The Apples in Stereo

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!

The Apples in Stereo, “IV. From Outside, in Floats a Music Box”

Were it not for the presence of “floats”, this would be the kind of title you might find on a really pretentious prog album. I guess “twee” and “pretentious” are just two sides of the same coin.

The Men, “Ridin’ On”

After a couple albums of mellowing out some, The Men kicked it back into aggressive garage rock mode with Devil Music. It’s my favorite mode from them, so I was very happy to hear them bring it back. The more mature sounding stuff was fine, but I generally am happier with mayhem in my rock.

The Apples in Stereo, “About Your Fame”

I do enjoy poking fun at the Apples in Stereo around here, but this is a sweet tune. So, yeah, some of their stuff can be unambitious, but when the pop is dialed in, it’s pretty excellent.

Nine Inch Nails, “Corona Radiata”

2005 through 2008 has been Trent Reznor’s most productive period, with three full albums and an instrumental one coming out in less time than it usually takes him to make one album. The Slip is the final record of that sequence before he went back into hibernation, and it’s generally the most straightforward of the four. Uh, this track notwithstanding. While I think Year Zero is the best of that bunch, there’s a catharsis with this record that is satisfying. Again, this dry hump of a song aside.

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.

Einstürzende Neubauten, “Sand”

Every now and again, Neubauten will make a song that’s relatively conventional. And you still end up with a creepy torch song like this one, complete with strangled half-falsetto and tribal drumming.

Built to Spill, “Revolution”

Before going on their tear with their last three albums in the 90s, Built to Spill released Ultimate Alternative Wavers. It forms the missing link between the Dinosaur Jr. tribute of the Treepeople to the extended twisted pop of their next few records. There are plenty of things to like on this record, and it’s easy to see how Martsch evolved from here, but it’s not their best work.

Johnny Cash, “Cocaine Blues”

If you’ve got a blog, just a-read it to me.

Ivy Sole, “You Don’t Know My Name”

Ivy Sole is out of Philadelphia, and this song comes from her excellent debut Eden. I came across this record thanks to one of the Bandcamp spotlight emails, which are always a good source of learning about artists.

Ernie Hines, “Electrified Love”

Ernie Hines’s Electrified was a somewhat forgotten album released on Stax in 1972 until it was resurrected by hip-hop producers, which brought it to new audiences. It’s a fine album, and this lead track gives you an idea of what you’re in for.

Azymuth, “Laranjeiras”

Far Out Recordings released a comp of demos from Azymuth from 1973-5 in 2019, capturing this Brazilian jazz/funk group’s sound at the height of their powers. I don’t know jack shit about them other than this, but this record seriously smokes.

The Apples In Stereo, “Energy”

You know what? Sometimes it’s ok to just enjoy a pop song. This is pleasant. It’s nice! It doesn’t matter that it’s extremely unchallenging.

Versus, “Mermaid Legs”

This song comes from Hurrah, which was the last album from Versus in their first run. They would later come back ten years later for another album, and apparently another new one just came out last year, which I didn’t know about. At any rate, Versus were largely out of steam with this album. It’s pretty enough, especially the vocal harmonies, but not terribly exciting.

Ron Sexsmith, “Never Been Done”

I read a really good review of this record way back in the day, and popped for it. At the time, it didn’t stick with me at all. I thought it was perfectly nice to listen to, but not particularly memorable. I’m really enjoying this tonight, though!

I think this is the longest Five Songs yet!

Inter Arma, “The Cavern”

Oooh, have we got a treat today! Doom metal band Inter Arma have always played around with doom’s template and exploring where it could go. On today’s track, they check in on what happens if they stretch things out to 45 minutes. That’s right, this is the entirety of the album as one single track. It’s a delight, and I’m just going to let you all lean in to it.

Here’s today’s music.

The Apples In Stereo, “I. Her Room Is A Rainy Garden (Wallpaper Reverie Theme)”

The throwaway intro to Her Wallpaper Reverie.

The Wedding Present, “Cattle and Cane”

In 1992, the Wedding Present decided to release a single every month for the entire year. Normally, this kind of gimmick would indicate a band that was just trying to attract attention, but the Wedding Present in 1992 were at the peak of their powers, so these singles are all pretty great. They’re collected in Hit Parade 1 and Hit Parade 2, and both compilations are worth seeking out as companion pieces to their other albums from the early 90s.