MARCH PLAYLIST!

At last! I'm done with the March Playlist!

This month we celebrate the 90's Alternative Rock Heyday! We're also going to make April a 90's month too, but March is all about the heavy hitters! REJOICE! 

Plus, one brand new or newish album a day!

March First

Nirvana – Nevermind

Pearl Jam – Ten

Smashing Pumpkins – Siamese Dreams

March Second

Alice In Chains – Dirt

Matthew Sweet – Girlfriend

Johnny Marr – The Messenger

March Third

Jane’s Addiction – Ritual De Lo Habitual

Beck – Odelay

My Bloody Valentine – MBV

March Fourth

Blur – Modern Life Is Rubbish  Change of plans! We are now doing The Great Escape.

Soundgarden – Badmotorfinger

Atoms For Peace – Amok

March Fifth

Pixies – Bossanova

Buffalo Tom – Big Red Letter Day

Atlas Genius – When It Was Now

March Sixth

Primus – Sailing The Seas Of Cheese

Cake – Fashion Nugget

Puscifer – Donkey Punch The Night

March Seventh

Red Hot Chili Peppers – Blood Sugar Sex Magic

Weezer – Weezer (The Blue Album)

Free Energy – Love Sign

March Eighth

Metallica – Metallica (The Black Album)

Eels – Beautiful Freak

Eels – Wonderful Glorious

March Ninth

Faith No More – The Real Thing

Faith No More – Angel Dust

Tomahawk – Oddfellows

March Tenth  

Rage Against The Machine – Rage Against The Machine

Catherine Wheel – Chrome

IAMDYNAMITE – SUPERMEGAFANTASTIC

March Eleventh

Dinosaur Jr. – Green Mind

Dinosaur Jr. – Without A Sound

Dinosaur Jr. – I Bet On Sky

March Twelfth

Beastie Boys – Check Your Head

Stone Temple Pilots – Core

Django Django – Django Django

March Thirteenth

Radiohead – Pablo Honey

Radiohead – OK Computer

Radiohead – The King Of Limbs

March Fourteenth

Lemonheads – It’s A Shame About Ray

Spiritualized – Lazer Guided Melodies

The Cribs – Payola

March Fifteenth

World Party – Goodbye Jumbo

Afghan Whigs – Gentleman

Foals – Holy Fire

March Sixteenth

Live – Mental Jewelry

Hole – Live Through This

And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead – Lost Songs

March Seventeenth – St. Patrick’s Day – What’s Irish and stays out all night? Paddy O’Furniture!

Thin Lizzy - Jailbreak

U2 – Achtung Baby

Dropkick Murphy’s – Signed And Sealed In Blood

March Eighteenth

The Verve – A Northern Soul

The Verve – Urban Hymns

Richard Ashcroft – United Nations Of Sound

March Nineteenth

Garbage – Garbage

Portishead – Dummy

Alabama Shakes – Boys & Girls

March Twentieth

R.E.M. – Out Of Time

R.E.M. – Automatic For The People

R.E.M. – Monster

March Twenty-First

The The – Dusk

Rancid – And Out Come The Wolves

David Bowie – The Next Day

March Twenty-Second

Third Eye Blind – Third Eye Blind

Creed – My Own Prison

Unknown Mortal Orchestra – II

March Twenty-Third

Ween – Pure Guava

Primus – Pork Soda

Dutch Uncles – Out Of Touch In The Wild

March Twenty-Fourth

Cranberries – Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We?

Liz Phair – Exile In Guyville Whip Smart

Bruno Mars – Unorthodox Jukebox

March Twenty-Fifth

Foo Fighters – Foo Fighters

Foo Fighters – The Colour And The Shape

Foo Fighters – Wasting Light

March Twenty-Sixth

Oasis – (What’s The Story) Morning Glory?

Wilco – Being There

Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds – Push The Sky Away

March Twenty-Seventh – Canada Day, eh!

The Tragically Hip – Day For Night

Our Lady Peace – Naveed

Hollerado – White Paint

March Twenty-Eighth

Sonic Youth – Goo

Cracker – Cracker

Shout Out Louds – Optica

March Twenty-Ninth

Sublime – Sublime

Alanis Morissette – Jagged Little Pill

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club – Specter At The Feast

March Thirtieth

Nine Inch Nails – Broken (EP)

Nine Inch Nails – The Downward Spiral  

How To Destroy Angels – Welcome Oblivion

March Thirty-First

Nirvana – In Utero

Pearl Jam – Vs

Smashing Pumpkins – Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness

2.28.13

On February 28th I listened to Curtis Mayfield Curtis, Public Image Ltd Album, and The Vaccines What Did You Expect From The Vaccines.

I used to work with a woman that claimed to have given Curtis Mayfield a blowjob once. She said and I quote, "his pubic hair was like barbed wire." I was thinking about that the whole time I was listening to Curtis. All true.

Needless to say, I wasn't paying too much attention to this album while visions of Mayfield's sharp crotch follicles where dancing in my head and poking out the eye of a former co-worker.

"(Don't Worry) If There's A Hell Below We Are All Going To Go" really sets a tone for your debut album, huh? I do like the race roll call at the beginning. I said "present," when Curtis called out for "whiteys" and "crackers." 

There's a lot of harp on this record, which is weird. "The Other Side Of Town" practically starts off with a minute long harp solo. I gotta talk to my friend that felated Curtis for some recommendations for other albums to listen to from him.

"Move On Up," is a soul staple! I must have heard this song a million times in the 70's and wish I heard it in more places other than when I put it on nowadays. Just like in stores, or restaurants, bars, the mall, radio, TV, anywhere! Except a fucking mop commercial. Really Isley Brothers?

I wrote up this record 10 years ago when I worked for some shitty music rag. We were doing a year-long salute to classic albums. Just because I’m lazy here is what I wrote:

Johnny Rotten was the kind of asshole that would spit in your face. John Lydon, on the other hand, was the kind of asshole that would spit in your hair when he thought you weren’t looking. Then they’d both call you stupid – and you’d love them for it. Post-Pistols, Lydon was still pissed off, but on Album, he was spitting in a whole new direction; perhaps not the best received PIL record, it’s certainly the most perplexing. What the fuck is “Rise” trying to say? Why the fuck is Steve Vai on this record? How the fuck did Lydon get drumming legend Ginger Baker to play here? Because, in 1986, Celtic-tinged tunes, over-the-top fretwork and anybody associated with Cream were definitely not hip, Lydon, however assembled them all with a rotten grin and had them do his bidding. And lurking behind the generic artwork, this seven-song offering was the true emergence of the band’s post-punk sound. As the man said, “anger is an energy,” people – and Lydon was, is, and will always be like the fucking sun.

See! I was always a hacky little dick! 

I really liked the second Vaccines record when I listened to it in January  I only really liked “If You Wanna,” from this one. I’m pretty sure I only liked that one track when I first heard this album, whenever it came out. I like this band, but today I wasn't into their sound. That's all I got.

And that concludes Black History Month. I’m glad I decided to observe the month and honor some great African American musicians by listening to their work. I think Al Green and Nas were my favorites, but what a solid month of music! I'll definitely get to a lot more great black musicians, that I couldn't squeeze in this month, as the year progresses! 

2.27.13

On February 27th I listened to Jimmy Cliff The Harder They Come, Talking Heads More Songs About Buildings And Food, and Yuck Yuck.

I didn’t realize this was the soundtrack to the movie The Harder They Come, but it’s got plenty of Jimmy Cliff. He can be a little schmaltzy at times, “Many Rivers To Cross," but I love the energy of “The Harder They Come.”  

NEW NOTES - On a subsequent listen to this album, I realized I LOVE the schmaltz! "Many Rivers To Cross," "Sitting In Limbo," and "You Can Get It If You Really Want" are sadly beautiful. Jimmy Cliff, I owe you and apology. I'm gonna listen to more of your music.

The star of this soundtrack is “Pressure Drop” by The Maytals. One of my all time favorites songs that The Clash has recorded. Maytals version has more charm and a cooler vibe though.

A great “oh shit,” moment occurred during the catchy “Draw Your Brakes,” by Scotty. It’s the song the Beastie Boys sampled on “Stop That Train,” from “B Boy Bouillabaisse.”

Was this a sophomore slump for the Talking Heads?

“Take Me To The River” is the only song really worth being a single. Just a couple of OK tunes here and nothing to really get all worked about. I like “Found A Job,” and mostly just the sound of “The Good Thing.” And I had a love/hate relationship with “Artists Only.”

The first time I listened to this record, it literally hurt my ears. It is mixed so fucking poorly and on purpose. It wasn't until the record was out for a while and I saw the video for “Get Away," that I started to get it. Something clicked and I had to run for the album again. Once you scrape past the sloppy distortion, rudimentary fuzz and just plain awfulness of the recording, there are some great songs on this album! Believe me, I get the charm of this style of album, it just could have been done better. Still, I can’t wait for more from this London outfit.

Oh, and I should mention that when I first listened to this album it was recommended to me by a 20-year-old puke. Thanks Mike Pops!

2.26.13

On February 26th I listened to Cypress Hill Cypress Hill, Body Count Body Count, and The Geto Boys We Can’t Be Stopped. It was Gangsta Appreciation Day!

All three of these Gangsta Rap albums came out within a year of each other from July, 1991 to March, 1992. I couldn't have been further removed from L.A., being black, or being harassed by the Police, and yet I felt like these records spoke to me. Perhaps it had something to do with me being a 20-year-old puke with a lot of angst and a love of the F word. I actually still like the F word a lot.

These albums were/are surrounded in controversy, and rightly so, but I’m not going to get bogged down with the right and wrong. Let’s just take a look at the Entertainment value.

Cypress Hill is like a hardcore cartoon and the use of humor definitely took a little sting off the bite. Body Count tried really hard to make their take on killing cops very serious, but there was a level of dopey meatheadedness that dulled that edge. And I gotta plead ignorance on The Geto Boys, I liked the genre but I wasn't into every record that came down the pike.

Who wants a ham sandwich?

Cypress Hill sure doesn't like the pigs! Can you blame them? “Pigs,” the opening narrative from Cypress Hill’s self titled debut album sounds like the devil’s resume. Harassment, extortion, donut eating, drug dealing, nepotism, and involvement in the mafia are all common place for those crooked cops. Stupid jerks! What did the great Ice Cube call them? “A horse is a pig that don’t fly straight,” I believe is what Mr. Cube said. I believe the feel good moment of this album comes towards the end of “Pigs” when that horse gets locked up. This makes all the convicts in jail very happy and they form a big line in order to pork that Pig’s ass. There’s no mention of condoms, so we’ll all have to assume somebody got the HIV after this train left the station. If you’re into that kind of thing, it was probably a pretty hot scene. They actually turned that premise into one of the most successful Gay porn franchises of all time. Prison Train – Cop Edition #69 is shooting right now and should be out this summer.

The first four tracks of this album are just huge. “Pigs,” “How I Could Kill A Man,” “Hand On The Pump,” and “Hole In The Head” are a pretty good introduction. “Hello, we’re Cypress Hill and this is what we’re all about.”

I forgot all about the “Duke Of Earl” sample at the beginning of “Hand On The Pump” and how much I used to enjoy “Hole In The Head.”

“Psycobetabuckdown” was the lost classic here. “Psycho alpha disco beta!”

The skit that opens Body Count is so fucking hacky, I don’t know how this record was taken seriously by anybody. In the vignette “Smoked Pork,” Ice T basically talks to himself. He plays the cop killer and the donut eating cop too busy stuffing his crueler hole to help a little lost gangsta. After an awful exchange of dialogue, caps are popped and the album is on its way!

I think the appeal of this record was that it’s a real rock album. Ice T is rapping over a full band, playing some pretty heavy shit. Although everyone only remembers that this album’s main message was about killing cops, Ice T also went to great lengths to explain that black men love to fuck white women and white men should be annoyed by this. Classic T.

The first half of this album rocks along nicely until it poops out “The Winner Loses.” Ice T tried super hard to create a meaningful and powerful ballad about a “friend” who gets hooked on cocaine, but comes up a few eight balls short. Spoiler Alert! The guy dies and we all lose thanks to the chorus of “You wanna get high as the sky, you’re kissing your life goodbye, you think it’s a game.”

“There Goes The Neighborhood,” was and will always be what I wanna hear off of this album. It’s the best thing Ice T has ever recorded!

Fuck “Cop Killer.”

I was super rapped out by the time I got to The Geto Boys. I listened to “Mind Playing Tricks On Me” and I liked it. Then I was just about to pack it in for the day when I noticed the song “You Gotta Let Your Nuts Hang.” Fuckin’ A! 

Oh, and look at that album cover! Homey got shot in the eye! Shit.

2.25.13

On February 25th I listened to Miles Davis Bitches Brew, Mos Def Black On Both Sides, and A$AP Rocky Long.Live.A$AP.

Jazz is patience.

About a minute into Bitches Brew I didn't know if I had the patience. Turns out I have some. If you give “Pharaoh’s Dance,” the album’s opener, a chance to breathe it will give back to you. It’s a great soundtrack to a gray busy New York City afternoon.

I’m an idiot when it comes to Jazz, but Bitches Brew has encouraged me to fix that problem. The only problem is that I have no idea how to do that. If somebody asked me what my favorite Jazz song was, I would have said “Salt Peanuts,” and the reason why is because of the movie Cable Guy. Seriously, why do I suck so much?

Someday somewhere Jazz and I are gonna be friends!

I love Mos Def! Except, when it comes to listening to his albums or watching any movie where he is in a lead role. What the fuck was that one with Bruce Willis? He was great with Dave Chappelle in Block Party and The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy. The only problem with his albums was I never bothered to listen to them.

I guess I can lump Mos in with The Roots and in 1999 when they were blowing up, I was doing something else. Sometimes I was in the right place at the right time, but most of the time I was wishing for more time to listen to more stuff!

Mos Def is so likeable that I have no excuse for not bothering to listen to his music.

Black On Both Sides is another dense Hip Hop record that I wish I had logged in the hours on back in the day.

Perfect example is a little Easter egg I caught on “Speed Lover.” Mos breaks into the “slow down” hook sampled by Brand Nubian from “What I Am,” by Edie Brickell. I’m actually proud of knowing that cause I loved that Brand Nubian song and cause I’m white, I loved “What I Am.”

“Love,” “Miss Fat Booty,” “Do It Now,” “Rock ‘N’ Roll,” “Brooklyn,” and “Mista N****” all need more attention from me.

In order for history to stop repeating itself, or at least to prevent it just a little, I am listened to A$AP Rocky. I keep going on and on about how much I ignored great Hip Hop records from the 90’s, so you can only imagine how much of it I’m ignoring now. I’m not hip, so I can’t imagine what the Rappers are going on about nowadays.

Here’s the funny thing. I live in New York City. The place I read about A$AP Rock the most? NME! It’s an English music rag, and they talk about him all the time! I finally gave in and it took a lot because I hate his jerk off name.

I was basically hating on this record and then “PMW” kicks in. I love it, “pussy, money, weed?” Shit yeah. What else ya got A$AP?

Quite a bit apparently! There’s a lot of great stuff on Long.Live.A$AP. “LVL,” “Fuckin’ Problems,” and “Wild For The Night” are lotta fuckin’ fun!

I’ll come back A$AP. You got my attention. Now when I read your stupid name during my morning dump in the NME headlines I won't say, "who's this guy?"

2.24.13

On February 24th I listened to Aretha Franklin I Never Loved A Man The Way I Love You, Eric B. & Rakim Paid In Full, and Bat For Lashes The Haunted Man.

I think my relationship with Aretha’s music begins with “Respect” and ends with “Think.” I’m going to go on record right now and say that the version of “Think” that is in the movie The Blue Brothers is the best musical number in the history of musicals. When Jake and Elwood, who are there for Matt “Guitar” Murphy and “Blue” Lou, get caught up in Aretha’s song and join in is pure genius! “You better think about the consequences of your actions!”

I Never Loved A Man is a beautiful old school album. I particularly liked the poorly named “Baby Baby Baby,” “Good Times,” and “Save Me.” “Do Right Woman – Do Right Man” is the slow jam!

I feel like Eric B. & Rakim came outta nowhere. One night I showed up at a high school party and everyone I knew was into Eric B. & Rakim like they were listening to them for years! “You haven’t heard of Eric B. And Rakim? Hey everybody, get a load of this guy? He’s still listening to Run – D.M.C.!” I was all like, “shut up! Are we playing Quarters, or what?”

The truth of the matter was, I was getting bored with rap a little and had just discovered The Smiths and a whole new world of Alternative music a few months before Paid In Full came out in the Summer of 1987.

Did Eric B. & Rakim coin the phrase “Frenemy?” Rakim drops it on the album’s opener “I Ain’t No Joke.” They should have got a copyright on that shit! They could have made a fortune!

I think, if I had put the time in back in 1987 and listened to this album a lot, now it would be a great piece of nostalgia, but I didn't  There’s a lot here to swallow and I just don’t have the interest to listen to this album enough to make it interesting to me. Sorry Eric and Rakim!

I don’t think I have ever listened to a Bat For Lashes album all the way through and I still haven’t. I basically just listened to each song until it got through the first chorus, or whatever passed for a chorus, and then skipped to the next track.

BFL is just not for me, which is weird cause when I was younger I liked some Kate Bush stuff and I went out and bought a couple Siouxsie Sioux records. So, there was a time in my life when I could see the appeal of artsy fartsy stuff and using dumb stage names. I guess I grew passed it. (Wanna hear how much I've matured? I originally wrote “art fag” stuff, but then edited it to “artsy fartsy” so as to not offend anyway. Brad Maybe grows up?)

Some of the music on this album reminded me of the reimagined Battlestar Galactica soundtrack. Bat For Lashes kinda reminds me of the Cylon that killed Cally and then Chief chokes her out. If I was a pilot serving on Galactica my call sign probably would have been Wide Face. 

Tomorrow I will listen to Miles Davis Bitches Brew, Mos Def Black On Both Sides, and A$AP Rocky Long.Live.A$AP.

2.23.13

On February 23rd I listened to The Roots Things Fall Apart, Beck Mellow Gold, and Jake Bugg Jake Bugg.

I love the idea of The Roots. I think they’re cool as shit. They have a couple songs I like a lot, but I never owned an album and have never listened to all of this one. What kind of music lover am I? We’re righting that wrong today.

Released in 1999, Things Fall Apart was the coming out party for The Roots. Dense, smart, funky, lush, complicated, this is not an album to be treated lightly and it’s certainly not something that can be fully realized in one listen. I gotta come back to this one!

“Dynamite” was my favorite and “The Next Movement,” and “You Got Me” are definitely your stand out tracks. I just sent a submission to the Urban Dictionary, hopefully now if you look up the term “stone groove,” you’ll see a picture of this album.

During the opening chords of “Loser,” Beck’s mammoth giant smash hit song that we’ll be listening to until we die, I tried to place myself where I was when I first heard it. I was so into it, and then I started working in radio. I must have talked out of it 10,000 times and I would always say “sprechen sie Deutsche, baby! Beck on whatever-fucking-radio-station, I’m Brad Maybe…”

Regardless. I had just turned 23 when I first heard “Loser,” and it was so much fun. Weird, different, goofy, it rocks and it stretches across a couple of genres. It is Funk, Folk, Rock, a little Rap, and what the hell does “soy un perdedor” mean? I still like “Loser,” but 20 years ago, I LOVED IT!

I used to listen to this album a lot, but then when the dust settled and I was moving on to other records to fixate on, I would always go back to “Beercan,” “Pay No Mind,” and “Truckdrivin’ Neighbors Downstairs.” “C’mon motherfucker, put your clothes on!” Those are still my favorites and from this listen I got reacquainted with “Fuckin’ With My Head,” and “Nitemare Hippie Girl.”

The line that resonated the most from Mellow Gold is "give the finger to the Rock N' Roll singer, as he dances upon you paycheck," from "Pay No Mind." Boy, did we ever! We took the shirt right off his back.

I interviewed Beck once and they made a big deal about not asking him about him being a Scientologist.

A few weeks ago Jake Bugg played a show in NYC. I didn't hear about it until it was about to happen and it seemed like every hipster, music geek and Anglophile in New York City was pooping themselves over this kid. I hand't heard of him. So, I decided to throw his album on my 2013 Year Of Music playlist.

I was sitting on a train when I started listening to this album and about a minute into “Lightning Bolt,” I was looking around the car for somebody to talk to about Jake Bugg! “Hey stranger, have you heard of Jake Bugg? No? Here check this out, pop my earbuds in, don’t worry about all the wax, the song is worth it.”

I was smiling ear to ear listening to this album. To me, Jake sounded like the reincarnation of Woody Guthrie and he’s only like 19! Coincidentally, Jake Bugg was born the day before Beck’s Mellow Gold was released. Now I hate him. 

2.22.13

On February 22nd I listened to LL Cool J Radio, Neutral Milk Hotel In The Aeroplane Over The Sea, and Metric Synthetica.

I was right there in 1985 when LL Cool J appeared in Krush Groove and released his debut album, Radio... at all of 17-years-old. It’s far from a perfect record, but there’s plenty of ground breaking music here! Produced by Rick Rubin, Radio definitely has plenty of“ahhhh shit” moments and still sounds pretty fresh.

The opening track “I Can’t Live Without My Radio,” oozes bravado. Then there’s some crud to wade through. “You Can’t Dance” and “Dear Yvette” are just awful. I can’t remember if I liked them back in the day. Fast forward to “Three The Hard Way,” “Rock The Bells,” and “That’s A Lie,” and then you got a party!

LL took quite an interesting career path, huh?

I’m not embarrassed to say that sometimes “Holland, 1945” makes me cry. I am embarrassed to say that I never bothered to listen to this album until it was out for five years. I was writing up a Decemberists record for some shitty music rag and needed to list a couple bands similar to them for what we called “Recommended If You Like.” I couldn't think of anybody. Finally a co-worker said Neutral Milk Hotel and I was like, “what? Who?”

In The Aeroplane Over The Sea gets to be a little too much for me as a whole thing, but taken in small doses can be quite enjoyable. The title track, “Two Headed Boy,” and “Ghost” are plenty weird, but I like ‘em. And that’s all that matters.

Sadly, I only like one Metric song, “Combat Baby” from their 2003 debut. I really have to spend more time with this band. Emily Haines should be a superstar.

“Youth Without Youth,” “Lost Kitten,” and “The Void” are just three songs that stuck out to me from this listen. “Clone” is a nice little jam too. Then old man Lou Reed pops up on “The Wanderlust” and it’s chilly! Goosebumps! No, I’m just fuckin' with ya... Lou adds nothing. I hope they didn't have to pay him.

Tomorrow I will listen to The Roots Things Fall Apart, Beck Mellow Gold, and Jake Bugg Jake Bugg. 

2.21.13

On February 21st I was supposed to listen to Sam And Dave Soul Men, but I couldn't find it. So, I listened to Sam And Dave Soul Man: Greatest Hits, Oasis Definitely Maybe, and Tribes Baby.

I always loved “Soothe Me,” mostly because of its placement in The Blues Brothers, and there’s a lot of great stuff on this Greatest Hits, but I don’t know what versions I’m getting. If you look at Sam And Dave’s discography on All Music, there are like 100 Great Hits packages! So, I say fooey to this collection!

Although “Hold On I’m Coming” and “Soul Man” are delights! Plus, their versions of “Summertime” and “Dock Of The Bay” are pretty solid.

I was so into “Supersonic” when this album came out in 1994 that it kick started my love affair with gin and tonics. I take mine with a lemon.

Not much to say about Definitely Maybe. An awe inspiring debut from a working class band with a love of The Beatles and a gunny sack filled with hooks. Noel Gallagher's a pimp!

Liam is NOT a pimp.

Will I ever see Oasis play live again? I dunno, maybe?

I don't think Baby did much here in the States which is a shame because it's a solid effort. 

“Whenever” is one of my favorite songs of 2012! It's got this giant hook of a chorus, a great bass line, and the lyrics are a delicious farce! I fuckin' love it! Go listen to it right now, dickhead!

I also really dig “Corner Of An English Field” “Half Way Home,” "We Were Children," and “When My Day Comes.”

I just read that Tribes will release their second album this May and it’s called Wish To Scream. We’ll definitely be listening to that!

Tomorrow I listen to LL Cool J Radio, Neutral Milk Hotel In The Aeroplane Over The Sea, and Metric Synthetica. 

2.20.13

On February 20th I listened to The Fat Boys The Fat Boys, Soundgarden Louder Than Love, and The Killers Battle Born.

When I was 13-years-old I thought this album was great and that The Fat Boys were hysterical. Disorderlies, their movie, pretty much squashed the thought that they were funny and listening to this album again definitely killed any thought of it being any kind of good.

Produced by Mr. Eight Million Stories himself, Kurtis Blow needed to reign this album in, but he decided to treat it like a pair of The Fat Boys’ pants and let it out.

The average length of a song is like six minutes and they barely rap for half of each track. It’s all garbage filler! I finally get why my dad hated when I was listening to this album. It’s absolutely grating.

Yet, there’s still a little magic here! Prince Markie Dee, Cool Rock-Ski, and The Human Beatbox (Donuts to Heaven. R.I.P.) were definitely an original and the whole beatbox thing was just so different from everything!

I forgot all about the intro to “Stick ‘Em.” I used to say this all the time, “Y’all hook my mic up please. Make. Kurt, make the bass come out so clear. Please.” I also used to drive most people crazy by randomly breaking out into “BRRRRR! stick ‘em! HA HA HA stick ‘em!” whenever. I don’t think I ever noticed they don’t actually say “BRRRRR! Stick ‘em” in “Stick ‘Em,” but they do in “Human Beatbox?” I dunno, maybe.

"All You Can Eat," is the jam!

I was hoping to walk away from this listen of Louder Than Love with an appreciation for more than “Big Dumb Sex.” I kinda liked “Get On The Snake,” and I definitely remember liking “Full On Kevin’s Mom” for like a hot second back in the day, but this album is a little too muddy for me. 

I would definitely agree that “Runaways” was one of the best songs of 2012, but Battle Born is not one of the best albums. It is one giant single and a bunch of beautifully recorded songs that don't do much.

Look at the royalty that helped The Killers make this album! Steve Lillywhite (Every great U2 album), Brendan O’Brien (Every album made in the 90’s), Daniel Lanois (The Joshua Tree), Alan Moulder (mixed Siamese Dream and The Downward Spiral) and Stuart Price (Madonna and Seal) all came together to craft what should be a classic record!

I think I can find everything wrong with this album in the song “Here With Me.” Brandon Flowers attempts to add weight and beauty to the line “I don’t want your picture on my cell phone, I want you here with me” and it comes off like he’s been attending the Taylor Swift School Of Song Writing. Enroll now! Spring classes start soon!

“Deadlines And Commitments” sounds like a cross between 80’s easy listening and Laura Branigan and maybe that’s what they were shooting for. I dunno, maybe?

I do love The Killers though. Hot Fuss is a masterpiece! Since their debut, they've been good for a hit or two an album and that's more than enough. 

Tomorrow I listen to Sam And Dave Soul Men, Oasis Definitely Maybe, and Tribes Baby.