Flashback Friday Live: Swervedriver @ Neumos, Seattle, 2015-03-08

Okay - I can finally talk about this. 

The reunited Swervedriver played a blistering set at Neumos last Sunday in support of their first new album in 17 years:  "I Wasn't Born To Lose You". 

I used the HAAC High Dynamic Recording feature of my Nokia 920 smartphone to record a few songs - the sound at Neumos can be *very* *very* loud, and the Nokia can really uncover the true sound in an overbearing PA system.  Plus - Swervedriver plays loud anyway.

I thought the results came out great - and after checking with Swervedriver's webmaster, I got permission to post the songs on-line:



And - yes - that's Micky Quinn of Supergrass filling in on bass.  Their regular bassist, Steve George, was unable to make the US tour.

Let me know what you think in the comments below.  I can also post the set-list if folks are interested. 

Flashback Friday: Mad Love (EP) by Lush

As I've mentioned before - I'm a huge fan of the Shoegazer movement.  One of the first Shoegazer releases I ever heard was the Mad Love EP by Lush. 

Lush was a relatively young band signed to the prestigious 4AD music label.  Their initial mini-album - Scar - was kind of punky - but their follow-up - Mad Love - found them working with the Cocteau Twins' Robin Guthrie who moved them firmly into Shoegaze territory with a wall of swirling guitars, buried vocals and dense layers of sound.   

You can hear it here: Mad Love (EP) by Lush

After a follow-up album with Guthrie - entitled Spooky - they moved away from their signature sound and became one of the forerunners in the Britpop movement with their final two albums, Split and Lovelife.

Sadly, Lovelife was to be their last album, due to the tragic loss of one of the founding members of the band.

If you haven't heard Lush before, I think Mad Love is a perfect place to start.  If you like what you hear, then dive into the rest of their catalog.

NOTE:  4AD put together an American compilation album of Lush's first three releases entitled Gala.  The Gala collection includes the Sweetness & Light, Mad Love and Scar EPs/Mini-albums, plus bonus tracks.  If you still collect physical media (i.e. CDs) this is the easiest way to get their initial EPs stateside.  I recommend it highly.

Give this a spin and let me know what you think.  Comments are always welcome.  

Flashback Friday: Raise by Swervedriver

Now - there's two things you should know about my musical tastes.  Number 1 - I love Shoegazing bands.  Shoegazing was a musical genre that started in the 1980's or so - and hit its apex in 1991 with bands like My Bloody Valentine, Ride, Lush, and Catherine Wheel.  Shoegazing was known for its dense wall of complex guitar sounds that required many foot pedal effects, forcing the guitarists to stand fairly still, and concentrate on their feet, hence the term "Shoegazing".  (Wikipedia has a great entry on the genre.)

The second thing in my musical tastes is Swervedriver.  Although nominally a Shoegazing band, they also had a fondness for Detroit punk (Stooges, MC5) that added an aggressiveness to their sound that most of their psychedelic brethren in the music scene lacked.  Sadly - they also had one of the worst runs of luck of any major label band, so most of their work comfortably fits in Flashback Friday.  I'm sure I'll be covering all of their four albums eventually, so let's start with their first release, Raise.

You can hear it here:  Raise by Swervedriver (Xbox Music)

Originally begun as a series of EPs, the band collected them together, recorded some new material, and called the resultant album "Raise".  Even though the songs were recorded at different times, it sounds remarkably uniform and works as a coherent statement from the band.  Continuing with the Detroit fascination, many of the songs are about cars and driving.  Highlights include Son Of Mustang Ford, Rave Down, Feels So Real, and Sandblasted.  Think dense melodic guitar rock, in the vein of Dinosaur Jr. or Neil Young - but with a denser, fuzzier wall of sound - and you won't be far off the mark. 

Although well regarded at the time, their run of bad luck also started right after the album's release; during a North American tour, while the band was waiting to enter Canada, the drummer left the tour bus to "get a sandwich" and never returned.  When he was finally located, he would only speak to one of the band members, and stated he wanted out of the band.  Their bass player quit shortly thereafter, leaving just two members to decide the band's fate.  (To be continued...)

Give this a spin and see what you think.  Comments always welcome.

Flashback Friday: Speak For Yourself by Imogen Heap

Finally - a Flashback Friday Album that isn't quite so obscure.  Chances are you may have heard some songs off this one - especially if you were a fan of the TV show The O.C. 

In the season two finale, Imogen's "Hide and Seek" was used to punctuate the ending scene.  This was later parodied on SNL as one of their Digital Shorts - Dear Sister - which is where I first heard the track.

Following an appearance by Imogen live on David Letterman, I decided to get a couple of her albums.  Her work is very good - but this record is really special.

Written, produced, arranged, and funded by Imogen herself, it was the first record where she really explored the sonic textures and songwriting that would become her hallmark. 

You can hear it here:  Speak For Yourself by Imogen Heap (Xbox Music)

Musically the album ranges from the spare vocalizer sonics of "Hide And Seek", to the full-on guitar rock of "Daylight Robbery".  In-between, Imogen detours into quiet strength with the song "Have You Got It In You?", gets Jeff Beck to contribute a solo to the upbeat "Goodnight and Go", and finishes with the jaw-droppingly stunning "The Moment I Said It".

Her other albums, like Ellipse, her latest solo release; or Details, recorded with Guy Sigsworth under the moniker Frou Frou; are also worthy of investigation.  But Speak For Yourself is a great place to start.

Give it a listen and let me know what you think below.

Flashback Friday: Big Plans For Everybody by Let's Active

In 1983, in my senior year in high school, my super hip musical friend started raving about an album he had purchased by a band from Athens, Georgia.  We looked at the cover and tried to figure it out - but it was impenetrable, covered in kudzu - much like the music inside.  The vocalist was mixed deep into the backing track, at the same volume as the rest of the instruments - plus he mumbled with no lyric sheets.  We listened to the record over and over again - marveling at the chiming guitars, the atypical for the 80's thin drum sounds (remember "In The Air Tonight"?)  and the overall unique production of the record.  The band was R.E.M., and the album was Murmur.

We discovered that there were many more bands in the Athens, Georgia area and the surrounding college towns that we liked.  In fact, they had given a name to this musical movement:  "The New South".  New South bands included Pylon, Guadalcanal Diary, The B-52s, Oh-OK, The dBs, and Fetchin Bones.   Many of these artists recorded at a converted car garage in Winston-Salem, NC - Drive-In Studios - and were engineered and produced by the garage's owner, Mitch Easter.

Mitch was also the leader of a band called Let's Active.   A power-pop trio, their first EP Afoot, and their first LP Cypress are considered landmarks in the New South genre (and are sadly out of print).  However, lack of national success and interpersonal squabbles derailed them, and they disbanded, leaving Mitch the solo member.  Working mostly by himself, with the help of a few close friends, he recorded Big Plans For Everybody. 

You can hear it here:  Big Plans For Everybody by Let's Active (Xbox Music)

This is an amazing album - especially if you're into guitar sounds.  The lyrics are a little twisted - and nobody quite knows what all of them are, since Mitch hated the whole "Stevie Nicks" vibe of printing lyrics in records.  I think there's a lot in there about the band breakup and his own difficulties in handling the situation. 

NOTE:  This album was sequenced for vinyl - there's a natural break that occurs between track 6 & 7.  In addition, this version contains two worthy bonus tracks - 12 & 13. 

Mitch would go on to make one more Let's Active album - Every Dog Has His Day - before giving up and moving on to concentrate on album production.  His later work with the California band Game Theory is considered to be some of the finest in rock - but that's a story for another time. 

So calibrate your music dials to "power pop with a slight jangle" and give this a listen.  I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.  Also if you want to find out more about other bands from that time period, the documentary Athens GA: Inside/Out covers the whole scene pretty well.

Flashback Friday: Get There by Bôa

In 1998, one of the strangest Animes ever produced was released: "Serial Experiments Lain". A description of this anime is beyond the scope of this flashback, so I'll just point you at the Wikipedia page if you're interested:  Serial Experiments Lain.  

Anyone who saw an episode of the show was immediately struck by the haunting opening theme "Duvet" by a band called Bôa.  

It turns out that Bôa was actually a British band, formed by Steve & Jasmine Rodgers - the son and daughter of legendary rock singer Paul Rodgers (Free, Bad Company, The Firm, etc.). The song Duvet was from their debut album "The Race Of A Thousand Camels", released on the small Japanese label Polystar.  

Due to the popularity of the anime, Bôa was subsequently signed to Pioneer, and re-released their debut album under the name Twilight. It was about this time that I struck up a friendship with them on their on-line message board.  Eventually, I traveled to England to meet them, and catch one of their shows. (Yeah - I know - I was young with a surplus of disposable income). 

Live - they were amazing. They played selections from Twilight and a bunch of new songs. Sadly, they were dropped from their label, but - they did eventually record the new songs and released the album themselves. This is the record "Get There". 

You can hear it here:  Get There by Bôa (Xbox Music)

Considering the relative youth of the band members, this is a very mature record. Highlights include Courage, Daylight, America & (especially) Passport.  

Sadly - this was to be their last record. Luckily, both Steve & Jasmine have started solo careers and their work is excellent.  Check out their work on Amazon/iTunes/Xbox Music.

So - give this a spin, and let me know what you think.

P.S.  Don't laugh - but here's a photograph of me at the show.  That's me in the center.

From left to right:  Lee Sullivan, Jasmine Rodgers, me, Steve Rodgers, Alex Caird.  This was taken around 2000 or so. 

Flashback Friday: Lost Sirens by New Order

In 2003 New Order started recording what would turn out to be their final album: Waiting For The Siren's Call.  It took over a year to record and at least £700,000 in production costs.

During these torturous recording sessions, they started recording new material during off moments.  They completed 7 songs, which they were going to hold for the next record.  However - long simmering tensions built up and the band split apart in 2007.

It took 9 years, but the 7 new tracks plus a remix of one of the original songs were released as the album Lost Sirens in 2013.

You can hear it here: Lost Sirens by New Order (Xbox Music)

This album is well worth the wait.  While many of the tracks on Waiting For The Siren's Call seem overly fussed over, the relative spontaneity of these tracks make them seem fresh and memorable.  Plus - the stripped down remix of "I Told You So" brings the song out from underneath the gloss of the original mix, and fits in nicely with the other tracks.

In the meantime, New Order have reformed without "lead bass" player/founding member Peter Hook and are touring the US this summer.  Peter is also touring - with his son - playing New Order and Joy Division classics.

Give Lost Sirens a spin, and let me know what you think in the comments below.

Also - if you want to compare/contrast, the parent album is also available on Xbox Music.

You can hear it here:  Waiting For The Siren's Call by New Order (Xbox Music)

Flashback Friday: The Dreaming by Kate Bush

In 1974 or so, Kate Bush, a shy, retiring 16 year old schoolgirl, managed to get a demo tape to David Gilmour of Pink Floyd. He was stunned that there were over 50 songs of exceptionally high quality on her demo. Paying for a proper studio recording of three of the songs out of his own pocket, he got her signed to EMI records.

A few years later, after she turned 19, she entered the studio to record her first album. She had spent the intervening years studying movement and dance, while continuing to write and perform idiosyncratic songs. At this point, she had over 200 compositions to choose from. Her debut album, “The Kick Inside”, featuring the single “Wuthering Heights” was released to general acclaim and success, but a large part of her career – mostly record production – was out of her control.

In 1982, after a couple of modestly successful follow-up albums, she finally gained control of the producer’s chair and released an album that was her vision from start to finish: The Dreaming.

You can hear it here: The Dreaming by Kate Bush (Xbox Music)

Fair warning: This is a “difficult” album, but you can get your head around it if you spin it a few times. Kate had become intrigued with the compositional possibilities of the Fairlight CMI sampler and built most of the album around it. Also – she had moved beyond the singer/songwriter style of the time and was exploring more dramatic cinematic storytelling with her songs. Topics on this album include failed bank robbery attempts, driving in the Australian outback, the life of Harry Houdini, and the paranoia of the suburban homeowner, among other things. She also was experimenting with alternative vocalizations – shrieks, groans, backward vocals – all processed through the Fairlight. This can be off-putting to the first time listener, but patience is rewarding, since there’s nothing quite like it in modern music. The album is roughly divided into two movements, split right where the vinyl album break would be.

After this record, Kate moved back to a more general pop direction, and released Hounds of Love, which became the biggest selling record of her career. However, Hounds of Love’s cinematic sweep would not have been possible without The Dreaming, which most people still haven’t heard, due to its reputation. So – give it a spin and see what you think.

Flashback Friday: A nod is as good as a wink... by Faces

So - it's 1971 or so. The Yardbirds, which featured three of the finest guitarists in rock - Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page - have broken up. Jimmy Page is regrouping as the New Yardbirds with John Paul Jones, and a pair of unknowns - Robert Plant and John Bonham. Jeff Beck has formed his own version of the Yardbirds with an unknown Rod Stewart and Ron Wood. While Jimmy Page's group would go on to become Led Zeppelin, Jeff Beck's group would record two amazing albums - Truth and Beck-ola - and disband.

Meanwhile, one of England's beloved psychedelic bands - The Small Faces - were having issues of their own. They had just disbanded after losing their founding guitarist/vocalist and were trying to figure out what to do. Somehow they hooked up with the remnants of the failed Jeff Beck group and became the Faces. (Possibly over a shared love of alcohol - Faces live performances were notorious for including a real bartender on-stage!)

Although their first couple of albums were tentative, their live shows were anything but. It wasn't until their 3rd album - A Nod Is As Good As A Wink... To A Blind Horse - that they really captured their live sound on vinyl. If you only know Rod Stewart from his 80's mega hits, you'll be pleasantly surprised here. Rod wasn't the only vocalist - Ronnie Lane provides a nice counterpoint to Rod's vocals. This album is pretty much a winner from start to finish - a "ragged but right" album. You can hear echos of this record in many of the bands influenced by the Faces: The Replacements, Guns N' Roses, The Black Crowes, and Pearl Jam.  

You can hear it here:
A Nod Is As Good As A Wink... by Faces (Xbox Music)

Sadly, the increasing popularity of Rod Stewart's concurrent solo albums - especially a song called "Maggie May", which featured members of the Faces - overshadowed the rest of the band, and they fell apart soon after this album was released, bowing out with one final album "Ooh la la".

So - grab a beverage, give this a spin, and let me know what you think in the comments below.

Flashback Friday: New Rock by Buffalo Daughter

And now – a band most of you have probably never heard of. But first – a quick detour into history courtesy of the Beastie Boys.

In 1992, at the height of their popularity, the Beastie Boys set up a vanity record label called Grand Royal. Grand Royal had an eclectic roster of artists, including Sean Lennon, Luscious Jackson, Money Mark, At The Drive-In, Bran Van 3000 and many more.

One of my favorite releases of theirs was 1998’s “New Rock” by a Japanese band called Buffalo Daughter. This group consisted of a guitar player/vocalist (suGar), a bass player/keyboardist (Yumiko) and a turntablist/graphic designer (MoOog), augmented by a drummer and other musicians.

You can listen to it here:
New Rock by Buffalo Daughter (Xbox Music)

According to Wikipedia: Buffalo Daughter [are] considered to be the linchpin of the so-called “cut-and-paste” rock Shibuya-kei movement from Japan. Other Shibuya-kei bands include Pizzicato Five and Cibo Matto. (I was initially going to write about Cibo Matto, since they have a new album out, but my favorite release of theirs isn’t available for streaming. I’ll pick another one of their records soon, possibly the new one if I can get my head wrapped around it.)

That’s a good starting point for this record – cut and paste. Sometimes this record sounds like a ‘60s lounge album, sometimes it sounds like a broken sampler, and other times, it sounds like a lost German progressive Krautrock album. It’s these progressive songs – where they downplay the sampling and stretch out a little – that really make the record for me. Check out my favorite song “Sky High” – track 12 – to see what I mean. Other highlights for me include the long workouts “Super Blooper” and “Autobacs”.

Anyway – travel back to the New York music scene in 1998, give this record a spin and see what you think.

Flashback Friday: Laughing Stock by Talk Talk

Hi everyone,

Remember Talk Talk? They were an 80's synth-pop band, initially posed as an "angst-y" version of Duran Duran by EMI records. They had a string of popular albums in the 80's, with hits like "Talk Talk", "It's A Shame", "Life's What You Make It", and "It's My Life". Because of their early successes, they were increasingly allowed to chart their own course - which they did in a way that nobody expected. Eventually, they would ditch the synth-pop trappings, and explore the world of orchestral ambient jazz. This experimentation culminated in 1988's Spirit Of Eden - after which, they parted ways with an increasingly frustrated EMI.

This is where Laughing Stock comes in. This is their final album as a band, recorded for Polydor in 1991. It continues the radical rethink introduced on Spirit Of Eden and, to some critics, represents the pinnacle of their work. Technically, it's a rock album, but it also sits at the intersection of ambient music and jazz.

You can listen to it here:
Laughing Stock by Talk Talk (Xbox Music)

This is not an "immediate" record. I know it's a lot to ask, but you may need to set a aside a little time to listen to it, before making a final judgment. I found that headphones can help a lot during the initial listens. Also - you may want to concentrate on the 2nd and 3rd tracks - Ascension Day & After The Flood - as a starting point. They're sequenced to fit together, and they're how I'd introduce the album to someone.

Let me know what you think in the comments below.

P.S. In case you don't know, you don't need a subscription to listen to Xbox Music - just a Microsoft LiveID. I think you get 10 free hours of music a month.

Flashback Friday: Aerial Ballet by Nilsson

For this edition of Flashback Friday, I'd like to showcase the album "Aerial Ballet" by Nilsson.

You can listen to it on Xbox Live here:
Aerial Ballet by Nilsson (Xbox Music)

Harry Nilsson - who usually went by his last name on his albums - was born in poverty in NYC. He escaped to California and by the late 60's was working in the computer department of a bank. During this time, he was also writing songs for hire, and was discovered by the Monkees. At this point, his performance skills and his near three octave vocal range led to a recording contract with RCA and close friendships with most of rock royalty, including the Beatles.

Nilsson then proceeded to chart one of the most idiosyncratic careers in rock history - from writing children's movies to being thrown out of bars with John Lennon - without ever performing a live concert. I'll leave the rest of his biography to the excellent DVD "Who is Harry Nilsson?" and concentrate on this album, which was his second for RCA.

His first album, Pandemonium Shadow Show (1967) was quite the product of its time - slightly psychedelic, slightly vaudevillian - think Sgt. Pepper's, but orchestral and all by one person. By Aerial Ballet (1968), Nilsson had sharpened his songwriting, ditched the odd cover songs, and delivered his first really amazing song "One" - which was a hit for Three Dog Night, not him. His hit song on this album was "Everybody's Talkin'" - which was, of course the one song he didn't write.

This is a strange album, to be sure. You might find it almost "too pop". That's not because it was recorded in 1968 - even then, it felt out of time compared to contemporary albums like the White Album. Nilsson belonged to an earlier "tin-pan-alley" style of songwriting that fell into favor about then. Concentrate on his elaborate multi-tracked harmony vocals - all done by him - and his use of melody and song arranging. Also - notice how biting the lyrics are from time to time and the odd sense of humor that goes with it.

This bitterness and odd humor would eventually dominate his songwriting thru the rest of the 70's - especially after his breakthrough album Nilsson Schmilsson, which is the last of his "normal" records. In addition, Nilsson tried to out scream John Lennon on their joint album and permanently destroyed his vocal range - his final albums are almost unrecognizable as the work of the artist who cut this record.

But - ignore all that for now. Instead, give a listen to this relic from a simpler time, and imagine where "Rock Music" would have gone had more people been able to follow his lead.

And, of course, feel free to post comments below.

(Side note: The last three songs on the Xbox Live version are not from this album - they're bonus tracks Nilsson recorded about the same time. You may recognize one of them from TV...)

Flashback Friday: Numb by Hammerbox

Hi everyone,

I thought I'd try something. Every Friday, give or take a few, I'll do a quick write-up on an album from a band that was overlooked and is worthy of reinvestigation. Also - I'll try to pick albums that are available for free streaming over Xbox Music.

For my inaugural piece, I thought I'd discuss the album Numb by the band Hammerbox.

You can listen to it here:
Numb by Hammerbox (Xbox Music)

Hammerbox were part of the Seattle grunge revolution of the 90's, but - unlike Alice In Chains, Soundgarden and Pearl Jam - they had more to do with the punk rock crowd that included The Gits, Nirvana and Mudhoney.

Their first album - the self-titled Hammerbox - came out on C/Z records and established their lead singer, Carrie Akre, as a force to be reckoned with. This album attracted the attention of A&M records who teamed them with Soundgarden producer Michael Beinhorn for their sophomore album Numb (1992). The pairing didn't quite work as well as it should have, but it's still a strong album, and worthy of a revisit.

Sadly - even with A&M's increased market presence - the album only sold to the Seattle faithful, and the band disbanded shortly thereafter.

The album leans more towards the metallic side of punk, but it's not metal. Call it fast moving rock, tightly played, with a melodic edge. Couple that with Carrie's expressive vocals (to borrow a phrase from AllMusic's review), and that'll give you a sense of what you're in for.

Give it a spin, and let me know what you think in the comments below.