
Moonbabies – “Don’t Ya Know?”
Another Swedish band that’s enthusiastically trumpeted by Parasol, see below for example #2. Moonbabies are a one-song-an-album band for me and here’s the one song, dancefloor pop with insistently robotic drums and a guitar that is only able to show up in short bursts behind super-sugar-coated female vocals. It runs just short of 4 minutes but my patience was taxed by 2:30 as the same idea was repeated over and over and over and over …
The Chrysler – “It Was 1982”
There’s a certain Spanish vibe to this tune, the guitar is not flamenco but it has a similar sweep. The Swedes can skillfully cadge whatever sounds they please and here it’s mated with a rollicking handclap driven pace. Quotes Neil Young’s “Only Love Can Break Your Heart” in the breakdown. Personally not sure about some of the 60’s folk-pop aspects on the lp but there are definitely at least a few songs to love.
Loveninjas – “The End of a Dream”
There’s much to like about the Loveninjas. After all they’re on Labrador, a label that rarely fires a blank. But the vocals hold me back here, there’s a certain edge of emo earnestness which occasionally surafces through the otherwise pleasantly expressive Swedish bleat. Musically it’s super-tight rapid-fire indie pop from the Poole school of execution, the kind I unabashedly love. But with these gentleman, I can’t quite pull the trigger.
Minus Story – “Parachute”
Didn’t find much to like on this new Minus Story disc, the fractured songs struggle to coalesce into anything meaningful. It has an unscripted feel to it, the songs never find a consistent pace though an airy tone is present throughout. This selection is the most cohesive they get, and the last half of the song sounds like a tacked on instrumental running counter to the vocal portion of the first half.
Velcro Stars – “B-Side of Love”
A rather unassuming indie pop band that could comfortably wear a 1991 copyright instead of 2007. The breadth of their first full length suggests they’ve been socking away ideas for quite a long time, but when time came to edit down the running order the though of excluding even one song was far too heartbreaking. Surprising then the consistent high quality on display despite the rather humble aspirations. Sounds like they had a whole heap of friends to draw upon for the occasional backing instrument.
Get Him Eat Him – “Diminutive”
Rhode Island area supergroup (members are recruited from Dismemberment Plan and the Wrens amongst others) that thanks WMBR in the liners. Don't ask, I dunno. Earnest power pop vocals mated with ebullient pop/rock stop/start music. For some reason I just can’t love it … too precious perhaps? The songs want me to really really like them, they’re almost offended by my lack of enthusiasm for their enthusiasm. Played a different track on 6/11/07 in hopes of changing my opinion … didn’t work.
The Lodger – “You Got Me Wrong”
Nobody’s happier to see Slumberland putting out music again, though I’m not sure this band is worth that comeback release honor. Simple pop in the Boyracer vein, plenty of energy but not much passion as they execute it cuter than I’d like. Spun on 6/11/07.
The Intellectuals – “Go To The Beach With Cinnamon Girl”
Very similar to Pittsburgh’s the Kill-A-Watts, even more impressive considering they’re actually Italian. Traded guy-girl vocals behind a garage punk setting with some organ thrown in there for spice. Plenty of slurred English-as-a-second-language lyrics to make you wonder what the heck they’re saying beyond the part of the oft-repeated chorus that aligns with the titles. Loose and fun, one of the places where my taste and Joanie’s will intersect.
The Knack – “Time Time Time”
No, no, not the 70’s power pop Knack, this is the 60’s UK psych-pop version. There’s a new Rev-ola disc chronicling the brief career of this band, and since the compilation was named after this song it seemed like a good bet. Solid mid-tempo tune, it seems like you can hear every string on the very precise guitar. Plenty of background vocals chiming in with the lead as well. Very likable.
Decomposure – “Hour 7”
Odd, just odd. I have no other way to describe it … the torn cardboard handmade packaging, the rather simple naming convention (if you haven’t guessed this is the 7th song on the album), the glitch-pop songs. The leadoff track on his first record had an amazing killer chorus, but the overwhelming speed of the beats made me weary. There’s a similar vibe here, the impressively intricate construction of vocal upon vocal upon vocal interrupted by rapid fire beats machine-gunning the heart of the songs. Obviously the work of a mad genius, I’m slowly getting comfortable with it.
Montag – “No One Else”
Their previous record was much more extemporaneous than this effort … here we have cohesive songs with vocals and lyrics. This particular song falls into the Ulrich Schnauss school of new wave with ebullient Hammond-esque synths and chimey foreground and backing vocals repeating basically the same three words over and over. Fluffy I admit, but delicious nonetheless. Played on 6/11/07.
Diagram Brothers – “Bricks”
Another re-issue compilation, this one from LTM covering these Buzzcocks contemporaries. Putting the art into art-punk or the wave into no-wave, the rhythms are sparse yet jerky with song titles ranging from succinct to dissertation. Could've used some better production but I'm sure they did the best with what they had. If you've ever come up short with uses for some extra bricks laying around the year this song has plenty of ideas for you.
Mansbestfriend – “Spin The Humans”
Modest experimental record or Anticon side project? In this case both, as the cut-and-paste construction has a laid back “oh what the hell, just release it” vibe. Very much appreciated the inside liner notes which detailed the sources for each of the samples as well as some thoughts around the music. Overall the album is underbaked but this combination of a youtube sample of a boy’s plea for peace from the Middle East (the region, not the club) and Wheel of Fortune struck a chord. Has A Silver Mt. Zion type of feel to it, but with a beat.
Arthur & Yu – “The Ghost Of Old Bull Lee”
Had a tough time finding a song I liked in full … there are pieces and parts of each which are interesting but as a whole it’s always sabotaged by some cutesy xylophone part or steel drums or whatever 'gosh that would be so neat' touch they tossed in the mix. One of those records that finds itself incredibly interesting, I feel like the principals have a chapter’s worth of jumbled artist statements which need to be shared to truly understand it. Instead I’ll just press the eject.
Artanker Convoy – “Ejector”
Quite a few viable background music discs came in, including this one melding some free-form jazz with psychedelic jamming. Sounds rather tedious when written down like that but I predict I’ll find some time for them during the concert report.
The Dynamics – “I Don’t Want Nobody To Lead Me On”
We received a reissue of this LP on Hacktone, so I grabbed the opening track of horn-laded late 60’s soul. I’ve often said this period and style of music has a brilliance hitrate of about 50%, this album falls right into that definition. Strong vocals with equally impressive execution.
Meg Baird – “The Waltze of the Tennis Players”
Ok when I’m using the word folk here I’m not talking about faux-folk or any of the tree-hugging types trying to populate the term’s definition. This is straight up acoustic guitar and lilting vocals with some lovely backing. This one’s an obscure cover, there are a few others as well as some traditionals and originals too.
Centro-Matic – “All This Fresh Mutiny”
The first two songs are the killers on this new import-only ep from these WMBR favorites. This one bats leadoff, its a sparse haunted track with percussion that either mimics a heartbeat or oncoming thunder, a guitar where you literally can hear every string ekeing out its sorrowful note, and some piano, bells and strings to punctuate the maudlin energy. Needless to say the 2nd track is a storming alt-country rocker. Both are worthy of the repeat button.
The Golden Boys – “Remember Georgia”
Some Neil Young throwbacks crunching out solid roots rock with plenty of spiraling guitar solos and even a little harpsichord in this particular song. Sounds like it was recorded live in an Elks Lodge somewhere. What it lacks in fidelity is made up with volume, this tune sprawls across its aural canvas with an earned importance.
Bellavista – “Carve Our World”
What I hoped Black Rebel Motorcycle Club would be when I first heard the concept. Has the drawling vocals, the rat-a-tat drums, the Swervedriver guitar hooks. If you like a rock sound that’s druggy and massive yet with plenty of pace here’s a band to investigate. If the Brian Jonestown Massacre actually wanted to try and snag a decent deal this is what they’d attempt.
Monday, June 11, 2007
June 11th, 2007's playlist marks the 2nd of 2 fill-ins on the Monday Breakfast of Champions radio show on WMBR 88.1FM.
(8:00am - time for another tour of the WMBR vinyl record library)
Louis Killen - "Good Ale"
Doug Kershaw - "Jamestown Ferry"
Kilkenny Cats - "Shakin' in the 60's"
Steve Kilbey - "Judgement Day"
Kikka - "Singing in the Rain (No Vox)" (background music)
(8:15am - today we visit the letter K ... not exactly a fertile section of the library)
Kilslug - "Into A Hole"
Killdozer - "Ballad of My Old Man"
Killing Time - "Backtrack"
Kill The Man Who Questions - "A Study in Elitism"
Keoki - "JDJ" (background music)
(8:30am - time out for band of the week)
The Dandy Warhols - "(Tony, This Song Is Called) Lou Weed"
The Dandy Warhols - "Get Off"
(8:45am - this section runs from KER to KIL)
Killing Joke - "The Wait"
The Killer Shrews - "Big Eye"
Kiaro Skuro - "Decide"
Greg Kihn - "Any Other Woman"
Kildevil Blues - "Inna-Stella-Da-Vita" (background music)
(9:00am - smooth segue into a survey of new music)
Apparat - "Fractales Pt. II"
Loveninjas - "Care"
The Lodger - "You Got Me Wrong"
The Cinematic Orchestra - "As The Stars Fall" (concert report music)
(9:20am - always difficult to follow the concert report)
Shout Out Louds - "Don't Get Yourself Involved"
Velcro Stars - "B-Side of Love"
Get Him Eat Him - "Get Down!"
Mystery Jets - "You Can't Fool Me Dennis"
(9:40am - making a final run through the new music)
Metric - "Soft Rock Star"
The National - "Guest Room"
Laura Veirs - "Drink Deep"
Montag - "No One Else"
(9:55am - closing out the show)
Carina Round - "Want More"
Thanks for listening, if you missed it there's two weeks of archived shows available at WMBR's website.
(8:00am - time for another tour of the WMBR vinyl record library)
Louis Killen - "Good Ale"
Doug Kershaw - "Jamestown Ferry"
Kilkenny Cats - "Shakin' in the 60's"
Steve Kilbey - "Judgement Day"
Kikka - "Singing in the Rain (No Vox)" (background music)
(8:15am - today we visit the letter K ... not exactly a fertile section of the library)
Kilslug - "Into A Hole"
Killdozer - "Ballad of My Old Man"
Killing Time - "Backtrack"
Kill The Man Who Questions - "A Study in Elitism"
Keoki - "JDJ" (background music)
(8:30am - time out for band of the week)
The Dandy Warhols - "(Tony, This Song Is Called) Lou Weed"
The Dandy Warhols - "Get Off"
(8:45am - this section runs from KER to KIL)
Killing Joke - "The Wait"
The Killer Shrews - "Big Eye"
Kiaro Skuro - "Decide"
Greg Kihn - "Any Other Woman"
Kildevil Blues - "Inna-Stella-Da-Vita" (background music)
(9:00am - smooth segue into a survey of new music)
Apparat - "Fractales Pt. II"
Loveninjas - "Care"
The Lodger - "You Got Me Wrong"
The Cinematic Orchestra - "As The Stars Fall" (concert report music)
(9:20am - always difficult to follow the concert report)
Shout Out Louds - "Don't Get Yourself Involved"
Velcro Stars - "B-Side of Love"
Get Him Eat Him - "Get Down!"
Mystery Jets - "You Can't Fool Me Dennis"
(9:40am - making a final run through the new music)
Metric - "Soft Rock Star"
The National - "Guest Room"
Laura Veirs - "Drink Deep"
Montag - "No One Else"
(9:55am - closing out the show)
Carina Round - "Want More"
Thanks for listening, if you missed it there's two weeks of archived shows available at WMBR's website.
Monday, June 04, 2007
June 4th marks the first of two consecutive Monday appearances on the Breakfast of Champions for me, a radio show eminating from WMBR Cambridge. Ready for the playlist?
(8:00am - continuing the Thursday theme of exploring a small section of the WMBR vinyl library)
The Jam - "Here Comes The Weekend"
The Jags - "Back Of My Hand"
Joe Jackson - "On Your Radio"
Tommy James and the Shondells - "Sometimes I'm Up (Sometimes I'm Down)"
Jacno - "Rectangle" (background music)
(8:15am - we've started our journey at the very beginning of the letter "J")
Jack Frost - "Birdowner (As Seen On T.V.)"
The Jack Rubies - "Over My Head"
James - "What For"
JB3 - "Forklift (Luke Slater's Filtered Remix)" (background music)
(8:30am - let's pause for the band of the week)
Elf Power - "When The Red King Comes"
Elf Power - "The Winter Is Coming"
Elf Power - "Never Talking To You Again"
The Jackofficers - "L.A. Mama Peanut Butter" (background music)
(8:45am - this section spans from J, as in David ... to JAM)
Jack Drag - "Where Are We"
Wanda Jackson - "Rip It Up"
JackLords - "Dashboard Mary"
Jade - "Over Now"
Joe Jackson - "Zemeo"
(9:00am - a slave to the Thursday routine, this begins an hour of new music)
The Mary Onettes - "Void"
Future Conditional - "Crying's What You Need"
Daniel A.I.U. Higgs - "Hems and Seams" (concert report music)
(9:20am - mondays do tend to have the longest concert report)
Mice Parade - "Tales of Las Negras"
Black Moth Super Rainbow - "Melt Me"
Blair - "Wolfboy"
Dog Day - "End of the World"
(9:40am - winding down the new music hour)
Nedelle - "Ex-Priest"
Centro-Matic - "All This Fresh Mutiny"
The Loose Salute - "The Mutineer"
Shearwater - "Red Sea, Black Sea"
Shepherdess - "Not Gonna Be There Now"
(9:55am - closing it out ... not as fun without Joanie I guess)
Arctic Monkeys - "Flourescent Adolescent"
Thanks for listening, if you missed it the show will be available in streaming audio on the WMBR archive for 2 weeks from the origination date.
(8:00am - continuing the Thursday theme of exploring a small section of the WMBR vinyl library)
The Jam - "Here Comes The Weekend"
The Jags - "Back Of My Hand"
Joe Jackson - "On Your Radio"
Tommy James and the Shondells - "Sometimes I'm Up (Sometimes I'm Down)"
Jacno - "Rectangle" (background music)
(8:15am - we've started our journey at the very beginning of the letter "J")
Jack Frost - "Birdowner (As Seen On T.V.)"
The Jack Rubies - "Over My Head"
James - "What For"
JB3 - "Forklift (Luke Slater's Filtered Remix)" (background music)
(8:30am - let's pause for the band of the week)
Elf Power - "When The Red King Comes"
Elf Power - "The Winter Is Coming"
Elf Power - "Never Talking To You Again"
The Jackofficers - "L.A. Mama Peanut Butter" (background music)
(8:45am - this section spans from J, as in David ... to JAM)
Jack Drag - "Where Are We"
Wanda Jackson - "Rip It Up"
JackLords - "Dashboard Mary"
Jade - "Over Now"
Joe Jackson - "Zemeo"
(9:00am - a slave to the Thursday routine, this begins an hour of new music)
The Mary Onettes - "Void"
Future Conditional - "Crying's What You Need"
Daniel A.I.U. Higgs - "Hems and Seams" (concert report music)
(9:20am - mondays do tend to have the longest concert report)
Mice Parade - "Tales of Las Negras"
Black Moth Super Rainbow - "Melt Me"
Blair - "Wolfboy"
Dog Day - "End of the World"
(9:40am - winding down the new music hour)
Nedelle - "Ex-Priest"
Centro-Matic - "All This Fresh Mutiny"
The Loose Salute - "The Mutineer"
Shearwater - "Red Sea, Black Sea"
Shepherdess - "Not Gonna Be There Now"
(9:55am - closing it out ... not as fun without Joanie I guess)
Arctic Monkeys - "Flourescent Adolescent"
Thanks for listening, if you missed it the show will be available in streaming audio on the WMBR archive for 2 weeks from the origination date.
Sunday, June 03, 2007
It’s early June and normally the new releases would have slowed down by now as the majority of students leave campus for the summer. Not the case here as the torrid pace continues. I’d really enjoy a chance to catch up and actually spin some of the more deserving recent cuts twice instead of the hectic “play it once and hope it sticks” strategy that the confluence of these songs creates.
Blitzen Trapper – “Sci-Fi Kid”
If not for the cheap-sounding synth solo near the end this would be a sure pick for the Thurs L&F “Found song of the week.” They have a well-formed retro early FM rock sound melding jangly acoustics with an overdriven rhythm section but very little interesting to say lyrically. Spun on 5/31/07.
A Band of Bees – “The Ocularist”
Their previous record was a stunning meld of early 70’s musical styles from soul to garage which displayed an impressive virtuosity that unfortunately is not apparent on this new one. Here we get some Brazilian influence melded with some British folk-prog swipes for an effective ‘what the hell is this song about’ soufflé. Unfortunately Ween did this 5X more effectively on their album The Mollusk, and it’s hard not to make a direct comparison rather than just enjoy the Bees on their merits.
Shepherdess – “Not Gonna Be There Now”
Reports of the death of Kimchee Records were premature, or perhaps we should just regard this as a posthumous release on that fine local label. A super-group of sorts, or maybe we should call it a stalwart-group. Some crunchy pop-rock which would sound just as comfortable with a 1995 copyright as a 2007, Hilken can always wring some sweet desperation from her weary voice and does so effectively on this track.
Mice Parade – “Tales of Las Negras”
The early synth line eerily reminds me of “Let ‘Em In” by Wings. That’s a positive association by the way. The clattering Fridmann-esque drums are also a positive. Mice Parade drafted a heap of vocal help for these tunes, this one benefits from Laetitia Sadier scraping the depths of her octave range and making it work amongst the traditionally deadpan vocals of her partners. Lovely build with some plucked strings aiding the tune towards its close.
Joakim – “Three-Legged Lantern”
The single from this schizophrenic album got a namedrop earlier in the year but I delayed discussing this 7+ minute blippy shoegazer anthem for a bit too long. As a whole the record is tough to pin down, with experimental instrumentals rubbing elbows with new wave dancefloor fillers and tweaked acoustic folk songs. And truthfully the length of this song precludes it from airplay on my show, where 7+ minutes is a territory reserved for songs of Red House Painters quality. But I still wanted to save a memory of this pretty little slice of wallpaper with unintelligibly looped vocals and catchy beats.
The Cinematic Orchestra – “As The Stars Fall”
Speaking of wallpaper, I can always count on the Cinematic Orchestra to provide a solid bedtime companion in the form of some reasonable winddown music. The opening jazz bassline certainly provides some promise, though they do spice it with some pedalicious guitar freakiness that thankfully never breaks out into Boris territory but instead cedes to more traditional strings. Meets expectations.
Piano Magic – “Saints Preserve Us”
Patrick of Subject to Change and myself are the resident Piano Magic fans at the station, and over the past week we’ve had the good fortune to compare and contrast this new effort and the Future Conditional side project (which I’ll talk about in a sec). Piano Magic is solidly on the new wave side of the ledger, with the signature soaring guitars and hazy vocals and understated synth backing making it sound big big big. Not as endearing as previous efforts but still honourably flying the flag for the “it ain’t post-punk” crowd.
Future Conditional – “Crying’s What You Need”
The concept sounds very Postal Service … Piano Magic supplies the music and recruits a bunch of vocalists to help provide life to the lyrics. But in execution the target seems to be much more New Order, I can practically hear Bernard’s phrasings in the execution of some of these tunes. While overall that execution is hit-and-miss the hits are long drives, like this one sung by Klima’s Angele David-Guillou which goes over the center field fence as she pleads with a friend (or maybe us?) to get over a sour relationship behind a sonic template worthy of inclusion on Low-Life. Feels like an end-of-year comp contender to me!
Apparat – “Fractales Pt. 1”
My only disappointment with the new Apparat album is that vocals mar the proceedings far too often. Slyly propulsive instrumentals like this one beckon for 2a.m. drives when the roads are clear and the only other lights are those suspended on poles from high above. The kind of music that makes Sans Serif such a pleasure on Tuesday evenings.
Flunk – “Two Icicles”
A particularly enthusiastic friend makes sure I don’t miss any of Flunk’s artistic efforts even though I don’t find the post-Portishead vibe as compelling as he does. The vocalist has a way of slurring and cutting off her syllables in an early Bjork solo release sorta way, while the downtempo music is very much trip-hop 101. Sure I like it, but I just can’t seem to adore it.
Nedelle – “Ex-Priest”
We’ll save that aforementioned adoration for the chanteuse Nedelle who offers another solo entry into her catalog. This one is strictly folk-pop with a few helping hands from veterans of the scene. There’s little that Nedelle could mate her voice with which would leave me grumbly, so while these tunes aren’t particularly dynamic I always find a lilt or working of a phrase (watch for her gorgeous reading of the “he ran OUT of love” line on this tune, especially the final extended one) that makes the experience worthwhile.
Blair – “Wolfboy”
Can’t inform you much about this debut cd which surfaced at the station, other than it seems to have nothing to do with The Facts of Life. Never really liked songs that use “Oh My God” as a lyric, especially in the chorus … a sign of the imagination-deprived. But they make it work here, with a loping pace and some nice guitar work during the chorus as the singer seems worked up over decidedly high-school issues. Nice bass coming out of the chorus, the band is very tight in its execution. Must remember to play!
The Pipettes – “Really That Bad”
Part 2 of my pilfering of b-sides that hadn’t yet seen the light of U.S. release. Do you really need me to gush over them anymore? A great little rationalization of lust in the face of mounting negative evidence … “ooh he remembered my name once and he even smiled at me!” Guess he really really really really really really can’t be that bad. Remind me to get a tattoo sometime soon … maybe she’ll throw herself at me next time!
Art Brut – “People In Love”
Well they only had two real ideas on their debut album, though the execution was fitfully promising. And to be fair that’s two more ideas than they have on this follow-up, which seems dreadfully dull and obvious by comparison. Or maybe I’m just immune to their wit now. This song is the post-breakup flipside to “Good Weekend” but cashes in none of their good karma chips.
Matt Pond PA – “If You Live”
We can blow out the candles in my household as Matt Pond PA have favoured us with a new ep to temporarily end our long national nightmare. Unfortunately 4 of the 5 songs are really BIG, it seems like the production budget was spent on achieving Lillywhite proportions. This is the only tune which really feels MPPA-ish to me, a mid-tempo dissertation on the impending demise of a relationship with advice for us, the presumptively lovelorn. I am living my love like it’s my last, thank you Mr. Pond.
Datarock – “Princess”
Another one where my ardor for the music isn’t matched by the vocal style. Imagine a band named Datarock in your mind and this is exactly what you’d come up with, so give them a point for truth in advertising. Jumpy new wave rock ditties that deserve comparisons with Devo, though on the lighter end of the spectrum. The shouted vocals can barely mask their inability to do anything but hoarsely damage whatever goodwill the instrumentals have earned.
Von Südenfeld – “The Rhino Head”
Well, leave it to the members of Mouse on Mars to make Mark E. Smith’s post-senile ramblings somewhat palatable. This team-up marries Mark’s vague utterances with much more potent backing than the last Fall record … my only complaint is there’s still more than enough Mark here to annoy me. Take him out of the equation and leave me with the instruments and backing vocals and my opinion of this effort certainly improves.
The Shout Out Louds – “Don’t Get Yourself Involved”
Is it just my cynicism or have the latest non-Clientele passel of Merge releases been cut from the same influences of Destroyer and/or Spoon and/or Arcade Fire? It seems like every new discovery on the Merge roster from White Whale to these glam-poppers are practically interchangeable. This introductory ep blend of ¾ Destroyer glam with ¼ Arcade Fire twinkle stars stomp is certainly impressive enough, but I can only have the same stew so many times before my sense of taste starts to dull.
The Loose Salute – “The Mutineer”
Side project of the Mojave 3 drummer carries little of that band’s influence. This gentle-pop confection has a dollop of 60’s hippie folk matched up with some glistening twee in the acoustic guitar and hushed female backing vocals variety. Certainly pretty, though as a whole not diverse enough to really entrance me for more than a moment or two.
Wheat – “Little White Dove”
The good news is Wheat made it through their major-label flirtation to put out another album, the bad news is I liked the major label record more than this one. The deliberate step away from polish and melody is expected given the history, but many of these fractured fairy tales have an unfinished quality that would sound out of place on Medieros. Sonically this song seems sliced together from snippets of three or four ideas, fidgeting and gliding and stumbling and looping. On songwriting it suffers from the same fate, repeating a variety of short lyrical snippets in hope that the listener will attach a meaning. Played on 5/31/07.
Blitzen Trapper – “Sci-Fi Kid”
If not for the cheap-sounding synth solo near the end this would be a sure pick for the Thurs L&F “Found song of the week.” They have a well-formed retro early FM rock sound melding jangly acoustics with an overdriven rhythm section but very little interesting to say lyrically. Spun on 5/31/07.
A Band of Bees – “The Ocularist”
Their previous record was a stunning meld of early 70’s musical styles from soul to garage which displayed an impressive virtuosity that unfortunately is not apparent on this new one. Here we get some Brazilian influence melded with some British folk-prog swipes for an effective ‘what the hell is this song about’ soufflé. Unfortunately Ween did this 5X more effectively on their album The Mollusk, and it’s hard not to make a direct comparison rather than just enjoy the Bees on their merits.
Shepherdess – “Not Gonna Be There Now”
Reports of the death of Kimchee Records were premature, or perhaps we should just regard this as a posthumous release on that fine local label. A super-group of sorts, or maybe we should call it a stalwart-group. Some crunchy pop-rock which would sound just as comfortable with a 1995 copyright as a 2007, Hilken can always wring some sweet desperation from her weary voice and does so effectively on this track.
Mice Parade – “Tales of Las Negras”
The early synth line eerily reminds me of “Let ‘Em In” by Wings. That’s a positive association by the way. The clattering Fridmann-esque drums are also a positive. Mice Parade drafted a heap of vocal help for these tunes, this one benefits from Laetitia Sadier scraping the depths of her octave range and making it work amongst the traditionally deadpan vocals of her partners. Lovely build with some plucked strings aiding the tune towards its close.
Joakim – “Three-Legged Lantern”
The single from this schizophrenic album got a namedrop earlier in the year but I delayed discussing this 7+ minute blippy shoegazer anthem for a bit too long. As a whole the record is tough to pin down, with experimental instrumentals rubbing elbows with new wave dancefloor fillers and tweaked acoustic folk songs. And truthfully the length of this song precludes it from airplay on my show, where 7+ minutes is a territory reserved for songs of Red House Painters quality. But I still wanted to save a memory of this pretty little slice of wallpaper with unintelligibly looped vocals and catchy beats.
The Cinematic Orchestra – “As The Stars Fall”
Speaking of wallpaper, I can always count on the Cinematic Orchestra to provide a solid bedtime companion in the form of some reasonable winddown music. The opening jazz bassline certainly provides some promise, though they do spice it with some pedalicious guitar freakiness that thankfully never breaks out into Boris territory but instead cedes to more traditional strings. Meets expectations.
Piano Magic – “Saints Preserve Us”
Patrick of Subject to Change and myself are the resident Piano Magic fans at the station, and over the past week we’ve had the good fortune to compare and contrast this new effort and the Future Conditional side project (which I’ll talk about in a sec). Piano Magic is solidly on the new wave side of the ledger, with the signature soaring guitars and hazy vocals and understated synth backing making it sound big big big. Not as endearing as previous efforts but still honourably flying the flag for the “it ain’t post-punk” crowd.
Future Conditional – “Crying’s What You Need”
The concept sounds very Postal Service … Piano Magic supplies the music and recruits a bunch of vocalists to help provide life to the lyrics. But in execution the target seems to be much more New Order, I can practically hear Bernard’s phrasings in the execution of some of these tunes. While overall that execution is hit-and-miss the hits are long drives, like this one sung by Klima’s Angele David-Guillou which goes over the center field fence as she pleads with a friend (or maybe us?) to get over a sour relationship behind a sonic template worthy of inclusion on Low-Life. Feels like an end-of-year comp contender to me!
Apparat – “Fractales Pt. 1”
My only disappointment with the new Apparat album is that vocals mar the proceedings far too often. Slyly propulsive instrumentals like this one beckon for 2a.m. drives when the roads are clear and the only other lights are those suspended on poles from high above. The kind of music that makes Sans Serif such a pleasure on Tuesday evenings.
Flunk – “Two Icicles”
A particularly enthusiastic friend makes sure I don’t miss any of Flunk’s artistic efforts even though I don’t find the post-Portishead vibe as compelling as he does. The vocalist has a way of slurring and cutting off her syllables in an early Bjork solo release sorta way, while the downtempo music is very much trip-hop 101. Sure I like it, but I just can’t seem to adore it.
Nedelle – “Ex-Priest”
We’ll save that aforementioned adoration for the chanteuse Nedelle who offers another solo entry into her catalog. This one is strictly folk-pop with a few helping hands from veterans of the scene. There’s little that Nedelle could mate her voice with which would leave me grumbly, so while these tunes aren’t particularly dynamic I always find a lilt or working of a phrase (watch for her gorgeous reading of the “he ran OUT of love” line on this tune, especially the final extended one) that makes the experience worthwhile.
Blair – “Wolfboy”
Can’t inform you much about this debut cd which surfaced at the station, other than it seems to have nothing to do with The Facts of Life. Never really liked songs that use “Oh My God” as a lyric, especially in the chorus … a sign of the imagination-deprived. But they make it work here, with a loping pace and some nice guitar work during the chorus as the singer seems worked up over decidedly high-school issues. Nice bass coming out of the chorus, the band is very tight in its execution. Must remember to play!
The Pipettes – “Really That Bad”
Part 2 of my pilfering of b-sides that hadn’t yet seen the light of U.S. release. Do you really need me to gush over them anymore? A great little rationalization of lust in the face of mounting negative evidence … “ooh he remembered my name once and he even smiled at me!” Guess he really really really really really really can’t be that bad. Remind me to get a tattoo sometime soon … maybe she’ll throw herself at me next time!
Art Brut – “People In Love”
Well they only had two real ideas on their debut album, though the execution was fitfully promising. And to be fair that’s two more ideas than they have on this follow-up, which seems dreadfully dull and obvious by comparison. Or maybe I’m just immune to their wit now. This song is the post-breakup flipside to “Good Weekend” but cashes in none of their good karma chips.
Matt Pond PA – “If You Live”
We can blow out the candles in my household as Matt Pond PA have favoured us with a new ep to temporarily end our long national nightmare. Unfortunately 4 of the 5 songs are really BIG, it seems like the production budget was spent on achieving Lillywhite proportions. This is the only tune which really feels MPPA-ish to me, a mid-tempo dissertation on the impending demise of a relationship with advice for us, the presumptively lovelorn. I am living my love like it’s my last, thank you Mr. Pond.
Datarock – “Princess”
Another one where my ardor for the music isn’t matched by the vocal style. Imagine a band named Datarock in your mind and this is exactly what you’d come up with, so give them a point for truth in advertising. Jumpy new wave rock ditties that deserve comparisons with Devo, though on the lighter end of the spectrum. The shouted vocals can barely mask their inability to do anything but hoarsely damage whatever goodwill the instrumentals have earned.
Von Südenfeld – “The Rhino Head”
Well, leave it to the members of Mouse on Mars to make Mark E. Smith’s post-senile ramblings somewhat palatable. This team-up marries Mark’s vague utterances with much more potent backing than the last Fall record … my only complaint is there’s still more than enough Mark here to annoy me. Take him out of the equation and leave me with the instruments and backing vocals and my opinion of this effort certainly improves.
The Shout Out Louds – “Don’t Get Yourself Involved”
Is it just my cynicism or have the latest non-Clientele passel of Merge releases been cut from the same influences of Destroyer and/or Spoon and/or Arcade Fire? It seems like every new discovery on the Merge roster from White Whale to these glam-poppers are practically interchangeable. This introductory ep blend of ¾ Destroyer glam with ¼ Arcade Fire twinkle stars stomp is certainly impressive enough, but I can only have the same stew so many times before my sense of taste starts to dull.
The Loose Salute – “The Mutineer”
Side project of the Mojave 3 drummer carries little of that band’s influence. This gentle-pop confection has a dollop of 60’s hippie folk matched up with some glistening twee in the acoustic guitar and hushed female backing vocals variety. Certainly pretty, though as a whole not diverse enough to really entrance me for more than a moment or two.
Wheat – “Little White Dove”
The good news is Wheat made it through their major-label flirtation to put out another album, the bad news is I liked the major label record more than this one. The deliberate step away from polish and melody is expected given the history, but many of these fractured fairy tales have an unfinished quality that would sound out of place on Medieros. Sonically this song seems sliced together from snippets of three or four ideas, fidgeting and gliding and stumbling and looping. On songwriting it suffers from the same fate, repeating a variety of short lyrical snippets in hope that the listener will attach a meaning. Played on 5/31/07.
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