Monday, September 25, 2006

68. 2006-09-25 "Geneva"

It's John's birthday. Send him happies.
TimeArtistSong
12:05Kalyanji Shah, Anandji ShahTheme From Don
The BeatlesBirthday
Harvey DangerCream and Bastards Rise
LiveWhite, Discussion
The Tragically HipFireworks
12:24Bruce Springsteen & the E Street BandThunder Road
Jessee MalinHungry Heart
Crooked FingersMansion on the Hill
Dwight YoakamTruckin'
12:45SublimeScarlet Begonias
SublimeWe're Only Gonna Die
12:53Jimi HendrixThird Stone From the Sun
1:01Matthew GoodAdvertising On Police Cars
Grateful DeadDark Star
1:22Lou ReedConey Island Baby
Our Lady PeaceStarseed
Nedavine5am
Fountains of WayneHalley's Waitress
1:42PsappTricycle
The SugarcubesBirthday
They Might Be GiantsSomeone Keeps Moving My Chair
1:52The New PornographersStar Bodies
Turin BrakesUnderdog (Save Me)
2:02DJ ShadowYou Made it (feat. Chris James)
Halloween AlaskaCall it Clear
The Black KeysAll Hands Against His Own
Dropkick MurphysThe Gang's All Here
The Dandy WarholsGodless
2:21Snow PatrolHands Open
Sufjan StevensChicago
Christine FellowsVertebrae
Jean-Michel BernardGenerique Stephane
Jean-Michel BernardGenerique Debut
2:40Talking HeadsDon't Worry About the Government
Bob DylanMasters of War (Live)
The Rolling StonesStreet Fighting Man
ATD vs. Sage and the VerveSlow Down Symphony
2:57Tori AmosCornflake Girl
3:01The BeatlesWithin You Without You
Michael Franti and SpearheadBomb the World
The ClashI'm Not Down
Billy BraggAccident Waiting to Happen
R.E.M.It's the End of the World as We Know it (And I Feel Fine)
3:24TrickyMakes Me Wanna Die
Dylan ThomasDon't Go Gentle Into That Good Night
Bob Marley & the WailersGet Up, Stand Up
Jamiroquai(Don't) Give Hate a Chance
3:40Buju BantonMisty Days
We're Wolves96 Entries for "Happy"
Kidd Video vs. Hidden FortressI Need a Quarter
The Twilight SingersToward the Waves
The Twilight SingersI'm Ready
AnamanaguchiPower Supply
3:56Vale and YearYou're a Good Man
GusterHappier
Ghost DogHagakure excerpt

Friday, September 22, 2006

SubSource signs off

via No Error, the Internets makes me cry:

After nearly seven years of providing quality electronic ambient music for free subsource will stop it's work. No new music will be released at this place. Past Releases will be kept online as long as possible. Thanks to all listeners, supporters and of course the artists for the good work. We had great times during this project.

I've enjoyed the music from SubSource for a while now, especially the mixes they'd post which would always direct me to further great netlabels that I'd be ignorant of otherwise. It's a drag to see them closing shop, though admittedly not as sad as seeing a physical music label shutting down. At least the SubSource recordings will remain available both at their site SubSource.de (for a while) and at the SubSource collection on Archive.org here (hopefully permanently).

I'll put together an hour-long mix of their music for one of my upcoming shows. I haven't been playing enough netmusic on my show in general and I'm a little ashamed that it takes moments like these to force my hand (as it did for my Comfort Stand show)

links:
SubSource home
SubSource on the Internet Archive
No Error

The Science of Sleep

I saw a free screening of Michel Gondry's The Science of Sleep tonight and it wasn't what I expected. I went in thinking I'd say, "This is a great date movie-sweet and romantic but visually compelling and artfully done." Instead I came out remembering every moment where I couldn't express myself-that mix of sadness, impotence and shame.

The previews for the movie misrepresent it a little bit. It is about Stephane trying to win his neighbor over, but that's just a part of the bigger story-Stephane trying to reconcile his fantasy world with the real world. He can't distinguish and you see the world through his eyes. So you get incredible moments of visual madness (which are heavily featured in the previews) interspersed with the people around Stephane offering him advice on how to deal with the real world. Only Stephane isn't interested in understanding the real world. He wants the real world to accept his fantasies. It's not said but he's vaguely autistic and the film is really a portrait of the people around him trying to survive being in love with him.

The movie is beautiful and artfully done. Gondry is a visual genius and a good directer. The movie's quiet, subtle, even funny, but the sadness and despair that surrounds Stephane grows until it eventually dominates the film. So it's not a "date movie" but it is a very good movie. It's different and it's strange. If you want a film that's quality and uplifting, see Little Miss Sunshine. If you want a film that's quality and special, see The Science of Sleep.

*** of ****

Monday, September 18, 2006

67. 2006-09-18 "25-Punk for Life"

TimeArtistSong
12:01Kalyanji Shah, Anandji ShahTheme From Don
The Who BoysRevolution Uber Alles
The Dirty Dozen Brass BandWhat's Going On (Featuring Chuck D)
Woody GuthrieDust Bowl Refugee
Bruce SpringsteenRosalita (Come Out Tonight)
12:22The Rolling StonesWild Horses
The Rolling StonesGimme Shelter
Grateful DeadBird Song
12:41The ProclaimersMy Old Friend the Blues
RadioheadIdioteque
R.E.M.Falls to Climib
12:55Sufjan StevensChicago
1:02Rufus WainwrightEverybody Knows
Nina SimoneBlack is the Color of My True Love's Hair
Thelonius Monk Quartet with John ColtraneMonk's Mood
Furry LewisJudge Boushe Blues
1:25Campbell BrothersDon't Let Nobody Turn You Around
Bob DylanStuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again
The ByrdsMy Back Pages
1:43Chuch BerryRoll Over Beethoven
Dick DaleGypsy Fire
The White StripesThe Hardest Button to Button
HarangueN'est Front Pas
Norman NardiniBurnin' Up
2:03James TaylorSuite for 20 G
The ClashI'm Not Down
ZombiGemini
The Moog CookbookBuddy Holly
2:26Sex PistolsPretty Vacant
Pretty Girls Make GravesThe Number
The Essex GreenThis Isn't Farmlife
Crooked FingersAndalucia
2:41SpongeRotting Pinata
Dead KennedysM.T.V.-Get Off the Air
The Dead MilkmenBitchin' Camaro
RamonesSurfin' Bird
2:55LampchopThe Decline of Country and Western Civilization
M. WardChinese Translation
3:03RancidLet Me Go
The PietastersNew Breed
Dropkick MurphysFor Boston
Camera ObscuraPhil and Don
SpoonThey Never Got You
3:21Robert PollardLove is Stronger Than Witchcraft
Teenage FanclubOnly With You
Enter the HaggisOne Last Drink
The Mountain GoatsIf You See Light
StarsSet Yourself on Fire
3:42The Go! TeamHold Yr Terror Close
Maximo ParkApply Some Pressure
Broken Social SceneMajor Label Debut (Fast)
3:52UnderworldBorn Slippy Nuxx
Ghost DogHagakure excerpt

Sunday, September 17, 2006

Obligatory Horror Post

Autumn's here which means Halloween-my favorite holiday-is fast approaching. Here are some links to get you into the spirit or to help keep you there all year long.

The It's Alive show:
I know I mentioned the It's Alive show last week, but there are two reasons to mention it again. First, the show just started it's second official season after being in reruns all summer. New movies, new bits, new music. All good.
The second more important reason to mention It's Alive is the show's cast and producers have organized Pittsburgh's First Zombie Walk. It goes down this Friday in the South Side. You should grab some old clothes, run them through the mud and join in. The post-walk party costs money but being a zombie or zombie food is free. Full details here.

Bateman 365 Presents: Atom Age Vampire:
Political cartoonist and animator Scott Bateman spent the past year animating a new short film for each and every day (and they were great). Now he's started a new project-joining the audio from the public domain film Atom Age Vampire with all new animations. The result is both a parody of the film and a brilliant evolution of the MST3K-style of film mockery. You don't have to have seen the original to appreciate Bateman's project, though it is available on the Internet Archive for download. Scott Bateman's maintaining a blog about the project here, you can grab the original movie here, or you can jump to the most recently animated part of the film here.

Scar Stuff:
Scar Stuff is a blog dedicated to old Halloween and horror LPs. It's all here-sound effect records, novelty discs, even Vincent Price reading Edgar Allen Poe. It doesn't get more Halloween than that. This site has everything you need to make the perfect Halloween mixtape or just select tracks to spice up your Halloween party. Not only are the albums on the site great, the webmaster provides concise descriptions and histories for each piece. I guarantee some of these tracks will be on my next Halloween show.

Finally, speaking of horror, I mentioned in the last post that I had free tickets to The Covenant. It bites. Don't see it. If you're in the mood for horror though, might I recommend Dario Argento's Suspiria. If you don't feel like renting (or trucking all the way around town to find a place with Suspiria even though it's totally worth the trip) you can check out a classic film from Pittsburgh's own George A. Romero. I speak of course of Night of the Living Dead, a film that's in the public domain and available for download from the Internet Archive here.

Monday, September 11, 2006

66. 2006-09-11 "Bull Dada"

TimeArtistSong
12:01Kalyanji Shah, Anandji ShahTheme From Don
Blind MelonI Wonder
Nick DrakeBlack Eyed Dog
John MellencampI Need a Lover
Grateful DeadCassidy
12:24Jimi HendrixLittle Wing
The WhoPictures of Lily
Joni MitchellGod Must Be a Boogie Man
Bob Marley & the WailersNo Woman, No Cry (live)
12:41The Mountain GoatsMoon Over Goldsboro
Daniel JohnstonLiving Life
OdettaMuleskinner Blues
Sigur RosGlosoli
12:58Frank ZappaTryin' to Grow a Chin
1:02Crosby, Stills & NashHelplessly Hoping
Crosby, Stills, Nash & YoungHelpless
SuperdragSucked Out
Troubled HubbleTry to Find
Troubled HubbleFloribraska
Clem SnideJoan Jett of Arc
1:24Leftover SalmonRiver's Rising
DuvallBetween the Lines
The Plus OnesServe in Heaven/Rule in Hell
Kate BushSomewhere in Between
Sneaker PimpsSpin Spin Sugar
1:46North Mississippi AllstarsMoonshine
Belle and SebastianSeeing Other People
Lunaihop
1:58The FirmStar Trekkin'
2:04Air Guitar MagazineThis Song is Called Track 3
Vale and YearYou're a Good Man
We're WolvesThe Conversationist
Norman NardiniRock You
Paul WesterbergI Love You in the Fall
InjuryDig Dug-"Six Feet Under" (OC Remix)
2:24Johnny CashMan in Black
Lead BellyGovernor O.K. Allen (aka Angola Blues)
"22" + groupEarly in the Mornin'
Old & in the WayThe Hobo Song
Billy Bragg & WilicoAgainst th' Law
2:41The Tannahill WeaversAre Ye Sleeping Maggie?
Jeff BuckleyHallelujah
Bob DylanSolid Rock
2:56Jr. Walker & the All StarsWalk in the Night
3:00Chuck BerryMaybellene
Roy BuchananHidden
GusterEmpire State
Mike DoughtyWhite Lexus
BeckDevil's Haircut
DJ ShadowYou Made It (feat. Chris James)
3:20GomezCry on Demand
Spacemen 3Feel So Sad
Too Much JoyStay At Home
MC HonkyThe Object
The New PornographersThe Bleeding Heart Show
Buckwheat ZydecoRoute 66
3:42LambchopThe Rise and Fall of the Letter P
Robert PollardConqueror of the Moon
Crooked FingersTwilight Creeps
Mychael DannaWe're Going to Make it
3:57Sufjan StevensChicago

Thursday, September 07, 2006

There's an ad on my milk

There's an ad on my milk
It's a gallon jug and on the back is a sticker saying "Got Milk? Get Oreo" with a big picture of the cookie on it.
That depressed me. It's been a depressing day. I couldn't get anything done. And then I got free tickets to a showing of The Covenant (from Renny Harlin, the director of Driven and a slew of other painfully bad films). Proof that things can always get worse.
So to end the constant bring-down my day has been, and to strike back against the spirit of ambivalence and celebratory mediocrity that allows ads on milk jugs or films like The Covenant, here are some things that make the world a better place:

Vale and Year - Famous Fights
I've played a some of this album on my show recently and I have to say it's very good, maybe even best of 2006 good. They sound a little like pre-Top 40 Modest Mouse, but in the sense that Vale and Year listened to those earlier albums and then went their own way. This is a pretty quiet and restrained album. It's definitely worth checking out plus they're from Pittsburgh so you get bonus warm fuzzies for supporting the local scene if you pick this up.
website: http://www.valeandyear.com

V/A - Enamel Records Sampler
Speaking of the local scene, I picked up the Enamel Records sampler today. Enamel is the label that released Vale and Year's Famous Fights as well as one of my favorite albums from last year, We're Wolves' Welcome to the Childhood Home of Andy Warhol and Dan Marino-the title track of which is featured on this disc. 7 tracks, 3 bucks and it's good. It's very good. The CD comes in a little plastic sleeve and the title is just Enamel Records Sampler so it might get lost at your record store. But take the time to look. It's definitely worth finding.
website: http://www.enamelrecords.com/

Time Again - "Cold Concrete" (NSFW)
A punk song about being unjustly singled out by the cops. I couldn't stop listening to this track once I got my review copy of Give 'Em the Boot V. I'd just put it on repeat and grin. There are f-bombs so don't play it at work (or expect to hear it on the radio), but if you want to drop it onto your iPod for when you're jogging or stuck in traffic, who's to say no to that?
The other mp3 at the link below is a groovy reggae/ska track without any profanity at all. Play it wherever you want. It'll only offend people who hate reggae-sounding stuff, but you probably don't like them anyway so it's win-win.
website: http://www.epitaph.com/artists/album/480 (NSFW)

The Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Collection
I am a horror/sci-fi geek. Kind of. I lean more towards the classics than the moderns (Bela Lugosi over Freddy Krueger, H.P. Lovecraft over Stephen King) so of course I love old time radio. I grew up listening to tapes of Jack Benny and Abbott & Costello. I even have old X-Minus One tapes that I break out every Halloween. I love this stuff but it's kind of hard to find. Leave it to the folks at the Internet Archive to solve that. They have an Old Time Radio collection featuring complete runs of various series including X-Minus One, Bob and Ray, The Shadow, every genre you can think of. It's very exciting.
website: http://www.archive.org/details/oldtimeradio

Mystery Science Theater 3000: Episode 0208 - Lost Continent
"Even rock climbing movies don't have this much rock climbing."
I've hated nearly every movie I've seen this summer so I've taken special joy in watching old episodes of MST3K. Helping me in my endeavor is the Digital Archive Project. They've been releasing episodes of the show in DVD format and I've been gobbling them up. Lost Continent is the latest one and it's fantastic.
Here's the story: A group of air force pilots escort a group of scientists to recover the black box from a crashed experimental rocket. Of course their plane crashes as well so they proceed on foot. Eventually they stumble upon a land that time forgot-dinosaurs included-but only after doing some rock climbing. Lots of rock climbing. Oh my goodness, do they climb rocks. This is a film where nothing happens. A lot. Joel and the bots salvage it though, screaming and raving at the film just about the same time you feel the need to. Check out this or any of the MST3K DVDs, both on the DAP or in stores. It's pure satisfaction.
Digital Archive Project website: http://www.dapcentral.org/
DAP Lost Continent DVD website: DVD #78
See the DAP FAQ for downloading instructions.

It's Alive
Or if downloading isn't your thing or you prefer your B-movies without additional commentary or you just long for the good old days of chiller theater right here in Pittsburgh, check out It's Alive. It's a locally-produced horror-movie showcase that also features local bands and filmmakers. This show makes every weekend a joy for me. It airs Saturday nights at 10PM ET on WBGN (check your listings) or you can catch a live stream of the show from the website. There's also an archive of the most recently aired episode on the homepage. Seriously, check it out. This show made me happy to be in Pittsburgh.
website: http://www.theitsaliveshow.com/

Hope these links helped pick you up as much as they did me. What have you found lately that's made you excited? Add a comment and let me know.

Monday, September 04, 2006

65. 2006-09-04 "Labor Day '06"

TimeArtistSong
12:01Kalyanji Shah, Anandji ShahTheme From Don
Lyle LovettFriend of the Devil
Johnny CashFurther On Up the Road
Merle HaggardMisery and Gin
The PoguesWhisky in a Jar (Long Version)
12:20Dennis BrownBubbling Sweet Tonight
John Brown's BodyBlazing Love
Bob DylanFriend of the Devil
Paul SimonThe Boy in the Bubble
Erin McKeownWe Are More
The KinksA Well Respected Man
Chuck BerryJohnny B. Goode
The BeatlesGet Back
12:54Brazilian GirlsLong
Matt CostaSunshine
1:02Billy Bragg & WilcoCalifornia Stars
River City HighUs vs. Them
Maximo ParkApply Some Pressure
M. WardChinese Translation
1:19Pinky and the Brain"Are you pondering what I'm pondering..."
Grateful DeadBird Song
Troubled HubbleWork
Dolly Parton9 to 5
Jamiroquai(Don't) Give Hate a Chance
1:39The Jimi Hendrix ExperienceThird Stone From the Sun
Ghost DogHagakure excerpt
Gnarls BarkleyStorm Coming
Porcupine TreeBlackest Eye
1:54We're Wolves96 Entries for "Happy"
Troubled HubbleMorning Person (DJ Pants Remix)
2:02Curtis MayfieldPeople Get Ready
Michael Franti and SpearheadNever Too Late
RadioheadHigh and Dry
They Might Be GiantsIstanbul (Not Constantinople)
MBellville Rendez-Vous (French Version)
Los Lobos with Antonio BanderasCancion Del Mariachi (Morena De Mi Corazon)
2:22Violent FemmesAmerican Music
SpoonSister Jack
Band of HorsesThe Great Salt Lake
Tori AmosRapberry Swirl
PhishPiper
2:43WilcoCasino Queen
The Tragically HipIt's a Good Life if You Don't Weaken
Elf PowerAn Old Familiar Scene
2:54David BowieStay
3:01NirvanaAll Apologies
Mike DoughtyGrey Ghost
DevoPost Post-Modern Man
Talking HeadsWild Wild Life
The New PornographersStar Bodies
3:19RamonesI Wanna Be Sedated
Screeching WeaselJudy is a Punk
Me First & the Gimme GimmesMe & Julio Down By the Schoolyard
Ann BerettaEfforts Wasted
The Promise RingElectric Pink
DuvallStanding At the Door
ColossalTable Setting
3:40Anti-FlagSpaz's House Destruction Party
The B-52'sRock Lobster
Rufus WainwrightCalifornia
3:55LambchopPaperback Bible