Today's CDs (10/9)
 

Buzzcocks -- Singles Going Steady
Out Hud -- STREET DAD
We Ragazzi -- The Ache
Superdrag -- Last Call for Vitriol
Superdrag -- In the Valley of Dying STars
Supergrass -- I Should Coco
Suicice -- Suicide

QOTD: What are your picks for singles of the year thus far?

Mine:

The Rapture -- House of Jealous Lovers
LCD Soundsystem -- Losing My Edge
The Wildbunch -- Danger! High Voltage
Missy Elliott -- Work It
Queens of the Stone Age -- No One Knows
Fog -- Pneumonia
Secret Machines -- It's a Bad Wind That Blows That Don't Do Somebody Some Good
Superdrag -- Feeling Like I Do

Coldplay: A Rush of blood to the head

Carpenters: Greatest Hits- So on a whim the other day I happen to pick this thing up at the library just to give it a try. All I have to say is what planet were these cats from?!?!?! Their music oooozes nothing but pure wholesome, innocent goodness dipped in that whole 60's-70's polyester/square/elevator music vibe. I'm having flashbacks to 7th grade choir class. I felt like I had been born again after listening to it. Whoa, I think I'm gonna have to throw in some Cannibal Corpse after listening to that just to balance out my Che'. I just rarely hear that type of 'vibe' in music-especially with Swedish Black metal being all the rage today. Nice change of pace if that's your type of thing. While most of their material didn't do much for me, I did find myself turnin' up the volume and gettin' it during "We've only just begun" :o

I just had to share that experience with someone.

I haven't gotten any today...but I did pick up some Sunday night, and I'm going tommorrow to get more.

Do Make Say Think - & Yet & Yet
Fly Pan Am - Ceux Que Inventent N'ont Jamais Vecu
Mum - Finally We Are No One
Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robot (??)
Godspeed You Black Emperor! - Slow Riot for New Zero Kanada

Oh yeah, I reviewed Matt Keating's "Tiltawhirl" and Venus Hum's "Hummingbirds." I don't know if I'm getting pick up any more today, but I'm going to request the new Death Cab for Cutie and Black Heart Procession records.

Leo Kottke/Mike Gordon - Clone
Ben Folds - Live
Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers - The Last DJ
The Gourds - Cow Fish Fowl or Pig
Pork Tornado
Karl Denson's Tiny Universe - The Bridge

FYI: Both are bad. If you are a big Death Cab fan you've already heard the good songs on the comp... the rest is awful. And the Black Heart... ugh. I have adored their whole lineage: from Three Mile Pilot to Pinback to Black Heart. But the decision to go tropicali was a mistake. They can't pull it off. They are <i>much</i> better doing baroque funeral dirges than a style so cheery.

Martin Grech- Open Heart Zoo
JJ72- I to Sky
REM- Life's Rich Pageant


Singles of the year so far:

Idlewild- American English
JJ72- Formulae
Primal Scream- Miss Lucifer
Cee-lo- Closet Freak
Coldplay- The Scientist
U2- Electrical Storm

Coheed and Cambria
Blink 182
Brand New
Craig's Brother
Finch
From Autumn to Ashes
Further Seems Forever
Green Day
Hangnail
Jimmy Eat World
New Found Glory
Starting Line
Taking Back Sunday
The Used
Thrice
Thursday
Value Pac

On shuffle.

Hmm, something about Black Heart Procession and cheery used in the same sentence kind of turns me off. I'll probably request both anyway, just because I feel like, as a fan, I should. Not to say that I don't trust your word or anything, but I should still see for myself, ya know?

Are you still going to that Doug Marstch show in DC? I don't believe that I am...I haven't talked to my ride again and beside that, I epitomize a poor college student (so I have to save my money for Sigur Ros - which will cost $35+)!

Thanks for the heads up.

It's not Sesame Street cheery, but in comparison to 1, 2 and 3, it is quite different. Yeah, check it out though, a few good songs.

I don't live in DC. I live in NYC.

Got the new Apples in Stereo today. Fantastic disc!

Also picked up the Sahara Hotnights disc. Great rock band. Just saw them play two weeks ago.

Roy Wood & Wizzard - The Best of
Gerard - The Pendulum
John Lennon - Mind Games
Fates Warning - Disconnected
Finch - Beyond Expression
Richard Thompson - Mirror Blue
Raspberries - Collector's Series
Mind Gallery - Three Meals from Revolution
Billy Bragg - The Internationale
Deep Purple - Burn

Sopranos - OST (Peppers & Eggs)
New Pornographers - Mass Romantic
Best of Vivaldi

Singles:
Gosh, that would require that I turn the FM dial from my NPR jazz/classical stations and the AM dial from my sports stations. I wouldn't know Nelly, Ja Rule, Staind, or Kelly Clarkson if they came and bit me on the butt. (And, no, I really don't want them to do that. :) )

I'm pretty sure I heard Bruce Springsteen's "Into the Fire" on some radio station, so let's go with that.

Apples in Stereo - Velocity of Sound :up:
Groove Armada - Goodbye Country (Hello Nightclub)
Wannadies - Before/After

Surfmonkey, what do the Sahara Hotnights, sound like? Do you recommend their CD?

Elvis Costello - Cruel Smile
Jurassic 5 - Power in Numbers
The Strokes - Is This It?
OK Go - s/t
MC Paul Barman - It's Very Stimulating (plus some b-sides)

QofD: I don't really listen to the radio, but I'll go ahead and nominate whatever singles System of a Down had this year. Good stuff.

Singles (in no particular order):
Flaming Lips - Ego Tripping at the Gates of Hell
Spoon - The Way We Get By
Trail of Dead - Baudelaire (well, actually the whole album)
Wilco - Radio Cure/Ashes of American Flags/Poor Places
-something from the new Hot Snakes album

I have not actually heard any of Yancey's single picks, which is a little shocking.

Norah Jones - Come Away With Me
Marvin Gaye - What's Going On
Chris Isaak - Silvertone
Bjork - Vespertine

Say, DJLinus, what do you think of that OK Go album? I've only heard bits and pieces of their other songs besides "Get Over It" and so far, I like it.

I've listened to it a couple of times now and I really like it. I'm a big fan of power pop. I'd describe the sound of the album as what it would be like if Jason Falkner had a new wave Weezer jones. The album's tremendously catchy, which to me is a good thing. It's a great summertime album, even in October. Also, it's moderately priced ($10 at Circuit City), which is a bonus.

[Gene Shalit]So, "get over it" and buy a copy![/Gene Shalit]

(sorry, I couldn't resist.)

Giles: Sahara Hot Nights sound like a very watered down Elastica. The album is okay, a little dull.

Descriptions of my singles picks:

The Rapture -- House of Jealous Lovers
They made my singles list last year too. This track is really dancey post-punk, very disco influenced. It's only available as a 12" by DFA, the "It" record label in NY right now. It's really great, pretty irressistable. Listen to it online <a href="http://www.nme.com/features/102394.htm">here</a>.

LCD Soundsystem -- Losing My Edge
A very funny electro cut from James Murphy under the LCD Soundsystem moniker. Murphy runs DFA records and produced the Rapture single. Again, this is only available as a 12". Very minimalist and the lyrics are hilarious. It's just namechecking legendary bands and talking about how he's not as cool as he used to be, since everyone knows about them now. Listen to it online <a href="http://www.epitonic.com/artists/lcdsoundsystem.html">here</a>.

The Wildbunch -- Danger! High Voltage
A Detroit band who have since changed their name to the Electric Six. This is straight disco, with backing vocals courtesy Jack White of the White Stripes. Sample lyric: "Fire in the disco!/Fire in the Taco Bell!" A lot of fun.

Missy Elliott -- Work It
Missy's latest single is simply amazing. A kitchen sink method, with elephant trumpets, backward vocals and an insidious beat. I listen to this one a lot.

Queens of the Stone Age -- No One Knows
Great staccato single that reminds me a lot of Radiohead's recent rock songs, more than anything. Very minimal, very catchy.

Fog -- Pneumonia
A Minnesota turntablist who also writes lo-fi songs that sound like the Microphones. This is one of them. A melancholy, countryfide ballad. Very pretty.

Secret Machines -- It's a Bad Wind That Blows That Don't Do Somebody Some Good
Along with Calla and the Prosaics, one of my favorite NYC bands. This is from their debut EP, and it's so Pink Floyd it's not even funny. Live they sound like a mix of Spaceman 3, My Bloody Valentine and Floyd. Listen to it online <a href="http://www.acefu.com/">here</a>.

Superdrag -- Feeling Like I Do
Everyone knows who Superdrag is, the band who did "Suck" in the mid '90s. Their latest album, <i>Last Call for Vitriol</i>, came out in July on Arena Rock. This is a really good, drawling cut with lots of distortion. I've been addicted to this song for a while now.

There are other singles too: "Source Tags & Codes" by Trail of Dead, "City Folk, Sitting" by Hella, "Suicide Invoice" by Hot Snakes, something from the Nina Nastasia record. Lots of great songs came out this year.

After reading some more reviews of their albums, bought the "Cmon Let's Pretend" album, really punchy and catchy. Then I read a review of their show they did last Friday night here in DC, doh!, I would have gone if I had known, oh well.