Weezer

Slant 6, “Semi-Blue Tile”

Why do we make songs longer than a minute? What’s the point?

Weezer, “Smile”

OK, this track is from something called Blue / Green / Red, and I swear to you, I did not get this album from anywhere. I wouldn’t do that to myself. One hypothesis is that if you have a few Weezer albums stored together, they’ll begin reproducing. Left to their own devices, eventually a pile of Weezer records will produce self-titled records named after colors not even known to mankind.

Ex Hex, “Hot and Cold”

There’s an extremely 80s feel to Ex Hex. I get a false sense memory of sitting in the back of Monza when we pick up the college radio station at Washington State University, and being intrigued by hearing something a little different from the usual classic rock.

Weezer, “Butterfly”

Where are we at on the “the only good Weezer album is Pinkerton” cycle? Seems like we’re due for a reaction to it at this point.

Nitzer Ebb, “Control I’m Here”

That Total Age was more towards the industrial end of industrial dance, with more clanking machines in the sound, and Showtime found them pushing a little more melody in things and varying their arrangements more. This comes from the album in-between, Belief, where they kind of blended those two approaches, and arguably made their more interesting record. There’s a risk in industrial dance in ending up in parody, but this album is so direct in its intention that it feels pretty good.

Hooray, Five Songs!

Uncle Tupelo, “Graveyard Shift”

If you type the words “Uncle Tupelo” into a blog twice within an hour of midnight, it summons the band. Or so I’m led to believe by the worst horror story in the world, “Attack Of The Alt-Country Band That Apparently Was Bloodthirsty For Some Reason”.

You know, that dumb joke assumes that anybody read yesterday’s entry, and it occurs to me that that’s quite arrogant. Whatever, that joke owns. As does this song! It’s the opening track of the opening album from Uncle Tupelo, and while it’s a pretty straight ahead rock song, you can hear the lyrical themes that they would develop in their career.

Pretty good one today!

Cop Shoot Cop, “All the Clocks are Broken”

One of the things that set Cop Shoot Cop apart from the other acts they were usually lumped with, often other industrial bands, was that Tod Ashley was never afraid to deploy some genuine emotion in his songs. It wasn’t all just pummelling, fury, noise, and aggression. Songs like this would presage the work that Ashley would later turn in with Firewater.

Less talk, more…rock? today.

Negativland, “Seat Bee Sate”

This is another track from an Over The Edge compilation, this time Volume 8: Sex Dirt. Still nonsense, of course.

Weezer, “Butterfly”

Pinkerton really is their best album, y’all. I still don’t know why I have four of their albums.

Broken Social Scene, “Lover’s Spit”

Another good song from Broken Social Scene. I guess I have to pay more attention to them, huh? We’re all learning around here! I’m learning I like bands I already own music to, and you’re all learning that Five Songs is run by a dumbass!

Superchunk was great! I can’t believe I didn’t see them until about 25 years after I first listened to them, but whatever, at least I got the chance. I’m really pleased that their second act has gone well. Today’s music!

Flop, “Sorry Henry Maartens”

Well, we’ve now gotten a song from all three of their albums. This one, Whenever You’re Ready, sort of is a classic demonstration of the “troubled second album” idea. It’s unfocused, and just doesn’t snap the way their debut album did. It’s not bad, exactly, but it just kind of feels diluted compared to the sugar rush of the debut.