Anything On Your Mind?
2022! A year that for sure happened, of that I have no doubt. Looking at my pictures, it seems that mostly I hung out with my dog. Well, there’s worse things, I suppose.
The RateYourMusic chart started out well, where I thought I had both of the top two albums. And then, no, I never picked up the Black Country, New Road record from 2022 because I thought the 2021 record was kind of boring. And then we end up in roughly the same place as the last several charts, where I have five of these records in the collection. As for talking about some favorites from 2022, I actually wrote a 2022 album roundup for this very site, so I guess maybe it would be silly to write things up again. You can go read that! It’s…well, probably of comparable quality to everything else around here.
How do the choices in there stand up? Pretty well! I have, indeed, spent plenty of time with Inside Problems. Lots of awesome records in that list, including special mention for Overtaker for still kicking mondo ass. Yeah, you can do worse than having a look at that list and picking some records from it. So let’s consider 2023 today as well. That chart is here, and I have four of those. Although I really should have the Armand Hammer release in the library, and probably that McKinley Dixon release as well.
What Are You Listening To, Josh?
A sampling of albums that I’m playing regularly, whether older ones or newer ones. Just the things that I think are worth highlighting, and maybe you’d enjoy.
Let’s do some 2023 albums from the library. As always, this is just a quick sampling of records I wanted to write about, not necessarily the best or most notable releases.
Zen and the Arcade of Beating Your Ass, Citric Dummies
There’s a two-axis diagram you can draw, with “Dumb Music” to “Smart Music” on one axis, and “Dumb Band” to “Smart Band” on the other axis. Dumb music made by a dumb band is, like, KISS. That quadrant is mostly bad, although there are pleasures in it. There are plenty of lunkhead metal bands who have made bad music. Ditto punk bands. Smart music made by a smart band is where a lot of jazz lives, and a lot of other heady stuff. More pleasures in that quadrant than in the dumb/dumb area, but it’s not all home runs in there either. Smart music made by a dumb band is rare, of course. Every now and again a dumb band makes something really smart by accident. The first Ramones record, maybe? I’m not sure if I’m willing to defend that one. It’s hard to think of what else might be in here. Individual songs are probably more common.
But then, there’s the true sweet spot. Dumb music made by smart bands, now, that’s where the action is at. Lots of metal in this quadrant, lots of punk, hardcore, stuff like that. Plenty of really dumb rap records in there. Citric Dummies are for sure in that quadrant. This record is dumb stuff, but they know that, so it’s…well-crafted dumb stuff? You don’t name a song “Doing Dope at Chucky Cheese” without being aware that it’s dumb. I love this record.
Knower Forever, Knower
Knower is Genevieve Artadi and Louis Cole, both really interesting artists on their own. Together, they make…excellent music? It’s a little hard to describe? There’s lots of elements they combine. The headline jam, “I’m The President” (peep the excellent video) is a funk tune, mostly, but they’re using their incredible chops (and those of their collaborators) to just tear it up. Like, just listen to that piano solo Paul Cornish tears off. Or listen to that insane groove Cole is playing on “It’s All Nothing Until It’s Everything”. I guess it’s all closest to being electro-funk? Anyway, it’s an album that really rewards paying attention to the details, because it’s stuffed with incredible touches.
Facet, Facet
Unfortunately, no, there’s no song called “Facet” on here, so no trifecta. Anyway, been a bit since we highlighted some good ol’ fashioned noise rock. And this is very much that. Gross riffs (just listen to that thing that kicks off “Triple Check”!) and shouting atop an interesting and active rhythm section. It’s really the drums and bass that really hold noise rock together. That foundation lets the rest of the band go wherever they want. It’s what really separates out the great records in the genre, and I really like what Facet is cooking up in that department.
It’s Still 2023
Yeah, we’re sticking with 2023 records for this bit, because I want to. Why not?
The Library Archive Vol. 3, ATA Records
ATA Records is dedicated to mid-century equipment and recording techniques, attempting to really recreate vintage sounds as faithfully as possible. They’re released some fun bands, such as The Sorcerers. But they also have this series, the Library Archive, where they attempt to faithfully re-create the sounds of the production music libraries that were used for so many mid-century TV shows and movies. Listening to this, you can absolutely tell they nailed it. I think the music is a lot of fun on its own merits, sprightly jazz/funk, but when you add on that layer of nostalgia to it, I find it irresistible. There are four records in the series, which I just now discovered as I went to look at their Bandcamp page. I was unaware of the fourth being released. Time to pick that up!
Hox, Black Market Brass
Let’s keep going in this vein: Black Market Brass are presenting an Afrobeat sound here, but there are lots of touches that help distinguish them. There’s some subtle distortion on a bunch of stuff on “Echo a.D.”, for instance. The guitar line in “The Pit” is another example standout. It all hangs together really well, and the record is an excellent hang.
Bewitchment of the Dark Ages, Garoted
This is death metal, just pure and straightforward. Garoted are here to bellow, blast, and shred. They’re going to name songs things like “Pestiferous” and “Harkening to the Age of Blood & Plague”, and you aren’t going to be able to make out any of the lyrics, but you just know that they’re pure gibberish about blood or pustules or whatever. What sets this album apart is that it sounds…not like a million bucks, but like, you know, $30. Which is good! It’s also studded all over with these brief but ripping solos. Everything is just dialed in precisely for their target, which is head banging death metal.
Five Random Songs
Yes, it’s the “classic” five random songs format. It’s been told before on this blog many times, but basically, on an old forum, people would post the last five songs their shuffle pulled up. I liked it, so I made it into a blog. And now, here we are.
“Outer Rim”, Hammerhead
Hammerhead were one of the jewels of the Amphetamine Reptile Records roster, the legendary underground label that was one of the centers of excellence for noise rock and other kinds of loud music in the 90s. They had three LPs with AmRep alongside an excellent EP, and one of those albums (Into the Vortex) might be my favorite AmRep release of all time. And that’s against some very stiff competition! The band broke up after the third LP due to Paul Sanders moving away, and all three members continued making music with separate projects. They reformed in 2010 and started releasing new music again. Some of it is pretty good - New Directionz and the two EPs, Memory Hole and Global Depression, are welcome additions to their catalog. This song comes from the last of those. They don’t quite ascend to the heights of their 90s glory days, but I’m happy that I have them.
Alas, be careful in exploring the later releases. Their most recent two LPs, Excommunications and HMMHRD-X, are just kind of aimless experimental noise and should be avoided.
“Tupperware Queen”, The Beautiful South
The Beautiful South is Paul Heaton’s band after the Housemartins broke up, and their first record in particular is very much a favorite. I mostly found diminishing returns as time went on with them, and this record (Painting it Red) is the last one I have in the library. It just seemed to me like their music kept settling more and more into a sort of adult contemporary space that didn’t appeal to me much.
“Depths of Hell”, Ice-T
This is from Ice’s 1993 return, Home Invasion, released while Ice-T was wrapped up in controversy around his other project. Body Count’s song “Cop Killer” was at the center of the right-wing scream machine for what seemed like ages. The shitstorm that just kept going and going. This record of course did nothing to calm things down, relying as it does on the usual gangsta tropes, so the release just added fuel to the reactionary fire. The album itself, judged as music, is a bit of a mess. It’s too long, both in some of the songs and the tracklist. Editing this whole thing down to the best songs and tighter tracks would have made for an excellent album. As it is, it’s pretty shaggy.
“Yonder Blue”, Tortoise
If you’re thinking, dang, this sounds really familiar, there may be a reason: that’s Georgia Hubley of Yo La Tengo singing on this track. The Catastrophist, by virtue of all the guest spots on it, stands out to me as an unusual record in Tortoise’s discography. This could be a track from some random neo-psych band, not one of the pillars of post-rock. I suppose there’s no “normal” Tortoise record, but nevertheless, this one is pretty different from their usual affair.
“Limos”, Vince Staples
This is the first big release from Vince Staples, an EP on Def Jam, and it’s excellent stuff. Only seven tracks, but they’re all good, and this release paved the way for his big breakout.
Some Better Places To Learn About Music
Check these folks out, you’ll learn more for sure. In no particular order: To The Teeth, Wolf’s Week/Plague Rages, The Devil’s Mouth, Burning Ambulance, Lamniformes Cuneiform, Hex Records, See/Saw, Starkweather.