Fugazi

The Decemberists, “The Perfect Crime #2”

My favorite Decemberists album really rotates around quite a bit, but it’s usually between this one, Her Majesty The Decemberists, and Picaresque. I suspect that if I could listen to all three with fresh ears with my current musical preferences, that I might land on this one permanently, as the most elaborate of the three.

Black Milk, “Deion’s House”

Black Milk is known for being as good on the mic as behind the boards, but this song actually has an outside producer on it. Still an excellent track, and this album across the board is outstanding.

METZ, “Drained Lake”

There’s a relentlessness in this kind of noise rock, where the songs specialize in a propulsive beat that just keeps chainsawing ahead regardless of what else is going on. I’ve compared the sound to a malfuntioning machine, and I think in both the steadiness of it and in the harshness of some of the noises it fits. Brilliant stuff.

The Squirrels, “Money”

There’s plenty of hay to be made in mocking the pomposity of big 70s rock. Punk rock, of course, is largely a reaction to it, both in defining everything the aesthetics of punk were not as well as providing a source for mockery. But it’s not limited to just punk, the bloated blimps of AOR are juicy enough targets that everybody takes a shot.

Pardoner, “My Sorry Ass”

We’re unabashed Pardoner fans here at Five Songs, who do a great job of bringing that 90s indie rock aesthetic into our ears. Go listen to them! They’re really good!

John Oswald, “Btls (Marco Integer)”

I think that’s the chord from “A Day in the Life” getting deconstructed. Fun!

The Exceptions, “Circles”

I generally like it when ska is mixed like this, with kind of an intimate mix putting the vocals forward and sounding like it’s in a small room. It’s nice!

Floor, “Find Away”

In some ways, there’s some real similarities between My Bloody Valentine and Floor. Both use a ton of guitar to sometimes disorienting effect, but leaven them with vocals that are kind of at odds with the overall tone. MBV uses dream-like vocals, and Floor uses clean singing (which is unexpected in something this heavy), but it results in a dual thing that gives them a really interesting feel.

Freddie Gibbs & Madlib, “Massage Seats”

We’ve had a lot of Madlib around here, in a bunch of different projects. In 2014, he got together with Freddie Gibbs, the upcoming gangsta rapper who also was comfortable as an underground MC. That collaboration, Piñata, was one of my favorite Madlib records ever (which is really saying something). The pairing felt natural, with Madlib’s gritty, fractured beats complementing Gibbs’s flows perfectly. This track is from the followup, Bandana, which is just as good, although because it was the second it doesn’t have the factor of surprise working for it. Both albums are very highly recommended.

Pixies, “Here Comes Your Man”

A classic. Also a member of the group of songs where I can play both the bass and drums for it.

Fugazi, “Waiting Room (version)”

Another classic! Sounding like my dorm room in here today. Except this isn’t from 7 Songs, it’s the demo version from First Demo, which is a huge amount of fun if you’re a big Fugazi fan. Which I am!

Andrew Bird, “Polynation”

Goddamn! Really hitting some of my favorite artists here! However, this is a just a little interstitial tune from Break It Yourself.

Happy birthday to the most important listener/reader of Five Songs! YES, YOU.

The Pixies, “Where Is My Mind?”

I’m not sure a week doesn’t go by where Dave Lovering’s entry into this song doesn’t go through my head. And that’s without talking about how often the rest of the song goes through my brain. Where is my mind? It’s on the Pixies, most of the time.

The Jesus Lizard, “Mouth Breather”

Speaking of drum parts that go through my head all the time, Mac McNeilly’s drums here are indelibly printed into my head. When I die (probably crushed by a stack of board games falling on me), you’ll be able to slice me open and find the chunk of gray matter assigned to keep track of this. This is essentially a perfect rock song.

Fugazi, “Intro”

There’s not a ton to say here, other than The Argument is a tremendous swan song for the band, and I really wish that there were more records after it.

The Jam, “That’s Entertainment”

One of the crowning achievements of mod, Sound Affects is chock full of great songs, and this one is one of the sweetest of the bunch. It’s straightforward, but it sounds fantastic, and certainly still sounds totally fresh.

Not a ton to say today.

James Brown, “It’s A Man’s World”

So, uh, sometimes the sexual politics of Brown’s music wasn’t great. You know, it happens. I’ll just observe that Brown had a co-writer for this song, Betty Jean Newsome, which is kind of interesting.

(NB: on Star Time, this track has the above name, not “It’s A Man’s Man’s Man’s World”))

Fugazi, “Public Witness Program”

I don’t want to take too much away from the majesty of this pure slab of punk, so just enjoy.

Fantastic one today!

J-Zone, “Zone For President”

More old shit from J-Zone! I mentioned his persona last time, but here you can really hear the cheapass side of things. Also, dig that circus beat! And the shots at internet losers. All good stuff!

Pond, “Forget”

Pond’s third and final record, Rock Collection, came out on a major label, which probably did it no favors. While Sub Pop would know what to do with a band like this, when Pond didn’t hit it big quickly with this record, Sony basically just forgot that it existed. It’s a shame, because it’s a an excellent album full of rock gems like this, all of them at least a little off-kilter. There’s also some really touching songs on here as well. Overall, a lost gem.