The Du-Rites

LCD Soundsystem, “All My Friends”

This is my favorite LCD Soundsystem song, by a fair ways, as the melancholy mood and nostalgic lens here is just kind of irresistable. And that piano, this is just such a damn jam. Please enjoy.

Trans Am, “Diabolical Cracker”

Is this, like, a sulferic Wheat Thin? Or just, you know, a cop?

The Streets, “Never Give In”

The Streets should be, maybe even are, the corniest act ever. But they’re saved by a core of sincerity at the heart of things which let them bypass all the corniness. It’s a high-wire act in the extreme, to be sure, and the vast majority of people who tried this sort of thing would sound awful. But he sticks the landing.

Pinkwash, “No Real Witness”

I feel like every time Pinkwash comes up, I say something equivalent to “hey, this is neat, I keep forgetting about this!” I wish I could say that I’d grown past that, but no, I do still keep forgetting about this. It’s a fun record! But, I can report some growth: I checked to see if they have another record. No, they do not. Still!

Firewater, “The Beat Goes On”

Across a discography that stretches across seven albums ranging from incredible to great, there’s one that stands out. Mostly by being kind of superfluous. This is from that record, 2003’s Songs We Should Have Written. It’s a covers record, and it’s not bad, but it just doesn’t rise to their original records.

Mogwai, “Friend of the Night”

The other day, I mentioned that Rave Tapes wasn’t my favorite iteration of Mogwai. Mr. Beast is more my speed - it’s more conventional in a lot of ways, but it’s more lyrical. You know, in an instrumental kinda way.

The Fall, “Clear Off!”

Folks, this is the accessible version of The Fall.

Lustmord, “Dark Awakening”

There are two Lustmords on Metallum, neither of which appear to be this band. Looking closer, this is on Hydra Head Records, and so this must have been from the big grab bag that I bought from them. There was a lot of stuff in there, which I faithfully ripped, but there was so much of it all at once that I know I didn’t pay attention to all of it. So, no, I’m not certain I’ve listened to this before.

Squarepusher, “Iambic 5 Poetry”

Budakhan Mindphone is an EP that was released just a few months after Music Is Rotted One Note, where Tom Jenkinson broke free of the gravity of drum’n’bass and moved into really doing his own thing. The lever that broke him free was fusion, but this EP is really more of an experimental thing than pure fusion. It’s a worthwhile companion to the album, well worth looking up if you like this period of his music.

Hockey Night, “For Guys’ Eyes Only”

[don’t mention Pavement don’t mention Pavement don’t mention Pavement]

Hey, that doesn’t actually sound much like Malkmus! It’s more like Spiral Stairs.

[nailed it!]

Beck, “Sexx Laws”

Midnite Vultures starts off like this, letting us know that we are in for Party Beck instead of Sad Beck. I like Party Beck a lot more, personally.

Cannibal Ox, “Ox Out the Cage”

It’s always fun to hear a record that still sounds fresh more than twenty years later. El-P’s production on this record is so good that it still sounds futuristic even after all this time. A great record!

Germs, “Shut Down (Annihilation Man)”

An outlier on the one and only Germs LP, (GI), this is a live track that is triple the length of anything else on the record. A loose wander of a song, it’s all sneer and skronk, without a whole lot of direction. But the Germs were never really about having a point, so it fits in just fine.

Joey Bada$$, “Christ Conscious”

It’s impossible to not nod your head along here. I tried, I’ve done the science.

Fall Out Boy, “Saturday”

Pop punk is one of those genres that never really changes or evolves, and just relies on sappy emotion and snappy songs. You really need to nail the catchy songs and the energy or it’s going to come across as limp or manufactured. When done right, though, it’s delightful. That said, the first couple Fall Out Boy records totally nail it, so happy for this to come up.

The streak is alive!

New York Ska-Jazz Ensemble, “Low Blow”

This is from the second New York Ska-Jazz Ensemble record, Low Blow. To recap, the NYSJE was assembled from a bunch of folks from various bands in NYC, including the Toasters, the Scofflaws, and one member of the Skatalites. They play a mix of originals and compositions by other people, with this being one of the originals. All three albums are solid, and I recommend them.

The Beatles, “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da”

Ob-la-di, ob-la-da, blog goes on!

The Du-Rites, “Bite It”

A thing that must be a delight about being an instrumental funk band is coming up with song titles. “Bite It”, that’s outstanding!

Eagles of Death Metal, “Secret Plans”

Heart On finds the Eagles of Death Metal not exactly taking things seriously, but taking things more seriously than the previous records. The previous albums sounded totally like tongue-in-cheek satires, albeit well-executed ones. This one feels more like it’s a genuine love letter to glam rock than it is a send-up of it. I’m not sure I like it better, though.

Whiskeytown, “16 Days”

Ryan Adams’ first foray into country, the first Whiskeytown record is alt-country only in the sense that it wasn’t made for pop-country radio. Other than that, it’s a country record in every sense. It’s a pretty good record, but I don’t find it as compelling as other alt-country acts, so it doesn’t get played very often.

The Du-Rites, “The Mean Machine”

Among the many reasons to love the Du-Rites is that they produce a steady stream of singles, which all consistently smoke. This is the a-side to one of those 7"s, and come on, that’s tasty.