Friday, June 30, 2006

Jimmy Saffron - June 30, 2006

These Little Monkeys - Jonathan Fire Eater, from “Wolf Songs For Lambs”

Damn good song to start a mix with. Aesthetically and otherwise. Long slow fade in to a driving snare and organ. These guys broke up, only to form one of my favorite bands:

Queen.

Lena Horne Still Sings Stormy Weather - Thelonius Monster

This band’s slight but endearing sound screams “midwest.” The lead singer has some weird back story where he found out when he was like twenty that his sister had raised him pretending to be his mother.

They also have a song called “Sammy Hagar Weekend” which is, as the title might suggest, ricockulously good.

Argument – Fugazi, from “The Argument”

Whoa. This list just got a lot more serious.

And important.

Just kidding, I love Fugazi. But I never got to see them live, and I’ll always hold that against them. The one chance I had to see them, my car broke down. I know that’s not their fault, but Ian MacKaye’s one of those guys who always makes you feel like a lesser human just because every fucking breath you take on this earth isn’t in service of some Peter and Goliath type cause. He’s the kind of guy you look to hold something against.

Did I mention I’m a fan?

Sister, Do You Know My Name? - The White Stripes, from “De Stijl”

This song is about grade school, which I guess if you’re Jack White, is like the Ol’ Faithful of musical inspiration.

If I had to write a song about grade school, I’d call it, “Blood on the Carpet, Carpet on the Wall.”

Bar Italia – Pulp, from “Different Class”

Three chords of this song are enough to cause spontaneous fop-bustion.

Dazed and Confused - Led Zeppelin, from “Led Zeppelin I”

Hey, Woman. What did Robert Plant ever do to you, to make you treat him so bad? Listen to him. That man is in pain.

Santa Claus Is Weird – Idaho, from “Levitate”

Why does Jeff Martin hate Christmas?

I think I’ve pushed Idaho on both Reid and the Doctor, to no avail. Their loss.

Her Majesty - Beatles, The, from “Abbey Road”

The reason the band name appears as “Beatles, The” above is because that’s how I was raised to organize my iTunes. Also I change all my solo artists to display last name first.

For example: “Francis, Connie”

By the way, I don’t listen to Connie Francis.

I am Connie Francis.

Brockwell Park - Red House Painters, from “Ocean Beach”

Knowing Mark Kozalek, I wouldn’t be surprised is this was a cover of some obscure Kiss song.

Come Back Margaret - Camera Obscura, from “Let's Get Out of This Country

This song marshals all kinds of instruments to advance its twee-ish cause. Can’t…resist. Hands…entering…pockets. Eyes…turning…downward…Shirtsize…dwindling.

This is my first post written while drunk. How’d I do?

Wednesday, June 28, 2006

Dr. Milton von Fünkdoctorspock, June 28, 2006

1. Andrew Lloyd Webber, “Think of Me” from The Phantom of the Opera

Alright, listen: for a ten-year-old kid who’s taken to a number of plays/musical by the fam, one with a mysterious monster, big budget special fx and some ripping synth work, paid off in spades. Also of note: I’ve never had sexual relations with a man. It needed to be said.

2. A Putumayo Blend, “Soltarlo”

This one’s part of a DVD (yeah, DVD, a.k.a. enough tunes to overfill a nano) full of Latin Music I received from a Caucasian friend. I don’t anticipate familiarizing myself with all of it until at least 2012, but generally speaking there’s good stuff going down south of the equator. If you’re in NYC and don’t go to the free Jose Gonzalez/Seu Jorge show at Central Park Summerstage this Sunday, you, my friend, is the craziest!

3. The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, “Shhh”

As much as I hate skits, I love albums with hilarious ads for the album (like this from Xtra-Acme USA) or faux previews of next albums (Built to Spill’s There’s Nothing Wrong With Love).

4. Nat King Cole, “A Portrait of Jenni”

Wow, four tracks I never listen to. Lovely. Nat’s one of those artists who I know is good, but my tastes just don’t swing that way quite yet and I know I’ll be listening to a lot of this when I’m 40+. It’s like layaway: I’m avoiding the hassle of taking it off the ‘Pod now because I know I’ll just add it back in ten years.

5. Chad Vangallen, “Kill Me in My Sleep”

Holy shep! Who stole Milty’s ‘Pod? Five songs I don’t listen to, but a disclaimer here: this one came from Jimmy, and it was recent, and I just haven’t gotten to it yet. But I did listen once and liked it. And like this. Which means this is going straight to heavy rotation, which means we’re getting somewhere. Hey Jimmy, any reason that last disc you sent only had this one song? “You’re gonna kill me in my sleep. You’ll slit my throat and drink my blood. You’ll step back and watch me bleed. And then you’ll make a clean escape.” You trying to tell me something? Word. I can dig it.

6. Moby, “I Like It”

This is from Hotel, a.k.a. Play Take III. I don’t ever anticipate listening to this song again (too LSD-y). I don’t have a huge problem with my man throwing it into neutral since Play given that was such a dynamite record, but don’t expect me to vociferously support it. Each album since has had fewer songs I like, and at that pace…. A few weeks ago I saw Moby host a variety show with hilarious author Jonathan Ames. It was highly entertaining. If you’re lucky, it will one day become a television show, which is their intention. The dancing, lip-synching puppet was my favorite.

7. Public Enemy, “Mind Terrorist”

Flava Flav is still making more money than you. How do you feel about that? He was the ODB of his generation, which gives us one more reason to mourn the loss of Russell Jones: ODB of Love on VH-1. I’d have watched.

8. Nirvana, “Endless, Nameless”

This is the hidden track on Nevermind, which is the most important album of my life. Yes, I am one of those people. What of it? The first CD I ever bought was Richard Marx’s Right Here Waiting, and as you can see I was right there waiting for something to kick my ass into normalcy, and Nevermind was that something. Right album + right time = decades of hiposity. Nirvana’s a big reason I felt terrible for teens of the late nineties. Who did they have to turn to? Limp Bizkit? What is a limp biscuit? I don’t know, but I don’t want one.

9. Apocalypse Now, “P.B.R. (Dialogue) (Explicit)”

It actually says “explicit” on the CDDB! Nice. This is Sheen’s introduction to his platoon. My favorite ‘Nam flick, but I never listen to the dialogue track from the soundtrack.

10. James Brown, “King Heroin”

This song explains so much. So, so much.

It would be impossible for this Mix to less accurately reflect what I listen to on a daily basis. I look like one of those douches who answers the question, “What kind of music do you listen to?” with, “All kinds. I also don’t support war… or eating meat… or getting a job that requires me to pay taxes.” That answer is akin to telling Milty, “This conversation is over.”

Tuesday, June 27, 2006

Jimmy Saffron, June 27, 2006

Monday Morning – Pulp, from “Different Class”

Pulp. Music to trim your pencil-thin mustache by.

Burning Airlines Give You So Much More – Brian Eno, from “Taking Tiger Mountain (by Strategy)”

If Jarvis Cocker is your handsy uncle who can’t keep his hands to himself, Brian Eno is the really conceited uncle who makes you feel stupid whenever you try to talk to him.

I Can’t Wait – Luna, from “Lunapark”

Luna was my favorite band for a good long time. I just watched the documentary about their farewell tour, called “Tell Me Do You Miss Me.” It made me cry and think about death. I’m paraphrasing the movie, but losing Luna really was like losing a friend.

Speaking of losing band/friends, Sleater-Kinney broke up today. Mad props, ladies. You’se was something else.

Won – Beta Band, from “Hot Shots II”

First time I’ve ever listened to this song, and I’m delighted to report it samples Nilsson. And is that Lyrics Born on vocals? Holy shit, I’m planning a party just so I can play this song.

Let’s Go – The Feelies, from “The Squid & The Whale” Original Soundtrack

Long time ago, when I was working as a PA on an independent film in NY, I spent a lot of time driving around this filthy rental van full of tables, chairs, coolers, stuff like that. I shared these duties with a friend, and we took turns playing CD’s on the portable jukebox I brought with me in the van. I remember she’d wince whenever I put on the Feelies. She called them “the Touchy-Feelies” which I thought was clever, and totally appropriate. She didn’t mean it as a compliment, but that’s how I took it. Water into wine, people.

It’s a M********** – Eels, from “Daisies of the Galaxy”

I resisted the Eels for a long time, but this record won me over. It is, as a friend of mine would say, “poignant as hell.”

Headache – Jackson and His Computer Band, from “Smash”

I wish this song was simple and quiet so I didn’t have to say that it indeed gave me a headache.

Oh Mandy – Spinto Band, from “Nice and Nicely Done”

And The Rod Stewart Award for Best Use of Mandolin goes to…

When The Sun Goes Down – Arctic Monkeys, from “Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not”

I defer to Jeffrey when it comes to the subject of Arctic Monkeys.

4000 Days – Luna, from “Luna Live”

I saw Luna in concert eight times, in five different cities. Not that I’m nostalgic or anything.

Wednesday, June 21, 2006

Dr. Milton von Fünkdoctorspock, Summer Solstice, 2006

Is nothing fucking sacred? Two straight entries from Big Milty Milt, and though it's giving the people what they want, wtf Jimmy and Reid? Priorities!

1. The Beastie Boys, “Unite”- Sure the B-Boys have many great hit records. Sure they’ve done so well that they only need to put an album out every eight years and tour every forty-three. But… are they happy? I mean really happy…. Related: if you haven’t seen the best concert film of all-time, Fade to Black, you must. There’s a part in which Michael Diamond visits Jay-Z and Rubin in the studio that is ab fab.

2. Wilco, “Love Will Keep Us Together”- Bootlegging w/ their New Year’s MSG show (w/ the Flaming Lips and Sleater-Kinney) from a couple years past. Chock full of dee-lite-ful covers like this a one. And though Jimmy oft makes the on point observation that Tweedy’s banter kills orphans, he actually drops some hilarity at this show. Chick throws her brassiere on stage and JT says, “Aw, and just when I was about to dedicate the next song to my wife.”

3. The Blood Brothers, “Shame”- I hate emo, which should mean I triple hate scream-o, right? Negative. There concert is a good place to feel like the oldest person in the room. I don’t think I’d seen moshing in ten years, so I absolutely leveled a sixteen-year-old. She had it coming.

4. Blur, “Lot 105”- Albarn’s one of the most talented musicians on the planet right now. Nary a bad track on Blur’s or Gorillaz’s last album.

5. Blackalicious, “Rhymes for the Deaf, Dumb and Blind”- What a great group name. I think it means they like chocolate. I like chocolate too.

6. Sebadob, “Prince-S”- Puns rock! This has fallen back into the rotation ever since Milty caught the Dinosaur Jr. reunion blowout and realized firsthand how amazingly Barlow shreds the bass. If you put a kitten next to his amp and turned it up to eleven, the kitten would explode.

7. NIN, “We’re In This Together”- #1 all-time glad-this-guy-kicked-his-substance-issues act. [with_teeth] is Trenton’s tautest album, and he says without the booze he’ll churn albums out more often. While we’re on the subject of #1 all-time: the live show… oh my, the live show. There is no excuse for any band having poor live sound quality given how well NIN does it.

8. Sigur Ros, “Meo Bloonasir”- Mrg pflstx blftn. That’s my made up language. It means, “Can you believe this weather we’ve been having? Really great, right? Want to play some volleyball?” What can I say, it’s an efficient language. There are a bunch of accent marks I left off Sigur’s song title.

9. Handsome Boy Modeling School, “The Runway Song”- I wonder what it was like to pitch a concept album about one episode of a funny but unsuccessful episode of Chris Elliot’s show Get a Life. Dan and Paul must have gotten about a $4.25 advance. God bless whoever green lighted it.

10. A Tribe Called Quest, “Separate/Together”- Why do groups do thirty-second songs? Especially rap groups with three members. You can always think of more verses. Restraint is a gift so few know….

Yes! A first w/ no awful entries. Project 'Pod Ethnic Cleansing is going as planned....

Tuesday, June 13, 2006

Dr. Milton von Fünkdoctorspock, June 13, 2006

1. Gang of Four, "5.45"- Praise Allah for the few bands who figured out how to make punk music that didn't sound like all the other punk music. 5.45 actually refers to the time 5:45, which tells you this gang's not from these United States, which means their World Cup team probably hasn't looked like a pile of cute little kitty feces. Anyone know if it’s difficult to get Brazilian citizenship before July 9?

2. Smashing Pumpkins, "Spiteface"- One of the stronger unreleased, pre-Gish tracks. The reunion is officially on, by the by, and while I am officially okay with that, Fünkdoctorspock circa 1995 had to throw away the pants he had on when he heard that. I predict the Pumpkins next album will be better than the Pixies. Apparently James Iha lives near me, which begs the question of what I would say to him if I bumped into him. “So, that A Perfect Circle album you played on was pretty good….”

3. Bedrock, "For What You Dream Of For What You Dream Of (Full on Renaissance Mix)"- It just took me two minutes to capture the title of the song as it scrolled across the 'Pod screen. Is that a typo from CDDB? The song title repeated? Regardless, perfect song for Trainspotting, which means Fünkdoctorspock doesn't listen to it much, i.e. doesn’t do H… much.

4. The Beatles, "Cry Baby Cry"- I heard Lennon dedicated this one to Paul. Isn't it a little hard to believe those guys ever got along? Lennon's my number one choice of dead musicians I wish was still around. He sure as hell wouldn't be doing Super Bowl halftime shows if he was. Or divorcing one-legged former models. Also, Wings really sucked. A lot.

5. The White Stripes, "Forever for Her (Is Over For Me)"- If I was a superstar diesel trucka, I'd have to be pretty tight knit with someone to be willing to buddy up with them away from my nine-to-five to let them ride my coattails into the limelight. Hello, Raconteurs! Benson’s said he finally found his calling with his group and would like to do the band for the rest of his career. If he somehow convinces Jack to buy into that, he’ll be a modern day Yoko. Just enjoy it while you can, BB.

6. Death Cab for Cutie, "A Lack of Color"- This was bound to happen. I describe them as “wuss rock,” which I think fits them to a tee (even Jewel wouldn’t have called a song “Soul Meets Body”). Considering that, I listen to them remarkably often. There, I said it. Now get off my back.

7. Pavement, "Type Slowly"- Listening to Pavement makes me think, “If I was in a band I would want it to be like Pavement.” Music’s a rock and their popularity hit a perfectly modest peak. Me and Jimmy saw them in high school, but speaking for myself, I was too young and naïve to think much of them. As for regrets, I’ve had a few… namely this and leaving my retainer on my cafeteria tray in elementary school.

8. Elliott Smith, "Angeles"- You know how some songs make you want to jump out your chair and shake your rump? “Rump Shaker,” for example? This song’s like the opposite of that, but in a totally fantastic way. Best described as… beautifully ruminative.

9. Miles Davis & John Coltrane, "Ah-Leu-Cha"- It sounds so easy. “Improvise? You mean make shit up as I go along??? Hell yes I can do that!” But when I do it, it never sounds quite as good as this. What gives?

10. Travis, "Last Train"- I can already tell the In the Mix shufflology has improved my ‘Pod potency, but this is a straggler. I personally guarantee it won’t be eligible for next week’s mix.

Thursday, June 08, 2006

Dr. Milton von Fünkdoctorspock, June 8, 2006

1. Beck, "Sing it Again"- Which one-hit-wonder-turned-multi-hit-wonderful was a bigger surprise, Beck or Radiohead? The 'head for my $, but not by much. I remember turning the corner very slowly with Beck, scared to commit myself to this wiry "Loser" and cost myself some of my precious teenage cred. Fortunately, in the end, it worked out for everyone.

2. The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, "Do You Wanna Get Heavy?"- The Blues is number one. In New York. In L.A. In Chicago. And in my heart.

3. The Jackson 5, "Never Can Say Goodbye"- Is this a love song? Aren't they all ten-years-old? This explains so much….

4. Built to Spill, "Randy Described Eternity"- Apparently the Randy who inspired the lyrics was a professional rodeoer. At the prime of his career, an especially rambunctious beast bucked him high in the sky, knocking him out and sending him to meet his maker, but Randy's maker wasn't ready and when Randy regained consciousness he described what eternity was like. I made that up, but I can get away with it because this song speaks for itself. I'd give it a ten, which aptly reflects that a better song than this shan't be recorded, but a ten also imposes limits on mankind's possibilities, which I don't like to do.

5. Primus, "You Can't Kill Michel Malloy"- If I calculated a ratio of how frequently I listened to a band in high school to how frequently I listen now, Primus would have the biggest discrepancy, but I get a kick out of the once or twice a year I dabble back. They still suck.

6. The Yardbirds, "Good Morning Little Schoolgirl"- I have the entire Eric Clapton boxed set on my 'Pod. I don't know why either. Is it heresy to say I think he's a little overrated? I think he's only written a handful of great songs (don't get me wrong, "Layla" is the triple truth), and many of those were co-written. He's a great guitar player, sure, but this rock fan thinks songwriting's the more difficult rock task. Just sayin'.

7. Charizma & Peanut Butter Wolf, "Ice Cream Truck"- Biggie, Tupac… Charizma? Yep, Charizma. Broseph was struck down on the cusp of greatness. This is from the How to Wow Your Friends With Old School Hip Hop collection, another hotiferous Reid recommendato.

8. LCD Soundsystem, "Beat Connection"- Every few years an electronic/dance/house album comes along that moves me. This was the most recent. I am currently moving. Are you? Touch my thigh.

9. Solomon Burke, "I Stayed Away Too Long"- I think soul music is the closest thing we have to the Force. Solomon hasn't seen his bitch in a long time, and he comes back to get some more lovage, and she wants to say, "Hell, no. You done left me for the last time." But then he sings, "I stayed away too long," and she says, "Oh, all right. You can go ahead and stick it in my butt if you want." And he does. And then he leaves her for a long time again.

10. The Fiery Furnaces, "Chris Michaels"- Ooh, one of their best cuts. Eleanor lives near me and I saw her at a show once. I see where people see that she's the hot indie chica these days, but she kinda looks like she's fifteen, which makes her and Franz dude a perfect match because he looks seventeen. If it's statutory rape for an adult to have sex with a minor, is it legal for two minors to get it on? The elder of the two must not look forward to turning eighteen. That's not related to The Fiery Furnaces. Or me. It was a Trivial Pursuit question.