Pink Moon Summerteeth Hideaway (February 11th - 15th)

Hello and welcome to Work Tunes.

It's a hot one this weekend in Perth. I'm enjoying the relatively mild 37 today before we hit 42 tomorrow apparently. I haven't cranked the airconditioner yet, but it is imminent. Right after I finish writing all this down.

This week I have a couple of selections inspired by some recent vinyl purchases - from Joni Mitchell and Television (Yes! they finally reissued Marquee Moon on vinyl and one of my long time white whales is GOT). There's the final disc of the Gil Scott-Heron compilation, as well as a Wilco favourite. A recent documentary viewing has inspired Wish You Were Here and I've slotted in Belly - Star for a hit of nostalgia. And speaking of nostalgia, there's Bat Out Of Hell II - don't you judge me! Finally, two bonafide classic albums from the greatest and probably the second or third greatest rapper ever - B.I.G. and Eminem.

Check it out:

• Gil Scott-Heron - The Revolution Begins (Disc 3)
• The Notorious B.I.G. - Ready To Die
• The Weepies - Hideaway
• Television - Marquee Moon
• Meatloaf - Bat Out of Hell II
• Joni Mitchell - Court and Spark
• Wilco - Summerteeth
• Belly - Star
• Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
  
• Eminem - The Marshall Mathers LP

Top Five Artists Last Week

1. Gil Scott-Heron
2. Jurassic 5
3. Jesse Malin
4. José James
5. Veronica Falls

Song of the Week : Local Natives - Black Balloons

I don't know much about this band other than people have been raving about the album. So I decided to check it out and it is pretty good. 

The song I picked, Black Balloons is a bit much of a Bon Iver derivative, but Local Natives have infused that distinctive sound with a bit more rock by adding a bit of grunt on the drums. But the layered vocal harmonies and especially the main riff sound like a Bon Iver royalty cheque. Not everything on the album sounds that way though and it's a good listen if you haven't already. See what you think.

Toodles

There you have it. Thanks for stopping by. 

Enjoy your weekend people. Wherever you are, I hope the fun, the tunes and the laughs are free flowing. 

Hasala malakim.

Short Beach Pixies Give Up (April 30 - May 4)

Hello and welcome to Work Tunes.


I've got a biannual Record Fair this weekend and I'm looking forward to picking up a few great records at a bargain price - or a couple of hard to find classics at a premium. If I find anything especially great, I might just rip it to digital and whack it on next week's list. 


This week's list is a little heavy on the indie and the dinosaur rock. I've found a couple of bands I didn't previously know and dug up a Television album I haven't heard. Here's what I have to get me through week ahead. 


After getting quickly addicted to the What A Pleasure EP, I've got Beach Fossils' debut; Songl told me Spectrals were like Beach Fossils, so there's that; I have one of the last Bonnie Prince Billy albums I'm yet to hear; the best of the Pixies; The Postal Service's one and only album; some funky jazz hop from Ninety One; the second disc of Tupac's Greatest Hits; some Iron & Wine and U2's Boy.


Check it out:

• U2 - Boy
• Television - The Blow Up
• Tupac - Greatest Hits (Disc 2)
• Spectrals - Bad Penny
• Beach Fossils - Beach Fossils
• Bonnie "Prince" Billy - The Letting Go
• Ninety One - Short Nights
• Pixies - Wave Of Mutilation
• Iron & Wine - Our Endless Numbered Days
• The Postal Service - Give Up

Top Five Artists Last Week

1. Beach Fossils
2. Snoop Dogg
3. Brian Eno
4. Ambulance LTD
5. Ninety One

Song of the Week : Beach Fossils - Face It

I first heard this album (which is really an EP) half way through last year and it just sort of washed right over me. You know, I enjoyed it but it didn’t really make an impact. I think that’s because I wasn’t listening too close and because the music feels like a long lazy swim or somebody scoring your daydreams.


This track is Face It and it’s been stuck in my head all week. Not sure if it’s because we have been thinking about moving to Darlington (and the refrain says “I’d give up the city life”) or because my wife left the country for me (and it says “I’d give up the country life”) but I feel like I can relate to the song and I’ve been constantly singing and humming it. Plus, I’ve played the What A Pleasure EP at least three times since ANZAC night. 


I think if you took the massive reverb off the vocals and crunched up the guitars a little, the whole EP would pretty much rock out. But instead the sound has been filtered through almost a Vaseline lens.


I’ve since grabbed their debut to check it out and that will be on the playlist for next week. If you like the sound of this track, definitely check out What A Pleasure.

Arrivederci

So there you have it. From a personal stand point, not a bad list to take with me on another busy week. Hopefully there's something you haven't heard that you can check out and get into. I'll be at the record fair Sunday, looking for new gems. I'll let you know if I find any.  


Ciao for now. Go Eagles! Hasala malakim.

Kamaal the Sad Television Companion (April 16 - 20)

Hello and welcome to Work Tunes.


I can't begin to tell you how busy my week has been, so I won't try. Suffice to say I shall be busy at work from now until, roughly... the END OF TIME! To get through this overwhelming metric ton of work for the foreseeable future, I'm going to need plenty of tunes. 


Which is why I have some smooth Hip Hop grooves from Q-Tip and Mos Def's Black on Both Sides; some anarchic and cathartic punk from Black Flag;  self-titled LPs from both The Far West and Television; The National's mostly overlooked second LP;  the latest from Counting Crows and M. Ward; the first album in the first Holy Trinity from Bob Dylan and a solid compilation from KCRW.


Check it out:

• Q-Tip - Kamaal The Abstract
• Black Flag - Damaged
• Mos Def - Black on Both Sides
• The Far West - The Far West
• Television - Television
• The National - Sad Songs For Dirty Lovers
• Counting Crows - Underwater Sunshine
• M. Ward - A Wasteland Companion
• Bob Dylan - Bringing It All Back Home
• VA - KCRW Sounds Eclectic 3

Top Five Artists Last Week

1. Prince
2. Drive-By Truckers
3. Uncle Tupelo
4. A Tribe Called Quest
5. U2

Song of the Week : Prince - Nothing Compares 2 U

So now to my song for the week. I was bitterly disappointed (though not at all surprised) that Prince isn't coming to Perth. I could probably wrangle a work flight to Melbourne and see him there, but I don’t want to stay away from home to catch him. Besides, what was touted as “keeping with current tour prices” (which was as low as $25) has become, I’ve seen, as much as $850 a ticket. Ridiculous.


So I’m definitely not going to see Prince. But I can pick my favourite live Prince track for SOTW. This is the original and best version of Nothing Compares 2 U. A world away from Sinead O’Connor’s forlorn pop ballad version, this is heart wrenching Soul from the purple one and Rosie Gaines. Gaines’ voice is amazing and you can hear Prince smiling as he coaxes responses from her within the song lyric. 


Besides missing a moment like the legendary George Harrison tribute, I think what I upsets me most about missing the Prince tour is the chance to hear some of Pop music’s greatest songs done live by a living legend. C'est la vie. Enjoy.

Hoo-roo

Until next time, may your weekend be filled with music and the good kind of mayhem. If you find something new to listen to, don't be a selfish hipster and hide it away for yourself - hook a brother up.


And speaking of shared knowledge, I just got back from The Record Finder in Fremantle. I go there every chance I get, which is a lot, but now something is bugging me. The range is huge, no doubt; but the prices on new LPs are out of whack and the used vinyl is sealed up so you can't check it. I think why it suddenly bothers me is that Mills Record Bar up the road have beefed up their selection and cut the prices to very reasonable levels. The range may not be the same, but they do stock some of the best records ever made - from Bob Dylan to The National. So my advice if you're hunting vinyl in town is only check Record Finder for more left-field used vinyl and be prepared to ask to see it. 


Vinyl tragics unite! Hasala malakim.

Playlist : March 21st - 25th, 2011

Hello and welcome to Work Tunes. For this week's listening, I've dug into an old school favourite I just bought on vinyl, grabbed an album from one of the 80s ultimate one hit wonders and slotted in yet another Dolorean LP.

Check it out:

1. Televison - Marquee Moon
2. Velvet Underground & Nico - Velvet Underground & Nico
3. De La Soul - Three Feet High and Rising
4. The Strokes - Angles
5. Wilco - Wilco (The Album)
6. Nas - Hip Hop Is Dead
7. Dolorean - Violence In The Snowy Fields
8. Uncle Tupelo - No Depression
9. Bright Eyes - Lifted
10. The Buggles - The Age of Plastic

Top 5 Artists This Week

1. Dolorean
2. Train of Thought
3. Jack Johnson
4. Blind Pilot
5. Hilltop Hoods

Song of the Week : Bright Eyes - We Are Nowhere And It's Now

I’ve always liked this album, but it has mostly been a likeable sound, if you know what I mean. I’d listen to it, but all it really was was melody that sounded good and Conor Oberst singing over the top. The lyrics, I never really listened to before, but there was a general sense of “I’m a hipster… I live in New York… I’m so cool it hurts… Usually, I’m drunk and sad.”

What happened the other night at sleep time though, due to using earphones instead of Bluetooth (earphones being louder), I didn’t sleep but listened to it. This song made me click that there is some really exceptional writing on this album. I’ve always known that about Lua but only because of the other version.

With lines like:

Like a ten-minute dream in the passenger’s seat

While the world it was flying by

I haven't been gone very long

But it feels like a lifetime

And

Where the waitress looks concerned

But she never says a word

Just turns the jukebox on

And we hum along

And I smile back at her

I suddenly had some interest in what was being said. And yes, it still says “I’m a cool NY hipster who is drunk and sad” but it lays out a series of images that seem like a scene from a mumblecore indie film. Plus it has Emmy Lou Harris, which is always a bonus. Hope you like it and it doesn’t bum you out too much.

Ciao for Now

Next week there will most likely be two posts. The first will be for that week's playlist and the second for a proper review of the best of the month. Hope to see you there.

Ciao for now, you kooky kids.