Category Archives: Friday Music Day

Friday Music Day

FMD: Jan20, 2012

58 Comments

I should probably shut up about Lana Del Rey, but after her awful SNL performance last week, I went through the comments sections of several websites to read people's thoughts. (I was really hoping to find a writer at Pitchfork or somewhere similiar to have a thoughtful take on it rather than comments, but no dice.)

I was surprised to see that some people were taking a face-value reading of the lyrics of "Video Games":

I'm in his favorite sundress, Watching me get undressed, take that body downtown
I say you the bestest, Lean in for a big kiss, Put his favorite perfume on
Go play a video game
It's you, it's you, it's all for you...

With her flat, dispassionate delivery, I thought this was an ironic song, talking about her dedication to a boyfriend who isn't showing that much interest in her. Like she's realizing that there's nothing there. (Kindof like a reversal of Lydia Loveless's "More Like Them". [Man have I got my obsessions, I should really try to think about other artists from time to time.]) But several commenters made it sound like this was a devoted love song.

However, if I don't pay attention to comments on news or baseball sites, why should what a few comments on music sites carry any weight with me. Mostly, I was just surprised that people would get a different interpretation from this song: I thought it was pretty clear, and my levels of obsession led me to write these two hundred words on it.

Finally: this is probably just for Nibbish, who seems to be the only other person here who digs her music as much as I do.

Let the Random Ten Rumpus begin!

Friday Music Day

FMD: Jan 13, 2012

51 Comments

Ten random musical thoughts:

1. Lana Del Rey is this weekend’s musical guest on SNL. I’ll be watching. I’m scared, because her other televised appearances (from Europe via youtube) have been spotty, at best. If she tanks, she might become an over-culture punchline before her album is even released. I hope her major-label handlers have taken this into consideration, and prepped her like an American Idol finalist about to go on tour. Alternately, if she’s good, she might get too big too soon and end up like Katy Perry or something.

2. At first, I didn’t really like her newest single, “Born to Die”, but I tried it a few times and it grew on me. Now, if only her big-budget video would have spent its money on video-clip clearance for a legally acceptable video-as-tumblr cut&paste composition rather than cinematic production.

3. If you've got $300 laying around, you can have Bobby Bare Jr. write a song about whatever you want and four quarters.

4. Should we pool some money and get BBJ to write the official WGOM.org theme?

5. Black Dice have a new song that is free for you to stream or download. I think this is their poppiest tune yet, and I think it's great. Soundcloud says it has 9000 plays, and youtube 11000 views. I'm probably more than 1% of each.

6. I think I may be as excited to hear the new Black Dice album as I am the new Lana Del Rey.

7. I gotta back off the Lydia Loveless. I've got like 14 songs of hers I keep playing over and over and I'm getting burned out on them but still don't want to listen to anything else.

7. Parental Joy: driving around with 6yo HPR. He's bored with whatever music's playing (I think it was Lydia Loveless for the 8th straight time), so he asks for the guy that goes "weedle-weedle-weedle" (Only with a cute 6yo, missing two front teeth lisp). He means Colin Stetson!

8. So I put it in and skip forward to "Red Horse" (cos I know that's one of his favorites), and I hear HPR "singing" from the backseat on the parts of the song where Stetson vocalizes through his horn. HPR's sound is in between a growl and a grunt.

9. I'm pretty sure I had about ten random thoughts when I sat down to type.

T. If I had ten thoughts, I guess I lost a few.

B. Damn!!!

Friday Music Day

FMD: Jan 6, 2012

38 Comments

I had two unfinished points on my best-of-2011 list that I was hoping to get to today. Guess not.
I'm eagerly awaiting DK's best-of-2011 list.

Also to random lists from the rest of you.
I'll assign points to anything released in 2012 (or 1912!).
I've only got one such release: I'll see if it makes it. If not, I'll grab it as my bonus track.

Points to be redeemable for more points at the end of the day.
Any unused points will expire at midnight (CST) on Jan 7, 2011.

Friday Music Day

FMD: End of 2011

103 Comments

2011 has, what, 40-odd hours left before its spent corpse is a dried husk caught by the winds of time and blown to the far corners of the earth. So, on its deathbed, let us throw the year a final party by praising and dissecting the musics released during its now-ending life. I suggest (though I never demand) commenting with your 2011 Top-X list[s] in lieu of randomness.

[Next week, in respect for the year passed and those preceding it, we will all only have 2012 releases in our random tens. Hopefully a dozen or so good albums come out next Tuesday....
Amazon.com says Elvis, the Monkees, the Who, and Noel Gallagher are among the top titles. That just raises the challenge level!]

Before I get into what I thought was great about the year that's not quite dead yet, I want to say that my lists are a reflection of my tastes, and that I believe taste to be particular. Furthermore, my tastes may be more particular than most as I'll often find an artist that sounds very similar to one I'm fond of, and be left cold by the second act, without being able to put my finger on what the difference is. This is why there's no Radiohead or TV on the Radio or Arcade Fire or (various other clearly talented acts) in my list: I'm just not that into them, and I've fruitless time spent listening to music I'm just not that into while attempting to pin down why I'm not that into it, or to try to get what others obviously get out of it. The prior left me nitpicking music so that I could claim that the artists were inferior to what I listened to (which wasn't true, overlooked similar faults in the stuff I did like, and lead me to believe myself to have superior taste). The latter left me numb to what I actually like in music and why I even listen to music.

So screw that, here are my lists! Maybe you'll find something interesting. Maybe not.

Artist of the year
Continue reading FMD: End of 2011 →

Friday Music Day

FMD: Dec 16, 2011

27 Comments

I mentioned a dissection of the Grammy nominations would go here this week. I guess I was being overly optimistic. I did read through a lot and I'm really surprised to find out that Grammys voters like Bruno Mars and Skrillex.

Also, Pitchfork and many other publications have released their top songs/albums lists. Feel free to discuss their lists, but again refrain from sharing your best-of until 2011 is at least 99% over.

Now share your randomness.

Friday Music Day

FMD: Dec 9, 2011

29 Comments

I went over to Google+ (which for me is basically like CarterHayes' blog). CH and some of his friends were discussing not what Christmas on other Holiday music one likes, but what one is looking for in popular Christmas music. I'd like to ask that around here. I'm thinking primarily about contemporary music (in the sense of: since the last Twins' pennant, but feel free to expand that a bit to fit your needs). Also, I'm not trying to restrict it to non-religious songs, just songs for radio play, or regular iPod or streaming service play, rather than stuff for Christmas Choral Concerts or church organs.

In other words, if you're going to go looking for some new Christmas songs, or new performances of traditional Christmas songs, what are you looking for?

[I was gonna put more of my thoughts here, but other obligations sapped my time.]

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While I'm on the topic, there's a certain surviving Beatle who wrote a song a few decades ago that I hate with a white-hot passion. Give me six hours of James Taylor as opposed to one listen through of that recording. If someone puts that on the video of the day, I will break into the HTML code or whatever and find a way to give it a -10 stars. Without listening.

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Next week, I think I'll look at that list of Grammy nominations and make some hypercritical remarks.

Friday Music Day

FMD: Dec 2, 2011

25 Comments

1. End-of-the-year is coming. Start planning your best-of lists. Let's try to discuss on the first Friday of the new year (rather than earlier). That will be January 6, 2012.

2. Now that I've got some of my actuarial-education blinders off for a bit, I notice that a new artist I'm listening to has a show in Minneapolis tonight. Her name is Lydia Loveless, and she plays vulgarly fun country-punk about drinking and cheaters and depression. For fans of the Waco Brothers and Miranda Lambert. Here's a live clip of what's probably my favorite song (Lyrics NSFW). She's playing at Lee's Liquor Lounge, doors at 9pm, $8 cover. If I hadn't been blindered and completely ignoring my wife and kids, I would definitely go, but my EAR seems to have been missing me, so I may favor staying home. But if you're looking for something to do tonight, consider this my recommendation.

3. I would have preferred to link first to her Daytrotter Session, which was uploaded on my birthday this year. Unfortunately, those files are no longer free as Daytrotter has had to implement a $2/month subscription fee to keep their lights on. It's definitely worth it for me, so they'll have my credit card number soon. I will miss having that site's performances as a quick way for me to link to artists I like. You can have a free seven-day trial.

4. Lydia's session is particularly good, which does have me excited about her as a live artist. Mostly songs from her first album, but recorded with more life. The session may end up on my best-of list.

5. Finally, a new track from Lana Del Ray (visuals borderline NSFW: sideboob). Just saw this, haven't listened closely. Yet.

6. Time for you to share your randomness.