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Tuesday, January 31, 2006
  random bits of franceterica

A Bunch of Beatniks Riding a Rocket, the mp3 label disguised as a weblog, has released a compilation featuring some stray France-related nonsense. We did a second take on "Working Overtime to Kill You" that didn't quite pan out, and you can find that over at BoB. Also new stuff from Forever Dudes, "Dollywood Nights", and the rediscovered (and previously unknown to most everybody) Masters of the Hemisphere almost-classic "Canal Styles". There's also some France involvement in that Ivan Allen VI track, too. Anyway, some good stuff, for free, so maybe lend it your ear.
 
  Bob Pollard's Setlist - ATHENS

From his first solo show last Thursday - 1/26/06 - woah, awesome. Posted on "Disarm the Settlers" by some dude who flew from Detroit to see the show:

Denied*
I surround you naked*
Get a faceful (from Normal Happiness)
Gold*
Maggie turns to flies
Lightshow*
Blessed in an open head*
All men are freezing (from Bubble Ep)
Supernatural Car Lover (from Normal Happiness)
Other dogs remain*
Make use
Dancing girls and dancing men*
Kick me and cancel*
Dolphins of color (Circus Devils)
Boxing about (from Normal Happiness)
US mustard company*
Fresh threats, salad shooters, and zip guns*
Conqueror of the moon*
Hammer in your eyes*
50 year old baby*
Flowering orphan
The right thing*
I'm a strong lion*
Serious bird woman, you turn me on (from Normal Happiness)
7th level shutdown (from Choreographed Man of War)
I'm a widow*
A boy in motion*
Love is stronger than witchcraft*
Look at your life (from new Moping Swans)
The numbered head*
Get under it
Do something real
Taco, buffalo, bird dog, and jesus (called out by bob as a joke, not played)
The kingdom without* (including outro!)
Recovering*
----
Girls of wild strawberries
Game of pricks
Sad if i lost it
Back to the lake
Tractor rape chain
Fair touching
Things i will keep
My kind of soldier
Don't stop now


***Normal Happiness - is his "NEW" record that he of course said was already recorded and done. The song he played - "Supernatural Car Lover" was fucking out of this world rockin. Another certified hit!

Great show. 43 Songs and of those only 21(*) of those were from the record he was promoting. Pretty cool, and a straight GBV encore didnt hurt. Wurster on drums was a sight to see. There was a new guitarist drinking a can of COKE on-stage. People were shocked - he looked like he was from the OC, and someone in the crowd told us he was also in the new Guns N Roses?! How true is that, probably not.

He's still got it. Still rocked balls!
 
Monday, January 30, 2006
  new time for the radio show

Friends, the Mesmerization Eclipse radio program, your only source for crop reports, public affairs debate, and the best unpopular music of yesteryear and today, moves to a new timeslot this Friday, February 3rd. It's still on from 3 to 5 pm, but one day later. So instead of tuning in to WZBC this Thursday at three, wait 24 hours or so and log in on Friday. It'll suit you well.
 
Friday, January 27, 2006
  these headphones are destroying my ears

Good thing I just realized how to listen to this iPod on my work computer. They ban the iTunes, and I didn't think the pc's speakers would be feasible. But yes, they will hook into the iPod's headphone jack, so now I can blast Young Jeezy all day without carving up my eardrums. And good timing, too, as yesterday I was able to acquire a few new records that are quite excellent, or at least highly listenable for the time being.

The new Oakley Hall record, Second Guessing, while not as good as the debut on first (and thus far only) listen, remains a mighty fine foray into country-rock with an ever-so-slight psychedelic veneer. This one makes me feel less paranoid than the first, which actually may not be a good thing. It doesn't feel like anything's creeping up around me, as with the debut, but there's still a pleasing amount of repetition and folksy, homespun drone on some of the longer songs.

Dins, the new album from Psychic Ills, was recommended to me by the new music director at the station. I didn't rate his taste so highly, though, as the kid's like 18, and a near total stranger; thus, I was in no real hurry to play it on my show. I'm glad I did, though, as it's actually really great. I've listened through a few times now, and it's yet to get old. It's some good, blurry, washed-out space-rock, with delay and reverb and shit all over the place, like some old Kraut rock jams with Tower Recordings style atmospherics and production like a minor league Loveless. The two longer pieces near the end, "I Knew My Name" and, especially, "Another Day Another Night", are future MezEclipse staples, for sure. This is on Social Registry, which might be the best label going right now.

I also bought a copy of the new-ish Excepter ep, Sunbomber, yesterday, but I haven't had a chance to listen to it. I don't doubt that it's top-notch, though.
 
  yesterday's playlist

Deep Purple “Spacetruckin'”
Oakley Hall “Volume Rambler”
Oneida “Antibiotics”
Captain Beefheart and The Magic Band “Sue Egypt”
Olivia Tremor Control “excerpt from Green Typewriters”
Kemialliset Ystavat “Etanapolku”
Excepter “The Sun Bomber”
Psychic Ills “I Knew My Name”
Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti “Flying Circles”
Galaxie 500 “Submission”
Growing “track two”
Ropers “You Have a Light”
Crystalized Movements “This Dimming Today”
The Cannanes & Steward “Savage”
Robert Pollard “Conqueror of the Moon”
Fursaxa “Rheine”
 
Thursday, January 26, 2006
  radio

Right now, me and WZBC, 'til five.
 
  Drunk Night Zoo Thousand



In honor of seeing a little piece music history tonight - Bob's first solo show. Realistically there have probably been a few warm ups, but whatever fucker. I thought I would post this really cool link for GBV fans. Its a listing of the sequencing of all 6 potential versions of Bee Thousand, culminating in the version that was released on Scat. Each one is different and really shows you how bob was waivering on the track listing. AND how the final version is essentially a 20 song hit parade.
 
Wednesday, January 25, 2006
  Brian Crews' finest hour

So shit, does anybody know who has that copy of the Brian Crews Show that used to float around? Sean, Crews, Crog, anybody? I'm pretty sure it was Bren's copy, with like a Tigger sticker or something on it. I want to take another gander at that shit, it's been way too long.
 
  Wilco = ATH = March 9



Go here to buy presale tickets before the public, TODAY ONLY.
 
Tuesday, January 24, 2006
  Talib Kweli is a better eMCee than Kanye West



His "new" album is a mix tape that he released so the bootleggers don't make all his money. Go here to listen to some of the tracks streaming, fuckin great. Esp the track calling out Lauren Hill.
 
Monday, January 23, 2006
  Coming To Terms With Fucking Death

My fiance and I could have died last night. Details are coming out. Our heat went out for a fourth time in a month last night. Long story involving us moving into a place in late December that had an old HVAC unit that they dont make parts for anymore, negligent landlords who bought a warranty on the house and refused to completely replace the busted ass unit (only temporary fixes that last about 2 weeks), and 4 different HVAC guys that have come out and told us each a different thing wrong with the whole heating system. Anyways, it went out again last night and was about 50 in our house this morning, not as bad as livin up north but still a major inconvenience.

So we make the call yet again this morning to the landlord to fix the freakin' unit (we are mighty pissy in our delivery, dont worry). They do, and the HVAC person finally condemned the unit! Great news right? They are going to replace the unit completely with a Trane or some shit. Here is the scary thing - they told us that the unit has a huge "crack" in it and has been leaking large amounts of CARBON MONOXIDE!!!!

They cant fix it until tomorrow, so if anyone wants to hang out in the Extended Stay Deluxe on Peachtree tonight, hit me up.

And yeah, I'm happy to be typing any sorts of bullshit today.
 
  last week's playlist

Haven't done this in a while. I've grown bored with the cutting and the pasting.

Boris “Theme”
Captain Beyond “Distant Sun”
Black Mountain “Modern Music”
Sunn O))) “It Took the Night to Believe”
Extra Glenns “I Hear the Planets”
Circle “Berserk”
The Fall “Shoulder Pds 1”
Devo “Girl U Want”
Comets on Fire “Wind God of the Ice Age”
Heavenly “Wrap My Arms Around Him”
Colin Newman “And Jury”
Urdog “Paths of the Meridians”
Strapping Fieldhands “Scuttled Kayak Odyssey”
Lula Cortes E Ze Ramalho “Culto A Terra”
Axolotl / Yellow Swans / Gerritt second track from untitled cd-r
Pentagram “Everything's Turning to Night”
Styrenes “Jaguar Ride”
Raccoo-oo-oon “On the Roof”
Barry Black “Golden Throat”
Can “Oh Yeah”
Big Star “Stroke It Noel”
Brothers of The Occult Sisterhood “The Flesh Shall Hang From Your Bones”
The Peppermint Rainbow “And I'll Be There”
Beatnik Filmstars “Wing Off a Plane”
King Crimson “21st Century Schizoid Man”
Kinski “Floundering & Fluctuating”
Hawkwind “Master of the Universe”
 
Sunday, January 22, 2006
  And just like that it's over

So I found out a few minutes ago that they are bringing in former 790 the Zone morning show dude and Dave FM sports director to do sports and traffic here at the station temporarily. I also found out that he suffers from veritgo. HUH? Who has vertigo? So now our morning show is riddled with obscure diseases. One of the other dudes that works on it has Colitis. Man I need to go to the doctor. Yikes. Anyway that one week of sports was fun, but I certainly won't miss waking up at 4:30. Thanks for listening to those mp3's and all the support it was very nice. Like my man Pac says "you are appreciated."
 
Friday, January 20, 2006
  interview assistance

Okay, so in like four hours I'm supposed to interview Orthrelm, and I have absolutely no idea what to talk about. Total blank. Any chance any of you folks out there like these guys? If so, any thing you want to know? Any questions you can think of? 'Cuz I've got a list of six, and it took me an hour to come up with those. I'm not purposefully looking to create the least informative, most boring interview ever, so I'd greatly appreciate any input from anybody who might give a shit. Thanks!
 
  "Hey man, chill out - you're on vacation"

HOSTEL - B-

Doesn't touch Cabin Fever but worth it for the few parts of great humor and the gore (and Crews will love the boobs). For some reason though, I kinda expected more really nasty shit, based on what I had heard. I mean dont get me wrong there are some eye popping scenes in this flick and I would imagine they had to cut a lot to get an R rating. The story line kinda meanders - which cmon dude - i wasnt going to see fucking plot, but still its called "Hostel" but really it should be called "Death Building In Serbia or Wherever The Fuck That Place Was". Roth is great about fleshing out the details though - small shit like the "kid gang" and all those cell phone messages, and small characters (male hostel desk attendant) are what really make this movie. Could have been a lot better but the good parts are great. The crowd also ads to this movie - "Oh shit, not his fangaz!"
 
Thursday, January 19, 2006
  Rippy Found OSAMA!!!



RULIN HARD!
 
  radio: seven minutes ago 'til five

WZBC. Click it.
 
Wednesday, January 18, 2006
  The Best New Show In Adult Swim



SQUIDBILLIES, yallz!
 
  The Best Sports Yet!

Elliott rippin' the ATL airwaves a new one!

We are going to try and make this a daily "sports" segment for as long as Elliott has this job. We are working on the logistics of having a little button in the side bar - but until then - get your MP3 on.
 
  Things in a list

- Shane's BBQ while a chain is still great
- The Kingsbury Manx deserve more praise
- I want to go to both weekends of All Tomorrow's Parties this year
- Mixing Afrikan Majik has made a swing towards the awesome
- Today's weather is exactly opposite from yesterday
- Starting a new music project excites me
- A Million Little Pieces has a terrible ending wrap-up
- Losing something is stressful
- The Guided By Voices book is fucking hilarious
- I am watching some dude in orange wonder through the woods
- We are getting a washer
- The Italian Job was not as great as I remembered
- Tennessee awaits my arrival next week
- Tofu stir fry is damn good
- Brah 1.5 is going to be better than Brah 1
- Skyscraper is a fun magazine to read
- I didn't find the pot pipe
- Howard Stern isn't that great and New York isnt that funny
- Bubba The Love Sponge isn't as shocking as he thinks he is (even though he did go down on a stripper live on the air)
- Don't eat at the new Asian Buffet in Kennesaw, they are dicks.
 
Saturday, January 14, 2006
  The Ball

Colts - 35 Steelers - 17
Bears - 17 Panthers - 3
 
Friday, January 13, 2006
  The Blackness

A really really great article on Jack Black from the new GQ. Read that shit while waiting on my hair cut yesterday - only person laughing in the whole place, fuck the worlds.

Some Blacklights:

I had a bit of a lost weekend while we were doing King Kong,” he says. “Look, overall I’m very responsible on set. I’m not one of those dudes who come drunk to the set. But there was a lost weekend where I had a little extra time off and I did some ecstasy and I went on a kind of crazy rampage and I started smoking. Me and another member of the cast, who will remain nameless, just running around, dancing around, drinking and ecstasizing, smoking like a chimney.

We pass a sign advertising baby back ribs that he complains is “fucking with my brain…because I love ribs, and I guarantee there’s no ribs in my satchel of health."

[talking about recording with Tenacious D] they turn to a song to be called “Master Exploder.” Gass says to Black, “I don’t know if it was authorized, but we went into the riffernator yesterday,”


Enjoy.
 
  Coke Whores

 
  Movie Time With Ice, The Movie Guy

There are some things in life that are just naturally funny. Things that you don't have to put into weird and wacky situations in order to make them funny. There are very few things in life that can always be counted on as comedic gold. Oprah, pizza, talking computers...these things will always work, and, except for one god-awful Just Be Friends show, Gay cowboys. I have to admit the idea of this movie is so good that I was expecting to be disappointed, but this movie definitely went beyond my wildest expectations.

First off, my hat goes off to the brave director, Ang Lee. Ang is one of Hollywood's premier directors and this is not a movie that most directors would be willing to risk their reputation on. Many would view sex comedies as something that should be left to the kids just out of film school, but Mr. Lee treated this movie with as much respect as Spielberg treated "Schindler's List". Having not seen any of the previews, I went into the theater expecting a joke-a-second laugh factory much like "Porky's" or "Bachelor Party". Mr. Lee, however, took a much different approach from the classic sex comedy formula that was established during their heyday in the early '80s. In order to separate his film from the rest of the genre and create something completely his own, the director took a very slow and subtle approach to the underlying humor of this film. This approach allowed the natural comedy of the script to resonate with the audience much like the lingering aftertaste of a fine glass of wine. This is the work of a director at the top of his game.

Yes, this is a very slow burning comedy, but don't let that deter you. When the jokes finally hit, they hit with double the impact. Imagine this situation for instance; Jake Gyllenhaal, Heath Ledger, a bottle of whiskey and a tent with no lights....I won't tell you what happens, but as you can imagine hilarity ensues! SPOILER ALERT: One thing that was unfortunately left out of this movie however was the nudity. Nudity is expected in these movies, but besides one set of lackluster titties this movie had none. That, however, is the only complaint I have with this movie. This is comedy in a epic form that I have never experienced before. Whereas most movies in the sex comedy genre take place over a couple of days, this movie has it's characters turning jokes on each other for their whole entire lives! This movie takes hold of the humor and does not let go. It forces its characters to be dedicated to the comedy with an intensity that has never before been seen on the big screen. Characters marry, cheat, even have kids, all for the sake of fooling one another! OMG, I was on the floor!

This was not the movie I had expected to see. It went well beyond that. This is one of the most innovated and genre-busting movies I have ever seen. It deserves every bit of the praise that it is receiving and this movie will surely put Ang Lee in the same class of directors as Harold Ramis and Bob Clark. Not too much sex, but a whole lot of funny business and in the end that makes this one pretty good flick.
 
Thursday, January 12, 2006
  unprofessional radio

The weekly radio thing is on WZBC right now. I'm sick as hell. Ugh. This Circle song is pretty great. And it's got 21 minutes left.
 
  Brokeback Companion Piece


HAHAHAHAHAHA.


One of the best concerts of all time?* Possibly. OJ called me last night after a "dude's night out" viewing of Brokeback Mountain, asking me about Just Be Friends lyrics. For those who don't know, Just Be Friends is Je Suis France's alter ego where we turn into gay, fucked up on drugs, dirty as hell cowboys and sing cowboy songs. Six dudes, one acoustic guitar, two bales of hay, one fake campfire, one big bottle of whiskey, and lots of beer.

I found a video tape of it last night and laughed my ass off. Probably the funniest part was OJ's botched guitar solo during Ice's song. Here's the setlist:

1. Theme Song
2. Crog's Banker Song into Every Rose Has It's Thorn
3. OJ's When You're Alone You Got a Bone It Needs a Home
4. Ice's Song
5. Blue Shadows
6. OJ's Covered In Drugs/Bugs
7. Dark's I Ain't Drank Whiskey Since Baby Jesus Pissed In My Eye
8. Jeff's the Only Arabic Cowboy
9. Theme Reprise









*Our 2nd show was so bad that we never played again. Part of the blame goes to the sound and another part goes to Robbie Beers' negativity and the rest falls on us.
 
  We Knew Him First...

OUR MUTHERFUCKIN BOY ELLIOTT TESTING OUT HIS NEW JOB AS THE SPORTS GUY ON THE MORNING SHOW AT 99X. LIVE ON THE MUTHERFUCKIN IZZAIR!!!

Twas this morning at 6:45am. He will also be on tomorrow morning then as well!
HOLLAH! Also - is that a little bit o' mez eclipse creep creep creepin' onto the airwaves with the talk about the baseball HOF!?!
Props Ellie.

** Its a huge file so stick with it....
 
Wednesday, January 11, 2006
  Our Finest Hour?



Cleaning out OTP I found a setlist from a show we played at Tasty World where we debuted our brand new song ACID TRAIN. A song we planned on recording but immediately got shot off the plate by the one and only Jeff Griggs. I think this show was part of the 4 day weekend where we played 3 times in 4 days. Danger weekend?
 
  more murphy

LD has a good post about Murphy and the Hall up over at his place. Everybody should go check it out.
 
Tuesday, January 10, 2006
  any Hall of Fame without Dale Murphy ain't no Hall of Fame at all

Another year, another 340 or so votes short for Murphy. I believe he did pick a few up since last year, but it's still pretty much hopeless. Mattingly finishing higher in the voting than Murphy is a beautiful crystalization of sportswriters' Northeastern bias.
 
  Some Bullshit

Up at the extension.
 
Monday, January 09, 2006
  a million little pieces of bullshit

Huh, on top of being an egomaniacal prick, James Frey is also a liar. Awesome.
 
  Thoughts on Wild Card Weekend.

Washington Redskins vs. Tampa Bay Bucs - I have been really underwhelmed by both of these teams this season. Especially Tampa. Granted they beat the Falcs two times this year but I have absolutely no faith in Simms or their receiving core. Cadillac is great and will be great in the years to come, but he flopped on Saturday when they needed him most. Washington wasn't much more impressive to me. Scored both TDs off really bad Tampa miscues. Easy rushing touch for Portis. They are going to get waxed by Seattle this weekend by two touchdowns.

New England Pats vs. Jacksonville Jags - The game was close at halftime, and then it wasn't. I thought this was going to be the game of the weekend, close as shit. Nope. Should Leftwich have been playing? Probably but it really looked like his leg was still bothering him, even being one of the toughest players in the game. Brady showed why in the fuck he hasn't lost a single playoff game in his history. And what the fuck up BEN WATSON! Go Dawgs (there were a lot of dawgs showing their skillz this weekend). That touchdown run was beautiful to watch. This Patriots / Broncos game is going to be incredible, I cant wait to watch it. Too hard to call right now.

Carolina Panthers vs. NY Giants - This game wasn't over before it started like the score indicates. I thought both teams got off to a really slow start and NY's defense kept them in the first half. The second half was a different story. Eli was too conscious of his own nerves and literally threw this game away. (Pains me to say that as his fantasy owner) - Tiki never got going really and they needed him to big time to take the pressure off the passing game and playing catchup the entire second half. Carolina is good, but not great. If they beat Chicago in Chicago this weekend, I will say they are great but not before then. Their passing game is pigeonholed yet incredible and completely unstoppable with Smith. Kinda like Vince Young. Their rushing game is the question mark for me - Foster and Goings did great yesterday, but will truly meet their match with Urlacher & Co. I am kinda rooting for the Bears in this one. Eli - start practicing today, dude - 2006 is going to be big for us.

Cincinnati Bengals vs. Pittsburgh Steelers - Fuck man, what a shitty thing to happen to Palmer. I was really looking forward to seeing him shine yesterday and finally quiet all those bullshit Steelers fans that still think they have the best team in the damn league. I thought Kitna did great, but got cold in the second half. Totally mismanaged Chad Jeezy and Housh in this game - they should have been going to him down field every 3rd throw. Kitna kept throwing to that 4th string WR after Henry went out and he was good but get real - with two of the best receives on this team, why would the utilization not be there. Good to see Hines play well as always, but they are going to get their asses handed to them next week in Indy. Could be close but I am looking forward to hearing the silence coming from the Pitt.
 
Thursday, January 05, 2006
  TWO THOUSAND high FIVEs

Print this out and take it to the shitter for a good read!

10. TIE: Kanye West - Late Registration
My Morning Jacket - Z


Both fuckin' slayed me when I first got them but I hate to say lost some weight with me over time. Either way both are better than 95% of the shit out there, but hey they made the list so quit yr bitchin. We all know that it takes a truly great musician to follow up a breakaway album with something on the level of the first. Kanye didnt only do that - he fuckin smashed it. I love that he doesn't even save his best beats for his own records, just goes to show how masterful he is with the beaticus. When I first read that he had the singer of Maroon 5 on the record with him, I was all like, "What the shit that Kanye doin ass muthafucka Polo dye done seeped into his brain." But holy shit right, he was the one disintegrating our minds (and expectations) with an opener like that. Refreshing in hip hop, still ass shaking, and probably one of the top two or three smartest hip hop heads out there. Good work dude. Good work dudes. MMJ was another that stupefied their listeners by not holding to the stone cast that was thrust upon them by the critics. Granted they played a Skynyrd cover band in "Elizabethtown" but they don't just hold to the southern roots, beats? keyboards? Now that deserves a HELL YEAH. Gideon made me feel like I was smart enough to write a book. They realized themselves as a band on Z and realized they didnt have to follow where people thought they should go. Talent, life.

Best Songs: Crack Music / Gideon


9. Boards Of Canada - The Campfire Headphase


Fuck Tylenol PM. Fuck muscle relaxers. Fuck mind surfing. The Boards of Canada got you, man. If you haven't gotten into these guys yet - now is your damn chance. This is far and away their strongest record to date. These reclusive Scots don't rear their heads often, but when they do - you know it will be worth the wait. I like to think of them as a good brain groove massage. Mostly quieter yet elaborate arrangements of everything from drum beats and keyboards to ocean sounds. Electronic analog. Headphase was actually the first time in their existence where guitars made their way to the mix. A bold step out for them works flawlessly as the added layer of warmth adds to the magnificence. Their main focus is the abandoned groove, and they discover this realm by twisting the listener through the land of the no stress high. Plus, you could get so laid.

Best Song: Satellite Anthem Icarus


8. Sunn O))) - Black One


What was the soundtrack of that night the corpse of Joe Montana fucked you right between the eyes on HELLoween in the scorched dimension's 2nd realm. Uh, Sunn O))). Not for the faint of heart, by any means. I am going to go out on a limb here and say most people wont like this one bit, but much to my surprise I am completely obsessed with this band right now. 2 dudes who essentially started a EARTH cover band have trenched their own sub-genre of music. Doomdrone. There were others before them, yes, but these guys have perfected the shit. Low bass rumbles that will literally churn your brain into mush if you aren't careful. Their recent popularity has arisen due to the fact that this is their most accessible recording to date. They havent changed their sound much (death punch), but where previous albums had 20 minute plus drones on there, this one consumes the listener with shorter songs and new domains they have conquered. They hired some big guns in both the noise (John Wiese) and black metal (Wrest & Malefic) scenes and the addition of vocals to the tracks completes the nightmare. Actually vocals isn't the word. Blood growls fits better. The thing I love about these guys is how brilliant their approach is. Druid robes and smoke machines fill the live shows - and seemingly simple low octave bass floods the recordings, but as every Sunn disc advertises - MAXIMUM VOLUME YIELDS MAXIMUM RESULTS. Thrust the knob and you will discover the true underbelly of this band - complex oscillations and gnarly note combinations that shits out a grim mutherfuckin view on music.

Best Song: It Took The Night To Believe


7. Acid Mothers Temple & The Cosmic Inferno - IAO Chant From The Cosmic Inferno / Anthem Of The Space


Well it wouldn't be a Mezzy list without these crazy ass Japanese hippy freaks on here. This year saw the split of Acid Mothers Temple and The Melting Paraiso UFO and the birth of the Cosmic Inferno. Essentially the same base crew, just add some fuckin Japanese rock all stars. Musicians from Ghost & the Boredoms came on board and fuckin rocked this place. Double drummers mutherfuckers, double ass whip. They surfed into this new outlook with a cool idea, something like beer frisbee. Each album will have a maximum of 2 songs on it, which of course leads to maximum jamming. The first of these two albums here only made it to one song - but shit 51 minutes later you are kickin' hot flashes straight stingin your psyche. What is the #1 complaint about this band, that every song sounds the same. Well on IAO CHANT...AMT covers the gamut - slow tempo, groovin, slow burn solos, ignition, cool waves, chanting home, everything. So it doesnt sound the same, yet they ride a familiar horse across the finish. Anthem Of The Space was a live favorite of this year and incorporates the use of the hurdy gurdy and other tone-constant instruments to fly you into their cosmic bar, sit you down for a drink of absinthe, and then gingerly drive your drunk hallucinating ass home at the end of the night for a foot wash and a banana. Crazy, yeah they know!

Best Songs: Om Riff From The Cosmic Inferno / Anthem Of The Space


6. Sam Prekop - Who's Your New Professor


Everything this guy touches turns to gold. The voice of the lil'est angel who likes his bourbon and the creativity of a queer eye. Prekop also heads up The Sea & Cake so if you are any sort of fan of those Chicago pillars of jazz influenced rocky, his solo records will do you right. He does depart from the S&C sound for more exotic measures but the voice will always be the same and simultaneously also be the draw. His first solo record is one of my top 5 deserted island records, so I was expecting this follow up to disappoint or knock the first one on its ass. It does neither, but finds a way on its own to separate preconceived notions and leave you as happy as can be. This dude is more laid back than Ice after like 4 days without a shirt. Its almost hypnotic in a way b/c you hang on every word and float free on every delicate rhythm. In one word: chillsandwichbrew

Best Song: Dot Eye

THE BIG BOYS:


5. Little Brother - The Chittlin Circuit 1.5


These guys are better than De La Soul. Maybe not more relevant, but damn them North Cak boys can make a record. They had two come out this year and this one was meant to be an indie send off to come out before their major label debut "The Minstrel Show" dropped late in the year. A collection of throwaway b-sides, collaborations, and mix tape appearances turned out to be light years better than their attempt at the big dance (which I also love, this is just that good). Fans of Tribe, vintage Beastie Boys, Pete Rock & CL Smooth are going to shit themselves when they hear this shit. They are made up of 2 rappers - Phonte & Big Pooh with their DJ/production guru - 9th Wonder who by all means is going to be in the elite of the production world in due time. The flows bounce off each other like the two have known each other since birth and the vintage jazz sample based beat attack can only lead to one fuckin thing - partyin.

Best Song: The Honorable


4. Young Jeezy - Lets Get It: Thug Motivation 101


Let me hear the dope boys go "AAYYYYYYEEE"! If there was ever a rapper made hang wif Cocaine Bref, this is him. Homeboy is not only one of the hottest rappers around right now, but he also is a bidnass-man, drug dealer, and ATL BORN PLAYA. As if you didn't need another reason to see that ATL is the eternal shit, Jeez will school your dumb ass as he grumbles his way through elaborate tales of wondermentland (ATL). Witty, educated, and focused as fuck - I think he knew 2005 was going to be his year. With most rappers you cant wait around long enough to hear their true message through all the bullshit they spout out their traps about how they are the greatest MC since Biggie. With Jeezy, you fuckin believe him from "line" one. Not only does he ace the tale, but he also finds a way to flow an album of 19 tracks seamlessly with jams that could be simultaneously heard on downtown block corners, suburb bedrooms, club VIP rooms, and mutherfuckin yacht sex rooms. Jeez's million dollah dreams quickly became a reality this year and hopefully 2006 will only lead to more snow white nights.

Best Song: Go Crazy (seriously the best rap single of 2005, easy)


3. Animal Collective - Feels


Does anyone else get the feeling that a lot of people feel as if they get this band, but don't have any idea of their dominance? Me being included. When I listen to Animal Collective, it seems to me like as good as this music sounds, we arent even getting the tip of the iceberg with their creativity. This is one of those bands that has shoe boxes full of tapes of shit that is so good that they only want to let themselves and their friends listen to it. All that being said AC found a way to blow the lucky listeners of this album away with ease, and in a certain sense are impossible to accurately describe. Its like a pied piper with them, I know if I was 17 and hadn't been working for White Water, I would have spent months following them show after show without batting an eyelash. Each show would be different, and somehow AC finds a way to convey that with their music - every time I listen to Feels I hear something new, something specifically buried that worms its way to my ear. This album finds less song structures and more mind scapes that wrap you up like a pita and take you to a good picnic by the feather lake.

Best Song: Loch Raven


2. Black Mountain - s/t


Fuck yeah the Boogie Stones are back. Holy fuck, this record knocked me on my fuckin ass. How a band got shit this right amazes me. Jagjaguwar struck fuckin gold with these Canadian sex crazed smokeys. They bust straight out the gate with purple haze fueled heavy ended avant rock that plods along at a pace you would find at a kickball game full of hungover assholes. Mostly groovin - then bursts of all out thunder. The singer has the song writing ability similar to the aforementioned Stones and a lot of their stuff comes off as a mix of 60s fuzz and the more upbeat side of the Velvet Underground. I swear "No Satisfaction" (yeah, i know) sounds like it could have sat side by side with "Sweet Jane". The long winters up there must have seen them holed up in a basement practice space for hours perfecting this sound. Then there's the tour with Coldplay. Then there's the female singer in the band who sounds like the spawn of all 3 Skynyrd backup singers. Then there's the soul punch. Then there's the song Druganaut, which thank god they put the full version on the single cause with a deep ass acid grind like that, you gotta let shit ride. I would take a puck to the face for these guys any day.

Best Song: Druganaut (full vers)


1. Oneida - The Wedding


These guys are going to play this record in its entirety at my wedding this summer. Actually if that were to happen, L would divorce me in an instant. Bad news. But what is good news is how incredible this band and this album are. If you have read this page with any regularity over the past year or so - you fuckin know we jam some Oneida, brahs. Thank god Dark got into these guys enough to prompt the France to open for them and thus embrace them as one of our (at least my) favorite bands. With this record the dirty boys are hitting on all cylinders, crafting their yield into a most monestrous beauty beast. And you know what, I wasnt even upset that there was only one song on the entire album that tops out over 4 and a half minutes. What some brahs cant concentrate their jams? This was the first record that these champions of concentration experimented with limits, and in by doing so - they annihilated us in the best way possible. They even have a certifiable radio hit with "High Life" (I am thankful that Bobby's wife requested that song in Boston, b/c they obviously would not have played it if she werent there). From the oh so delicate mandolin to the honey soaked vocals of Kid - this is a new side we see. Oh you think they're getting soft - bullshit asshole, how bout a tasty lick from "Did I Die?" the Black Sabbath crusted party stick with vocal riffs like "did I die, or have my eyes rolled back inside my head!!!" GUH! The new strings are there and beautifully done, adding an element of ease to the listening of the badassedness. Most accessible Oneida record, so don't puss out this time. We've told you before and we will tell you again - these are some of the finest experimental minds around, now jam this shit! Hard style.

Best Song: Lavender / ALL OF THEM



Honorable Mentions:

Mike Jones - Who Is Mike Jones - WHO?
Silver Jews - Tanglewood Numbers - He fell off the horse but remounted with friends.
Dr. Dog - Easy Beat - Surprise band that fell into my lap (or house).
Turbonegro - Party Animals - Endless party with Stephen Hawkins!
Ween - Shinola Vol. 1 - Super brown treats from the vaults.
Bonnie Billy / Matt Sweeny - Superwolf - Country boy and his rocker bud.
Comets On Fire / Burning Star Core - Tour Single - Roadhouse jammin at its finest.
Beck - Guero - Excellent dont get me wrong, but only half hits.
Queens Of the Stone Age - Lullabies to Paralyze - Should have made the top 10 based on the nugs alone.
Kingsbury Manx - The Fast Rise and Fall Of The South - Like baseball and southern things? Groove to this.


Surprise Record I Thought I Would Never Like:

Nada Surf - This Weight Is A Gift - Holy shit. L bought this record and fuckin' a if it taint choc full of hits from front to back. Not at all what you think from what you know, these guys are good.


Disappointments:

Pajo - Pajo - I love this guy, and how he recorded this album (on the interior mic of his labtop and thats it), but still its weak as shit.
Broadcast - Tender Buttons - Fuck drum machines with this band.
Paul Wall - The People's Champ - There are some real jams on here, but "I Got The Internet Goin' Nuts came in well under the weight of its mind numbingly awesome title.
LCD Soundsystem - s/t - Some real jams on here too, but fuck does it get old quick.
 
  radio

Right now, and until five, on WZBC...
 
  double-shot of ex-Athenians in popular regional periodical

Two slightly semi-Athens related notes in this week's New Yorker:

1. A mention of Pioneer Bar-B-Q, owned by former Athenian and old chum Alan Corey, in an article about some architectural blog's birthday party.

2. A piece on former UGA history professor Bryant Simon and his research for a Fast Food Nation-style book on Starbucks. With his focus on labor and cultural history, his papers on Springsteen, and his long locks, greying slightly, prematurely, Simon was considered the "cool" professor. He wasn't too cool with me skipping class in order to stay home and play banjo, though, which was probably the second or third step in my slow stumble out of graduate school. (Actually, he was really nice, and fairly cool, and a great teacher for the five weeks I took his class.)
 
  a nice article on the Fall

In which the writer hunts down former Fall members.

A telling excerpt:

"'This drunk man [guitarist Neville Wilding] came backstage asking if anyone played drums,' [Chemical Brothers manager Nick Dewey] says. 'The band had had a fight and left the drummer at motorway services.' Dewey hadn't played for 10 years, but once a Chemical Brother put his name forward, Wilding refused to take no for an answer. Dewey was led to a darkened tour bus to meet Smith, 'passed out with his shirt off. The guitarist had to punch him in the face to wake him up. Then they began fighting over whether or not they should teach me the songs. Mark said no!' With a blood-covered Smith offering occasional prompts, Dewey pulled it off."
 
  treetrucks

a best of coming later today.
 
Tuesday, January 03, 2006
  2005: A Remembrance

Okay. DOA is up and running again, after a four-month hiatus; this list appeared there a couple days ago, but with less comments and a few spelling errors and just generally in a slightly shabbier fashion. There's also been one addition and one subtraction; I bought the new Fall album the day I had to submit my list to DOA, and thus hadn't really listened to it enough to tell whether it merited inclusion or not. I swapped it out with Deerhoof's The Runners Four instead of pushing everything down a notch and dropping number ten; after listening to the new Deerhoof a few times on the way to work the last few days, I've decided it isn't quite as good as I thought it was. It's actually a little boring, and definitely no match for their last few records.

Okay, enough jabbering. Here's the list thing.

1) Excepter - Throne

Throne is like thrusting your head headfirst into an infinite-degree vat of pure future Biblicalism. It's beauty and power and minimalism and poetry and God and maximilism, and shit.

2) Animal Collective - Feels

Their third straight excellent album, and a close second in 2005. Slightly more formless and thus less pop-oriented than Sung Tongs, it's still catchy and memorable enough to appeal to those who can't stand drone or noise stuff. So yeah, good for them.

3) Oneida - The Wedding

We like strings, and Oneida, and feeling. The Wedding contains all three. We like The Wedding.

4) Gang Gang Dance - God's Money

So I'd avoided this band in the past, due almost exclusively to the awful name. I'd also read they were insufferably pretentious and obnoxious and shit. I was pretty much shocked, then, when I first heard God's Money. It's genuinely staggering in spots, particularly "Glory In Itself / Egyptian", which is some good experimental art-pop you could probably dance to, were you so inclined.

5) The Fall - Fall Heads Roll

This didn't make the list on DOA because I didn't get around to giving it a full, thorough listen until this past weekend. I feel safe in calling this the best Fall record since 1986's Bend Sinister. Maybe a bold assertion, but I felt the same way about last year's The Real New Fall LP, and this one's even better than that. Not to say they haven't been good in the interim - four of the five albums released between '97 and 2002 were actually very good, with 2002's Are You Are Missing Winner being something of a minor stinker. Anyhow, Fall Heads Roll is basically an instant classic, at least for Fall fans.

6) Still Flyin' - unreleased demos

The debut album by Still Flyin' shall be the cultural event of the epoch, whenever some right-thinking and financially stable record concern gets around to releasing it. Reggae makes indie-pop better.

7) Kanye West - Late Registration

(I wrote this last Monday night, the day I bought both this and the Fall album mentioned above)
I just bought this record today. I like it!

8) Stephen Malkmus - Face the Truth

So here is the man's best full work since probably Wowee Zowee, which is more a comment on how inconsistent he's been since then than any strong commendation of this album. Face the Truth is a resolutely fine record that occasionally reaches peaks commensurate to mid-level Pavement. So it's mostly really damn good, and occasionally great. "Baby C'Mon" might be the song that got played the most on my radio show this year.

9) Crooked Fingers - Dignity and Shame

With each passing year, Eric Bachmann comes closer and closer to being a complete Springsteen simulacrum. As such, "Twilight Creeps" is the best Boss song since "I'm on Fire".

10) The Skaters - Rippling Whispers

So maybe this came out in 2004. Who the hell knows, or cares, other than two guys in the Mission, and some other guys elsewhere who like the two guys in the Mission? The Skaters make resolutely anti-pop noise that somehow contains the best and most touching elements of popular music.
 

ARCHIVES
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MESMERIZATION ECLIPSE RADIO:
Elliott is on AM 1690 the Voice of the Arts on Monday nights from 7-9PM for Radio Undefined
Crews is on WXDU on Tuesday mornings from ten to noon

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email

Dark doesn't want to own her, but he can't let her have it both ways.

Cocaine Bref is proud of his island heritage & will riff with you.

Elliott is sufficiently breakfast.
PS3 ID: ATLbloodfeast

Crog works in the bullshit industry in Hollywood. He was born on May 7th, 1978.

Jerkwater Johnson (friend to CT Jake Motherfucker) lives in San Francisco. He likes snacking, and the Mets, and is the proprietor of a bar called Duck Camp.

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je suis france
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