Three name records came in today for the hipster kids, but unfortunately none of them are very good.
Clap Your Hands And Say Yeah, Live at Lollapalooza 2007: It’s some Clap Your Hands, anyway. Look, the problem with big live festivals is that the sound is way too boomy, and often sounds like shit. This set (and same with the one below) suffers from that problem. The performance is just okay (they are not a great live band), and would hardly be the place to start with them. Super-fans have at it, though.
PS: I think I might be the only one, but I really like Some Loud Thunder. Way more than the first record for sure. “Underwater” is about as good as it gets, as is “Emily Jean Stock” and the title track. There are bad songs for sure (“Satan Said Dance” is one of my least favorite songs from this year), but overall I am pro.
Tokyo Police Club, Live at Lollapalooza 2007: I freely admit that there’s nothing particularly special about Tokyo Police Club — basically a hodgepodge of Hipster Sounds 2002-2006 — but I like their songs and their energy. They give me the warms and fuzzies sometimes. Again, though, the acoustics of the open space do not do their sound — best airtight and cordoned off — any favors. This one I like more than the Clap Your Hands, though.
Faust, Patchwork 1971-2002: The title kinda says it all, and that’s coming from a big Faust fan. These are excerpts and outtakes from live shows and the studio, and by and large it’s a big ol’ miss. Honestly, there’s only a certain amount of stuff that we need to hear from bands (exemption if you are the Rolling Stones and it is 1964-1973). There are two pretty great tracks, though: “Nervous,” which sounds live and is a loose, rambling groove, and “Duo,” which is just acoustic guitar and shimmery and gorgeous. I could see “Duo” in particular being great mixtape fodder.
You know what is good, though? This song called “Diminished” by the Baptist Generals. We only have a live album on the site (and this song ain’t on it), but my girlfriend sent it to me today and I am transfixed. Reminds me of why I used to love Sparklehorse so much. Looks like Said the Gramophone posted it a few days ago. Go and seek!!!
You know what is great? Mule. If I Don’t Six is an astonishing record. Been meaning to write about it all week. I will soon. Dudes give Jesus Lizard a run for their bile. If you like fucked-up rock music…
Yancey, seeing you are a big Faust fan what do you recommend?
I saw them some years ago here in London performing live to Nosferatu (it was amazing) and I bought the vinyl. Haven’t ventured any further since… whatdaya say?
Without question the place to start with Faust is IV, which is damn near perfect. That is not on eMusic. The two best records other than IV, though, ARE on eMu: Faust and So Far. Both are extremely solid.
No “love” for the new Cobblestone Jazz disc, 23 Seconds? It’s good.
Todd has been drooling over it forever now. I am waiting for him to weigh in.
The festival’s sound and recording isn’t the problem on the CYHSY live album…. It’s the fact that they are a shitty, overrated, overhyped band who apparently can’t hold their own in a live setting (a setting that can make or break a band of its true talents, whether it’s a festival or not).
I would second the recommendation of So Far as a good place to start with Faust.
I started with Faust IV and worked my way backwards, and was kinda disappointed with the first album (though the original LP package itself can’t be beat as an objet d’art).
Yancey, any chance that Rough Trade will let eMusic have the new EP by the Duke Spirit?