Monthly Archives: November 2012

Blue Screen Life

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Band: Pinback
Album: Blue Screen Life
Best song: “Offline P.K.” is amazing.
Worst song: “Tres” isn’t all that great.

Blue Screen Life was released during my halcyon days of being the program director at one of the nation’s best college radio stations. It was also released in the immediate aftermath of Sept. 11 — lots of other crap happening there — and the genius that is the first Strokes record. Lots of hype there. In a fit of complete incompetence, I let the record go to someone other than myself on the music staff and I don’t even remember if it got reviewed. I know it didn’t get the promotion it should’ve. Continue reading →

Pyramid Electric Co.

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Band: Jason Molina
Album: Pyramid Electric Co.
Best song: “Division St. Girl” is superlative, as is the title track.
Worst song: “Red Comet Dust” is the worst song on a very strong record.

The television show Parks and Recreation is a popular one among people I know. I generally hang around people who share my adoration of Amy Poehler and find people like series creator Mike Schur to be brilliant comedic minds — I find Poehler, in fact, to be the best comedic actor working. But, the show is, in my opinion, flagging. It is not in its heyday and I don’t say that because of the first exposure theory. I did have this conversation recently, though, about said show over IM with a friend. Continue reading →

Unknown Rooms: A Collection Of Acoustic Songs

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Band: Chelsea Wolfe
Album: Unknown Rooms: A Collection Of Acoustic Songs
Best song: “Flatlands.” Definitely. Though, “Gold,” a bonus digital track, is really really good.
Worst song: I’m not as hot on “Our Work Was Good,” though it’s a good song.

It’s no secret I value vocals as an instrument more than I value lyrics; I’ve twice used the term “I’d listen to [insert name here] read the phone book” in regards to singers in this space (once about Chris Cornell, once about Chan Marshall). This is the reason I’ve not gotten as into Modest Mouse as I probably should have, it’s the reason I’ve never fully gotten into death growl music and, most importantly, it’s the reason I tend to prefer female singers to male singers. Continue reading →

Shields

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Band: Grizzly Bear
Album: Shields
Best song: Let’s say “Yet Again,” but this changes daily for me.
Worst song: “Adelma” is a transition track and not really a “song,” per se, so let’s go that way. This album is brilliant.

I was a late comer to Grizzly Bear for a myriad of reasons. However, the band’s third record, Veckatimest, connected with me so strongly that it’s become a goto album for me. There aren’t a ton of records I can enjoy so much front-to-back as Veckatimest. I’d listed it as the 19th-best album of the 2000s and I’m not sure that’s high enough.

Shields may be better.  Continue reading →

Dr. Feelgood

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Band: Mötley Crüe
Album: Dr. Feelgood
Best song: The title track is a good riff.
Worst song: Boy howdy. This album isn’t great. Let’s say… “Without You” for being the most typical metal ballad of its era. It’s so paint-by-numbers that it’s almost comical.

Dicking around on Spotify recently, I found myself listening to Mötley Crüe. I’m not completely sure how I got there — Spotify loops are similar to Wikipedia loops and I think this one started with Judas Priest and ended on the Crüe — and I’m not necessarily proud of the fact that I was there. But, the band is part of my life, for ill or for good. Continue reading →