The Essential Sebadoh- Vol. 3

Here's custom mix #3 for my favorite band at the moment - Sebadoh. Unlike the first two, this draws more heavily on their lo-fi recordings, so much in fact that it only reaches up to Bubble & Scrape. Though definitely not the first albums newcomers should check out, The Freed Man and Weed Forestin' have lots of short little gems. I've started work on the fourth and most likely final volume, though have some narrowing down to do.

The Essential Sebadol - Vol. 3

1. K-Sensa-My (The Freed Man)
2. Healthy Sick (The Freed Man)
3. Level Anything (The Freed Man)
4. Design (The Freed Man)
5. Julienne (The Freed Man)
6. Soulmate (The Freed Man)
7. Moldy Bread (The Freed Man)
8. Fire of July (The Freed Man)
9. Punch in the Nose (The Freed Man)
10. Pig (Asshole 7")
11. Slow to Learn (Asshole 7")
12. Hung Up (Asshole 7")
13. Cheapshot (Oven is My Friend 7")
14. New Worship (Weed Forestin')
15. Ride the Darker Wave (Weed Forestin')
16. It's So Hard to Fall in Love (Weed Forestin')
17. Subtle Holy Gift (Weed Forestin')
18. Pound My Skinny Head (Weed Forestin')
19. Whitey Peach (Weed Forestin')
20. Waited Forever (Weed Forestin')
21. I Believe in Fate (Weed Forestin')
22. Gate to Hell (Weed Forestin')
23. Broken (Weed Forestin')
24. Red Riding Good (Gimme Indie Rock 7")
25. Toledo (Split 7" w. Azalia Snail)
26. Downmind (III)
27. Hoppin' Up and Down (III)
28. Holy Picture (III)
29. Limb By Limb (III)
30. Half Undressed (Princess 7")
31. Fantastic Diaster (Soul and Fire 7")
32. I Stopped Singing (Ow, Quit it compilation)
33. Losercore (Losercore 7")
34. New Worship (Smash Your Head on the Punk Rock)
35. Everybody's Been Burned (Smash Your Head on the Punk Rock)
36. Mean Distance (Smash Your Head on the Punk Rock)
37. Pink Moon (Smash Your Head on the Punk Rock)
38. Emma Get Wild (Bubble & Scrape)
39. Sixteen (Bubble & Scrape)
40. Flood (Bubble & Scrape)
41. Sister (Bubble & Scrape)
42. Reject (Soul and Fire 7")

The Magnetic Fields - B-Sides & Rarities (1989-2008)

The Magnetic Fields have been a band for 20 years now. In that time they have released 8 albums (10 if you count 69 Love Songs as 3 albums) and a handful of EPs. Then when you take in mind Stephin Merritt's other 3 projects, that adds 6 more full length albums to the picture, as well as 4 EPs. On top of that, Stephin also has 3 albums of the various film/ theater scores he has composed, with compilation album Showtunes compiling various songs from each. The guy is pretty prolific. Sure, he's no Robert Pollard, but unlike him Stephin keeps the quality ratio pretty damn high.

So all Magnetic Fields albums are really fantastic. But did you know there's a good number of hard to find b-sides and compilation tracks by the band? What I've done is compiled every single Magnetic Fields non-album track in chronological order, as well as a few excellent live tracks from the band and Stephin Merritt solo tracks. All the rarities! The only things I've excluded are the "I Thought You Were My Boyfriend" remixes, but those aren't really necessary as the EP is still readily available.

So enjoy this custom compilation by favorite band!

The Magnetic Fields - B-Sides & Rarities (1989-2008)

1. Plant White Roses (Susan Anway Vocal) ('89) [The Long Secret compilation]
2. Crowd Of Drifters ('90) [Doctor Death's Volume IV-The Marvels Of Insect Life]
3. Beach-A-Boop-Boop ('92) [Long Vermont Roads 7"]
4. Plain White Roses ('94) [Rows Of Teeth: Merge Records 5th Anniversary Compilation]
5. Rats in the Garbage of the Western World ('95) [All The Umbrellas In London 7'']
6. The Man Amplifier (Young Marble Giants) ('95) [Why I Cry 7"]
7. 'Heroes' (David Bowie) ('96) [Crash Course For The Ravers compilation]
8. I Die, You Die (Gary Numan) ('97) [Random compilation]
9. Smoke and Mirrors (Mary Robinson Remix) ('97) [MRG100 compilation]
10. I Don't Believe You ('98) [I Don't Believe You 7"]
11. When I'm Not Looking, You're Not There ('98) [I Don't Believe You 7")
12. Le Tourbillion (Boris Bassiak) ('99) [Pop Romantique compilation]
13. Take Ecstasy With Me (Susan Anway, vocal) ('99) [Oh, Merge: A Merge Records 10 Year Anniversary Compilation]
14. If I Were a Rich Man [Fiddler on the Roof] ('99) [Knitters on the Roof compilation]
15. One April Day ('03) [Pieces of April soundtrack]
16. The Meaning of Lice ('06) [Plague Songs compilation]
17. The Man of a Million Faces ('07) [NPR's Two Day Song Challenge]
18. The Nun's Litany (Stephin Merritt version) ('08) [Please Stop Dancing EP]
19. Three Way [Live at the Iron Horse Music Hall (2-11-08)]
20. Too Drunk to Dream [Live at the Iron Horse Music Hall (2-11-08)]
21. I Thought You Were My Boyfriend [Live at the Somerville Theatre (2-15-08)]
22. Take Esctasy With Me [Live at the Iron Horse Music Hall (2-11-08)]
23. Yeah, Oh Yeah! [Live at the Iron Horse Music Hall (2-11-08)]
24. The Nun's Litany [Live on Fair Game]

Bonus songs:

Flare (The band of LD Beghtol, guest vocalist on 69 Love Songs) - Celebrate the Misery (Stephin Merritt Mix) ('99)

The Magnetic Fields - What a Fucking Lovely Day! (Stephin Merritt vocals) [Live at the Iron Horse Music Hall (2-11-08)]

LOU BARLOW IS THE BEST

So over the past few months I've been on a huge Sebadoh kick. My last.fm plays are ridiculous.
Here's a few awesome Lou Barlow acoustic videos.







It's finals period. Aaaaaaah.

Bright Eyes - Papa Was a Rodeo (Magnetic Fields cover)

Here's a brand-new Bright Eyes song- a cover of the Magnetic Fields "Papa Was a Rodeo." The original is from the 1999 album 69 Love Songs, my personal favorite album of all-time, and an album that I cannot recommend enough. "Papa Was a Rodeo" is arguably the best song on the album, though everyone seems to have their own personal favorite songs and disc.

This Bright Eyes cover is from the upcoming compilation Score! 20 Years of Merge Records, out in 2-weeks. It is limited to only 7,500 copies, so I would recommenced pre-ordering it now.

As for the cover itself, I really like it. It is more akin to the electric based Bright Eyes style that Conor experimented with on 2005's Digital Ash in a Digital Urn, though there are actual string instruments on the song as well. Though I personally find that album to be one of Bright Eyes weakest, the approach oddly works for this cover. Nothing can really beat the original, so I admire this creative approach to the song.

Bright Eyes - Papa Was a Rodeo

For anyone who has not heard it, here is the original:

The Magnetic Fields - Papa Was a Rodeo

As a bonus, here's another cover of "Papa was a Rodeo," this time done by singer/songwriter Kelly Hogan. It's more akin to the source material, though of course is sung by a female. Though this does away with the gender shifting of the original (Mike is actually a female) it is a great cover overall, and the alt-country sound works well with the original song's structure and themes.

Kelly Hogan - Papa Was a Rodeo

I like your twisted point of view, Mike
I like your questioning eyebrows
You've made it pretty clear what you like
It's only fair to tell you now
that I leave early in the morning
and I won't be back till next year
I see that kiss-me pucker forming
but maybe you should plug it with a beer, 'cause

Papa was a rodeo
Mama was a rock'n'roll band
I could play guitar and rope a steer
before I learned to stand
Home was anywhere with diesel gas
Love was a trucker's hand
Never stuck around long enough
for a one-night stand
Before you kiss me you should know
Papa was a rodeo

The light reflecting off the mirror ball
looks like a thousand swirling eyes
They make me think I shouldn't be here at all
You know, every minute someone dies
What are we doing in this dive bar?
How can you live in a place like this?
Why don't you just get into my car
And I'll take you away
I'll take that kiss now, but

Papa was a rodeo
Mama was a rock'n'roll band
I could play guitar and rope a steer
before I learned to stand
Home was anywhere with diesel gas
Love was a trucker's hand
Never stuck around long enough
for a one-night stand
Before you kiss me you should know
Papa was a rodeo

And now it's 55 years later
We've had the romance of the century
After all these years wrestling gators
I still feel like crying
When I think of what you said to me:

"Papa was a rodeo
Mama was a rock'n'roll band
I could play guitar and rope a steer
before I learned to stand
Home was anywhere with diesel gas
Love was a trucker's hand
Never stuck around long enough
for a one-night stand
Before you kiss me you should know
Papa was a rodeo,"

What a coincidence
Your papa was a rodeo, too

Pre-order Score! 20 Years of Merge Records

Dean & Britta - We're Not Supposed to Be Lovers (Adam Green cover)

Dean & Britta are awesome. They would be awesome still if they began and ended as Dean & Britta, but they are much more than that. Dean Wareham first formed the band Galaxie 500 in 1987, a band whose music hits me in a way that only a extremely select few can. I absolutely adore Galaxie 500, all three of their albums. Then comes Luna, Dean's next band. While I do not connect with them in quite the same way as I do Galaxie 500, I still really love their music. With 7 studio albums and a handful of EPs and assorted singles, Luna gives you more to choose from, but they still are remarkably consistent quality wise. The closest Luna has to a misstep is 1999's The Days of Our Nights, though the album still has some excellent tracks, including "Superfreaky Memories", one of the band's best. Dean & Britta became an official project after Luna disbanded in 2005, and while they are a bit poppier overall than Luna, the solid songwriting is still in place. Still, one of my favorite elements of all Wareham projects is the tendency to cover the songs of other artists. Overall, I can't think of another artist who puts his own touch onto covered material better than him, as well as one who covers such a wide variety of songs. Plus the idea of a novelty cover does not apply here, even when covers are of artists such as Madonna and Guns 'N' Roses. The covers stray from their source material, though are approached with respect to the original versions, resulting in attractive remoldings let the original melodies shine though, yet the structures of the songs may take a vast turn. For example, Jonathan Richman's original version of "Don't Let Our Youth Go to Waste" is a minute and a half acapella track, only commercially available as a live version. The Galaxie 500 version is epic and sprawling, nearly 7 minutes, much of which are guitar solos. I may as well mention here that Dean Wareham is my all-time favorite guitarist, and most of this has to do with his solos. I for one hate the self-indulgent, fast for the sake of being fast style of solos that often appear in metal and prog. Dean's solo work is different, as though complex and often lengthy, I get a human sense of feeling in his guitar work, it moving me in a way that sung lyrics cannot convey. When he solos, it always sounds necessary.

Anways, the song for this entry is the Dean & Britta cover of Adam Green's "We're Not Supposed to Be Lovers." Adam Green's original is on his 2003 album Friends of Mine. Dean & Britta's version is from their 2006 EP Words You Used to Say. The EP is currently out of print, and last I checked, it goes for quite a bit. It's a shame as the covers on the EP are all great. I may do more entries on them in the furture. For now, here's the two versions of this song-

Dean & Britta - We're Not Supposed to Be Lovers

Adam Green - We're Not Supposed to Be Lovers

Dean & Britta - Official Website
Adam Green - Official Website

The Essential Sebadoh - Vol. 2

The Essential Sebadoh Vol. 2




1. True Hardcore (The Freed Man)
2. Jaundice (The Freed Man)
3. God Told Me (III)
4. Perverted World (III)
5. Scars, Four Eyes (III)
6. Wonderful, Wonderful (III)
7. Black Haired Girl (III)
8. Supernatural Gurl (III)
9. Hassle (III)
10. Good Things (Smash Your Head on the Punk Rock)
11. Ride the Darker Wave (Rocking the Forest)
12. New Worship (Smash Your Head on the Punk Rock)
13. Brand New Love (Smash Your Head on the Punk Rock)
14. Soul and Fire (acoustic demo)
15. Forced Love (Bubble & Scrape)
16. Think (Let Tomorrow Bee) (Bubble & Scrape)
17. Homemade (Bubble & Scrape)
18. Dreams (Bakesale)
19. Got It (Bakesale)
20. Drama Mine (Bakesale)
21. On Fire (acoustic)
22. Prince-S (Harmacy)
23. Beauty of the Ride (Harmacy)
24. Open Ended (Harmacy)
25. Too Pure (Harmacy)
26. Perfect Way (Harmacy)
27. Flame (The Sebadoh)
28. Sorry (The Sebadoh)

I think I'll do a Volume 3 eventually. They do have so many great songs... Sebadoh fans- Any suggestions for songs I have yet to include?

The Essential Sebadoh - Mix #1

Truly one of the most underrated bands of the 90's. Vol. 2 will be coming soon....

The Essential Sebadoh - Vol. 1

1. Brand New Love (Weed Forestin)
2. Gimme Indie Rock (Gimme Indie Rock 7")
3. The Freed Pig (III)
4. Violent Execution (III)
5. Total Peace (III)
6. Kath (III)
7. Spoiled (III)
8. Truly Great Thing (III)
9. No Different (III)
10. It's So Hard to Fall in Love (Rocking the Forest)
11. Vampire (Rocking the Forest)
12. Soul and Fire (Bubble and Scrape)
13. Happily Divided (Bubble and Scrape)
14. Two Years Two Days (Bubble and Scrape)
15. Sacred Attention (Bubble and Scrape)
16. License to Confuse (Bakesale)
17. Rebound (Bakesale)
18. Skull (Bakesale)
19. Not a Friend (Bakesale)
20. Not Too Amused (Bakesale)
21. Careful (Bakesale)
22. Magnet's Coil (Bakesale)
23. Together or Alone (Bakesale)
24. On Fire (Harmacy)
25. Ocean (Harmacy)
26. Willing to Wait (Harmacy)
27. Nothing Like You (Harmacy)