SOUNDTRACK: CRASS-Christ: The Bootleg (1989).
I had heard about Crass as being a political force to be reckoned with–they formed an anarchist commune that worked with other artists and on behalf of political causes. So why not start with a CD that says on the cover: “Suggested Retail Price $4.98.”
So I bought this CD before hearing anything else by them. It’s a live recording from 5.2.1984, and it’s a noisy muddled mess. You can hear occasional words in the noise (although most of the clearest things are soundbites from the likes of Thatcher and other politicians). These surround the songs which are mostly just noisy distorted guitars (more because of the sound quality of the recording I believe).
I’ve obviously never seen Crass, but this bootleg suggests that they were a visceral force (there’s so much screaming!). There are a few moments of clarity where you can hear their anti-establishment lyrics, but for the most part this is a terrible place to discover Crass.
I suppose if you know the band, it’s a worthy addition, but I have to assume the proper albums sound better and make more of an impact.
[READ: Week of July 9, 2010] Letters of Insurgents [Sophia’s Fifth Letter]
This week’s reading comes from Sophia. Her letter was nearly 80 pages long, so we get her POV exclusively.
Sophia’s tone has changed yet again. This time, it’s summed up when she dismisses Yarostan’s comparison of her life in the garage (and more about that soon) with his experiences during Magarna:
The only similarity between your experiences during the Magarna uprising and my experiences in the garage is that they both began at the same time. But I’ll let you be the judge of the similarities and the differences; you’ve scolded me enough for my comparisons and contrasts (338).
Sophia opens with two surprises: she was just in jail and Tina has left their house. [The way it’s worded: she is “no longer with us” (331) was rather a tease.] (more…)

SOUNDTRACK: QUICKSILVER MESSENGER SERVICE-Quicksilver Messenger Service (1968).
For me, QMS have always been mythical–like a unicorn or a gryphon–I had no real proof that they existed, but I have seen glimpses. I think that this record, along with Steely Dan’s Aja and all of the records of Lee “Scratch” Perry were on every first page of every Columbia House ad and catalog ever. And yet, I had never heard them or known anyone who listened to them.
SOUNDTRACK: SAID THE WHALE-“Gentleman” (2009).
This song starts out simply enough, a folky bouncey song. It’s an almost harmless song, almost easily forgotten. And yet there’s something about it that raises it above songs that typically sound like this. Enough, that is to make me want to listen to it again.
[READ:April 19, 2010] Although of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself [Afterword]
SOUNDTRACK: THE DEAD MILKMEN-Big Lizard in My Backyard (1985).
My friend Alison said the other day that she had “Bitchin’ Camaro” stuck in her head. And soon thereafter, so did I. So Philadelphia’s Dead Milkmen are a bratty punk band. They skewer all kinds of things: pop culture, racists, right wing pigeons, junkies and, quite possibly, music itself.
SOUNDTRACK: RUSH-Permanent Waves (1979).
When my friend Doug and I were hanging out back in the 80s, we both were getting into Rush at the same time. And because this album was in black and white this was the last Rush LP we bought. Imagine our surprise when it turned out to contain “The Spirit of Radio” one of the best hard rock anthems ever.
Sarah and I watched a bit of the third or fourth episode of this show when it aired on CBC. But jumping into the middle of this show is difficult. The characters are established pretty quickly, their quirks are all explained in the first episode, and it’s a bit hard to care about them without knowing their whole story.
And it has now given me a new favorite actor of the month: Sherry Miller who plays Mrs Jarlewski is just fantastic. She’s like an older, subtler version of perennial favorite Portia de Rossi.
SOUNDTRACK: KISS-KISSology: The Ultimate Kiss Collection, Vol. 2: 1978-1991 DVD (2007).
In addition to containing Kiss Meets the Phantom, this DVD contains concert footage, music videos and some interviews. We see Peter Criss being interviewed on CNN (!) by a woman in a tank top (ah, the early days of 24 hour news) about leaving the band. Of course, this doesn’t hold a candle to the actual music video for “Shandi” one of the cheesiest of cheesy Kiss videos.
SOUNDTRACK: BLUE ÖYSTER CULT-Curse of the Hidden Mirror (2001).
It’s something of a shame that BOC has fallen off the radar so much. While never a big seller, they’ve been a surprisingly good singles band. And on this disc, they have a couple of songs that could have been big hits if anybody still cared about them.
SOUNDTRACK: A CAMP-Colonia (2009).
This is the second album from the side project of The Cardigan’s Nina Persson. This disc was created with her husband Nathan Larson from Shudder to Think. Their first album had a country flair to it, but this one eschews that entirely for a pop feel that is entirely different from The Cardigans’ two main styles: the “cheesy” happy pop of “Lovefool” and the bitter guitar pop of their later discs.