tonybreed: a blog

Friday, June 29, 2007

Deep in the Jungle of Thought There is a Clearing: 6/15 show

Notes and comments:

I first heard the Tom Tom Club in the Talking Heads movie, Stop Making Sense, when David Byrne took a break and the rest of the band played "Genius of Love." Tina Weymouth had been in the background, playing bass, and she stepped forward to lead the band; I remember the transformation. My sister bought the album and we listened to it a lot on a trip to Montreal. A year later, she left for college in Montreal and left the tape behind, and I listened to it a lot. Even though the songs on the album have so many varied associations, I still think of Montreal when I hear them. We drove up Mont Royal one evening and looked over the lights of the city; that album was the soundtrack.

But the song "Lorelei" means other things to me, too. I didn't ever analyze the lyrics too deeply, but what it always made me think is the inner life of the mind, and the idea that you could meditate and discover this place inside of you. The metaphor of the "jungle of thought" (today's blog post title comes from the lyrics to this song) resonates with me in part because I have always loved forests. A a child in the woods up in northern Michigan or at Caratunk Wildlife Refuge in Seekonk, Mass, I spent a good deal of time wandering through the woods and finding those clearings, as well as creeks and boulders and vivid mushrooms and whatever else the woods might hold.

That's a lot of associations for one song, I suppose. But this is what music is — not all of it, but the best songs stay with us our whole lives and remind us not just of people and places, but also of ourselves: who we are, who we used to be, and who we want to be. I've had this idea of creating a mix CD of the soundtrack of my life, but I don't think there's anything really served by cataloging and collecting these songs in one place; I think I prefer to happen upon them here and there, and realize while I'm listening, "this is one of those songs."

And now, the playlist:

*: new stuff
(r): requests

ArtistSongAlbumLabel
Tom Tom ClubLoreleiTom Tom ClubSire
Rufus WainwrightDo I Disappoint You?Release the StarsGeffen
*Chow NastyHot Sticky NikkiSuper Electrical RecordingsOmeg
*Von SüdenfedDearest FriendsTromatic Reflexxions
MustangsThe Time for Loving is NowCult Cargo: Grand Bahama GoombayNumero Group
HaaleMorgue SaharMorningDarya Records
FeistInside and OutLet It DiePolydor
Alice SmithLove EndeavorFor Lovers, Dreamer, and MeBBE
*Lavender DiamondOh NoImagine Our LoveMatador
*Oh My GodBut That's Just Me (Song for the Holidays)Fools Want NoiseSplit Red
The Cryan ShamesThe PainterSynthesisSundazed
*Gogol BordelloSuper Theory of EverythingSuper Taranta!Side One Dummy
X-Ray SpexOh Bondage Up YoursGerm-Free AdolescentsCaroline
Nina HagenSmack Jack14 Friendly Abductions: the Best of Nina HagenColumbia
*BattlesDDiamondDMirroredWARP
*BumpsBaby JohanBumpsStone's Throw
Mavis Staples99 and ½We'll Never Turn BackAnti-
(r)Boss HogI Idolize YouBoss HogGeffen
Edith PiafMilordThe Voice of the Sparrow: the Very Best of Edith PiafCapitol
*MontagMechanical KidsGoing PlacesCarpark
Troubled HubbleI Love My CanoeSun Beamed OffMagic Spot
Romeo VoidFlashfloodWarm, in Your CoatColumbia/Legacy
The Juan MacLeanTito's WayLess than HumanDFA/ Astralwerks
*DommmHidden SunYoloxochitlYoung Cubs
*Savath and SavalasFaltamos PalabrasGolden PollenAnti-
*Miracle FortressMaybe LatelyFive RosesSecret City
Fujiya and MiyagiPhotocopierTransparent ThingsDeaf Dumb + Blind Communications
Blondie11:59Parallel LinesChrysalis
The B-52'sDance This Mess AroundThe B-52'sWarner Brothers
TinariwenAwa DidjenAman Iman: Water is LifeWorld Village
*PelicanLost in the HeadlightsCity of EchoesHydra Head
Kronos Quartet and Mogwai (Clint Mansell, Composer)Tree of LifeThe FountainNonesuch
ZerostarsLike the Daylights2nd album previewwww.zerostars.com
*Meg BairdRiver SongDear CompanionDrag City
Lena HorneThe Lady is a TrampSome of the BestLaserlight
The GossipStanding in the Way of ControlStanding in the Way of ControlKill Rock Stars
*ApparatHailin from the EdgeWallsShitkapult
Sage FrancisSlow Down GandhiA Healthy DistrustEpitaph
(r)Prefuse73 featuring Sam PrekopLast LightVocal Studies and Uprock NarrativesWARP
*FridgeCometsThe SunTemporary Residence

Labels: , , ,

posted by Tony at 12:02 PM | 0 comments

Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Strange sights

You see everything in the city. And maybe in the country too.

I am often amazed at the shear variety of human morphology.

Anyway, go read Hitched.

Labels:

posted by Tony at 11:59 PM | 0 comments

News Flash: Flood -or- News: Flash Flood

I was sooo on track this week. As of last night my Finn and Charlie comic was written and drawn and merely needed inking, scanning, and touching up. As of right now, nothing's changed.

Why?

RAIN. Frankly, it wasn't that bad (and it hardly rained in Skokie, where I work). However, it was enough to get maybe an inch of water over half the basement. The problem is, our basement is (was) once again covered in boxes (the previous stach of boxes having been thrown out during the last flood), and the flooding reached the carpet where it spread via the magic of capillary action. Really, it wasn't that much water. It was just enough to be annoying, and more to the point, to cancel our plans for the evening. (My plans were just the cartoon, plus I'm pretty sure we had something fancy in mind for dinner. We ordered in Thai food instead.)

(The flood did not reach the corner of the basement by the stairs, where we have just set up a new home for our cats. Somebody has taken to pooping willy-nilly around the house, and we can't have that, so it's basement living for them now. Actually, it's enormously sad. In any event, the trauma of their first day in the basement was not augmented by wet paws. It's entirely likely they didn't even know what was happening when it happened.)

Eric was exhausted when he came home, because he had to deal with flooding at the studio, too. It was much worse there. (The studio, I've recently learned, is in a part of our neighborhood that used to be a small lake, so probably there are some drainage issues.) Eric tells me that water was fairly boiling out of the drains at Lillstreet. It was much worse than here.

Still, we had to dispose of all the wet boxes (a blessing in disguise) and wet-vac the floor (and thank god we have one, even if it doesn't work real well). The boxes of books are sitting on a pallet, so there was very little real damage. The cleaning was a couple hours' work for two people. Two people who are now tired and gross-feeling.

So, while I could stay up late in ink and scan Finn and Charlie for you all, I confess I'm just not going to. I plan to shower and pass out.

Labels: ,

posted by Tony at 11:13 PM | 0 comments

Thursday, June 21, 2007

At a certain age...

This week's Finn and Charlie...

Labels:

posted by Tony at 12:13 AM | 1 comments

Friday, June 15, 2007

Your former glories and all the stories: 6/15 show

This was my pledge drive show, so I tried to play a lot of my favorite songs, and songs and artists I discovered (or learned more about) on WLUW.

I still don't know much about the Nazz (Todd Rundgren's second band), but the song "Open My Eyes" is excellent. In high school, WBRU had a weekly late-night show called "Headphones Only", which featured songs that sounded great on headphones, and generally pushed the envolope more than their typical playlist. It was through this show that I discovered two of my favorite artists, Kate Bush and Laurie Anderson. From time to time I'd tape-record the show as I drifted off to sleep listening to it, so I could listen more carefully later. I only had one 120-minute tape (60 minutes per side, enough for a whole show), and as a result now I still have two old shows recorded. Slowly I've figured out what a lot of the songs are (the DJ was not conscientious about IDing every song), and some day I hope to reconstruct these tapes in digital form. "Open My Eyes" was one of those songs.

Belle & Sebastian is a group Eric and I pretty much entirely discovered on WLUW (though certainly we heard mention of them elsewhere, and my friend Sarah J put one of their songs on a mix for us). Like the Smiths, their early albums feature songs that sound nearly identical to each other; I believe the album Dear Catastrophe Waitress is the first full-length album featuring a notably wider variety of style. The title track is a cute song about a waitress who messes everything up.

Sufjan Stevens is one of my favorite artists. I was referred to him by a webcomic I read (I don't recall which, but it was probably Jeffrey Rowland, John Allison, or R Stevens, all of whom mention music from time to time). Initially I downloaded a handful of outtakes from Sufjan Stevens' web site, and fell in love with them. The only place I've heard his music played outside the internet is on WLUW, though he's getting pretty big, and probably if I listened to other stations, I'd hear him there as well. But at WLUW we love him.

Papas Fritas broke up after their most successful album. That happens. Of course, the female singer was in grad school studying something like Social Services, so one might guess that being in a band was not her first priority. "Way You Walk" is one of those songs I hear on my iPod and then play again as soon as it's done. It's a near-perfect song. It was also featured in a Dockers commercial. (Good for them, I say! It got them some attention and some nice cash; for an indie musician, cash means freedom. Fortunately the song did not turn into — at least not for me — "that song from the pants commercial.")

*: new stuff
(r): requests

ArtistSongAlbumLabel
Siouxsie and the BansheesCities in DustBest ofPolydor UK
David ByrneGlas, Concrete, and StoneGrown BackwardsNonesuch
*The VeilsAdvice for Mothers to BeNux VomicaRough Trade
*The Long BlondesGiddy StratospheresSomeone to Drive You HomeRough Trade
The SmithsStill IllThe SmithsRough Trade
FlosstradamusEgyptian LoveMyspace Tracks
*WilcoWalkenSky Blue SkyNonesuch
Neko CaseSoulful Shade of BlueThe Tigers Have SpokenAnti-
*Jana HunterPalmsThere's No HomeGnomonsong
Seu JorgeTive Razão: Voltaire MixCruWrasse Records
Cesaria EvoraAngola: Bateau Ivre rework by Pepe BradockClub SodadeBluebird
The AerovonsEverything's AlrightResurrectionRPM
*The Jai-Alai SavantSugar FreeFlight of the Bass DelegateGold Standard Laboratories
Belle and SebastianDear Catastrophe WaitressDear Catastrophe WaitressRough Trade
Ariel Pink's Haunted GraffitiGood Kids Make Bad GrownupsThe DoldrumsPaw Tracks
The B-52'sGive Me Back My ManNude on the Beach: AnthologyRhino
*ElectrelaneTo the EastNo Shouts, No CallsToo Pure
Nina SimoneBlack Is the Color of My True Love's HairAnthologyBMG
Kate BushSaxophone SongThe Kick InsideEMI
*The EffigiesScarecrowResideCriminal IQ
Martha CarsonNow StopGet Hot or Go Home: Vintage RCA Rockabilly '56-'59Country Music Foundation
eX-GirlVenus vs. Gas OnnaEndangered SpeciesAlternative Tentacles
*Her Space HolidayI Luv the Valley OH!Xiu Xiu: Covered and Remixed
Sufjan StevensAll Good Naysayers Speak Up or Forever Hold Your PeaceMichiganAsthmatic Kitty
BeulahA good Man is Hard to KillThe Coast is Never ClearVelocette
The NazzOpen My EyesOpen Our Eyes: The Nazz AnthologySanctuary Records
*Lavender DiamondOpen Your HeartImagine Our LoveMatador
The Aluminum GroupTiny DecisionHappynessWishing Tree
ZerostarsDad's DressThe Good Can't Escapeself-released
*David VanderveldeNothin' NoNothin' No EPSecretly Canadian
Meryn CadellFlight AttendantAngel Food for ThoughtBongo Beat
*Matthew DearMidnight LoversAsa BreedGhostly International
Papas FritasWay You WalkBuildings & GroundsMinty Fresh
*Art BrutPump Up the VolumeIt's a Bit ComplicatedDowntown

Labels: ,

posted by Tony at 9:08 AM | 2 comments

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

More gross fun with pets

Wheee, it's Finn and Charlie time again!

Labels:

posted by Tony at 11:18 AM | 1 comments

Tuesday, June 05, 2007

Seen from behind...

How often do you see yourself from behind and above? This is the worst angle at which to see your head. This is how waiters see you. It's enough to make you stand up everywhere forever.

This week's Finn and Charlie

Labels:

posted by Tony at 10:41 PM | 0 comments

Friday, June 01, 2007

Facts continue to change their shape: 6/1 show

Lazy me... or maybe just too much work, or something. I'm posting this very late, though as usual I'm backdating it to the date of the show. Sorry for anyone who was waiting around for it.

A few things I played were CDs I bought while in France.

Camille is someone my friend Graziella told me about in 2005, when her album came out. I didn't buy it at the time, but the name stayed in my head, and I heard her mentioned from time to time (most recently by Lester, an artist at Lillstreet who's gotten into French pop). This time, Graziella played me a song from her iPod and I decided to get the CD. It's good. After listening to it over and over again in the car as we drove around Périgord with only 5 CDs, it struck me that the sound is heavily influenced by Afropop, which is maybe a little unexpected. It reminds me of the Afro-Belgian group Zap Mama (or at least, their early work – the band is still around but I don't know what they sound like). The contrast is that Camille has the sort of high-pitched girlish vocal style that seems common among French femail singers. Anyway, the song I played is the one Graziella played for me on her iPod, and it's one of the strongest on the album. It's almost acapella, but with the addition of electric base, and the vocal sounds include squeals and raspberries, which makes me think of Björk. (I've been wondering to myself – did my friend Lynn also recommend Camille to me? Or am I getting mixed up because her middle name is Camille? Not sure...)

Olivia Ruiz was another French artist recommended by Graziella, though she didn't specify an album, so I got an earlier one that was cheaper. (New French CDs are shockingly expensive, but the store we go to also has used CDs, and we buy those when we can.) Olivia Ruiz's album is not 100% successful, but it has a number of very good songs. She too has that sort of high-pitched girlish vocal style, but much less of an Afropop influence. Instead, Ruiz plays with a number of styles, including traditional French music, American 50's pop, and musicals. Some songs veer too close to that French pop sound of the 80's that was so terrible, but in general I like the album. The song I played, J'Aime Pas L'Amour, has a touch of the tango to it, but breaks into guitars in the middle.

Uztaglote was my own find. The store we went to, Gilbert Joseph, had a number of CDs set up in listening stations, and Uztaglote was one of them. Near as I can tell, they are an independent release; I can't quite identify the label, though. (By which I mean, I actually can't find the name on the CD.) They hew more closely to traditional French café music, but they are a bit tongue-in-cheek at the same time. I haven't fully decyphered the lyrics of the song I played, except that it has to do with wanting a doll. It sounds a bit like café music and a bit like new wave.

*: new stuff
(r): requests
ArtistSongAlbumLabel
The Talking HeadsCrosseyed and PainlessRemain in LightSire
Kate BushEat the MusicThe Red ShoesColumbia
*Slavic Soul PartyŠiško's BluesTechnochek CollisionBarbes
*MontagNo One ElseGoing PlacesCarpark
Andrew BirdMeasuring CupsThe Mysterious Production of EggsRighteous Babe
Os MutantesPanis et CircensisTropicália: ou Panis et CircensisUniversal
*Mary Timony BandSharpshooterThe Shapes We MakeKill Rock Stars
CamilleTa douleurLe filSCPP/Virgin
Deee-LiteWhat Is Love?World CliqueElektra
*ElectrelaneTram 21No Shouts, No CallsToo Pure
*BattlesRace: InMirroredWARP
Quasar Wut-WutEnola GayTaro SoundGlorious Noise
The JudybatsScarlettPain Makes You BeautifulSire
Puffy Ami YumiBoogie Woogie No. 5Hi Hi Puffy Ami Yumi soundtrackEpic
Ted Leo + the PharmacistsMe and MiaShake the SheetsLookout
EurythmicsThis is the HouseSweet Dreams (Are Made of This)RCA
Olivia RuizJ'aime pas l'amourJ'aime pas l'amourPolydor
*WilcoEither WaySky Blue SkyNonesuch
(r)The DecemberistsYankee Bayonet (I Will Be Home Then)The Crane Wife
*Jana HunterVulturesThere's No HomeGnomonsong
Bobby ConnAnybodyKing for a DayThrill Jockey
Har Mar SuperstarBody RequestThe HandlerThrill Jockey
*WatchersMercenary BirdsVampire DriverGem Blandsten
*Fennesz SakamotoCendreCendreTouch
Aretha FranklinAll Night LongSweet Bitter LoveColumbia
*Elliott SmithNew DisasterNew MoonKill Rock Stars
CanastaSympathetic VibrationsWe Were Set UpBroken Middle C
The FutureheadsDecent Days and NightsThe FutureheadsSire
Each OtherSoft CuffsEach OtherBirds Go South
*Rufus WainwrightTiergartenRelease the StarsGeffen
Sean LennonQueueInto the SunGrand Royal
Sister VanillaK to Be LostLittle Pop RockChemikal Underground
*UztagloteLa PoupéeLa Liberation des CorpsR
Jens LekmanThe Wrong HandsOh You're So Silent, JensSecretly Canadian
*Black Moth Super RainbowSun LipsDandelion GumGraveface
*Parts and LaborVision of RepairMapmakerJagjaguwar/Brah
The Scissor GirlsEvrxbdxLvsaGdMxstrxTo: The Imaginary Layer on SkeletonsQuinnah
*Frog EyesEvil Energy, the ill twin of...Tears of the ValedictorianAbsolutely Kosher
The Shangri-La'sTrains from Kansas CityThe Myrmidons of MelodramaRPM
The HeadlightsCenturyThe EnemiesPolyvinyl
Adam and the AntsKiller in the HomeKings of the Wild FrontierColumbia
*The RaceWallsIce StationFlameshovel
Brian WilsonRoll Plymouth RockSmileNonesuch
They Might Be GiantsParticle ManFlood

Labels: ,

posted by Tony at 6:25 PM | 0 comments

Info

My Photo
Name:

Rather than reading my blog, which is boring and never gets updated anymore, may I suggest you read my comic, which is at hitchedcomic.com

I am officially no longer a DJ at WLUW. Long story.

However, the Chicago Independent Radio Project will have a webcast soon, and I'll be a part of that. And we can still talk about music... leave me a comment if there's something on your mind.

DJ Blogroll

My hosts

This blog is hosted by Blogger, but all the images, plus the rest of my personal and professional sites, is hosted by ULTRAsurge.com. They have very cheap rates available for sites like this one, that have low-bandwidth needs.

read more »

Technorati

Powered by Blogger


Blog Directory - Blogged