Telephasic Workshop

It's Better To Regret Something You Have Done Than Something You Haven't Done

2009-07-16T08:15:00.001-06:00

I totally miss this blog and wish I had enough time to post here again regularly. Maybe I'll find some surprise extra hour in the day and start doing so...

In the meantime, you can always find me posting the ephemera of my life on Twitter or Facebook.

Watchtower Genius Meme

2008-10-09T22:58:00.004-06:00

So my friend Rich has started a meme: tell iTunes to create a Genius playlist based on Bob Dylan's "All Along The Watchtower" and publish the results. Here's mine:

"All Along The Watchtower" - Bob Dylan
"Young Americans" - David Bowie
"Rhiannon (Single Version)" - Fleetwood Mac
"Reelin' In The Years" - Steely Dan
"Saint Simon" - The Shins
"Alison" - Elvis Costello
"Where It's At" - Beck
"In Between Days" - The Cure
"Do You Realize??" - The Flaming Lips
"Wolf Like Me" - TV On The Radio
"Fell On Black Days" - Soundgarden
"7/4 (Shoreline)" - Broken Social Scene
"Changes" - David Bowie
"Life During Wartime" - Talking Heads
"The Chain" - Fleetwood Mac
"Kissing The Lipless" - The Shins
"Lithium" - Nirvana
"Baby Brother" - The White Stripes
"Just Like Heaven" - The Cure
"Bigger Than My Body" - John Mayer
"The Only Living Boy In New York" - Simon & Garfunkel
"Dirty Work" - Steely Dan
"My Best Friend's Girl" - The Cars
"Rebel Rebel" - David Bowie
"The Man In Me" - Bob Dylan

Dude, that's just strange. Seems like it just wanted to pull anything old it could find.

Best parts:

iTunes somehow draws a line between Dylan and TVOTR
The list begins and ends with Dylan tracks

Everything That Happens Will Happen Today -- out now!

2008-08-18T06:27:00.003-06:00

The first new album by David Byrne & Brian Eno in nearly 30 years is out now:

Get it!

First Pluto, now this

2008-05-10T11:37:00.001-06:00

First Pluto, now this
Originally uploaded by jgd3

Best Music of 2007

2008-02-10T17:47:00.000-07:00

It's my Top Ten for 2007...finally!

I realize I said this for 2006 too, but last year was a fantastic one for music. So much so that I struggled for a month deciding which albums would make it into my list. Usually each year I try to write up a review of my top albums, but it's February now and I haven't found the time yet. Since I don't see that changing anytime soon, I give up. Here's my list, straight up:

Top Ten Albums for 2007

Honorable Mentions:

Walls - Apparat
Person Pitch - Panda Bear
Oblivion With Bells – Underworld
Consequence Music – Dextro
Fur And Gold – Bat For Lashes
I’ll Sleep When You’re Dead – El-P
In Our Nature - José González
The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust! – Saul Williams
Language Barrier – Lusine ICL
We Can Create – Maps

Yeah I know that's a lot of runners up, but there were way more than ten great albums this year!

And now as a bonus for all those of you who so patiently , here's the bonus round:

Song of the Year

"Stars"* - Goodbye - Ulrich Schnauss

Best Live Album of 2007

Live Session (iTunes Exclusive) - k-os

Best DJ Mix of 2007

Live'r Than You'll Ever Be - Bestival 2007 - The Kleptones

Best Album of 2006 That I Didn’t Discover Until 2007

Carnavas - Silversun Pickups

Biggest Disappointment of 2007

Atlantis - k-os

Agree? Disagree? Just feel like commenting? Let me know what you think!

('*' = not a DRM-free link)

See also:
Review: "Year Zero" by Nine Inch Nails (that's right – the only top ten review I managed to get done)
Top Ten Albums of 2006: Recap (+ Bonus Round!)

"Yes We Can"

2008-02-03T18:09:00.000-07:00

Okay, no surprise to my regulars that I support Barack Obama for president. But whether you do or not, I encourage you to check out this song and video, "Yes We Can":

This is really moving. I could not have imagined Will.i.am capable of something like this. My hat is off to him, director Jesse Dylan and all the people that pitched in to be a part of it.

If you're in a Super Tuesday state, please get out and support the candidate of your choice -- it's never been more important than it is right now.

Tops of My Pops for 1/13/08

2008-01-13T16:30:00.000-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending January 13, 2008
1. Massive Attack
2. Burial
3. Maps
4. Amy Winehouse
4. Apparat
4. Ulrich Schnauss
7. M.I.A.
8. Panda Bear
9. Radiohead
10. Nine Inch Nails
10. Meat Beat Manifesto
10. LCD Soundsystem

Quick Hits:

Finally broke down and checked out Back to Black. After hearing it, I'm convinced Mark Ronson is a genius.
I'm really having serious issues trying to fit Apparat, Ulrich Schnauss and Panda Bear all into my Top Ten for 2007. Not all of them are going to make it, yet all of them are good enough to have a spot.

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

New Jamie Lidell Album & Tour in 2008

2008-01-12T12:58:00.000-07:00

Check out this live rehearsal video from Jamie:

Looks like he's bringing a full live band with him this time. He was awesome last time I saw him live -- and that was just him solo!

See also:
Jamie Lidell – Live Goodness!

Tops of My Pops for 1/6/08

2008-01-06T16:00:00.001-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending January 6, 2008
1. Radiohead
2. Thom Yorke
3. Dextro
3. Iron & Wine
5. The Church
6. David Bowie
6. Clark
6. Ultramarine
9. Nine Inch Nails
9. The Kleptones
9. Klimek
9. He Said
9. Faithless
9. Spoon

No surprise seeing Radiohead topping the week's listening, given that In Rainbows is so obviously the Album of the Year. More on that when I get my Top Ten together for 2007...

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 12/30/07

2007-12-30T15:38:00.000-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending December 30, 2007
1. Radiohead
2. k-os
2. David Bowie
2. Beck
5. The Kleptones
5. Spoon
5. DJ Shadow
8. Justin Timberlake
9. Kate Bush
9. Josh Rouse
9. Sondre Lerche
9. Jurassic 5
9. Foo Fighters

Nothing interesting going on this time around. We had relatives visiting all week, so we were listening to pretty innocuous stuff.

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

The Clinton's Halloween Party

2007-12-28T12:24:00.000-07:00

Just saw this hilarious SNL clip and had to share:

Go Barack!

Tops of My Pops for 12/23/07

2007-12-23T11:40:00.000-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending December 23, 2007
1. DJ Z-Trip
1. Beck
3. Radiohead
4. The Kleptones
4. Kiln
6. Beastie Boys
6. Nine Inch Nails
6. k-os
9. The Bees
9. David Bowie
9. Spoon
9. Klimek
9. Josh Rouse

Quick hits:

Z-Trip's All Pro soundtrack is unfortunately not scratching my turntablist itch the way Shifting Gears did so well.
Kiln has released a nice album (Dusker) and ep (Vaporbend) that occupy the crossroads where crisp electronics meet noise and ambient.
Speaking of ambient, my buddy mrkvm turned me on to Klimek's interesting Dedications. Executed by Sebastian Meissner under one of his many aliases, it's not necessarily cohesive as an album but the individual tracks are very nice (and trying guess how the varied individuals influenced the compositions dedicated to them is fun).

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 12/16/07

2007-12-16T16:55:00.000-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending December 16, 2007
1. Nine Inch Nails
1. Burial
3. Underworld
4. Massive Attack
5. David Bowie
5. John Mayer
7. The Kleptones
7. Zero 7
9. Boards of Canada
9. Jamie Lidell
9. Josh Rouse
9. Coldplay
9. Coil
9. RJD2
9. Radiohead
9. Renegade Soundwave
9. Lamb
9. The Decemberists
9. Seefeel

(Editor's Note: all commentary is suspended until John manages to catch up on his weekly postings.)

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 12/9/07

2007-12-09T16:35:00.000-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending December 9, 2007
1. The Kleptones
1. Saul Williams
3. David Bowie
4. Amon Tobin
5. Soundgarden
6. Klaxons
7. The Church
8. DJ Shadow
9. Spoon
10. Sigur Rós
10. Radiohead
10. Beck
10. Múm

(Editor's Note: all commentary is suspended until John manages to catch up on his weekly postings.)

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 12/2/07

2007-12-02T16:10:00.000-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending December 2, 2007
1. Nine Inch Nails
2. Radiohead
3. Stars of the Lid
4. Yppah
5. Cocteau Twins
6. Seefeel
7. Underworld
8. k-os
8. Spoon
8. The White Stripes

(Editor's Note: all commentary is suspended until John manages to catch up on his weekly postings.)

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 11/25/07

2007-11-25T15:50:00.000-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending November 25, 2007
1. Burial
2. Beck
3. Radiohead
4. Cocteau Twins
4. Josh Rouse
4. Gang of Four
4. Underworld
8. Massive Attack
8. Renegade Soundwave
8. Boards of Canada
8. Spoon
8. Jurassic 5
8. Autechre
8. Nine Inch Nails

(Editor's Note: all commentary is suspended until John manages to catch up on his weekly postings.)

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 11/18/07

2007-11-18T15:40:00.000-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending November 18, 2007
1. Stars of the Lid
1. Radiohead
3. The Hives
4. Ulrich Schnauss
4. Kiln
4. The Church
7. Killing Joke
8. Lusine ICL
9. El-P
10. Thomas Fehlmann
10. Meat Beat Manifesto
10. Spoon

(Editor's Note: all commentary is suspended until John manages to catch up on his weekly postings.)

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 11/11/07

2007-11-11T23:59:00.000-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending November 11, 2007
1. Iron & Wine
2. David Bowie
3. Lee "Scratch" Perry
4. Tim Hecker
5. Rockers Hi-Fi
6. The Sea and Cake
6. Killing Joke
8. Faith No More
8. The White Stripes
8. Brian Eno
8. DJ Shadow
8. Nine Inch Nails
8. The Field
8. Everything but the Girl

(Editor's Note: all commentary is suspended until John manages to catch up on his weekly postings.)

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

The Office Is Closed

2007-11-08T23:34:00.000-07:00

For those of you living under a rock, the Writer's Guild of America is striking in order to force the studios and networks to negotiate residual payments for digital media. Sounds complicated or maybe boring, but it's not. And every TV show and movie currently in production in the U.S. is affected. And tragically, that includes The Office. Listen to what the show's actors and writers have to say about it:

Find out more at United Hollywood. Support the Strike!

Tops of My Pops for 11/4/07

2007-11-04T23:52:00.000-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending November 4, 2007
1. Nine Inch Nails
2. David Bowie
3. DJ Shadow
4. Underworld
4. Amon Tobin
4. Renegade Soundwave
4. Radiohead
8. Autechre
8. Clark
8. Meat Beat Manifesto

(Editor's Note: all commentary is suspended until John manages to catch up on his weekly postings.)

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 10/28/07

2007-10-28T23:45:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending October 28, 2007
1. The Dead Texan
1. Underworld
1. Radiohead
4. Spoon
5. Stars of the Lid
6. James Brown
6. DJ Shadow
8. Gang of Four
8. Wagon Christ
8. Lusine ICL
8. David Bowie

(Editor's Note: all commentary is suspended until John manages to catch up on his weekly postings.)

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 10/21/07

2007-10-21T23:35:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending October 21, 2007
1. Underworld
2. Apparat
3. David Bowie
3. Josh Rouse
5. LCD Soundsystem
5. Spoon
7. Radiohead
7. Beastie Boys
7. Beck
10. The Kleptones

(Editor's Note: all commentary is suspended until John manages to catch up on his weekly postings.)

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 10/14/07

2007-10-14T23:05:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending October 14, 2007
1. Radiohead
2. Spoon
3. Maps
3. Silversun Pickups
5. Lusine ICL
6. Wilco
7. Amon Tobin
7. Beck
9. Robert Fripp
9. Underworld
9. Plaid
9. David Bowie

(Editor's Note: all commentary is suspended until John manages to catch up on his weekly postings.)

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 10/7/07

2007-10-07T22:50:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending October 7, 2007
1. Spoon
2. Foo Fighters
3. Fridge
3. Josh Rouse
5. Manual
5. Lusine ICL
7. Radiohead
8. Beck
8. David Bowie
8. Interpol
8. Meat Beat Manifesto
8. Gang of Four
8. The White Stripes

(Editor's Note: all commentary is suspended until John manages to catch up on his weekly postings.)

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 9/30/07

2007-09-30T21:40:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending September 30, 2007
1. Simple Minds
2. Iron & Wine
3. Ulrich Schnauss
4. Klaxons
5. Underworld & Gabriel Yared
6. Wire
6. Cepia
6. Maps
9. Spoon
10. Beastie Boys
10. Josh Rouse

The grind to catch up with my real-time listening continues... I will pause briefly to reflect on the ongoing tidal wave of musical goodness that is 2007: fantastic albums from Iron & Wine and Klaxons enter the fray this week, upping the current tally for my year-end Top Ten to around two dozen contenders.

Worries about Sam Beam selling out on The Shepherd's Dog turn out to be entirely unfounded. While there are more instruments and more musicians and even more singers on this one, he's continuing to refine that exquisite pastoral melancholy that we all know and love.

Klaxons were this year's Mercury Prize winners for their debut Myths Of The Near Future (technically a 2006 release, but only just now making it over the Atlantic). On it they've delivered a reckless, brilliant, modern, electrifying UK rock sound the brazenly reaches across the gap between the quirky indie camp and the stadium rockers. They're hooky and perplexing as you might imagine, but there's a hot swagger to it that rivals anything Bobby Gillespie ever aspired to. Listen to "It's Not Over Yet" before you tell me I'm wrong.

Finally, I can hear you all asking: what the hell is Simple Minds doing at the top of this week's chart? Before all the Breakfast Club mega-stardom rotted their brains and begat all the sonic garbage that followed, the band released five bold, experimental and ultimately cinematic masterpieces of pop music in four short years: Empires And Dance (1980), Sons and Fascination / Sister Feelings Call (two EPs released in 1981 and later combined on CD), New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84) (1982), and Sparkle in the Rain (1984). Lo and behold, all have been remastered and the first three are now available in iTunes Plus format. I have proudly (re)purchased the 1981-82 releases and listen in awe and respect. So there.

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 9/23/07

2007-09-23T23:35:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending September 23, 2007
1. Underworld
2. Spoon
3. Radiohead
3. David Bowie
5. k-os
5. Caribou
5. The Kleptones
8. Nine Inch Nails
9. Beastie Boys
9. Beck
9. Ulrich Schnauss
9. DJ Z-Trip
9. Massive Attack
9. Severed Heads
9. Johnny Cash

Absolutely nothing to say this week. Things were once again hectic at work so there wasn't time to enjoy tunes much...

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 9/16/07

2007-09-16T23:15:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending September 16, 2007
1. Nine Inch Nails
2. LCD Soundsystem
3. David Bowie
3. Spoon
3. Faithless
6. Beck
6. Underworld & Gabriel Yared
6. Radiohead
9. Meat Beat Manifesto
6. Underworld

Lots of work this week; no time for play. Thus, nothing to say.

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Underworld Live @ the Fillmore Auditorium, 9/11/07

2007-09-12T18:30:00.000-06:00

Last night was one of the musical highlights of my life: I finally got to see Underworld live.

Several years back when I was first discovering them, I heard from many different sources that they delivered an earth-shaking performance at Coachella 2003. That alone was enough to get me out to three consecutive Coachella Festivals, in hope of catching something as exciting (which I did). But still I waited for my chance to see Underworld.

The venue was originally set to be the epic Red Rocks Amphitheatre, but just a few short days before the show the promoter moved everything to the Fillmore Auditorium in Denver instead. While that was undeniably a disappointment in and of itself, the show was still incredible. Before the starting the first song, Karl Hyde apologized to the crowd and informed us that Live Nation would be sending every ticket holder a free copy of Underworld's upcoming album, Oblivion With Bells. Nice way to clear the air!

There's no way to describe it like it was, but I can tell you that as far as I'm concerned, it was two plus hours of pure bliss. My pal mrkvm captured the vibe well with a few surreal photos of a surreal experience (including the one at the top of this post). Peak moment: all 3700 audience members bouncing out of control to "Cowgirl".

Setlist:

Dirty Epic
Crocodile
New Train
Biro the Leggy (a.k.a. Beautiful Burnout)
Rez/Cowgirl
Glam Bucket
Two Months Off
Spikee
Nuxx
King of Snake
Pearl Girl
Moaner
Jumbo

(The less said about wretched opener Paul Oakenfold the better. He should be ashamed of himself.)

Tops of My Pops for 9/9/07

2007-09-09T17:40:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending September 9, 2007
1. Stars of the Lid
2. M.I.A.
3. Bat For Lashes
4. Radiohead
5. Beck
6. Amon Tobin
6. Depeche Mode
6. Massive Attack
6. Tim Hecker
6. DJ Shadow
6. Meat Beat Manifesto

My brain is going to explode from all the great new music coming out this year. M.I.A.? Against all odds, her sophomore release is fantastic. Bat For Lashes? It will remind you of other great trailblazing female vocalists, but you've never heard anything quite like this haunting debut.

Sorry, no time to stick around and get into the exquisite details...

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 9/2/07

2007-09-02T17:22:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending September 2, 2007
1. David Bowie
2. Spoon
3. Strategy
3. Josh Rouse
3. Dextro
3. Cocteau Twins
7. The Kleptones
7. Beastie Boys
7. k-os
10. Outputmessage
10. Common
10. Gang of Four
10. Mogwai
10. Beck
10. Nine Inch Nails
10. Radiohead
10. Tim Hecker

So. Far. Behind. ButStrategyandDextroarereallycool. Bye.

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

"Nice marmot."

2007-08-27T22:57:00.001-06:00

RMNP-50.jpg
Originally uploaded by richcaccavale

My friend Rich had a sighting during his trip into the back country...

Tops of My Pops for 8/26/07

2007-08-26T17:00:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending August 26, 2007
1. Spoon
2. Maps
3. Soundgarden
4. Josh Rouse
5. David Bowie
5. Fujiya & Miyagi
7. Matthew Dear
7. Ministry
7. Luke Vibert
10. Beck

I'm criminally behind on posting my weekly charts, so I'm forced to forego clever commentary (like "Fujiya & Miyagi are awesome" and "why do people like Matthew Dear?") in favor of just catching up...

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Obama/Stewart '08

2007-08-25T10:15:00.000-06:00

Barak Obama on The Daily Show:

John Stewart has smart and funny questions, Barak Obama has smart and funny answers. Sounds like a dream ticket to me!

WebCrash2007

2007-08-20T14:28:00.000-06:00

Absolutely spot-on perfect:

Tops of My Pops for 8/19/07

2007-08-19T17:20:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending August 19, 2007
1. Nine Inch Nails
2. Renegade Soundwave
3. Cepia
4. LCD Soundsystem
4. Stars of the Lid
6. Dextro
7. Butthole Surfers
7. David Bowie
9. Soundgarden
9. Spoon

Nothing too insightful to report this week. Been checking out two new electronic releases from Cepia and Dextro – have heard either of them all the way through but both are very promising. And that new Nine Inch Nails album, Year Zero? Still totally fantastic.

See also:
Review: "Year Zero" by Nine Inch Nails
NIN: Year Zero Mania
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Beastie Boys Live @ Red Rocks

2007-08-17T12:17:00.000-06:00

On August 16th, I had the distinct pleasure of seeing the Beastie Boys perform live at Red Rocks.

This was the third time I've seen them (once on the Licensed To Ill tour and again on the Hello Nasty tour) and by far the best show. Touring to promote their all-instrumental album, The Mix-Up, the show was a great balance of rap, punk and instrumental songs from throughout their musical history. I think Mike D probably wins the prize for "Most Fun to Watch", but MCA and Ad-Rock were both on point. Mix Master Mike, Money Mark and Eric Bobo were all on hand to round out the touring band, so it was a real all-star affair.

(Mic to Mic posted a great set of photos from the show on Flickr)

Tops of My Pops for 8/12/07

2007-08-12T10:50:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending August 12, 2007
1. The Zutons
2. Underworld
3. Panda Bear
3. Yppah
5. The Field
5. k-os
5. Can
5. Aerosmith
5. DJ Shadow
5. Junior Boys

I finally got my hands on a copy of The Zutons' Tired Of Hanging Around. Quite by accident I saw them perform most of the songs off this album when they played at Coachella 2006. Hard to describe; sort of straight-ahead garage pop...but not. Definitely loads of fun live, and this album's filled with a lot of that playful rock spirit.

Panda Bear's Person Pitch. How to explain that? Freaky, folky, psychedelic and oddly post rock, it's like this year's Pet Sounds revival only as if it were spearheaded by Tim Hecker and Kevin Shields. A wall of beautiful mixed up Brian Wilson-ness for the laptop set? I dunno...but I really, really like it.

It turns out that k-os' iTunes Live Session is a lot more enjoyable than his most recent album. With a nicely paired down accompaniment for an almost-but-not-quite "unplugged" sound, this set really highlights how strong and distinctive his vocals are.

Still loving Yppah and The Field. No real explanation for Aerosmith's appearance in my Top Ten this week other than a maudlin nostalgic urge to hear their Greatest Hits album again. I pledge to fight that urge in the future.

Been listening to more Underworld recently as I'm getting more and more excited about seeing them at Red Rocks in September...

See also:
Underworld tix, baby!
Top Ten Albums of 2006: #6 - "Harmony In Ultraviolet" by Tim Hecker
Sunshine on the horizon
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 8/5/07

2007-08-05T17:00:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending August 5, 2007
1. David Bowie
2. Primal Scream
3. Amon Tobin
4. Lamb
4. DJ Shadow
4. Spoon
7. Boards of Canada
8. Johnny Cash
8. Squarepusher
8. Mogwai
8. Massive Attack
8. The Kleptones
8. Jack Johnson
8. Radiohead

Vacation this week, so believe it or not there wasn't much iPod action...and the listening is pretty predictable "comfort music".

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 7/29/07

2007-07-29T16:15:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending July 29, 2007
1. LCD Soundsystem
2. Yppah
3. Primal Scream
4. Ulrich Schnauss
5. Spoon
6. The Kleptones
6. Tim Hecker
8. David Bowie
9. Radiohead
9. Amon Tobin
9. Meat Beat Manifesto
9. Josh Rouse
9. Beck
9. Gang of Four
9. Fila Brazillia

LCD Soundsystem's Sound Of Silver gets better every time I hear it...and that's become quite often. When I first heard "Daft Punk Is Playing At My House" I thought it was pretty irritating. But that's back when I thought these guys were serious. Flash forward a few years to their brilliant second album and I totally get what James Murphy is doing and totally love it. If you're still trying to figure out WTF his deal is, check out two tracks: "Losing My Edge" and "North American Scum". That should basically give you everything you need to know to totally bond with him.

I stumbled onto Yppah thanks to the always enjoyable and informative Scissorkick. It's hard to go wrong with a Ninja Tune signing, but I think this guy is gonna turn out to be somebody special in the electronic(a) music scene. He's been a rock-n-roll guitarist and bassist, as well as a scratching hip hop and house DJ, and took all that musical experience and put it in a blender that spat out You Are Beautiful At All Times. And he's from Texas. Represent!

I have a feeling both of these albums could make it onto my year-end Top Ten....

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 7/22/07

2007-07-22T15:10:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending July 22, 2007
1. The Church
2. Spoon
3. Röyksopp
4. Maps
4. Lee "Scratch" Perry
6. The Upsetters
7. The Sea and Cake
7. Beck
9. The Field
10. k-os
10. Ulrich Schnauss

"The Soundtrack To Summer". That's what I'm calling this week's chart. How can you think of any of these artists without involuntarily imagining sunny days and warm weather? A few shout outs:

I've been inspired recently (my my old pal dnl's review of Gold Afternoon Fix) to reconsider The Church. Turns out I didn't have any of their catalog on My personal jury is still out on the later stuff, but I have truckloads of good will for their first several albums. They've traced an interesting creative arc over the years, going from a Aussie indie rock sound in the 80's to super radio-friendliness in the early 90's to somewhat experimental art rock today. They're no Talk Talk, but hey -- who is really?
Plenty's been said elsewhere about Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, the new release from Spoon, so I'll choose not to belabor the point here. I will say this: it's their best album since Kill The Moonlight (not a comparison I make lightly).
Maps (James Chapman) is on the Mercury Prize Shortlist this year for their debut, We Can Create. He's been thrown in the nu-gaze bucket already (and not completely without reason) but he seems to be pushing beyond that as well. I can't quite put my finger on it, but he wholeheartedly embraces sweet melodies without going for the pure pop jugular the way his shoegaze ancestors often did. The songwriting casts a broader net than that, and the music is richer for it. For some weird reason I'd like to put Maps and The Decemberists in a room together and see what they could cook up.

Tops of My Pops for 7/15/07

2007-07-15T10:55:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending July 15, 2007
1. Coldcut
2. Akufen
2. Butthole Surfers
4. Fila Brazillia
5. David Holmes
5. A Plus D
7. The Field
8. The Decemberists
9. Spoon
9. M.I.A. & Diplo
9. Broken Social Scene
9. LCD Soundsystem

Can't think of any particularly clever observations to make about my listening habits this week -- I pretty much spent it listening whatever random thing pleased me at the moment. I have been re-enjoying the Butthole Surfers early stuff however, and I still get Austin flashbacks every I hear them.

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 7/8/07

2007-07-08T19:40:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending July 8, 2007
1. Ulrich Schnauss
2. Bonobo
2. Renegade Soundwave
2. Spoon
5. Rage Against the Machine
5. Wagon Christ
5. The Church
5. Radiohead
5. Lamb
10. The Sea and Cake

Too much working and not enough time listening to music (what else is new?) but there was one extremely bright spot this week: Ulrich Schnauss.

Goodbye (along with the Quicksand Memory EP) is simply amazing. With this new material he's shifted even further into dreamy alt-pop territory, frequently putting the guitars front and center and making liberal use of vocals throughout.

If you buy only one nu-gaze release this year, I'm thinking this is it.

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Imagine My Suprise...

2007-07-08T07:26:00.000-06:00

79% Geek

Tired of Broadcast TV? Make Internet TV!

2007-07-06T19:56:00.000-06:00

Big props to The Participatory Culture Foundation for launching MakeInternetTV.org, your one stop site for everything you need to know to roll your own video and get it online.

There's info and instructional videos on equipment, technique, editing, licensing, publishing and even tips for promoting your video baby. Plus, everything is linked to the MITV wiki, where anyone and everyone can share their questions and know-how.

Here's a quick video clip featuring Dean the Elongated Man to tell you more about it:

Make Internet TV: Introduction

We're all very lucky to live in the Internet Age, don't you think?

Tops of My Pops for 7/1/07

2007-07-01T19:10:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending July 1, 2007
1. DJ Shadow
2. Beastie Boys
2. Stars of the Lid
4. B. Fleischmann
5. Massive Attack
5. Radiohead
5. Spoon
8. David Bowie
8. James Brown
8. Josh Rouse
8. The Kleptones

The new all-instrumental Beastie Boys album, The Mix-Up, turns out not to be as punk-tinged as Mike D led us to believe, but it is at least a worthy equal to The In Sound from Way Out! (If you hadn't noticed already, the entire Beasties catalog is now available in the DRM-free iTunes Plus format)

Stars of the Lid just continue blowing me away with their latest, the two disc masterpiece And Their Refinement of the Decline. You'd think that as sublime as their sound is, it would start to sound tired or formulaic after a couple of albums. You'd be wrong...very, very wrong. Self-deprecating titles aside, they just keep getting better at taking my breath away.

Finally, it just doesn't get much better than DJ Shadow's amazing live album/DVD In Tune And On Time. I hope that he's figured out by now that all that brilliance he turned out preceding The Outsider wasn't just "hipster bullshit" after all.

Hmmm. That's a lot of things not being what they seem. I didn't realize I had a theme this week.

See also:
Gettin' stewy with it!
DJ Shadow's new video is Nintendo-riffic!
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

The iPhone Cometh

2007-06-28T20:02:00.000-06:00

Tomorrow sees the release of Apple's iPhone and I...wish I had one. *sniff*

Reasons Why I Shouldn't Buy One:

I'm on a Verizon contract for the foreseeable future, and as everyone knows AT&T has a FIVE YEAR EXCLUSIVE on the iPhone. Damn, I hated AT&T so much I switched a couple of years ago. Go figure.
I really have to carry a Blackberry for work and the thought of having two different cell phones makes my pockets cry...especially if one of them is bigger than a PSP.
My only personal concern about owning one of these God-devices is that there will be a better one every six months (yeah, just keep telling myself that...)

Warren Ellis: What Best Says Mad for Rock?

2007-06-26T11:47:00.000-06:00

Today's starry wisdom from Warren Ellis:

Talking of odd, I heard a bit of the new White Stripes. And I'm going to have to listen again, because I swear I heard some Jethro Tull in there. What was the name of that git? Ian Anderson? With the wild look in his eye, and his "look at me, I'm so craaazy, prancing around playing my fucking flute." Because nothing says Mad For Rock like a flute, mate.

Tops of My Pops for 6/24/07

2007-06-24T17:55:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending June 24, 2007
1. David Byrne
2. David Bowie
2. Ulrich Schnauss
4. Fila Brazillia
4. Silversun Pickups
6. The Field
6. Underworld
6. Massive Attack
9. Loscil
9. DJ Shadow
9. Linkin Park
9. Beck

This was a great week for discovering new (to me) artists. The first revelation is Silversun Pickups, who I know nothing about but are rocking my world regardless. Great fusion of classic-era Smashing Pumpkins and maybe Lush, but the results are more powerful and exciting than just another indie band wearing their influences on their collective sleeve. The other great discovery is The Field, who's From Here We Go Sublime is pure looping repetitive minimal techno joy (YMMV).

Also, topping my list for the week was David Byrne's forgotten magnum opus, The Catherine Wheel – his soundtrack to Twyla Tharp's production of the same name. Released the same year as his landmark collaboration with Brian Eno, My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts, The Catherine Wheel shares many of the same experimental leanings, but largely does so without found sounds and tape loops. Instead Byrne creates a warmer, more organic feel using mainly live instrumentation, and bounces back and forth between abstract soundscapes and anxious, angular pop ala Talking Heads of the same period. Definitely a "desert island disc" for me.

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 6/17/07

2007-06-17T23:05:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending June 17, 2007
1. David Bowie
2. Skinny Puppy
3. Radiohead
3. The Sea and Cake
3. Linkin Park
6. Lily Allen
6. RJD2
8. Amon Tobin
8. Everything but the Girl
8. Barry Adamson
8. Spoon
8. Broken Social Scene
8. Gang of Four
8. Beck
8. Harold Budd
8. Wire
8. Battles
8. Manual
8. A Sunny Day In Glasgow
8. Underworld

Not a whole lot more time for listening this week than last, but I made a concerted effort to rate as many unrated tracks as I could along the way. This yielded some interesting (and overdue) observations:

Albums that exceeded my expectations: Battles' Mirrored (the ultimate expression of math rock)
Albums that were everything I had hoped they would be: Wire's Pink Flag (yeah, I know I should've owned this one decades ago), Barry Adamson's Stranger On The Sofa (he hasn't let me down in years), Amon Tobin's Foley Room (still trying to get used to this one though)
Albums that failed to achieve: Linkin Park's Minutes To Midnight (but an 'A' for effort, guys), Lily Allen's Alright, Still (although there are a few great tracks hiding in there), A Sunny Day In Glasgow's Scribble Mural Comic Journal (feh), Skinny Puppy's Mythmaker (was this even necessary?), Rjd2's The Third Hand (still, not as apocalyptically bad as everyone was going on about)

Back In The Saddle Again!

2007-06-16T11:40:00.001-06:00

Wow, that was painful.

First there was ten days of vacation (which was fine), but then that was followed by two weeks of work travel and a solid week of feeling like death warmed over thanks to a double-whammy of a cold and evil allergies. Simultaneously my PowerBook started freaking out, went in for repairs twice, and was out of commission for two entire weeks while Apple Support figured out WTF. Two main logic boards later it's back to normal.

So much has happened in the world since I last posted, it's pretty overwhelming trying to figure out where to begin. But I'm just gonna take a deep breath, stretch out and get to blogging.

Thanks for your patience while I was being spanked by The Universe.

Tops of My Pops for 6/10/07

2007-06-10T12:00:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending June 10, 2007
1. Beck
2. The Sea and Cake
3. Massive Attack
3. Beastie Boys
3. Depeche Mode
3. Zero 7
3. Dub Syndicate
3. Lee "Scratch" Perry
3. Bonobo
10. k-os
10. Ministry
10. The Decemberists
10. DJ Krush
10. Coldplay
10. Midwest Product
10. Tubeway Army
10. Space Monkeyz vs. Gorillaz
10. Radiohead
10. Coldcut
10. A Sunny Day In Glasgow

As it turns out, there was too much time spent working this week, resulting in not a lot of listening. Overall low play counts made for a pretty random list. Wish me more luck next time!

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 6/3/07

2007-06-03T10:35:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending June 3, 2007
1. Jack Johnson
2. The Kleptones
3. The Sea and Cake
3. The Helio Sequence
5. LCD Soundsystem
6. David Bowie
6. Pedro
8. Marvin Gaye
8. DJ Shadow
10. Ministry
10. Beck
10. Richard Cheese
10. Spoon

Sometimes you just want to get your mellow on. Jack, Marvin, The Sea and Cake, The Helio Sequence and Pedro contributed nicely to that vibe this week.

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 5/27/07

2007-05-27T20:10:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending May 27, 2007
1. David Bowie
2. Spoon
3. Beck
4. Radiohead
4. Loscil
4. Josh Rouse
7. Broken Social Scene
7. Mogwai
9. Boards of Canada
9. My Bloody Valentine
9. Gang of Four
9. Primal Scream
9. Squarepusher
9. The Kleptones
9. Underworld

Nothing too crazy to report this week, as we were on vacation all week (Vegas, baby!) with friends. As a result, what little listening there was was fairly mild-mannered. Bigger excitement next week!

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 5/20/07

2007-05-20T23:55:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending May 20, 2007
1. DJ /rupture
2. DJ Andy Smith
3. Nine Inch Nails
4. Meat Beat Manifesto
5. Outputmessage
6. Squarepusher
7. The Decemberists
7. Loscil
9. DJ Shadow
10. Radiohead
10. The Sea And Cake
10. Portishead
10. Josh Rouse
10. Fila Brazillia
10. Dub Syndicate

Spent some time time week rockin' some mixes I'd been sitting on for awhile from DJs /rupture and Andy Smith. Both were quite tasty, with Smith's The Document II certainly a worthy successor to his first and DJ /rupture's Minesweeper Suite being one of the best drum 'n' bass/jungle sets I'm heard captured on disc in a long time.

I've just discovered Loscil's Plume is perfect for lazy warm weather listening. This is dovetailing nicely with the seemless mellow of The Sea And Cake's latest.

Much to the puzzlement of nearly everyone (including myself), I've somehow grown to enjoy The Decemberists. Disturbing though it may be, it turns out that I think The Crane Wife is pretty darned good. What's happening to me?

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Better Gmail Add-On

2007-05-19T12:00:00.000-06:00

The folks over at Lifehacker (a site I love) have created something fantastic – the Better Gmail add-on for Firefox:

A compilation of the best Greasemonkey Gmail enhancements in one extension.

A comprehensive suite of Gmail enhancements, including skins, saved searches, keyboard macros, secure access, attachment icons, attachment reminders, label colors, signature floating and more.

So smart, and just a big bundle of features that I can no longer live without. If you love Gmail, you'll want to marry this! Go get it!

Awesome Mariachis

2007-05-19T11:47:00.000-06:00

Forgot to mention that before mrkvm and I saw Amon Tobin the night of May 4th, we arrived in the neighborhood early and decided to have dinner at Mezcal. Little did I know we were about to witness – I kid you not – the coolest mariachi band ever: Mariachi Vasquez.

Seven members, four of them female (I don't think I've ever seen a mariachi band with any female members, let alone a majority of them). Exceptionally talented; in fact far, far better than they needed to be (I grew up in West Texas, so I know just enough to tell the difference). But the icing on the cake was their style: no sombreros, but head to toe in matching crushed red velvet uniforms with gold embroidery, and a look that was absolutely 21st Century. Witness:

They've got a website of their own that is well done but extremely traditional. If you want the real 'MV flava', you need to check out their MySpace page – that's the real them. Needless to say I friended them instantly. :-)

If I ever have a big party, I can guarantee you I'm giving Mariachi Vasquez a call – they're awesome!

Underworld tix, baby!

2007-05-15T22:02:00.000-06:00

I'm finally getting my chance to see Underworld live on September 11th, after wishing and praying for the last several years. It's going to be at one of the most memorable venues in the U.S.: Red Rocks Amphitheatre. Awesome!

Also, this makes it seem like a pretty sure bet that there will be a new Underworld album release this year – double awesome!

Planning to go? Give me a shout out!

Tops of My Pops for 5/13/07

2007-05-13T12:25:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending May 13, 2007
1. The Sea And Cake
2. B. Fleischmann
3. Squarepusher
4. Clark
5. Kasabian
5. Radiohead
5. Cocteau Twins
5. Nine Inch Nails
5. Jesu
5. The Kleptones

Snagged two great new summer-riffic albums this week (from Other Music Digital) that effortlessly topped my chart, The Sea And Cake's Everybody and B. Fleischmann's The Humbucking Coil. Both are warm and inviting like a relaxing afternoon on the beach, and highly recommended!

See also:
Other Music Digital: 70's Japanese psychedelic folk music for your iPod
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Other Music Digital: 70's Japanese psychedelic folk music for your iPod

2007-05-10T10:40:00.000-06:00

Made my first purchase from Other Music's new Digital Music Store the other day and it was a great experience. I bought Everybody, The Sea and Cake's latest, The Humbucking Coil by B. Fleischmann, and a fantastic fifty track Trojan Upsetter Box Set.

All music in their digital store is available in DRM-free 320 kbps flat bit rate MP3 format, so the quality is better than both the iTunes Music Store and the rip quality I would normally use for my own CDs. They offer two methods for downloading your purchases: either manual downloading of the individual MP3s or the much easier and seemingly error-free option of using their own OMD (heh) Download Manager.

Their digital offerings are a subset of their extensive and wildly eclectic physical offerings, but the digital catalog is growing literally all the time (they were actually adding new albums to the 'electronic' genre even while I was browsing it).

All in all Other Music Digital is a great new DRM-free high-quality digital music resource to supplement Bleep.com and the emerging DRM-free offerings at the iTMS.

Tops of My Pops for 5/6/07

2007-05-06T22:52:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending May 6, 2007
1. Explosions In The Sky
2. Digital Mystikz
2. Beck
4. Spoon
5. Gang Of Four
6. DJ Shadow
6. David Bowie
6. Squarepusher
6. James Brown
10. Primal Scream
10. Nine Inch Nails
10. Radiohead
10. Beastie Boys
10. Depeche Mode
10. Kiln
10. Amon Tobin

Explosions In The Sky have been lurking in the musical background for a few years now, slowly attracting my attention until this latest album sort of burst into my consciousness. The post-rock Mogwai-esque epic sountrack sound they've been fine-tuning for years is really working for me on All Of A Sudden I Miss Everyone, and now even How Strange, Innocence is sounding cool.

Been wanting to check out Digital Mystikz ever since I saw Burial raving about them. I haven't quite uncovered the greatness yet, but I'm willing to keep trying.

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Damien Rice Live!

2007-05-06T15:02:00.000-06:00

(super-awesome mobile phone action photo)

Saw Damien Rice last night with my wife at the Paramount Theatre.

While I'm sort of ambivalent about his albums (hhd is a huge fan though), I have to say the whole performance was way classy. The band setup itself was tastefully done, with the drummer, bass guitarist and cellist on low risers and the entire dotted with candles. Rice alternated between playing a piano upstage and acoustic or electric guitars front and center. The sound was excellent and the venue wasn't even close to as horrid as we had expected.

All in all a surprisingly (for me) pleasant evening.

Amon Tobin Live!

2007-04-30T16:30:00.000-06:00

Saw the incredible Amon Tobin throw down a vicious DJ set last night at the Bluebird Theater in Denver.

His arsenal included (as usual) a little bit of everything: techstep, dubstep, good ol' drum 'n' bass, ambient, chorales, marching bands, symphonics, and sprinklings of his own material...typically all at the same time. Folks that came expecting the subtlety of his latest album, The Foley Room had their minds and ears exploded.

Having seen him several years back I knew what kind of dark, crazy territory I was in for. Both times there were huge chunks of the set that sounded like an alien warehouse party flavored with random selections of that crazy Earth music. He has the ability to spin baffling combinations of sounds and beats with the utmost precision; always surprising and always fantastic.

If you have a chance to see him, do so – it's a one-of-a-kind experience.

Review: "Year Zero" by Nine Inch Nails

2007-04-30T13:52:00.000-06:00

Right up front: I'm completely blown away by the latest Nine Inch Nails album.

To be honest I had given up on Trent Reznor ever recapturing the lightning in a bottle that was The Downward Spiral – the subsequent NIN releases were an exercise in frustration and diminishing returns. And while the virtual world viral chase that surfaced in advance of the album looked interesting, I just didn't imagine that the album itself would live up to the hype. Holy Jeebus, was I wrong!

For one thing, it's got a sound that feels current and classic at the same time. Gone is the hollow, underproduced feel of the tedious With Teeth. That classic heart-pounding power chord kick that you look for in a NIN album is back, along with noise, noise and more noise. And I don't mean just some noisy rock fuzz; I mean crazy, squelchy machines-imploding-and-running-off-the-rails noisy. And somewhere between the last album and this one Trent recaptured that signature 'funky industrial drummer' vibe that always separated his stuff from just another dude with a guitar and a drum loop.

For another it's a full-blown concept album (I know The Fragile was billed as a concept album as well, but I'm pretty sure only Trent could tell you what the concept was). The setting is the near-future America on the brink of a socio-political sci-fi apocalypse. Sounds like shooting fish in a barrel if you have even a passing familiarity with NIN's favorite themes, I know...but it works. There's plenty of getting on our knees, being on our knees, and getting up off our knees, but in this context of a totalitarian military/religious state, there's a compelling reason for it.

Lyrically he manages to examine several different point of view beyond master and servant, and pulls off some very cool new vocal and musical twists along the way without losing the essential NIN of it all. I don't know if it's going to resonate with folks that weren't already predisposed to dig his stuff, but I hope it does because this deserves to be heard.

So reaching the end of the disc, I'm already certain that Year Zero is one of my top ten albums for 2007. I'm also realizing I'm gonna lose a lot of free time to chasing the mysteries of this thing online....

See also:
NIN: Year Zero Mania

Tops of My Pops for 4/29/07

2007-04-29T18:55:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending April 29, 2007
1. Nine Inch Nails
2. Tim Hecker
3. Amon Tobin
4. Thom Yorke
5. Underworld
6. Meat Beat Manifesto
7. Brian Eno
7. The Dead Texan
7. Harold Budd
10. Cocteau Twins
10. Manual
10. Kasabian
10. The Strange Parcels
10. The Kleptones

Listened to the surprisingly excellent new Nine Inch Nails about a million times this week, and ended up crowding out almost everything else (see my review of Year Zero to find out why). Also giving Amon Tobin a little extra attention in anticipation of his upcoming Denver appearance – should be a fantastic show!

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

It's Coachella 2007 – wave to the shark!

2007-04-27T15:10:00.000-06:00

Coachella 2007 kicked off today...and I feel perfectly fine not being there for the first time in four years. Last year's line-up was a bit dodgy but I went anyway. This year's simply was not worth the trip (certainly not worthy of a three day festival).

A week or two back my wife showed me a full page in that month's Marie Claire magazine, I kid you not: "What to Wear to Coachella". If there was any doubt in my mind about passing on this year's festival, that clinched it for me.

(But have fun, Steve. I know you'll the the most out of it!)

See also:
Jamie in the basement
Festival Madness

Tops of My Pops for 4/22/07

2007-04-22T14:55:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending April 22, 2007
1. Akufen
2. Fila Brazillia
3. Zero 7
4. Underworld
5. Peanut Butter Wolf
5. Radiohead
7. Beck
8. Massive Attack
9. DJ Shadow
9. David Bowie
9. Severed Heads

Lots of mix CD listening this week. Checked out Akufen's Fabric 17 mix which was filled with lots of obscure click-house (enjoyable as expected) and Badmeaninggood Vol. 3 from Peanut Butter Wolf, which was filled with lots of obscure funk and soul (which was unexpectedly boring). Also rocked two huge favorites: the exceptional mixes from Fila Brazilla and Zero 7 in the Anotherlatenight series.

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

500 Trades Later, Still Loving Lala

2007-04-21T09:07:00.001-06:00

I just noticed that I passed the 500 trades mark at Lala a few weeks ago. While things have slowed down a bit (now that my want list is down to the newer or more eclectic releases), I'm still trading three or four times a week. At $1 + shipping a trade, it's consistently been a fantastic deal.

If you haven't tried Lala yet, I whole-heartedly endorse checking it out. If you're already a member, why aren't you sending me all the stuff on my Want List? :-)

Click here to get any of my CDs for $1

See also:
Do you like my Lala?
I love Lala

Tops of My Pops for 4/15/07

2007-04-15T22:00:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending April 15, 2007
1. Lusine
2. Radiohead
3. Massive Attack
4. Meat Beat Manifesto
4. Josh Rouse
6. David Bowie
6. Fila Brazillia
6. Squarepusher
6. Cocteau Twins
6. The Kleptones
6. Dub Syndicate
6. James Brown

Gone into full-on Lusine mode this week after getting my hands on Podgelism, which remixes Serial Hodgepodge with contributions from John Tejada, Matthew Dear, Deru and of course Jeff McIlwain himself. Great stuff that's really scratching my electronic itch of the moment.

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Kurt Vonnegut: 1922-2007

2007-04-11T22:26:00.001-06:00

Kurt Vonnegut died today.

I can't tell you how much I loved the man, because he really got it. Life. America. The Human Condition. He was our generation's Mark Twain.

Love this quote the NYT pulled from God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater for his obituary:

“Hello, babies. Welcome to Earth. It’s hot in the summer and cold in the winter. It’s round and wet and crowded. At the outside, babies, you’ve got about a hundred years here. There’s only one rule that I know of, babies — ‘God damn it, you’ve got to be kind.’ ”

So long, thanks and farewell, sir.

Tops of My Pops for 4/8/07

2007-04-08T13:15:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending April 8, 2007
1. Bonobo
2. Spoon
3. Coldcut
4. Massive Attack
5. Beck
6. Autechre
6. Radiohead
6. David Bowie
9. Cocteau Twins
10. Primal Scream
10. Richard Cheese
10. Lusine
10. Squarepusher
10. Amon Tobin
10. Josh Rouse

Still lovin' on many of my Best of 2006 artists this week, but also sneaking in some time to check out stuff I haven't heard before. Picked up a few Radiohead CD singles and a couple of older releases from Richard Cheese and Josh Rouse (two artists that couldn't get any farther away from each other on the sincerity scale), but the standout this week is Lusine. On mrkvm's recommendation, I've been listening to Serial Hodgepodge, and it's filled with dreamy, clicky goodness.

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Top Ten Albums of 2006: Recap (+ Bonus Round!)

2007-04-04T17:49:00.000-06:00

Whew! That was really hard!

As I mentioned in the kickoff four and a half weeks ago, 2006 was the most difficult year for picking a top ten that I can remember. So many great releases and so difficult to settle on an order! To recap:

Top Ten Albums for 2006

Honorable Mentions:

I think I'll start earlier next time, and pledge to have my next Top Ten done by the end of January 2007. :-)

And now as a bonus for all those of you who waited patiently for the main event, here's the rest of the notable musical releases from 2006 IMHO:

Song of the Year

"Live With Me" – Collected - Massive Attack

Best Live Album of 2006

Live Session (iTunes Exclusive) – Iron & Wine

Best DJ Mix of 2006

DJ-Kicks – Four Tet

Best Album of 2005 That I Didn’t Discover Until 2006

Speak For Yourself – Imogen Heap

Biggest Disappointment of 2006

Riot City Blues – Primal Scream

Agree? Disagree? Just feel like commenting? Let me know what you think!

Top Ten Albums of 2006: #1 - "Sound Mirrors" by Coldcut

2007-04-04T10:58:00.000-06:00

Jonathan More and Matt Black don't have anything left to prove to anybody.

They made the U.K.'s first homegrown breakbeat record, "Say Kids, What Time Is It?". Shortly thereafter they unleashed a worldwide top ten hit and musical milestone, their remix of Eric B. & Rakim's "Paid In Full". They're responsible for what is widely recognized as the single greatest live DJ set ever recorded, Journeys By DJ: 70 Minutes of Madness. They are true dj pioneers, among the first to incorporate the live mixing and scratching of video hand-in-hand with vinyl and CDs in their performances. And they've parlayed their global success into their own innovative Ninja Tune record label, home to some of the most creative musicians recording today (Amon Tobin, Bonobo and The Cinematic Orchestra, among others). Working together for the last twenty years as Coldcut, they've paid their dues, pushed the envelope and staked out a rare position of total creative freedom for themselves and their like-minded label mates.

Sound Mirrors, the duo's first proper album in seven years, finds them taking on a whole new challenge: no longer needing to prove how clever or talented they are, this album is an exercise in song craft. There's no unifying theme here, just a remarkable variety of fantastic music. Each of the twelve tracks explores different stylistic territory, forcing each one of them to stand on its own merits by design. While this diversity has pretty well guaranteed commercial failure for the release, it stands as a musical triumph.

Given that neither of the men are singers, More and Black worked with a hand-picked group of collaborators on almost every track to great effect. The album starts off with the melancholy indietronica of "Man In A Garage", with words and vocals by American poet John Matthias. This is followed by a hip-hop/Bollywood party monster "True Skool", featuring U.K. rap giant Roots Manuva. Next is "Just For The Kick", a sedated meditation on consumer culture by synthesizer pioneer Annette Peacock set to a robotic electro beat. After that we're treated to classic performance from Chicago house legend Robert Owens, on the anthemic "Walk A Mile In My Shoes". And then it's "Mr Nichols", an arresting spoken word masterpiece by Saul Williams set to music...followed by the dadaist delight "Whistle & A Prayer", co-created with the indescribable band Fog...followed by a hard-rocking call to revolution courtesy of Jon Spencer and Mike Ladd (yes, the two of them on the same logic-defying funk explosion).... No slight to the other excellent contributions from Amiri Baraka, Soweto Kinch, Mpho Skeef and talented unknown Dom Spitzer, but you get the idea. Fittingly, the album closes out with the instrumental title track. It's a jazzy soundtrack piece with real emotional weight built on a dissonant and extremely unlikely rhythm loop, undoubtedly because they found the challenge of it enjoyable.

With Sound Mirrors, Coldcut have created a reflection of their own musical, cultural and political kaleidoscope with unmatched skill and creativity. Commercial appeal be damned, they've made the album of the year.

Tops of My Pops for 4/1/07

2007-04-01T21:18:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending April 1, 2007
1. Coldcut
2. James Brown
3. Thom Yorke
4. Josh Rouse
5. Junior Boys
6. Spoon
7. Radiohead
8. My Bloody Valentine
9. dZihan & Kamien
10. Digital Mystikz
10. LCD Soundsystem

No time to comment – I'm writing my "Best of 2006" list!

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Top Ten Albums of 2006: #2 - "The Eraser" by Thom Yorke

2007-03-30T17:46:00.000-06:00

There's no way to talk about Thom Yorke's The Eraser without mentioning Radiohead's Kid A and Amnesiac. The band's bold flirtations with electronica back in 2000 clearly planted the seeds for Yorke's quietly powerful solo debut six years later.

The sonic formula for the album is quite consistent, and Nigel Godrich's contributions cannot be underestimated (he serves as arranger, producer, mixer and musician on the album). Yorke's relatively unadorned vocals are placed front and center, backed by minimalist instrumentation built largely from electronics. It's a subversive tactic, because the album's easy flow belies the emotional weight of the songs themselves. Every single track has moments of lyrical brilliance, and no other vocalist can match Yorke's ability to convey the anxieties and psychoses of modern life with such arresting beauty and fragile strength.

Moreso than any album of 2006, this one has grown on me with each successive listen. Whereas I was initially ambivalent towards it, at this point I consider The Eraser to be an obvious classic.

Top Ten Albums of 2006: #3 - "So This Is Goodbye" by Junior Boys

2007-03-28T23:05:00.000-06:00

Junior Boys really made a huge leap forward last year with So This Is Goodbye. Without selling out even the tiniest bit of indietronica cred they earned to date, on this latest release they've jumped headlong into the art of the pop song. Sounding comfortable and effortless, they've mastered the form without falling back on clichés, and given their long-time fans a lot to chew on regarding what it means to be 'pop'.

Alternating between bouncy, sexy tunes like "Double Shadow", "The Equalizer"* and the perfect pop treasure "In The Morning" and more introspective, mellow tracks like "FM" and "When No One Cares" (a Sinatra cover), the album shows both range and maturity while holding onto an ephemeral youthfulness that's key to its success. And while the songs are thoroughly modern, the album as a whole seems to pay respects (sonically, at least) to John Foxx, Fad Gadget, Thomas Leer and other synth-pop pioneers from a generation back.

Junior Boys have created something essentially of-the-moment by looking back to their arguably unhip influences while planting their flag firmly in the pop present. If there's any justice, So This Is Goodbye will get them the mainstream attention they rightfully deserve.

*Man, is the Morgan Geist Graphic Mix of this on the In The Morning awesome!

Tops of My Pops for 3/25/07

2007-03-25T21:09:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending March 25, 2007
1. Plaid
2. Subtle
3. Burial
4. Lyrics Born
5. Rae & Christian
5. Bebel Gilberto
7. KMFDM
8. Underworld
9. Richard Cheese
9. Fennesz
9. The Sea and Cake
9. African Head Charge
9. LFO
9. Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark
9. Spoon
9. dZihan & Kamien

No time to comment – I'm writing my "Best of 2006" list!

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Top Ten Albums of 2006: #4 - "Burial" by Burial

2007-03-23T21:45:00.000-06:00

Lurking around the fringes of the British club scene, dubstep isn't so much a formula as a feeling. Burial's self-titled debut, perhaps the first breakout album born of this new genre, is spilling over with mood and atmosphere. Even the cover's murky, night time view from high above South London perfectly captures the detached, spectral vibe of the album.

Burial invokes a London in perpetual darkness, crowded yet lonely, as if walking down a darkened back alley just around the corner from the rest of humanity. It hints at sounds from many different cultures, both ethnic and social, without embracing any of them. Voices and melodies often exist only in the margins of the mix, and even then sparsely. Listening, one is struck by the purposeful repetition of ominous bass patterns and sporadic, minimalist percussion dominated by echoing rimshot rhythms...with little else. It all comes together perfectly on the astonishing "Southern Comfort", setting the high watermark for the album's unique ambiance.

Burial is both of and outside electronic music trends, a distant observer deconstructing the rituals of the genres that surround it. For my money, this haunting futuristic dispatch is one of the very best of the year.

Tops of My Pops for 3/18/07

2007-03-18T20:57:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending March 18, 2007
1. The Kleptones
2. RJD2
3. Yesterday's New Quintet
4. Danger Doom
5. LFO
6. The Gift of Gab
6. Devo
8. Red Snapper
8. Greater Than One
10. Radiohead
10. Johnny Cash
10. Depeche Mode

No time to comment – I'm writing my "Best of 2006" list!

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Top Ten Albums of 2006: #5 - "24 Hours" by The Kleptones

2007-03-16T18:35:00.000-06:00

(For those of you keeping score at home, I've now hit my top five albums for 2006. To be perfectly honest, from here on out all of them are tied for first place. I've still assigned an ultimately arbitrary order to them, but these any of these five releases could be the best of the year.)

You won't find The Kleptones' double-disc masterwork 24 Hours in stores because the current climate in the music industry towards copyright would never allow it to happen. See, every one of its thirty-three tracks is a mashup, or what's sometimes known as 'bastard pop': taking two or more recorded songs and mixing them together to create something new from the collision.

That makes what Eric Kleptone does sound simple or even trivial, but the results prove otherwise. There is more artistry and compositional brilliance on these two discs than the vast majority of music I heard last year, mash-up or not. Having said that, 24 Hours is funny as hell in some places and clever everywhere.

The album serves as the soundtrack to a typical. Our lead character wakes, catches the bus, goes to work, hits the clubs, heads back home, goes to sleep and yes, even dreams. All of his or her story is via music and sampled dialog from, well, everywhere. Imagine Steve Miller Band, ZZ Top, White Stripes, Dilated Peoples, Korn & the Dust Brothers all mashed together – in the same track. Not only does it work, but it's brilliant. And he does it again and again, track after track, for two CDs worth of music.

But lest you think this is all just one big musical stew, know that this combination of music and thoughtfully chosen dialog creates a cohesive, complex work of art. Each track is a completely viable musical work (if not legitimate in the legal sense), and not a one of them I would have ever thought of on my own. I could spend all day trying to enumerate the crafty combinations Eric cooks up, but thankfully folks with far more time on their hands than me have gone to the trouble to dissect all thirty-three tracks already. It's a pretty stunning list.

Looking back, I've probably gotten more pure entertainment from 24 Hours than any other in 2006. Download it now and find out what you're missing before the lawyers find it!

Tops of My Pops for 3/11/07

2007-03-11T20:46:00.000-06:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending Maarch 11, 2007
1. Clark
2. Bonobo
3. Tim Hecker
4. Amon Tobin
5. Johnny Cash
5. Brian Eno
7. Massive Attack
7. Radiohead
9. James Brown
9. Squarepusher
9. Midwest Product
9. Red Snapper

No time to comment – I'm writing my "Best of 2006" list!

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Top Ten Albums of 2006: #6 - "Harmony In Ultraviolet" by Tim Hecker

2007-03-08T22:55:00.000-07:00

How to describe Tim Hecker's music?

The first track I ever heard from him was "Sundown6093" off Ghostly International's Idol Tryouts Two. One listen and I was hooked: waves of noise and distortion coalescing into a haunting soundtrack for a distant future. The fact that it's still my favorite track from the entire Idol Tryouts series should say something.

Harmony in Ultraviolet, the title of Hecker's amazing 2006 collection, offers offers fifteen compositions using a wide variety of sounds – sometimes melodic and/or rhythmic and sometimes neither – all in service of this unique aesthetic.

"Whitecaps Of White Noise" a two-part piece found on the disc, is perfect example of the results. There are conventional instruments here, briefly taking their turns at the monolithic chord progression that makes up the melody line, but their presence takes a distant back seat to the otherworldly waves of distortion that permeate the piece and give it its weight.

Hecker, like Kevin Shields at the height of his powers, is interested in the sounds between the notes as much if not more so than the melody itself. He also understands the transcendence of repetition, and at times his music approaches the fugue state that composers such as Philip Glass or Steve Reich know so well. Yet as a whole, Harmony In Ultraviolet feels like an ambient music experience more than anything else. There's incredible, peaceful beauty to be found everywhere on this disc if only you're willing to listen for it.

Noise that reveals beauty – that's Tim Hecker.

Top Ten Albums of 2006: #7 - "Body Riddle" by Clark

2007-03-06T22:45:00.001-07:00

The last time I checked in on Clark was a couple of albums ago, when he was still early on in his recording career and still went by his full name, Chris Clark. Clarence Park sounded pretty much like any generic IDM release of the era. Body Riddle is an entirely different animal. While there are scattered appearances by analog instruments and sounds, the entire album is heavily processed. Throughout, the source audio has been processed and manipulated so heavily that when analog sounds make an appearance it's almost as if they've broken free of the track, popping right out of the sonic stew. But this isn't to say that there's a sterility to the music – the adjective that comes to mind again and again is "organic".

Clark is really in some singular territory on much of the album. Like some kind of musical explorer taming a primeval land all his own, he creates and builds on combinations of sounds that just quite haven't been heard before. Rather than the strict metronomic precision typical to most electronic compositions, these tracks are exotic and unpredictable, with an unrestrained messiness to them. Some have the feel of field recordings from some strange alien jungle, or the internal soundtrack of imaginary beasts.

To me, Body Riddle is a place – one filled with strange vistas and beautiful creatures. The duo of "Herr Bar" and "Frau Wav" give a sense of soaring through lush foreign landscapes. The single, "Ted" reminds me of nothing moreso than a huge dinosaur, drunken and lumbering through the swamplands. "Night Knuckles" sounds like a parade of cheerfully industrious insects, while "Vengence Drools" evokes visions of some kind of predatory beast on a late night mission of destruction. And "The Autumn Crush" is a twister touching down to raze the countryside for the apocalyptic grand finale.

Who could resist an album that makes one see such amazing things?

Top Ten Albums of 2006: #8 - "Days To Come" by Bonobo

2007-03-04T22:55:00.000-07:00

This album arrived at a really crucial juncture for me. All year I found myself wondering where all the great downtempo went. Thankfully, Bonobo came to the rescue with a real gem.

It seems like there's been an ever-growing supply of shallow dinner party background music trying to pass itself off as the latest in urban hipster soundtracks. Days To Come arrived on the scene this year to kick all that to the curb like a bad one night stand.

Sophisticated yet utterly without pretension, the album is a seamless wedding of electronics, live musicians and subtle studio technique that clearly demonstrates the stunning talents of producer / DJ / composer / performer / mastermind Simon Green. Every track incorporates jazz, latin, tropical, and even club elements into a smooth and intoxicating mixture. Guest vocalists Bajka and Fink add a sensual shimmer to several tracks (particularly notable on the title track and "If You Stayed Over" respectively), but the voiceless ones comfortably hold their own. Case in point, I'm certain that the instrumental "Recurring" will be a favorite of mine for years to come.

Beautifully warm, mellow and understated, this is a quiet masterpiece that transcends genres to create captivating, universally human music.

Tops of My Pops for 3/4/07

2007-03-04T16:11:00.000-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending March 4, 2007
1. Beck
2. Squarepusher
2. Bonobo
4. David Bowie
5. Boards of Canada
5. Imogen Heap
7. Primal Scream
7. Massive Attack
7. The Kleptones
7. Radiohead

No time to comment – I'm writing my "Best of 2006" list!

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Gettin' stewy with it!

2007-02-28T07:41:00.000-07:00

Still trying to figure out what happened to DJ Shadow between The Private Press and The Outsider? It's called 'hyphy' and Jody Rosen over at Slate has got the 411 for the rest of us:

Go Dumb: Why hyphy is the best hip-hop right now

NIN: Year Zero Mania

2007-02-27T18:57:00.000-07:00

Wow. It looks like Trent Reznor's really going big for the next NIN album, entitled Year Zero. I'm not even going to try to paraphrase this -- just take a read for yourself:

Rolling Stone Rock and Roll Daily: “Year Zero” Project = Way Cooler Than “Lost”

That is some crazy shit. If only I had time to chase it all....

Civil War in 30 Seconds

2007-02-27T09:32:00.000-07:00

It's been pointed out to me (mainly by me) that I don't post often enough about comics. So here to rectify that, direct from Chris Sims' Invincible Super Blog, is:

Civil War in 30 Seconds

Wow, he's right! That did save me $25!

Except...wait! – I ordered the trade.

Dammit.

Top Ten Albums of 2006: #9 - "The Information" by Beck

2007-02-25T23:08:00.000-07:00

There's no way I 'm smart or lucky enough to have predicted Beck's long-lasting critical and popular success when I first heard "Loser" back in 1994. I have no doubt that Beck himself knew all along, as he's been at least a couple steps ahead of the rest of us the whole time. And so in 2006 we're lucky to get his tenth album, The Information.

(Wow, another tenth album in my Top Ten...I feel dizzy.)

Beck's always had a delightful sort of musical schizophrenia. His albums tend to ricochet from genre to genre; more or less sticking to one vibe per release and then taking a hard left turn for the follow-up, rinse and repeat. This one though, this one he somehow managed to bring it all together in one place. Apparently this album was started before Guero but finished afterwards. You can certainly hear signs of that in the attention to detail throughout, a quality no doubt at least partially attributable to the album's producer and co-conspirator Nigel Godrich.

While I'd stop short of calling this a more "mature" Beck – because the quirky goofiness is all still here, just better focused – this is definitely a guy at the height of his game, taking his fun very seriously. There are recurring themes both musical and lyrical; hints that The Information might even be a concept album concerned with the Information Age and its discontents. Whatever it's intended to be, the end result is fun, funky, inventive and thoughtful all without tripping over itself. While it might not be obvious at first listen, this might just be the best thing he's ever done.

Top Ten Albums of 2006: #10 - "Hello Everything" by Squarepusher

2007-02-25T10:49:00.000-07:00

By my count, this is Tom Jenkinson's tenth album as Squarepusher. When you've gotten that far down the road, what else is there to do but release a greatest hits collection, right? Longtime fans of Squarepusher are wise to his ways however, and probably expected nothing less than a complete departure from What Has Come Before. But if you're Jenkinson though, meeting expectations is simply not part of the game. And so we get Hello Everything, which is neither fish nor fowl...and yet a bit of both.

While every track on Hello Everything is a new composition, listening to the album one gets a sense that we're being given a tour of the widely varied styles that Squarepusher's releases have explored over the years. It's all here: the manic drum'n'bass in "Hello Meow", the droning tension in "Vacuum Garden", the slow layered build in "Rotate Electrolyte", the electro-prog jazz in "Plotinus" and the signature Squarepusher spastic attack of "The Modern Bass Guitar". In a sense we do get a greatest hits, but on Jenkinson's terms not ours.

More than anything else though, Hello Everything has something completely new: warmth. Every track – even the most abstract – is infused with a sense of joy and light (but never "lite"). Squarepusher's been a lot of things over the years, but the last thing anyone expected was out-and-out happy. Perhaps the strangest thing: is seems to suit him well. At no point in the album do I find myself thinking "this doesn't work". In fact, I really like the change of pace.

Ten albums in, and still surprising us. Thanks for that!

Top Ten Albums of 2006: Kickoff

2007-02-25T09:05:00.000-07:00

I can't remember any year in this decade that I've had as much trouble deciding on my personal Top Ten as I've had for 2006. That's a big part of why it took me to the end of February to get them posted -- I couldn't decide!

There was no shortage of releases (is there ever?), and no shortage of really outstanding ones either. I had significantly more than ten releases that seemed deserving this year, and they were all so different that I couldn't figure out how to rank them. Anyone who's ever done this knows that the ranking is always totally arbitrary to begin with, but forcing yourself to decide on an order for your list is part of the fun.

So over the next few days I'll be posting my Top Ten Albums for 2006, building up to the Album of the Year. Stay tuned, and keep those comments coming!

Tops of My Pops for 2/25/07

2007-02-25T09:00:00.000-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending Feb. 25, 2007
1. k-os
2. Gnarls Barkle y
3. Spoon
4. Sondre Lerche
5. Severed Heads
6. Dub Syndicate
6. Depeche Mode
8. Underworld
8. M83
8. Lamb

No time to comment – I'm writing my "Best of 2006" list!

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 2/18/07

2007-02-18T10:36:00.000-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending Feb. 18, 2007
1. Arovane
2. Tim Hecker
3. Burial
4. The Dead Texan
5. Thom Yorke
6. Massive Attack
7. Beck
8. Underworld
8. Gorillaz
8. Radiohead

No time to comment – I'm working up my "Best of 2006" list!

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 2/11/07

2007-02-17T16:32:00.000-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending Feb. 11, 2007
1. David Bowie
1. Radiohead
3. Dub Syndicate
4. Harold Budd
4. Depeche Mode
4. Kraftwerk
4. Incubus
8. African Head Charge
8. Johnny Cash
8. Arovane

No time to comment – I'm working up my "Best of 2006" list!

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

Tops of My Pops for 2/4/07

2007-02-11T18:25:00.000-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending Feb. 4, 2007
1. James Brown
2. David Bowie
3. Squarepusher
4. Pete Rock
5. Severed Heads
6. Lootpack
6. Yesterday's New Quintet
6. Spoon
6. Underworld
6. The Sea and Cake

No time to comment – I'm working up my "Best of 2006" list!

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

On surviving Battlestar Galactica

2007-02-11T18:02:00.000-07:00

There's a nice joint interview with Edward James Olmos and Mary McDonnell on MSN today where they discuss the intensity and challenges that Battlestar Galactica presents them with as actors.

It's interesting to hear them say the things that everyone's been thinking for so long: how improbable it is that two actors with their resumes would end up being involved in a sci-fi tv show, and how astonishingly different it is from anything anyone would've expected.

It really is the best show on television right now, and the current season is absolutely its best so far.

Sign up for Useless Account now!

2007-02-09T11:20:00.000-07:00

Brilliant!

Steve Jobs vs. The Big Four on DRM

2007-02-08T17:15:00.000-07:00

In an open letter posted on the Apple website Tuesday, Steve Jobs offers his "Thoughts on Music" to the public.

While innocuously titled, in reality it's an eloquently written argument in favor of completely abolishing all forms of DRM in music sales aimed directly at the big four music companies. It's rational, well-reasoned and bold.

I love it when Jobs decides to change the rules of the game...because he always gets his way in the end and once again he's on the right side of the debate.

This is going to be fun to watch!

Tops of My Pops for 1/28/07

2007-02-03T23:06:00.000-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending Jan. 28, 2007
1. Beck
2. Josh Rouse
2. The Chameleons
4. Clark
5. TV On The Radio
6. Lootpack
7. Massive Attack
7. Moloko
9. Severed Heads
10. Iron & Wine

No time to comment – I'm working up my "Best of 2006" list!

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives

31 Days of Seven Soldiers

2007-01-30T22:45:00.000-07:00

In early 2005, undisputed comics genius Grant Morrison debuted an enormous undertaking: a series of seven four-issue miniseries and two bookend issues that intertwined to tell one giant meta-story. Each mini starred a different C- or D-List character in their own revitalized and stylistically unique adventures. Collectively they were The Seven Soldiers of Victory, but while their storylines intersected along the way and culminated in one climactic battle, none of the seven characters ever meet one another. And it was some of the most challenging and head-spinning writing in comics since...well, since the last thing Morrison wrote.

Reading the mega-series end-to-end and understanding just some of the multiple layers of meaning contained therein is a difficult enough task, but the prospect of doing an exhaustive analysis of each issue – that's like trying to explain the ending of 2001: A Space Odyssey.

So in honor of the imminent release of the fourth and final volume collecting this magnum opus, I present to you: 31 Days of Seven Soldiers.

My hat is off to you, Greg Burgas! I hope someone somewhere gives you a degree in Morrisonism.

Tops of My Pops for 1/21/07

2007-01-26T09:48:00.000-07:00

A weekly look at what I'm listening to, from my Last.fm user stats:

Top Artists for the week ending Jan. 21, 2007
1. Brian Eno
2. Severed Heads
3. Devo
4. Rae & Christian
4. Esthero
4. Outkast
7. Beastie Boys
8. K-OS
9. Lee "Scratch" Perry & Dub Syndicate
9. The Books

No time to comment – I'm working up my "Best of 2006" list!

See also:
The 'Tops of My Pops' archives