The Essential Animal Collective (2004-2008)

Certainly one of the best and most innovative bands making music today. This is a retrospective I made chronicling their last four years and essential tracks during that period.


The Essential Animal Collective '04-'08



1. College
2. We Tigers
3. Sweet Road
4. Who Could Win a Rabbit
5. Leaf House
6. Winters Love
7. Prospect Hummer
8. Did You See the Words
9. The Purple Bottle
10. Grass
11. Banshee Beat
12. People
13. Peacebone
14. Chores
15. For Reverend Green
16. Fireworks
17. Winter Wonder Land
18. Water Curses

Animal Collective @FatCat records

Mark Mulcahy - Various Polaris Songs (Live)

In my time doing this blog I have noticed that my posts involving the Adventures of Pete & Pete tend to get the most enthusiastic reception from readers. I couldn't be happier- it's easily my favorite television series of all time, and it is wonderful to hear from people who hold the show as dearly as I do. Therefore here's another related post:

So Mark Mulcahy is the guy that fronted Polaris, the one-off band we all know so well from the show's opening credits. The song "Hey Sandy." Whether you're an obsessive fan of the show, a casual one, or, heaven forbid, a hater (the soul-less I say) it's hard to deny how original and unforgettable the theme is- especially for what is considered "a kids show." I could write a thesis on how The Adventures of Pete & Pete is by no means "a kids show", and how much of an injustice it is to pigeonhole the series as that, yet I will not go there. Instead I will share several mp3s of Mark playing 3 Polaris songs at this year's Daffodil Festival, held in Meriden Connecticut. He's apparently one of the festival's headliners every year, as it is located nearby his home. I wonder if he ever gets guys setting up their gear and rocking out on his front lawn...

Mark Mulcahy - Coronado II

Mark Mulcahy - Ivy Boy

and of course....

Mark Mulcahy - She is Staggering

Now for lots of live videos:

"Coronado II" at the Daffodil Festival '08


"Ivy Boy" at the Daffodil Festival '08


"She is Staggering" at the Daffodil Festival '08


"Ivy Boy" at Buttonwood Tree in Middletown CT '07


"Hey Sandy" at Buttonwood Tree in Middletown CT '07


"Hey Sandy" Acoustic in '02


Thanks to good ol'David Elliott for recording this year's Dafodil Festival and providing me with the Mulcahy tracks!

Mix CD: The Essential John Cale

John Cale is cooler than Lou Reed. Not only is he a very nice man, the consistency of his albums also exceeds that of Lou. Still, you can't deny that Cale's 70's output is by far his greatest material, with the 3 albums Vintage Violence, Paris 1919 and Fear being his classics. This mix covers this era, ending with a tracks from his 1975 album Helen of Troy. I realize I didn't cover nearly as much ground in his career as I did for Lou Reed, yet the 5 years this mix spans was so musically productive for Cale, it was difficult enough narrowing it down. I chose to end it with "Leaving it Up to You," definitely the most deranged song on the mix. I of course had to represent the hockey mask wearing, chainsaw yielding, dead chicken decapitating side of Cale somewhere.

The Essential John Cale

1. Hello, There
2. Gideon's Bible
3. Big White Cloud
4. Amsterdam
5. Child's Christmas in Wales
6. Hanky Panky Nohow
7. Andalucia
8. Paris 191
9. Half Past France
10. Antarctica Starts Here
11. Fear is a Man's Best Friend
12. Ship of Fools
13. Gun
14. You Know Me More Than I Know
15. Darling I Need You
16. Guts
17. Helen of Troy
18. Cable Hogue
19. (I Keep A) Close Watch
20. Leaving it Up to You

John Cale Albums @Amazon.com

Mix CD: The Essential Lou Reed

Lou Reed is kind of a douche in real life. In this picture Lou Reed has some of the worst hair ever. However he still is Lou Reed. He still fronted a band that one could argue as the most influential band in Rock & Roll over the last half century. Still the guy has released a good share of crap. Apart from Transformer it's hard to pinpoint his essential albums, as people tend to be really polarized in opinion about his many other records. Still it's pretty safe to say that Berlin, Coney Island Baby, and New York are his other biggies.

Though with many artists if you neglect an album of theirs that is not particularly good overall, you may be neglecting a song or two that you'll be missing out on. See "Sally Can't Dance" for an example. Well what I'm getting to here is that I've created an essential Lou Reed mix. Now I'm not a huge Lou fan or anything, and to be perfectly honest I'm only especially familiar with Transformer and Berlin. So when I went out on this project I had to do a little research, both looking at previous Best of Lou mixes and last.fm charts to see what songs are the most beloved. Out of all the commercial compilations I found Wild Child to be the best, though it was a bit too heavy on Berlin. Not a bad thing in spirit, but when you're trying to give a career overview and include more than half of the songs on a single album you're not looking wide enough. Plus it's Berlin- putting most of the album's songs out of context and out of order is a bit ridiclous. On my mix I cut it down to 4- a lot but I couldn't bear to lose any of them. Also in terms of the Wild Child mix I got a kick out of how they included a minute and a half excerpt of Metal Machine Music. I had to go along with including that.

Here's the tracklist and link:

The Essential Lou Reed

1. Vicious
2. Satellite of Love
3. Walk on the Wild Side
4. Perfect Day
5. White Light-White Heat
6. How Do You Think It Feels
7. Carolina Says II
8. Berlin
9. Lady Day
10. Sad Song
11. Sally Can't Dance
12. Metal Machine Music (excerpt)
13. Coney Island Baby
14. Street Hassle
15. The Blue Mask
16. Legendary Hearts
17. I Love You Suzanne
18. Dirty Blvd.

I wish I could have included more from New York, but ran out of room. Street Hassle takes up a lot of space, but man on man is that a good one. I went along with the original compilation's inclusion of White Light/White Heat to represent Rock 'N Roll Animal due to space restrictions. I'm a bigger fan of the alternate arrangements of Sweet Jane and Herion, but unfortunately those were too long. The White Light arrangement though is pretty cool for taking it in a way different direction than the original. And though a lititle on the lame side, I had to include I Love You Suzanne.

The Essential John Cale is coming soon....

Lou Reed albums @ Amazon.com

Belle & Sebastion - Freak Scene, Dinosaur Jr. - Freak Scene (solo version)

Now this is odd. Belle & Sebastian, a gentle indie-pop band, covering Dinosaur Jr. one of the loudest most blistering bands of the 80's. However the cover works and works well. It goes to show you that despite being best known for their quiet-loud dynamic and use of feedback (which preceded the Pixies and of course Nirvana by several years), and uses of riffs and solos,
techniques the indie scene barely ventured before them, they had deeply rooted pop sensibilities. On the other hand it shows you that Belle & Sebastian has more balls than they are often given credit for.

This version of Freak Scene is a bit hard to come by. It's from a Peel Session in the early 2000's, when Dinosaur Jr. was still the J. Mascis project it had been since 1988. Of course, the full band reunited in 2005, and along with Mission of Burma are one of the few reunion acts who are not only as tight as they were in their heyday, but have recorded new material that holds up with their previous work.

Anyways, this version of the song is noteworthy as it is just J. with his acoustic guitar. However he still whips out the distortion at times, particularly during the solo.

Dinosaur Jr. - Freak Scene (Peel Session)
backup link

Belle & Sebastian - Freak Scene (Live)
backup link

Freak Scene music video


Freak Scene solo performance

Galaxie 500 - Fourth of July

One of my all-time favorites....

Galaxie 500 - Fourth of July
backup link

Galaxie 500 - Fourth of July (live)
backup link



I wrote a poem on a dog biscuit
And your dog refused to look at it
So I got drunk and looked at the Empire State Building
It was no bigger than a nickel

And if it don't improve
Then I have to move
I never thought that I would end up here
Maybe I should just change my style
But I feel alright when you smile

I stayed at home on the Fourth of July
And I pulled the shades so I didn't have to see the sky
And I decided to have a Bed In
But I forgot to invite anybody

And when I fell asleep
The neighbors had a peep
I never thought that I would end up here
Maybe I should just change my style
But I feel alright when you smile



Galaxie 500 - This is Our Music @amazon
Galaxie 500 - Copenhagen @amazon

Karen Dalton - Green Rocky Road

There's something absolutely fascinating about obscure folk artists who during their time never made much of an impact, but years later their music is somehow re-discovered and they finally come closer to receiving the respect they deserve. Now this isn't the case for all 60's and 70's folk artists who don't hit it big of course. Many are forgotten because frankly their music was forgettable. However Karen Dalton sure is not forgettable. During her lifetime she only released two albums, It's So Hard to Tell Who's Going to Love in 1969 and In My Own Time in 1971. None of the songs on either of those albums were written by her, most being traditional songs, though there's the occasional popular cover. However she's one of the few artists who truly makes a cover their own, allowing listeners to get gloriously lost in her music and never even question who originally wrote the music. Bob Dylan, Nick Cave and Devendra Banhart all consider her their favorite female singer, and Joanna Newsom, Fred Neil, Lucinda Williams, the band Fleet Foxes among numerous others are big fans. Hey, "Katie’s Been Gone" from the Basement Tapes is apparently about her.

Recently she's been shaping up to what could be seen as a female Nick Drake, another artist who struggled to get their music heard during their live time, yet wasn't fully embraced until long after his death. Last year a song of her's was featured on the soundtrack for Margot at the Wedding, and earlier this month a new collection of hers was released, Green Rocky Road, containing recently unearthed two-track recordings from 1963.

This is the title track from the album-

Karen Dalton - Green Rocky Road

alternate link

Now a performance video from 1969 of the song "It Hurts Me Too"


Karen Dalton @ amazon

Don Lennon - John Cale

This is a song about John Cale.

Don Lennon - John Cale

backup link



Hey let me tell you about my dream
There isn't really much to tell
At first I'm playing in the Velvet Underground
Then I'm speaking Welsh and then I can do the...

Then I'm on the West Coast
All fucked up on heroin and speed
And then I'm riding in the back of someone's car
And I'm saying all these nasty things about Lou Reed

Nobody can take my dream away

And then it's night time in New York
It's cold and I can see my breath
It's cold I think I'll maybe stop in for a drink
At the White Horse tavern where I drink myself to death

Don Lennon - Downtown @amazon

The Raincoats - Lola

How's this for a Kinks cover? Personally this is one of my favorite cover versions of all-time. It comes from the Raincoats s/t 1978 debut album, which has been sadly out of print for over a decade.
Fantastic stuff.

The Raincoats - Lola

backup link

I met her in a club down in old soho
Where you drink champagne and it tastes just like cherry-cola
C-o-l-a cola
She walked up to me and she asked me to dance
I asked her her name and in a dark brown voice she said lola
L-o-l-a lola lo-lo-lo-lo lola

Well I’m not the world’s most physical guy
But when she squeezed me tight she nearly broke my spine
Oh my lola lo-lo-lo-lo lola
Well I’m not dumb but I can’t understand
Why she walked like a woman and talked like a man
Oh my lola lo-lo-lo-lo lola lo-lo-lo-lo lola

Well we drank champagne and danced all night
Under electric candlelight
She picked me up and sat me on her knee
And said dear boy won’t you come home with me
Well I’m not the world’s most passionate guy
But when I looked in her eyes well I almost fell for my lola
Lo-lo-lo-lo lola lo-lo-lo-lo lola
Lola lo-lo-lo-lo lola lo-lo-lo-lo lola

I pushed her away
I walked to the door
I fell to the floor
I got down on my knees
Then I looked at her and she at me

Well that’s the way that I want it to stay
And I always want it to be that way for my lola
Lo-lo-lo-lo lola
Girls will be boys and boys will be girls
It’s a mixed up muddled up shook up world except for lola
Lo-lo-lo-lo lola

Well I left home just a week before
And I’d never ever kissed a woman before
But lola smiled and took me by the hand
And said dear boy I’m gonna make you a man

Well I’m not the world’s most masculine man
But I know what I am and I’m glad I’m a man
And so is lola
Lo-lo-lo-lo lola lo-lo-lo-lo lola
Lola lo-lo-lo-lo lola lo-lo-lo-lo lola

Radio Show Podcast

RFull-fledged ISYES revival soon! But now as it's exam period here's a quickie-

As I mentioned before I do a radio show at my college. We just aired the finale last week and it was my favorite episode of the semester. Here's a podcast for anyone who is interested. The concept is just general favorite songs of mine. I also have a few friends who stop by and play a pick or two of theirs. It's a great time!

Part 1-http://sharebee.com/a87ab912
Part 2-http://sharebee.com/88a502e8

Both parts together in one long mp3:
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=45VI1JVV

Playlist:

Daniel Johnston – Casper The Friendly Ghost
Mission of Burma – Academy Fight Song (Dave's Pick)
Guided by Voices – Game of Pricks
Hum – Stars (Adam's Pick)
Modest Mouse – Talking Shit About a Pretty Sunset
Built to Spill – The Weather
Ride – Vapour Trail
Wilco – I'm Always in Love (Dave's Pick)
The Velvet Underground – After Hours
Joanna Newsom – Sawdust & Diamonds
The Beach Boys – God Only Knows (Katie's Pick)
The Beatles – For No One
Vashti Bunyan – Diamond Day
The Vaselines – Son of a Gun
Wire – Outdoor Miner
The Magnetic Fields – Yeah! Oh, Yeah!
Neutral Milk Hotel – The King of Carrot Flowers Pts. 2 & 3 (Katie's Pick)
Galaxie 500 – Tugboat
Weezer – Tired of Sex
The Microphones – I Felt Your Shape

4/21 Mix

Hey! This blog is not dead! I apologize however for the time since my last post...things have been busy busy lately and will remain so until the afternoon of May 7th. Then my Summer vacation begins and I should be able to get this thing going regulatory again. Perhaps I'll even go back to individual songs again.

Anyways, yesterday I saw Lou Reed live. Good show...even got a few VU songs: Sweet Jane, I'm Set Free, I'm Sticking With You, and Pale Blue Eyes. For the car ride I made this mix. As a whole it's much more recent than my previous few mixes. There's only a handful of tracks from the 90's and the rest are from this decade. Even four are from this year!

Now here's the link and the tracklist:

4/21 Mix

1. Luna - Moon Palade
2. Grizzly Bear - On a Neck, On a Spit
3. Destroyer - Your Blood
4. Mirah - Cold Cold water
5. Broken Social Scene - 7-4 (Shoreline)
6. Yo La Tengo - Our Way to Fall
7. Built to Spill - The Weather
8. Fleet Foxes - White Winter Hymnal
9. Sebadoh - The Freed Pig
10. Guided by Voices - The Official Ironmen Rally Song
11. Beat Happening - Cry for a Shadow
12. She & Him - Why Do You Let Me Stay Here
13. Andrew Bird - Fake Palindromes
14. Islands - The Arm
15. Adam Green - Tropical Island
16. Animal Collective - Fireworks
17. Grizzly Bear - He Hit Me
18. Antony & the Johnsons (feat. Lou Reed) - Fistful of Love
19. Spiritualized - Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space (Elvis Mix)




Enjoy!

3/18 Mix

So there's a good change this is my favorite mix out of all the ones I've done. It's just so much fun, goes so many places and takes you on a journey.

3/18 Mix

1. Akitaka Tohyama - Stardust Fanfare
2. Weezer - Blast Off!
3. The Unicorns - Jellybones
4. Apples in Stereo - Tidal Wave
5. The Vaselines - Son of a Gun
6. The Olivia Tremor Control - Hideaway
7. Guided by Voices - Echos Myron
8. of Montreal - Tim, I Wish You Were Born a Girl
9. Magnetic Fields - Strange Powers
10. The Moldy Peaches - Who's Got the Crack
11. Architecture in Helsinki - Frenchy, I'm Faking
12. Deerhoof - Holy Night Fever
13. Jonathan Richman - Ice Cream Man
14. Beat Happening - You Turn Me On
15. The Microphones - I Felt Your Shape
16. The Kinks - The Village Green Preservation Society
17. John Cale - Paris 1919
18. The Jesus and Mary Chain - Taste of Cindy
19. The Pixies - Down the Well
20. Pavement - Date with Ikea
21. The Feelies - The Boy with the Perpetual Nervousness
22. Wire - Outdoor Miner
23. Galaxie 500 - Fourth of July
24. The Velvet Underground - After Hours
25. The Zombies - Care of Cell 44
26. The Beach Boys - Heroes and Villians (unreleased SMiLE version)
27. Daniel Johnston - True Love Will Find You in the End

The Adventures of Pete & Pete Mix Part 2

Here's the leftovers that wouldn't fit onto last week's mix:
















The Adventures of Pete & Pete Mix #2

1. Polaris - Coronado II
2. Drop Nineteens - Delaware
3. Luscious Jackson - Angel
4. Nice - Theme from Nice
5. Polaris - Ivy Boy
6. Luscious Jackson - Satellite
7. Polaris - As Usual
8. Luscious Jackson - Here
9. Polaris - The Monsters Loose
10. Luscious Jackson - Pele Merengue
11. Polaris - Recently
12. Poi Dog Pondering - Living with the Dreaming Body

The Adventures of Pete & Pete Mix

In tribute to the greatest television series of all-time:













The Adventures of Pete & Pete Mix #1

1. Polaris - Hey Sandy
2. The 6ths - Falling Out of Love (With You)
3. Chug - Flowers
4. Polaris - She is Staggering
5. Magnetic Fields - The Flowers She Sent and the Flowers She Said She Sent
6. Apples in Stereo - Tidal Wave
7. Semi-Gloss - The Sunburn Song
8. Polaris - Waiting for October
9. Racecar - Wonderment
10. Fat Tulips - So Unvelievable
11. Polaris - Everywhere
12. Magnetic Fields - Lovers from the Moon
13. Polaris - Saturnine
14. Gothic Archies - Your Long White Fingers
15. Nice - Circuit Diagram
16. Polaris - Summerbaby
17. Tara Key - Long Trail
18. Polaris - Ashamed of the Story I Told
19. Magnetic Fields - Why I Cry

Mix of the Week

Today's mix doesn't really have a central theme, however there are reoccurring ones. There's more than a few female sung songs about relationships here. Most of those are near the beginning, as well as upbeat, pleasant pop songs. However song 13 marks a transition. Things slow down a bit, getting a bit more intense thematically and musically. It also gets a bit more psychedelic and reverb-filled, with the disc ending with a few fantastic songs from the shoegaze era. As I always do with mixes I worked to make the songs flow from one to the next. It was especially emphasized with this mix as there's a good variety of styles on here and I didn't want it to jump all over the place.

2-18 Mix

1. Beat Happening - Foggy Eyes (Crashing Through version)
2. The Buzzcocks - Everybody's Happy Nowadays
3. The Velvet Underground - Andy's Chest
4. Devo - Mongoloid
5. The Blow - True Affection
6. All Girl Summer Fun Band - Later Operator
7. Lush - Hypocrite
8. The Fiery Furnaces - Single Again
9. of Montreal - Don't Ask Me to Explain
10. Islands - Don't Call Me Whitney Bobby
11. Heavenly - C is the Heavenly Option
12. Weezer - I Just Threw Out the Love of My Dreams
13. Final Fantasy - This Lamb Sells Condos
14. Gentle Waves - Falling from Grace
15. Nico - Chelsea Girls
16. Mirah - Cold Cold Water
17. Mojave 3 - Love Songs on the Radio
18. Spiritualized - Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space
19. Ride - Vapour Trail
20. Galaxie 500 - Listen the Snow is Falling

Punk/Post-Punk/Indie Valentine's Day Mix

Valentine's Day Mix
alternative link

Songs of Undying Love, Unrequited Love,
Potential Love, Crushes, Sad Love, Questioning Love,
and just Romance in general

1. Beat Happening - Let's Kiss
2. Husker Du - Love is All Around
3. The Clash - 1-2 Crush on You
4. Ramones - I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend
5. Wire - Feeling Called Love
6. Buzzcocks - Love You More
7. The Soft Boys - Kingdom of Love
8. The Slits - Love and Romance
9. The Raincoats - In Love
10. Talking Heads - I'm Not in Love
11. Violent Femmes - Prove My Love
12. Orange Juice - L.O.V.E. Love
13. The Cure - Love Song
14. Joy Division - Love Will Tear Us Apart (7" version)
15. Young Marble Giants - Searching for Mr. Right
16. The Field Mice - If You Need Someone
17. The Smiths - There is a Light that Never Goes Out
18. Echo & the Bunnymen - The Back of Love
19. The Replacements - Kiss Me on the Bus
20. Dinosaur Jr. - Just Like Heaven
21. The Pixies - La La Love You
22. Tiger Trap - Supercrush
23. The Vaselines - Molly's Lips
24. The Pastels - I'm Alright With You
25. The Modern Lovers - Girl Friend
26. New Order - Bizarre Love Triangle

I'll be playing selections from this mix
on my radio show this Thursday. It airs from 6-7 pm on
http://www.clarku.edu/students/rocu/

Here's a continuation of last week's mix. I made these for promotion of my new radio show "Post-Punk Radio". It streams online every week from 6-7 on Thursday nights on https://www.clarku.edu/students/rocu/index.cfm.

This second mix covers the origins of Alternative Rock, continuing up until the onset of Grunge.

Post-Punk Mix Vol. 2

1. Talking Heads - Don’t Worry About the Government
2. R.E.M. - Radio Free Europe
3. Violent Femmes - Kiss Off
4. The Smiths - This Charming Man
5. The Replacements - Bastards of Young
6. The Jesus and Mary Chain - Never Understand
7. Black Flag - Rise Above
8. The Minutemen - Viet Nam
9. Meat Puppets - Plateau
10. Hüsker Dü - Pink Turns to Blue
11. Sonic Youth - Schizophrenia
12. Dinosaur Jr. - Little Fury Things
13. Fugazi - Waiting Room
14. Galaxie 500 - Tugboat
15. My Bloody Valentine - Lose My Breath
16. Beat Happening - Indian Summer
17. The Vaselines - Son of a Gun
18. The Pixies - Debaser
19. The Stone Roses - She Bangs the Drums
20. Ride - Vapour Trail
21. Yo La Tengo - The Summer
22. Pavement - Summer Babe
23. Sebadoh - The Freed Pig
24. Guided by Voices - Over the Neptune Mesh Gear Fox

Post-Punk Mix

Post-Punk Mix

1. Wire - 12 X U
2. The Buzzcocks - Ever Fallen in Love
3. Televison - See No Evil
4. The Clash - Clampdown
5. The Fall - Totally Wired
6. Joy Division - Transmission
7. The Cure - Jumping Someone Else’s Train
8. Richard Hell and the Voidoids - Love Comes in Spurts
9. The Slits - Shoplifting
10. Pere Ubu - The Modern Dance
11. Devo - Jocko Homo
12. The Pop Group - Thief of Fire
13. Suicide - Ghost Rider
14. Young Marble Giants - Include Me Out
15. Mission of Burma - That’s When I Reach for My Revolver
16. Gang of Four - Ether
17. The Feelies - Fa Ce-La
18. The Raincoats - Fairytale in the Supermarket
19. This Heat - Paper Hats
20. Public Image Ltd. - Careering
21. Bauhaus - In the Flat Field
22. New Order - Ceremony
23. Echo and the Bunnymen - Rescue

Short Songs Vol. 2

Now for another installment....

Short Songs Vol. 2

1. The Jam - Start (2:17)
2. The Buzzcocks - Love You More (1:51)
3. The Fall - Rollin’ Dany (2:23)
4. Captain Beefheart - Steal Softly Thru Snow (2:18)
5. David Bowie - Breaking Glass (1:52)
6. Bob Dylan - Subterranean Homesick Blues (2:19)
7. The Byrds - Mr. Spaceman (2:10)
8. The Beatles - I Will (1:46)
9. Big Star - I’m in Love with a Girl (1:48)
10. The Feelies - Fa Ce-La (2:04)
11. The Clash - London’s Burning (2:10
12. Suicide - Johnny (2:10)
13. Devo - Too Much Paranoias (1:57)
14. Beat Happening - The Fall (1:46)
15. Johnny Cash - I Still Miss Someone (1:37)
16. All Girl Summer Fun Band - Theme Song (1:08)
17. Deerhoof - Flower (1:47)
18. Beirut - Scenic World (2:08)
19. Animal Collective - Sweet Road (1:15)
20. Architecture in Helsinki - Kindling (Winter Version) (1:46)
21. The Boy Least Likely To - Warm Panda Cola (0:49)
22. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Clap Your Hands! (1:48)
23. Bright Eyes - The City has Sex (2:11)
24. Sonic Youth - Mildred Pierce (2:13)
25. Pavement - Zürich is Stained (1:41)
26. Echo & the Bunnymen - Crystal Days (2:24)
27. Beach Boys - In My Room (2:14)
28. Death Cab for Cutie - In My Room (2:14)
29. Beulah - Hello Resolven (1:49)
30. The Decemberists - As I Rise (2:14)
31. Alexander ‘Skip’ Spence - Lawrence of Euphoria (1:31)
32. Guided by Voices - Gold Star For Robot Boy (1:39)
33. Joanna Newsom - Yarn and Glue (1:55)
34. Kimya Dawson - I Miss You (0:38)
35. Daniel Johnston - The Sun Shines Down on Me (2:00)
36. Devendra Banhart - A Sight to Behold (2:26)
37. Belle & Sebastian - Simple Things (1:46)
38. Elliott Smith - Say Yes (2:19)
39. Cat Power - I Found a Reason (2:00)
40. The Zombies - A Rose for Emily (2:17)
41. The Field Mice - An Earlier Autumn (2:01)
42. Simon & Garfunkel - Bookends Theme (1:21)

Mix CD: Short Songs Vol. 1

Hey everyone- I'm beginning a new semester right now, so daily entries doesn't exactly seem like the best idea. Blogs can be such a distraction. So until further notice, I'll be posting mix cds instead! I think this is a better deal overall, all each one contains 80 minutes of music, arranged lovingly in an order that I feel works well as a whole. I hate mixes with jarring transitions and genre hopping from one song to the next. I try to make mine flow together as well as a commercial album would, plus stay interesting and not become too repetitive. A good mix cd is an art...seriously.

Here's the first of the series: Short Songs. The concept for this was exactly what it sounds like, however the exact maximum time the songs could be 2:30, though 2:23 is the longest on this volume. The shorter the better though (as long as it is a "song.")

Short Songs Vol. 1

1. Wire - Outdoor Miner (1:44)
2. The Clash - Brand New Cadillac (2:08)
3. The Cure - Killing an Arab (2:21)
4. Young Marble Giants - Include Me Out (2:01)
5. The Jesus and Mary Chain - Taste of Cindy (1:42)
6. Sebadoh - Sickles and Hammers (0:50)
7. Modest Mouse - Birds Vs. Worms (2:13)
8. Talking Heads - Thank You For Sending Me an Angel (2:11)
9. The Breeders - Flipside (1:59)
10. Beat Happening - Crashing Through (1:16)
11. Deerhoof - Holy Night Fever (1:18)
12. Violent Femmes - I Hear the Rain (1:31)
13. Devendra Banhart - At the Hop (2:14)
14. The White Stripes - Hotel Yorba (2:10)
15. Kimya Dawson - Loose Lips (2:23)
16. Architecture in Helsinki - It’s 5! (2:07)
17. The Vaselines - Molly’s Lips (1:44)
18. Of Montreal - Tim, I Wish You Were Born a Girl (1:46)
19. The Olivia Tremor Control - Jumping Fences (1:52)
20. Beulah - Comrade’s Twenty Sixth (1:53)
21. Beach Boys - Barbara Ann (2:13)
22. Buddy Holly - Everyday (2:09)
23. The Smiths - Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want (1:52)
24. The Beatles - For No One (2:01)
25. The Velvet Underground - Here She Comes Now (2:04)
26. Vashti Bunyan - Hebridean Sun (1:13)
27. Moby Grape - Naked, If I Want To (0:56)
28. George Harrison - It’s Johnny’s Birthday (0:49)
29. Weezer - Blast Off! (1:57)
30. The Ramones - Do You Wanna Dance (1:55)
31. The Fall - Industrial Estate (1:41)
32. The Jam - All Mod Cons (1:20)
33. Mission of Burma - This is Not a Photograph (1:57)
34. Minutemen - Viet Nam (1:29)
35. Meat Puppets - Magic Toy Missing (1:22)
36. The Modern Lovers - Government Center (2:03)
37. The Pixies - Broken Face (1:30)
38. Guided by Voices - Game of Pricks (1:33)
39. The Magnetic Fields - The Saddest Story Ever Told (2:12)
40. Built to Spill - Twin Falls (1:49)
41. Nick Drake - Pink Moon (2:05)
42. Charles Manson - Home is Where You’re Happy (1:29)
43. Neutral Milk Hotel - A Baby for Pree (1:21)
44. Daniel Johnston - True Love Will Find You in the End (1:51)
45. The Zombies - The Way I Feel Inside (1:33)

Favorite Songs & Albums of 2007

I just re-read my blog for 2006 music and surpringly I found myself disappointed with that year. A lot of records from then I still have in my rotation. Plus any year with Ys is automatically a great year. I remember being really excited for 2007 as the line-up seemed incredibly promising. Tons of great bands would have new albums coming out... it would be a blast. Too bad most of those releases were mediocore or just outright bad.
The new Bjork, Interpol, Wilco, Rilo Kiley, and Explosions in the Sky albums were huge disappointments. Sophmore albums by Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, The Go! Team and Sunset Rubdown (though technically their third) didn't even come close to their previous albums. Modest Mouse, Bright Eyes, and the Arcade Fire were hyped more than ever this year, and while all the albums are solid, they are far from the spectucular work they are all capable of and have previously achieved. Oh and of course that "Smashing Pumpkins" atrocity also came out this year.

However, the good albums were really really good. This year the year of the Panda for sure, with Animal Collective putting out a fantastic album, as well as Panda Bear. Of Montreal recorded their best album in years, arguably since The Gay Parade. My favorite record though is Deerhoof's "Friend Opportunity" as it marks a different approach for the band, yet at the same time has some of the best songs the band has ever recorded.

I struggled a bit to make my list, as compared to previous years I listened to far less new music. There's a lot on my plate from this year that I intent to check out, or give a more thorough listen to, with LCD Soundsystem, Low, Blonde Redhead, The Fiery Furnaces, Dirty Projectors, and the National high on that list. On the other hand, I listened to more older music than ever this year, building a pretty solid post-punk collection and discovering some amazing overlooked bands. I just like older music better. That's not what this entry is about though...here's the mix, with the songs in no order, through I tried to place them in a order where there would be no jarring transitions.

Favorite Songs of 2007 Mix

1. Panda Bear - Bros
2. Of Montreal - Heimdalsgate Like A Promethean Curse
3. Deerhoof - The Perfect Me
4. Dinosaur Jr. - Almost Ready
5. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Satan Said Dance
6. Arcade Fire - Intervention
7. Feist - 1234
8. M.I.A. - Paper Planes
9. Architecture in Helsinki - Heart it Races
10. Bright Eyes - Four Winds
11. Beirut - Elephant Gun
12. Grizzly Bear - He Hit Me
13. Radiohead - Nude
14. Dean and Britta - The Sun is Still Sunny
15. Joanna Newsom - Colleen
16. Devendra Banhart - Seahorse
17. Animal Collective - For Reverend Green

Download Link:

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=GW208WZL

Favorite Albums:

10. Dinosaur Jr. - Beyond


9. Radiohead - In Rainbows


8. Devendra Banhart - Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Mountain


7. Dan Deacon - Spiderman of the Rings


6. Panda Bear - Person Pitch


5. M.I.A. - Kala


4. Feist - The Reminder


3. Animal Collective - Strawberry Jam


2. of Montreal - Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?


1. Deerhoof - Friend Opportunity


Hooray 2008!