As entertainment, Brings the disease into your room. We know the germ, Which is man-made in metal, Is really a key to your own tomb. Prevention is better than cure, Bad apples affecting the pure, You'll gather your senses I'm sure Then agree to, Melt the guns, Melt the guns, Melt the guns, And never more to fire them. Melt the guns, Melt the guns, Melt the guns, And never more desire them. Children will want them, Mothers supply them, As long as your killers are heroes. And all the media Will fiddle while Rome burns, Acting like modern-time Neros. Prevention is better than cure, Bad apples affecting the pure, You'll gather your senses I'm sure Then agree to, Melt the guns, Melt the guns, Melt the guns, And never more to fire them. Melt the guns, Melt the guns, Melt the guns, And never more desire them. I'm speaking to the Justice League of America. The you S of A, Hey you, Yes you in particular! When it comes to the judgement day and you're standing at the gates with your weaponry, You dead go down on one knee, Clasp your hands in prayer and start quoting me, 'cause we say... Our father we've managed to contain the epidemic in one place, now, Let's hope they shoot themselves instead of others, Help to civilize the race now. We've trapped the cause of the plague, In the land of the free and the home of the brave. If we listen quietly we can hear them shooting from grave to grave. You ought to, Melt the guns, Melt the guns, Melt the guns, And never more to fire them. Melt the guns, Melt the guns, Melt the guns, And never more desire them.
Alabama rockers The Drive-By Truckers performed at my favorite local music venue a little over a month ago. Due to the stresses of packing up all of my crap and moving across town, I am just now getting around to sharing the few songs I (crappily) captured with my iPhone.
The Truckers have two songwriters at this point, both of the band's co-founders. And the languid drawl of the Mike Cooley-penned songs are generally my favorites. Pretty obvious considering three of the four songs that I recorded were Cooley's.
The Wolves, performed by Bon Iver during their Coachella set.
Opening for Radiohead no less. Even better was an absolutely electric and literally spine-tingling version of Blood Bank, but that hasn't been posted. Yet anyway.
Neko doesn’t write love songs, but this is about
as close as she’s ever gotten, with the tornado being somewhat of an extension
of her psyche. Well, that's what it comes across as to me at least. Tornadoes
are, by far, my most-feared natural phenomenon. Spending thirteen of my
formative years in the tornado alley of Central Illinois while living in a
house without a basement, I vividly recall a few spring nights huddling with my
family in the bathtub under heavy blankets while the wind whipped the house and
the civil defense sirens screamed. The song opens with repeated guitar plucking
and conveys the nervous energy that ran thick on those nights when a
fast-moving cold front would crash into a warm front that was stalled high
above the Central IL plains. Just add the distinct train-like sounds that a
tornado creates.
Here’s a great YouTube video of her performing
the song on Letterman:
My love, I am the speed of sound
I left them motherless, fatherless
Their souls dangling inside-out from their mouths
But it's never enough
I want you...
Carved your name across three counties
Grounded in with bloody hides
Their broken necks will line the ditch
Till you stop it
Stop it
Stop it
Stop it
Stop it
Stop this madness
I want you...
I have waited with a glacier's patience
Smashed every transformer with every trailer
Till nothing was standing
Sixty five miles wide
Still, you are nowhere
Still, you are nowhere
Nowhere in sight
Come out to meet me
Run out to meet me
Come into the light
Climb the boxcars, to the engine
Through the smoke, into the sky
Your rails have always outrun mine
So I
Picked them up and crashed them down
In a moment close to now
Cause I miss
I miss
I miss
I miss
I miss
I miss
I miss
I miss
How you'd sigh yourself to sleep
When I'd rake the springtime
Across your sheets
My love, I am the speed of sound
I left the motherless, fatherless
Their souls dangling inside-out from their mouths
But it's never enough
My love
I'm an owl on the sill in the evening
But morning finds you
Still warm and breathing
This tornado loves you
This tornado loves you
This tornado loves you
This tornado loves you
This tornado loves you
What will make you believe me?
This tornado loves you
This tornado loves you
This tornado loves you
This tornado loves you
This tornado loves you
Building, surging, crashing, claustrophobic and
imagined by a band that was chuck-full of high-test psychedelic drugs. While
not their most-popular record (that would most certainly be 1997's breakthrough
Urban Hymns), The Verve may have peaked with their sophomore release - 1995’s A
Northern Soul. A superb record to listen to, alone, late at night and at high
volume – especially a stormy spring night with the walls alive from a steady
stream of lightning flashes.
I wanted to tell you my story
How my life seemed to change in a matter of days
The heavens break, I am walking, no talking
How come change always seems to bring the rain?
But through it all
I feel no pain
Stormy clouds (stormy clouds)
On a new horizon (new horizon)
Come and get it
If you want to
So hop on the train 'cause it kills the pain
Blues player gone to another town
Believe me this boy here is sinking (just drinking)
And these streets, these times, they tie me down (I'm through with you)
Closing out their 1970 Soundtracks record,
avant-garde German rock artists Can bring a late-night chill in this
atmospheric and nocturnal piece. You can almost hear the raindrops
strike the windshield as the car’s wipers swish back and forth on a cold early
March night.
Yes, I care if she brings me spring,
But don’t care about nothing,
She brings the rain,
Oh yeah, she brings the rain.
In the dawn of the silvery day
Clouds seem to melt away,
She brings the rain,
Oh yeah, she brings the rain.
She brings the rain, it feels like spring,
Magic mushrooms out of dreams,
She brings the rain,
Oh yeah, she brings the rain.
So mellow yellow, grey disappears,
Flying on the raven’s wing,
She brings the rain,
Oh yeah, she brings the rain.
Yes I care, she brings me spring,
But don’t care about nothing,
She brings the rain,
Oh yeah, she brings the rain.
She brings the rain, it feels like spring,
Magic mushrooms out of things,
She brings the rain, it feels like spring,
She brings the rain, it feels like spring,
She brings the rain, it feels like spring,
She brings the rain.
In the dawn of the silvery day
Clouds seem to melt away,
She brings the rain,
Oh yeah, she brings the rain,
Oh yeah, she brings the rain,
Oh yeah, she brings the rain,
Oh yeah, she brings the rain.
Although it was just yesterday when I said that I
would not cop out and simply pick XTC’s Skylarking as the consummate Spring
album (as well as one of my favorite records of all time), these two blended songs epitomize a SpringSong to me (and compromise
13.33333333333...% of the aforementioned record). I’d be a fool not to include
them in the series.
Pastoral and quintessentially English, the flawless Todd
Rundgren-produced record has been a go-to for this XTC devotee for over a
quarter of a century (or 60.24096% of my life). Yikes.
And to think, these aren’t even the best songs on
the record – they’re just the two that best fit the series. The two together is also
a textbook example of how to properly segue songs.
Ballet For A Rainy Day
Orange and lemon
Raincoats roll and tumble
Together, just liked fruit tipped from a tray
Pineapple wet heads
Watch new hairdos crumble
As scenery sunlight shifts away
Ballet for a rainy day
Silent film of melting miracle play
Apples and cherries
Are varnished in water
Despite, striped awnings bright dismay
I push my paintbrush
To conjure a new world
While this one is slowly washed away
Ballet for a rainy day
Silent film of melting miracle play
Dancing out there through my window
To the backdrop of a slow descending grey
When it rains it rains
All the colors in my paintbox
When it rains it rains
Tickets for the front row seats
Up on the rooftops
Orange and lemon
Raincoats roll and tumble
apples and cherries
Together, dropped in diamond disarray
Ballet for a rainy day
Silent film of melting miracle play
Dancing out there through my window
Behind the curtain silver falling
Ballet for a rainy day
Silent film of melting miracle play
Dancing out there through my window
To the backdrop of a slow descending grey
1000 Umbrellas
One thousand umbrellas
Upturned couldn't catch all the rain
That drained out of my head
When you said we were
Over and over I cried
'Til I floated downstream
To a town they call
Misery oh oh misery
Misery oh oh misery
And one million teacups
I bet couldn't hold all the wet
That fell out of my eyes
When you fell out with me
Now I'm crawling the wallpaper
That's looking more like a roadmap
To misery oh oh misery
How can you smile and forecast
Weather's getting better
And you'll soon forget her
If you let the sunshine come through
How can you smile and forecast
Weather's getting better
If you never let a girl rain all over you
And just when I thought that my vista was golden in hue
One million salt seas
Recalled from school atlas
Alas would be filled to the brim
Sunny Jim couldn't jump it
How can I be pleased
When I'm handed the keys
To a town they call Misery
Oh oh Misery
So with a mop and a bucket
I'll just say forget her
And carry on sweeping up
Where I've been weeping
The Jesters will creep in
To strike down the newly crowned Monarch
Of Misery oh oh Misery
How can you smile and forecast
Weather's getting better
And you'll soon forget her
If you let the sunshine come through
How can you smile and forecast
Weather's getting better
If you never let a girl rain all over you
Just when I thought that my skies were a June July blue
One thousand umbrellas opened
Two thousand umbrellas opened
Ten thousand umbrellas opened to spoil the view
Another season, another series to bore my three readers with...
I could just simply say listen to nothing but
Talk Talk’s intimate and lush The Colour Of Spring and XTC’s career highlight,
the flawless Skylarking (both of which were released in 1986), but I’m not
going to cop out with such easy picks.
I know it's quite cliché, but for me a SpringSong
can be compromised of tranquil and impenetrable lushness or can conjure up
imagery of frantic, sudden and calamitous storms – the kind that
would often send me and my classmates scurrying to the perceived shelter of a
long inner corridor in my Central IL elementary school. Other Spring Songs are breezy and
lilting, reminiscent of throwing open all of the house windows on a warm March
afternoon. The first selection, Nature Boy by Chicago’s The Sea And Cake is
from the latter.
And lyrically somewhat
nonsensical, but alive with spring imagery.
The Slide by Tall Dwarfs, from the Dogma EP (1987)
(official video here - I couldn't get the embed code from this video to work with Blogger)
Tall Dwarfs were Chris Knox and Alec Bathgate. Known for their lo-fi and four-track recordings, they laid the groundwork for much of New
Zealand's Flying Nun Records and the bands that recorded for the storied label.
Overall I have to say that 2011 was a far better-than-average year for music releases. At least for the bands that I am drawn to.
Following up their splendid 2008 debut Fleet Foxes, the band grew both musically and lyrically. A bit deeper and more introspective, but retaining their signature folk rock sound that blends some of the best vocal harmonies last heard emanating from 1960s AM radios with warm, acoustic-based instrumentation. Their sophomore release, Helplessness Blues goes down as my favorite record of 2011.
Standout track: Grown Ocean, the album's closer:
And now the rest, in alphabetical order. As in years past, I am not limiting my choices to an arbitrary number (top 10, top 20, etc.), but rather the records that I enjoyed best and see myself returning to in the future. YouTube links are included for songs that particularly stood out.
The supremely-talented Danger Mouse returns to provide the punch to the garagey guitar-and-drums duo.
Bon Iver - Bon Iver, Bon Iver
Justin Vernon follows up his stunning recorded-in-a-cabin debut (my 2008 favorite) with a more fleshed-out (and somewhat overproduced) record.
The Decemberists - The King Is Dead
I shouldn't rehash the tired "this is the best R.E.M. record of 2011" quote, but it's true - musically at least. However, Colin Meloy's intricate and über-literate lyrics are generally far better than anything that Michael Stipe came up with.
Standout track: Down By The Water
Drive-By Truckers - Go-Go Boots
Another solid release to add to their southern rock canon. And with triple the songwriters of most bands. All good.
Standout track: Cartoon Gold
(here's an acoustic version - I'm a sucker for the Mike Cooley songs)
The Feelies - Here Before
Amazing that a band could get back together after a twenty year hiatus and put out a record that's as good as their best work (which was first recorded over thirty years ago)
Girls - Father, Son, Holy Ghost
One of the best-recorded rock records of recent memory.
Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit - Here We Rest
While I still prefer his debut, this one has grown on me after repeated listens (just as the debut did).
Low - C'Mon
Perennial favorites Low can seemingly do no wrong in my book. Another strong slab of brooding Midwestern indie rock.
Standout tracks:
Witches (in-studio at KEXP)
Nightingale (in-studio at KEXP)
J Mascis - Several Shades of Why
The Dinosaur Jr. front man turns down the amps and delivers a warm, inviting and mostly-acoustic set.
Cass McCombs - Wit's End
Quiet and introspective indie singer/songwriter.
Radiohead - The King Of Limbs
Supremely intricate and sometimes delicate headphone music from the band that can do no wrong.
tUnE-yArDs - W H O K I L L
Essentially a lo-fi one-woman band who layers interesting instruments and textures atop African-inspired rhythms.
Standout track (one of many): Bizness
Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring For My Halo
Yet another lo-fi indie singer/songwriter - this stunner feels of dreamy late nights.
The War On Drugs - Slave Ambient
Pitchfork summed it up best: "...it's as if the Spiritualized and Springsteen albums filed alphabetically next to one another in your record collection had melted together on a hot August afternoon." Slave Ambient is also supreme driving music.
Wilco - The Whole Love
Finally, their first solid release since 2004's A Ghost Is Born. And I was thisclose to giving up on the band, which at one time was one of my favorites. If you only listen to two of the tracks from this record, make sure it's the lead-off The Art Of Almost and the closer One Sunday Morning (Song For Jane Smiley's Boyfriend)
Wild Flag - Wild Flag
A superb and exuberant debut from indie rock royalty.
William Elliot Whitmore - Field Songs
Rustic and rough-hewn bleak Americana country folk.
Yuck - Yuck
Picking up the torch from some of the supreme-90s indie bands (Dinosaur Jr, Superchunk, shoegazers).
Best Return - the unexpected single of Common Burn b/w Lay Myself Down from Mazzy Star
(yet another crummy fan-made video that accompanies a great song):
Looking forward to a full album in the near future.
Favorite Reissues:
The Jayhawks - Hollywood Town Hall & Tomorrow The Green Grass
Ride - Nowhere
R.E.M. - Life's Rich Pageant
Sebadoh - Bakesale
Disappointing Records with some outstanding tracks:
My Morning Jacket - "Circuital" from Circuital
Ryan Adams - "Ashes & Fire" from Ashes & Fire
Especially this acoustic version:
And finally, a couple of late additions. Either late-in-the-year releases or those that were just purchased and that I haven't had much of a chance to fully absorb yet. The Bats - Free All The Monsters
Bill Callahan - Apocalypse
Guided By Voices - Lets Go Eat The Factory
Cass McCombs - Humor Risk
The Middle East - I Want That You Are Always Happy
Punk legend/super fan Henry Rollins interviews the band prior to the performance:
Being a quiet band of introverts who prefer to make loud sounds with their instruments, Henry did the majority of the talking.
Onto the music. After a couple of warmup tracks, they ripped into Freak Scene:
Midway through the set and Budge:
And finishing off with their classic cover of Just Like Heaven by The Cure:
This time I wisely brought my earplugs along. So nice to feel the music without feeling pain in my ears from the sheer volume of the three guys pounding out the music onstage.
Hailing from the Saint Paul, Minnesota it's quite natural for a band to have a winter-themed song. With long, dark and bitterly-cold winters, the Twin Cities, as well as other cities that have cold or miserable-weather have long been fertile ground for bands. What else are you going to do? Sacked in and bored, you sequester yourself to the basement and pick up some instruments and bang out music. Or drink. Or, in the case of Hüsker Dü, do both, and do both well.
From Flip Your Wig, the Hüsker's fourth studio album, as well as their second stellar release of 1985, is Flexible Flyer.
Down on my Flexible Flyer
To the bottom how fast I would go
Just waiting for me under the tree
And out in the snow
A cowboy, a nurse or a fireman
There's so many things that you can be
You can set bigger goals, but set your soul
Yeah, set your soul free
Times, places and situations
Lead to an early grave
When we get there we see
Just what did we save?
If your heart is a flame burning brightly
You'll have light and you'll never be cold
And soon you will know that you just grow
You're not growing old
If the wheels of your wagon are rusty
You can paint them until they are new
You can roll down a hill, but if you can't
Then I pity you
(and the video - which sadly has nothing at all to do with sleds or winter):
Growing up in the Midwest I always had a Flexible Flyer as part of my winter arsenal of sledding devices. Sure, aluminum saucers were fun and erratic (you'd often end up facing the wrong way, speeding backwards and out of control down the hill), while molded plastic sleds always had interesting novelty gadgets like (shudder) brakes. But once the snow became packed down enough, generally after a couple of good snowfalls, coupled with a freeze/thaw cycle or two, Flexible Flyers were my go-to sleds.
I'd fastidiously file the rust off the runners and then apply whatever wax I could find, generally rubbing an old candle along the now-smooth rails. Yes, as a 10 year-old, I lived in a Swix-free home.
With our neighborhood adjacent to a local country club, there were plenty of moderately-steep and long hills to descend. But the best sledding tracks were always made on the steep, curving and shaded closed-for-the-season boat launch at a nearby lake. My friends and I spent hours in the snow packing and shaping the most-perfect track this side of Lillehammer. Wipeouts were inevitable, as was losing a glove or moon boot when one launched off-track and into the dormant brush. And while we would always end up cold and nearly-frostbitten, we'd return the next day (or evening if school was in session), repair the track and attack it again.
Nowdays this is the only Flexible Flyer I still own, a small ornament that was made by one-time employer Pacific Cycle when they owned the brand:
Reflective, intimate and
somewhat plaintive, Robyn Hitchcock’s Winter
Love comes from his primarily-acoustic1984 release I Often Dream of
Trains. Showcasing a quieter side of the eccentric songwriter, the track
title alone should be a good tipoff that it’s a fine winter song.
Robyn Hitchcock – Winter Love
It's the darkest time
of year
Crystal branches everywhere
As the colours drain away
You alone are far away
Leaves of frost upon the trees
Lovers falling on their knees
Curtains parting in the night
Let me in your sweet delight
Where the garden used to be
Now a different world I see
For one second all I know
Everything is made of snow
First from white and then to blue
Pink to purple lost to view
It's the darkest time of year
Winter love is almost here
This song’s simple acoustic guitar
strumming introduction is enough to make the hair on the back of my neck stand
on end. And once the lovely Ms. Case’s siren-like vocals kick in I’m lost in
the song. It’s clearly one of the standout tracks from her breakthrough 2002
record Blacklisted that saw her move beyond the simple alt-country stylings of
her earlier efforts and into a darker, deeper, haunted, Judy
Garland-as-channeled-by-David-Lynch type of vibe. (Did I use enough
descriptions there?) Well-suited to late night winter drives when abundant snow
flurries whip past the windshield on lonely two-lane country roads, her velvet voice
and the rich production and arrangement keeping my soul warm.
(horrible fan-made video since she never made one for the song):
Neko Case – Stinging Velvet
Rain falls, I fix my eyes
Let go of the focus and I blur out all the lines
Just to remember, remember
Crying 'cause it's not my fault
Water through my lashes look just like Christmas lights
And I still remember, remember
Cold and shivering
Cold and shivering
Cold and shivering warm
Sing please, rock me to sleep
Quiet as a canyon up under heaven's eaves
I surrender, surrender
Downstairs the furnace swells
Safe from all the horrors in your stinging velvet arms
And I surrender, surrender
