Hip-D PodBlast » Staff Inflection » v2.0

We have a lot of people now so that means a lot of songs and not much talking…The contributors and their contributions:

Yail Bloor: Chickisaw Mudd Puppies – “Superior”

FT: Glossary – “Poor Boy”
The pride of Murfreesboro, Tennessee are back with this killer track from their recently-released sophomore effort, For What I Don’t Become. In the same “Alt-law” vein as Drive-By Truckers, Marah, The Drams and fellow Tennesseeans Lucero, Glossary proves to be more literate than most casual listening carpetbaggers are wont admit when it comes to such rough-and-tumble Southern bands. This track provides plenty of evidence of their lyrical genius, in such lines as “The night aint over ‘til everybody sins,” and “I can’t promise I wont change; only a fool wants to stay the same.” And they’re solid musicians, to boot! There’s nothing not to like here, so give it a listen and take in the all the Southern Fried goodness. — Blurb by FT

Darrin Frew: Roddy Frame – “Shore Song”
As one of the select few to record and release material for the spellbinding Postcard label in the early 80’s, Roddy Frame will always have a place close to my musical heart. That said, ‘Shore Song’ ,a track from Frame’s sadly ignored new album, has been selected purely on merit and stands as a glittering testiment to the enduring appeal of a man, a tune and a well played acoustic guitar.–Blurb by Darrin Frew

Jasmine: Archers of Loaf – “Web In Front”
From the simple drum opening to the chaotic lead vocals over chorus closing, I can’t find one thing wrong with “Web in Front” from the great Archers of Loaf debut Icky Mettle. This is one of those songs where the lyrics don’t make a lot of sense (“Sampled your rust from a faucet, I know/I’ve got a magnet in my head/A magnet in my head/Extra thick, extra long, the way it was wasted.” – what?), but the emotion in singer Eric Bachmann’s voice is enough to convince me that there’s a lot more to these simple lyrics. Personally, I just love singing “All I ever wanted was to be your spine!” while rocking out in my shower. I hope you love it as much as I do. And I hope Yail reads this blurb. — Blurb by jasmine

Stacey: Hartley Goldstein – “The Mystery of George Harrison’s Beard”
I picked up the ‘Songs in the Key of Zoloft’ ep at Kim’s in St. Marks December of last year because the cover appealed to me. The cheapness (as it’s only an ep) appealed to me too. Also appealing to me was the title. Oh, and what the little info sticker said on the front appealed to me as well (something about “neurotic pop and meta-folk”). Hartley Goldstein has been called the “David Sedaris of Indie rock”. That might appeal to you. It may also be appealing if you like Belle and Sabastian, the Shins, Devin Davis or John Darnielle. He sings about Diane Keaton as Annie Hall sometimes. That’s kind of appealing, no? — Blurb by stacey

Elvis Fu: The Rugburns – “War”

OPA!: Beirut – “Brandenburg”

Mark H.: The Goddamn Doo Wop Band – “Rooftops of Bangor”
Oldies music was my first love, and the fact that I’ve yet to outgrow it like I have heavy metal and Weird Al, shows just how awesome that 1955-1963 era really was. I’m all for modern groups that milk the oldies influence (e.g. The Pipettes), but I like my modern oldies to feel and sound authentic. The God Damn Doo Wop band have the girl-group harmonies, the ramshackle rhythm section and the party-squonkin’ sax – all the necessary ingredients without the artificial production sweeteners. When I listen to the GDDWB I’m not really thinking of them as a band or even as a homage; they’re more like a documentation of a decades-old sound that still sounds great in 2006. — Blurb by Mark H.

Patrick: Ass Ponys – “Astronaut”
So, I found that I liked The Long Winters, but wished they sounded a little more like Lucero. Prayers answered with this, the second track off Cleaver and Co.s fifth full-length, 2000’s “Some Stupid With A Flare Gun”. So good… — Blurb by Patrick

Loog: George Jones – “If Drinking Don’t Kill Me (Her Memory Will)”
George Jones was JAIL before I knew the meaning of the word. He’s drunk more whickey, slain more gash, played more shows in the Donald Duck voice, and gotten more DUIs on riding lawn mowers after his wife hid the keys to all 7 of his cars, than you’ve beat your meat to Jenna Jamison. Yet, after all that, The Voice remains, and the songs are still some of the best things going TODAY. This song should hit anyone whose ever drowned the sorrows of a break up right in the gut. — Blurb by Loog

We’ll be back much sooner. I promise.

Hip-D PodBlast » Staff Inflection » v1.0

Saturday Looks Good To Me – “Parking Lot Blues”
“This is Saturday Looks Good To Me at their best, forgoing what critics once described as a ‘Fisher-Price turntable under water sound’ for this loose and good-time summer jangle. If this don’t make you wanna get up and shake DAT ASS, you might as well go ahead and call Quincy to throw your lifeless corpse in the back of his station wagon, so Sam can proceed with carving you up…’cause honey, you ain’t got no pulse!” – FT

Gene Vincent – “Cat Man”
“Better hide your sister, indeed. Vincent’s “Cat Man” prowls the wholesome streets in search of late 50s goodies sequestered behind some formidable undergarments, while guitarist Cliff Gallup lays down a damn near perfect riff that darts menacingly on the trail of the Cat Man’s mark. This was Gallups last recording with Vincent & the Blue Caps. He soon quit to become a school janitor.” – Elvis Fu

Ray LaMontagne – “Crazy”
“I asked Jeeves how many artists have covered Gnarls Barkley’s ‘Crazy’ thus far and, well, Jeeves didn’t have a clear cut answer for me, but I know it’s a few. So, why would you care about another version of a song you’re probably thisclose to tossing into the ‘overexposed’ used CD bin in your mind? Jeeves didn’t have an answer for that either, actually… but I’ll throw out a reason; this is Ray LaMontagane. Not enough for you? Fine you heartless, cynical bastard; this is Ray LaMontagne being Ray LaMontagne. He covered a song steps away from his genre and made it his own backwoods Van Morrison/folk/rock/guy and guitar/blah blah blah creation. You may think that’s boring. Or you may dig it for what it is, happily add it to your iTunes collection and forget it’s a cover the next time it’s played.” – stacey

Prince Far I – “Johnny Get Worse”
“When one thinks of the great sounds of Jamaica , most will think of the echo soaked bass of dub or Ska’s skanking guitar. Some may even site the extraordinary and unique niyabinghi drummers. Such a pity then that The Voice of Thunder remains relatively unrecognised. The Voice of Thunder belonged to Michael Williams, better known to the world as Prince Far-I, and as the moniker might suggest it was truly a force of nature.” – Darrin Frew

Neutral Milk Hotel – “Holland, 1945″
“A few months ago, I was sitting on my friend’s bed and he grabbed an album for us to listen to. He issued this disclaimer, ‘You’re either going to love it or hate it.’ I quickly figured out that I love Neutral Milk Hotel. By the time ‘Holland, 1945′ started playing, I was grinning from ear to ear and fighting back tears of happiness. I have no idea what the hell this song is about. The production isn’t great… every time I hear it, I think my speakers are on the verge of blowing up and Jeff Mangum’s voice definitely leaves much to be desired. For some reason, though, this song makes me want to fall in love and skip down a street while holding my lover’s hand. I want to sing along at the top of my lungs and just know that everything is right in my world.” – jasmine

New York Dolls – “Runnin’ Around”
Submitted by Yail Bloor sans blurb.

T. Rex – “The Street And Babe Shadow”
Submitted by OPA! sans blurb.

Johnny Cash – “God’s Gonna Cut You Down”
“The Man in Black, the voice, the last album, the dark subject matter, and still the handclaps add a whole new dimension to the timeleass sound of JR Cash. He may be gone, but I’ll never be able to forget him.” – Loog