Weekly Mix #79

Oh Boy! 2011 is here for the mixes which means there aren't very many to go. Much of this mix was made after one of the best weeks in music release memory where it seemed like everything good came out!

1. In a Big Country  by Big Country

Bagpipes! 80s rock! It didn't get any bigger for these Scottish dudes. The singer killed himself a few years back from what I hear.

2. Under Cover of Darkness by The Strokes

The Strokes are back!!! In my mix world they've been around forever but in the real world this was the first album in years and the single is delightfully Strokestacular!

3. Breaker, Breaker by Peter, Bjorn and John
This is the best thing the boys of PB&J have done since they blessed us with the ubiquitous ,Young Folks. Worth the wait, maybe.
4. 1,000,000 by R.E.M.

Their first single ever which nobody heard outside of Atlanta for years, you gotta love that 1980s indie rock!

5. Sing by My Chemical Romance

They got lots of play from this song, especially on some add for some TV show.

6. Being Followed by Duran Duran

I love it, I love their come back album!

7. Everybody Have Fun Tonight by Wang Chung

Stupid but fun. Wang Chung will make another appearance with us in the not too distant future.

8. Twenty Yards behind by Dr. Feelgood

Ska! Ska! Ska!

9. Let England Shake by PJ Harvy

It has been a long time between PJ Harvy listens for me but I'm glad I listened to this new song.

10.S and M by Rihanna

Club Music!

11.Communication by The Power Station

This was their third single and it was damn catchy for dorks like me.

12.Don't Go Away Mad (Just Go Away) by Mötley Crüe

Better words have rarely been spoken

13.Guilty Girls by BuffaloTom

Back from the dead, Buffalo Tom get really catchy and good!

14.Kiss Me On The Bus by The Replacements

Feel good indie rock 1985 style! For me R.E.M and The Matts will always be linked by that college radio of the 80s thing

15.Silver Lining by Rilo Kiley

they'll never get better than Portions for Foxes but they will make some decent tunes.

16.U Should Know Better by Robyn & Snoop Dogg

weird duo but it works and it works well in the Euro disco way

17.Wrong by Depeche Mode

Not a good song to listen to in the middle of the night even though I can't think of any other time I'd want to hear it.

18.Thrones by The Dears

Canadian Rock's best band currently. Arcade Fire and eat a dick straight up.

19.The Crystal Ship by The Doors

Crooning must continue. What is the Crystal Ship anyway?

20.Miss Misery by Elliott Smith
This song would make me kill myself too. This song should have won the Oscar for best song from a motion picture but Celine Dion got it with, My Heart Will Go On, lame. Honestly when you compare the two performances Celine should be embarrassed.

21.Hush by Kula Shaker

It's almost the same as Deep Purple's but is it better than when Charlatans UK did it in the late 80s?

22.Bad Medicine by Bon Jovi
More organ? Let's end on a high rocker!

Listen to it here!

Weekly Mix #77

This is a good one so listen up. 25 songs! Wowzah! Some of the bands are very similar to the ones from the last mix but that's because some of the bands released some good records. 2010 seems to be a better year for music now. Weird, I wonder if I'll think the same thing about 2011 which has been shite for the most part.

1. Howlin' for You by The Black Keys

I think this is my favorite Black Keys song; it's got a good groove with some blues.

2. Heart In A Cage by The Strokes

It's a good one. Not the New York band's best but it still goes the distance.

3. Haunting at 1300 McKinley by The Black Angels

Kind of spooky with good guitars and echoing vocals; it's what the band does best in their 1960s sound quest.

4. People Are Strange by The Doors

Speaking of the 1960s here's the real deal. Morrison delivers some of his coolest lyrics in this little ditty.

5. Summertime by Sex Bob-Omb

More pseudo garage rock from Scott Pilgrim and Beck

6. E nessuno si fara'delmale by Calibro

Instrumentals can be cool but barely get this funky

7. She Said Yeah by The Rolling Stones

Little rock songs that click like this are rare.

8. Caress by The Brian Jonestown Masacre

Some bands want to be the stones real bad

9. Endlessly by Duffy

Some people need the 1960s to have a career even though they weren't born until the 1980s

10.It's Not Unusual by Tom Jones

People are still trying to copy this sound today. Can you beat the real sex bomb?

11.Bring On The Dancing Horses by Echo & The Bunnymen

This is one f the best songs of it's era, morose, bizarre lyrically and big hair. The video is very 80s as well.

12.Jar of Hearts by Christina Perri

Too sad, too much, too much. This song would be aweosme if I was a 12 year old girl.

13.Agents of Love by Wolf Parade

I don't know too much about these guys but the couple songs I know I like

14.Dr. Feelgood by Mötley Crüe

This one rocks so loud and goes out to my friend Jason wherever he is!

15.Don't Ask by Blood Red Shoes

Agressive indie rock. Good vocal and sound, right on! But then I saw their picture and I got kinda' unsure.

16.Don't Forget About Me by John Mellencamp

More awesome roots rock by the Indiana boy

17.Freeze to Me Mama by Koerner, Ray and Glover

This is a song I was introduced to by Pandora, thank you for this little country, folk, blue grass number; it's cool.

18.That's Some Dream by Good Old War

It's sung happily but it isn't really that chipper.

19.Paris 2004 by Peter, Bjorn and John

I was in Paris in 2004; I did not share the same experience.

20.Flowers On The Wall by The Statler brothers

You may recognize this number from Pulp Fiction

21.Sheena Is A Punk Rocker by The Ramones

This is the best Ramones song and if you disagree you can go to hell

22.We Don't Need Another Song About California by My Chemical Romance

Actually we do need another song about California.

23.Life In The Fast Lane by The Eagles

Here's a band from California if not the  band from California. Every day, all the time. I am not the first nor shall I be the last to fall under the spell of Hotel California.

24.Boyfriend by Best Coast

This band grows on me every time I listen to them . . . they're from California

25.My Sweet Lord by George Harrison
This song makes me emotional, sot of makes me feel loved in some weird spiritual way I can't explain well.

Weekly Mix #60

17 is the magic number? Maybe. There are a lot of top notch selections on this mix that I made a few years back. I hope you enjoy.

1. Imminent Bailout by Buckcherry

From a band without a time. Buckcherry is a sleazy rock band in a world of emo dorks

2. The Age of the Understatement by The Last Shadow Puppets
I don't know if it sounds like Tom Jones or Neil Diamond but it definitely sounds like it's from the sixties
3. Mercy by Duffy

One might say she's an Amy Winehouse clone and I won't argue

4. Back to Black by Amy Winehouse

Doing her heartbroken best, Amy knows how to set a voacl mood.

5. Where Did Our Love Go by The Supremes

The originals, the best girl group ever

6. The Chills by Peter Bjorn and John

This is a chilling toned tune by the Scandinavians. If I didn't know better about bands like Abba and all that death metal I would guess this is what music from that part of the world should sound like.

7. Are You Experienced? by Jimi Hendrix

Gorgeous psychedelic rock. When this came out, nothing sounded like it; it was the birth of guitar ecstasy. It takes you to another place in the cosmos of the mind.

8. Fields of Joy by Lenny Kravitz

Following suit Lenny gives the old Psychedelia a try as well, he's helped out by Slash. I didn't take to this song for a bout 17 years.

9. Black Hole Sun by Soundgarden
Beautiful psychedelic guitars from the last great grunge album. From Seattle, Soundgarden scored a huge success with this gem; the video had a lot to do with it. Even though this song was enormous and ubiquitous at it's peak it took me 17 years to finally love it.



10.Five On the Five by The Raconteurs

This song will wake you up from the dripping guitar tribute.

11.Two-Timing Touch and Broken Bones by The Hives.

More rock from lands of the Vikings, Fagersta Sweden.

12.Horror's Theme by The Horrors

More bands should have theme songs

13.Mr. Richards by R.E.M

The boys from Athens Georgia are still at  it even though they haven't sold any records since the 90s

14.The Rip by Portishead

Portishead is back from the dead and just as moody as always. Their third album is not thier best but it is cool to hear what they bring to the soundscape. Welcome to the world of my mixes!

15.Hold On Tight by ELO

Electric Light Orchestra! Jeff Lynn's band does a little throw back music even in the eighties. This song was used in coffee commercials back then.

16.Heart Throb by Be Your Own Pet
This is what non country or western Tennessee rock sounds like, awesome! Well loud and frantic and a little stupid but still good stuff.
17.True Romance by She Wants Revenge

The follow up to Tear You Apart, not as good but still moody L.A. stuff.

18.Guilt By Association by Louis XIV

A band that should have been in the seventies

19.Shadow Of Your Love by Hollywood Rose

This is the band that was part of Guns n' Roses before Gn'R came to be. I wouold have put an L.A. Guns song next but the sucked so instead we shall dance.

20. Don't Stop the Music by Rihanna

Disco time!

21. D.A.N.C.E. by Justice

Keep moving. I don't know too much about this Dj but people love him.

22. Centerfold by The J. Geils Band
Peter Wolf and the boys biggest hit; it's a good sing along if you like na na's

Weekly Mix #55

New Arrivals! peter Bjorn and John, Amy Winehouse, Cold War Kids, Justin Timberlake, Silversun Pickups and the Horrors! This mix was better than I thought! On this mix I started to put more emphasis on new music rather than a couple new tunes surrounded by oldies, for better or worse I think it works very well here! So go and listen, the Heretix song is hard to find btw.


1. Enter Sandman by Metallica

Before this song Metallica was a speed metal band that terrified all. The black album was released and suddenly they were just a big rock metal band that made more money than ever before.

2. Down by Stone Temple Pilots

This is a good song to have as an alarm in the morning. This may be the last ++ song they did.

3. Young Folks by Peter Bjorn and John

PB&J gave whistlers something hot! There's a sweet melancholy in the romance of this Scandinavian band's biggest hit to date. We can welcome them to the mixes too.

4. You Know I'm No Good by Amy Winehouse

From 2007's best album, Amy Winehouse got very real with us in her do wop, soul way.

5. The Chauffeur by Duran Duran

Off one of the great 80s albums, Rio. In live shows, Simon does poetry to this song and whips about a flute from his trousers . . . AWESOME!

6. Sexyback by Justin Timberlake
This song was so huge it even made me want to dance and up until this song I loathed Justin Timberlake and all his mouse buddies.
7. Big Man With A Gun by Nine Inch Nails

Loud, short and nasty

8.Sick, Sick, Sick by Queens of the Stone Age

This song does in fact sound ill

9. Crazy by Patsy Cline

A classic bar room song and heartbroken song

10.You Only Live Once by The Strokes
The New York Boys seemed to loose steam on their third album; it would be five years until their next release.
11.Awake by Letters To Cleo

This song was supposed to be huge for the Boston band; it was supposed to be their big second hit after their song, Here and Now that was on the Melrose Place soundtrack. Never happened for 'em.

12.Sherriff by Heretix

One good Boston band follows the other.

13.Got Me Wrong by Alice In Chains

Let's set the way back machine to 1992 when Alice and Chains came out with their Sap EP.

14.For the Girl by The Fratellis

This song is pleasant

15.Baby, Please Don't Go by Aerosmith

This is from Aerosmith's old rock rhythm and blues album; it was sort of silly as everything sounds too slick.

16.Walk Away by James Gang

Joe Walsh playing guitar and being the man before he got drafted by the Eagles to make them rock.

17.Icky Thump by The White Stripes

Not their best effort but still so good!

18.Hang Me Up to Dry by Cold War kids

 Good song by a little known band

19.She Is The New Thing by The Horrors
Organ is back in a creepy Adam's Family rock style
20.Identify by The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
Critics loved them for a while but for me this album was the only one worth it's balls
21.Common Reactor by Silversun Pickups.

I like this song tons! I liked it much more than their single at the time,  Lazy eye. If Billy Corgan wasn't so insane and full of himself this is what the fourth Smashing Pumpkins album would have sounded like and there would have been great rejoicing instead of a collective, "whateveh" I hope you like reverb!

00s Countdown: The Top 10!!!

Yours is not mine and that's the important thing here as we get down to the nitty gritty of the countdown, the final 10 songs that seem to me to be the ones that deserve to be. If you read the top 10 albums of the decade this will make more sense.

10. It's a Wonderful Life by Sparklehorse
Dreamy, somber and lyrically a bit off, "It's a Wonderful Life" has nothing to do with the Jimmy Stewart movie you see every December. It was a hit but the song sticks in the mind life the odor of fresh bread in the morning.




9. Young Folks By Peter Bjorn and John
PB & J caught your ear with a whistle and a eerie mix of melancholy and hope. Theygot into your ear with that sweet echoing whistle that eaither hooked you or revolted you or in many a case, both. It's just a simple boy meets girl song that could as well in 70s R&B format as it did in modern rock format.



8. Paper Planes by M.I.A.
Thanks to the Clash, M.I.A. got huge! The "Straight to Hell" sample taken out of context is not so sad but still cold to the spine. So she says this song is about driving a cab but I think this means something different than it does to me.



7. Hash Pipe by Weezer
I could have gone with "Beverly Hills" but this one returned the 90s sweater wearing geeks to the limelight. The song is driving and could be tough if it weren't by Weezer.



6. Lose Yourself by Eminem
Embracing movie magic Mr. Mathers got an Oscar for this song about wanting fame, getting fame and living life unhappy. Why this song over, "The Real Slim Shady" or "Without me"? Eminem keeps his habds to himself rather than taking off color jabs at his peers. I never saw "8 Mile" but I hear he lives in a trailer and dates Brittany Murphy



5. Welcome Home by Coheed & Cambria
Welcome to the world of Rock n' Roll heaven! It is epic and powerful like the hammer of the gods, yes I mean Led Zeppelin. The songs makes you desire a long drive preferably in a van with a wizard painted on the side.




A note about the top four: An argument for each of these songs can be made for any of the top 4 slots including number one; it really depends on what constitutes your ranking system for me it's just arbitrary which may or may not send one into a violent rage over the miscellaneous order they've been presented with. I still don't know if any of these songs will be thought about in a few years or if there will be such a backlash against the worst decade ever that all things 2000s will be snarled at like the 1970s were for nearly 30 years. It's possible this is a reason for the lack of any hip-hop in the final four; the music even to it's biggest fans has always had a disposable tag on it. I've entered discussion with rap fans about older songs and am usually put down by a scoff about the song being old and not worth bring up. One can make the same argument with dance music as well, while the song is hot it is the greatest thing thing ever but once it's been overplayed and something else has come along, the piece is discarded until it comes back around at weddings and retromance TV shows, nostalgia programming if you will. So why does rock get to han around for longer? Are fans of the genre stuck in their youth? Is rock n' roll's lexicon so brilliantly better than others? Are rock fans fetishists? I don't know but it does seem that for past ten to fifteen years that even the most mediocre bands like Quiet Riot, Great White or Ratt can ride the retread music circuit playing small gigs for quite some time; there's always some dude that wants to hear, "Round and Round" just one more time.

4. Last Night by The Strokes
Sing along with the strokes song about being a 20 something year old dude wanting something he can't put his finger on. This is New York rock in the 2000s, love it or hate it it was low-fi and reminiscent of the 1970s.



3. Rehab by Amy Winehouse
She won so many Grammys for singing about loving her vice that the weight snapped her brittle bones. Her 60s flavored R&B tale was catchy and seemed to hit a chord with people who love to drink.

She may never win a beauty contest but at least she's got pipes

2. SexyBack by Justin Timberlake
Even I wanted to dance when I heard this disco! Some songs have a life of their own creating lingo and small economies, this track is one of them. Though the song isn't really about anything other than being cool and it's all good.

Justin showing us how to get your Sexyback

1. Seven Nation Army By The White Stripes
What can I say about this raw, angry, heartbroken song that has a massive thundering bass drum beat carrying you through to end? It has a "bass" line that is hypnotic a guitar solo that feels like the brae of wild stallion struggling for it's life and lyrics that are cryptic yet very understandable like all the best.