Mid-Week MP3

Earlier this year French duo Daft Punk released their fifth studio album Human After All. While I still haven’t picked this record up if there’s any justice on the world it’ll make its way into my X-mas stocking. While most critics and fans seem to agree that this is not their best work, I’ll still get it (one way or another). Why? Because the band that may me reconsider electronic music in general and House specifically as valid an emotionally charged forms of musical expression deserves no less. But I’m not here to debate their merits so much as to share my love of their music.

With that said, let’s all hop aboard the Way-Back Machine to 2001 when Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter took us on a dizzying adventure through the musical madness that was Discovery. The music from this album served as a joint concept piece with the brilliant animation of the legendary Leiji Matsumoto as demonstrated through the movie Interstella 5555: The 5tory of a 5ecret 5tar 5ystem. The album/film weaves an elaborate tale of love, loss, disco, and space ships, and nowhere is this more prevalent than in the single “Digital Love.”

For the love of God, buy Discovery! Hell, buy Interstella too! While Daft Punk’s earlier works are equally good, none have the emotional appeal of the tale of a band, a man, a monster, and the music that binds them all together. So at that, please enjoy this week’s Mid-Week MP3… and keep on dancin’.

1modernboy humbly requests that you use these MP3s solely as a means of evaluation. If you like what you hear, please buy records, CDs, t-shirts, or other merchandise to support this band/artist and his/her/their label-mates. Seeing them live probably wouldn’t be a bad idea either.
Should the features artist, or the related label or distributor take issue with my inclusion of the song file, please don’t hesitate to contact me, so that the offending file can be removed.

Daft Punk -- Digital Love

Mid-Week MP3

In honor of this week’s Thanksgiving Day celebration, here is a quick list of a half-dozen things that I’m thankful for:

*My wife and son
*The Rangers not sucking this season
*My Scion xB (Thanks, dear!)
*Cook’s Grand Spumante
*The Nintendo DS
*The enduring legacy of The Clash

That last one brings me to this week’s Mid-Week MP3.

The Clash have proven to be a band far more significant than their initial lifespan. Their ten year tenure as the ruling kings of political punk pales in comparison to the lasting relevance of their music and message. Originally composed of Joe Strummer, Mick Jones, Paul Simonon , and Terry Chimes (plus Keith Leven, if in name only), the band didn’t hit full stride until Chimes’s replacement Topper Headon sat behind the skins following the release of their first album. From simply leftist to elaborately anti-racist and Marxist politics, Strummer and company sang about and for the counterculture, urging the nihilistic punkers of the day to stand up and be counted as a force for positive cultural change.

While initial success in the states seemed like a long shot, even we stuffy Americans could appreciate the band’s universal appeal, and today you can’t pass a high school without seeing some young buck in a London Calling t-shirt. No band before or since managed to succeed in the melding of punk, rockabilly, reggae, rap, dub, and pop to such a degree as The Clash. Though drugs and fame tore the band apart in 1983, individual members continued to participate in various artistic endeavors, with varying degrees of commercial success. Tragically, Joe Strummer’s career ended abruptly in 2002 when he fell victim to a heart attack at the age of 50.

This song is for Mick and for Topper and for Terry and for Paul and for Joe (R.I.P.) and for you. Consider it an early Christmas present. Enjoy, and save me some stuffing.

1modernboy humbly requests that you use these MP3s solely as a means of evaluation. If you like what you hear, please buy records, CDs, t-shirts, or other merchandise to support this band/artist and his/her/their label-mates. Seeing them live probably wouldn’t be a bad idea either.
Should the features artist, or the related label or distributor take issue with my inclusion of the song file, please don’t hesitate to contact me, so that the offending file can be removed.

The Clash -- 1-2 Crush on You

Uncle Ruckus

I was lucky enough to catch Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire on opening weekend, and I have to say I dug it. While the book was, in my humble opinion, the best in the series so far, the movie was a noticeable abridged version – more akin to a friend telling you about the book in a drunken, sometimes uneven and vehemently whispered conversation. Still, it was a keeper. The visual presentation and overall look was clean and consistent, even when the dialogue slipped, and the super CGI monsters and shit didn’t really take away from the story. I didn’t like it quite as much as Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, but it was a noble effort that I think most fans will enjoy.

In other entertainment news, if you’re not watching The Boondocks on Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim block, shame on you! Aaron McGruder’s comic masterpiece has made the jump to television with its wit (and all its venom) intact.

Mid-Week MP3

If you don’t know Paul Weller and The Jam, then A) you’re really missing out and B) you’re obviously not English. And, while I’d love to prattle on about the importance of the band and its songwriting powerhouse, I see know reason to rehash what others have done in a much more concise and logical manner. Suffice it to say that this track, and nearly any track by Paul and the boys (together or separately) is golden. Slip on that parka and enjoy!

1modernboy humbly requests that you use these MP3s solely as a means of evaluation. If you like what you hear, please buy records, CDs, t-shirts, or other merchandise to support this band/artist and his/her/their label-mates. Seeing them live probably wouldn’t be a bad idea either.
Should the features artist, or the related label or distributor take issue with my inclusion of the song file, please don’t hesitate to contact me, so that the offending file can be removed.

The Jam -- I Got By In Time

Y’all ass is crazy: Your entire ass is crazy.

"Oh my God a rubber!"

Robert Kelly is many things to many people. Actually, to most people he’s just a perv who makes music in his spare time, but that is neither here nor there. The interesting thing is that somehow, between all the pee play, fights with Jay Z and company, and other bad press, Kelly has found time to make, perhaps, the world’s most convoluted, self-indulgent concept album. His Trapped in the Closet, a twelve part “urban musical” follows the lives of a literal shit-ton of characters as they proceed to screw around with each other and get caught. As if the plot wasn’t bad enough, each of the “songs” sacrifice traditional structure in favor of narration and dialogue… all performed by Kelly.

I had pretty much ignored this mess until I unwittingly turned to one of the videos last week, only to hear Kelly singing in a high-pitched southern drawl as an overweight white woman tried to convince her husband that nothing was, in fact, wrong. Simultaneously confused and disgusted, I sought a way to gather information on this sad, sad project without actually having to devote time to watching/listening to the individual chapters. Thankfully, our friends at SomethingAwful.com have prepared Cliff Notes for chapters 1 through 5, and the rest of the story so far can be hashed out thanks to good ol’ Wikipedia.

Enjoy, and may God have mercy on you if you can actually follow this shit.

The difference is clear...

I was just listening to the Sirius BBC Radio 1 feed and two news items immediately got me. In the first, a schoolgirl was attacked and stabbed multiple times with scissors by a gang of teenagers while standing in the lunch line. In the second, celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has come under fire for killing a farm animal in rural Italy in the traditional style of the region on his television show.

I can’t help but think that if these had happened in the states, we would’ve blamed the one on the other.

Mid-Week MP3

After a brief break (due to illness) 1mod is back with another Mid-Week MP3.

This week we explore the work of Jonathan Richman & the Modern Lovers. Hailing from Boston, Richman tests the waters of idiocy. His songs are simple, even by the proto-punk standards of The Ramones. His lyrics are childlike, almost to a ridiculous degree, but his place in the canon that is our American musical heritage has been cemented by a loyal following since his work in the 1970s.

More recently Jonathan has been met with moderate mainstream attention due to his frequent television appearances on Late Night with Conan O’Brien and his role in 1998's There’s Something About Mary.

But to fans, whether he’s favoring us with old classics, singing Spanish folk songs, or simply giving one of his famous, rambling interviews, he’s just Jonathan… and he has a lot to say about life, love, Abominable Snowmen, and, in this case, those fine folks who work down at the Government Center.

1modernboy humbly requests that you use these MP3s solely as a means of evaluation. If you like what you hear, please buy records, CDs, t-shirts, or other merchandise to support this band/artist and his/her/their label-mates. Seeing them live probably wouldn’t be a bad idea either.
Should the features artist, or the related label or distributor take issue with my inclusion of the song file, please don’t hesitate to contact me, so that the offending file can be removed.

Jonathan Richman & the Modern Lovers – The Government Center

What kind of Sixties Person are you?

You are a Mod. Yeah baby.

What kind of Sixties Person are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Children Shouldn't Play With Dead Things

For those of you looking for a cheap and easy way to wile away the workday, may I humbly suggest Urban Dead. In the words of the game’s creator, “Urban Dead is a browser-based, grid-mapped, free-to-play multi-player game where you play the survivor or victim of a zombie outbreak in a quarantined city centre.”

Not only is it free, but it’ll also help get you in the proper Halloween mood! Plus, the description is full o' hyphens. Hurray for hyphens!!!

Oh, if you’re around the suburb of Old Arkham, you may find me healing survivors in the subtle guise of Dr. Drake Remore.

Mid-Week MP3

With the final installment of festive Halloween MP3s, I figured I would kick it, as the kids say, old school. Real old school.

For me, there are a few conditional holidays – holidays that don’t really count unless a certain event occurs. The Fourth of July, for example, isn’t fully legal until I’ve pissed off a porch… any porch. Thanksgiving just isn’t Thanksgiving until the local NPR affiliate plays Arlo Guthrie. Halloween is like that, too. As much as I dig it, as much as I wait for it, and plan for it, it ain’t shit without Werewolves of London by Warren Zevon.

Warren left us in September 7 of 2003, but not without establishing a lasting legacy of funny, quirky, creepy-assed songs from his thirty-plus year career. Do yourself a favor and pick up some Zevon from your local record store, and, if you’re a cheap bastard, try the library. They usually keep a bit of Warren around.

Oddly enough, Werewolves was one of Warren lighter songs. For a man with a preoccupation with death, oppression, and murder, he sure knew how to howl. But never mind the particulars, just get to downloading.

And a happy, happy Halloween to all.

1modernboy humbly requests that you use these MP3s solely as a means of evaluation. If you like what you hear, please buy records, CDs, t-shirts, or other merchandise to support this band/artist and his/her/their label-mates. Seeing them live probably wouldn’t be a bad idea either.
Should the features artist, or the related label or distributor take issue with my inclusion of the song file, please don’t hesitate to contact me, so that the offending file can be removed.

Warren Zevon – Werewolves of London

Mid-Week MP3

Excuse me while I switch gears from the grim and grisly wiles of Murder City Devils and the demon summoning charms of Ink & Dagger. You see, this week’s Mid-Week MP3 is brought to you by none other than the champions of 80s goth, The Cure.

Robert Smith and company are known more for eyeliner, sing-along choruses, and shuffling, frumpy girls in long skirts and leggings than death, dismemberment, and the dark arts, but I find The Cure’s Lullaby to be one of the eeriest goddamn songs I’ve ever heard. This offering, from 1989’s Disintegration, whether about addiction, assault, or simply a supernatural boogeyman, is no less distressing now than it was 16 years ago.

Do yourself a favor and pick up some Cure. While Disintegration is of particular merit, the bulk of the band’s library is exemplary. With that said, please enjoy this week’s extra Halloween-y Mid-Week MP3, and join me here next week for the riveting conclusion of all this spooky-assed shit!

1modernboy humbly requests that you use these MP3s solely as a means of evaluation. If you like what you hear, please buy records, CDs, t-shirts, or other merchandise to support this band/artist and his/her/their label-mates. Seeing them live probably wouldn’t be a bad idea either.
Should the features artist, or the related label or distributor take issue with my inclusion of the song file, please don’t hesitate to contact me, so that the offending file can be removed.

The Cure -- Lullaby

Mid-Week MP3

Okay, I guess this one is an End of Week MP3, but hey, sometime life gets you like that. I'll be continuing our festive theme, but this week I’ll shift gears a bit. Last week Murder City Devils regaled us with a tale of war and loss and an untimely hanging. This week we head into the murky waters of punk rock vampires, compliments of Ink & Dagger.

This band of Philadelphia blood suckers hit the scene in 1996, with and odd mix of blazing guitars and pancake makeup that somehow delighted the notoriously fickle hardcore audience. Within a few years the band had changed their look and sound to something more progressive and much less kitschy, eventually dispending amid much fanfare in 1999. Less than a year later, frontman Sean McCabe was found dead in an Indiana hotel room – the result of an excessive drinking binge.

Another rock ‘n’ roll tragedy, but, thankfully, the music lives on. With that said, please kick back and enjoy The Road to Hell, from the 1997 release Drive This Seven Inch Wooden Stake through My Philadelphia Heart. Much of Ink & Dagger’s library remains in print, and you can get a bit more of the band’s history (and merch) over at Buddyhead.

1modernboy humbly requests that you use these MP3s solely as a means of evaluation. If you like what you hear, please buy records, CDs, t-shirts, or other merchandise to support this band/artist and his/her/their label-mates. Seeing them live probably wouldn’t be a bad idea either.
Should the features artist, or the related label or distributor take issue with my inclusion of the song file, please don’t hesitate to contact me, so that the offending file can be removed.

Ink & Dagger – The Road to Hell

Mid-Week MP3

This week’s Mid-Week MP3 launches what I like to consider the official Halloween season. Put the kids to bed early and break out your Styrofoam tombstones, folks! You’re in for four weeks of creepy, freaky, and pretty damned fucked up songs. Leading the charge will be one of my personal favorites – Murder City Devils.

MCD was a brilliant punk rock outfit out of Seattle who came on strong in 1996 and kept on keeping on until 2001. Musically, I’d say they were midway between the classic drive of early Misfits and the (then) modern flare of At the Drive-In (with whom they toured extensively). This track comes to you from the notorious In Name and Blood album, a multimedia cd experience that, in addition to being their strongest musical effort, depicted each member of the band as a victim of a gruesome murder. Good times.

I’ll not bore you with details, but a little digging will find that the Devils' former members are currently involved with such indy fair as Pretty Girls Make Graves and Modest Mouse. Good bands to check out if you've missed them so far. Most MCD releases are still available from Sub Pop, and should be purchased post-haste.

With that said, please enjoy the deep, groovy, goth-y synth, the staggered vocals, driving rhythm, and the fierce guitar attack that is Press Gang.

This year the candy comes early!

1modernboy humbly requests that you use these MP3s solely as a means of evaluation. If you like what you hear, please buy records, CDs, t-shirts, or other merchandise to support this band/artist and his/her/their label-mates. Seeing them live probably wouldn’t be a bad idea either.
Should the features artist, or the related label or distributor take issue with my inclusion of the song file, please don’t hesitate to contact me, so that the offending file can be removed.

Murder City Devils – Press Gang

Pray for my Nintendog...

Nintendo has launched yet another full-out assault on my wallet with this week’s release of both Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow & Trauma Center: Under the Knife for the Nintendo DS. Basically, I plan to spend my free time slaying demons and performing surgery without a license… same as any week!

Mid-Week MP3

Word on the street is that the surviving members of the New York Dolls have once again hit the road (at the behest of Morrissey, no less). As such, this week we shall celebrate the gifts afforded us by these proto-punk, cross-dressing, hard-living Rock ‘N’ Rollers. If you are a fan of rock music, or punk, or art rock, or R&B, arena rock, metal, or any other of a myriad of genres, then you, no doubt, have some idea of the importance of five boys from NYC. If you don’t… well, then there isn’t much I or anyone else can do for you.

In 1971, David Johansen, Johnny Thunders, Sylvain Sylvain, Arthur "Killer" Kane and Billy Murcia came together under bright likes and heavy makeup to start a revolution. Citing influences like the MC5, The Stooges, and T-Rex, this band went on to inspire the punk rock generation in a way that only they could. Many were lost along the way. Murcia died before the first album was even released, and was replaced by Jerry Nolan. Thunders died of an overdose in 1991, and Nolan himself followed a few months later. Kane finally left us the middle of last year. Despite all these deaths, the spirit and the legacy of the Dolls lives on.

This track is from the first album. It’s still available, as are their follow-ups. Do yourself a favor and pick it up. Also, be on the lookout for a new Dolls album from the two surviving members in Spring 2006.

1modernboy humbly requests that you use these MP3s solely as a means of evaluation. If you like what you hear, please buy records, CDs, t-shirts, or other merchandise to support this band/artist and his/her/their label-mates. Seeing them live probably wouldn’t be a bad idea either.
Should the features artist, or the related label or distributor take issue with my inclusion of the song file, please don’t hesitate to contact me, so that the offending file can be removed.

New York Dolls – Lonely Planet Boy

myMid-Week MP3

The Mooney Suzuki has made a name for itself by systematic implementation of three key elements – a dynamic pair of core members (Sammy James Junior and Graham Tyler) who power the band despite some rotation of other members, relentless touring punctuated by powerfully frenetic live shows, and a sound that is pure garage rock.

The band remained true to their sound, even with their 2002 Columbia Records debut, Electric Sweat. And, while they never quite made the jump to the mainstream, energetic live performances on several late-night network talk shows and the breakthrough video for the Electric Sweat track "In A Young Man's Mind" (which made a fair turn on MTV2) served to catapult the band ever closer.

Sadly, the band was dropped as a result of the Sony-BMG merger, and found themselves without a label for a time. However, the resourceful boys of The Mooney Suzuki survived by embracing the very media that so many other garage bands revile. Their music popped up in everything from ads to TV shows to movies (as The Mooney Suzuki composed the title song for the Jack Black comedy School of Rock), and this helped them weather the storm until Richard Branson's V2 Records stepped in to give the band a new home.

In an interesting turn, the band’s newest album Alive & Amplified is a departure from the minimalist, stripped down sound that fans have come to expect from The Mooney Suzuki. And while fan response has run the gamut, one thing is perfectly clear – the spirit of the band remains as strong as ever.

This weeks’ track is the title song from 02’s Electric Sweat. It, as well as the new record and several previous releases are still available for purchase.

1modernboy humbly requests that you use these MP3s solely as a means of evaluation. If you like what you hear, please buy records, CDs, t-shirts, or other merchandise to support this band/artist and his/her/their label-mates. Seeing them live probably wouldn’t be a bad idea either.
Should the features artist, or the related label or distributor take issue with my inclusion of the song file, please don’t hesitate to contact me, so that the offending file can be removed.

The Mooney Suzuki -- Electric Sweat

I Trod on Lego

If you’re into the funnay, and I know you are, then you should be reading Scary Go Round. It is a Monday-Friday Web comic by a dapper English gent name of John Allison. The lines are clean and the colors vibrant, the plots convoluted and implausible, and the characters dreadfully self-absorbed – in short, it’s the perfect addition to your daily online constitutional!

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh!

Ahoy you scurvy rat-bastards, today be International Talk Like a Pirate Day! In addition to being a celebration of all things piratical, it also be the most sacred and hallowed of days to those of us who count themselves among the blessed.

The Revolution starts now…

And it is fuckin’ weird! 1Up has some exclusive info on the new, nontraditional controller that Nintendo has devised for its Revolution system. It’s… well, it’s a trippy remote control. See?

Mid-Week MP3

In observance of the recent passing of an American blues legend, this week’s MP3 is from none other than the late R.L. Burnside. The life of Robert Lee Burnside follows a similar pattern to the lives of other Mississippi bluesmen -- he was born poor, spent much of his life performing manual labor, spent time in prison, and focused much of his energy on women, booze, and music.

Burnside was inspired to play by John Lee Hooker, and took to the juke joint circuit to build his talent. Though he recorded in the 1960s under the Arhoolie Records label, it wasn’t until the 1990s that R.L. began to garner a true following. Much of Burnside’s later material, including his groundbreaking collaboration with the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, is available from Fat Possum Records.

Please enjoy the following track, a personal favorite from his Wish I Were in Heaven Sitting Down album, called “Miss Maybelle.”

And R.L., I hope you’re sitting down up there.

1modernboy humbly requests that you use these MP3s solely as a means of evaluation. If you like what you hear, please buy records, CDs, t-shirts, or other merchandise to support this band/artist and his/her/their label-mates. Seeing them live probably wouldn’t be a bad idea either.
Should the features artist, or the related label or distributor take issue with my inclusion of the song file, please don’t hesitate to contact me, so that the offending file can be removed.

R.L. Burnside – Miss Maybelle