Playlist : September 20th - 24th, 2010

This is our weekend and it's ending, one second at a time. But not to worry, sit back and relax. Play some tunes. Dig yourself, man.

These are the songs that I'll be taking with me on my working week next week :

• Shonen Knife - Rock Animals : Looking at a list a bit full of alt-country, I went looking for something with some crunch. Shonen Knife rock my socks off. They are a Japanese all-girl punk rock band I first heard on the fantastic If I Were A Carpenter compilation, doing a superior cover of Top Of The World. On Rock Animals, the almost maddeningly catchy Catnip Dream is a gem.

• VA - Culture of Kings : An early skip hop compilation for hardcore Diggaz like me. Featuring Aussie hip hop luminaries like Koolism, Matty B, Suffa of Hilltop fame and the Hoods themselves. Mass MC's popular track The BBQ Song also features.

• Gram Parsons - Greivous Angel : After being moved by Gillian Welch's lyric from I Dream a Highway last week ("Now you be Emmylou and I'll be Gram") I felt like some Gram Parsons magic. Emmylou of course is Emmylou Harris, Gram's long-time friend and singing partner whose sweet harmonies make this great record even better.

• Eric B & Rakim - Let The Rhythm Hit 'Em : Usually when I reach for Eric B & Rakim, I go straight for Paid In Full - 1987's seminal golden age album. This time, I made a conscious effort to choose something I don't normally play. It's been a while, but I know this album to be a little jazzier than Paid and just as lyrically inventive.

• A.A. Bondy - When The Devil's Loose : Last week at work was kind of a drag and when things get a little low, alt-country always sounds it's best. A.A. Bondy are folkier and lonlier than a lot of the stuff I listen to, but this album is good for a spin.

• John Legend and The Roots - Wake Up! : I heard this album last week on stream from NPR. It's a really solid set of old Soul covers with a political bent. It sounds like music from a greater time with a modern day traveler on the mic. It also taught me that The Roots are a tight Funk band with some really tasty bass grooves. Going to get this album on vinyl as soon as I can find it.

• The Police - The Best of the Police : I felt like a little bit of classic rock and I haven't heard The Police in quite a while. I have this album on vinyl and few songs in my record collection benefit from the sound of wax quite like Roxanne. With The Police and me, the rule seems to be the earlier the better.

• VA - Music from the Motion Picture Crooklyn Volume II : One of my all time favourite Spike Lee joints, Crooklyn is a partly autobiographical tale of living in Brooklyn in a large family in the 70s. The soundtrack is packed full of some of the coolest Soul tunes ever made. Spike is brilliant, Crooklyn is fantastic and the soundtrack is killer.

• John Cale - Paris 1919 : I don't know a lot about this album, but I've always wanted to hear it. Ever since a 1997 issue of Uncut magazine published a list of the most depressing albums of all time, I have been slowly acquiring them all. John Cale was a member of Velvet Underground until 1968 when he went solo. Paris 1919 is his most famous album and Uncut said if you listen close you can hear Cale weeping at the mixing desk in the middle of a breakdown. Good times.

• Ornette Coleman - Free Jazz : Having only discovered Ornette Coleman tunes last week, I have quickly found out that Free Jazz is widely renowned as wholly original and as fine a jazz album as you'll find outside of Trane. Sounds good to me.
  

It would be great if you found something new in amongst all of that. Get the John Legend album if you dig Soul, because it is totally ace. I'm off to Beat Route tomorrow for a little vinyl and turntable shopping. Hopefully I'll have something I can add to next week's list.

That's it from me. Go safe my anonymous friends. Don't forget how blessed you are.

Playlist July 12th - 16th, 2010

Exciting week ahead for me. Apart from taking Miss 3 to her first film on Friday, the Perth Revelation Film Festival began in earnest this week with the Chris Rock narrated documentary Good Hair. I'm armed with a mini-pass of 6 tickets over the course of the festival which runs until Sunday July 18th. I'm hoping to review each film I see over at Make Films Not Movies.

But for now, there's the music. A little heavy on the twang this week. Must be the cold.

• Wilco - A.M. : It's no secret I'm a Wilco fan from way back. My Wilco fix usually comes in the form of Being There or Summerteeth. AM has some great tracks on it too. Passenger Side is not only good, it's funny. It's Just That Simple features Jay Farrar on vocals and is another stand out.

• AM - Soul Variations : Yes Wilco AM made me think of Am the band. This is another often overlooked album I have. AM are nicely alt country with a generous slice of indie pop.
  

• Beth Orton - Trailer Park : This is the album that introduced me to Beth Orton. Sadly, it's been missing from my iPod ever since I had to restore it. I've only just gotten to the T titled albums because I've been spending the time to get everything tagged, rated and art worked properly before putting it back on. Beth is a 'tall drink of water' with a sweet knowing voice.

• Randy Newman - Harps & Angels : Earlier last week, a song from this album came up on shuffle. I was floored by how good it was and I realized I obviously hadn't listened to the album properly. The track was so good, in fact, I'd like to use it to make a video postcard for my wife. Shhhh don't tell her...

• Pavement - Slanted & Enchanted : My favourite Pavement cut is probably Wowee Zowee. But get this, I heard such a great story about this one that I had to hear it. This guy right, he has his car broken into and the jerks who did it got away with nothing except the CD case to this album. This just happened to be an absolute favourite of his lovely wife, who treasured the album; its liner notes and artwork included. SO this guy, he takes a long lunch break, goes into the city and buys Slanted & Enchanted from Da Das... on Vinyl! That's when liner notes and artwork really meant something. Two really fantastic people and one pretty decent band.

• Freddie Hubbard - A Soul Experiment : Bebop trumpeter Freddie Hubbard has played with everyone from Coltrane to Herbie Hancock and has lead several bands himself. This funky late 60s vinyl rip is a recommendation from a Jazz blog I follow; and who am I to argue?

• Sex Pistols - The Spunk & Spedding Demos : I picked up a special edition of Nevermind the Bollocks... last weekend and it was packaged with a bonus disc of demos. I've put just the bonus on my playlist because I played Bollocks a few weeks back.

• Wax Audio - WMD and Other Distractions / Mediacracy : These two mashup discs contain sound bytes from the War on Terror and the shameful Tampa episode of Australia's political history set to some tight electronic beats. If you haven't heard George Bush Jnr. singing Imagine, or Allan Jones swearing like a wharfie with a broken toe, you need to check this out.

• Prince - Musicology : After declaring the Internet was 'dead', Prince has suddenly popped up into the public psyche again not long before a new LP release. He might be strange, but he's not stupid. Besides, when Prince says the Internet is dead, what he really means is 'I'm too freakin' cool for the Internet'. Regardless what stupid comments he makes, this man is a funk god. Listen to Musicology and get a lesson - coz he's bloody Prince and you're not. Alright?!

• Pegz - Axis : Melbourne Skip Hop legend and Obese Crew member Pegz is a knockabout bloke with a love for Hip Hop (rap and graffiti in particular) as well as VB and cars. Back Then is in my list of 100 favourites and it's track by a man who knows the culture. Every rhyme is true to Hip Hop in Australia. This is a great album full stop.

And there you have it; my listening menu for next week. Have a great time out there and stay safe, cats.