Music
Music Madness
Everyone surviving the pandemic craziness? No? At least we have been treated to some really excellent music releases over the last week!
Fiona Apple’s Fetch the Bolt Cutters is already the front runner for best album of the year. It’s complex and challenging … and you need to listen to it right now.
The Twilight Sad have dropped IT WON/T BE LIKE THIS ALL THE TIME LIVE. I really do love this band and it’s great to see them continuing to gain popularity. My only complaint is that I wish they had trimmed down the two minutes of audience noise at the beginning of the show/first track. But that’s a minor quibble.
X has dropped ALPHABETLAND (the first album in 35 years featuring all the original members). Clocking in at a lean 27 minutes, it’s loud, aggressive, and everything else you would expect from X. I didn’t know how much I needed this in my life until I heard it.
Compare/Contrast
Back in 1988, Bernard Sumner (of New Order) and Johnny Marr (formerly of The Smiths) formed a group called Electronic. On their self-titled debut album (released in 1991), they collaborated with Pet Shop Boys on the song “The Patience of a Saint.” It’s a really great album and you should seek it out for a listen. Now, after the album came out, Sumner went back to record Republic with New Order and Pet Shop Boys went to work on their fifth album, Very. End of story?
So, this is of interest to nobody but me but … those subsequent albums which were released in 1993 (Republic in May and Very in September) both contain songs titled “Young Offender.” Planned? Just coincidence? Probably the later … but I still find it to be a fun factoid (that I probably never would have thought about had I not all this “stay-at-home” induced free time).
Now amuse yourself by listening to both songs.
New Order “Young Offender”
Pet Shop Boys “Young Offender”
Obsessed!
So incredibly obsessed with this song right now … especially the horn section and guitar solo which are both total ear candy!
Gonna Have a Party …
I love everything about this.
Updating Randomness
Yeah. Things have been going. Last week was stressful as one one my bosses ended up in the hospital and I had to cover all her work (on top of mine) for three days. Ugh. Thankfully, things are looking up and she was back at work today.
Meanwhile …
I got started on and finished the Stranger Things: The Upside Down LEGO set that I got for our anniversary in December. It was fun to make … but, I really do hope Will Byers survives. Plus … how cute is that Demogorgon minifig? Very!
I took my sister to Biltmore. I love this picture I took (near the grand staircase) with lots of overlapping archways.
We went bowling with our friend, Chris, at Sky Lanes. My highest score was 86 which confirms that I suck as bowling. Here’s David getting ready to gutter-ball it. 😛
On the vinyl collecting front, I have FINALLY managed to acquire a first pressing of X‘s debut album, Los Angles. Score!
Meanwhile, meanwhile …
I watched two more of the Best Picture nominees.
– 1917 (Technically impressive but DOA as far as tension and emotional engagement.)
– Joker (It’s Taxi Driver-Lite. Just watch Taxi Driver. It’s sooooooooo much better!)
So, yeah. Totally bumfuzzled as to how Joker scored the most Oscar nominations this year. Parasite is still the movie to beat. Seriously. Go see Parasite!
Underneath It
Welcome to 2020
So … a new year. Hopefully it will be better than 2019.
Yeah. I am really living for these horror-themed memes about what a shit year 2019 was.
Meanwhile … we might have been spotted out and about on New Year’s Eve.
Meanwhile, meanwhile … Pet Shop Boys have dropped a new single. Delicious!
Survivin’ It
So, yeah … the first Christmas after Dad died. Survived it. My step-mother decided to still have the annual Christmas Eve Breakfast for Dinner Gathering. The familiarity of it was nice but sad at the same time without Dad running around handing out presents to everyone. Nobody got weepy which was good. I saved that for a few of days later.
I was in Walmart on Friday evening and walked past a guy who was wearing a uniform from the place my dad managed right up until he got too sick to work. Dad generally wasn’t seen out of his work shirt the last few years. The loss and sadness really hit me. I managed to make it out of the store and back to the car before breaking down and creating a scene.
Saturday we tripped over the Gatlinburg with Graham and Kristen for moonshine and an escape room adventure. The usual places were visited … Ole Smoky, Sugarlands, and Doc Collier.
Graham and Kristen are big into escape rooms and wanted to check out MOONSHINE HILL HOOTENANNY at Gatlin’s Escape Games. The room was fun and way more high tech than I thought it would be. I felt like we overthought some of the puzzles and that got us behind time with only one hour to break into Maw’s shack, sabotage her moonshine recipe, and blow her ‘shine still to smithereens. SPOILERS: We failed (and found out that Kristen’s desire to win is both awesome and a little scary). But it was fun and I am looking forward to trying another escape room sometime soon.
And yesterday, I was bummed to read about the passing of Vaughan Oliver, mastermind designer of some the most iconic album sleeves of the 80’s and 90’s. He provided the visuals that went right along side of some of my favorite albums of the era (most notably for me are Cocteau Twins’ Treasure, The Pixies’ Surfer Rosa and Doolittle, and The Breeders’ Last Splash).
New PSB!!!
Stupid excited that the new Pet Shop Boys album, Hotspot, will be out next month on January 24th 2020. Woot! So far, two singles have been released (Dreamland and Burning the Heather) and I am digging them. Needless to say, the 2-Disc Deluxe CD and Vinyl have been pre-ordered. Woot! Woot!
Vinyl Obsessed [Moloko Edition]
Music on Vinyl’s Moloko reissue series came to and end this month with the release of Statues (the final Moloko album). They have done a really spot on job with these new pressings. Each album has colored vinyl, comes individually numbered, and is limited to 3,000 copies. They replicated the tri-fold sleeve for I Am Not a Doctor and included printed lyric inserts for Things to Make and Do and Statues. Super awesome!
The albums’ individual numbers are stamped in silver foil. Not too shabby!
The only complaint I have is that the plastic sleeves the albums come in are pretty flimsy and the seams split pretty easily. If you happen to not get the album straight into the plastic sleeve, you will bust the side seams. Boo hiss.
But seriously … I can’t even begin to tell you how amazing all four of these albums are. Listen to them now (and then discover Róisín Murphy‘s incredible art pop solo work).
Finally Acquired [Skinny Puppy Edition Redux]
Remember when I went to Toronto and found one of the Skinny Puppy original vinyl pressings that I had been looking for? Well … after nearly another year, I have acquired two more original pressings. Whoo!
The first is Mind: The Perpetual Intercourse which has a lock grove at the end of Side 2 and an insert with the track listing (as they were not listed on the back of the sleeve).
The second is Cleanse, Fold and Manipulate which has really cool A & B Side labels and a printed inner sleeve.
Stupid excited to have both these on their way into my “more money than brains” hands. Ha ha. Now, I just need an original pressing of Bites and life will be complete.
Tuesday Tunes
Gesaffelstein | Pursuit from DIVISION on Vimeo.
I still think this video is totally badass.