SOUNDTRACK: SWANS-Omniscience (1992).
When I was in college, I really liked the Swans. They were noisy as all get out, and were at the forefront of an industrial style that has since become mainstream. But at the time they were pretty scary.
I particularly liked Children of God, a great album split between noisy M. Gira songs and pretty, soft Jarboe songs. Shortly after this record they released a very soft record called The Burning World with a totally mellow cover of “Can’t Find My Way Home.”
I had sort of stopped listening to them sometime after college, and then my friend Lar got into them and found out that I had a bunch of their older, then out-of-print, records, so we started sharing them. I got back into them and was able to fill out my collection of Swans works, all except Omniscience. He made me a copy of it and I liked it, and I just found a used one for myself.
Omniscience is a live record which came towards the end of their career. And the amazing thing is how beautiful the record is, for the most part. There are still some noisy, bass-heavy parts, but Swans had changed so drastically from the noisy band of yore that Omniscience is practically atmospheric in feel. There are some interesting samples of dialogue that are simply weird and arbitrary, but they do set a mood for the show. But compared to say, Public Castration is a Good Idea, it’s soothing.
[READ: October 15, 2007] “Mr. Bones.”
This is the second story by Theroux that I have read. (The first one was in the New Yorker a few months ago, and is being released in a new collection of his shortly). I’d heard the name of Theroux over and over, but wasn’t really familiar with his work. The other story was set in India, as I’m led to believe much of his stuff is. So, this one came as quite a surprise. (more…)
SOUNDTRACK: THE CARS-Greatest Hits (2002).
SOUNDTRACK: NED SUBLETTE: Cowboy Rumba (1999).
Typically I’m the one who introduces our house to new music. My wife has great taste, but she doesn’t typically seek out new stuff like I do. So, it was a nice surprise when she found this record. I think she heard about it on NPR. I was trying to figure out how best to describe the record, but really the title says it all. It is a country-tinged record that is primarily backed by horns in a “rumba” style (although Sublette admits in the liner notes that it’s not really a rumba). I’m not a big fan of country music, and I’m not a huge fan of South of the Border horn music (sambas, rumbas etc). However, Sarah and I took some ballroom dance classes, and my appreciation for these styles has really grown. We even requested one of these songs (“Feelin’ No Pain”) for our wedding reception.
SOUNDTRACK: GUIDED BY VOICES-Universal Truths and Cycles (2002).
SOUNDTRACK: PINK FLOYD-Atom Heart Mother (1970).
I decided it was time to review an old album, just to mix it up with all the new stuff I’ve been listening to lately. And, so I went deep into the well, and pulled out Atom Heart Mother. Back in high school, we used to sit around and profoundly discuss music and TV, (but not books, see how times have changed!). Anyhow, turns out one of my friends’ brothers was a big Pink Floyd fan (as was I) and so my friend, although not a big Pink Floyd fan himself, knew enough to discuss them.
SOUNDTRACK: BJORK-Volta (2007).
Okay, so Bjork is from Mars. Volta is her newest album. I’ve been a fan of Bjork since the Sugarcubes, way back when. I’ve also really enjoyed her solo recordings. I used to get all of her singles and videos and things, but in recent years she seems to have released a new full length reissue of a concert or remastered disc on a monthly basis. So, I had to go cold turkey.
SOUNDTRACK: NADA SURF-Let Go (2002) & The Weight is a Gift (2005).
Let Go. Something happened between Nada Surf’s 2nd and third album, I don’t know what, exactly, but they really made some great material with these two albums. Let Go introduces a new jangly guitar style that makes the band softer and catchier, but which really accentuates the singer’s voice and melodies. Usually, when a band “matures” like this, the results are never good. But in this case, the mellower sound and slower songs really bring out the quality of the work. The first five tracks really shine, with “Fruit Fly” and “Blonde on Blonde” really standing out. The lyrics of “Fruit Fly” seems so simple and yet in context, and with the great melody, they work wonders. 
SOUNDTRACK: NADA SURF-High/Low (1996) & The Proximity Effect (1998).
High/Low. This CD features the “novelty” hit “Popular” from some years back, you remember, the spoken word bit about trying to impress your high school sweetheart by washing your hair “every two weeks, once, every two weeks.” The song is pretty great, even after the novelty factor has worn off. However, you may feel that you got screwned (see What I Learned… (5)) if you thought the rest of the record would sound like that. For the most part High/Low is kind of forgettable, and a surprising lead off point to what are some really fine follow-up albums. Overall the sound is, not quite murky, but very samey. So that even the catchy parts sort of blend together. It was not until their next album that they start to show some great songwriting.
The Proximity Effect. As I understand it, when Nada Surf didn’t produce a hit like “Popular” for their second album, the label dropped them. Which is typically short-sighted because The Proximity Effect is a much better album. In fact, it contains a song akin to “Popular” called “Mother’s Day” but it is so much darker–almost the anti-“Popular.” It too has a spoken word type vocal, and yet the song is an anti-rape song. A dark subject to be sure, but the guitar riff is so great it stays in your head, and you wind up thinking even more about the song. The first four songs really break Nada Surf out of the sameyness of High/Low by introducing high notes! It really cracks through the grungy sound by including some contrast. However, it’s the next album, Let Go, that really shows Nada Surf taking off.
I Just Read About That... 