Archive for the 'Poop Shooter' Category

MUSIC!!!!!!!!! Courtesy of WOXY….Take it AWAY

1. Step On-Happy Mondays
“You’re twistin’ my melon, man.” ‘nuff said. Pills, Thrills, and Bellyaches unleashed that tinkly piano “club remix” style on the world, but in this case Shaun Ryder is doing his thoroughly debauched, toothless, leering Joe Strummer wheeze on it, and somehow it’s totally sexy. 10/10

2. Watching the Sun Come Up-Ed Harcourt
Kind of in between his register a la Chris Martin (Coldplay), but in a much more muscular way, but not as histrionic like the Muse guy, over a David Bowie “Heroes” type beat, he just doesn’t wring the emotion out of being in between that the Okkervil River guy does. This doesn’t suck, but it’s in between a lot of things and really is none of what I’m comparing it too. Little tiny scraps. 6/10

3. The Police and the Private-The Metric
Interesting organic/electronic backing almost like a much warmer, less stupid Postal Service, but a sing-talky female vocal that I don’t quite get. But an interesting, hypnotic musical outro. 6/10

4. Bottle Rocket-The Go! Team
We already love this song at Three Bulls! In fact it is the Yosef theme song. I dare you to deny the 70s cheesewad power of this horn-fest. He demurs about it, because he finds the harmonica or some such to be wanting. You know he’s kicking with his play Pepsi Challenge booth in his room, daring America to take the Pepsi Challenge. This version of the challenge is more challenging because Yo is wearing tighties and rocking some maracas and a big fruit hat. 10/10

5. …A Velvet Sun-Swell
From the very beginning it sounds like it’s going to be an instrumental. Don’t you get a feeling sometime with songs? In this case I was wrong, but the monotony is similar. Let’s see if it builds. It seems like it might be…maybe not, but it must have some subliminal something going on because I’m not hating it like I feel like I should. Piano breakdown. Would be nice for a CSI doing some sciencey interlude. And that’s not a rip. They’re getting predictable. 6.5/10

6. K-O –Shesus
Ugh. Not for me. Please make it stop. 0/10 I’m going to subsititute Sinead O’Connor w/Karen Finley “Jump in the River (Extended mix)” for that certain grating je ne sais quoi, but something about Karen’s rant is absolutely fascinating, and “Jump in the River” is an awesome tune. I need to dig the vinyl out, but you can read Ms. Finley’s piece here. 8/10

7. Pedestal-Portishead
I love Portishead, but this one feels by the numbers, especially the scratching. From their first, Dummy. Arch, trippy 40s sounding slithering through a hip-hop beat, with some intermittent pumping menacing bass underneath the tinny snare and trebly horns. 6/10

8. Suffer Well-Depeche Mode
First 10 seconds are crap, then it picks up, gets a little menacing, which is where they should be, feet firmly on the dance floor a la “It’s No Good”. You really could mix this into “Behind the Wheel/Route 66″ on Depeche Mode 101 Revisited. From Playing the Angel. Probably would be better live filtered through the bouncing, aging Gothies and Eurotrash. 6/10

9. Such Great Heights-Iron and Wine
I really can’t stand the Postal Service, so this great take on one of their numbers from hushed neo-Americana genius Sam Beam doesn’t quite escape the worst of Death Cab for Cutie/Postal Service vocalist Ben Gibbard’s bad side. And don’t get me wrong, sometimes I think DCFC can be pretty good, just not in league with DNTEL (Postal Service). 6.9/10

10. Long Arm-The Red Thread
Innocuous. Does not stand out far enough for me to be able to describe it to you. Not bad. 5/10

BONUS in honor of Bobby Lightfoot

11. Making Plans for Nigel-XTC
Not my fave XTC, but you kids might know it because Primus covered it. And since if Bobby knew me, which I’m sure he could guess, he knows I’m more a “Towers of London”/”Senses Working Overtime” kind of guy. “Making Plans…” kind of sounds like a Police song. What?? It totally does! 6/10

–>Now that the cat’s away, it is time for me to play. Sounds like one heck of a party last night. Why was I the only one stuck at work all night? Without further ado, I give you the Friday musical roundup

1) Fruit Salad Stains – Clem Snide
I’ve never really known what to do with Clem Snide. They sometimes have poignant songs that resonate lyrically and musically, and sometimes are just obtuse and unfun. This little ditty from You Were A Diamond makes no sense at all. It has little snipets of words like “Mind your skin – wax paper sticks – to the hard candy shell – and thought bubbles swim”. What does that mean? I think it could be deeply profound. Or not. There is nice slow fiddle and guitar in the piece that keeps me feeling melanocholic and the recurring “Break your back – monster truck pull” is surely deep. I guess I do like this song. 7.5/10

2. Burned Out – Beheaded
Beheaded were doing slow core before there was a name for the subgenre. They feature droney picked guitar and hushed lyrics. It is relaxing and ponderous music. The music is a little reminiscent of Iron and Wine, without the country/folksy influence. This particular tune is not one of the best from their self titled album, but it sounds like Beheaded and that’s good enough for me. 8/10

3. Someone Something – Spoon
Kill The Moonlight is probably the best Spoon CD out there. This song is a perfect Spoon song. It is fast-paced and has that kind of sinister bass line going on. I don’t think the lyrics do much for me, but piano really works in this song. Short and strutty. I love Spoon! 9/10

4. If You Knew – Neko Case
This is one of the better songs from her live CD, The Tigers Have Spoken. It is more fast-paced and less country sounding than some of the other songs. Neko really belts this out, and it’s one of the few pieces that prominently features harmonizing and some call and response. I’m not entirely sure what the song is about, but I think it’s about a women that uses, lies, and manipulates. Oh. I guess I do know what the song is about. 7/10

5. The Golden Age – Beck
Beck is a genius. I know that I’m the first person to make this statement, so relish in this revelation for a minute. The Golden Age is possibly the most musically accomplished song from Sea Change, an album I adore to no end, but one that gave critics a very mixed feeling. It has everything I like, though: Slide guitar, Radiohead-like bells, and melancholy. Lots of melancholy. This is pretty much as close as Beck gets to country music. It almost reminds me a little of the Allman Brothers at times. Heart heart heart. 10/10

6. Single File – Elliott Smith
I don’t really know why, but the songs from the late Elliott Smith’s first self titled CD just don’t reach out to me the way the middle and later albums do. Single File sounds like Elliott Smith, but just lacks the intensity I expect. There’s nice competent guitar work and sweet singing, but the song is a little boring. The chorus is also nothing to write home about. 6.5/10

7. Barnyard – The Beach Boys
This is the bootleg version with the actual Beach Boys doing lovely wordless harmonizing and the occasional moo and baa. It’s funny, but without the lyrics later added by Brian Wilson, the song now feels like it is mssing lyrics. At the same time, it allows you to hear the instruments a little better and gives the song a more innocent and playful feel. Regardless. It is SMiLE and therefore priceless. 8.5/10

8. They’ll Hang Flags From Cranes Upon My Wedding Day – Ballboy
A beautiful introspective lightly accompanied song by the oh so Scottish Ballboy. I particularly like the picked guitar. It’s pretty catchy, but maybe not the best song on Club Anthems. That would be A Day in Space. 7/10

9. The Summer Song – The Chris Stamey Experience
It probably isn’t coincidence that Yo La Tengo’s Ira Kaplan made significant contributions to this entire song. The Chris Stamey Experience reminds me a lot of The Minus 5. It is poppy and sunny. This particular track sounds like a song off of the Yo La Tengo subpar CD Summer Sun with more Beach Boys influence. I guess it’s pleasant and inoffensive. 6.5/10

10. I Don’t Really Love You Anymore – The Magnetic Fields
This song is particularly upbeat for a kind of depressing song. It’s basically one big ditty about just being friends. But it has typical and interesting Magnetic Fields instrumentation and sounds great. I just wish it made up its mind about whether I should be bummed or not. 8/10

–>This random revue is taken from my iPod and is unbiased. Somehow I am attacked for having music that I actually like on my computer.

1. Green Typewriters – Olivia Tremor Control
In case you’re curious, this is the 9:39 song from Dusk at Cubist Castle. There are 9 other tracks of the same name, all of them better than this. I guess ambient music is there for a reason, but this appears to serve the purpose of boring me. The most exciting part is the occasional drip of water. Except in this Chinese water torturous song, you yearn for death at the end. 0.25/10

2. Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft – Langley School of Music
This might be the most haunting and best example of how teaching a group of young school children classic 60s pop tunes can be a religious experience. The bells and percussion are exuberant, slightly out of rhythm, and oh so effective. And the main title lyric is so beautiful when sung by the children. When they sing “We are your friends”, it brings a tear to my eyes. The song falters slightly during Tina’s solo, but that just makes the chorus so much more rewarding. If only all music were this good. 9.5/10

3. Sali Mali – Super Furry Animals
You can tell this is really old SFA (taken from Mwng), and it is also clearly a B-side track. It’s pleasant enough, even if there is a really annoying high pitch synthy accompaniment. But the song neither inspires, nor does it avoid a certain degree of suckiness. A good song for most bands, but a letdown from SFA. 6.5/10

4. Heroes and Villains (Intro) – The Beach Boys
This track is misannotated in my library and is from the Good Vibrations – 30 years of the Beach Boys collection. It is actually part of Mrs. O’Leary’s Cow. And not the best part either. This track really doesn’t belong among the bootlegs. Oh well. 6/10

5. Yes – Aerogramme
The CD this song comes from, Sleep and Release, has a few very good songs and several bad songs. This is one of the bad songs. It is too loud, almost metal sounding, and lacks a good lyrical sense. This is the kind of music that people that listened to too much Rush growing up write. 5/10

6. Take the Skinheads Bowling – Camper Van Beethoven
This song has some very nifty 80s sounding guitar work. And some not-so-nifty 80s sounding lyrics. To its credit, the song takes it title very seriously. It also has some fun call and refrain. Not bad, but not great. 7/10

7. Only I – The Mull Historical Society
I do like MHS, but it never seems to work well when inserted randomly within other songs. The lyrics and melody are just a little too sappy out of context. It’s a sweet song, and very earnest. Just not a great stand-alone track. 7.5/10

8. The Negatives – Hood
I think this track came about from an EW Listen to this recommendation. It’s pretty interesting sounding and has diverse instruments, sounds, and rhythms. But it is lacking in good hooks. I think this band could be good. 7/10

9. Dancing in Heaven – Q Feel
This song is pretty good as an 80s dance club song. I could enjoy it there. But not at home on my iPod in random shuffle mode. 6/10

10. Half Man – The Kingsbury Manx
Wow! What a great song to end this revue. Kingsbury Manx are one of my favourite bands, and this track does not disappoint. It is taken from the Afternoon Owls EP, and shows how this superb band keeps pushing and growing their musical range. From the sinister picked guitar to the hushed lyrics, this song almost explodes in quietness during its climax. Just an amazing song. 10/10

–>This collection is taken from Party Shuffle of my Cube’s iTunes library, therefore is enriched for songs I generally think are worth keeping around, but completely randomly.

1. Where Does Yer Go Now – Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci
One of the strong tracks from their best CD in my opinion, How I long to Feel That Summer in my Heart, this song has sentimentality, sweetness, and longing. It is also beautifully arranged musically with beautiful interludes of piano, banjo, bells, and perhaps even theremin. 9/10

2. Souvenirs – Patrick Wolf
A very nice understated melody. This song came from the EW Listen-to-this list, and I sure am glad that I did. There is beautiful guitar work accompanying and contrasting the singing. This song reminds me of something that Kings of Convenience would write, except without the harmonizing. The song does drag a little, but it’s quite lovely. 8/10

3. Goodbye Stranger – Supertramp
This track ended up on my computer via the Magnolia soundtrack, but of course I have the original CD as well. This is just a great song, irrespective of your feelings about Supertramp. It has the good rhythmic piano, the 70s falsetto, and some of the best rhyming couplets ever put together. Sweet devotion. 10/10

4. In the Devil’s Territory – Sufjan Stevens
Perhaps one of the songs that benefits most from a great title. I think this is one of the most haunting tracks from the incredibly strong Seven Swans. It begins purely instrumentally with banjo and piano setting a haunting and striving mood. The lyrics being simple and non-threatening, but the music tells a different story, and shortly we realize that something sinister is afoot. Talk of dragons and death complicate the simple desire of one man to be with his love. The song builds beautifully and complexly. It’s such a great work. 10/10

5. Bicycle Rider – Beach Boys
This version is taken from the bootlegs and is purely instrumental except for some harmonizing at the end. Most of this theme ends up in Roll Plymouth Rock in the end, but the music tells a hybrid between Heroes and Villains and Do you like Worms? It’s a cute interlude, but not really worthy of its own spot on the final SMiLE. 8.5/10

6. Grey – Simian
This song sounds very British. It would be very much at home on a Doves or Elbow CD, probably more so than on its resident CD, Chemistry is What we Are. It’s still creatively arranged and interesting. But not great. 7/10

7. Cupid’s Trick – Elliott Smith
Not one of the better tracks for Either/Or this song doesn’t seem to have the right balance of pain and defiance. At times, it almost comes across as whiny during the ‘It’s my life’ refrains. It also drags a little. It would be a very good song on most CDs, but on this one, it’s a lowlight. 7/10

8. Ya Leil – Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan Steven’s first effort, A Sun Came, is evidence that he was not musically perfect from the get go. This song is just not good. It tries to use Indian influenced instruments and lyrics to create a mood, but the mood is one of suckiness. Actually the sound of the instruments is kind of cool, but the music doesn’t go anywhere. I don’t like listening to this track for more than a minute or two. 5.5/10

9. Grow a new Heart – Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter
This is a good slow lazy song. It is sparesely arranged with good use of slide guitar, and bittersweet lyrics. I don’t know why it isn’t amazing and instead is just solid. But a very good kind of solid. 8/10

10. Song for Kelly Huckaby – Death Cab for Cutie
Taken from the almost unknown Forbidden Love EP, this track has most of the good qualities of early DCFC music. Great melody and yearning sense. It almost rocks a little, but not quite. The lyrics are clever and cynical, just like DCFC used to be. How I miss them. 8.5/10

–>In light of growing and compelling evidence that I tend not to like female musicians, I have prepared a special music audit of only the most estrogenic random tracks from my iPod. Flame away!

1. Ghost Writing – Neko Case

Neko Case is so damned hot and talented and awesome, she kind of deserves her own deity category. Still, for simplicity sake, I will consider her a mortal woman. This song is one of the best from Blacklisted, her best CD. Don’t ask why my favourite songs keep popping up randomly. The song is slow, bluesy, and sexy. Surprisingly, this track reminds me a little of a Kingsbury Manx song. Read 3Bulls long enough, and you’ll hear a lot more about Kingsbury Manx. But for this song … 10/10

2. Keep on Breathing – The Delgados

This track is one of Emma Pollock’s so it’s better than the usual Delgados song. Taken from their newest, last, and supremely awesome CD Universal Audio, this is a great song. It’s dark and disturbing and the musically a little abrupt sounding. It’s impossible to extract an ounce of happiness from this song – the most we can hope is to keep on breathing. Half way through the track, it slows way down and becomes a smoky and sad ballad. Her voice is great. 9/10

3. Around my Smile – Hope Sandoval and the Warm Inventions

Just as good as Mazzy Star. Her voice is extra sultry in this track and it’s slow and sad. Notice a trend here? I’m probably going to like it. It reminds me of a Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci song that I really like. The best musical parts are the bells that come in midway and the faint bassy male accompanying voice. Slow Core never sounded better. 8/10

4. Tropical-Iceland – Fiery Furnaces

This is the version from the EP and not Gallowsbird’s Bark. Therefore it’s even better. But this song just screams cool. Icy icy cool. There’s no point trying to classify the sound of Fiery Furnaces, but this is one of the straight rock songs, not the 8-part operetta kind. That doesn’t mean that it doesn’t have some crazy piano and percussion running through the middle. This song should (and possibly does) close every concert they do. The end is whacked good. 9/10

5. Pavlov’s Bell – Aimee Mann

There was zero chance that Aimee Mann was not going to show up in this revue. This track is from Lost in Space, and is one of the slightly poorer songs on a great CD. The lyrics just aren’t quite sharp or mean enough, and the instrumentation is a little uninspired. The constant refrain of “But we can talk about it” reeks whiny. Sorry Aimee, this might be the only song of your’s that ranks a ….. 7/10

6. The Man with 100 Cells – Stereolab

Awesome title for a track about Dubya. Or maybe it’s about something else. Who can tell if they’re even singing in English or French. But this is a nice breezy track from Margerine Eclipse, a CD that should be under-rated if everyone weren’t so clued-in to how awesome Stereolab are. It does get a little loungy at times, but the nice transition in the middle keeps in interesting. 7.5/10

7. Witness – The Delgados

Taken from The Great Eastern, this song typifies a Delgados song. It drips with regret and hopelessness. The build-up to the chorus is just great. Emma’s voice is just so clear and noble, I desperately want to reach out and reassuringly put my hand on her shoulder. Very good track. 8/10

8. Huddle Formation – The Go! Team

Who knows how to categorize this music, but it has some pretty good girl power sampling going on. Great beat, great cool, and very danceable. I don’t know why Go! Team isn’t massive. Even includes hand claps. 8.5/10

9. Sweet-Lovin’ Man – The Magnetic Fields

One of the rare girl tracks from MF. I suppose the band is all about sweet-lovin’ men for all. It’s got an synthy cheesy sound going on in the background, but the melody is good enough to not make that too annoying. Lyrics are, I presume, intentionally insipid. Kind of fun in its own right. 7.5/10

10. Oh, My Girl – Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter

This is the title track, and not the best song from a pretty damn good album. I heard Jesse Sykes perform along with Iron and Wine, and they are ideally paired. Her voice is so gritty, I thought it could be a guy when I first heard it. The song has a nice alt-country twangy thing going on and (go figure) is slow and sad. The fiddle makes it extra melancholic and the slide guitar makes it extra good. 8/10