Octopodial Chrome

Jake Shimabukuro (one of the best uke players out there today) covers Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody:

Terrific version! I really do love covers in general.

A popular note going around Facebook requests that one list…

…[fifteen] albums that had such a profound effect on you they changed your life or the way you looked at it. They sucked you in and took you over for days, weeks, months, years. These are the albums that you can use to identify time, places, people, emotions. These are the albums that no matter what they were thought of musically shaped your world.

Well, I don’t know if I’ll reach fifteen, but here are my picks:

Nevermind (Nirvana)

If you were alive in 1991, you know what I mean. With one album—really, one song—what I thought I knew about music was turned completely on its head. It was revolutionary, and it was well-done, unlike so much of the grunge which would follow (Pearl Jam, I’m looking at you).

Use Your Illusion I & II (Guns N’ Roses)

I didn’t really know a lot about GnR at the time, but I understood from the news that Use Your Illusion was a highly-anticipated release. My buddies and I could watch video for November Rain over and over and over (due in no small part to Axl Rose’s then-girlfriend Stephanie Seymour’s role therein) and loved that great guitar solo (it still gives me goosebumps), and I remember spending hours trying to hold the final note of Don’t Cry for as long as possible.

Cooleyhighharmony (Boyz II Men)

Another album that came out in 1991 (I was thirteen then—see a pattern?), the absurdly long-titled It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday seemed very meaningful at the time. I’ve grown up since, but those were good times then.

Top Gun, the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

I’ve written about Top Gun before; suffice it to say that it’s one of my all-time favourite films. The soundtrack itself is magnificent: from Kenny Loggins’s Danger Zone to Berlin’s Take My Breath Away to the Top Gun Anthem, it’s superb. There are only a few lame tracks, but the vast majority are grand. If you don’t like Top Gun you’re a commie, and if you don’t like the soundtrack you’re deaf. It’s that simple.

Different Class (Pulp)

This one came out before I entered college, but I didn’t discover it until after I’d graduated. I was still fairly young, living in my first apartment and used to visit a CD store within walking distance every few weeks. I found Different Class one day and played it near-constantly. Had it been vinyl, I’m sure I would have worn the grooves thin. As it was, I managed to discover Britpop nearly a decade late. Better late than never!

slowdrown (Dim Reflection)

This was the first album I bought that featured friends or acquaintances of mine. Now known as The Farstar, Dim Reflection were a pretty damned good band that my buddy Shannon put together in college.

Are You with Me? (Cowboy Mouth)

My junior year of college I decided not to go home for spring break and instead spent it hanging out with my buddy Phil and his girlfriend Jess. We played golf, ate out, went shooting, bought canes and bowler hats, got hit by a car on a freeway exit—and through it all, this tape was playing in the cassette player. It became the soundtrack for one of the best weeks I’d had up until that point. To this all I need is to hear the first few notes of Jenny Says and I’m in vacation mode.

The ’80s Hit(s) Back!)

I’m not certain, but I believe this is the first CD I ever bought in college. It was a simple compilation, but I played it and played it my freshman year. Good stuff and good times.

The Best of Bond…James Bond

In the fall of 2002 I returned to London for a weeklong vacation; on the way over and back British Airways had this CD playing on one its channels. The trip itself was a bit of a washout—I discovered that it’s always better to travel with people—but as soon as I got home I bought the CD and I’ve never looked back. As a small boy I imagined that I looked like James Bond whenever I wore a bow tie (my mother says I looked more like Barney Fife) and rather expected that I’d spend my adult life wearing tuxedos, drinking martinis, driving fast cars, playing with cool gadgets and chasing exotic double-entendre–spouting women. Those dreams might have been disappointed, but this CD never lets me down.

Get a Grip (Ærosmith)

Ærosmith is one of those bands whose lives are pitiable, but whose music is just spectacular. Ironically, I’ve never owned Get a Grip, but Cryin’ (which launched Alicia Silverstone’s brief career) and Crazy were huge favourites in my early teens in Virginia, while Amazing was constantly on the jukebox while I was at an engineering program shortly after moving to Denver. Steven Tyler, Joe Perry and the rest have done a lot of things they should be ashamed of, but they sure did make some great rock & roll.

Well, that’s nine, and I honestly can’t think of any more so I’ll stop here. Besides, nine is so much more pleasant a number than fifteen anyway.

Here’s a nice takedown of the BOSE Acoustimass system. The short version: save your money and spend less on a better product from a reputable company.

Cracked.com have hit it out of the park with their list of inspirational 80s songs. It’s amazing how those songs can make anything seem powerful and profound; I was eating an apple when I started listening to Europe’s The Final Countdown, and now I’ve rescued by mentor from a North Korean prison, Mia Sara’s wearing my letter jacket and my dad just bought me a Corvette. Cool dude!

A bit off-colour, but absolutely hilarious.

Last night I went with John & his girlfriend Gen to see Dolores O’Riordan (former lead singer for The Cranberries). It was an incredible show!

The opener was singer/songwriter Jessie Baylin. Unfortunately, we missed much of her set, but what I heard was just amazing. Her voice is beautiful, and she’s not too hard on the eyes either:

Keep an eye out for great things to come from her in the future. I got her five-song EP part of You (appropriately titled, since the songs are part of her forthcoming album You!…), and every song is wonderful. Quirky & fun, with just enough sexiness to tie everything together.

O’Riordan’s set was great. She alternated old favourites like Linger and Zombie with stuff from her solo album, and all was worth hearing. Her new stuff is much rockier than the earlier, poppier Cranberries work—but it was all quite enjoyable. Listening to the older songs made me feel as though I were back in college again, always a fine feeling.

Hopefully I’ll be able to catch both these talented singers passing through Denver again.

Take your top 20 artists. For each of these artists, collect the top 5 similar artists. The resulting number of unique artists is your eclectic score. If the score is small (extreme = 5) your musical preferences are very limited, and if it is large (larger than 80, extreme = 100), then you have an eclectic musical preference. You can compute your own score.

My eclectic score is currently 84/100

The 84 related artists for my profile are:

• AC/DC (twice)
• Aerosmith
• Air
• All Girl Summer Fun Band
• Armando Trovaioli
• BR5-49
• Beck
• Belle and Sebastian (twice)
• Benny Goodman
• Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
• Billy Joe Shaver
• Blackstone Valley Sinners
• Blondie
• Blur
• Bob Dylan (twice)
• Bon Jovi
• Bruno Nicolai
• Buckskin Stallion
• Camera Obscura
• Cat Power
• Cherry Poppin' Daddies
• CocoRosie
• David Bowie (twice)
• Eagles
• Elton John (twice)
• Eric Clapton (twice)
• Fleetwood Mac
• Frank Sinatra
• Go Sailor
• Goldfrapp
• Guns N' Roses
• Hugo Montenegro
• Jane Baxter Miller
• Jay Munly
• John Barry
• Jon Rauhouse
• Kelly Hogan
• Led Zeppelin (thrice)
• Luke Haines
• Lynyrd Skynyrd
• Mark Knopfler
• Metallica
• Moby
• Morrissey
• Munly
• New Order
• Nine Inch Nails
• Piero Piccioni
• Pink Floyd (twice)
• Placebo
• Pulp
• Queen (thrice)
• R.E.M.
• Radiohead
• Red Hot Chili Peppers
• Rosie Flores
• Saint Etienne
• Sam Prekop
• Slim Cessna's Auto Club
• Stephin Merritt
• Stereolab
• Suede
• The 6ths
• The Apples in Stereo
• The Auteurs
• The Beatles (thrice)
• The Brian Setzer Orchestra
• The Clientele
• The Cure
• The Denver Gentlemen
• The Field Mice
• The Gothic Archies
• The High Llamas
• The Magnetic Fields
• The Meat Purveyors
• The Rolling Stones (four times)
• The Sea and Cake
• The Smiths
• The Stone Roses
• The Who
• The Woodys
• Tullycraft
• U2
• Waco Brothers

I always knew I'd eclectic tastes, in music as elsewhere.

And on this the final day of May, here’s the May mix from DrFaustus:

1. Ben Lee: Catch My Disease
2. Patrick & Eugene: The Birds and the Bees
3. Tears for Fears: Everybody Wants to Rule the World
4. The Talking Heads: (Nothing but) Flowers
5. U2: The Sweetest Thing
6. Zwan: Yeah
7. Owsley: Coming Up Roses
8. Ween: Push th’ Little Daisies
9. Bobby Hebb: Sunny
10. Wes Cunningham: Good Good Feeling
11. The Beatles: And Your Bird Can Sing
12. The Polyphonic Spree: Light and Day/Reach for the Sun

Yet another fun monthly mix. I’ll be sad when December arrives and I’ll have heard them all. Of course, that just means I can turn around & queue ‘em up again!

RIAA Radar provide a cool indie top 100 list based on non-RIAA CDs and Amazon sales figures. Pretty nice tool and a way to get your music without supporting the RIAA.

Continuing my tradition of posting monthly mixes from epinion’s DrFaustus, here’s the April mix:

1. The Merrymakers: April’s Fool
2. XTC: Then She Appeared
3. Beck: Tropicalis
4. Pizzicato 5: Baby Love Child
5. The Apples in Stereo: The Rainbow
6. Chris Isaak: Somebody’s Crying
7. Shivaree: Goodnight Moon
8. The Kinks: Village Green Preservation Society
9. The La’s: There She Goes
10. Jill Sobule: Rainy Day Parade
11. Thunderclap Newman: Something in the Air
12. Rufus Wainwright: April Fools

Yet again, a fine mix for a fine month.

And here’s the March Mix, to go along with those from December, January and February.

1. David Bowie: Changes
2. Ben Lee: Whatever It Is
3. The Beach Boys: Sloop John B
4. Sarah Harmer: Basement Apartment
5. Wilco: Kamera
6. Soul Coughing: True Dreams of Wichita
7. Neil Finn: She Will Have Her Way
8. Jon Brion: Knock Yourself Out
9. The Eels: Grace Kelly Blues
10. Steely Dan: Gaucho
11. Billy Joe: Vienna
12. John Hiatt: Before I Go

A very nice little mix. I’m coming to dread November, when I will have finished the monthly mixes.

Sorry to have not posted the February Mix to go with my previous articles on the December and January mixes. This one is:

1. Don McClean: American Pie
2. Donald Fagen: Snowbound
3. Modest Mouse: The Ocean Breathes Salty
4. Supertramp: Crime of the Century
5. Jon Bon Jovi: Livin’ on a Prayer (This Left Feels Right version)
6. Tom Waits: Downtown Train
7. Marvin Gaye: Mercy Mercy Me
8. Jethro Tull: Bouree
9. Elliot Smith: Memory Lane
10. Aimee Mann: Wise Up
11. Tracy Chapman: Fast Car
12. U2: All I Want Is You

Once again DrFaustus delights the ears.

I’ve earlier written about the December Mix; now I’m listening to the January Mix. This month’s songs are:

1. Death Cab for Cutie: The New Year
2. The Postal Service: Such Great Heights
3. Billy Bragg: A New England
4. Walter Egan: Magnet and Steel
5. The Beatles: Nowhere Man
6. Brendan Benson: Cold Hands, Warm Heart
7. David Grey: Please Forgive Me
8. The Doves: Snowden
9. Joe Jackson: Steppin’ Out
10. Dream Academy: Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want
11. Regina Spektor: Us
12. Aztec Camera: Walk Out to Winter

While not quite as perfect as the December Mix, it’s still a great listen—check it out.

From Epionons.com comes DrFaustus’s December Mix. Read the entire article (which has comments on each piece), but here’s the list of titles:

1. Snow Patrol: Chocolate
2. Matt Pond PA: Holiday Road
3. Pezband: Baby It’s Cold Outside
4. John Mayer: Waiting on the World to Change
5. Steely Dan: Reelin’ in the Years
6. Simon & Garfunkel: Homeward Bound
7. Warren Zevon: Keep Me in Your Heart for a While
8. Fountains of Wayne: Valley Winter Song
9. The Pretenders: 2,000 Miles
10. Supertramp: Even in the Quietest Moments
11. The Flaming Lips: Do You Realize?
12. Semisonic: Closing Time

I’m downloading the songs now, but just from the familiar ones and the mix notes it sounds like DrFaustus knows his stuff. I first discovered his January Mix, which sounds just about perfect for that month, and can’t wait to move forward through the rest of the year.

My old friend Lara posted a link to this cool collection of 80s music videos. Al I can say is that the art form was under-developed then. There’s really no excuse for it. But the music still rocks…

There’s an excellent radio station a co-worker introduced me to: Radio Nigel. Just point your streaming audio tool at stream.radionigel.com, and Bob’s your uncle.

I don’t believe that I’ve pointed this out before, but 80s new wave really is the pinnacle of musical development. Thousands of years of years of musical development starting with the first caveman to hit two rocks together to get a beat going, and it peaked with synth-pop. Everything after that has been just…sad.

Recently I had to put together a list of essential new wave for a friend. The final playlist—formed after much consultation with my co-workers, all of whom were young men two decades ago—was:

1. Dead or Alive: You Spin Me Round
2. Dream Academy: Please, Please, Please Let Me
3. Madness: Our House
4. Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark: If You Leave
5. New Order: Blue Monday
6. Heaven 17: Let Me Go
7. The Smiths: How Soon is Now
8. Thompson Twins: Hold Me Now
9. Modern English: I Melt with You
10. The Church: Under the Milky Way
11. When in Rome: The Promise
12. Depeche Mode: Just Can’t Get Enough

Anyone who doesn’t like these songs is that much less than human.

There’s now a way to find the top Billboard&tradem; song on any day; the day I was born it was With a Little Luck by Wings. On my second birthday it was Blondie’s Call Me–which makes me feel very, very young indeed.

Music-Map offer a neat service: you tell ’em a band you enjoy, and they draw you a map of the artists similar to them. Already I’ve a few bands I need to try...

Whilst I was over at my folks’ house yesterday for Christmas dinner, my kid brother introduced me to Trespassers William, a truly superb band in the same vein as Splendid and The Sundays—in other words, a band which would have fit in great on a Buffy the Vampire Slayer soundtrack. And in fact, that’s exactly what they did. Say what you will about Buffy the show and it philosophical underpinnings (and there are valid criticisms of both), but it had some excellent music; indeed, some of the best in recent memory.

Anyway, Trespassers William are a great band, and you need to hear their stuff. Also, anyone whose name comes from Milne’s Winnie the Pooh (which is not to be confused with the horrid Disney version) can’t be all bad:-)

And many thanks to Stephen, for bringing them up.

Some years back the Music Genome Project was started in an attempt to classify as many songs as possible; Pandora is the culmination of that effort. One simply tells it a few musicians or songs one likes, and it uses fairly significant human analysis of the songs in its database (over 300,000, I believe) to predict some more in the same style which you might like. Pretty cool—cool enough to get me to spring $36 for a year’s membership.

last.fm provides music-tracking and Internet radio. You install a plug-in for your music player, and last.fm can figure out folks who listen to music you like, and check out their tunes. You install their free player, and you can listen to a custom radio station which they believe you’ll like. One’s friends can even listen to a radio station customised to one’s own preferences. It’s pretty sweet.

I’m eadmund there.

I was just listening to the Eagles tonight. The DVD of Hell Freezes Over is absolutely incredible. I remember back in college an acquaintance had the CD; it’s nothing compared to the DTS surround-sound experience.

It’s odd to think that it was nearly a decade ago that I first heard Hell Freezes Over. I was much younger, and happier, then.

I went and saw The Wallflowers with my youngest brother this evening. Wow! I hadn’t realised how many truly great songs they’d released: One Headlight, of course; Sixth Avenue Heartache too; but also Heroes and The Difference. I also didn’t realise that the lead singer is the son of Bob Dylan (which would explain why I thought he sounded like a cross between Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen at various points). They know how to handle a crowd (their opener too had this down pat)—at one point, the lead singer grabbed a fan’s cell phone and sang into it!

Also, I got to talk to a girl, so all in all it was a nice evening.

Listening to Rebel Rouser this evening, it occurred to me what a fine tune it is. Like November Rain or In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida, it has he quality that it could be played for an hour or two and not seem amiss.

Check out Black Box Recorder, a band out of England with an amazing, hard-to-describe sound: a kind of retro-pop-sophistication which wouldn’t sound at all out of place in a cocktail lounge, except for its often bitter subject matter. I can’t say that I agree with their politics, but I can say that any man who can remain unmoved by Sarah Nixey’s vocals is no man at all. I highly recommend The Facts of Life.