This Week's CDs (12/29)
 

Magnetic Fields, Holiday & Charm of the Highway Strip
The Microphones, It Was Hot, We Stayed in the Water & The Glow, pt. 2
Bedhead, Transaction de Novo
Talking Heads, Remain in Light
Television, Marquee Moon (re-issue)
Ex Models, Zoo Psychology
Animal Collective, Spirit They're Gone, Spirit They've Vanished/Danse Manatee (2xCD re-issue) & Here Comes the Indian
The Rapture, Echoes
YYYeahs, Fever to Tell
Iran, The Moon Boys
The Strokes, Room On Fire
British Sea Power, The Decline of British Sea Power
[[[[VVRSSNN]]]], [[[[VVRSSNN]]]]
The Star Spangles, Bazooka!!!
The Decemberists, Her Majesty the Decemberists
Jolie Holland, Catalpa
Xiu Xiu, A Promise

If anyone can't tell, I'm still working on my 2003 write-up.

QoTD: Christmas CDs, anyone? I got this Television re-issue and Michael Jackson's Thriller. I'm thinking kinda hard about getting Justin Timberlake's CD with some extra cash because I'm hard-pressed to find any problems with his latest singles. Only thing holding me back is the Magnetic Fields' 69 Love Songs box set I'd love to own. Gotta save up for that one, though...

Hot Hot Heat - Make Up The Breakdown
Kathleen Edwards - Failer
Interpol - Turn On The Bright Lights
Jayhawks - Rainy Day Music
Metric - Old World Underground, Where Are You Now?

I made a conscious effort to pull off 2002 and 2003 CDs off my shelf for the week (21, not including best ofs or reissues). As for Christmas CDs, Emmylou Harris' Wrecking Ball from the spouse and the new Shins, Strokes, and My Morning Jacket from a post-Christmas trip to a local shop. Will probably get the Jayhawks' Blue Earth reissue and Down With Wilco in the next week or so...

Spinning today:

Early Day Miners - The Sonograph EP

Jonny Greenwood - Bodysong O.S.T

Damien Jurado - Ghost of David

Lambchop - Nixon

Jason Molina - Pyramid Electric Co. (Just received this one in the mail a couple of weeks ago...still sitting in the office, so I haven't listened to the LP, but it conveniently came with a CD version, and it ain't so bad...it's like classic Songs: Ohia!)

Okkervil River - Don't Fall in Love With Everyone You See

The Soft Boys - Nextdoorland

Tortoise - Standards

John Vanderslice - Life and Death of an American Four-Tracker

Young Marble Giants - Colossal Youth


AOTD: I finally got the Velvet Underground "Peel Slowly and See" boxset, which I've wanted since 1995! It's awesome, but only recommended for die hard VU fans (most of the material is from their four official albums). A post-Christmas trip to the record store resulted in a purchasing of the new Mountain Goats single, the Young Marble Giants CD mentioned above, and the Bodysong soundtrack. Also, a great music-related gift was the Michel Gondry DVD. His videos are AMAZING! That man has some wild imagination!

Rufus Wainwright - S/T
Rufus Wainwright - Poses
Rufus Wainwright - Want One
The Twilight Singers - Blackberry Belle
Oh Susanna - S/T

Got all of these during the Christmas week. Really like Rufus Wainwright's stuff...just gorgeous music. The Twilight Singers disc is also very good...much better than Dulli's last album with 'em. Finally, Oh Susanna is alright, but not too original. I really like her voice though, and there's definitely nothing unpleasant about her folk rock/Stones-lite sound.

Q of the D:
I picked up a Clientele EP, Rye Coalition EP, Ghosts and Vodka discography, British Sea Power full-length, and Robert Fripp/Brian Eno collaboration for free dollars thanks to a Reckless Records gift certificate.

Chris Brokaw - Red Cities
Ibrahim Ferrer - Buenos Hermanos
Solomon Burke - Don't Give Up On Me
Muggs - Dust
Kaada - Thank You for Giving Me Your Valuable Time
Robert Randolph and the Family Band - Unclassified
The Timeout Drawer - Presents Left for the Living Dead
Brad Mehldau - Largo

AOTD: My family doesn't really give much in the way of presents, but I did get a gift certificate which will probably be used towards the three Director's Label DVDs.

My AOTD is the same as what I listened to today, although they were all Xmas gifts from me to myself:

Le Tigre - ST
The Fiery Furnaces - Gallowsbird's Bark
Bishop Allen - Charm School
Sun Kil Moon - Ghosts of the Great Highway
Knife in the Water - Cut the Chord

I'm thinking/assuming I'll eventually be able to pick up the Timberlake used, so that's my plan. I can wait. This is also my strategy for the new Liz Phair -- still no dice as of yet. Not to rub it in... ok, to rub it in a little, I got the 69 Love Songs box set for $10 back in the It's the Internet - Let's Give Everything Away era.


I ordered Pyramid Electric Co. last week, and I have no turntable at all. :) Haven't gotten it yet, though. Does the "bonus" CD come with its own liner notes/art?


Just ordered these tonight:
+/- - You Are Here
Magnetic Fields - Pieces of April OST
Parsley Sound - Parsley Sounds
Tiger Lou - Trouble and Desire EP
Unicorns - Who Will...
VA - Wellspring

Cosmic Bus, isn't that Kaada album a blast?! It *just* missed my top 20, but I really like it.

Maybe I'll just pick up the Timberlake CD in the used bin, as well; I hadn't even thought of that. As for 69 Love Songs...I almost hate you for that. No, not really, but god damn. I know you can buy the discs individually, but I've yet to see just ONE for under $12.

Oh yeah, Stevevt, is Bedhead's Whatfunlifewas still in print? I consistently see Transaction de Novo and Macha Loved Bedhead in stores, but I think both (?) of those were released on Touch & Go. I don't know if Trance Syndicate is still printing Whatfunlifewas or if TS is even still around for that matter?

I'd definitely recommend getting the set -- it comes with an interesting booklet.

http://music.barnesandnoble.com/sear...-2003+07:08:38

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...glance&s=music

Looks like it's still around. Not sure about TS, though. If you don't have it already, I'd recommend picking up The New Year -- that's the Kadanes' newer band. They also are releasing something called Music from the Film Hell House under the name Matt & Bubba Kadane at some point. It's been getting pushed back for a while, though.

The LP artwork, in general, is nothing too special. It's a standard LP sleeve with a page insert of handwritten lyrics. The cardboard sleeve for the CD mimics the LP sleeve, sans the insert. It was quite the Christmas gift from Secretly Canadian to send this out so early!

I bought these CD's some weeks ago, but never really gave them a close listen. I do remember being totally into a couple of songs from the +/- album, but besides that they were just ok. Let me know what you think of those when you get them!

Oh, and sorry about never getting back to you about those CD storage drawers last month. I never got in touch with my old boss in time to let you know, and to be honest, I was trying to avoid them because I had a feeling that they were going to ask me to help them out for the Holiday season. How did that auction turn out for you?

Now playing:

Royksopp - Melody A.M.
The Microphones - Mount Eerie
David Byrne - Lead Us Not Into Temptation: Music from the Film "Young Adam"
Lexaunculpt - The Blurring of Trees
The Angels of Light - Everything is Good Here/Please Come Home
British Sea Power - The Decline of British Sea Power
Wire - Send
Plastikman - Closer
Death Cab for Cutie - Transatlanticism
The Postal Service - Give Up

I, too, am still finalizing my best of 2003 list and I still have some I need to purchase.

Thanks for the info. Agreed it was a nice gesture on their part not making people wait when they got the album done early.

Will do. I got the Teenbeat 2003 sampler last week, and it pushed me over the edge towards getting +/-. Also got turned onto the Sprites -- the guy from Barcelona's new band, which I had heard exactly zero about.

Not a problem. It probably would have been a similar deal to the ones I ended up getting from the auctions I won.

Kinda missing some detail in these photos, but you get the idea.

http://www.theforumisdown.com/upload...3/102_0201.JPG

http://www.theforumisdown.com/upload...3/102_0202.JPG


After I posted last night, I made another order, for the following:

Stephen Merritt - Eban & Charley
Liars - They Threw Us All In A Trench...
British Sea Power - The Decline Of British Sea Power
Palomar - Palomar II
Over The Rhine - Good Dog Bad Dog
The Books - Thought For Food

Definitely. :) I've had it for quite a while, but sort of re-discovered it a few weeks ago when going through my yearly purchases again. I love it even more now than I did at first.

stevevt: Good choice with the Books album. Lemon of Pink is quite good (a serious grower for me) but Thought is simply incredible. Delicate and chaotic, funny and heart-breaking... One of the most refreshing, unique things I'd heard in years.

I don't usually post in these threads but I had a good week:

Godspeed You Black Emperor! -- Yanqui U.X.O.
Steve Burns -- Songs for Dustmites
Kinky -- Kinky
Four Tet -- Rounds
Broadcast -- Haha Sound
Mates of State -- Team Boo
Coheed and Cambria -- In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth
Beth Gibbons and Rustin Mann -- Out of Season
Prefuse 73 -- One Word Extinguisher

A bunch of discs I had been interested in, and I was able to score them all for $55 because my local CD store was having a liquidation sale. Haven't listened to them yet because I'm still backlogged on last month's haul.