Basements are west coast

There's no internet or TV in my beautiful new apartment, and found myself playing ukulele last night and trying to figure out the chords to a song from a band (see below) that I've been listening to a lot. This activity kicked watching TV's ass. (1.5 hours per week for Entourage and Lost excluded.)

That said, some people seem to be able to get a lot out of TV. For example, quoting from funny movies is usually a good conversational skill. Also, some people seem able to turn an episode of Family Guy into a personal connection with another TV-watcher. This is why I hate Family Guy on principle, although I have enjoyed watching it on occasion: because friendships based on TV shows are dumb, and so are the shows that spur said friendships. Family Guy is the worst offender.

Anyway, limited luck with the chords. But I did realize that Wilco's new album, which I was listening to a lot prior to this when in a slow music mood, did not make me want to sing or play along. Don't listen to the new Wilco Album unless it reminds you of Guatemala. Listen to this. Ray fills the void that Wilco-post-Yankee-Hotel has left in my slow music heart. That's not nothing.

There are four songs that I have been able to collect on my ipod from Ray's Vast Basement. A fifth, which I don't like, was recently deleted. Here are two, but you can find more on elbo.ws and you probably should go right now and do just that.

Ray's Vast Basement "How Through Sacrifice Danny's Friend Gave A Party"
Ray's Vast Basement "Black Cotton"

nice day in the hood

one thing that is nice about park slope is slopers' willingness to not be as snobby as they appear. they mostly wear glasses and button ups and look like they go home to this:

let's be clear that these cats nor their contemporaries can be found on MY floor. i do like the fatty in the back of the conga line though.

but surprise! there are many dog owners in park slope too. and together, many of these dog or cat owners are nice behind their acrylic-framed glasses. this is most evident in the springtime, when leisure-inclined freelancers get fancy brewskis at outdoor bars and turn social. plus, you can run into all your old friends. bottom line - there are nice things about spring in dope slope.

this is a free association about park slope music.
i know this to be a local fave:
ola podrida "run off the road"
which makes me think of this:
department of eagles "no one"
which is so nice but sometimes it makes you want to listen to this on repeat:
lcd soundsystem "north american scum"
and never play this p.s. classic again (sorry alana):
TMBG "why does the sun shine?"

ps. there's a new song "hey girl" on figurines' myspace page. it's fine.

pps. which of the transients moving through 3f over a year ago stole my stevie wonder "songs in the key of life" cd (part 1)? its time to return it.

Free-esque means it sounds like that one song by Free

I don't think the Raspberries ever achieved major critical success back in the 70's, I had never heard of them until i was introduced to this song. For the most part, they aren't heralded as power-pop OG's like contemporaries, Big Star. But I have a theory. If they could have just spread out all the fucking awesome parts of this one song into an album instead of packing them into this one track, they might have hit the big time. That being said, I hope they can look back fondly on this classic rock power-pop Frankenstein they have created. The song unfolds like an abridged history of teenage rebellious rock- the opening Slade riff and the Who part and the Free-esque clap-along guitar solo at the 3 minute mark - all sutured together by lead singer Eric Carmens' enthusiastic Paul McCartney impression and enough gut-driven "UH's" and "OOH's" to make you wish it was still OK to do that shit.

The Raspberries "Ecstasy"


A much newer band, Baby Teeth, has employed a similar trick with "The Simp" having created a song that consists exclusively of best parts of any given anthem from the late 60's and 70's. These guys just pile on the build ups and breakdowns and top it all off with nonsensical but totally appropriate lyrics - something about phones ringing, kids singing, and some sort of rock & roll-induced suicide. Of course I also just like any band that sounds sort of like Queen.

Baby Teeth "The Simp"

*Side Note
Lead singer, Eric Carmen DID go on to achieve commercial success as a solo artist, unfortunately by selling his soul to the AOR satan and recording gross hits like Hungry Eyes and All By Myself. And while I'm the last person to give 70s and 80s soft rock a hard time (All By Myself is actually a great song), it just seems kinda sad in this case that such a energetic and rebellious songwriter moved on to such bogus pastures.

Nice work, you

Here are some things I learned yesterday:
1. The country with the most coastline. It's not the US and it's not Australia.
2. Red Hunter was indeed functionally compromised at his last NYC Peter and the Wolf show. (I believe. It was at CMJ in October or something. At least it was the last and only other time that I saw him.)

Thank you, Peter and the Wolf, for pulling it together last night. I don't know if I've posted Safe Travels before, but since it's so great, and some of you friends are lazy, here it is again. And another one that I like but it's not my 2nd favorite. That I'm saving.

Peter and the Wolf "Safe Travels"
Peter and the Wolf "Sayonara Suckers"

I would now recommend with a star that you go see Peter and the Wolf when they play again. There was a really sweet stage presence between the two on stage - Red and a lady friend whose soft voice can't fairly be called backup.

Then it started to pour on the way home and I was treated to falling asleep to thunder. Seattle girls love that.

Club soda unbridled

This post on Joseph Plunkett & The Weight today on An Aquarium Drunkard listens a lot like David Berman/Silver Jews. So being that I happen to have some spare time at work, I set up a hefty playlist of the "original" honest manvoice singer to lull me through to lunchtime.

Dave's and Joe's voices aren't spitting sounds of each other, but have the same degree of enunciation, and I want them both singing me to sleep. On alternate evenings. Without listening to the words (I never do the first time a song plays) there's still the message sounds the same. Silver Jews is probably the closest to a downer band that doesn't get me down. Musical cozy zone with a moment of rocking out.

So, happy Mayday, and bring on the summer, listen to this Silver Jews cover my Mountain Goats, and one (nope, it became 2) of my favorites by the original.

Mountain Goats "Pet Politics" (Silver Jews Cover)
Silver Jews "Sometimes A Pony Gets Depressed"
Silver Jews "Tennessee"