Pink Floyd

Pink Floyd, “Eclipse”

I know that Pink Floyd is probably regarded as hopelessly stodgy and dad-ish by people today, avatars of the leaden excesses of 70s rock that sparked punk. And, yeah, this is some ornate shit and all. But dammit, I love it, I sincerely do, whether because it was largely inescapable growing up in Spokane or just because I am also stodgy and dad-ish.

Logh, “The Smoke Will Lead You Home”

I got this as part of a Hydra Head album grab bag, and it’s awfully different from the usual Hydra Head fare. This is really more on the emo side of the fence than anything else. It’s pleasant enough, I suppose.

The Mighty Mocambos, “The Spell of Ra-Orkon”

Well, isn’t that just a party? Those horns, baby. And the bari sax solo!

Sleater-Kinney, “All Hands on the Bad One”

A thing I just noticed: I own four Sleater-Kinney records, and it’s the four Kill Rock Stars ones. Is that because of some label affinity or something? I think it’s a coincidence, but if I were more of a bullshitter, I’d spin some yarn here about that label giving them the right support and freedom to be at their best. But, no, it’s just dumb luck. OR IS IT

Pink Floyd, “Is There Anybody Out There?”

In a different potential project of mine, I was looking at albums released in 1979, and it’s pretty amusing that the same year in rock produced London Calling and 154 and also The Wall. I know rock is pretty dead as a commercial prospect these days, but it’s just kind of fun to consider that those extremes were commercially viable in what was ostensibly the same genre once upon a time.

Ulthar, “Undying Spear”

Ulthar are a blackened death metal band from Oakland who have two records out so far. They’re apparently Lovecraftian, but I’d have to read their lyrics to hear that. I’m never really sure how I feel about blackened death (in this case, it’s mostly the vocals that are blackened more than anything), I think I generally prefer the two styles separate.

The Midnight Hour, “Gate 54”

The Midnight Hour is Adrian Younge (who had scored a bunch of things and has also worked with a bunch of folks, we’ve seen his work with Ghostface Killah on here) and Ali Shaheed Muhammad (from A Tribe Called Quest), putting together a jazz/hip-hop hybrid. As you’d expect from that pedigree, it’s outstanding stuff. Younge and Muhammad both are multi-instrumentalists, and combined with their immense compositional talents, you’ve got amazing stuff.

Eagles of Death Metal, “Anything ‘Cept The Truth”

The opening track of Heart On, the third Eagles of Death Metal album of greasy rock before they went on hiatus. For me, I think that the previous album is a little better - a little scuzzier, a little less slick. Love the handclaps here, though. Five Songs is very much a pro-handclaps space.

Dawnbreed, “Volvoteen”

This album is from 1997, from Trans Solar records out of Koblenz. Dig the CompuServe email address on the back of the album! At any rate, this is a Very Josh sounding album, certainly for that time period. Thing is - I don’t remember it! Might have bought it at a show? Might be an album that Megan bought? Did I buy it in a big batch and forget about it? Who knows?

The Replacements, “Waitress In The Sky”

This is an inner-circle member of the “Songs That Randomly Pop In Josh’s Head” club. Which isn’t the catchiest name, I know. I’ll bring it up at the next meeting.

The Replacements, “I Will Dare”

Well, that’s a first. I ain’t mad!

I’ve said it before, but the Replacements have made the best album named Let It Be.

Negativland, “The Perfect Cut (Canned Music)”

In the wake of getting some minor success, Negativland planned to tour to support Escape From Noise. It quickly became apparent that the tour was going to be a financial disaster, so the band decided to cancel it. Being who they are, they made up a story about why they were canceling it, and fed nonsense to the media that it was a consequence of legal trouble as a result of a kid murdering his parents after listening to “Christianity Is Stupid”. This was at a time when the media was ready to believe all kinds of nonsense about music and games, with satanic panic everywhere, so they got a local news station in California to bite.

Killer Mike, “R.A.P. Music”

I often refer to Killer Mike’s R.A.P. Music as “Run The Jewels 0”, featuring as it does the core duo from RtJ. The approach that El-P takes on the beats is definitely on the continuum that would develop into RtJ, and of course, Killer Mike is on point. The only real difference between this and a full RtJ album is that El-P stays off the mic. Every fan of RtJ owes it to themselves to get this record.

Hey, I know somebody playing on one of these! (SPOILER ALERT: not the first one.)

Pink Floyd, “Bring The Boys Back Home”

It feels really wrong to just have one track from The Wall in here. It further feels like this is the wrong time to discuss Pink Floyd. Maybe I’ll do a Pink Floyd special at some point. Anyway, suffice it to say, The Wall is over the top and ridiculous, and nevertheless I still love every part of its hammy majesty.