na: crystal stilts
So much great stuff. And yes, Deerhunter should be in this list but is not. It will be up tomorrow.
Crystal Stilts, Alight of Night: Funny how one of the most criticized eMusic Selects picks to date ends up being one of the most successful in the real world. Suddenly the Stilts are everywhere — there aren’t many folks more hyped on The Blogs than these kids, and we couldn’t be happier about it. And the record? It’s great. I was initially nonplussed when I first heard it, but it’s grown very steadily, and I think it’s a stronger record than even the Stilts might realize. Interestingly, the music was recorded a couple of years ago — some of the stuff on the eMusic EP was actually more recent than these recordings. In any event, support this band!!!
School of Seven Bells, Alpinisms: Another band on the verge according to the hype, and we’re down with that. We first started pumping them over a year ago, and our opinion has not changed: if you like dreamy, Blonde Redhead (contemporary BR) pop, you will like this. Featuring former members of Secret Machines and On! Air! Library! (download their “Bread” if you get a chance; so good).
Red Eyed Legends, Wake Up, Legend: For Joe, Molly and I, this record is a five-point bulletin: Chris Thomson has a new band. Thomson, as two of you will remember, fronted Monorchid, Skull Kontrol and Circus Lupus, all of which are absolutely perfect, criminally overlooked bands. You might think I’m exaggerating but I’m not. I have yet to listen to the new record (busy day), but you will hear more from me once I’ve had a chance.
Hunter S. Thompson, The Gonzo Tapes: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson: There might not be a less affordable album on eMusic. Yet this is also immediately one of our most essential. Hunter S. Thompson has had a huge impact on my life. I read Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas when I was 13, devoured Hell’s Angels shortly after, read every article I could find by him through my teens, and in college read for the first time Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail ’72, still the best political work I have ever read, and one that I return to about twice a year every single year. And no, that is not an exaggeration. It’s that good.
Anyway. This absolutely insanely amazing collection contains the raw audiotapes Thompson was recording during his travels. It begins with stuff from Hell’s Angels — the then comparatively straight-laced Thompson sitting in his car detailing the mayhem outside as he watches the Angels celebrate a Labor Day weekend at a secluded lake in Northern California. Shortly after they almost killed him. Or skip ahead to disc three, which contains the recordings made during Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Thompson and his lawyer Oscar slurring a narration of their tale in real time into the cassette recorder, Oscar calling a hotel to reserve “the American dream” in complete earnestness and the like.
Honestly, never in my wildest dreams did I think I would get to hear this stuff. It’s completely blowing my mind, and I will be listening to every single second of it in the coming days and weeks. If your Thompson interest runs as deep as mine, I don’t see how you could not have this, whether you get it from eMusic or elsewhere. Just amazing.
Bjork, Nattura: There have been a whole bunch of Bjork singles coming through lately; I believe that more and more of her catalogue is reverting to her One Little Indian label, so I’m hopeful that we’ll be seeing more from her. And this single, a collaboration between Bjork and Thom Yorke, is a great start.
O’Death, Broken Hymns, Limbs and Skin: So people care about O’Death now? I was surprised to see a couple of message board posts anticipating this one. I dunno what to say except I very much do not enjoy them. I hear they’re a good live band, but no one’s been able to talk me into attending yet.
Jesse Malin, On Your Sleeve: I feel like tons of people who are way nicer than me are really into Jesse Malin. Seems like a nice dude, I guess. Makes music for all kinds of nice and sweet reasons. So yeah, you can guess that I really don’t like this, which I don’t. However, it must be said that this covers album shows some great taste, particularly in the inclusion of Fred Neil’s “Everybody’s Talking,” long one of my favorite songs. His performances of that taste? Mum’s the word.
Professor Genius, Down There: Professor Genius is probably someone well known and I’m just an imbecile. This is where Todd would have most likely corrected me. But just speaking for myself, this was one of the best surprises of the day: cosmic house disco kinda stuff. Super hooky and nice.
Eagles of Death Metal, Heart On: I have never heard this band. Ever. I am generally in favor of Josh Homme — he’s the Queens of the Stone Age dude who also fronts this band — so this is probably pretty alright.
Rodrigo y Gabriela, Live in Japan: Live album from another popular group that I have never ever heard.
Cause Co-Motion, It’s Time: Singles and EPs 2005-08: Our own Alex is longtime bros with these kids, which either speaks good or bad for them. I’m not sure which. But yeah, lo-fi, spazzy indie-pop rock stuff. The kids love it.
Vic Chesnutt, Dark Developments: Had zero idea this was coming! Immediately downloaded. Hope it’s good.
The Damned, So Who’s Paranoid: New Damned album. Just letting you know.
The Matthew Herbert Big Band, There’s Me and There’s You: Alex and I talked about Matthew Herbert the other day. I’m a fan of Around the House, his pretty much universally beloved album. The rest? Not so much. A lot of Herbert stuff is about symbolic gesture. It’s about the means of production just as much the result. And I really like these things in theory. They mean so much when it comes to my own creative works. But to listen to someone else’s… it so often leaves me cold. I should note that I haven’t listened to the new one yet, so there is a very real chance I am full of shit on contemporary Herbert. But the old stuff is miss or hit.
What Made Milwaukee Famous, The Sugarhill Sessions EP: New music.
I’m with you on Matthew Herbert. i enjoy Around the House and Plat du Jour (http://www.platdujour.co.uk/). His methods are interesting to a degree and I understand as a sampling artist myself why someone might employ them. But much of the rest of his other material I just find, um… tedious.
Professor Genius is featured on “After Dark,” the great dark-disco compilation from the Italians Do It Better label. It’s good to see his solo material on eMusic.
I understand the hesitation about Herbert’s more conceptual stuff – it can get pretty tedious. That said…Scale is GREAT, in my humble opinion. A quirky, polished-but-weird synth pop record! Try it, really!
Also, RE: cAUSE co-MOTION!…crash-pop at its absolute best. Not just for the novelty of things-falling-over and out of tune vox and stuff, but because there are great songs here! Great songs all under 2 minutes, even. Killer. Also…were you dissin’ me, there?? I couldn’t even tell, haha.
You haven’t listened to Rodrigo y Gabriela yet? Oh nos! Thanks for pointing out that live album, by the way. I hadn’t noticed it in the list of new arrivals.
I’m looking forward to checking out the Matthew Herbert Big Band albums. I second the recommendation of Scale!
Here are a few others that got missed:
DJ Babu – Duck Season Volume 1 (from Dilated Peoples and Beat Junkies)
Bill Laswell – Innerhythmic: Cause and Effect
Cynic – Traced in Air (this one is HUGE!)
^ Sorry I can’t edit it but that should have been Duck Season Volume 3.
The link is right though.
The Percussion Based Bjork track is very good. I also would suggest to pick up soem Rodrigo and Gabriella, don’t start with the live album; instead start with their Awesome Cover of Metalica’s Orion and their suprisingly good Stairway to Heaven. . . no really I promise it’s worth it. Hehe Content in all their wisdom has R&G double listed on eMusic(“Rodrigo y Gabriela” and “Rodrigo & Gabriela”).
I added The Hunter S Album to my Public Samples And Stuff for Beats
Finally I must say
“A mandolin from Ross’ Arse” is the BEST Line ON A LIVE ALBUM
Loving Liver! Lung! FR!
SVIIB! Outstanding!
(from a confessed fan of The Secret Machines, fair warning)
There was a 99 track fart sounds record that I think had Hunter S. beat. At least that’s like five discs rather than 99 tracks of farts, each less than a minute. I also pity the fool who hits download album for one of the birthday albums where each track has a different name in it.
Yancey, Monorchid rule. Shall definitely be checking out the new stuff, and those other 2 bands I wasn’t aware of.
As for Eagles of Death Metal, they are essentially a one trick pony in a Ramones sort of way but more boogie woogie. They’re allegedly very good live. Josh drums in the band, fronted by some other bloke with a tash. I’d definitley download href=”http://www.emusic.com/album/Eagles-of-Death-Metal-Peace-Love-Death-Metal-MP3-Download/10881829.html”>I only want you. It’s one of my favourite tracks of all time. Well in the top 50 at least.
still no word on the arthur russell? :-/
i posted on the other thread. from my investigations so far, i *think* the album has been delayed across the board until next year. no other digital services have it, and this is what we heard from our writer who we had assigned it to. more as i find out.
Rodrigo y Gabriela, man, I don’t know if I’d ever listen to a studio album by them, but they’re one of the best live acts I’ve seen in ages. Dropped my jaw when I saw them at Sasquatch this summer.
Some top shelf country/folk that should no go unmentioned. Best of the Hightone Years sets from Buddy Miller and Dave Alvin, plus the new Veteran’s Day Anthology of Tom Russell, which I am very excited about. I have most of it but will be cherrypicking the rest.
Any chance the School of Seven Bells will be available in the UK soon? The single and ep are already, and the latest single is on the same label as Alpinisms.
Ok I’m going to preface this with – I am not a fan of the Following artist, although I do respect her and know that she has a gigantic following. She is an artist, one of the first of the modern era, to sucsessfully create a self-labling and gain (not lose) listeners and HARDCORE fans.
As of Today 10/29/08 What looks to be the Entire Ani Difranco Righteous Babe Records
Catalouge is on eMusic. I applaud Ms. DiFranco and eMusic for this very good business decision (I hope the only one I like is on here I haven’t discovered it yet but the Ani/Utah Philips albums is great, funny and Well made)
Why can’t I have Matthew Herbert’s album!!!! The man is from the UK, his last K7 release is on here. Boo hiss..