Worst Album Covers of 2009

On a lighter note, Pitchfork has posted it's 20 worst album covers of the year. Very funny.

R.I.P. Chris spacewolf Feinstein

Today Chris Feinstein was found dead in his apartment. Chris was a fine musician and will be missed. He was the final piece added that made the Cardinals complete. I'm glad that I got to enjoy your art in person on more than one occasion.

So tired

It has been like forever since I have made a post here. A new house and baby have not impeded my opportunities to listen, but have greatly impeded my ability to reflect. So tired, but here is what is going on...

I was very excited to unpack the music archive at our new house. Virtually all of my music had been packed away for a good 6 months. Having everything displayed before me is like being a kid in a candy store. The timing is especially good because there isn't an album that I can't stop listening to at the moment. I have been rediscovering all sorts of great stuff on my way to and from work.

The Sisters of Mercy have been a frequent flyer lately. Great early 80's goth! Really good late 80's goth. Spotty early 90's goth. Some Girls Wander By Mistake is such classic post punk goth.

Roxy Music - For Your Pleasure found its way into the rotation. Bryan Ferry and Brian Eno at their best and most promising. This early 70's gem is such a great time capsule. Ferry's lyrics are absurd and even profane as he rambles them like he is almost making them up as he sings them in his crooning vibrato. And Eno just creates these complex and dense soundscapes that ride underneath every track. The album is this crazy blend of much of what was going on in music at the time. Self indulgent 8 minute stoner jams. Acid rock guitar riffs. Pre-disco boogie. Crooning balladry. A song about the complications of a romance with an inflatable sex doll. Awesomeness!

Low - The Great Destroyer. Just intense. One of my favorites from this decade.

Bob Mould - Body of Song. Circles is just amazing. I think I played this song eight or nine times while listening to this album this week.

The Cure - MSG '08. Pictures of You is the best song ever written. 20 years after its release it is still just as stunning as the first listen.

Goths In Hot Weather

A music culture side note here from one of my favorite genres. Have you ever wondered what goths do in the summer? Now is your chance to find out. Goths In Hot Weather is a humorous collection of photos and analysis of how goths survive the summer heat.

By Numbers : 1

Andrew Bird. What an unbelievable one man band. A one time member of the swing group, Squirrel Nut Zippers, Andrew has taken his talents to higher levels and defies categorization. His compositions are languid and flutter by like sweet melodies carried on a gentle breeze. (did I really just say that?) I haven't had the pleasure of actually seeing Bird live, but have witnessed various films of his solo performances where he plays all the parts of his songs and uses foot peddles to record and loop sections that he then accompanies. That and he is an awesome whistler.
Pitchfork has a series of songs performed live in a church that are worth a watch and listen.

Summer Tunes

Summer always has a been a time for fun and relaxation. There is a feel and vibe, but there is also a sound. It is not necessarily a genre or style of music, although some lend themselves more easily than others. The sound conjures that feel or vibe.

As a kid, I distinctly remember my dad playing his records more frequently in the summer and it was the one season when Christmas albums were cut from the rotation. The Beach Boys and Rolling Stones will ever conjure thoughts of the sun glistening off of the pool water, the smell of fresh cut grass, and the feeling of not having to do anything but relax.

Now that I am an adult with my own house and family, I am crafting that summer sound for my household. Hopefully my kids will carry the same summer feelings attached to our summer soundtrack as I have to the soundtrack from my youth. Here are some of the frequent summer tunes of our household...

Obviously the Beach Boys and Stones are worked in. I prefer Hot Rocks and Good Vibrations.
Red Hot Chili Peppers - any of the John Frusciante records (By The Way has a fantastic vibe with gorgeous melodies)
The Dandy Warhols - any
Toots and the Maytals - True Love
Chris Isaak - Baja Sessions
My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult - Hit and Run Holiday
Red House Painters - Ocean Beach
Josh Rouse - Nashville
Fleetwood Mac - Rumors
U2 - Achtung Baby
Rodrigo y Gabriela - Rodrigo y Gabriela
The Cure - Mixed Up / Standing On A Beach
Garden State and 50 First Dates soundtracks

Mark Kozelek Starter Kit

Mark Kozelek is an American song writer and singer that I have listened to on and off for years. His Red House Painters helped to create the slow core movement in the nineties. He has gone on to develop and refine his sound through a number of solo ventures and with his current band, Sun Kil Moon. Most of Kozelek's songs take some time to appreciate. At first they come of as simple and atmospheric, but upon repeated listens they reveal themselves. Brilliant lyrics, beautiful melodies, and sincere delivery. His career has many highlights including RHP's Ocean Beach, Sun Kil Moon's Ghosts of the Great Highway and April, and Mark Kozelek's Rock-n-Roll Singer. That's a lot of albums to venture into discovery so a made a list of some of my favorite songs that you could find on most music services.

Brad's Mark Kozelek Mix
1. Rock and Roll Singer *
2. Metrol 47 *
3. Around and Around *
4. Carry Me Ohio #
5. Salvador Sanches #
6. Gentle Moon #
7. Lily and Parrots #
8. Heron Blue $
9. Moorestown $
10. Unlit Hallway %
11. Tiny Cities %
12. Summer Dress @
13. Katy Song +

* KM - Rock and Roll Singer
# SKM - Ghosts of the Great Highway
$ SKM - April
% MK - Lost Verses
@ RHP - Ocean Beach
+ RHP - RHP (rollercoaster)