2.12.13

On February 12th I listened to Stevie Wonder Songs In The Key Of Life, The Doors Strange Days, and Jack White Blunderbuss.

Here’s how big of a dope I am. I must have heard “Sir Duke,” a million times in my life. If you would have asked me what it was called yesterday I would have said, “I dunno, “You Can Feel It?"

I would say that happens to me like once or twice a year. I find out what the proper name of a song that I have been listening to for years is and I'm shocked! "That song is called what?!" 

Songs In The Key Of Life is a ginormous double album filled with a lot of good shit. It was really nice to hear Stevie’s “Pastime Paradise.” I can’t believe he let Coolio puke all over such brilliance.

“Isn’t She Lovely,” “I Wish,” and “Ordinary Pain,” are all the other standouts. I really loved when the chick starts singing on the second half of “Ordinary Pain.” I’m not gonna say this album didn’t get long winded at times, cause boy did it! But I’ll cut Mr. Wonder some slack.

I once saw Stevie play in Atlantic City and he did a 15 minute version of “Superstition!” The guy really knows what his audience wants to hear.

I can’t remember the last time I really enjoyed hearing “Love Me Two Times!” I did today! I’m really so happy I spent 15 years avoiding The Doors!

Lot of stuff on Strange Days, I didn’t know. “You’re Lost Little Girl,” “Unhappy Girl,” and “I Can’t See Your Face In My Mind.” I kinda liked “My Eyes Have Seen You,” and “Horses Latitude” really creeped the fuck outta me. Job well done.

I have a vague notion of engineering a phone interview with Ray Manzarek and he told the story of “Moonlight Drive.” But I think he tells that story to everybody. “Strange Days” was cool to hear, but I’m still indifferent to “People Are Strange.” The last radio station I worked for played the Echo And The Bunnymen version like twice a day.

Blunderbuss is probably the first thing Jack White has done since The White Stripes fell apart that I actually like. The Raccoons just didn't do it for me. I’m guessing if there was another White Stripes album this would have been it and it’s pretty solid all the way through!

I definitely see some parallels with White Blood Cells, in terms of mood and styles. Each song is approached with a respect for rootsy aesthetics, but without The White Stripes stripped down sound. On a song like “Blunderbuss,” you can hear where Jack’s spending the bucks on session players and how living in Nashville is rubbing off on the guy. 

“I’m Shakin’” is really a lot of fun, especially for Jack, cause he doesn't seem like he enjoys laughter too much. “Hip (Eponymous) Poor Boy” is my favorite!

1.7.13

On January 7^th I listened to The Doors The Doors, Jane’s Addiction Nothing’s Shocking and Silversun Pickups Neck Of The Woods. It was L.A. day!

I absolutely loved The Doors. Then I got sick of The Doors. My whole relationship with the band blossomed around 1984 and was over somewhere in the very early 90’s. Although I do specifically remember enjoying “Alabama Song (Whiskey Bar),” whilst drunk in bars until the mid-90’s. Then they just got too Oldies sounding for me.

Any knowledge I have of The Doors comes from the Oliver Stone movie, which is probably wrong on at least three or four levels. Speaking of that movie, it came out when I was in college and ALL my asshole friends decided to go see it on a night that I was flat broke. None of them would spot me, and I didn’t see the movie until it hit HBO six months later. Fuck you Joe Bagodonuts, Brenda, Bones, Judas and Big Girl. I got a lot of homework done that night, anyway! I’m glad you wouldn't spot me the 8 bucks!

Sadly, this is another Greatest Hits band for me. I had it on vinyl and “Roadhouse Blues” was, is and will always be my favorite Doors jam. I listened to their Greatest Hits so much that after their self-titled album’s opener “Break On Through,” I was expecting “Roadhouse Blues” to be next. F U Greatest Hits!

Regardless, The Doors The Doors was released in 1967, I was negative four-years-old, and this is probably the first time I have listened to all of it. With the exception of a few duds on Side two (What’s a side, right? If you honestly are too young to know, I wish I could kill you with a rusty kitchen knife and not have to go to jail.)

Side two has a couple of album fillers, but then Jim Morrison’s nearly 12 minute long best friend closes it all down brilliantly. It’s ironic that a line from “The End” was considered so shocking and indecent; it couldn’t be on the album, because the next record I listened to on this day was Jane’s Addiction’s Nothing’s Shocking.

I think in 1988 a lot of shit was pretty fucking shocking, but Jane’s definitely where on to something. The future was going to be X-Rated and they got in the elevator on the ground floor and went straight to the top floor. (Thank you Matt Good for writing that sentence for me.) 

There were a shit ton of bands that came outta L.A. in the late 80’s, but only Jane’s and the Red Hot Chili Peppers truly exhumed everything that city was about. (I’m sure the first asshole response to that statement would be “what about Guns N’ Roses, or Fishbone? F U.)

Really quick, I always felt that Jane's and Guns were shaped from the same mold. 

I remember the exact moment where I was when I first heard “Jane Says” from this album. I was in Jenn Webb’s dorm room and talking about how much I loved a band called The Wonderstuff, she told me to shut up, pulled out Nothing’s Shocking and introduced me what she called "heroin rock." She started with “Jane Says” we did a bunch of bong hits and listened to the whole album. I didn’t like it at first. But I started hanging out with Jenn a lot and Jane’s Addiction’s debut studio album became a cherished classic to me. 

“Ocean Size,” “Had A Dad,” and “Summertime Rolls,” are all the big favorites, but I have been ejected from lesser known drinking establishments for “enjoying myself a little too much,” during “Mountain Song!”

I always loved and hated the fact that “Jane Says” became a hit after the big Alternative Rock explosion that started off the 90’s. I cherish those few years I had when the “norms” didn’t know what Jane said.

I’m a fan of the Silversun Pickups’ singles. Even then I’m really only a fan of their song “Lazy Eye.” 

They’re from L.A. They’ve been around since 2005. They sounds like The Smashing Pumpkins... kinda. There’s a chick in the band, I used to think she was the singer until I saw the band perform on a TV show. They're new album is called Neck Of The Woods. 

I don’t love this band. I don’t hate this band. I went into this record thinking, “gimme one hit.” 

Here’s a track by track rundown, as I looked.

First song “Skin Graph,” wasn’t it. 

Second song, “Make Believe” sounds way too much like Blink 182’s “Adam’s Song.” 

Third song was the first single and its O.K. 

Forth song, “Busy Bees” is O.K. 

Fifth song, “Here We Are” is O.K. with modern day Radiohead bullshit quietly playing in the background. 

Sixth song, “Mean Spirits” is pretty solid. It has a hook! 

Seventh song, “Simmer” eventually comes to a boil, and it’s a little better than O.K.

Man this record is NOT inspiring me at all! I almost wish it truly sucked so I could really stick it to it! But, let me continue to phone in this write up.  

Eighth song, “The Pit,” has a nice hook. If this wasn’t a single, it should me. 

Ninth song, “Dots And Dashes,” has the line of the whole album, “I’m already bored.” 

And the rest.

There’s a band outta Philly called Burning Brides. I used to like them back around 2004 or 2005, and then they kinda went away. I think Silversun Pickups are on that trajectory.

Sorry Barrie. He's my friend that really loves all the crap Silversun shovels.