Something New Mondays- October 6

I finally bought some songs from iTunes and joined the millions that purchase their music as a digital file online instead as a physical CD. I have two gift cards totalling $100 in credit from our friends at Apple (iTunes) and I intend to use it on hard-to-find items. To be honest I get a lot of music already through the internet, scouring and surfing looking for free downloads or torrent sites that provide peer to peer sharing, but I have to admit I still love buying (new or used) CD's, cassettes and LP's that you can hold, read liner notes and display for all to see. Looking through someones record collection doesn't quite have the same effect if you're scrolling through virtual folders in their hard drive than it does with the real thing. I know young people that only own digital music mp3's!...what the hell's with that?

SHANNON McARDLE- Poison My Cup
SHANNON McARDLE- This Longing- What happens when you marry and then divorce your bandmate? The first solo disc from the ex-Mendoza Line vocalist, Summer Of the Whore is dark, sparse, unhappy affair, a response perhaps from her marriage and band breakup and will ceremoniously be considered the "not feel-good" album of the year. For added misery, check out the Mendoza Line's last record, Thirty Year Low, which was written and recorded before her breakup, with hints of things to come...? Both highly recommended!

FRIGGS- Bad Word for A Good Thing
FRIGGS- Friggs Theme- From 2007's, Today Is Tomorrow's Yesterday, a collection of early vinyl 7's, ep's and unreleased. From their myspace page, "The Troggs + the Fugs + the Shaggs = THE FRIGGS - One of the 90’s fave rockin’ girl bands! The Friggs play supercharged, harmony saturated, trashy pop with a dash of surf on the side the way Russ Meyer intended it to be... Nuff said!!

Something New Mondays

Here's a new feature I'm going to try to do every week, "Something New Mondays". A kind of roundup of new releases, soon to be released and previously available albums from past months that may be new to me, that I might have overlooked. Some of these albums might be so new that i haven't really given them a good solid listen yet, so my reviews and opinions may be incomplete or still pending.

ALL GIRL SUMMER FUN BAND- Something New
ALL GIRL SUMMER FUN BAND- Not the One For Me: The name of the band describes them perfectly; all girl, their music is sunny pop gems and the music is fresh and a lot of fun to listen to. On the new album, Looking Into It, the band has pared down from a 4-piece to a trio, their sound is more full, gritty and rawer than their previous two releases. With crunch-fuzz guitars combined with their sweet honest vocals, AGSFB deliver the must-have album for the end of summer.

JENNY LEWIS- See Fernando
JENNY LEWIS- Carpetbaggers: On her second solo record, Acid Tongue, Rilo Kiley's Jenny Lewis continues to explore different genres and styles with much success. I Haven't had time to fully listen to the disc yet, but from what I've heard it seems more accessible and powerful than her first. These two songs are my favourites...so far.

HOTEL LIGHTS- Dream State Flying
HOTEL LIGHTS- Norina: From the album, Firecracker People, a beautiful eclectic mix of heartfelt quiet engaging songs that are easy to listen to. Hotel Lights is Darren Jessee the former drummer for Ben Folds Five who has produced two fine underrated classics that are worth seeking out.

STEPHEN MALKMUS AND THE JICKS- Real Emotional Trash: Haven't listened to much Malkmus since Pavement, but after hearing this new release, Real Emotional Trash, it's convinced me to seek out his other solo material. The title track is a sprawling epic length (over 10 minutes) song...but wait! Mr. Malkmus and the Jicks are coming to Winnipeg next month, should be a good show, I might check it out.

Song Of The Day- "Hang Fire"

Here's another 7" gem from Top Drawer records in Seattle featuring two great bands from B.C. The Smugglers from Vancouver and Victoria's Bum who combine forces for a live one-off performance of the Rolling Stones song, Hang Fire, while on the A-side of the record both bands perform covers from DMZ (Lift up your Hood- Bum) and Boys (Kiss Like A Nun- Smugglers).

While on tour together in the summer of '93, Bum joined the Smugglers on stage for the last song of the night where the nine members of both bands engaged in their best unrehearsed version of Hang Fire. This love of the Stones lead to David Carswell (guitarist from the Smugglers) and Bum forming a Stones cover band entitled Steel Wheels: "Suckin' In The Eighties"; a tribute to the Stones hits from the 1980's.

BUMGLERS- Hang Fire (Dave Carswell sang Mick, everyone else sang back-up: 4 guitars, 2 basses and 1 drum set)- Recorded June 19, 1993 at the Crocodile Cafe, Seattle, WA.

Song Of The Day- "Welcome Back!"

I'm back from my mini-vacation in Vancouver, BC and I'm trying to get into the swing of things, but I just hadn't the time (or effort) to post anything new since I got back. Last week I mentioned I would dedicate some songs to a friend that's getting married, but I think I'm going to postpone that until next week. In the meantime, here's a tribute to my return, an awesome 7" recording from 1993 from Seattle's late great, Stumpy Joe. Though they recorded only one full length CD, One Way Rocket Ride To Kicksville (1992), Stumpy Joe had a small, but loyal following in the Pacific Northwest. The band provided the spring-board for the career of singer/guitarist John Ramberg who went on to front the Model Rockets and the Tripwires, as becoming a solid permanent member of the Minus 5.

STUMPY JOE- (A-side) Sugar And Glue- A tribute to my two favourite food groups, since I have a reputation for drinking (not sniffing) white glue. Somehow I don't think this is what they had in mind. A great rockin' song!

STUMPY JOE- (B-side) Welcome Back- Yes, this is the John Sebastian penned theme song from TV's, Welcome Back Kotter, a cool unplugged acoustic version that will have you singing along in no time. This rare exclusive 7" release from Top Drawer Records was the perfect swan-song for Stumpy's career.

Song(s) Of The Day- "Vancouver, BC"

When I think of Vancouver, BC, I think of the mountains, the Pacific Ocean, Stanley Park, salmon, the Canucks and the Smugglers. If you're not familiar with the Smugglers (the band), check out the Mint site or their website. To me they are best remembered as a band that wore matching dark suits along with rubber boots on stage and their first "hit", Vancouver, BC. This song is like a traveloge for the Smuggler's hometown with references to the skytrain, Robson Square, Grouse mountain, the ferry line and Terry David Mulligan. A super fun song and for added fun check out the video on YouTube.

As an added bonus, I've also posted a song from the present indie-kings from the west coast, the New Pornographers. Unfortunately, Carl Newman and Neko Case no longer have an address in Vancouver, but the band still considers it their home, as evidenced by the show on August 31-September 1, the New Pornographers present...The Stanley Park singing Exhibition.

THE SMUGGLERS- Vancouver, BC (from "At Marineland" 10" LP)
NEW PORNOGRAPHERS- Letter from An Occupant (West End Cultural Centre, Winnipeg, MB, August 18, 2002)

Note: I'm jetting off to exotic Vancouver today until next Monday, so unless I acquire a laptop computer over night, I'll be off-line. Next week I'll be posting some tribute songs for a friend that's getting married soon, so stay tuned!

Song Of the Day- "Sure Enough"

Speaking of strong debut albums, Montreal's Angela Desveaux produced a wonderful album, Wandering Eyes (2006) that showcased her marvellous country-tinged voice that came out of nowhere. It was so good I wanted to tell everyone to give her a listen, as evidenced by my past posts (Nov. 6, 2006 and Nov. 23, 2006) about Angela.

Her new album (just released on September 9), Angela Desveaux And The Mighty Ship suppose to rock more, but similar to her debut as she explores different genres and sounds, country-blues, traditional folk, but for the most part she flaunts with an indie-rock sound that I'm looking forward to hearing. I haven't had a chance to hear the whole album yet, but from what I've heard this will be the next album on my pod (or I'll buy when I go record-store hopping in Vancouver in a couple of days). I'll give my full review of the album next week.

The first song I heard is Sure Enough, it's a great upbeat rocker and it sure has enough bounce and jangly guitars to make me recall early Broken West.

ANGELA DESVEAUX- Sure Enough

Song(s) Of The Day- Broken West

Last year the Broken West released their debut CD, I Can't Go On, I'll Go On and it was met with positive reviews and much anticipation for their follow-up. The sound on the debut was refreshing and a bouncy toe tapping pop/rock album. Their jangly guitar sound reminds me of Teenage Fanclub, the Posies and a bit of Big Star. I had the pleasure of seeing the band tour this album when they opened for Fountains Of Wayne last summer in Minneapolis and I thought these two bands were a good match. They played one cover and it was, Mr. Soul from Buffalo Springfield (Neil Young), so you know how great the guitar sound is on that tune.

Unfortunately, the new album, Now Or Heaven has lost that bounce and chime and has produced a slicker, tighter and smoother lush alternative rock album that treads into Brit-pop territory and less California. That's not to say this is a bad album, it's a little disappointing, but I'm just saying the sound that drew me to them in the first place is lost amongst the drum machine beats and synths that have crept into their sound. It's still a good album and I need to give this more listens and I may appreciate their new sound more as time goes on, but it just doesn't immediately grab me like the song, Down In the Valley from the first album.

These songs grab me the most and it's no coincidence it's the most uptemple rockers. Judge for yourself.

BROKEN WEST- Gwen, Now And Then
BROKEN WEST- Auctioneer
BROKEN WEST- Perfect Games

Song(s) Of The Day #3- James, Mandy and the Cars

Soul Asylum, before their Runaway Train success was a great band! During the late 90's they were known as one of the best live bands around and some of their albums, Made to be Broken, Hang Time and the Horse They Rode On are a good representation of their early days before mainstream success sucked the creativity and intensity from the band. Along with the Replacements and Husker Du, Soul Asylum helped create and bring much attention to the Minneapolis sound, during the late 80's I seeked out bands from Minneapolis that we're riding the coat-tails of these trailblazing bands. The Magnolias, Run Westy Run, ZuZu's Petals, Babes In Toyland and the Jayhawks were just some of the fine bands to emerge from the Twin Cities scene during this period.

During their late 80's live shows, Soul Asylum liked to pull out some interesting covers that were both brilliant and tongue-in-cheek, but always a highlight.

SOUL ASYLUM- James At 16 (Heavy Medley): I've heard this medley attempted on another concert recording before where the band seemlessly meshes together a medley of goofy covers. This is a classic SA moment that is a prime example of how fun and fabulous a Soul Asylum show must have been.

SOUL ASYLUM- Mandy/Drive: Another mini-medley performing the sappy Barry Manilow hit merging into the Cars song, Drive. It's amazing how two songs that I cringe at when I hear performed by the original artists, can put a smile on my face when I hear Soul Asylum cover it...another classic moment.
Enjoy!!

Song(s) Of the Day #2- Vivian Girls

If you're a fan of noisy sweet all-girl rawk, you'll love the Vivian Girls! This art/punk trio from Brooklyn serves up a tasty disc of infectious no-nonsense pop that grabs and shakes you. Their sound isn't unique or innovative, but their short, fast tunes are refreshing and fun. The Vivian Girls are Cassie Ramone on vocals and guitar, bass player Kickball Katy and drummer Ali. The band has released three 7" singles as well as a very limited (500 copies) full length self titled album last Spring (which sold out quickly), that will be re-released in October on In the Red records.


VIVIAN GIRLS- All The Time (s/t LP)
VIVIAN GIRLS- Tell The World (s/t LP)
VIVIAN GIRLS- Wild Eyes (7" single)
VIVIAN GIRLS- Telepathic Love (unreleased demo)

Song(s) Of The Day #1- "High"

Make that the word of the day..."High". This isn't a reflection of my state of mind or my IQ, but today at work I noticed that during the course of the day I played these three songs and I thought duh, what a coincidence they all have "high" in the title...pretty stupid eh?

Anyways, the Song Of the Day will hopefully be a regular spot on this blog, it will feature one or more songs, depending on how I feel that day. There might be a theme, dedication or maybe just a random rare song I thought should be heard. Requests and ideas are always welcome and as usual I'm not reliable for posting consistently, so please be patient.
Enjoy!!

WILCO- I Must Be High ("The Riviera", Chicago, IL, 02-19-08)
BLAKE BABIES- Baby Gets High ("Knitting Factory", Hollywood, CA, 6-16-01)
YOUNG FRESH FELLOWS- High Time ("Here Ain't The Sonics" Tribute to the Sonics, 1989)

Blake Babies on the Saturday Early Show 2001

A reunited Blake Babies rare TV performance from 2001. Juliana Hatfield fronted this band from the late 80's until 1991 when she briefly joined the Lemonheads and then went solo. The 2001 B.B.'s reunion tour also resulted in the album, God Bless the Blake Babies which was a very respectable recording...highly recommended! Actually, if you're a J.H. fan, check out the original Blake Babies backlist.

Juliana Hatfield live on The Tonight Show - 08/25/08

Wow! Juliana Hatfield on network TV, it's been a while. She looks great and she performs, "This Lonely Love" from her newly released album, "How To Walk Away". Juliana looked a little nervous and overwhelmed by the band, but she became more comfortable toward the end. Despite the presence of two other guitar players and her not playing a lot of guitar (looking kind of model-ish), she is a very very competent guitar player. I would love to see her live, though she is only playing east and west coast dates and again she won't venture into to Canada...Minneapolis, please!

(Apparently there was problems loading the video, so I have since deleted the post and relaunched it. It should work now, let me know if there's any problems...enjoy!)

49:00-43:55= 5:05

If you recently tried clicking the links to download the new Paul Westerberg recording you may have been met with disappointment. 49:00 is no longer available for download on amazon.com and Tunecore, it was removed sometime during the first week of August. Both sites don't offer any explanation and I haven't heard or read any official reason about why the download was removed. There is a lot of speculation, but I suspect it might have to do with copyrights more specifically for the "medley" at 39:46 which contains a few seconds of Paul performing various cover songs. An interesting article from KCRW's: News Collage of the Week discusses this issue about 49:00.

On Tunecore, 49:00 was replaced with the song 5:05, which I guess is the other 5 minutes and 5 seconds missing from 49:00. (the album really clocked in at 43:55... get it?) This song is available for .99 or $5.05, you choose, it's the same song regardless of what you spend. I've decided to save you the money and I'm posting both the song 5:05 and the (now) hard to find recording of 49:00 in it's entirety, but in two parts. (If you burn the two parts to disc make sure you click off the 3 second gap on your software) I've been listening to this album often and it gets better every listen and in my option it's sure to be a classic...get it while you can!

49:00 (part 1)
49:00 (part 2)
5:05

49:00

I paid money for a CD online the other day, actually it wasn't an actually CD per say, but a download of Paul Westerberg's latest release, 49:00. The release date was July 49th (July 19) and the music is only available from Amazon.com (in the U.S.) and Tunecore.com (outside the US including Canada) as a mp3 download. The recording is hovering atop the #1 position on the Amazon mp3 charts thanks in part to suspiciously low price of .49 cents and what you receive is one long mp3 file (not 49:00, but 43:55) consisting of approx. 23 songs full or in part. This includes a short medley of covers such as, Hello Goodbye, Lost Highway, Born To Be Wild, Rocket Man etc.

Many of the tracks fade into each other and at times it seems songs overlap...be warning nothing is wrong with the tracks or CD player, it suppose to be like that. Paul states on the downloadable liner notes, "This product is not faulty-all sounds are intentional and valid as a work of art". This was recording in Paul's basement and he handles all instruments and vocals with the exception of the last track, Oh Yeah!, which features Paul's son Johnny on microphone. This release bypasses any label interference and the music was made available within a week after the recording was recorded and mixed. There are some great songs on here that has a similar sound to his last releases, but with a more raw sound and spontaneous feel to it, it reminds me the home recorded, Stereo/Mono discs from 2002. Even if you're not familiar with Westerberg (or the Replacements), I highly recommend you give this recording a listen, it's well worth the money!

Chrissie Hynde-Demos circa 1978

Demos recorded in 1978 by Chrissie Hynde before she fronted the Pretenders have recently been discovered. The 3 track demo cassette includes a song, "Do I Love You" recorded with Sex Pistol members Steve Jones and Paul Cook possibly from a recording session for Johnny Thunder's album, So Alone. The song has a Phil Spector-type feel to it and is well worth the listen.

The other songs are 4-track recordings including Mercy Mission an early version of The Phone Call from the Pretenders' debut. The other song, Suicide is previously unreleased.

01. Do I Love You
02. Mercy Mission (Phone Call)
03. Suicide
The previous mp3 links were not longer available, instead I re-uploaded the files to an upgraded FLAC (uncompressed) version. Let me know if these links do not work.

ChrissieDemosFLAC. rar

Ray Davies (Kinks) At The 2008 Winnipeg Folk Festival

It was two weeks ago that legendary Kinks frontman Ray Davies performed at the Winnipeg Folk Festival. My posting on dimeadozen.org received well over 200 downloads from the day I posted the concert. The nice thing about this performance is that it wasn't an abbreviated set that usually is the standard for WFF mainstage shows. The Sunday evening concert had a cancellation from Jakob Dylan (who thinks playing Leno is a better career choice?) and instead of replacing his slot the WFF decided to let the remaining performers (Joan Armatrading and Kathleen Edwards) have extended sets closer in length to an actual concert....thank you Chris Frayer!

I've decided to post mp3's from Ray Davies's set because I know a lot of people that want to hear this concert. This might be the closest we'll ever see to a Kink's show, so we should all be grateful Davies survived being shot a few years ago. I hear his brother Dave is recovered from his stroke a few years back and there is talk the Kinks may play again. I'm there if that happens! The Kinks are at the top of my list of must-see bands in my lifetime (a Replacements reunion would also be nice!).

Please let me know if the links don't work or they don't download properly. I'm trying a new online storage, so be patient if there's problems.

RAY DAVIES
Winnipeg Folk Festival
Mainstage
Birds Hill Park, Manitoba
July 13, 2008

Audience MD MASTER
Sony ECM-DS70P mic> Sharp MD-MT90

01. I Need You (aborted)
02. Waterloo Sunset
03. I Need You
04. I'm Not Like Everybody Else
05. Where Have All The Good Times Gone?
06. 20th Century Man
07. After The Fall
08. Sunny Afternoon
09. Dead End Street
10. Dedicated Follower Of Fashion
11. A Hymn For A New Age
12. Working Man's Cafe
13. Vietnam Cowboys
14. Well Respected Man
15. See My Friends
16. Tired Of Waiting For You
17. Set Me Free
18. All Day And All Of The Night

encore-
19. Lola
20. You Really Got Me

Better yet, for the complete show folder.

Winnipeg Folk Fest Part 1

Just to update: I'm taking the week off, but when I return I'll post some concert audio from the 2008 Winnipeg Folk Festival. I only attending the final day (Sunday), but what a fine day it was! Saw one of my all-time favourite performers, Ray Davies from the Kinks and my favourite Canadian, Kathleen Edwards. I recorded Edward's mainstage set, but I consider it a write-off as the sound was seriously hampered by wind and chatter from surrounding tarps (I include myself). I'll post some highlights from her mainstage set as well as from her daytime workshop.

Ray Davies' set was excellent and my recording turned out pretty good. It is presently posted at Dimeadozen if you want the full uncompressed recording, but if you want to wait a week, I'll post mp3's of most or all of Davies' set. I managed to get close to the stage to snap some photos and I spend half of his set sitting at the "golden tarp" directly in front of the stage. More about that later...Adios!

Kathleen Edwards At The World Cafe

My obsession with Kathleen Edwards continues with this excellent recording from the World Cafe that was broadcasted May 16th, 2008 on WXPN-FM in Philadelphia, PA. This show is unique because it features not only the band playing live in studio, but also an interview portion with Edwards talking about the new album, Asking For Flowers and the making of the video, I Make The Dough, You Get The Glory (see last post).

This session allows the audience both at home and in studio to really capture the depth and personality of the performer, in this case Edwards, something you might not encounter in the audience of a large theatre or concert hall. Enjoy!

For the uncompressed FLAC version- dimeadozen.org
For a audio stream from- npr.org

KATHLEEN EDWARDS
World Cafe
Philadelphia, PA
April 12 or 13, 2008 (May 16, 2008 broadcast date)

01. Intro
02. Asking For Flowers
03. Interview
04. Run
05. The Cheapest Key
06. Interview
07. Goodnight, California
08. I Make The Dough, You Get The Glory
09. Interview
10. Buffalo
11. Outro

I Make The Dough, You Get The Glory

Sorry for the long period between posts...wow, that sounds kind of hockey-ish. Speaking of hockey, here’s a cute video by the lovely and talented Kathleen Edwards who I know is a huge hockey fan. So much so she filmed her latest music video at a hockey arena (St.Mikes’s in Toronto) and enlisted some very special guests, Jim Cuddy (of Blue Rodeo), Paul Coffey, Dave Hodge and of course Marty McSorley, whom Kathleen really wanted to have in her video.

Interesting to note, Kathleen’s husband and bandmate Colin Cripps is the referee who steps between Kathleen and Cuddy. Hilarious moment is TSN’s Dave Hodge lip-syncing with Kathleen the lines, “Heavy rotation on the CBC, whatever in hell that really means”, if you are familiar with Hodge’s dismissal from the CBC, it makes this moment that much sweeter.

Kathleen Edwards is scheduled to play the Winnipeg Folk Festival main stage in early July, but I really wish she would come to Winnipeg and play a smaller indoor venue (Burt or Pantages?) instead, because you really don’t get that same vibe sitting in a field a half a city block away from the stage squatting on a piece of plastic, oh well.

Remember LP's? Celebrate Record Store Day!

Just this month it was announced that the Apple iTunes store has surpassed Wal-Mart to become the biggest music retailer in the US. With the increased popularity of online downloading of music, both paid and unpaid, the record store has become a rare retail sight in our cities. With the record album format near extinction, one of my favourite pastimes of browsing through the used record bins is a foreign sight for many young music fans. I used to love spending my Saturdays and spare cash on those black vinyl 7" and 12" discs and making my rounds to the many new and used record stores on or near Portage Ave in the once popular downtown Winnipeg, searching for rarities and overlooked classics. Kids nowadays buy their music at BestBuy, Starbucks, Wal-Mart and Indigo/Chapter's book stores or they pay a dollar a song for a low quality compressed sounding, use restricted digital mp3 file from iTunes. There's something wrong with this phenomenon, the independent record (music..CD/cassette, LP) store employs "music" knowledgeable staff and doesn't rely on the sale of top 30 music to survive. These people listen to music, they talk about music and best of all they love music and want to introduce others to music they want to share.

On Saturday, April 19, 2008 hundreds of independently owned record stores across Canada and the US will celebrate "Record Store Day". On this day participating stores will host events and celebrate the culture and community of the record store. Many of these stores will have musicians perform and work behind the counter to greet customers and share their love and joy of vinyl. As you may have guessed I'm still a big fan of vinyl, my record's occupy a major place of my dining room shelves and in boxes in my basement and my parent's house. Yes, I still have a operating turntable and as a matter of fact I just ordered (2 days ago) a portable turntable so I can inflict my co-workers with my vinyl addiction. Sure i have piles of CD's, cassettes and a mp3 player, but there are many Lp's that have been transferred to digital or aren't available on CD. While music formats get smaller and more compact, the record album features a large cardboard sleeve with easy to read jacket notes, great graphics and as any record snob would say, a warmer (though somewhat scratchier) full sounding experience. Sometimes I feel a lot like the John Cusack character (Rob Gordon) in the film, High Fidelity, because music does have an influence on how I'm feeling and how it reflects on everything I do. I must have a top 5 list for all the people I meet (both love and hate) and the life experiences we encounter on a daily basis...and my dream was to own a record store! Let the dream live...buy a record this Saturday...or at least play one.