I saw NOFX a week ago Monday. These guys opened for 'em. Was never a huge fan of Dillenger Four. Guess I just never got them, though I do love this song. Unfortunately they didn't play it. Hasn't stopped me from cranking it daily since the "really big show."
"Inquiring Minds"
As I've mentioned previously, I was going to therapy due to depression over my dad dying. As I was in there with the therapist, I was babbling about some other shit, like how I spend a lot of time alone but am rarely lonely. The therapist made me feel really good about it -- I don't need to be out and about just because society says I have to have a social life. It got me thinking about the old J Church song "If I'm Lonely", especially the line: "If I'm lonely, then I got nothing to do". So true, because if I'm busy -- as I usually am -- I'm not gonna get all down in the dumps and suffer from self-pity.
"If I'm Lonely"
I finally got around to buying this EP. Don't think I'll ever get sick of this song. It's so beautiful!
"Sea of Love"
This song's been in my head recently. Great way to close side one of Dag Nasty's best album, Field Day.
"13 Seconds Under Water"
I usually hate long songs, but I've always had a soft spot for this six-minute ditty. Kind of ironic, since The Sex Pistols' best stuff rarely went past three minutes. No?
"No Fun"
I recently put this album on my iPod. Glad I caught em over 10 years ago. It was awesome! A hot summer night here in Philly, and RFTC strut on stage in their sequin outfits just before midnight. Christ, what a show -- what energy!!! Good times. . . .
"On a Rope"
An awesome way to round out this week of Active U.K. Artists. The Wombats are one of my current faves -- love their wit. Their album, A Guide to Love, Loss & Desperation, has so many great songs. I was torn whether to post this song or the final track, "My First Wedding", which has the great lyric: "This is my first wedding / And it'll probably be my last / I wish the bride and me didn't have a past". Maybe I'll post that later. . . .
"Let's Dance to Joy Division"
Ah, the 1990s, great music to listen to when you're gettin ready to go out and party. Hit it!
"You Made Me Like It"
OK, we're about halfway through this week's topic of Active U.K. Artists. These guys are more peppy than a pack of Pez dispensers. I dig how they're a hybrid of indie and hip-hop.
"Doing It Right"
A kid I went to college with turned me onto this trio of brothers. Their album Men's Needs, Women's Needs, Whatever is a classic. Not one bad track.
You know what The Cribs is? They're like Hanson. But with talent.
"Our Bovine Public"
This week, I'm going to have the theme of Active U.K. Artists. For a change, I have the whole week mapped out, so I'm gonna post the bands alphabetically.
First up is the Arctic Monkeys. Their debut CD, Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not, is unbelievable. "A Certain Romance" is the final track -- a bonus, I think. Love the lines that rhyme "Sherlock Holmes" and "ring tones".
"A Certain Romance"
I downloaded this album earlier this year. Goddamn, why did I wait so long! It's unbelievable!!! In the vein of The Ramones and Screeching Weasel, The Lillingtons have three-chord pop-punk down to a science. And it doesn't hurt that almost every song on Death by Television is sci-fi/fantasy/horror.
"Black Hole in My Mind"
I've had this song in my head recently. No real reason. It's just a goddamned fine punk-rockabilly ditty.
"I Don't Like No One"
Because I blogged about my dead dad yesterday, today I thought I would post Leftover Crack's "Life Causes Cancer", since brain cancer is how he exited this world.
The album this track is from, Deadline, is awesome. Leftover Crack don't have one piece of filler on it. And Citizen Fish's "Money" ain't too bad of a song either.
"Life Causes Cancer"
Started going to therapy because I'm still missing my dad (he died in May). So, obviously, this old Screeching Weasel song has been in my head recently."I Need Therapy"
These guys are interesting. They're marketed as an indie-rock act, but the lead "singer" is a hip-hop artist, so he's rapping most of the time. His lyrics, I think, are quite original, but his voice reminds me of They Might Be Giants and -- at times -- Too Much Joy's Tim Quirk. I chose to post "The Hollows" because of the imagery some of the lyrics paint.
"The Hollows"
Since yesterday I posted "Girl from Mars", today I thought I would upload Chris Mars' "City Light on Mars" from his debut album. Hard to believe he doesn't play music anymore -- nowadays he's a successful visual artist.
"City Light on Mars"
These guys from the New York / Conneticut area are the "diggity-wiggity", as a former coworker used to say. No filler on this album. I love how they play regular rock'n'roll with a pinch of punk rock. Plus, the singer's original voice keeps me coming for more.
"Girl from Mars"
Kinda nice to listen to a band that shows The Beatles influence without being carbon copies. I love this song because it's so simple -- that guitar riff is something Kurt Cobain might've come up with.
"Skyway"
I downloaded this album over a year ago and still can't get enough of it. Basically indie-pop, but they do enough genre-bending to keep me coming back for more. Gotta check out their other stuff.
"Bethlehem"
These guys are a guilty pleasure. Sure, they're misogynistic and sophomoric, but goddamn are they funny!
"The Party"
Awesome EP! These guys offer the perfect blend of techno, punk and metal. Mother-Fucking Death Set, indeed.
"Negative Thinking"
Christ, what an album! Fourteen songs in twenty-five minutes. And not one bad track in there. Great pop-punk in the vein of The Ramones and Screeching Weasel.
"Switchblades"
Since last week I posted old music, this week I'm going to focus on active artists.
Titus Andronicus are out of New Jersey. Their debut CD is pretty solid. Love their infatuation with distortion.
Nice to see something worthwhile come out of a crappy Shakespeare play.
"Titus Andronicus"
To close out this week devoted to Berkeley, CA, I thought I would post this song by Jawbreaker. After hearing them on Ben Weasel's Punk USA comp, I really started to get into them. Vocalist Blake Schwarzenbach was a lyrical genius. Love the line "I tried to drink you off my mind, I just got wasted".
If you can't find Punk USA, this song is also on Jawbreaker's odds-and-ends compilation, Etc.
"Sea Green Foam"
Cringer came to the Berkeley area from Hawaii, after first making a pit stop in L.A. This song is from their 7" Karin -- a nice, solid four-song record full of pop-punking goodness. Cringer, of course, eventually morphed into one of my favorite bands, J Church.
"Step Back"
These teenagers were one of the many riot grrl acts that got overshadowed by Bikini Kill. But unlike Kathleen Hanna and crew, Raooul didn't overstay their welcome. In fact, they only put out two or three seven-inches. This song, a Grease cover, is from 1993's Fresh and Nubile. Great stuff -- six songs in nine minutes.
"Summer Nights"
These guys were part of the Berkeley, CA scene via Santa Cruz. This song is from 1995 and it still kicks ass! I always thought it was an anti-alcohol tune, but I could be wrong. . . .
"Select Cola"
I know I already posted the first song from these guys' debut album, but they're so awesome they deserve another post. And even if you don't dig this track, you at least gotta give 'em props for a great -- if wordy -- song title.
This song is my version of coffee. Whenever I'm feeling low, I just crank this tune up and soon let the andrenaline flow.
Since last week I posted old music, this week I'm going to focus on active artists.
