Anything On Your Mind?
1996! I moved to Seattle in 1996, as my job search concluded with finding what is still probably my favorite job. Here’s how long ago it was: my process for finding this job was buying newspapers for Seattle, Portland, and San Francisco each weekend from a newsstand in Spokane, going through the classifieds to see what new jobs had been posted, and then mailing off resumes to the ones that looked promising. I would even get people responding that way! Anyway, it came down to a job with a place in Beaverton, OR (just outside Portland) and the place I went with, BlueWater Systems. I interviewed with them on a Saturday, driving over to Seattle after work on Friday to do the interview. I talked to a single guy and that was that. I didn’t think that was at all an unusual interview process, and I didn’t really ask any questions about the company. He offered me a job and I took it. Much later I would realize that it was a little weird, but I was a kid and didn’t know better.
Finding a place to live involved going over with my dad one weekend, looking at some places listed in the paper, and then picking one. When it was time to move out, he drove across a truck with my (limited) stuff, I drove my extremely used Honda Civic, and it was pretty unceremonious. I’m still here, thirty years later. Another thing that largely wouldn’t happen today during the move was when I showed up at my apartment and Dad didn’t show up. He was going to be making a stop at my aunt’s place, as she was donating some furniture to the cause, so I wasn’t too surprised. But it took a few hours for him to show up, and I didn’t know why. And in that pre-mobile age, I had no way of finding out. I just had to sit on the floor of my new, empty apartment and just wait.
Eventually, he did show up, and it turns out that when he got off the freeway, the throttle on the U-Haul stuck. He was accelerating directly towards a red light, and had the presence of mind to shift to neutral and get onto the shoulder. I think if it had been me, especially at that time of life, that I would have plowed into traffic. But Dad always kept it cool and was able to handle it. He did have to call U-Haul and get them to help out, which is why it took so long. Anyway, we unloaded my stuff and I was suddenly on my own. I spent about six months at that place before I moved into the apartment I talked about last time, as I realized that being close to my job wasn’t as much fun as being close to my friends (and the record stores in the U District).
At any rate, that job turned out to be just me, the guy who hired me, and then some part time help with office stuff. We had a business model of doing custom software for people and then using that custom work to learn stuff and build toolkits. It was great. I learned a ton from the custom contracts, but they were short-ish engagements (a few months, typically) and then I could move on. As the second full-time employee, I had a hand in just about everything, and I learned so much about everything. The variety of tasks, the creativity of solving problems directly for customers, and then the fun of working with a small team to build products are all things that I dearly miss. I truly think that if the company hadn’t been acquired, it would have been somewhere I never would have stopped working for. I still miss that job.
Musically, I’m sure I’m going to find lots of ska again as I look through my library. From the chart, I have 13 releases, which seems pretty good. I’ll spare you all the ska records this time around, though. Not as good a year as 1997 on that front anyway.
What Are You Listening To From 1996, Josh?
A sampling of albums from 1996 that maybe you’d enjoy.
Kryptonite, Gaunt
Columbus, OH’s Gaunt, led by Jerry Wick, released four albums of stellar melodic punk in the 90s, capped off by a single major label release in 1998. This year’s album is my favorite of their records, although I think they’re all fun listens. They’re not really breaking any new ground here or anything, so it all kind of comes down to the songs, and I find them very catchy. Alas, Wick was struck and killed by a car while riding home one night, so these four albums would be all we would get from the band. Give this one a listen if you’re open to trying a punk album.
The Alienation Index Survey, Guzzard
Legendary (to me) label Amphetamine Reptile Records released a ton of great records in the 90s, ranging from bands as big as Helmet to smaller acts like today’s. Guzzard released three records for the label, improving with each release, culminating in this record. It’s noise rock, but it’s more of a genteel version compared to the chaos unleashed by someone like the Cows. That mostly comes from the rhythms, which are more punk than a lot of other noise rock bands, which helps propel the songs forward. You end up with something of a hybrid that I really like quite a lot. All of the elements are familiar, but this record still doesn’t sound like much other than itself, which is something I prize.
Fresh Gasoline, Phono-Comb
Legendary instrumental rock band (who were, in their own words, not a fucking surf band) Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet broke up in 1994, and Don Pyle and Reid Diamond became half of Phono-Comb. One song in, and it’s absolutely clear where this band came from. This record is basically like a lost Shadowy Men record, which is of course a delight. If you like reverbed out instrumental rock (NOT SURF ROCK), you’re in for a treat. If you’re a fan of the Shadowy Men who didn’t know about this record, you’re really in for a treat. (The Shadowy Men released a retrospective box set in 2016 called Oh, I Guess We Were a Fucking Surf Band After All.)
Let’s Talk More 1996
Yet more records from 1996!
Exploded Drawing, Polvo
Guitar weirdos Polvo went out of their way to make every sound they could with a guitar and to get it on tape. They’d been at it for a few years when they made this record, where they brought out their entire bag of tricks. It’s hard to say which is the best Polvo record, as I think they all have stuff to offer, but this is the one I put on most often. Well, actually, I put on the EP Celebrate the New Dark Age most often, but that’s a different year. I’d say recommended for fans of Modest Mouse especially.
II, Presidents of the United States
Now, hear me out. I know, everybody just thinks of them as a joke band. But not everything that’s light-hearted is throwaway, and not every silly band is a novelty act. The Presidents absolutely got stuck in the novelty box thanks to their hits being “Lump” and “Peaches”, which are both definitely silly songs. And yes, the tunes on this record are goofy as well, but Chris Ballew and company knew what they were doing. This album is absolutely loaded with hooks, the songs are a ton of fun to sing along to, and it’s just a breezy good time. Relax and enjoy the pure rock on display here. Not everything has to be challenging.
Savage, Teengenerate
It’s another band that just wants to have a good time, although their idea of a good time is jumped up, blown-out garage punk. Ten blasts of pure garage punk, all fuzz and attitude and clatter, and then it’s done in less than twenty minutes. What more do you want? I won’t insult things by writing more than that.
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.
“Sunny Backyard”, The Intelligence
Long running post-punk band The Intelligence, who started in Seattle, have put out a bunch of records over the years, and I’ll admit I haven’t kept up with them that much. I do like this record quite a bit, though, and I should probably follow up with more.
“Big Lizard”, The Dead Milkmen
𝅘𝅥𝅮 Big lizard in my backyard / can’t afford to feed him any more! 𝅘𝅥𝅮
“Figure It Out”, Floor
Damn, listen to that guitar tone. Floor had it going on, I could just listen to that all day.
“Moon Over Marin”, Dead Kennedys
Geez, between this and the Dead Milkmen, we’re really in high school territory here.
“Being Tyler”, Lambchop
When they wanted to, they could just be the lushest band on the planet. Gorgeous stuff.
Josh, What Are You Doing Here?
I’m just writing about music. A structure like this blog helps me get my thoughts out, and it’s a way for me to explore my own music collection through various lenses. My sincere hope is that some folks out there find some new music they love. That’s all I’m up to. Sincere thanks to everybody who sends me feedback, with news that they’ve found a new favorite especially fun for me. There’s no monetization, no metrics, no ads, no promos, no nothing. Just some static web pages, some links, and my scribbling. If you want to support it, just shoot me a note! Thanks for reading.
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, Treble Magazine, The Quietus, Stereogum.