If you didn’t know, I play in a ska punk band called Dad Jokes. I don’t listen to a ton of ska, but I’ve always enjoyed it. Until we played a show with The Holophonics out of Denton, Texas, then I felt like a complete fraud.
Month: June 2018
Record #501: Live and Let Die – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (1973)
Say what you will about the Bond series, but there is some absolutely incredible music across those films.
And if you ask fans for their pick for the best themes, this one will usually be somewhere near the top.
Record #500: Little Dragon – Machine Dreams (2009)
I’m a big Gorillaz fan. And while their unique brand of sadistic pop stands on its own, part of Damon Albarn’s talent is assembling the best collaborators possible. When I first heard Plastic Beach, I was immediately drawn to “Empire Ants,” and I set off to learn more about Sweden’s Little Dragon.
A week later, this record was on my turntable. Continue reading
Record #499: Linkin Park – Hybrid Theory (2000)
Let’s set the scene.
It’s the year 2000. I’m a thirteen-year-old kid. I’ve just started to get into music, mostly through pop punk and ska. But at the same time, I’m coming to grips with how heavy the world can be.
Then, on a Thanksgiving trip to California, I stumbled upon Hybrid Theory by Linkin Park.
Record #498: Les Discrets – Ariettes Oubliées (2012)
I’m an absolute sucker for blackgaze.
On paper, it might seem like black metal, post rock, and shoegaze are a strange mixture. The three genres share a fascination with ambient textures and heart-rending emotion, but they take wildly different paths to get there.
Blackgaze splits the difference, and manages to capture every good bit of each—and then some. Continue reading
Record #497: BLAK – Between Darkness and Light (2017)
Post rock is a strange beast. While there’s no shortage of climax-chasing, effect-laden, instrumental guitar bands, it can sometimes feel like very few post rock acts are able to use that template to create authentically engaging music. Most of them are just boring.
But BLAK isn’t most bands.
Record #496: Lawn Care – Replacement Therapy (2017)
I first saw Pittsburgh’s Lawn Care passing through my local coffeehouse venue. They played a “stripped” set that included two guitars, a bass guitar, and a trumpet. And even in such a minimalist context, they were absolutely hypnotizing.
So when I caught them playing as a full band, I was entranced. I had to have the record.
Continue reading
Record #495: Jeremy Enigk – Return of the Frog Queen (1996)
In 1994, a Seattle hardcore* band called Sunny Day Real Estate released Diary. It was a veritable tour de force of emotional range, led by the otherworldly falsetto of Jeremy Enigk. It lit the underground music scene on fire—it’s even credited by some as the first proper emo album.
Then, as quickly as they had gained prominence, the group broke up. They released one strange, mathy, untitled follow-up, then the group went their separate ways.
A year later, Jeremy released his first solo record. I’m not sure what Sunny Day fans were expecting, but it was not Return of the Frog Queen. Continue reading
Record #494: Hop Along – Bark Your Head Off, Dog (2018)
I don’t know a whole lot about Hop Along. I know that they’re on Saddle Creek—home of bands like Bright Eyes and Cursive—and I know that I’ve heard their name tossed around among emo circles.
With this information, I expected a lot of heart-tugging songwriting and emotive delivery.
I did not expect it to be so damn catchy. Continue reading
Record #493: Damien Rice – O (2002)
I arrived at college as a scene kid freshman with a swoopy haircut, girl jeans, and a CD wallet filled with metalcore and emo albums.
Living in a dorm beside so many diverse music fans was a quick relief for that.
In the first few months, I was inundated with wonderful music that expanded my own tastes outward—many of those CDs still have a place among my favorite records. Artists like Sigur Rós, the Mars Volta, Imogen Heap and Frou Frou, Bright Eyes…
And Damien Rice.