I’m a huge Seattle homer, so when I mention that this is a Seattle act, just deflate your ratings appropriately. But after a charming EP (on cassette!), they put out their first LP in 2020, and it’s quite good. Their lineup is pretty extensive (six people), resulting in some nice, full arrangements for their tunes. I don’t know that it’s surprising, but I just enjoy having some rock sometimes, especially from the Pacific Northwest. Listen local!
[Read More]My freshman year roommate couldn’t stand this track, and would insist on skipping it when we listened to this record. Which was often, it was an album we could agree on. I thought I lost that copy of Paul’s Boutique when it was in his car when the car got stolen. But! They found it, and he got the car back! The song that came on when he started it up? “Car Thief”.
[Read More]By the time Synchronicity came out, the Police were really out of gas. There are some fine pop songs on it, but lots of filler, and even the good songs are kind of tame compared to some of their previous songs. I really liked this album a lot back when it came out, but find myself listening to it only very rarely now.
There are about three seconds at the beginning of this song when you think it’s going to be a classic rock vamp. But then the horns kick in, and it’s a regular Budos vamp. But with some classic rock touches here and there in the guitar, which is a lot of fun. It kicks off another classic record from the Budos Band, an album which dials back the psych stuff from Burnt Offering just a little bit. It ends up being right in the middle for their albums, behind Burnt Offering and I, but ahead of III and II. I haven’t placed Long in the Tooth yet, but I think it winds up probably right around III somewhere.
[Read More]First appearance for Common here, this coming from his masterpiece, Like Water For Chocolate. With production from a bunch of underground greats, Common put everything together and made a landmark of underground rap that brought back the feel of the Native Tongues bands. While it might run on a bit too long, it’s still a huge pleasure to listen to, so smooth and assured.
[Read More]You know what I should do in these intros? I should probably just mention new music I’ve picked up recently. christian fitness has a new record that I just picked up, and it’s good so far. And I bought the new album from Nightbringer, a black metal album that I’m looking forward to diving into.
As always, we have today’s songs!
When they first started out, Cypress Hill was something really strange, with super squeaky beats based around dusty jazz samples and the odd nasal flows of B Real. The first two Cypress Hill records are unique and a lot of fun, although, um, fairly limited lyrical content. By the time we hit this, their fifth album, they were really kind of on fumes. This was a double album, with one rap record, and the other being a rock crossover. It didn’t exactly go well. Rap/rock crossovers seldom do. The rap disc is better, but still won’t make you forget the first two albums. This song, needless to say, is from the rock one.
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