Prefuse 73

Stone Temple Pilots, “Big Empty”

I was going to say that this is the only STP track in my library, their contribution to The Crow: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack which I bought because it had a new track from Nine Inch Nails and Helmet. Anyway, I was wrong: they also contributed to a Led Zeppelin tribute album, a covers album notable mostly for David Yow getting together with Helmet for a fun “Custard Pie” and not a lot else. Anyway, STP are and always were boring, flannel wallpaper for people who thought that the only thing that the old hard rock hegemony on raido needed was more grunting.

Revenge, “14K”

Revenge is Peter Hook’s (Joy Division, New Order) band after leaving the latter of those bands. They put out one record and a smattering of singles, one of which gives us this song. And, look - Revenge wasn’t very interesting. It was just kind of there. If you’re a big New Order fan, as I was when this stuff was coming out, you might trick yourself into getting excited for it. But don’t fall in that trap!

Hoover, “Electrolux”

Hoover were a post-hardcore band with a single album on Discord in 1993 along with a few singles. There are a lot of forgotten gems in the Discord catalog, with albums getting overshadowed by the more famous releases on the label. Fugazi’s In On The Kill Taker released in 1993, for instance, which I think is the best post-hardcore record ever made. So it’s easy to see how this thing might not get noticed. And, yes, there is plenty of influence here from Fugazi. But, hell, that’s not a bad way to take your cues. There’s a little Drive Like Jehu here also, so yeah, this is good stuff.

Jawbox, “Static”

With Novelty, Jawbox added a second guitarist to the lineup and the fuller sound really brought them to another level. While I like Grippe, this is the album where Jawbox became Jawbox. “Static” is one of my favorite songs on the album, with my fondness bolstered by the fun novelty 7" they put out as a split with Tar, where each band covered the other band’s song named “Static”.

Prefuse 73, “Eve of Dextruction”

Way, way back in probably 1995, I remember making fun of some prehistoric website where someone clearly wanted to be a music reviewer but had no idea how to approach it. He attempted to a bunch of songs, but after writing a sentence or two for the first couple tracks, he just devolved into saying “CLUB BANGA” for the rest of the songs. And that simple phrase, all-caps, CLUB BANGA, has stuck with me now for twenty seven years or whatever. A friend and I used to just text that phrase to each other sometimes, and it never failed to hit.

Jan Jelinek, “Universal Band Silhouette”

Sounds like being slowly dipped in warm syrup.

Jean Grae & Quelle Chris, “Gold Purple Orange”

Goddamn, Jean Grae absolutely kills it on this track. Somehow, she always startles me when she comes in, and then my skull melts.

Dance Hall Crashers, “Beverly Kills”

A lot of the Dance Hall Crashers songs were really not super inspiring or anything. And really, the point of the band is just listen to the harmonies and vibe. Isn’t that pleasant?

Black Eyed Peas, “Bringing It Back”

I’ve already talked about how different pre-Fergie BEP are from the band people know, and I’m not sure I have a second thing to observe about this record. So read that. Or don’t! Doesn’t matter to me!

Jurassic 5, “What’s Golden”

Best tune off their second record, this is just a total banger. If I can recommend it, just listen to this twice and skip the BEP track. Why not?

Big Audio Dynamite II, “Rush”

Whe Mick Jones left The Clash, he started a new band, Big Audio Dynamite. He wanted to explore the use of dance music techniques, sampling, and the like. That band too broke apart, but he took another run at things with Big Audio Dynamite II, where he was the only member in common. This is the first album from that second incarnation, and “Rush” was a decent sized hit. It’s pretty charming in how eclectic and playful it is, and the “rhythm and melody” section is a serious jam.

Wasted Shirt, “Double the Dream”

Wasted Shirt is Brian Chippendale (Lightning Bolt) and Ty Segall, playing the sort of demented noise duo rock that Chippendale in particular is known for. There’s only one album of it, called Fungus II, but it’s well-worth picking up if you’re a Lightning Bolt fan.

Prefuse 73, “See More Than Just Stars”

From Prefuse 73’s 2015 album, Rivington Não Rio, an album that strikes me as more tuneful and a little tamer than his earlier work. Still pretty good, though, although I generally prefer the more chaotic stuff.

My music server died the other day, and I kept going. Now, my laptop died. Still here!

Boris, “Tu, la la”

From Heavy Rocks, the 2011 version, and is a good example of Boris at the more tuneful end of things. It’s a very solid record, definitely worth listening to if you like Boris.

Prefuse 73, “7th Message”

I think I like Prefuse 73 the best when he’s at his most hip-hop influenced. That’s one of the reasons his first record is still my favorite, and this song is a great example of what I love. The samples and cuts here are very hip-hop, and add a lot to the tune.