What’re you listening to these days?

[EJensen]

Since MTB’ing cuts across a lot of demographics and has nothing (directly) to do with music, there’s probably a pretty good cross-section of musical interests represented here.

After being in a musical coma for several years, my wonderful wife’s birthday gift of an iPod re-ignited my interest. I don’t have particularly broad or eclectic taste in music, but I’m always interested in getting leads and listening to something new. In this age of a la carte downloads it’s easy to buy a track or two for the sake of checking out a performer you’re not familiar with.

I’ll toss out some of the stuff I like to see if there is interest in a discussion.

Back when I was in school I was particularly in to lo-fi rock like Pavement and Guided by Voices. I seem to be listening to that less and less these days, for whatever reason.

Lately, my interests seem to have taken a turn south, geographically speaking.

After reading a lot of positive reviews of Drive-by Truckers and finding myself with the prospect of using or losing a month’s worth of downloads from emusic, I downloaded The Dirty South and Decoration Day, both of which I am listening to a lot these days. They provide a lot of good electric guitar driven storytelling with a twang. From my perspective, any band that can come up with a love song that revolves around an incestuous relationship and another that includes the lines He kept a loaded gun in the closet/and another one in the dresser drawer/just in case the one in the closet didn’t make a big enough hole without a trace of irony is okay by me.

From a Paste magazine sampler I heard Gamblin’ House by Malcolm Holcombe, and I ended up downloading the album, mostly because I liked the guy’s voice so much. Imagine Tom Waits chain smoking a dozen packs of Lucky Strikes and channeling John Prine.

The other southern artist I started listening to recently is Steve Earle. He has a fair share of social commentary he’s offering without much in terms of subtlety, with a straightforward love song thrown in here and there on Jerusalem.

From an interview on a radio show I first heard the band Rotary Downs, and I downloaded Chained to the Chariot. They’re out of New Orleans, but I wouldn’t say they’re a southern band except for some of the subject matter.

To me, they have some of the features I liked most about Pavement, like a lead singer’s voice that’s now what you would call musically refined. Their lyrics seem to be well thought out with a lot of symbolism, but they stop short of leaving you scratching your head and wondering what in the hell they are getting at.

In a completely different vein, I read somewhere about a hip-hop artist named Saul Williams and I downloaded The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust. He started out as a poet and migrated to music. It’s the kind of thing I can listen to occasionally and appreciate, but I just don’t have enough interest in hip-hop for it to stick with me.

This particular album was produced by Trent Reznor so it has some very identifiable Nine Inch Nails in its DNA. One of the cool things about this album is that you can download it directly from the artist, as it is not published by any label. If anyone is interested and cannot find it by a Google search, I’ll see whether I can dig up the link.

So, if you’re willing to share, let’s hear what’s in heavy rotation on your turntable/CD player/portable. Personally, I don’t care whether it’s esoteric or radio fare. If not me, then someone else reading this might be interested enough to check some of it out.

So whatcha got?

Regards,
Eric

[nocro]

From an interview on a radio show I first heard the band Rotary Downs, and I downloaded Chained to the Chariot. They’re out of New Orleans, but I wouldn’t say they’re a southern band except for some of the subject matter.



First, I really like this. I'm acquainted with several of the band members, and friends with one. Glad to see they're getting some distribution. ( I lived in New Orleans for a long time. )

I'll throw one suggestion out there. He different musically than the other bands you mentioned, but you're looking to expand, not duplicate, right? Vic Chesnutt.

I'll think of a couple others. In a former life, I was a college radio DJ.

[jon_baler]

Got a couple Irish Punk shows early next month, which should make for a good times:

The Pogues - March 12 - Baltimore. My brother's photos of past shows we have attended: NYC (http://mordac.org/bands/pogues/st_patricks/), DC (http://mordac.org/bands/pogues/930_club/), Philly (http://mordac.org/bands/pogues/), and London (http://mordac.org/london/pogues.php)

ShamrockFest (http://www.shamrockfest.com/lineup.html) - March 15 - DC. Looking forward to seeing a bunch of great bands: Street Dogs, The Tossers, Charm City Saints, Carbon Leaf, Great Big Sea...

[jabberwocky]

Lets see... Bands in my playlist at the moment:

Architecture in Helsinki - Somewhat idiosyncratic, vaguely electronic indie music. Recommended songs: Imaginary Ordinary, Nevereverdid, Do the Whirlwind

Minus the Bear - Indie Rock with a pop vibe. Extremely catchy songs with weird names. Recommended songs: Absinthe Party At The Fly Honey Warehouse, Get Me Naked 2: Electric Boogaloo, Drilling, El Torrente, Burying Luck.

Boards of Canada - Very original electronic music. Lots of simple melodies and unusual samples (frequently from old Canadian Board of Education films). Recommended songs: Sixtyniner, Nlogax, Dayvan Cowboy, Hey Saturday Sun, Music is Math.

Opeth - The best death metal out there. Lots of variety for a metal band. Songs frequently go from hard, fast metal to slower acoustic parts and back multiple times. Recommended songs: Ghosts of Perdition, Reverie/Harlequin Forest, Dirge for November, Harvest, Windowpane.

2 Skinnee Js - I'm not usually a fan of rap, but these guys are great. Much more musically inclined than most rap bands, their songs are about things as varied as plutos planatery status, changing area codes, the evils of artificial flavoring and being a nerd in high school. Recommended songs: 718, Riot Nrrrd, Grown Up, Pluto.

Swingin Utters - Straight up punk rock. Recommended songs: Five Lessons Learned, This Bastards Life, Unpopular Again, Fruitless Fortunes.

Less than Jake - Pop-Punk with a hint of ska. Recommended songs: Best Wishes to your Black Lung, Is This Thing On?, Help Save the Youth of America From Exploding, 9th At Pine.

Citizen Fish - British Punk at its finest. Formed from members of Subhumans. Recommended songs: Time Control, PC Musical Chairs, Faster, Feeding.

[BikerMiker]

Always listening to Kyuss. Precursor of Queens of the Stone Age. Loving AudioSlave. Not sure I would cuz I am a big Rage AND Soundgarden fan but there it is. New Janes Addiction (2003?) album is also rad. Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings are superfun. They backed up Amy Winehouse on her album.

Mike Doughty, Buzzcocks, Blind Melon, Johnny Cash, Firehose, 311, Blur, Fugazi, Jeff Buckley, Jawbox, Weezer...

mike

[MD Fire]

I went to punk shows all the time in high school but my last job prevented me from going to ANY shows.

I listen to a little bit of everything but country

Lately I have been a fan of a few bands.

The Fall of Troy- I am not sure what genre this fits into. Lots of technical guitars, some screaming, fast paced. I guess perhaps a mix of punk/hardcore/experemental.

The Mercrury Program- These guys aren't really together. They were supposed to have another LP out last year and went into the studio and recorded, but I havn't heard anything other than that. Their music has a really jammy feel to it and they use the standard ensemble of guitar, bass, drums and throw in a xylophone. A lot of their music has a dreamy feel to it. Very few songs with vocals. Check out their myspace for samples.

I also listen to a lot of Reggie and the Full Effect lately. This band is made up of musicians from a lot of different genres that got together to make a really interesting sound. Overtones of metalcore, punk, emo, and electronic rock. Kinda like a marble cake with strawberry icing. Their last album came out in 05 and I have only listened to a few songs off it. I mostly listen to their first EP, Greatest hits 1984-1987 (which came out in 98') and their first LP, Promotional copy out in 00'.

The Appleseed Cast: Their style varies a lot with each album. Low Level Owl vol I and volII as well as Maire Vitalis are more dreamy/trippy contemplative. The singer Chris Crisci uses his voice more as an instrument, especially in the low level owl volumes, than as a means to conveigh words or meaning. Two Conversations is a lot more rock. Their newest album, Peregrine, I am not a huge fan of as it is more of a departure from "classic" Appleseed Cast. A few good songs, but nothing I am crazy about.

[MD Fire]

Less than Jake - Pop-Punk with a hint of ska. Recommended songs: Best Wishes to your Black Lung, Is This Thing On?, Help Save the Youth of America From Exploding, 9th At Pine.



I acutally just finished listening to Is This Thing On a few mintues ago.


Less than Jake is what got me into Punk/Ska back in high school. I got Loosing Streak followed by Pezcore and it was all over.

[EJensen]

Less than Jake - Pop-Punk with a hint of ska. Recommended songs: Best Wishes to your Black Lung, Is This Thing On?, Help Save the Youth of America From Exploding, 9th At Pine.

I think Less than Jake was still a local Gainesville band when I was going to UF. I had some buddies in a Gainesville ska band called The Usual Suspects which turned into The Usuals at that time.

Aaahh, those were the days.

Regards,
Eric

[blacknell]

Great idea for a thread. There isn't a station in DC that I can regularly rely on for decent music, so I occasionally need a good kick to get out and check out new things. Sometimes I can generate those kicks over at Last.fm or Imeem.com, which - with a little bit of willingness to share info on your end - can return some interesting results.

I occasionally put together travel music lists over at my site using Imeem (it lets readers play all/parts of the listed songs). Here's one from Cape Town (http://blacknell.net/dynamic/2008/02/17/travel-music-cape-town/) (lots of bhangra influence), another from Bermuda (http://blacknell.net/dynamic/2008/01/10/travel-music-bermuda/) (chill), and maybe some of my favorite music in the world for Hong Kong (http://blacknell.net/dynamic/2008/01/01/travel-music-hong-kong/).

Things getting heavy rotation recently also include the mashups found in the Best of Bootie series (seriously, go download it (http://www.bootieusa.com/bestofbootie2006/), if for no other reason than the sublime goodness that is Peggy Lee and Iggy Pop blended to create Passenger Fever), Carlos Libedinsky's Narcotango (could listen to that all night long), and whatever I can find by Brenda Fassie (South African pop artist that you've probably heard one or two tracks from, but is sooo much deeper than that).

Finally, for your immediate gratification, I offer you something that will almost certainly make its way into your summer rotation - a cover of Hey Ya (http://music-versity.typepad.com/musicversity_hub/files/hey_ya.mp3) by Shawn Lee (http://shawnlee.net)’s Ping Pong Orchestra. Right click to save, enjoy it, and spread the goodness. Also, I'd note, THIS is the way music should be distributed - put something out there, and if fans like it, they'll come back and pay for more. Screw that DRM ridiculousness. Credit to Shawn Lee (and his label) for doing it right.

[mabagal]

Great idea for a thread. There isn't a station in DC that I can regularly rely on for decent music, so I occasionally need a good kick to get out and check out new things. Sometimes I can generate those kicks over at Last.fm or Imeem.com, which - with a little bit of willingness to share info on your end - can return some interesting results.


Have you tried Pandora.com (http://www.pandora.com/)? Create stations by plopping in an artist/song that you like and find others that are similar.

[MD Fire]

Without clicking on any of the above

Do you have to install anything on your computer to use the internet radio stuff? I work in an emergency center where we cant install anything and I am tired of draining my ipod :P

[blacknell]

Probably no need to install anything, MD Fire. For example, the Imeem lists I link to are Flash-based, so you can almost certainly listen to anything from those. And, for better or worse, Windows Media Player is probably on your computer, and should handle most of the rest.

~

And yes, Mabagal, I've used Pandora - quite like it, in fact. Last.fm is for the lazier among us - I just let it poke through my iTunes library to see what I listen to (you know, so I can't hide the fact that yes, I do still listen to Level 42 . . .)

[Dirt]

For the last three weeks I've been listening to the Red Hot Chili Peppers song "Little Pea" over and over.

It has given my life new meaning.

Pete

[nocro]

The Mercrury Program- These guys aren't really together. They were supposed to have another LP out last year and went into the studio and recorded, but I havn't heard anything other than that. Their music has a really jammy feel to it and they use the standard ensemble of guitar, bass, drums and throw in a xylophone. A lot of their music has a dreamy feel to it. Very few songs with vocals. Check out their myspace for samples.


If you like Mercury Program, you should check out Jai Alai. I think that Jai Alai has also disbanded.

[riderx]

Have you tried Pandora.com (http://www.pandora.com/)? Create stations by plopping in an artist/song that you like and find others that are similar.

Big fan of Pandora, listening to it right now. One thing I like is that after creating different stations you can use the Quick Mix to shuffle multiple stations.

Here's some of the stations I've been building by seeding with bands and songs.

- 2-Ton Radio (http://www.pandora.com/stations/31c3fb4b97b8dadef46b9ebc08fb7cd8425 ba2910f7abf8b#tbl_artists_table,all ) - heavy stuff: Sabbath, Kyuss, Clutch, Helmet, Ministry, Soundgarden

- Rockabilly Radio (http://www.pandora.com/stations/4646e213ec9df16fccf2d4d9800052a7425 ba2910f7abf8b) - Rockabilly and Psychobilly, I've been digging how this station has shaped up.

- All Night Party Groove (http://www.pandora.com/stations/f0a4d3bf54892d2faee138ecf5173fac425 ba2910f7abf8b#tbl_artists_table,all ) - FUNK. James Brown, Parliament, Sly and the Family Stone.

- Girl Rock Radio (http://www.pandora.com/stations/7af9c6937f29ed53801c36934defbf5c425 ba2910f7abf8b) - Mostly female punk and indie bands. PJ Harvey, Sleater-Kinney, Bikini Kill, Sahara Hotnights

- Ska / Rock Steady / Early Reggae (http://www.pandora.com/stations/40faacda34d88095552f933695dc55fb425 ba2910f7abf8b) - self explanatory

- Black and Blue Radio (http://www.pandora.com/stations/10147c537d4e7bc0628a5ff7201db75b425 ba2910f7abf8b#tbl_artists_table,all ) - Blues. Rock. Blues Rock. - Junior Kimbrough to Tom Waits to The Black Keys to The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion

- Mid-80s Punk (http://www.pandora.com/stations/dbe4fe2866662ffca75580da14bb4388425 ba2910f7abf8b) - Bad Brains, Black Flag, Dead Kennedys, Government Issue, The Minutemen

[nocro]

Lately, my interests seem to have taken a turn south, geographically speaking.


I don't know how far you want to go into loud rock, but you can check the southern lord website: http://www.southernlord.com/ Sunn 0)))))), Earth, etc. Heavy, sludgey stuff.

Also, a couple of things that you wrote made me thing of R.L. Burnside and T-Model Ford. Just about anything on Fat Possum is pretty cool. Also check out a friend's band that is on Fat Possum: Blackfire Revelation. Diesel drenched rawk.

Another crazy New Orleans band is Impractical Cockpit. They're now no longer in NOLA, but are on Load records. Want something really quirky from NOLA? Try Glorybee.

Athens, GA has a great music scene. Jucifer is pretty loud. I'm not sure if you'll like them. I don't know if I like them. The entertainment value of a two piece is short lived live, but some of their songs are really good. I've listened to their shows from across the street from the club they were playing in because it was just too loud me even with my earplugs in. The only show I've ever been to in my life that was comparable in volume was Spiritualized, although Shellac came close. (I've been to a lot of club shows.)

Still from Athens, GA. I liked Maserati's first album, something like 33:51:67 but havent' liked a lot since.

If you want something mellower from the Athens, GA scene, you could check out Japancakes or Elf Power. A little bit on the weirder side was Macha. Kindercore Records had a lot of good bands, and Orange twin is trying to keep that up.

You'll definitely like The Blackheart Procession.

What about Pedro the Lion?

I've been a bit out of it for the past few years, and a lot has been released since then. But me personally, I find myself listening to Brian Jonestown Massacre a lot. http://www.brianjonestownmassacre.com/discography.html . How could you go wrong with a band whose slogan is "keep music evil"? Not to mention the fact that the band leader (anton newcombe) is notoriously difficult to get along with and has had something like 15-20 different band members over the past 10 years. Check out the song "If love is the drug, I want to O.D."

[DMarchy1]

I've been on a Cajun-Zydeco kick as of late. Listening to Jo-el Sonnier, Beausoleil,, Bruce Daigrepont, Buckwheat Zydeco, Dewey Balfa. I have also been taking heavy doses of Flaco Jimenez, both with The texas tornadoes, and some traditional Mexican solo stuff.
For a complete change of pace I have also been enjoying Traditional Virginia Bluegrass with IIIrd time out, JD Crow, Hayseed Dixie, and the Seldom Scene.

In my spinning class, I have been Pedaling to Jimmy Sturr Pennsylvania Polka Tunes. And a One, and a two,

In Heaven there is no Beer.
thats why we drink it Here.
And When we're gone from Here.
My friends will be drinking all the Beer.

Bottoms Up Boys and Girls.

[sueper]

In my spinning class, I have been Pedaling to Jimmy Sturr Pennsylvania Polka Tunes. And a One, and a two,

You've not been in my Spinning Class!!!

Here's some of what I play:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPorFcqEa7E

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FV8TVe_JN8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtFxo4mpiKg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyhYVMRI5BU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmMbrXypXJU

[Brizn]

Krush Groove

[ride-n-fall]

Yesterday on my trainer ride it was:

Metallica S&M
Redman & Methodman
Modest Mouse

Today on the trainer was:

Ozzy Osbourne
NWA
Rage against the Machine

[joep]

Ozzy Osbourne
NWA
Rage against the Machine

Finally. Someone my age. :o I've acutally heard of some of those bands.

[MD Fire]

If you like Mercury Program, you should check out Jai Alai. I think that Jai Alai has also disbanded.


Jai Alai Savant?

I listen to a little Pedro the Lion from time to time.


- Rockabilly Radio (http://www.pandora.com/stations/4646e213ec9df16fccf2d4d9800052a7425 ba2910f7abf8b) - Rockabilly and Psychobilly, I've been digging how this station has shaped up.



I checked that out, too. Good stuff. When I had XM the punk channel, Fungus, did an hour of psycobilly type stuff that I was a big fan of

[camp]

Just finished listening to Mountain Stage. EJensen, if you like Drive-By-Truckers and that alt-country-punk, you'd probably dig Mountain Stage (http://www.mountainstage.org/). Always a good source of new music. I live in a place worse than DC for radio, so I download 4-5 2-hour shows and put them on one CD to listen when I work at home.

And of course, Pandora rocks too

[Vofsking12]

I've downloaded over 20 Grateful Dead shows this month. Right now I'm listening to Sampson and Delila from 11-4-77 Cornell University. Earlier today I was listening to an '89 show and last week I was listening to an Acid Test in the Filmore West in '68. It's one band, but they have so much background, its like listening to different genres sometimes.
Other than the Good ol' Grateful Dead, I've been listening to Phish, Can, Ash Ra Temple, Amon Duul II, and other 'jam' bands. I've also been getting in to jazz fusion - Mahavishnu Orchestra and the such. I could rant on about bands for a long time. I'm really eclectic about jam/jazz/drums/instrumental. Most of the stuff I listen to comes from the late 60's/early 70's. I'm also into experimental music, and some really psychedelic stuff too. You cant enjoy music without musicianship, so I'm frequently downloading different shows
www.panicstream.net/streams is a site I frequent. Great Miles Davis fusion stuff!
sorry for the rant, too much music to express (and to fit on a 30 gig ipod)!

[skijim668]

Rage
Pearl Jam
Infectious grooves
STP
Megadeath
Creed
Tech n9ne
Cypress hill
Agent orange
or ...anything good.

[Dirt]

I've been channeling my inner Beck lately.

[Pinoy Rider]

Lately when doing any exercising, the soundtrack to Roam and once that is all finished Iron Maiden!

[akern2]

Metal...the really heavy, extreme, brutal s&*t (sorry for the cursing). And then i also have progressive metal. It's lighter, but so good. Although i do listen to alot of different stuff now a days.

Top 5:

1. The Devin Townsend Band
2. The Mars Volta
3. Meshuggah
4. Cinematic Orchestra
5. Boards of Canada

(look up any of those, and you just might enjoy them, except maybe Meshuggah)

[jabberwocky]

5. Boards of CanadaSweet, another BOC fan! I mentioned them earlier in the thread. :)

[akern2]

Sweet, another BOC fan!

you know it. I was introduced through one of my friends, listened to it for a while, then realized [Adultswim] uses it for there bumps. Now i'm a fan.

[camp]

Great Miles Davis fusion stuff!I love this stuff. Bitches, Fillmore, Silent Way, Evil is all some of my favorite music. Freaky late Coltrane and anything Jerry too.

[nocro]

I love this stuff. Bitches, Fillmore, Silent Way, Evil is all some of my favorite music. Freaky late Coltrane and anything Jerry too.

I could listen to "On the corner" over and over again. My CD was stolen out of my car 15+ years or so ago, before ripping was typical.

[nocro]

Jai Alai Savant?

I listen to a little Pedro the Lion from time to time.



Jai Alai:
http://sunseasky.com/artists/jai-alai
http://sunseasky.com/archive/jai-alai-real-job-video/

RIYL "Sea and Cake", or anything else on Thrill Jockey or Quarterstick.

[piperj]

Sweet, another BOC fan! I mentioned them earlier in the thread. :)

MORE cowbell!!!

Ooops... wrong BOC... :p

Ben Folds is the center of my universe, but have also been diggin' KT Tunstall lately... For those listening to stuff online, check out KBCO.com. A truly eclectic mix...

[nocro]

MORE cowbell!!!

Ooops... wrong BOC... :p

Ben Folds is the center of my universe, but have also been diggin' KT Tunstall lately... For those listening to stuff online, check out KBCO.com. A truly eclectic mix...

The poster child freeform station:
http://www.wfmu.org/

[philvw]

One thing I think everyone in this post can agree too, that you dont even turn on the FM radio.

I'll put in my plug for my favorite place in cyberspace. Always changing, always progressing, always staying current. Winamp (aac+) iTunes (mp3) and WinMedia (wmv) streams, small bandwidth on port 80, so it hides easily from the IT eyes. The aac+ stream is full stereo and good fidelity.

http://woxy.lala.com/ (WOXY!)

When I was about 16 I made a promise to myself to always stay current, instead of getting stuck in musical time (usually what you listen to in high school). At the time I had a greaser boss who would only listen to 50's doo-whop. Woxy is where I stay current. As an added bonus, you can see most of the bands you hear there when they come around the 9:30 or Recher for about $10. (versus how much for U2 tix?)

[sevenforty]

"What’re you listening to these days?"

BBC Radio One ... radio in America is atrocious. That's what happens when 1-2 corporations own every single radio outlet.

I hear tunes on the BBC months prior to when they are released stateside.

[blacknell]

There is good radio out there, although such stations are few and far between. I stopped regularly listening to radio when I moved here from Atlanta (over 10 years ago) because I couldn't find a single decent station in DC - one of the biggest radio markets in the US. In Atlanta, there was Album 88 and WREK, Georgia State's and Georgia Tech's stations (respectively). These were (and remain) fantastic sources of new music on a wide range of fronts. You can get WREK online, and (supposedly) Album 88 will be coming online soon.

I'm still amazed that, with all of the higher ed in DC, none of them can manage a good music station. DC is, indeed, a musical wasteland. That said, I do give a nod to WAMU (American University's station) for some excellent local programming (esp. Kodjo Namdi). A shame what they did to the bluegrass, though.

[sevenforty]

DC is, indeed, a musical wasteland.

Haha, true...but have you ever driven through the midwest? :)

The great thing about the BBC is that they archive every show and they have incredible shows for every musical taste out there. All without commercial interuption. I think it even tops XM/Sirius...unfortunately I can only stream it on my laptop here.

[camp]

I'm still amazed that, with all of the higher ed in DC, none of them can manage a good music station. DC is, indeed, a musical wasteland. Only one left now...., WPFW (89.3) in DC, which I listen to every time I'm back within range. I know, too much talk there, but it's still good music when they're playing it

Bummer for sure about WAMU and the 'grass,
an older bummer is the loss of WDCU, which was another good public jazz station,
and don't even get me started on WETA for everything they've done in the past several years

[Vofsking12]

Ozzy Osbourne
NWA
Rage against the Machine

That seems like an odd mix with N.W.a in the middle to me.

[mike a]

Maximo Park and Bob Schneider (not Rob Schneider) have been at the top of my list lately.

Maximo Park Sample (http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/wma-pop-up/B0007VXZJK001007/ref=mu_sam_wma_001_007)

Bob Schneider Sample (http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/wma-pop-up/B000GFLJK4001012/ref=mu_sam_wma_001_012)

[RetroG]

I downloaded The Dirty South and Decoration Day, both of which I am listening to a lot these days.

DBT's "Southern Rock Opera" also gets my vote.
If you can see them live, do it. If you can't, check this out: Live at the 40 Watt (http://drivebytruckers.shop.musictoday.com/Dept.aspx?cp=407_2856)

[EJensen]

DBT's "Southern Rock Opera" also gets my vote.
[/url]

I am getting a lot of music through my eMusic subscription these days, and for whatever reason they don't carry this album. I may have to pick it up through other means.

Regards,
Eric

[macdaid]

Just loaded Drop Kick Murphys
and Street Dogs onto the iPod.

Also lately;
The Pogues - saw these guys at the 9:30 last year. Great show.
Flogging Molly
Blood or Whiskey
The Tossers

And I've been giving Anti-Flag a listen, because my kid likes them (little commie:D), and in preparation for a show at the 9:30 in April...

This is pretty focused, and grows out of my interest in traditional Irish Folk, and traditional folk in general.

But I've been getting into stuff with a metal guitar sound like:
Gary Hoey
Aerosmith
Led Zeppelin
Apocalyptica

Otherwise I'm all over the road:
Squirrel Nut Zippers
Kaki King
Stephan Grappelli + Django Reinhardt
Fat Boy Slim
Donna the Buffalo
Dave Brubeck
Bela Fleck
Leo Kottke
Rusty Zinn

[Squirrel_Girl]

Squirrel Nut ZippersWhen I was in grad school, the bass player for the SNZ used to come to my office and give me backrubs. :cool:

And that was *before* I was into squirrels! :p

[lebindle]

I don't know how far you want to go into loud rock, but you can check the southern lord website: http://www.southernlord.com/ Sunn 0)))))), Earth, etc. Heavy, sludgey stuff.

I saw Sunn O play at the Victoriaville festival in Quebec. In a Hockey arena with a bunch of stoned punk kids. it was a wall of amps and fog machines galore. I just laid down on the concrete and let my teeth rattle.

Loved it hard.

[macdaid]

Wow. That was a pleasant brush with fame.

SNZ is great. I loved their first video for HELL, done with vaseline on the lens and puppets. Totally bizzare. The newer one isn't as good.



When I was in grad school, the bass player for the SNZ used to come to my office and give me backrubs. :cool:

And that was *before* I was into squirrels! :p

[EJensen]

Otherwise I'm all over the road:
...
Stephan Grappelli + Django Reinhardt
...


I'm interested in checking out some Django Reinhart. Anything in particular you recommend? I'm more interested in instrumentals than anything with vocals.

Regards,
Eric

[EJensen]

A while back my brother turned me on to Rodrigo y Gabriela (http://www.rodgab.com/). They're an acoustic guitar duo playing instrumentals. It's worth checking out some of the videos here (http://www.rodgab.com/watch.htm) such as the one of them performing Diablo Rojo just to see their playing style.

Regards,
Eric

[macdaid]

OMG They are A W E S O M E !!!!!...

I just listened to the Rodrigo y Gabriela you suggested.
Its like Nuevo Flamenco meets Kaki King !!!!
Great stuff.

I really appreciate your posting that Eric.
My boss and my office pard are also guitar nuts and they'll eat this up.

Re Hot Jazz - I have 3 featuring Grappelli:
> Souvenirs
> Shades of Django
> Stephane Grappelli and David Grisman Live
- Tiger Rag (Hold That Tiger) on this album is amazing

All 3 are instrumentals except 2 on Souvenirs; Beryl Davis does Undecided and Don't Worry Bout Me. All 3 are really good IMHO. But iTunes has a large Grappelli and Reinhardt collection you should check out. Almost 4 pages worth. There, I'm afraid, you're on your own....

Man, this post has awakened my sleeping inner consumer.
I got the gimmies.

:D





A while back my brother turned me on to Rodrigo y Gabriela (http://www.rodgab.com/). They're an acoustic guitar duo playing instrumentals. It's worth checking out some of the videos here (http://www.rodgab.com/watch.htm) such as the one of them performing Diablo Rojo just to see their playing style.

Regards,
Eric

[sevenforty]

But I've been getting into stuff with a metal guitar sound like:
Gary Hoey
Aerosmith
Led Zeppelin
Apocalyptica

Led Zeppelin's "When the Levee Breaks" is one of the best rock songs out there...

You might also dig the Robocop Kraus (http://www.epitaph.com/artists/album/527/Blunders_and_Mistakes) on Epitaph too.

[macdaid]

Yup, thats a good one.

Me'n the wife also like The Rain Song... and lot of others

Took a listen at that Robocop Kraus.
I first thought "Talking Heads - like..." then "No, English Beat - like" .....

Whatever; its good stuff.


Led Zeppelin's "When the Levee Breaks" is one of the best rock songs out there...

You might also dig the Robocop Kraus (http://www.epitaph.com/artists/album/527/Blunders_and_Mistakes) on Epitaph too.

[MD Fire]

Its like Nuevo Flamenco meets Kaki King !!!!


Kaki King played in Laurel about a year ago and I missed it! It was the strangest thing because it apparently happened in a community center when she was definatly playing in larger venues by that time. I still haven't listened to most of Unitl We Felt Red but Legs to Make Us Longer was a great album.

I'll have to check out that band, too.

[macdaid]

Eric,

Since you like Rodrigo Y Gabriela, you check out Tommy Emmanuel.
Here he is on YouTube doing Classical Gas. The vid and sound aren't all the great, and the version he plays only hints at his incredibly flexible percussive style, but you'll get the idea. He slips in a sampling of Walk Don't Run toward the end:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQJ1k2HMoRU

But the best source is:
http://www.tommyemmanuel.com/
There's a stream of samples playing on the home page.

A while back my brother turned me on to Rodrigo y Gabriela (http://www.rodgab.com/). They're an acoustic guitar duo playing instrumentals. It's worth checking out some of the videos here (http://www.rodgab.com/watch.htm) such as the one of them performing Diablo Rojo just to see their playing style.

Regards,
Eric

[EJensen]

OMG They are A W E S O M E !!!!!...

I just listened to the Rodrigo y Gabriela you suggested.
Its like Nuevo Flamenco meets Kaki King !!!!
Great stuff.

I really appreciate your posting that Eric.

Great! That's what I hoped would come of this thread.

Thank you for the Django tips. I'm definitely going to investigate further.

Further on Rodrigo y Gabriela, my brother has a DVD of them that I have not yet seen. He told me there is a section where they show Gabriela's hands in slo-mo to give you an idea of how she does that strum/slap/drum thing. Apparently 30 frames per second can't really keep up. It may be on Youtube somewhere as well, I haven't looked.

Regards,
Eric

[EJensen]

Eric,

Since you like Rodrigo Y Gabriela, you check out Tommy Emmanuel.


That's the first time I've seen an acoustic guitar player grab the head (if that's what it's called) and body to flex the neck during a song. I'm going to check into more of his stuff.

It reminds me of an English guitar player (I forget his name) who I saw perform a few times. He used the tuning pegs for effect mid-song.

Regards,
Eric

[macdaid]

Yeah, that's pretty hard on an accoustic. Plus all that banging he does, I wonder how long they last or how many he goes through in a year.....:eek:

There's a brit guitar player by the name of Adrian Legg, who's pretty awesome in the technique area. Guitar Bones is the one I've got. Ring any bells?

Dave




That's the first time I've seen an acoustic guitar player grab the head (if that's what it's called) and body to flex the neck during a song. I'm going to check into more of his stuff.

It reminds me of an English guitar player (I forget his name) who I saw perform a few times. He used the tuning pegs for effect mid-song.

Regards,
Eric

[MD Fire]

I'm not sure how many are into punk rock, but I just picked up The Lawrence Arms' newest album Oh! Calcutta! and it is definatly quality.

Link to the band website (http://www.thelawrencearms.net)

[EJensen]

There's a brit guitar player by the name of Adrian Legg, who's pretty awesome in the technique area. Guitar Bones is the one I've got. Ring any bells?

Dave

That's his name. I saw him a few times when I was living in Florida. He's cool to see live, as he's a pretty good storyteller, and he does some monologues between songs.

Thanks, that was beginning to bug me. Now I can at least see what might be available of his stuff.

Regards,
Eric

[mike a]

If you like heavy but clean guitar stuff check out Yngwie Malmsteen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvxPui7s4so

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dkcgdi_Lp7Y&feature=related

[Pinoy Rider]

Haven't heard that name in awhile. I still have a couple of cassette tapes at home by him.

[mike a]

Haven't heard that name in awhile. I still have a couple of cassette tapes at home by him.

It's funny if you look at some of his videos from the late 80's and then ones he has done recently. His 80's clothes, big hair, and gold chains haven't changed. He is just fat now.

:D

[rsosborn]

If you like heavy but clean guitar stuff check out Yngwie Malmsteen.


dream theater, mostly.

if you like yngwie, check out G3. it's a tour where joe satriani grabs two other
guitar wizards and tours. yngwie was on board in 2003. netflix has the dvd.
i caught the tour last year with john petrucci and paul gilbert.

[mike a]

dream theater, mostly.

if you like yngwie, check out G3. it's a tour where joe satriani grabs two other
guitar wizards and tours. yngwie was on board in 2003. netflix has the dvd.
i caught the tour last year with john petrucci and paul gilbert.

I'm a big Dream Theater fan too, have all their cd's and DVD's. My wife makes fun of me because she thinks they are terrible. Went to a drum clinic with Mike Portnoy in Houston years ago. Even have the "When Dream and Day Unite" cd with the original Dream Theater singer.

Check out the hair!!
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/39/DT1988.jpg

[mike a]

Regina Spektor... Been looking for something different lately. Some of her songs have become favorites for riding.

"US" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pKujuTgtL0)

"On the Radio" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHAhnJbGy9M&feature=user)

"Poor little rich boy" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PLrXetsLFPE)

[ride-n-fall]

This was a "Dropkick Murphys" kind of weekend for me. Good stuff!

[jabberwocky]

This was a "Dropkick Murphys" kind of weekend for me. Good stuff!I was listening to "Blackout" all day on Friday as I worked around the house. Great album.

[macdaid]

FYI:
The Dropkick Murphys are playing with Anti Flag at the 9:30 on the 30th this month.

This was a "Dropkick Murphys" kind of weekend for me. Good stuff!

[rsosborn]

I'm a big Dream Theater fan too, have all their cd's and DVD's. My wife makes fun of me because she thinks they are terrible. Went to a drum clinic with Mike Portnoy in Houston years ago. Even have the "When Dream and Day Unite" cd with the original Dream Theater singer.

Check out the hair!!
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/39/DT1988.jpg

it's weird how that shift in the earth gravity (due to sunspots), made those hairdo's an impossibility after 1990. the photos are all that's left.

[Keithie Poo]

I acutally just finished listening to Is This Thing On a few mintues ago.


Less than Jake is what got me into Punk/Ska back in high school. I got Loosing Streak followed by Pezcore and it was all over.

i was born and raised in florida, so less than jake is i definite fave for me, i don't care so much for the recent stuff, but still an all time favorite, but im a huge hot water music fan, blind guardian, sublime, bad religion, in flames, blah blah blah.

[EJensen]

Based on a recommendation from a friend and a track I had on a Paste Magazine compilation CD, I downloaded For Emma, Forever Ago by Bon Iver. You can listen to Skinny Love (http://www.myspace.com/boniver) and one other track here. It's solo acoustic guitar with overlaid vocals.

It's in heavy rotation on my MP3 player these days. It plays nicely in a shuffled playlist with Radiohead's In Rainbows.

Regards,
Eric

[MD Fire]

i was born and raised in florida, so less than jake is i definite fave for me, i don't care so much for the recent stuff, but still an all time favorite, but im a huge hot water music fan, blind guardian, sublime, bad religion, in flames, blah blah blah.


Back from the dead!


I didn't really care for a lot of their newer stuff either until I picked up B is for B Sides. Great album.


Deerhunter put an album out last month, Microcastle, that is pretty good

http://www.myspace.com/deerhunter
and
http://www.emusic.com/album/Deerhunter-Microcastle-MP3-Download/11314833.html

Starfucker and Les Savy Fav also have some pretty good new stuff out

http://www.myspace.com/starfuckerss
http://www.myspace.com/lessavyfav

Coalesce also did a re-relase of Functioning on Impatience and are supposedly making a new record.

http://www.myspace.com/coalesce

[nocro]

I don't know how far you want to go into loud rock, but you can check the southern lord website: http://www.southernlord.com/ Sunn 0)))))), Earth, etc. Heavy, sludgey stuff.

I saw Sunn O play at the Victoriaville festival in Quebec. In a Hockey arena with a bunch of stoned punk kids. it was a wall of amps and fog machines galore. I just laid down on the concrete and let my teeth rattle.
Loved it hard.

Funny. I like the stoner rock, too. Here's a few that are not as heavy as the Southern Lord stuff: Bardo Pond, Flying Saucer Attack, just about everything on Drunken Fish Records check out Harmony of the Spheres (http://www.threelobed.com/bardo/discography/release/HarmonyOfTheSpheres) for a good sampler. Then there's Kranky records, excellent record label. Godspeed You Black Emperor. Low. Stars of the Lid. LaBradford. (kranky.net).

Of course there's the Spacemen 3 lineage of bands, Spiritualized, Experimental Audio Research (EAR)... How can you top an album called "Taking drugs to make music to listen to while taking drugs" ? Although it is quite unlike a lot of the rest of the Spacemen 3 stuff, check out _Dreamweapon: An evening of contemporary sitar music_

[BikerMiker]

I recently re-found Too Much Joy - Cereal Killers. It came out back in 1990 or so and was on heavy rotation on WHFS back then. A bit pop but really good stuff. King of Beers and Thanksgiving in Reno always make me laugh.

mk

[allencb]

Been listening to a lot of Ministry and Rob Zombie in the car lately.

Nothing like rocking out to industrial music in the "dadmobile".

Chris

[jabberwocky]

I've been listening to a lot of indie stuff at work lately. Explosions in the Sky, Broken Social Scene, Neutral Milk Hotel. Green Days 'American Idiot' has gotten played a fair bit as well, as has Opeths new album, Watershed. Then, I've also gotten on a classic metal kick (mainly old Iron Maiden, Ozzy and Metallica stuff, nothing newer than like 1987).

[macdaid]

Jab,

If you're on a metal kick, you should take a look at Apocalyptica.
Metal riffs for 4 cellos. Very unique, very heavy.

I've got 2 of their albums;
#1 "Apocalyptical Plays Metallica By Four Cellos"
#2 "Reflections" - their own stuff.

It's all good IMHO.

Dave

[EJensen]

I've been listening to ... Neutral Milk Hotel.
Coincidentally, I just bought In the Aeroplane Over the Sea through eMusic. To be honest, I just chose it based on listener reviews, as my month's worth of subscription credit was close to expiring and I didn't to lose it. Haven't even given it a listen yet.

Regards,
Eric

[drewdane]

Since discovering the wonderful world of the iPod, shuffle's my primary mode, so there isn't any one thing I've been fixated on lately.

My musical tastes are all over the map - I like to say I listen a little of everything, from Mozart to Ministry. The only exception is most jazz, and hippie rock like the Dead and Janis Joplin, Phish, etc. Oh, and bands whose singers sound like Cookie Monster. I can't abide that stuff!

In the car CD player, I've currently got Laura Viers (I forget which one - not "Saltbreakers", which I didn't like), Portishead "Dummy", Jenny Lewis with the Watson Twins, The Beatles "Revolver", Yaz (remember Yaz?) "Upstairs at Eric's", which my daughter loves, and another one I don't recall right now. Green Day, Regina Spektor, and Bishop Allen get hevy rotation in the car as well.

I'll never turn off the Surf Guitar (much to my family's chagrin). Original 50s-60s California bands or 90s revival, it doesn't matter - I love that stuff!

Johnny Cash accompanies me to the proverbial desert island.

On the radio, I liked 94.7's new format while it lasted. Too bad the Baby Boomer contingent couldn't handle variety in their radio listening, so they pussed out and went back to Classic Schlock. Safe sounds for the self-satisfied. Barf.

[mountainwop77]

Top 5 most played in my Ipod

1) Widespread Panic
2)M.O.E
3) Yonder Mountain Stringband
4)Umphrey's Mcgee
5)Gov't Mule

[macdaid]

I've added Yngwie Malmsteen to my metal playlist.

Great stuff

[halfinch]

I'll never turn off the Surf Guitar (much to my family's chagrin). Original 50s-60s California bands or 90s revival, it doesn't matter - I love that stuff!

Johnny Cash accompanies me to the proverbial desert island.

do you have any slacktones or los straightjackets?

[nocro]

do you have any slacktones or los straightjackets?

Man or Astroman?

[macdaid]

Hey Mtw77,

I've been sampling Umphrey's McGee on iTunes just now, and they ROCK...

Can you recommend a starter album?
At the moment I'm considering Anchor Drops...



4)Umphrey's Mcgee

[macdaid]

Hey 'Finch,

You should give a listen to Gary Hoey.
He does these really great metal arrangements of fat-string guitar you might like.

Really great stuff.

do you have any slacktones or los straightjackets?

[tsunayoshi]

Something I posted in another blog back in June:

I was bored at work once so I ended up downloading about 30 mp3s of Pulp Fiction dialogue snippets which got imported into iTunes when I played them.

So the random playlist I just listened to was thus:

Ministry
New Order
Andrew Carver
pulp fiction dialogue
Nine Inch Nails

I have a huge variety of everything: Enya, Sinead O'Connor, Cranberries, Sepultura, Rammstein, MLWTKK, St. Benectdine Monks, Japanese war drums. About the only thing missing is teenage girl stuff (a.k.a Brittany Spears), rap, hip-hop, country. Oh, and no boy bands either.

[halfinch]

Hey 'Finch,

You should give a listen to Gary Hoey.
He does these really great metal arrangements of fat-string guitar you might like.

Really great stuff.


my old neighbor was huge into cuban and hawaiian slack key music. we would sit out back on the porch on summer evenings drinking rum or beer, smoking cigars and listening to tunes.

i find that san antonio is defenitely a "metal" town when it comes to rock radio. there's not a day where you don't hear rob zombie, sabbath, or metallica.

malmsteen is impressive, but i'm more of a vai or satriani guy.

[camp]

I listen to everything Mountainwop77 just listed,
have always loved the Surf Guitar too,
Mermen, Astroman, Frank Jordan, Dick Dale, Ziggens

living now in a location worse for radio than DC (hard to believe...), I recently got Sirius, since I work at home 80% of the time. So in Sirius-channel-speak, that means, The Loft, Spectrum, Outlaw, Jam-On and a few others.

[camp]

Favorites that make me stop and pay attention:
Emmylou
Bruce Cockburn
Neil Young (still...)
Dylan I've never heard before
My Morning Jacket
Death Cab
anything related to Uncle Tupelo/Wilco/Farrar/Tweedy

on Sirius, hearing a lot of these folks lately:
Ray Lamontagne
Amos Lee
Lucinda
Elvis Costello
Susan Tedeschi (and her hubby Derek Trucks!)

[Dirt]

This week it has been a weird mix of Manic Street Preachers and The Dandy Warhols. I seem to have trouble getting Amy Winehouse's first CD out of my headphones. There's something about the song "I Heard Love is Blind"that is sooo wrong that it is right.

Love,

Pete

[jabberwocky]

This week has mostly been an electronic week. I was up in PA for the entire weekend working on some woodshop projects, and I like to listen to ambient electronic while I work. Dunno, it helps me think. My shop playlist is a mix of William Orbit, Orbital, Boards of Canada and Amon Tobin, along with some other stuff.

Today is Neutral Milk Hotel, until I've finished running through their two albums (almost done with the first). After that, dunno. I'm feeling like something with more energy, so maybe NOFX or the Swingin Utters.

[halfinch]

I listen to everything Mountainwop77 just listed,
have always loved the Surf Guitar too,
Mermen, Astroman, Frank Jordan, Dick Dale, Ziggens

living now in a location worse for radio than DC (hard to believe...), I recently got Sirius, since I work at home 80% of the time. So in Sirius-channel-speak, that means, The Loft, Spectrum, Outlaw, Jam-On and a few others.

we have the same problem here. i commute 50 miles e/w now, and have plenty of time to zone in my commute. I'm cheap, so i'll stream from live365 dot com or pick up books on cd from the library.

noticing that you like neil, wilco and family - you might try knbt from new braunfels. mostly alt-country/americana. they have a willie hour on sundays.

http://www.knbtfm.com/

[bikesmith]

Always listening to Clutch, any and all clutch stays on my ipod all the time. Also listening to Rage, White Stripes, The Black Keys, Beastie Boys, and a lot more than I can think of right now.