Blog Roundup - The Best of October and November 2005

This is a new feature I'll be doing where I repost my favorite mp3's from other audio blogs.


Millbrook - Meet Me in the Fields
This comes from Marathon Packs. I saw a mention of Steely Dan in the blurb about this band and instantly knew I'd like it. The song actually sounds more like ELO than ye olde Fagen and Becker.

Crazy Penis - Lady T
This reminds me of the Scissor Sisters, in a good way. Totally gay, totally disco, totally great.

Moneybrother - It's Been Hurting All the Way Joanna
I think I was clued into this one by My Old Kentucky Blog. It's from a Swedish band who sounds a bit like the Verve with a dollop of Bruce Springsteen-style sincerity. Strangely compelling. From what I hear the band is huge in their native country.

The Knife - Heartbeats
Brooklyn Vegan hyped this one to death, as did Gorilla vs. Bear, but I love it too.

October Country - My Girlfriend is a Witch
October Country was a '60s band headed up by Michael Lloyd, a producer and songwriter who was also a member of the more well-known West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band. His best project was with the Smoke, who only recorded one LP for Capitol subsidiary Sidewalk, but all of his projects from the '60s are great. He made all of his money however producing mega-blockbuster dreck like "You Light Up My Life" in the '70s.

Green - Gotta Get a Record Out
Franklin Bruno mentioned this in a Time Out review of Art Brut like two days after Jon posted it on Little Hits. It could be a coincidence, but I'd bet money that Franklin reads Little Hits.

Field Music - If Only the Moon Were Up
I'll take this over Maximo Park any day.

Modeselektor - Dancing Box
I thought this was some crazy grime shit at first, and then I realized they were singing in French.

Eleanor Roosevelt - Creepy Part of Town
1994

The band Eleanor Roosevelt were loosely associated with St. Louis' nascent alt-country scene in the early '90s that also included Uncle Tupelo. In hindsight, Eleanor Roosevelt's inclusion in that genre is probably based more on their use of banjo than any affinity for country. The band, which was spearheaded by African History teacher Chris King, drew primarily from bluegrass, blues and dusty folk on the band's two albums, both of which were self-released.

"Creepy Part of Town," which originally appeared on Walker, has become something of a standard around town in the open-mic scene. King told me that he's not sure why, but the local folkies have taken to playing the song. He added that they probably don't even know who wrote it. Another cut from Walker, "Head in a Hummingbird's Nest," appears on vol. 1 of Tiny Idols the CD.

Anonymous - J. Rider

1976

Rock scholars often point out the rapid evolution of music during the '60s. Just look at how much underground rock evolved from 1965 to 1967. One minute everyone is playing acoustic guitars and hanging Joan Baez posters in their dorm rooms; the next minute everyone is dropping acid and recording twenty minute free-form jams. This breakneck pace didn't slow down much in the '70s either, what with metal, disco, rap, funk, and punk all jockeying for position. Odd then, to discover this album by the appropriately-named Anonymous was actually recorded in 1976. One listen to "J. Rider," a standout track from their lone album, Inside the Shadow, immediately conjurs up the Summer of Love. Saturday Night Fever, this ain't. Today of course it's not strange to hear a band 10 years past their expiration date. Just ask all the bands that haven't stopped worshipping at the altar of Weezer since, oh, 1995. Still, even in the stylistically diverse '70s this record must have sounded way out of place.

It didn't help that the band only printed up 300 copies of Inside the Shadow . Now almost impossible to find, originals command around $500.

According to Fuzz, Acid, and Flowers, the group was from Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Soft - All That You're Shown

2005

Holy Stone Roses, Batman! Soft has got that Manchester vibe down cold, right down to the shambling dance moves and big fat Gretsch guitars. I discovered Soft through ex-Fader girl Marisa Brickman who told me I had to see them live. Other friends started telling me the same thing and finally I broke down and checked Soft out at the Delancey. You know what? The hype machine was actually right for once; if anything, this band isn't hyped enough.

Soft has already played some shows in England and a bunch of hip parties in New York, one of which involved Paris Hilton, so I guess they're on their way to become coke addicts already. But this is gonna be one hell of a ride folks. By the way, I've heard the whole album and it's all awesome. Very Charlatans UK circa 1990. The lead singer told me the labels are swarming like pigeons on a stale bagel, but I don't think they've signed anything yet.