It's always really cool to get e-mails from my favorite musicians, letting me know what they're up to. It happened again today with a nice note from Dan Hutt of Acme ("Stay, Don't Go," DTAS25). He's in Lincoln, Neb., now, playing in a few different groups. (Don't worry; Acme's status is still considered "ongoing.")Anyway, I just thought I'd share that he can now be reached online either here or here.
Keep those letters coming!
1. Soundgarden - "Pretty Noose"
Recommended if you like pretending singer Chris Cornell hasn't totally sullied his good name with the embarrassing Audioslave.
2. Brendan Benson - "Feel Like Myself"
I'll admit, this record took a few spins to completely get under my skin like his previous ones had -- I mean, what's not to like ... it's a perfect marriage of his early career and the best '70s FM rock had to offer -- but, after the disappointing Raconteurs record with Jack White, it sounds like the greatest thing in the world.
3. Steely Dan - "Pearl of the Quarter"
R.I.Y.L. George Harrison's "All Things Must Pass" when it sounded like he might almost take it to the limits of C&W.
4. The Wannadies - "Because"
What's that, a flute solo in the middle of this angst-ridden gem? Whatever it is, Zelda would be proud....
5. Self - "Cater to Your Ego"
R.I.Y.L. Self's rocking debut (when the group flirted with post-grunge approaches to songwriting).
6. What Made Milwaukee Famous - "Sweet Lady"
R.I.Y.L. Sloan's "Between the Bridges" ... you know, "creamy" tours de force complete with perfect harmonies.
7. Smoosh - "Find a Way"
An open apology to the members of Smoosh: Somehow I ended up with one of your stickers (most likely from the gracious fellows at Barsuk). Not knowing what your music sounded like, I applied it to a plastic bin that sits in my closet -- next to a "Horn Broken ... Watch for Finger" sticker from my teenager years, no less. If that wasn't enough, when I went to see who was in your band, I found it was two teenaged girls (12 and 14!). At that point, I had no remorse whatsoever about placing your sticker in such an undesirable spot (on the top of the record player is really the "sought-after" locale in this bizarro sticker hierarchy).
But then I heard this song = sheer brilliance!
(Don't let their ages and dispositions turn you off; this is quite an enjoyable track.)
8. Belly - "Slow Dog"
R.I.Y.L. Belly. (I really don't think there's any other way to put it.)
9. The Minus 5 with Wilco - "Where Will You Go?"
R.I.Y.L. Golden Smog.
(p.s. I found this record on Yep Roc's Web site for $5 ... that almost feels like stealing!*)
10. The Standard - "Red Drop"
This is how good singer Tim Putnam is at his job: He could be backed by farting elephants and he would still make it work.
The best comparison I can think of is Live's Ed Kowalczyk circa "Throwing Copper's" most vulnerable moments, but that only begins to scratch the surface of what Putnam possesses in terms of sheer listenability.
11. Southern Culture on the Skids - "Doublewide"
R.I.Y.L. key Beach Boys passages so much that it would be "wrong" if other bands didn't rip them off verbatim.
12. The Chemical Brothers - "Do it Again" (edit)
R.I.Y.L. Justin Timberlake and Timbaland collabs and/or ruining your appetite for the new Chemical Brothers masterpiece by playing its first single over and over again ad nauseum. (Man, this happens every time they release a new record.... I can distinctly remember wearing out "It Began in Afrika" as a UMD freshman months before the "Come With Us" album came out.)
13. Craig Wedren - "Laughing Liddy"
R.I.Y.L. poignant little instrumentals that help bridge the awkward gaps between epic techno tracks and out-and-out rockers on your mix tapes....
14. Superdrag - "Comfortably Bummed"
R.I.Y.L. not-so-clever song titles that successfully mask the enjoyability of the track they're supposed to give character to.
15. The Flashing Lights - "Highschool"
R.I.Y.L. the best power pop has to offer (under the guise of indie rock, that is), the Raspberries, Sloan, the Who's wonderful, abrupt instrumental bursts between verses and choruses.
16. Robyn Hitchcock & the Venus 3 - "Adventure Rocket Ship"
The Venus 3 is actually R.E.M.'s Peter Buck, the Young Fresh Fellows' Scott McCaughey and Ministry's Bill Rieflin -- what a backing band!
17. Justice - "DVNO"
R.I.Y.L. the Gorillaz album "Demon Days."
(Note to self: Check out this group's remix of Simian's "Never be Alone.")
18. Maximo Park - "Girls Who Play Guitars"
R.I.Y.L. thinking girls who play "Guitar Hero" on PS2 are somehow cooler than girls who don't.
19. The Get Up Kids - "All That I Know"
R.I.Y.L. "Blue Jay Way," poignant lyrics about ships and lights in the harbor, falling in love in the Twin Ports.
20. The Boggs - "Little Windows"
R.I.Y.L. Duluth and Minneapolis indie rock aesthetics coexisting in some sort of bizarre love triangle with the entire K Records roster.
21. Brakesbrakesbrakes - "Hold Me in the River"
R.I.Y.L. the Clash, if they sounded Irish.
22. Okkervil River - "Our Life is Not a Movie or Maybe"
I haven't completely committed to this group yet, but I include their music as a public service because one day, I feel, they will grow on me and you.
23. Bob Mould - "Missing You"
R.I.Y.L. anything Bob Mould has done since Hüsker Dü.
24. Cheap Trick - "All I Really Want"
R.I.Y.L. good ol' American rock 'n' roll.
Um, yeah....
25. The Veils - "Advice for Young Mothers to Be"
Isn't it sad that the Veils are out-Pulping Jarvis Cocker these days? (Man, what the hell happened to him anyway?)
*And this is probably an entire column in itself, but when you buy records from them -- and a number of other forward-thinking indie labels** -- you get the entire album for free on MP3. Thereby totally making the CD obsolete, which is fine by me since vinyl is the most desirable format; with MP3 coming next because of its portability and ease of use.
**Hell, even Sony sent me a free CD of the new Modest Mouse album when I pre-ordered the vinyl edition. I believe either of these options is really the way of the future for music lovers.
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