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Five Songs, 11/8/2018

Posted on November 9, 2018 | Joshua Buergel

Two songs that I had to upload today! That’s when you know you’re getting the good stuff. And by good stuff, I mean “probably forgotten underground rock or C-list third-wave ska.”

Eric B. & Rakim, “I Know You Got Soul (Acapella)”

Paid In Full, one of the foundational albums of rap, was later reissued in a deluxe edition called the Platinum Edition. It featured a second disc of various rarities, including this tune. And all that is fine, but what made it awesome is that they went and photoshopped the gold jewelry on the original cover to be platnium. It’s that attention to detail that can really make a reissue. Anyway, the bonus junk is totally inessential.

Five Songs, 4/10/2018

Posted on April 10, 2018 | Joshua Buergel

Some good stuff today.

Pond, “Wheel”

My favorite bands to highlight here are those that haven been largely forgotten, maybe because they were on the periphery of their scenes, and never really left the kind of critical mark that makes future listeners discover them among the thousands of bands of the past. Portland’s Pond is a great example of that. Pond began making records for Sub Pop during the height of grunge, with their first album coming out in 1993. It was a great time to get discovered, yes, but it was also a hard time to stand out among all the bands chasing fame. Like Flop, Pond just got lost in the suffle, and they deserved better. Their first, self-titled album was, yes, pretty grungy, but it was also tuneful in ways that hinted something greater to come. And their second album, The Practice of Joy Before Death, fulfilled that promise. Fantastic songs, great, jagged guitars, just an amazing record. One of my very favorites to come out of the entire grunge scene. They recorded one more fantastic record, Rock Collection, for a major label before breaking up. All three albums are worth your time.