The Best of 2005 - Chapter Two (Second Quarter): Wherein Starbucks prefers blowjobs to anal sex
The Good:
Mountain Goats - Sunset Tree: Amazingly-written record about childhood tribulations with girls, alcohol and general teenage angst, set against a backdrop of life with an abusive, alcoholic stepfather. Lesser songwriters would dwell on the dispairing nature of this lyrical fodder. But far from wallowing in self pity, songwriter John Darnielle's character takes on an almost defiant tone, trying to wring everything he can out of life - because of rather than in spite of - what lies waiting for him when he returns home. All of this is cocooned inside an earnest, acoustic chamber pop with simple guitar/piano interplay and flat percussion. It's catchy, it's smart, and it's dripping with pathos.
White Stripes - Get Behind Me Satan: I resisted all the way through their last record, but on this one, Jack White has hooked me big time. His yelping is a bit more under control - though not too much. His songs are slightly more structured - though they still feel like they're dominated by the id, a great tactic successfully exploited by Frank Black in his weirder moments with the Pixies. And the piano's a nice touch. Not a bad song on this one.
Shelby Lynne - Suit Yourself: As I said in an earlier post, move over Lucinda Williams. There's a new sheriff in town.
The Bad:
Springsteen. As in, "The Boss is a Bad Muthafucka on Devils and Dust" - partially for his passable imitation of Steve Earle this time around, but mostly for penning a line about ass-fucking that got the record barred from Starbucks. Someone should point out to those crazy coffee makers that the definition of sodomy is anything other than vaginal penetration -- including "going down on [someone] in a theatre" - one of the many salacious little tidbits on Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill - Acoustic, which Starbucks DID opt to hock at the registers. Isn't it ironic?
Seriously, though, this is one heavy album, with rich characters, incisive narratives and a beautiful, dusty aesthetic more akin to classic Americana than I think we've ever seen from the man.
The Ugly:
Spinto Band - Nice and Nicely Done: Everyone sings songs about the pangs of love, but the excitable, overly fey vocals chased around by an inane two-note mandolin line on "Oh Mandy" makes Spinto sound like a collection of hyperventilating, adolescent sex offenders while they're doing it.
Ryan Adams - Cold Roses: I can't stay away from this guy. He's sooo bad! Don't judge this book by his cover, folks. Ryan Adams is a sheep in wolf's clothing. He used to be a sensitive alt-country crooner a la the more mellow points of Uncle Tupelo's Anodyne. Then, he became a rocker with a heart - cast in the mold of Bruce Springsteen. Now, he's a lite-rock hero, casting around for a role in a re-formed Air Supply. All the while, he perpetuates this brash image of the devil-may-care genius. Drop the indie haircut, Ryan, and get the perm you so deserve.
Matisyahu - Live at Stubbs: I don't get it. Why is this guy cool for anyone other than the yeshiva refugees that line my in-laws' seder table?
Honorable Mentions
Gorillaz - Demon Days: Pretty cool, but I can't do much with it. The good stuff sounds like a fantastic art project, and the bad stuff sounds like cheap dance music.
Meat Beat Manifesto - At the Center: Solid downtempo. Too bad I don't smoke pot, anymore.
And now, without further delay...
Best of Second Quarter 2005 Rhapsody Playlist:
1. Paper Tigers - Caesars
2. It Happens All The Time - Dressy Bessy
3. This Year - The Mountain Goats
4. All The Way Home - Bruce Springsteen
5. Unsingable Name - Mike Doughty
6. Freeze The Saints - Stephen Malkmus
7. Los Chucos Suaves - Ry Cooder
8. Riot Radio - The Dead 60s
9. My So-Called Celibate Life - Pernice Brothers
10. This - Brian Eno
11. California Blue - The Orange Peels
12. You Don'T Have A Heart - Shelby Lynne
13. Sweet Side - Lucinda Williams
14. Maureen - Fountains Of Wayne
15. Shut Your Eyes - Shout Out Louds
16. Take, Take, Take - The White Stripes
17. Back To Tupelo (Album Version) - Mark Knopfler"
The Good:
Mountain Goats - Sunset Tree: Amazingly-written record about childhood tribulations with girls, alcohol and general teenage angst, set against a backdrop of life with an abusive, alcoholic stepfather. Lesser songwriters would dwell on the dispairing nature of this lyrical fodder. But far from wallowing in self pity, songwriter John Darnielle's character takes on an almost defiant tone, trying to wring everything he can out of life - because of rather than in spite of - what lies waiting for him when he returns home. All of this is cocooned inside an earnest, acoustic chamber pop with simple guitar/piano interplay and flat percussion. It's catchy, it's smart, and it's dripping with pathos.
White Stripes - Get Behind Me Satan: I resisted all the way through their last record, but on this one, Jack White has hooked me big time. His yelping is a bit more under control - though not too much. His songs are slightly more structured - though they still feel like they're dominated by the id, a great tactic successfully exploited by Frank Black in his weirder moments with the Pixies. And the piano's a nice touch. Not a bad song on this one.
Shelby Lynne - Suit Yourself: As I said in an earlier post, move over Lucinda Williams. There's a new sheriff in town.
The Bad:
Springsteen. As in, "The Boss is a Bad Muthafucka on Devils and Dust" - partially for his passable imitation of Steve Earle this time around, but mostly for penning a line about ass-fucking that got the record barred from Starbucks. Someone should point out to those crazy coffee makers that the definition of sodomy is anything other than vaginal penetration -- including "going down on [someone] in a theatre" - one of the many salacious little tidbits on Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill - Acoustic, which Starbucks DID opt to hock at the registers. Isn't it ironic?
Seriously, though, this is one heavy album, with rich characters, incisive narratives and a beautiful, dusty aesthetic more akin to classic Americana than I think we've ever seen from the man.
The Ugly:
Spinto Band - Nice and Nicely Done: Everyone sings songs about the pangs of love, but the excitable, overly fey vocals chased around by an inane two-note mandolin line on "Oh Mandy" makes Spinto sound like a collection of hyperventilating, adolescent sex offenders while they're doing it.
Ryan Adams - Cold Roses: I can't stay away from this guy. He's sooo bad! Don't judge this book by his cover, folks. Ryan Adams is a sheep in wolf's clothing. He used to be a sensitive alt-country crooner a la the more mellow points of Uncle Tupelo's Anodyne. Then, he became a rocker with a heart - cast in the mold of Bruce Springsteen. Now, he's a lite-rock hero, casting around for a role in a re-formed Air Supply. All the while, he perpetuates this brash image of the devil-may-care genius. Drop the indie haircut, Ryan, and get the perm you so deserve.
Matisyahu - Live at Stubbs: I don't get it. Why is this guy cool for anyone other than the yeshiva refugees that line my in-laws' seder table?
Honorable Mentions
Gorillaz - Demon Days: Pretty cool, but I can't do much with it. The good stuff sounds like a fantastic art project, and the bad stuff sounds like cheap dance music.
Meat Beat Manifesto - At the Center: Solid downtempo. Too bad I don't smoke pot, anymore.
And now, without further delay...
Best of Second Quarter 2005 Rhapsody Playlist:
1. Paper Tigers - Caesars
2. It Happens All The Time - Dressy Bessy
3. This Year - The Mountain Goats
4. All The Way Home - Bruce Springsteen
5. Unsingable Name - Mike Doughty
6. Freeze The Saints - Stephen Malkmus
7. Los Chucos Suaves - Ry Cooder
8. Riot Radio - The Dead 60s
9. My So-Called Celibate Life - Pernice Brothers
10. This - Brian Eno
11. California Blue - The Orange Peels
12. You Don'T Have A Heart - Shelby Lynne
13. Sweet Side - Lucinda Williams
14. Maureen - Fountains Of Wayne
15. Shut Your Eyes - Shout Out Louds
16. Take, Take, Take - The White Stripes
17. Back To Tupelo (Album Version) - Mark Knopfler"
posted by isaacjosephson at 8:48 AM
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