Motorpsycho: Rock Bottom / Silver Dollar Forger (2023)

 Fresh from across the pond. The mighty Motorpsycho takes on Nazareth and UFO, and they completely crush it.

The Beatles: Something New (1964)

 Of course the Capitol albums were totally jive but this is definitely one of the jivest. All but three songs are from A Hard Day’s Night, but totally shuffled. Fortunately that album is the peak of their early era so that music is welcome anywhere. Its just weird for it to be only slightly out of context. It’s cool to get “Slow Down” and “Matchbox” on record but who the hell needs a German version of “I Want To Hold Your Hand”? I mean, it’s amusing but that’s a bonus track n a much later box set at best. Capitol was squeezing so much product out of The Beatles and this album…I mean, even the title doesn’t give a shit. 

That said, this record kicks. 

Of course it does….

moe. - Not Normal (2020)

A companion to their 2020 full-length, this five song EP (spread over two discs) is a fantastic record in its own right. It kicks off with Chuck Garvey’s intricate “New Hope For The New Year” and continues with Rob Derhak’s wonderfully weird “Pill Vacation”. Al Schnier takes care of the C-side with the road-worked “ATL” as well as “Screaming & Kicking”, which is classic Al. Rob closes out this set with “Prestige Worldwide”, which had been kicking around the rotation for a few years and becoming a monster. A key lyric from this song gave these two sets their name - “this is not, we are not normal”. Ain’t that the truth. 

Despite appearances this is definitely not just a set of leftovers. These tracks are every bit as good (or better) as the ones on the proper LP, and some of them have become standards. I look very forward to what this band does next.

moe. - This Is Not, We Are (2020)

 The most recent release from one of the coolest bands out there. I’ve been digging moe. since 1996 and they continue to get better with age. As with most of their albums, the songs were all road tested, sometimes for several years, and it shows. This is a solid set played by a super tight band. Rob’s bass in the middle of “LL3” is one of my all time favorite moe.ments, as is the wacky groove on Jim Laughlin’s instrumental, “Jazz Cigarette”. Rob Derhak dominates the songwriting here, contributing five of the albums nine tracks, including the wicked “Skitchin’ Buffalo”, but Al Schnier gets off a couple of fantastic numbers (“Crushing” and “Dangerous Game”), and Chuck Garvey offers up the calmly-weird “Undertone”. Chuck is not as prolific as Rob & Al but when he brings in a song he really brings it. 

This was the last release before Chuck’s stroke (and the first since Rob’s cancer battle). The band had a very rough few years but were abetted by friends, to keep playing throughout Chuck’s recovery. Fortunately he is back with the band and sounding incredible.

Grateful Dead: Madison Square Garden 3/9/81

 

Just arrived today, from the wonderful Nail City Record. We got five LPs of killer Dead from an era that I don’t often explore, drawn from last year’s massive MSG 81/82/83 box set and given a standalone vinyl release, with artwork derived from its parent box (the packaging of which earned the Dead their first-ever Grammy). This was the early Brent era and the band was finally hitting full stride, evidenced here from the get-go with a certifiably wicked “Feel Like A Stranger” that kicks off this fiery set. The recording is super clean and the vinyl cut sounds phenomenal. These damn Dead boxes are gonna be the death of me but they are all so worth it. 

The next few hours are gonna be fun.

Blitzen Trapper: American Goldwing (2011)

 Not usually the BT album that I grab at random but this is a killer LP (as are all of their albums) and a great way to kick off this Saturday. 

Plus, this includes “Love The Way You Walk Away”, one of the greatest songs ever.

Midnight Oil, 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1 (1983)

I reached for the new Metric but my finger landed on its fantastic next door neighbor.

Dave Brubeck Quartet: Jazz At The College Of The Pacific (1953)

 A little Brubeck to ride out EP Saturday.

Sex Pistols: Anarchy In The UK (1983 reissue)

The exclamation point on EP Saturday.

Mike Gordon: The Last Step (2015)

 The EPs roll along with this five track set of leftovers from Mike Gordon’s 2014 album, Overstep. There are some really cool tracks on here, especially the opening “Normal Phoebe”. The only song to ever make it to the Phish stage was “Snow” (once, and it really did not land). This version is actually performed by Phish (augmented by guitarist Scott Murawski) and the song, which is far more suited for the studio than the stage, is greatly vindicated. Gordo’s solo work is not for everyone but there is always something cool going on there.

Pavement - Perfect Sound Forever (1990)

 This EP basically invented the ‘90s.

Cheap Trick - Found All The Parts (1980)

 EP Saturday continues with this collection of four random tracks from around the Cheap Trick vault. Nothing terribly vital here but the live version of “Day Tripper” is pretty hot.

Moe Tucker: Moejadkatebarry (1987)

 EP Saturday continues with this deep dig from the shelf. Moe Tucker is joined by Jad Fair on vocals for five songs, three of which have a direct Velvets connection. We also get a very fractured take on “Baby What You Want Me To Do”.

Darling Buds: Shame On You (1988)

 The Darling Buds is another band that I really wish had gone the distance. Their early stuff, in particular, is still one of my favorite things.

The Stone Roses: Sally Cinnamon (1987)

 The Stone Roses would ultimately become the greatest letdown in the entire history of rock, due to their failure to hold it together, but that was furthest thing from anyone’s mind in the beginning, when they were poised to be the biggest thing since the Beatles. While their sound would grow immensely, and quickly, this 1987 EP capped off the band’s pre-Silvertone era spectacularly.

The Might Be Giants: Don't Let's Start (1987)

 TMBG is one of the most truly special musical institutions to ever exist and that was obvious from the very beginning.

Metric: Formentera II (2023)

 When I first heard about a “part two” of Metric’s excellent last album I was slightly dubious. Excited, of course, but I figured it would be like a glorified bonus disc and that is absolutely not the case. This is very much its own beast and it is fucking incredible. I can’t wait to spin this a thousand more times.

Misfits: Die Die My Darling (1984)

 EP Saturday rolls on with this three-song slab of classic Misfits. Features the original version of “Mommy Can I Go Out And Kill Tonight?”, one of their best songs ever.

U2: U23 (1979)

 Love U2. Hate U2. Think what you like, I don’t care. But there is no denying that their 1979 debut EP was not like anything else that had ever come before (or, really, since). It was a much needed shot in the arm that really helped to kickstart the post-punk era. Two of the three songs would be re-recorded the following year for Boy (one of the greatest debut albums ever) but these versions are raw and have a sound all their own.

Big Country: Wonderland (1984)

 EP Saturday continues with this 1983 4-songer that features two outstanding new songs paired with two Crossing-era b-sides. “Wonderland” is classic Big Country, a song that should have been a massive hit. “All Fall Together” is one of my favorites, and is far superior in its vocal arrangement. “Angle Park” offers a hint of what the band sounded like before their debut album, while the epic non-LP title track, “The Crossing” is one of the greatest BC songs ever.

Bangles: Bangles (1983)

 Kicking off EP Saturday with the Bangles’ 1982 debut. One of the best EPs ever.

Metric: Grow Up And Blow Away (rec. 2001)

 Getting psyched for tomorrow’s arrival of Formentera II by going all the way back to the beginning. In some respects this sounds very different from the band they grew to be but it is still unmistakably Metric. This album actually wound up sitting in the can for a few years, finally coming out after their second album, Live It Out, started to make a splash. Good thing it did because this record is fantastic. 

Metric is one of those bands that never sounds out of sync with the times but also sounds like no other band on earth and that is made abundantly clear from the outset and that is why, over two decades later, they are still very much their own band.

U2: Songs Of Surrender (LP #3) (2023)

 Finally decided to dive further into this set and check out the third LP. The track list is pretty cool. Not too many obvious choices. Still, this is pretty unnecessary. I really like the concept but it just doesn’t deliver. It all comes across as demos and Bono’s vocal is  very close and clean (a little reverb coulda gone a long way). The undisputed highlight on this volume is “Electrical Storm”, which comes across exactly how the rest of the set should have done. This spacy, funky take on “The Fly” is also pretty crucial. 

When this album came out I got annoyed as I thought it was a waste of time for an old band to mess around with a vanity project instead of an actual album (that clock’s tickin’ yo). Fortunately they just sorta put it out and moved on. No hoopla, no spectacle, time to get back to work. I can appreciate that now. Of course this will always be my least favorite U2 release but that’s cool. They have redeemed themselves with “Atomic City”….

Paul Kelly & The Messengers: Gossip (1986)

 A little bit of the Australian Dylan to kick off the last gasp of this weekend. So good.