Mister we could use a man like sheriff Lobo Again~ A Fractured Take
1. Those Were the D’OH’s ~ Awesome, I love the Simpson’s, and quite often my wife and I make up words to this song, and it is a very cool intro to a disc.
2. Devin Davis ~ Transcendental Sports Anthem~ Raar! Crunchy guitars and snarky lyrics for your breakfast! There’s plenty to like in this song: this track has more memorabilia shit hanging from the walls than your local Friday’s.
3. Destroyer~ 3,000 Flowers ~ There’s a déjà vu in this song, it sounds like something I used to spend hours listening to, but then it isn’t… is it? Icehouse? I dunno, I like its swelly organs and the Soup Dragon’s/Jesus and Mary Chain drums. I’m sure the lyrics really want me to think here, but I did all that already and I’m just liking the song’s choppy keys and lush layers to much to notice lyrics.
4. John Dufilho ~I’m Outside~ This song is, well—Smokin’--- I really like it, first time I heard it, I was umm, outside, and I was haulin’ ass to get to the gym and I could think of no better song for the moment. Huzzah, power pop will save us from the jihadists, certainly.
5. Babyshambles ~Back from the Dead~ I likey, very infectious, like a dirty needle, one could say…must admit I thought they would be more punk, and had to check the track listing to confirm it was Babyshambles. This makes me want to CD.
6. Neko Case~ Hold On Hold On ~ being a Texas boy from birth, I have a deep well in my soul that can take a million gallons of alt country and still be thirsty, and if I am good, when I die, Neko Case will be one of the house musicians. This song transports me immediately to a shiny red vinyl chair in a bar on a long stretch of road. I’m leaning back in the chair by the pool table with the clydesdales beer wagon light, sipping beer and watching the band tear it up. ( it may be raining outside, the dream blurs)
7. American Analog Set~ First of Four ~ I get the headphone appeal of this band and I occasionally enjoy them when I am paying bills and need to stay mellow in front of the computer, but they dip this mix a bit, I would often skip this one, but it’s a short one, which sets it apart from many AAS songs…then again the next song is by the
8. Headphones~ Pink and Brown~ Not too shabby, it’s a grower, and it makes me think of Soft Bulletin Flaming Lips, which is a good thing.
9. Simple Means~ Hidden Grove~ this song oscillates between sweet bleats of desperate, urgent vocals and a killer slightly angry chorus, nice, but ultimately less than memorable for me. Is this the debut? There’s more to be had here, I bet.
10. The Raconteurs~ Steady as she goes~ Alright! This song instantly grabs, I get a boozy pub crawl feel in this song’s instrumentation , then the vocals back it up, it seems like a bunch of your pals are giving you all the reasons you should ditch her and hang with them. Grimy and ironic, and ultimately the deep drum beat of your heart knows the truth…Are you steady now? Nod to Elvis Costello.
11. Rhett Miller~Ain’t that Strange~ Oh, god, make it stop. I can’t get into this song at all. Once again proving that being good looking [see: Charlie Sexton] can get you anything, this song is all over the map, and visiting no place I need a postcard from. Its over, and I am glad.
12. Eagles of Death Metal! ~ I Gotta Feeling( Just nineteen) Ahhh, Wham Bam Thank You Ma’am! This song coaxes even the most conservative listener to wip out the air guitar and do the bended knee forward, back leg straight stance! Full on rocking, no apologies 70’s swagger. This song makes me want a chick in tight black jeans with bandanas tied around her leg to share a feather-roach-clipped joint with her, preferably in the high school parking lot next to my IROC Z-28.
13. The Minus 5~Original Luke~ Ok, I can see the attraction, but I can’t get into this. One should note that, despite my love of alt-co, I often can’t stand the side projects that attempt to “rock” they always miss the Jerry Lee Lewis vibe, and nail the middle ground. This would be an epic country tune…think “16 tons”
14. The Ike Reilly Assassination ~ Farm Girl~ This song gets back into the groove, and is a perfect companion to the Eagles’ Of Death Metal track. Or at least from my perspective—all my far girls are underage, I guess--- “plows won’t plow/ hoes won’t hoe’: exceptional! Plus I dig the Gibby Haynes-sounding guitar work, this song makes me want to garden.
15. Crusty interlude, brings it back around. Nice.
16. Cat Power~ Could We~ I like this, and its weird because I had the impression that Cat Power was more…umm, Geraldine Fibbers? Than this, I’d guess this album would be perfect for a Sunday morning. Coffee, smoky voice, horns…nice!
17. Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan ~ Honey Child, What can I do? ~ Wow, this song makes me want to go kiss my wife. I admit I just had to go and look up where I knew these people from, and lo/behold, my favorite fembot from B&S is the babe. This song works, I wonder what the rest sounds like, and the simple arrangement (Oh, Ok, aside from the string section) of kick drum and tambourine make it sound even more sultry and innocent. Isobel’s voice reminds me of Abra Moore (huge crush) sometimes. Ahh, love, what can I do?
18. The Rosebuds~ Shake Our Tree~ Now, is it just me, or is anyone else getting a Love & Rockets thing here? I dig the call/response thing in most songs, if only because it makes a song easy to sing along with, but I can’t be sure I would want a full length disc of it, though. So/so.
19. Marah ~ The Hustle ~ Umm, well, what can I say here, I guess its alright, its got some Lloyd Cole sound to me, with a splash of color provided by fun guitar riffs, The overall feeling here is its ready for heavy rotation on some station like Atlanta’s 99x. Again, alt-co gone wrong.
20. Portastatic~ Through with People~ I can’t say this song is getting me, maybe it needs more listens, but its forgettable. High note: “clean like a pick-up/on Saturday night” is an excellent couplet.
21. The New Pornographers~ Graceland ~ “Do we have time for a cut-scene montage?” This song reminds me of the cinematic bridge section where we see the hero learn how to play soccer/get the job done/ fall in love/clean up the nuclear waste. Now back to the rest of the movie. Pass the popcorn.
22. Spoon ~ My First Time Vol. 3~ This song pointed out this band to me, you guys talk about them all the time here (at Obner), and I can hear why. I bought this last week in California based on this song alone. It recalls the dark scary places one can find himself in; I get wet streets and stolen cars, regrettable activities and grit. Love it, fear it, respect it.
23. Ted Leo + Pharmacists~ Suspect Device~ the I -most-often-find-myself-humming-this of this disc, I think this song is perfect in any number of ways. This song pleases my punk bone.
24. Okkervil River~ No Key No Plan~ this is another band I see on top of people’s lists. Its good, it makes me want to get into a car and punch it for the nearest mountain range. Unknown roads and vast skies unfold as we cruise over rivers and past farms littered with machines of no specific purpose. The time is always 3pm and the road is always only 2 lanes. Excellent.
25. Centro-matic~ Triggers and Trash Heaps~ Hey, this is a long time Texas band, no? How could I ever forget the semester of editing the Austin Chronicle’s Musicians Register?[url=
http://www.austinchronicle.com/issues/v ... .musicreg/[/url] that's me, chris eager...Nightmare. I think I have seen them back when. It’s a lazy, college radio thang that makes me want to skip class and pack up my mountain bike for a naptime drive out to walnut creek. Or maybe call a goth-ey fuck buddy for ritas and casual sex.
26. Sally Crewe & the Sudden Moves~ Good song, Bet it would be G R E A T live, but seems too stiff or Nashville here. Still like it, because I can imagine how it should sound.
27. Robert Pollard~ I’m a widow ~ Nice closer, I dig it and its got the chops to make you scream while wearing headphones, which is always amusing, not in the least to yourself, but to those nearby you as you drive by.
So, I have to say, the mixes I have liked the best so far have drawn heavily on local talent from the Obner’s respective areas. I will admit, at the beginning of this mix I had actually forgotten that FT is an Austinite, but song after song drew me into the realization, like a man seeking mecca I was led to that holy place. This Mix is a shiny tin star in the skies over the capitol, and
I give it Ten Shiner Bocks.
