Not Lazy, Just Busy

"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."

I have a lot of catching up to do, so it might get ugly. Gotta ram on and maybe a few details and dates will get fuzzy. Cause it’s a blog!

It's been a busy, and very musical interlude, with a couple of fine shows to recall.

Friday, May 13
No music in the mail today. Karmic payback for not keeping up.

Thursday, May 12
Good news. I got a photo pass for this Saturday's HSFtival in Baltimore. SUM-41's publicist said yes for the book project, and I'm pretty sure the pass will be good all day. So I'm good, too.
In the mail:
1. ROBERT CRAY - Twenty (Sanctuary)
Coming to the Birchmere next month.

Wednesday, May 11:
Purchased:
WILL SMITH - "Switch" (iTunes single)
One song, not to be counted in the YTD total. This is one damn catchy piece of work and the small production details are killer. Been hearing it in the morning on drive time radio (when Grace isn't popping CDs into the player) and every time I hear it, I smile. Having it at home, feet on the floor rather than on the gas pedal, I can dance, too.
2. WEEZER - Make Believe (Geffen)
Grace will pay for this one since she's a big fan, but since her allowance comes out of my pocket, I will claim it here. I hope she doesn't read too much into the Rivers' saga. He may not be the role model of my dreams. But he does have a way with a hook. 'cept for "We Are All In Drugs." That one's just dumb. Oh wait, I just heard "Best Friend." Even Grace agrees that it's a real lazy lyric.
3. The STARTING LINE - Based on a True Story (Drive-Thru/Geffen)
Saw the band from the side of the stage with Grace at the Flipside show (click here) and thought they were quite good. Lead singer has a star's charisma, mighty confident for a young buck just making the move to the big time, I bought it now on sale ($7.99) for Grace's birthday in two weeks. Shhhhh....it's a secret.
4. LIL JON & the EAST SIDE BOYZ - Get Crunk/Lovers & Friends (TVT)
Almost every week, Best Buy offers some add-on CD or DVD trailer bonus if you buy this or that special sale item. But if you buy just about anything else in the entertainment department, you can add one of the freebies to the pile and the cashier just passes it on through. They don't care, but I do. I am not very crunk, but I'll check it out so that I have some knowledge when I need to explain why I am not very crunk. Reason one: ‘cause repeating “Get crunk, monkey feather” (or words that sound a lot like that) is not writing lyrics.
Sent:
5. BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN - Devils and Dust (Columbia)
An advisory sticker on a Bruce album?! Must admit, I was taken aback when I read the lyrics to the song that earned the tag ("She slipped me out of her mouth...wet her finger, slipped it inside her..."). But by the end of the song, when you realize the desolation that has brought this guy to the hooker's bed, it's truly heartbreaking. Leave it to Bruce, in this age of boobie-phobic censorship, to write a song that demands you admit that "adult imagery" isn't always intended to titillate and corrupt.
I could write a book (actually I did, in 1984 for Ballantine, one of a series of unauthorized rock biographies) about my torrid, if unrequited, love affair with the Boss. We've grown apart in recent years. I prefer the raucous-yet-sensitive gypsy boy of the "Born to Run" era to the elder statesman who's got the state of the world on his mind and the weight of the world on his shoulders. But when Bruce put himself on the line for Kerry, the old romance came back for a while. Bruce is like an old boyfriend who was there for me at a special time in my life. We may have gone down separate roads, but there will always be something intense there.
One strangeness however - this does not appear to be a DualDisc, and I thought all of the CDs were being manufactured that way. Will look that up at Tower records site. Disappointed not to get the full magilla (yeah, yeah, I know; buy the sucker).
6. JULIE LAVENDER - Never Felt the Sun (Covenant)
Covenant Records? Is this Jesus music? The song titles head more for the gooey new age spectrum ("Velvet Arms of Midnight," "Here Come the Dreamers") or Grand Statements - "Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5 Aria" (whew! typing that was a bitch!) Listening the first time, with one ear while typing, it sounds more like mellow girl jazz. Might be nice on quiet nights, might be cloying. Need to revisit later.

Also in the mail, and very special to my music-loving soul:
ELVIS COSTELLO - a set list and ticket from the Palais Theatre in England, November 23, 2004, plus a set of actual Elvis guitar strings from the show; the lot purchased on ebay. The set list is for a book project I'm working on (ask for a link if you want to see pages in progress) and, though I have an autographed picture that a former editor got for me at an interview, knowing what a fan I am (shout out to Jeff!), there's something that makes me a little bit giddy to know that EC himself stroked these strings.
Oddity noted on the setlist - "13 Steps" (as it's called here) appears twice. There's a listing for "Brilliant Mistake." Is he covering Bruce? And there is no "Watching the Detectives"! Oh dear. Elvis is coming to Wolf Trap this summer. If there's a chance he's no longer performing my #1 A-list favorite song, I'd better start bracing myself now.

Tuesday, May 10
No CD's in the mail today, but I did score reasonably good tix (Row T, center aisle) to take Grace to see Green Day and Jimmy Eat World in August, thanks to the fan presale, which I was alerted to by a publicity mailing. Wherever you are, you would have heard her scream for joy when I showed her the email confirmation, but she shoved a pillow in her face to spare us all.

Saturday, May 7
purchase:
7. FOR TSUNAMI RELIEF 2 CD-set from Filter magazine and Urban Outfitters
Excellent price ($15) for a double disc that covers lots of my recent favorites - Death Cab, Interpol, Elbow, Franz Ferdinand, (the ubiquitous) Kaiser Chiefs - and cool newcomers - LCD Soundsystem, Juana Molina, Rilo Kiley, Caribou - many in new remixes and previously unreleased tracks. Played it on the car ride home from NYC, picking up college girl and everyone in the car (age range 15-54) was diggin' it. Almost left one of the discs in the mini-van rental. That would have been a major bummer. Well worth looking for.

Wednesday, May 4:
Spent a brief twenty minutes or so speaking on the phone with Stu Livingston, one of the two guitarist-vocalist-lyricists of the fine Canadian band, A Northern Chorus, this week's Post Live! pick click here. The Ontario chamber pop quintet's third release, "Bitter Hands Resign," is one of those never-would-have-heard-of-it-otherwise albums that came to me because of the Post gig. A lovely discovery.

Nothing musical in the mail today, but I went to Best Buy and got
8. The PARTRIDGE FAMILY - The Complete First Season (DVD)
I'm including it in the count because it contains a 4-track sampler of music from the show and one of the special features is the ability to go straight to the "musical performances" (if ever a phrase required ironic quotes..) I can't tell you more now since I'm waiting to open it until after Mother's Day, in case I get one as a gift.
9. I LOVE THAT SONG/THE BEST OF THE 20th CENTURY - sampler for the Universal Millenium Collection releases
This week's freebie (with purchase).This one has a few songs I can add to the oldies mix, a number I already own and two (Toby Keith, Motley Crue) I will never need.

Monday, May 2
10. MASSIVE ATTACK - Unleashed soundtrack (EMI)
First "Danny the Dog," now "Unleashed." I'm getting a doggie vibe here. Though I'm not well versed in the music of this highly-regarded British dance band, I have enjoyed what I've heard so far. Dance/electronica, even some at its best, just flows through me, and it's hard for me to judge the various styles (house, dub, trance, etc) so I just like what I like and let other people stick on the titles. Massive Attack is a brand name with clout, so I trust it.

Speaking of which, I lost track of when this one came in, but recently re-discovered it in Terry's car:
11. BEN WATT – Buzzin’ Fly, Volume 2: Replenishing Music for the Modern Soul (Astralwerks)
I came to Watt’s work with Everything But the Girl late, but appreciate it now. This is more of an electronic mix thing he’s got going, and the first track is a respectful rumination of post 9-11 New York City. Somehow, I never seem to get past the third track without being interrupted, but I’m looking forward to more of what I’ve heard so far.

Sunday, May 1
Grace and I arrived at the Interpunk Flipside Festival (Post Preview) late in the game - it was 6ish and the music started around noon. Aiming for Rufio, a band reccomended by her cousin, but they went on a half hour early (unheard of!) and so we caught Motion City Soundtrack first. Got to stand on the side of the stage, which made for some new photo angles.
12. DEAD EYES – Grave for the Fireflies (S/R)
Some enterprising young band did a great job of creating these promo discs. The disc label is a little creepy – a B&W illustration of an eyeball being cut (shades of Bunel!) but each one is packaged in an individually made envelope – stickered and distressed, even singed at the edges, as if caught in a fire. I have #921/1000 and I will keep it for the design elements; the music is fairly generic goth rock gloom.
On one of the side stages, Grace caught a Baltimore outfit and, deciding she liked the music - and thought the band was cute - bought both of their self-released CDs:
13. SILENT FILM- Our New Heaven
14. SILENT FILM - The City is My Sea
15. PATENT PENDING - I Am Your Biological Father ((Booyah)
Grace was catching a chill, so we grabbed a bargain at another merch table, this one manned by a friendly guy who turned out to be the lead singer for the band Patent Pending (truth be told, I thought that was the label’s name, there were so many T-shirts!) She got a sweatshirt with a nice rocket logo and the band’s CD for $20. And it turned out to be pretty good music, too. “Cheer Up, Emo Kid” could be a left-field hit.
16.The STARTING LINE - Say It Like You Mean It (Drive-Thru Records)
Smitten by the band after seeing their set from the side of the stage, Grace purchased the CD and a rugby-style T-shirt. She played this on the car ride home, and squealed with delight when she discovered they sang a song she’s always loved from a sampler her sister had made for her.
17. EQUAL VISION RECORDS – Summer sampler 2004
18. NEW SOUNDS VOL. 2 (Equal Vision Records sampler)
19.CRASH BOOM BANG – S/T (S/R)
DC area band, appearing at the HFStival.

Saturday, April 30
$1.50 bargains at the thrift store:
20. NUYORICAN SOUL - S/T (Giant Step/Blue Thumb)
The CD design was just so cool - designed like a miniature cigar box and the price so low, I took a chance.
21. PREFAB SPROUT - Jordan: The Comeback (Epic)
Inspired by Le Concorde, whose singer/songwriter Stephan Backer swears by them. Since I adore Le Concorde’s “Universe and Villa” CD, I snatched this up, but it’s a tad too twee for me.

Friday, April 29
Sent:
22. A NORTHERN CHORUS - Bitter Hands Resign (Sonic Unyon)
A classy CD package, pulled together using public domain engravings from the Dover artist series. The music shows the same kind of meticulous care. An album I liked within minutes of putting it on. Do you need the Post preview link again?
click here
23.RUFIO – MCMLXXXV (Nitro)
Another Flipside band (the one we missed).
Purchased at the Black Cat show, with IVY and Astaire:
24. STARS - Set Yourself On Fire (Arts& Crafts International)
Going into this show, I had no fore-knowledge of this Canadian collective, but they impressed me straight out of the gate. Two vocalists, one male and one woman, the guy a small man with big attitude in the right way. Dedicated the song “Reunion” to Dick Cheney, in hopes that he would return to high school and finally consumate his love for the football team player he's lusted for all these years.

Wednesday, April 27
Traded for at the CD Cellar
25.SHELBY LYNNE – The Making of Suit Yourself (Capitol)
I’ve tried to play this promo disc twice – in my car and in my discman – and it keeps popping out. Maybe it’s a DVD?
26.KIKI and HERB Will Die for You at Carnegie Hall
Gay drag cabaret versions, with funny, bitchy commentary, of songs like “When Doves Cry,” “The Windmills of My Mind,” “Love Will Tear Us Apart,” and “Ladies and Gentlemen, We are Floating in Space.” Something I can’t play in front of the family or they may cart me away.
27. BRITISH SEA POWER – Open Season
Somebody’s cheapo knock-off advance (paper cover, no title, generic CD-R disc), and a bargain for $1.99. Evocative, slightly grand (but not pompous) British rock. Not what I expected, since I expected long guitar solos, but it’s the kind of thing I like. Interesting lyrics (there’s a song about a falling ice floe) and headphone worthy elements.
28. HELLO RECORDING CLUB
One of the Johns in They Might Be Giants started this mail-order music club back in the day. But hey, it’s got a 1997 copyright, so maybe HRC lasted longer than I thought. This edition, featuring a band called You Were Spiraling, is a nice addition to my found-music set. Gentle pop with a Ben Folds vibe.
29.PLUNDERPHONICS
Before there were mash-ups and sampling, there was John Owsley, putting stuff together that wasn’t meant to be but sounds weirdly wonderful just the same. I read about his work years and years ago in Wired magazine, I think, but it seemed he might never get clearance to release his bizarre experiments, which pull recognizable bits from classic songs and run them through an audio meat grinder. Whether it’s legal or not, this is a classy two-disc set with a booklet of extensive liner notes to guide you through his musical rubic cubes.

30. 33Hz – Digital Lover/Crazy All The Time
Free giveaway single. The return of disco, but not the fun kind.

Oh, dear. I'm losing track of what came when! The OCD is kicking in big-time, and I don't know what to do...! [ORGAN STING!] Oh well, just toss in a few more…

Purchased:
31.BEN FOLDS - Song for Silverman (Epic)
New Dual Disc mode. Fold has such a natural ability to write melody that you can take him for granted; even on first listen, this new album is as comfortable as Westin hotle “heavenly bed.” But I’m not sure if he can, as a solo artist, meet the heights of his work with the Five. There’s a song here called “Gracie,” which is, naturally a family favorite, but if it were named “Katie,” I don’t think I’d consider it more than a sweet throwaway.
32.VICTORY RECORDS free sampler
"Free with purchase of select Victory Records CDs." Or anything else you might pick up at Best Buy.
Sent:
33. EDIE CAREY – When I Was Made (self-released?)
34. The FORECAST – Late Night Conversations (Victory)
35. MATISYAHU – Live at Stubb’s (Or Music)
Jewish rap seems to be a new trend. I’m a recovering Catholic, but I was raised in New York City and attended a few seders in my time, so it’s not as exotic as world music from a far distant country, but I know I’m not getting the full effect.
36. JOHNNY REINHARD – Charles Ives Universe Symphony (Stereo Society)
This was sent to me by mistake, addressed to another Post critic at my address. The last time this happened, the editor told me to keep it, adding, ‘if the publicists don’t know their business well enough to get the address right, that’s their problem.’ I usually let them know, though, and worry that someone somewhere is getting my mail!

YTD total: 394

Whew! I know there’s stragglers I haven’t included, so I’ll toss ‘em in at a late date, but now at least I can start fresh tomorrow! Tune back in for news from the festival!