Don't Tell a Soul, Vol. 35: I met my new neighbor / Had a drink on her veranda

For the uninitiated, "Don't Tell a Soul" is my ongoing, semi-regular awesome mix tape series.

And this, right here, is the latest installment.

As always, to encourage the consumption of music that doesn't suck, I have provided -- wherever available -- links to free, artist-sanctioned MP3s of the songs.

Enjoy!
Matt

(Questions or comments? E-mail mperrine [at] duluthbudgeteer [dot] com.)

1. Jason Falkner - "Do Ya" (Electric Light Orchestra cover)
Jason Falkner? Rocks. ELO? Definitely rocks ... what's not to love?

2. Logan Whitehurst and the Jr. Science Club - "Me and the Snowman"
For this selection I'd like to thank Superior's Globe News for always keeping me in a healthy supply of low-cost compilations and samplers. <- Without them, sadly enough, I don't think I would have ever come across this terrific music makin' machine.

3. The Doors - "Love Street"
Not to get too gushy or anything, but this track's another "thank-you selection." This time it's HBO's "Entourage," for helping me "reconnect" with my Doors collection.

Because of Jim Morrison, the only poetry I enjoy is drunken poetry.

Naysayers be damned.

4. John Vanderslice - "White Dove"
I don't want to speculate too much, but from what I'm hearing here, John Vanderslice might just have the 2007 album of the year on his hands: This is powerful stuff.

(p.s. JV probably has the best selection of free MP3s of any artist on this here awesome mix tape.)

5. Scissor Sisters - "I Can't Decide"
What's with bouncy rhythms and twisted lyrics producing the best songs these days? (Need more proof? Check out Aqueduct's "As You Wish" -- which, by the way, is the other record of the year. Strangely enough, like John Vanderslice's "Emerald City," it was also released on Barsuk.)

6. The Talks - "Any Other Saturday"
Recommended if you like Rasputina (with half the goth posturing), Guano Apes (with 50 percent more goth posturing) and/or mix tapes made by Kristi Lang. (Hey, she's good.)

7. Oasis - "The Meaning of Soul"
R.I.Y.L. bands which are A) somehow still making great records and B) somehow still alive.

8. Alien Crime Syndicate - "Ozzy"
Sure, this probably could've been on an "American Pie" soundtrack or two, but, dammit, I like it.

9. The Buggles - "Video Killed the Radio Star"
When's the last time you actually heard this classic from 1979? It's become such a "stat" in the MTV universe that many regrettably never actually take the time to sit down and enjoy it, the grandiose UK pop oddity that it is.

10. Oxford Collapse - "In Your Volcano"
R.I.Y.L. the Plastic Constellations' lust for life, faux rockabilly intros, (damn) good times.

11. Queens of the Stone Age - "Turnin' on the Screw"
This shit is epic -- like Led Zeppelin-wandering-through-a-desert epic ... I'm still surprised they're going to be gracing us with their presence at the DECC Aug. 1. <- Less than a month away!

p.s. Who the hell are the Vultures of Culture?

12. Low - "Just Stand Back"
"I could turn on you so fast."

...

Is anyone else scared?

13. John Doe - "The Golden State"
Like Frank Black, John Doe's solo career is excellent; but it's even better when he shares singing duties with equally-as-competent female vocalists.

(p.s. I love his new home, Yep Roc Records. Check out this out-of-office reply from James Bailey, one of the label's PR guys: "I'll be out of the office July 4th & 5th enjoying an extended celebration of America's birthday. Yo go America! You don't look a day over 229!!")

14. Treble Charger - "Ever She Flows" (live on Rock 100.5 - NYC)
This one gets under your skin. Kind of sad, kind of introspective ... more sad than introspective, though. (I want to carry out all future music reviews in this fashion....)

15. Phonograph - "In Your Mind"
R.I.Y.L. Wilco (just before "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot").

16. Adam Levy - "Too Close to the Sun" (live at the Minnesota Zoo)
Do you think the chimpanzees were welling up when they first heard this, too?

OK, kidding ... totally kidding.

17. Tom Taylor - "King of July"
R.I.Y.L. Storyhill. In fact, it's almost scary....

18. The Alternative Champs - "Set Your Face on Fire"
R.I.Y.L. song titles that fucking rock!

(p.s. Some MP3 "freebies" are available here.)

19. Harrydash - "Tank"
R.I.Y.L. Pilot to Gunner and other post-hardcore outfits that I can never recall off the top of my head. It's great music, but it's all kind of same-y ... no?

20. The Rogers Sisters - "I Dig a Hole"
I thought I'd bring back this DTAS classic because, well, this group is damn cool: Check out their Web site and you can get this song as a free ringtone. (How modern of me! HA HA HA)

21. Pawns - "All My Dreams are Ghost Towns"
R.I.Y.L. the Wrens. (No joke, this group will blow you away.)

22. Ryan Rapsys - "Aperture"
Let's hear it for the hometown techno. Oh, right ... electronica. Either way, this is nearly seven minutes of mind-altering ethereal soundscapes.

(p.s. Many Ryan Rapsys MP3 "previews" available here.)