Huey Lewis on Wine and Cheese

The rarely informative, always entertaining Aidin Vaziri talks to Huey Lewis:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/06/19/PKGJNCEQOH1.DTL&type=printable

Q: How many millions of albums did you sell?

A: Oh, gosh. I don't know. Look it up. Do you think I'm tacky enough to tell you how many records we sold? You go ahead and tell them.

Q: Facts and I don't really get along.

A: Well, that's a hell of an admission.

Bloc Party Live MP3

NPR has a free mp3 version of a Bloc Party concert from June 16. You can download it here.

In Case You Didn't Feel Like Puking Today

Starbucks has exclusive Dylan for 18 months:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4629233.stm

New Releases This Week

A Band of Bees -- Free the Bees (Astralwerks) 3/5
The Fall -- The Complete Peel Sessions (Castle Us)
Fountains of Wayne -- Out-of-State Plates (Virgin)
Pajo -- Pajo (Drag City)
The Posies -- Every Kind of Light (Rykodisc)
Skeletons and the Girl-Faced Boys -- Git (Ghostly International) 3.5/5 buy it
Tsar -- Band-Girls-Money (TVT)

Genya Review Finally Up

Well, not so much "finally up" as "finally scribbled," but you get the idea. Here's my quick take on Genya Ravan's memoirs:

http://www.stylusmagazine.com/blog/archives/2005_06.php#001864

Pick of the Week (6/27/05)

Various Artists -- No New York (Antilles) 1978

It's not so much that I enjoy this music as that I'm glad someone made it.


[Story behind today's pick: Best yard sale ever on Saturday -- someone was selling 700 or so records because, as his wife said, their house was filling up with books and records. I can relate. For a total of $4, I managed to pick up this and a Mitch Ryder hits collection (which was disappointing), but plenty of great stuff was out, including the original LP of Keith Moon's Two Sides of the Moon. It's nice to know you can find that kind of sale on occasion.]

Reader, Can You Spare a Dime?

Below is a press release I thought was worth passing on. Anyone who has instruments knows not only the monetary value of them, but also the emotional attachment, and it's hard to imagine the invasiveness of such a theft:

RUFIO, currently on the road with Alkaline Trio in support of their upcoming release, The Comfort of Home, had the misfortune of losing all of their gear, merch and luggage last night when the bands trailer was stolen after their show in Montreal, Quebec.


The band issued the following statement today to their fans, asking for their help:

“Hey Everyone,
After an amazing show in Montreal we returned to our hotel to find our trailer containing all of our music equipment, merchandise, and luggage, gone. Police officials say the trailer was unhitched from the van and pushed back with enough room for a vehicle to reattach itself to the trailer and leave with the trailer in tow. Needless to say, all of us in Rufio are in a state of despondency and are asking for any help you can give to get us back on our feet. These people took our livelihoods and everything we have from us. If you can find it in you to give even $10, we would deeply appreciate it. You can donate money by sending money to rufio@newnoisemanagement.com through PayPal or to:


Rufio
c/o New Noise Management
207 N. Broadway
Suite I
Santa Ana, CA 92701

Thanks so much for even the smallest gift you can give,
Jon and Rufio”

The band will finish up the Alkaline Trio with borrowed equipment before jumping on the Warped Tour June 6 in Pomona.

www.nitrorecords.com
www.rufiomusic.com

New Releases This Week

A bit of a slow week from where I stand...

Boom Bap Project -- Reprogram (Rhymesayers)
Laura Cantrell -- Humming by the Flowered Vine (Matador)
Dropkick Murphys -- The Warrior's Code (Epitaph)
Mayday -- Bushido Karaoke (Saddle Creek) 2.5/5
Ol' Dirty Bastard -- The Definitive Ol' Dirty Bastard Story (Rhino)
Stina Nordenstam -- The World Is Saved (V2) 2.5/5
Télépopmusik -- Angel Milk (Capitol) 3/5
V/A -- Six Feet Under: Everything Ends (Astralwerks) 2.5/5
Wooden Wand and the Vanishing Voice -- XIAO (Troubleman Unlimited)

Pick of the Week

Genya Ravan -- ...And I Mean It! (20th Century Fox) 1979

Genya's voice isn't as strong on this album as it was on her Ten Wheel Drive recordings, but it's still in its own class. Genya's realizing her vision on this one, her final solo work (I'm pretty sure) -- combining punk, new wave, and traditional r'n'r.

The Kevin Blechdom Puzzle

I've been told it's just a break-up album, but that's not doing it for me. It's so...weird. And lots of the music I listen to, I suppose, is weird in one way or another, but with Blechdom it's a little different. The problem (or joy for some, maybe, but problem for me in figuring out how to rate it on my 1-5 scale) is that I can't tell if the album is deranged Broadway-inspired ramblings (Wesley Willis as Sondheim with MIDI) or artful presentation of deliberately over-the-top performance.

The issue, of course, is: do I need to know/feel where KB is coming from to talk about the album? Aren't I supposed to receive the text on its own merits?

Well, yes and no (I thought I'd always say yes to these questions). On my first and only listen so far, I found myself cut off from signifying moorings. I couldn't tell what grounds I was supposed to receive this one on. Theory-trained auteurism, ironic anti-hipsterism, Romantic self-divulgence? It's my failing, and not the album's or the artist's, that leads me to this spot of indecision.

But simply put: bizarre-good or bizarre-bizarre?

New Releases This Week

Bear Vs Shark -- Terrorhawk (Equal Vision)
Kevin Blechdom -- Eat My Heart Out (Chicks on Speed) 1-3.5/5
Caitlin Cary and Thad Cockrell -- Begonias (Yep Roc)
Ry Cooder -- Chavez Ravine (Nonesuch)
Embrace -- Out of Nothing (Lava)
Brian Eno -- Another Day on Earth (Rykodisc)
Fat Joe -- All or Nothing (Atlantic)
Jason Forrest -- Lady Fantasy EP (Sonig)
Girl Friday -- Swimmer (Get Fresh) 2.5/5
The Hotel Alexis -- The Shining Example Is Lying on the Floor (Broken Sparrow) 3/5
John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers -- Road Dogs (Eagle Rock) 3/5
The Orange Peels -- Circling the Sun (Parasol)
Partyline -- Girls with Glasses EP (Retard Disco) 2.5/5
The Pernice Brothers -- Discover a Lovelier You (Ashmont) 3/5
Michelle Shocked -- Threesome (Mighty Sound) 4/5


PS - If anyone can confirm a release date on the new Stevie Wonder, please let me know. I've found listings for May and two Tuesdays in June.

Pick of the Week 6/13/05

J. Geils Band -- Sanctuary (EMI) 1979

There's still a bit of housepartying left in these guys, but there's a dirtier edge on this one. For collectors out there, I tracked it down on vinyl for about a third of the price of what I could find it for on CD...

New Blogger with the Hippin and Hoppin

Joe Schloss is blogging now, which makes him the first of my former profs to do so (I think). He oversaw the original version of this article. Anyway, Joe's definitely worth reading. Add this one to your bookmarks and read regularly.

Coincidence alert: Joe influenced my opinion of Sly Stone, who was my pick of the week a few days ago.

Get Off My Radio!

Okay, I want to hear your picks: what songs do you never want to hear come on your radio again?

"Classical Gas" -- It was on my classical rock radio station today. It's not really much of anything, and it's too serious to be enjoyed as a novelty song. I've heard it enough times, it can retire now.

New Releases This Week

Annie -- Anniemal (679)
Antony & the Johnsons -- Hope There's Someone EP (Secretly Canadian)
Black Mountain -- Druganaut EP (Secretly Canadian)
Junior Brown -- Greatest Hits (Curb)
Circus Devils -- Five (Recordhead)
Clumsy Lovers -- Smart Kid (Nettwerk)
Decomposure -- At Home and Unaffected (Unschooled) 3/5
Corey Harris -- Daily Bread (Rounder)
Kraftwerk -- Minimum Maximum (Astralwerks) 4/5
Madagascar -- Forced March (Western Vinyl)
The Planet The -- You Absorb My Vision (5RC) 2.5/5
The Spinto Band -- Nice and Nicely Done (Bar/None) 3/5
Teenage Fanclub -- Man-Made (Merge)
Turin Brakes -- JackInABox (Astralwerks) 3/5
Vetiver -- between EP (DiCristina Staircase)
The White Stripes -- Get Behind Me Satan (V2) 3.5/5
Buckwheat Zydeco -- Jackpot! (Tomorrow) 3/5
V/A -- Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus (soundtrack) (V2) 3.5/5

Pick of the Week (6/6/05)

Sly and the Family Stone -- There's a Riot Goin' On (Epic) 1971

Not my area of expertise, but is this the best funk album ever? Not as crazy sounding as I'd thought it would be, but this one's a monster. The individual tracks you've likely heard on anthologies (especially "Family Affair") take on new meaning in the context of the album.

Best Recent Headline

Tiny Mix Tapes can be a bit precious, but they've nailed the Jack White story today, with a perfect headline and very funny article.

Shop at the New Store

Wrong Note Media now has a shop set up through Cafe Press. You can buy t-shirts, baby clothes, clocks, and the whatnot here. Yes, I'm affiliated with Wrong Note Media, but I won't make money off these products. In fact, I'm sure to only lose cash on the store... :)

And in related news, Cafe Press appears to no longer selling "donkey punch" products. A big thank you to them, and to everyone who wrote letters or called to complain.

Bunch of Hysterical Women

I'm pissed. Not at Anthony -- he's entitled to his opinion, and I think he's more misconstruing and minimalizing the danger than avoid ing. Not at Chuck Eddy -- he's free to run whatever he wants. I do wish someone at the Voice had thought about this a bit more, though. Do we really need writing on why something like "Wait" could be defensible? Other than stirring up the inevitable controversy, does such a thesis contribute anything to the public minds?

I'm just pissed at the world in general.

Pitchfork got it right on this one, and I'm especially glad to see a guy stepping up on it. The main responders (Hopper and Shepard) have been women, which is awesome, but this is NOT a woman's issue. It's a fucking human issue, and until more men are willing to call a prick a prick (so to speak), it's only going to slowly get better. Thanks to Ian for speaking up, too, even if we don't exactly agree.

Comments like this one: "Accusations of phallocentrism and misogyny are usually accompanied by humorless disinclination to debate that's instinctively, um, autocratic." by very good writer Alfred Soto are every bit as offensive (and more insidious) than the original pussy-beatin' stuff. If the YYT can get away with "oh, I'm only joking" and every girl grows up knowing that "I'm only joking" means it's time to shut the fuck up, then what does it mean when a male critic says, "Hey, you're humorless"? It means, "Shut the fuck up because you're not entertaining me and you're being self-righteous and that's so uncool." The thing is, I like Alfred. It's an issue, and not a personal thing.

But where's all the debate, and why is this shit (the music) being produced, and why are people buying it? A week or two ago, I asked in an incoherent ramble why people were afraid of the label feminist. I never thought it would become such an immediate issue, though.

I look forward to hearing from (hopefully) Mark Anthony Neal and filmmaker Byron Hurt.