Propagandhi

Propagandhi, “Laplante/Smith Song (Live)”

Where Quantity Is Job #1 is really an excellent title for a comp like this. Also, dig those Canadian accents!

Beck, “The Golden Age”

A little while back, we talked about Party Beck vs. Sad Beck. Please enjoy (?) peak Sad Beck here.

BADBADNOTGOOD, “Time Moves Slow”

I love the skittering drums here, they’re making me kind of jittery just listening to them. BADBADNOTGOOD, out of Toronto, sit somewhere between funk/soul, hip-hop, and jazz, putting out records that cheerfully wander back-and-forth between the genres as their muses take them. As anybody who has been reading Five Songs for any length of time can guess, that’s extremely up our alley around here.

Propagandhi, “Stick the Fucking Flag Up Your Goddamn Ass, You Sonofabitch”

Preach it, Propagandhi! Used to crank this tune driving around Spokane with the windows down, which was probably less risky in 1995 but not without risk.

The Gabriel Construct, “Ranting Prophet”

This is a progressive metal project led by Gabriel Lucas Riccio with help from a bunch of guest artists, and it’s a real trip. I suppose you can tell from this track if you’re going to like this thing or not. I admire the ambition of it, certainly.

They Might Be Giants, “Nanobots”

The title track of their 2013 album, which was the second album of a little renaissance from TMBG. Post-children’s albums, they put together two outstanding records, bursting with ideas and shimmering tunes. Join Us ranks in the first ranks of their albums, and Nanobots isn’t far behind. I think their next couple albums suffered a bit from attenuated creativity, as the Dial-a-Song project seemed stretch them a bit thin, but these two albums are really top work.

Propagandhi, “Resisting Tyrannical Government”

Less Talk, More Rock is such a good name for a Propagandhi record. I can only imagine how many knuckleheads brayed at them something along these lines. Anyway, it’s a delight.

Flop, “Act 1, Scene 1”

After Flop’s one record for Sony was a commercial failure, Flop went back to Frontier Records and banged out a third stone-cold pop classic. It’s tighter than the first record, and maybe sliiiiightly less catchy. But it’s still a ton of fun, and it’s sad that we only got three albums from them.

Gaunt, “I Don’t Care”

I praise Gaunt pretty shamelessly on here, because they’re one of those bands (along with yesterday’s Hammerhead) that click perfectly with me. That, combined with the fact that they’re mostly forgotten today, makes me want to really push them on folks. But, I can’t make a better argument for Gaunt than what they’re making here today. This is just pure energy and tunefulness, and every bit of it makes me happy. I hope you love this song, I certainly do.

Claw Hammer, “Gut Feeling”

One of the things that we rail against around here are pointless covers. Especially in an age when so many of the originals are easily accessible, a cover really needs to add something. This is doubly true when it’s something truly beloved or original. However, it is possible to wrap around on the pointlessness scale of things and loop back around to cool. Claw Hammer turn that neat trick by covering the entirety of Devo’s landmark Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!, playing it pretty straight. Jon Wahl’s oddball strangled wail is the primary distinguishing factor, but otherwise, it’s Devo’s record. Just listen to Devo! And yet…there’s a strange attraction. It’s pretty bizarre alchemy.

Priests, “Youtube Sartre”

This is a fantastic song name, and I’m afraid to search to see if there is anybody who refers to themselves as this. I hope not!

Canibus, “Get Retarded”

Canibus mostly made battle rap, and this track kind of gives you more or less the full range of his subject matter on this album (called Can-I-Bus). He never really evolved from here, and I didn’t follow him after this album.

John Oswald, “x24”

I’d say that most of Oswald’s work doesn’t make sense out of context of the rest of the album, but let’s be clear, it doesn’t really make sense in context either. But, hell, enjoy Oswald jacking “Thus Spoke Zarathustra” here. Why not?

Propagandhi, “Government Cartoons (Live)”

Where Quantity Is Job #1 is a fantastic name for an album, even if the album itself is kinda dodgy. This was also the last album with the original lineup, as John (bassist/vocalist) left after this record, which was a loss for the band.

Your periodic reminder that there’s an index to this nonsense. And here’s today’s music.

Ghostface Killah, “Be Easy”

From one of his best albums, Fishscale, and the best album he’s made that wasn’t produced by the RZA. This album finds Ghostface in top form, energetically spitting crazy nonsense, and he’s paired with some great production. On this track, Pete Rock is absolutely laying it down.

Paris Combo, “Moi, Mon Âme Et Ma Conscience (Live)”

This is the second time we’ve had Ghostface and the Paris Combo in the same playlist. This is Five Songs, baby!

Maybe the most dangerous of the year-end roundups is Bandcamp’s, which always results in a lot of stuff for me. As for today’s music, well, I really like two of today’s songs an awful lot. The other three are a little…slapdash, let’s say.

The Skatalites, “Wood and Water”

We get a lot of third-wave ska acts around here, and usually, we make fun of them. Or, at least, a good percentage of them. We get enough of them that maybe a quick refresher is worth our time? When we talk about waves of ska bands, we’re referring to: