What MUSIC are you listening to? ARCHIVE

If I am looking for something ~spooky~ I usually just throw on Legendary Pink Dots or Coil.

I always assume I'm 10 months or more behind on music, but I haven't seen anyone listening to The Neighbourhood or Bastille in this thread, and that's a shame.

Several years back Matt Thrower did a little piece on bands in the British 'nu-folk' scene. This was right before Mumford blew up in the States. In Matt's list was Johnny Flynn who has been my favorite of that set. I've been digging all of his albums since Matt's post and Flynn recently released his third album which is fantastic.

I couldn't find any official videos, but here are two that are decent enough to take a listen (not going to point y'all to live takes). However, the _best_ song on the album is 'Bottom of the Sea Blues'. Can't find a good video, but go check Spotify or something. It's likely his best song after 'The Wrote & The Writ'. Fantastic tune.

After Eliot


The Lady is Risen

Been listening to that new Pixies EP.

I'm going to go against the popular opinion here and say that I like it. Didn't at first, but the last two songs set their hooks in me and kept me coming back for more and I've kind of come around on the two songs I didn't care for at first. They aren't the same band they were 20 years ago and it would be ludicrous to think otherwise.

Come to think of it, as much as I love them, I don't think there's much that I did like at first listen.

Lots of Toadies this week. Just feels like a Possum Kingdom kind of week.

Also, this:





Really digging this dude, although the club shit is really not my style.

I usually listen to instrumentals of some sort at work, and have really been digging Federale. Basically, they do spaghetti western tunes. Great for Gunslinger, Cowboys, or any other western themed game.

Two songs back to back "Train Song / War Cry" (takes about a minute to get going)


This next one is off their new album, check it out on spotify or something, "The Blood Flowed Like Wine". I really dig the quiet homestead tune 'The Last Stand' but can't find it on youtube, but here's a link to a sample: www.last.fm/music/Federale/_/The+Last+Stand

"Fine"

Another instrumental act...Eagle Claw from Austin, Texas. I've seen them a few times and going again with Sgt. Dave this weekend. Eagle Claw usually goes with our Wings of Glory nights.

I do have the new Chvrches album everyone keeps talking about, I enjoy it. I've also been listening to MF Doom quite a bit recently and even some Kanye West, I really like that New Slaves track of his even if the guy does seem like a giant douche who's not nearly as good as he thinks he is. But my favorite album this year is a surprise to me. Chris Thile plays Bach.

Bach is my favorite composer for practicing, not necessarily listening (that would be either Beethoven of Richard Strauss depending on the day). I like his compositions but I especially like them for practice. He changes positions and keeps things consistent (straight 1/8's kind of deal) that you get a great work out. However he does have some nice compositions as well. My favorite is probably Gelnn Gould playing the Goldberg Variations, maybe not the most original choice but I'm a big Gould head so I can't help myself.

Now this Thile album comes out and these are all pieces composed for solo violin, I've tried some of them before and they're wicked hard. The speed you can do on a violin is not conducive to playing the mandolin where you have way more resistance from using a pic instead of a bow, but Thile makes it sound so fucking natural it just blows my mind. The album is perfect for writing or deck building... or at least that's what I've been using it for. Incredibly listenable.

I managed to catch Nine Inch Nails on Monday at Barclay's Center. I've never seen Trent live and it was a brilliant show, also quite a full meal! They played a TON of songs including stuff off Pretty Hate Machine. Was nice to get to this one because the "last" tour he did a few years ago my wife was super sad we couldn't get tickets for.

I saw the Atlanta show of that "last tour ever", and it was the first time I ever saw NIN...it was an amazing show- the performance was awesome and the stage show was full of great set pieces and some really neat technology. All the hits, too.

I really love NIN. I went through a long period where I just couldn't stand to hear Closer another time and got all snobby about listening to SPK and Test Dept. instead, but I came back 'round to his brand of hard-edged synthpop about eight years ago.

I haven't heard the new record yet, I should get on that. I liked the single a lot. Loved Year Zero.

Gary Numan's new record is very NIN...it's also quite good, best he's done in years.

Yeah I really think that he's something unique in the landscape. He obviously had a real crisis of artistic identity after The Fragile which was sort of a mess anyways, but I like that he didn't just go away and that after a decade he just said "fuck it" and started writing what he liked rather than trying to re-invent the wheel. He seems to be comfortable now that whatever he writes will still sound like him no matter what he tries. Hesitation Marks is a pretty awesome album if you haven't picked it up. It's definitely not trying this massive hills-and-valleys emotional approach of his earlier stuff but honestly at 32 I'm glad he dropped the overtly angsty stuff.

A girl recommended Silversun Pickups to me and I was hooked. Unfortunately it didn't work out in the end, but discovering this band made it more than worthwhile.

What? Satan rock goes pop?

Just in time for Halloween.



I do dig the 70's vibe of this video.

It's the Halloween season. I'm on a steady diet of horror flicks. You know what that means.

PRIME DIRECTIVE: EXTERMINATE THE WHOLE HUMAN RACE.

Bad Religion - "O Come, O Come Emmanuel"



Bad Religion is to release a new album with covers of classical Christmas songs. This is one of them, and it's fucking awesome. In fact, it may be better than 90% of Bad Religion's songs. I have been listening to it non-stop for 6 hours now. It's surprising how the melody of an 18th(?) Century hymn wouldn't be out of place on any Bad Religion album.