Quote

"Lies and betrayals, fruit covered nails
Electricity and lust"
- Pavement

Picks

Song I've been playing over and over the last two weeks:
Low "California"

Books:
Martin Millar - The Lonely Werewolf Girl
Grant Morrison & Frank Quitely - All Star Superman Vol. 1

Movies:
Watchmen
Coraline

TV:
Lost (the best season ever)
Heroes (not fully back to form but much better than the fall)
and of course
Battlestar Galactica

Alejandro Escovedo at the Music Farm

What a great show!

Alejandro played mostly songs from his new album "Real Animal" including a song written for Iggy Pop. He also dedicated songs to Ron Asheton and Joe Strummer and their influence was definitely felt in the songs he played, especially "Chelsea Hotel '78".

His new album is a look back at his career with bands like the Nuns, True Believers and Rank And File.

The sound was great and all around me people were having a great time. If you get the chance to see him, do so.

Top 10 Albums of 2008

1. Centro-matic/South San Gabriel "Dual Hawks"
Double albums are hard to pull off. Count how many truly great double albums come to mind. Not that many, right? This is
the best double album I've heard in a long long time.

2. Okkervil River "Stand Ins"
The companion piece to their last album "The Stage Names". They should have been released together and this would have been the best double album I've heard in a long long time.

3. Jenny Lewis "Acid Tongue"
Last time she was funneled through folk and country, this time it's soul, r & b and gospel and Gawd-o-mighty it's good.

4. Death Cab for Cutie "Narrow Stairs"
Their best album as far as I'm concerned. They tend to get too precious at times, but they avoid that almost completely on this one.

5. Amanda Palmer "Who Killed Amanda Palmer?"
Listen to "Leeds United", a mix of piano and cabaret singing and you will most likely be hooked. She also gets the prize for album title of the year, hell, the decade.

6. Destroyer "Trouble In Dreams"
I was a huge Destroyer fan after "This Night" came out, but my interest waned over the subsequent albums. This to me is a big return to form.

7. Hello Saferide "More Modern Short Stories From..."
Hello Saferide. I first discovered them on Cable and Tweed's blog. Annika has a great voice and the lyrics are really something special. I love it when she sings "You Stupid Fuck" three times in a row.

8. Black Mountain "In the Future"
After their first LP, I was looking forward to this one immensely and it was not a disappointment.

9. Shearwater "Rook"
Another beautiful record from this band led by Jonathan Meiburg who used to be part of Okkervil River.

10. Elvis Costello "Momofuku"
The best Elvis alive. He rarely has a clunker and this album definitely does not clunk.

Honorable Mentions:
Vampire Weekend “s/t”
Mudcrutch “s/t”
Conor Oberst “s/t”
Fleet Foxes “s/t”
Foxboro Hot Tubs “Stop Drop and Roll”
British Sea Power "Do You Like Rock Music?"

Other Awards:
Best album title: Amanda Palmer "Who Killed Amanda Palmer?"
Best Double Album in years: Centro-matic/South San Gabriel "Dual Hawks"
Best Album Cover: Shearwater "Rook"

Amanda Palmer - Leeds United video

Amanda Palmer - Leeds United

Picks

Albums:

Okkervil River - The Stage Names
****This album saved my life for a couple of hours this weekend.
Centro-matic - Operation Motorcide

Books:

Phillip Pullman - The Golden Compass
John Le Carre - The Call for the Dead

An attempt to repay debts

These are a few artists that I always thought received short shrift. I don't think any of these acts have received their due and deserve fame and fortune beyond your wildest dreams. I can honestly say I've never heard a bad song by any of these four. Their albums have given me countless hours of pleasure and this is my all-too ineffectual attempt to say thanks.

Centro-matic

Will Johnson is one of those rare, prolific songwriters. The type whose songcraft quality doesn't diminsh due to the volume of his output. He doesn't put out as much as Pollard, but he has two solo records and there are three South San Gabriel records in addition to all the marvelous Centro-matic records. Get them all.

www.centro-matic.com


Tommy Keene

Tommy Keene is a Pop Zeus. A number of his albums are out of print and that is a crime. Geffen Records, I'm looking at you especially.

www.tommykeene.com


Buffalo Tom

Buffalo Tom are arguably the best live band ever. They have a new album, for which their fans have been eagerly waiting nine years, coming out July 10th.

www.buffalotom.com


Chris Knight

Chris Knight is a country artist, real country. His songs should be played everywhere coast to coast.

www.chrisknight.net

This week's picks

Albums:
McClusky - McClusky Do Dallas
Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

Movies:
Slither

Books:
Nick Hornby - A Long Way Down
Jonathan Lethem - Fortress of Solitude