On January 12 I posted about Joaquin Phoenix directing the video for "If You Talk Too Much (My Head Will Explode)" (MP3), the lead single from People in Planes' debut album As Far as the Eye Can See. The video, filmed in the Ontario, California airport, is now public, via Windows Media (large/small) or Real Media (large/small) stream.

"I've never heard anything like it ("If You Talk Too Much (My Head Will Explode)," said Joaquin Phoenix via press release. "Really the movement and the rhythm of the song gave me my first ideas for images. I started doing some research on airports and found a couple of pictures from a Japanese architectural photographer and saw images of airports in blues and yellows. I really loved the idea of combining colors and giving it a really metallic look."

People in Planes touch down in New York this evening at the Mercury Lounge, in between Jeff Klein (7:30 PM) and the Waylons (9:30 PM). Yours truly will be there and will file a full report in the near future.

Descending the stairs into the sloping basement of Cake Shop for the first time, I was struck by two things. One, it smelled like a gym. Two, I couldn't see the stage. Pack a hundred under-deodorized bodies in this space and it becomes a stinky oven with horrible sight lines. Somewhere up ahead and slightly down, a band was playing; around us there were more variations of hipster body hair on display than I'd see at any one show. If it weren't for Man Man and their devilish brand of salty, percussive sing-alongs, I'd have stayed but five minutes. It's not that body odor or hirsute hipsters bother me that much. But if I can't even see the band playing what's the point of being there?

There was no way we would stare at the back of people's heads for Man Man, so Jeff (one of our new contributors) and I fought our way up to the front and around to the left of the band. From this vantage point we were nearly on top of Man Man's propulsive rhythm section. It was the perfect spot to observe their madness. Man Man is a rhythm section, one that chugs and churns with rampant enthusiasm. At one time or another, all five members participated in the rhythm, banging cans or pounding cowbells.

Man Man live is a five ring circus, with mustachio clowns leading the entertainment with toy instruments, hoots and hollers and delirious drinking songs sung in raspy growls and delirious falsetto.

The band were in town to promote the release of their second album, Six Demon Bag, to be released February 21 by Ace Fu Records. Near all of the new record was played live, with a helping of highlights from The Man in a Blue Turban With a Face. Requests were made for at the end for "Werewolf (On the Hood of Yer Heartbreak)", but the band were on their way out into the cool night. Hopefully when they return the venue will be bigger and the air will be conditioned.

Don't let the fact that Natasha Noramly was once the bassist for Scotland's interminably sluggish post-rock latecomers Ganger sour your pre-conceptions toward her latest group Fuck-Off Machete. The differences are night and day.

With one album already under the band's collective belt, their new EP If Gold Was Silver and Silver Was Gold (on Highpoint Lowlife) has Fuck-Off Machete poised to come out swinging wildly (and loudly) in 2006. While the EP's title track begins with a riff reminiscent of something from Helmet's Meantime, it almost immediately shifts gears into the kind of arthouse punk-pop perfected earlier this decade by One Louder faves Life Without Buildings. In fact, there are several instances throughout the EP which betray an appreciation of LWB's Sue Tompkins—if not necessarily in style, certainly in spirit.

Almost as stark an influence would be Sonic Youth's Kim Gordon, especially on the track available for download at label's site: "Copper and Lead Fight" (MP3).

So naturally an EP like this would wrap itself up with some noodly, more experimental song, wouldn't it? Not in this case. The most straight-forward of the songs is "Fall in Trust," which proves Fuck-Off Machete can pen a memorable hook if they desire—even if that hook is like an island in the sea of dissonant guitars and pounding 4/4 percussion which surround it.

The label hints the band's second LP will be out this Spring, but the band's site only mentions that another single/EP has been completed and will be released soon. Either way, I'm eager to hear more of what this trio can accomplish.

Having read through this article a few times, I'm still not sure if it's real or a prank. Judge for yourself. [Thanks to Eddy for pointing this out]

From the Guardian (registration required):

BBC's Jesus sings Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now

The BBC plans to mark the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ this Easter with an hour-long live procession through the streets of Manchester featuring pop stars from The Stone Roses and Happy Mondays and featuring songs by The Smiths and New Order.

In the programme, called Manchester Passion, a character representing Jesus will sing the legendary Joy Division anthem Love Will Tear Us Apart before dueting his arch-betrayer Judas on the New Order hit Blue Monday, according to senior church sources involved in the production.

Mary Magdelene, the penitent whore of the New Testament, is also getting in on the act: she is being lined up to sing the Buzzcocks hit Ever Fallen in Love (with Someone You Shouldn't have) accompanied by a string band.

Former Happy Monday and Celebrity Big Brother winner Bez will play a disciple.

The climax of the event sees Jesus sing the Smiths classic song Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now as he is being flayed by Roman soldiers. He will then come face-to-face with his Roman prosecutor Pontius Pilate with the two of them singing a duet of the Oasis hit Wonderwall and its chorus:

"I said maybe
You're gonna be the one who saves me?
And after all
You're my wonderwall."

The broadcaster, which plans to show the event live on BBC3 on Good Friday, insisted the event was inspired by "the way Bach and other composers fused music and the Passion story".

The "contemporary retelling" of Jesus' last hours will begin with the messiah - who is yet to be cast - singing the Robbie Williams hit Angels, which will mark his procession into Jerusalem.

In this case, Jerusalem will be represented by Manchester's gay and red light area near Canal Street and the Passion scene will pass via Chinatown and St Peter's Square to culminate in Albert Square.

The march will be followed by members of the public who will be encouraged to join in the singing of relevant anthems, which include the M People hit Search for a Hero Inside Yourself.

The crowd will carry a large white cross and the public will also be asked to bring a symbol of their own burden - "something they are personally concerned about" - according to senior church sources involved in the programme.

The crowd will be joined by Bez - the entertainer famous for shaking his maracas on stage with the Happy Mondays. He will be accompanied by former Stone Roses frontman Ian Brown and Black Grape saxophonist Martin Slattery.

The event will end with the resurrected Jesus singing an as yet undisclosed song from the top of Manchester's town hall.

The show is being made by the corporation's classical music television department, which has won plaudits for its experimental music and drama work overseen by its head, Pater Maniura.

These include Flashmob: the Opera - a live opera event staged among commuters at Paddington station in London in which members of the public performed a song inspired by the Orpheus legend - and the forthcoming Riot at the Rite, a dramatisation of the notorious first performance of Stravinsky's ballet the Rites of Spring, to be aired in March.

While the event is likely to raise eyebrows among more traditional-minded Christians, it has the broad support of both the Church of England and the Roman Catholic Church in the area.

Church of England spokeswoman Gillian Oliver said: "We are working with the BBC on this and are very pleased to be taking the good news of the gospel onto the streets of Manchester. If anything, something like this can translate the old story into new terms."

Canon Robin Gamble, canon evangelist at Manchester Cathedral, has been tasked with encouraging churchgoers to attend the event.

"I wouldn't know a Buzzcock from a ballcock so I couldn't really comment on the music. All I can say is that they are not doing a Christian service, it is a piece of contemporary theatre and that is going to get people to think about the story in modern terms," he said.

"It is going to come from the streets, with the sounds of traffic and people bustling around and it will make people think about this story in a new way. It is going to be challenging and shocking and is going to get things rumbling - it's going to be brilliant."

A BBC spokeswoman declined to comment on the details of the line-up but promised that the event would be "exciting".

I'm very grateful for the kind people who have commented on this little series. These interesting remarks have opened my eyes to a number of Madchester bands I missed on completely: the Mock Turtles, Northside, the New Fast Automatic Daffodils, Flowered Up, The Top, World of Twist etc. Maybe it's better that I've never heard some of them, but I'm happy to learn there's more out there to explore.  Judging from James's insight, I should begin by listening to Northside and New FADS.

For some bands, it seems to come easy. Tony Wilson, the founder and boss of Factory Records, signed Northside to his influential label before the band had played one show. Under Wilson's watch, Northside released two moderately popular singles in the U.K. in 1990, "We Take A Trip" (which was banned on Radio 1 for its drug allusions) and "My Rising Star".

Following these successes, the band went into the studio with Ian Broudie (of Big in Japan, Lightning Seeds fame) and produced their only record, Chicken Rhythms. "... something brilliant is happening ... Northside are for real" wrote New Musical Express. Others were less kind. "Northside takes some chances here and there, and one can admire its desire to strive for originality," Alex Henderson opines in his All Music review. "But unfortunately, most of the songs are forgettable."

In May of 1991, NME writer Dele Fadele met with Northside to discuss their new single, "Take 5" (MP3), which the writer described  as sounding like "Keith Richards after an amphetamine bout":

"Dermo [lead singer Warren Dermody] is convinced that they're doing something new and worthwhile, admits to loving Minder on TV, and says that anyone who compares them to Happy Mondays hasn't seen 'em live or listened for themselves and is just blindly following what's been (inaccurately) written about them. So what bothers him at the moment?

`The way a lot of indie music just sounds the same. Everyone's going on this big Ride noise thing, there aren't any individuals anymore. Oh, and by the way, Manic Street Preachers are crap. Who wants to burn out at 25? We're going to be around for a long while yet.'"

In this case unfortunately, a long while meant 1993. When Factory Records went broke in 1992, Northside were left without a label and soon split. Is Chicken Rhythms the last the world would hear from them? "Dermo's got a new band, I hear," James wrote in the comments for the Inspiral Carpets feature. "Timmy [Walsh, the guitarist] is missing, presumed stoned and Cliff's [the bassist Cliff Ogier] still Cliff. No-one ever hears anything from Paul [Walsh, drums]. 'Bass guitar!'"

If you live anywhere in the world outside of Australia and you've never heard Gersey, you're not alone. The band's last album Storms Dressed As Stars came oh-so close to being released in North America on the Kindercore label, except Kindercore went belly-up mere weeks before the event. That was three years ago.

Last October, Gersey returned somewhat unexpectedly with a new EP Eyes Are Wide Tonight and a new record deal through Inertia. With it, they brought more friction and intensity than anything they'd produced in the past. While the delicate touches aren't altogether forgotten, Gersey has moved on from earlier influences like Luna and The Chills to become quite a competent rock band. This track from the new EP should be all the convincing you'll need: "Small Change" (MP3).

Gersey's promising their third LP will appear at some point in 2006. If it's even half as good as either of their first two, most of the albums you buy this year will begin collecting dust as soon as it's released.

Alright, I'm a sucker for Eastern rock music. And I'll admit, I'm easily amused by spacey, tripped-out heavy metal. Well...I think I've discovered my Holy Grail.


Flower Travellin' Band's 1971 epic, Satori. Holy crap. How did I not hear about these guys until now? They sound almost exactly like Black Sabbath (especially the vocals), but they're from Japan...and they're weirder. There is definitely some Eastern (Indian?) influence to some of the melodies (as opposed to Sabbath's blues influence). All I can say is that they're awesome. I still need to check out their other releases, especially 1970's Anywhere, which includes covers of King Crimson's 20th Century Schizoid Man and Black Sabbath's Black Sabbath (keep in mind this is the same year the original was released). You probably won't find Satori at the record store, but copies can be found online.


Download "Satori, pt. 1" (MP3). (There are 5 "parts"...)

The Orb was genesis for me. My interest in electronic and ambient music began with them. Their influence inspired me to listen to Aphex Twin, Brian Eno, Orbital, System 7, Ultramarine, The KLF, and Jah Wobble. From there I found Acid House and Madchester, Industrial and Shoegaze. All it took was some little puffy clouds, and a Rickie Lee Jones sample. Simple.

Along the way to 2006 I lost my connection with the Orb. Their later albums, like Orblivion, Cydonia and Bicycles and Tricycles felt inessential and uninspiring. The Orb had created a spectacular sound world with their first three records, but this fascinating place seemed to stop expanding somewhere around 1995. There were still interesting moments, like "Toxygene" on Orblivion or the demented "The Land of Green Ginger" on Bicycles and Tricycles. But honestly I thought the Orb were done.

With the back story out of the way, let me now say that Okie Doke It's the Orb on Kompakt is their best album, in my opinion, since 1992's U.F.Orb. Or at least it's the most fulfilling Orb album from first bleep to the last squelch. Thomas Fehlmann and Dr. Alex have created an absorbing collection, part dub-inflected beats and part pastoral dream works.

For far better descriptions of this album, check out Philip Sherburne's Pitchfork review or Andy Kellman's write-up for All Music.

There were few groups I disliked more  in the Madchester world than the Soup Dragons. My feelings weren't based on personal experiences as much as the opinions I found in the British music press. NME and Melody Maker were not shy about disliking the Soup Dragons. There was always dance element in their music, the journos mockingly wrote, cynically labeling the band's suspicious transformation from C86-style pop to hippy dance-rock in 1990 as a purely calculated, financial decision. To these writers, the band epitomized the worst of the Baggy bandwagon jumpers, the lowest of the Madchester uninspired carpet baggers.

The Soup Dragons started out in Glasgow, Scotland as a noisy, melodic pop outfit in the spirit of the Buzzcocks and the Adverts. They released Hang Ten (1987) and This is Our Art (1988) under this influence. "The Soup Dragons aim for the punk-pop of the Buzzcocks on `Great Empty Space,' but the lyrics fail to make an impact," Michael Sutton wrote in his All Music review of This is Our Art. "The Soup Dragons are far more effective when they're gorging themselves on bubblegum like the sweet jangle pop of `Soft As Your Face' and "Turning Stone.'"

The accusations of calculation and scene-jumping began with the Soup Dragons' sudden style change on 1990's Lovegod. Trouser Press colorfully writes: "then the quartet-which had its genealogical roots in the BMX Bandits-abandoned any residual punk edge and embraced young Britain's acid rave culture with grooved pockets of electronically aided crossover pop rhythmatism." Despite the critical derision, the band released one of Madchester's biggest singles, "I'm Free" (MP3).

When "I'm Free" became a hit in the U.S., it solidified my dislike for the Soup Dragons. Of all songs from Madchester to break big in the U.S., it had to be this one! A Rolling Stones cover, dumbed down Baggy for the Top 40 kids in America. What about "One Love", "Kinky Afro", or "The Only One I Know"? Far more worthy bands were struggling for notice in the States, while the most insincere act of them all breezed to stardom. It was wrong; I was vexed.

Listening to the song now, it's hard to understand why I was so put out. "I'm Free" is a catchy, inoffensive time piece. Yes, its reggae tinges perhaps foreshadowed the rise of an even greater evil - Sugar Ray, but if a DJ was to spin the song now, I'd dance to it, hands-in-the-air style and all.

But what of the Dragons? Their fate was tied to the popularity of Madchester and both quickly faded from popular consciousness. They followed Lovegod with two more albums, Hotwired (1992) and Hydrophonic (1995), but the band split soon after. Soup Dragon singer Sean Dickson stayed in the industry, founding The High Fidelity. Demonstration , High Fidelity's only record, was released in 2002, over six years after the demise of the Soup Dragons. Download "Luv Dup" (MP3).

When Madchester was at its peak in U.K. (roughly 1989 - 1991), I was just out of high school in Arizona, an unexpected place to attempt to monitor and participate in this very British phenomenon. The local independent record store carried dated copies of NME and Melody Maker, along with a spare selection of import CDs. I diligently bought these rags and scooped up any CDs I happened to find - a used copy of Pills `n' Thrills and Bellyaches, an import of The Stone Roses. A grungy little record shop near the University of Arizona sold me a Mondays T-Shirt, with "Call the Cops" printed in huge letters across the back. Being into these bands at the time didn't make me cool, it made me lonely.

The psychedelic fever of Madchester never spread to the scorched earth I called home, nor would it ever amount to much in the U.S. Soon the overpowering crunch of grunge would relegate Baggy to a multicolored, but minor footnote. I followed along with the scene for a while longer until the release of the Monday's abominable Yes Please extinguished all remaining interest. But now 15 years later, I find myself still fondly recalling those days and wondering what happened to bands like the Soup Dragons, New Fast Automatic Daffodils and yes, the Inspiral Carpets.

I remember The Inspiral Carpets for two things: Clint Boon's mop top and their irreverent slogan, "Cool as F*ck", which adorned t-shirts and got a kid arrested. If anything typified Baggy for me, an ignorant 20-year old, it was Clint Boon's hair. When I was a kid, we called it a bowl cut, i.e. put a bowl on your head and snip away the stray hairs hanging below the rim. Clint's look was signature, as was his instrument, a mighty Hammond organ that defined the band's psychedelic sound.

"Clint Boon seemed to know every f*cker in town," John Robb writes on the band's official site. "He's already been in bands with Mani [bassist for the Stone Roses], auditioned Ian Brown as a vocalist in a pre Inspiral project and was a shameless pop fanatic whose ambition was to be "as big as Elvis". Clint's keyboards gave the band a different edge, they made the jump from being a local band to being a pop band, it was the icing on the cake."

1989 was the epochal year for the Inspiral Carpets. Lineup changes brought them a new bassist, Marty Walsh and a singer Tom Hingley. The band formed its own label, Cow Records and released the acclaimed Trainsurfing EP. Three successful singles followed "Joe", "Find Out Why" and "Move", prompting Mute Records to sign the band. In 1990, they released their debut album, Life, and scored a modest U.S. Modern Rock radio hit with "This is How it Feels" (MP3). In preparation for their 1991 tour, the band hired future Oasis founder Noel Gallagher as a roadie, after they had turned him down for membership in the band.

With their second album, 1991's The Beast Inside, the Inspiral Carpets' popularity continued to grow. However, by 1992 the Madchester scene was in decline. The Carpets' third record, Revenge of the Goldfish, while producing the band's biggest single in the U.K. sold less than its predecessors. By 1995, the band had split.

Undaunted, Clint Boon continued to write music. He formed The Clint Boon Experience and released two albums, 1999's The Compact Guide to Pop Music and Space Travel and 2000's Life In Transition. Singer Tom Hingley went solo, releasing two albums under his own name before forming The Lovers.

In 2003, perhaps inspired by the success of 24 Hour Party People, the Inspiral Carpets reunited for a string of sell out concerts in the U.K.  "Too many British pop bands burn out before they get their pay day," writes Robb. "And if the band that taught their ex roadie Noel Gallagher the ins and outs of rock n roll can get deserved recognition for their angular pop, then it would be a mighty justice indeed."

Skimming around the internet the other day, I stumbled upon a band called Sing Sing. Had I kept up with the history of 90's shoegazers, I would have known that Lush guitarist and singer Emma Anderson formed Sing Sing soon after Lush split in 1997. Sing Sing have released two albums, The Joy of Sing Sing in 2001 and Sing Sing and I last July. I've heard neither, but this got me to thinking. I wonder what happened to other bands I was into around 1991-1993. Specifically, I was curious about the fate of the lesser known stars of Madchester?

The history and music of Madchester's leading acts, The Stone Roses and Happy Mondays are relatively well documented and familiar to Britpop fans. The Mondays were the subjects of a feature film and are still making music today, while the Roses' legacy lives on because of (or in spite of) mad Ian Brown's solo career and the canonization of the band's eponymous debut album.

But what happened to the bands that helped themselves to the spacious coattails of the Mondays, the Roses and perhaps the Charlatans (UK)? Here's what I found out with help from All Music and a little Googling:

The Farm - Best known for two big U.K. hits "Groovy Train" (MP3 clip) and "All Together Now" (very low bit rate MP3), from the 1991 album Spartacus, Liverpool's the Farm struggled for a long time to only briefly enjoy stardom. The band formed in the early 80's as Soul of Socialism (!?), became the Farm in the late `80s and gained notoriety in 1990 by releasing "Stepping Stone", a remake of the Monkees' hit "(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone". "Groovy Train" and "All Together Now" followed and propelled the band momentarily towards the upper reaches of the U.K. pop charts.

"The Farm have altered externally over the past half-decade but their heart and mind has remained true," NME wrote in its review of Spartacus in February, 1991. The magazine scored the album a 9/10. CMJ weighed in that year, saying "The Farm cultivates a bumper crop of intriguing and melodious delights." [Quotes taken from A Tribute to the Farm]

The creative bed soon went fallow and the Farm failed to match this popularity with subsequent singles or albums. They released their last album of new material, Hullabaloo, in 1994. The catchy sing-along vibe and all-for-one sentiment of "All Together Now" has kept the song in use, particular by English football teams. According to Wikipedia, the song was the official anthem of England's National Team during Euro 2004. England lost to Portugal in the quarterfinals, 2-2 on penalty kicks. Blimey.

- Download a mashup of "Groovy Train" and the Beastie Boys' "Body Movin'".

Dokaka - "Smells Like Teen Spirit" (MP3). You may recognize Dokaka from Bjork's Medulla. (Assuming you remember Medulla better than me, that is.) He's a Japanese beatboxer, and the dude's got skills. If he didn't, his all-vocal cover of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" might test your patience - but he totally nails it. The choruses are a bit much IMO, but just the fact that he pulls this off wins serious points.

Simon Bookish - "Terry Riley Disco (Max Tundra remix)" (MP3). Tundra's frantically catchy glitch-pop and Bookish's relaxed, almost crooner-like vocals balance each other perfectly here. As much as I love Tundra's take on the Futureheads, this is easily my favorite remix of his. Highly recommended.

The Human League - "The Things That Dreams Are Made Of" (MP3). Up until about a month ago, I equated the Human League with "Don't You Want Me" - a solid single, for sure, but not the kind of thing I put on much. But then I discovered Carl Craig's fantastic Beats in Space mix (MP3), which ends with "The Things That Dreams Are Made Of," and I found a whole new Human League - way more insidious and way more my thing. (Cheers to 33/45 for hooking me up with this file.)

Cat Power - "Dreams" (MP3). I'm hopelessly behind on leaks, so I haven't heard all of Cat Power's new record The Greatest yet. (It's out next week.) The little I have heard, though, has me thinking it'll be my favorite of her albums yet. Case in point - her gorgeous cover of the Everly Brothers' "Dreams," The Greatest's Japanese bonus track.

Pretty Girls Make Graves - "The Nocturnal House" (MP3). PGMG may have finally won me over with the dubbed-out power pop of this track, from the upcoming Elan Vital. Love those whistles at the start!

- The National Trust are Chicago's Neil Rosario and Mark Henning. "It's Just Cruel" fronts falsetto vocals and a tight synth groove, but peaks with the devastating horns of Hypnotic, an eight-man, all brother team of street musicians and scions of former Sun Ra Arkestra member Kelan Phil Cohran. Download "It's Just Cruel" (MP3) (from Kings and Queens, 2006, Thrill Jockey)

- This next track came to my attention via the One Louder inbox. Metroheadmusic was kind enough to email us Metro B and Maslopé's remix of Transformer di Roboters' "Hi End" (MP3). "Hi End" is actually quite bottom heavy, with Vocoder warped vocals wrapped around a thudding bass guitar loop. The song will be featured on Metroheadmusic's first 12" compilation, along with releases from Vive la Fete, Whitey, Nid & Stancy, Mittekill, die Türen and others. Head over to Metroheadmusic for a number of other MP3s.

It has been quite a busy work day, so in lieu of a perhaps shorter but more focused post, I am forced to present a scattershot collection of album recommendations and random asides:

- Album recommendation: Man Man - Six Demon Bag: Another brilliant collection of seaworthy pirate shanties and mustachioed nursery tales from Philadelphia's devious Man Man. In tribute to Mama Goose herself, "English Bwudd" actually contains the lyric "fee fi fo fum, I smell the blood of an English man." Genius! The record will be released February 21, 2006 by Ace Fu. Download "Van Helsing Boombox" (MP3) from Six Demon Bag. Man Man play Cake Shop on January 27.

- New songs from Other Passengers: I have a bad habit of talking about Other Passengers, listening to their music, but missing all of their shows including their January 11 performance at Joe's Pub. Shame on me. The band is currently mixing its first record and has posted two unmastered tracks from it on their MySpace page. Head over there to hear "Wichita" and "Credits".

- Album recommendation: The M's - Future Women: Yes they sound like a lot like T-Rex, but to me that's never a reason to reject a band. Check out Chicago's The M's opening for Of Montreal at the Bowery Ballroom on March 3. Download "Plan of the Man" (MP3) from Future Women, which is released February 21, 2006.

- Courtesy of Robot Wisdom, check out the interesting collection of remixes at Thetastates.

- Album recommendation: The Budos Band - The Budos Band: Daptone Records, the home of Sharon Jones, describes The Budos Band as "the quintessence of Staten Island Soul." I know little of Staten Island, so forgive me for not knowing that Staten Island had a soul scene, let alone a quintessential band. I'll take Daptone at their word and vouch for their praising of The Budos Band as "hard evidence of their eruption onto today's Funk and Soul scene". Listen to a clip of "Up From the South" (MP3), from The Budos Band.

- NME says The Concretes will release the first single, "Chosen One" from its forthcoming album In Colour (due March 7) on February 27 (presumably only in the UK)

- It's interesting to see that Oh My Rockness, my favorite source for upcoming shows in the area, and NY Press have joined forces to create Indie Label Jones, a monthly live music showcase featuring, you guessed it, independent label bands. The first showcase kicks off on January 24 at Sin-e with bands from Family Business, which is part of Ace Fu. Performing this night will be Art of Shooting, Goes Cube, and The Gritty Middy Gang. Tickets are $8.

If you're on Todd P's mailing list, you probably saw him touting tonight's show at Tommy's Tavern. Matt and Kim are a shameless synth-pop duo full of energy and witty banter. Check them out while you can, this is their last show in NYC before heading out on tour.

For mp3s, visit their MySpace page.

Tommy's Tavern - 1041 Manhattan Ave @ Freeman St - Greenpoint, Brooklyn

- Todd P also informs us of January 28th's Black Dice and Gang Gang Dance show at the Syrup Room in Bushwick. The cool kids won't be missing this one. Tickets go on sale at Eat Records on Wed 1/18.

Eat Records - 124 Meserole Ave @ Leonard St - Greenpoint, Brooklyn

- And if you're interested in the continued relief effort in New Orleans, there is a benefit tomorrow night at Galapagos. My band (Leaders) happens to be playing, as well as Poorboy Johnson and the Goddamned Rattlesnake, and Lonesome Doves. Early show...bands play at 7:00, 8:00, and 9:00.

Galapagos - 70 N 6th St - Williamsburg, Brooklyn

I haven't completely forgotten about Love is All yet, but right now and maybe for good I am more passionate about another new Swedish band, Stockholm's South Ambulance. So while the good parts of LiA's Nine Times the Same Song satisfy the desire for anxious and angular pop, South Ambulance overpower me and win my loyalty with their jangly and richly melodic sound. 3Hive is on the money by adding Galaxie 500 to the list of comparable bands, which also includes Ride, Television Personalities, and House of Love.

I instantly loved "Die 5Times Times5" (MP3), a layered treat complete with hand claps and fawning "la la la" vocals. This track and ten others are included on South Ambulance's debut self-titled record, released by Labrador in March 2005.

Check out Hello Surprise to download six more songs from South Ambulance.

A hot new band from the U.K? I used to get excited before even hearing a note. A Q cover, a fawning NME - that's all I needed to get on board. Now after a year of being burned by one fabulously mediocre Brit-pop band after another, I've decided to hear first, believe the hype later.

While I haven't heard more than the four tracks available on its web site, I can say that People in Planes - from Cardiff, Wales -  does not sound like another NME clone band manufactured to sucker us into believing in the "the next big thing". Yes for once it seems, a new U.K. band is not trying to rework the same damn dance punk equation. So God bless People in Planes for liking Neil Young more than Gang of Four. After a delicate falsetto preamble, "If You Talk Too Much (My Head Will Explode)" (MP3) dives into the melodically murky end of the indie rock pool, with piles of guitars and a simple, stoned vocal.

Oh and God bless Joaquin Phoenix too. Because instead of directing a Test Icicles video for example, he chose to work with People in Planes. Mr. Cash himself directed the video for "If You Talk Too Much (My Head Will Explode)". It hasn't been released yet, but there is a press release and some behind-the-scenes photos available on the PiP site.

FYI: People in Planes used to be named Tetra Splendour. The band spoke to the BBC about the name change and the release of its new album, As Far As The Eye Can See..., which is released in the U.S. March 28.

With the pile of work on my plate for classes today, I had no business going to a show last night. But when the lead singer of one of your all-time favorite bands is playing a rare solo gig in a tiny venue (opening for Rebecca Gates), you make the time for it. And when Stephen Malkmus walks on stage, says he doesn't have much of a plan, and proceeds to play ALL REQUESTS, it becomes an amazing show. Just hearing Malkmus do a couple Pavement songs would have made the night, but to hear him do so many made it an evening I'll never forget. (Especially when one of them - "Box Elder" - was my request! What's funny is that Jason was further back in the room and happened to be shouting for the same song - and SM said he'd play it because he was hearing two requests for it. Strength in numbers, folks.) I was in the very front and, well, I'm still glowing from the whole experience.

I can (and will) say a bunch more, but it will come later. First I need to do all the work I ignored last night. But wow, it was worth it. (I feel bad for bailing early in Rebecca Gates's set, especially because I like the Spinanes, but I had too much to do. I might check her out next Tuesday though, when the awesome Mike Fellows (AKA Mighty Flashlight) will be a guest at the residency.)

Fluxblog has more on last night's show, and Brooklyn Vegan has pictures. From Fluxblog, here's the setlist:

Shoot The Singer / Church On White / We Dance / Box Elder / Ramp Of Death / Frontwards / Witch Mountain Bridge / Freeze The Saints / Major Leagues / Vanessa From Queens / Gold Soundz

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Actually, I don't know how much more there is to say, but a few notes:

- SM's performance got pretty sloppy with some flubbed guitar lines and forgotten lyrics, and his guitar cut out a couple times. But it was endearingly sloppy - what made this set so cool was the fact that it felt entirely off the cuff from start to finish, and that Malkmus seemed willing to try anything (including songs that he probably hadn't played in ages). He laughed his mistakes off and, if anything, the looseness of it all seemed to make the show even more memorable. That said, this wasn't a show that would win over a Pavement skeptic - this was for the fans.

- Highlights: "We Dance," "Box Elder" (natch), and "Major Leagues" (which never did much for me on album). The Jicks songs were also great, and definitely tighter, but I'd seen them all live recently and will probably see them live again soon.

- Fluxblog listed a bunch of requests that didn't get played: "Grave Architecture," "Shady Lane," "Old Jerry," "Jo Jo's Jacket," "Father To A Sister Of Thought," "Summer Babe," "Ell Ess Two," "Here," "Range Life," "Harness Your Hopes," "No More Kings," "Civilized Satanist," and "Candylad." I was part of the "Old Jerry" and "Grave Architecture" contigents, incidentally, but in retrospect I should've given "Black Out" or "Motion Suggests" a shot. I gave Wowee Zowee a spin today and realized both songs could work really well solo (vs. a lot of Pavement songs that really need a full band).

- Datapanik was at the show too - check out his review.

Nick Cave fans, it's time to rejoice. Mute Records is releasing together on DVD for the first time, Road to God Knows Where and Live at the Paradiso, on January 24. Order it here from Amazon.

Witnessing Saint Nick live in person was for me a revelation. Cave is a riveting and unmatched force. He wanders the stage like a deranged junkie preacher, wailing out his tales of sin and redemption. Live at the Paradiso captures Cave and the Bad Seeds in Amsterdam in 1992 while on the road supporting Henry's Dream (one of my least favorite Cave records actually).

Mute writes:

"Live At The Paradiso...features classic Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds songs such as The Mercy Seat, The Ship Song, Tupelo and Deanna performed by a line up of Nick Cave, Mick Harvey, Blixa Bargeld, Conway Savage, Thomas Wydler and Martyn P Casey. The concert film was edited by long-time collaborator John Hillcoat whose credits include The Proposition (scripted by Nick Cave and due for UK release in March 06), To Have And To Hold and Ghosts of The Civil Dead plus many Bad Seeds promo videos). The Director of Photography was John Mathieson who went on to work on Gladiator and the forthcoming Brian Jones biopic, Stoned."

I've watched Live at the Paradiso just once several years ago, but I remember it did a fairly good job conveying the monumental power of the Bad Seeds on stage. Particularly I recall one hilarious moment when Cave accidentally falls off the stage at the beginning of "Deanna". As for Road to God Knows Where , I've yet to see it, but it sounds very intriguing based on Mute's description:

"Described by the NME on its original VHS release as "the definitive documentary of the music business in its glorious, monotonous reality", The Road To God Knows Where by Uli M. Schueppel is an intimate and revealing insight into a band on the road. Filming during their US tour in Feb / March 1989, we see life on the road as it truly was. On the road - at the hotel - sound check - backstage - the concert - backstage - back at the hotel - hitting the road again. Featuring a Bad Seeds line up of Nick Cave, Mick Harvey, Blixa Bargeld, Thomas Wydler, Kid Congo Powers and Roland Wolf, the film also introduces us to a cast of extras from the band's crew and the band's guests (including Anita Lane, Lydia Lunch and Lung Leg)."

Sometimes there is no better pleasure than digging out an album you haven't heard in years and experiencing again the rush of emotions that made the record an inseparable part of your life once upon a time. I recently listened to American Music Club's 1991 album Everclear for the first time since probably 1994 and it took me back there like a instant sad-core time machine. Suddenly I was directionless, full of dreams and a heaping amount of left-over teen angst.

Is it my memory working its embellishing spell on me or is it possible that songs like "Ex-Girlfriend" (MP3) or "The Dead Part of You"(MP3) read like diary entries from 1993? Free of my projecting, does the music hold up a decade and change on? Yes and yes. Everclear holds immense personal meaning for me, but separated from that it's a stunning collection of aggressive emotion.

The album is soaked in intense sadness and loss, the spacious production allows for these feelings to echo and grow in strength with each reverberation. Through each moment, singer and songwriter Mark Eitzel is barely hanging on, like a man teetering above the great abyss of isolation. He's bled his own life into these songs  and it's this sacrifice that makes Everclear such a cathartic pleasure.

- Download all of Everclear, free and legal, from Download.com
- Download an American Music Club documentary, directed by Matt Amato.
- Read Mark Eitzel's lyrics for Everclear.

- Fugazi has made 10 more shows available for purchase on CD, bringing the size of their live series to 30 gigs in total. Included in the new batch is their 11/4/02 show in London - their "last show played to date." I'm glad they say "to date" - it suggests more shows to come. Seeing as I loved my tape of their Maxwell's gig on the Red Medicine tour to the point of almost wearing it out, I need to motivate on getting one of these.

- Serena Maneesh were briefly Pitchfork's new favorite band last year, but never seemed to get much momentum or attention beyond that. Are they good? Either way, I'm probably going to check them out at the Mercury Lounge on January 21 (tickets) - but more for Asobi Seksu's opening set. This is Asobi's first show in a while, and they're all done with their new album Citrus (which I hear is awesome). Can't wait to hear the record and the new songs live.

- My most anticipated January release: the Delta 5 reissue Singles & Sessions 1979-1981, out on Kill Rock Stars on January 24. KRS has "Now That You've Gone" (MP3) available for download - not my favorite of the tracks I've heard, but still good.

- A two-disc DFA remix compilation is slated to be released this spring, and it will likely be as good as the singles compilation DFA Compilation #2. The list of great DFA remixes is long and, as seen with their recent Hot Chip and Goldfrapp mixes (both fantastic), still growing. I can't get enough of that Goldfrapp mix.

- More DFA news - they're remixing a previously unreleased Arthur Russell electro track called "Springfield," which should be out in the spring on Audika. Audika is also soon releasing First Thought Best Thought, a 2 CD compilation of Russell's instrumental and orchestral music (some of which is previously unreleased). Check Banana Nutrament for more - Steven Knutson from Audika discusses the details in the post comments. (I'll be checking BN more often now - if I had read his Sunday post in time, I would've caught a performance of Russell's music that night at the St. Marks Church!)

- I'm a huge Spiritualized fan, especially of the early stuff, but their second record Pure Phase is probably my least favorite of their LP's. A few songs aside, I've just never gotten into it. Stylus's Ian Mathers lays out his case for the album in this On Second Thought piece, calling it "maybe the quintessential Spiritualized album." He makes some interesting points, but Mathers loses mucho credibility in my book when he starts knocking Lazer Guided Melodies as being "pallid," "homogenous," and virtually worthless - strong words that completely miss the mark on SPZ's strongest release, and one of my all-time favorites. The LGM hate makes me suspicious of his Pure Phase sell, but I'll give it another crack. My lack of appreciation for it has always somewhat befuddled me.

- For any NYC Matmos fans out there, I highly recommend their January 20 show at Joe's Pub (tickets). They don't come east often. When I saw them before the release of The Civil War, I was worried it might be a boring show of two guys clicking play and sitting back. But it was anything but boring - they creatively recreated their samples and sounds with instruments and other objects on stage, stitching their songs together piece by piece. They'll do the Joe's Pub show with So Percussion and with a new album due on Matador in May.

- If you haven't done so yet, I suggest you grab the Yura Yura Teikoku song I posted in the Check It section on the right yesterday. They rule.

If it weren't for the arbitrary application of the Gregorian calendar to my year-end list of favorites, I would have certainly placed Cut Copy's stellar 2004 release Bright Like Neon Love at or near the summit. I didn't unequivocally enjoy any other album more in the last 12 months save perhaps Art Brut's Bang, Bang Rock and Roll.

Now I can thank Cut Copy, with help from Jen Amadio from Modular Records, for introducing me to The Presets.  Like Cut Copy, the Presets hail from Australia and work a similar, but darker vein of beat-centered indie rock. The band has released just two EPs to date, 2003's Blow Up and the forthcoming Girl and the Sea. The title track from new EP has received the magic Cut Copy touch and it's utterly addictive. The song is rich in shadows with a trance-like calm and a quiet little guitar scratch that's sugar on the tongue.

Download "Girl and the Sea (Cut Copy Remix)" (MP3)

So it's time for the second Strokes record to splash down upon us like Skylab. Yeah, I meant to say the second album. Is This It and Room on Fire are really just two halves of one take. I've heard the explanations about how the two albums differ, but to this untrained ear it's all the same fuzz box. Now saying this is not to imply a criticism. The Strokes found a sound formula and decided not to mess with the calibrations. Good for them. I liked both records.

But now it's difficult third record time. It's the moment for The Strokes to justify themselves as more than splendid appreciators and declare their intentions for originality. For them to boldly progress to version 2.0, they need to throw themselves head first into evolution. Tentative half-steps will not work.

Unfortunately, about half of First Impressions of Earth strikes me as a cautious swing and miss.  Yes the Strokes do take chances with the secret sauce. Julian Casablancas' voice does come out from behind the Wizard of OZ curtain. Sincerity shows through the clouds of detachment now and then. I'm hooked on everything between "You Only Live Once" through "Razorblade".

But from there on the record is crippled by bloat and a lack of daring. It's overloaded with dull, autopilot moments. Strike just about any of the tedious tracks from the second half, like "On the Other Side",  "Ask Me Anything", "Electricityscape", "Killing Lies" and First Impressions of Earth is a concise and satisfying 10-song burst.

This will be the first of likely many posts about albums released in 2005 that should have made it into my favorites list. Excuses, well I have many. Regrets, I got them too. If only the day was longer or the need for sleep less demanding I could have heard it all. Now I'll need the next six months to catch up while falling behind what's coming out this year. Sisyphus, meet your rock.

Dethroning Sigur Ros from the honor of My Favorite Band That I Can't Pronounce is Finland's Paavoharju and its equally unpronounceable debut album Yhä hämärää. Given proper time and attention, this album certainly would have ranked in my top 15. Brad Rose wrote for Foxy Digitalis that "Paavoharju's dense web of gurgling ambient beauty is unlike anything I've ever heard. Ina world where everyone seems to be copying everybody else in some way or another, Paavoharju resist that temptation and forge ahead on their own."

For a taste of Paavoharju, check out the free MP3s on Mikseri.net. Also recommended is Deaf Center's Skrekkfilmbok mix, which includes Paavoharju's "aauringon tuntuinen".

Now for a related rant:

A surface skim via Google reveals that reviewers made much of the band's Christianity. Having listened to Yhä hämärää several times without knowing this detail, the fact that it was made by - gasp! - born-again Christians matters not at all. How can it really when the lyrics are sung in Finnish? Particularly loathsome is this quote from Stylus:

If I sound skeptical, it's due to a snobbish reluctance to admit that a work of such nuance and grandeur was produced by born-again Christians. Perhaps if I could translate the lyrics, sung in gossamer soprano, I'd understand the religious intent of the album. Instead, I can only appreciate the reverence that infuses Yhä hämärää, hear the spirits whispering in the dense, foggy tracks, and shudder at the ferocity of these gentle devotionals

The assumption that someone's religious faith could prevent them from producing works of "nuance and grandeur" is so uninformed it's funny. And by the way, English translations of Paavoharju's are available on its web site. Don't worry Stylus, they are free of any of clumsy, simplistic born-again tendencies.

Happy new year folks! This is perhaps the last day I can get away with posting a year-end list. The pile of '05 albums I still need to hear is sizable, so this list will probably be different in two months, etc. (You know, the usual drill.) My selections aren't all that different from the stuff that's been dominating lists for the last month, but here you go:












With nods to, in no particular order:

- LCD Soundsystem. The intense anticipation drowned out an album that never quite blew me away like LCD's first singles but was still an '05 constant.
- Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks - Face the Truth. Mr. Malkmus has had a lock on my ears for many years now, and this album kept the streak alive.
- Delia Gonzalez + Gavin Russom - Days of Mars. I wish I knew more music that sounded like this. I kept waiting for a beat to drop on my first listen, and I'm glad it never came.
- DJ Koze - Kosi Comes Around. "Brutalga Square" as the next to last track on Kompakt's best artist album of the year is like an amazing dessert after an already delicious meal.
- The Fiery Furnaces - Rehearsing My Choir. To all the haters - give this record time and an open mind and you may come around. It's worth the effort.
- The Juan Maclean - Less Than Human. I burned out on this, but for a couple months this summer it was all I wanted.
- Also: Marc LeClair - Musique Pour 3 Femmes Enceintes, M.I.A. - Arular, The Spinto Band - Nice and Nicely Done, Sufjan Stevens - Illinois, The White Stripes - Get Behind Me Satan, Lindstrom and Prins Thomas

A-Frames - Black Forest
Animal Collective - Feels
Art Brut - Bang, Bang, Rock & Roll
Andrew Bird - Mysterious Production of Eggs
Bloc Party - Silent Alarm
Brakes - Give Blood
Broadcast - Tender Buttons
Caribou - The Milk of Human Kindness
The Cars Are The Stars - Fragments
The Clientele - Strange Geometry
Colleen - The Golden Morning Breaks
Crazy Rhythms - RVNG PRSNTS MX4
Deaf Center - Pale Ravine
DJ Koze - Kosi Comes Around
Doveman - The Acrobat
The Duke Spirit - Cuts Across The Land
Elbow - Leaders of the Free World
Fiery Furnaces - EP
Goldspot - Tally of the Yes Men
Iron and Wine - Woman King EP
Isolée - Wearemonster
Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings - Naturally
The Juan Maclean - Less Than Human
Marsen Jules - Herbstlaub
Ladytron - Witching Hour
LCD Soundsystem - LCD Soundsystem
Marc Leclair - Musique Pour 3 Femmes Enceintes
London Apartments - Romanticism Aside
Low - The Great Destroyer
Magnetophone - The Man Who Ate the Man
Stephen Malkmus - Face the Truth
Cass McCombs - PREfection
Menomena - Under an Hour
M.I.A. - Arular
The National - Alligator
Optimo - Psyche Out
Kelley Polar - Love Songs of the Hanging Gardens
Archer Prewitt - Wilderness
Masha Qrella - Unsolved Remained
Rogue Wave - Descended Like Vultures
Shuttle358 - Chessa
Sigur Rós - Takk
Sleater-Kinney - The Woods
The Spinto Band - Nice and Nicely Done
Sufjan Stevens - Illinois
Superpitcher - Today
Various - Kompakt Total 6
Various - Pop Ambient 2005
Various - Run the Road
Tom Vek - We Have Sound
The White Stripes - Get Behind Me Satan