The Birth of Cool

I was given the assignment to name my Top 10 Coolest Albums, and I immediately broke out into a cold sweat. I am not and have never been cool. I have accepted this and am quite comfortable in my nerdishness. I wear nerdy like a crown. I decided in order to complete this assignment properly, I at least needed to understand what being "cool" means.

Websters defines cool as:

slang

a :  very good :  excellent; also :  all right

b :  fashionable, hip <not happy with the new shoes … because they were not cool — Celestine Sibley>

Urban Dictionary defines cool as:

The best way to say something is neat-o, awesome, or swell. The phrase "cool" is very relaxed, never goes out of style, and people will never laugh at you for using it, very conveniant for people like me who don't care about what's "in."

Homestar is cool.
The Red Sox are cool.
Twinkies are cool.

Well that didn't help me at all. I thought about it for a long while, and determined that cool is primarily comprised of confidence with a little je nes sais quois thrown in. However, once the confidence transforms into arrogance, the cool factor evaporates. Cool is difficult for me because I am a person drawn to vulnerability like a moth to the proverbial sad-sack flame. Most of my favorite music is definitely not cool. It could make a circus carny cry. But I do think I have a few cool gems. So here goes (in no particular order)...

1. "Mermaid Avenue" by  Billy Bragg & Wilco - What's not to love about this 1998 album of previously unheard lyrics written by Woody Guthrie put to music by British activist singer Billy Bragg and the American alternative rock band Wilco?
2. "Blonde on Blonde" by Bob Dylan - Often ranked as one of the top albums of all time, Dylan is just so cool in this album with grandly scaled music and lyrics that are colloquial and visionary. "Visions of Johannah" is one of the coolest songs ever.
3. "The Grey Album" by Danger Mouse - This mashup album created in 2004 uses a capella versions of Jay Z's "The Black Album" and couples them with unauthorized instrumentals from The Beatles "The Beatles" (better known as "The White Album"). It is genius. And so very cool.
4. "Now You Know" by Doug Martsch - Built to Spill's frontman, Doug Martsch, released this solo album in 2002 (I got a bootlegged copy from a friend of his in 2001!). It is cool because he departs from his rock-oriented work to touch on blues and folk. Jangly goodness.
5. "The Reminder" by Feist - Leslie Feist is just cool and my girl crush. I had a hard time choosing an album. This one is her third full-length album and must be cool since so many songs were used in commercials. It also landed her on Sesame Street. What is cooler than singing with muppets?
6. "White People" by Handsome Boy Modeling School - This is a collaborative project between renowned hip hop producers Dan the Automator and Prince Paul. The collaboration lasted between 1999 and 2006 and resulted in two albums featuring a wide array of guest rappers, singers, comedians and DJ's. They were a conceptual hop hop duo that parodied and commented on the vanity, consumerism, materialism and self absorption of upper class society. Their second album, "White People" was released in 2004. Collaborators included Cat Power, Alex Kapranos of Franz Ferdinand, Jack Johnson, Cedric Bixler-Zavala of The Mars Volta, Pharrell, and comedian Tim Meadows.
7. "American IV: The Man Comes Around" by Johnny Cash - In my world, no one is cooler than Johnny Cash. I chose the last album he made before his death. In 2002's "American IV," most of the songs are covers which Cash performs in his own spare style with help from producer Rick Rubin. "Hurt," a song written by Trent Reznor, is the most haunting song I have ever heard. Reznor said Cash's version of the song deeply moved him. It honestly makes me a little sick when I listen to it.
8. "Murmur" by REM - This is the debut album by REM, released in 1983. It drew critical acclaim for its sound, defined by singer Michael Stipe's cryptic lyrics, guitarist Peter Buck's jangly guitar style, and bassist Mike Mills' melodic basslines. It characterized the quieter more introverted side of the first wave of alternative rock in the U.S. Quiet and introverted has become quite cool lately. So I think this one hits the mark. And "Radio Free Europe" is such a great song.
9. "No Depression" by Uncle Tupelo - This is the first studio album from alternative country pioneers, Uncle Tupelo, and was released in 1990. It is considered to be one of the most important albums in this genre which is often misunderstood and underrated. This of course makes it uber-cool. (Thanks you guys for contributing to my coolness.)
10. "Peel Slowly and See" by The Velvet Underground - This is a five disc comprehensive retrospective of material performed by The Velvet Underground and released in 1995. It chronicles the band from its earliest demo tapes recorded in 1965 to Lou Reed's final work with the band in 1970. These people were hanging out with Andy Warhol and changing rock and roll forever. What could be cooler? It is said if you start listening to this band in your teens, you will be weird forever. That explains it all...

So this is what I consider to be cool. And now that I have spent so much time thinking about it, I must be the coolest person on our fair planet. 

Lovely L's

This was a fun one. Here are my L's in alphabetical order.

1. Lark - Josh Ritter. I know you all just don't get my love for this Idaho native. He was named by Paste magazine as one of the top 100 songwriters of all times so I am not alone here. This song has gotten me through some hard times. "I am assured that peace will come to me.  A peace that surpasses my understanding and my need." Beeeeautiful.

2. Last Train from Poor Valley - Norman Blake. I grew up listening to my father perform this song. So it is a part of my soul. I like his version better, but it isn't on youtube. He used to change the name to Misty instead of Becky..."And the soft, new snows of December lightly fall my cabin round. I saw the last train from Poor Valley takin' my brown haired, Misty, Richmond bound."

3. Let's Not Shit Ourselves (To Love and To Be Loved) - Bright Eyes. A fantastic protest song. "We all fit into your slogan on the fast food marquis. Red blood, white skin, and the blues. I've got the blues. I've got the blues! That's me!" Have I mentioned how much I love Conor Oberst? "To love and to be loved. Let's just hope that it's enough."

4. Live and Die - The Avett Brothers. Americana at its best. Making banjos cool. And rockin' the cello. Come on.

5. Living Proof - Cat Power. This is Chan Marshall at her soulful best. "You're supposed to have the answer. You're supposed to have living proof." Weird video...she is one cool weird lady.

6. Losin' Yo Head - Monsters of Folk
Probably the most My Morning Jacket sounding song on this masterpiece collaborative album by Jim James, Conor Oberst and Mike Mogis (Bright Eyes), and M. Ward. They are my supergroup.

7. Love Cats - the Cure. This is one of those happy Cure songs that are so easy to love.

The Most Hated Man in America

I read this short article shortly after you both resoundingly agreed that Billy Joel was the absolute worst and thought that you'd both enjoy reading the article.

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/9175027/billy-joel-released-album-new-songs-20-years-#8212-been-good-legacy

And as a bonus, I've linked another article published four years ago which explains specifically why Billy Joel is so bad.

http://www.slate.com/articles/life/the_spectator/2009/01/the_worst_pop_singer_ever.html

BOTW - Foals

Let's get one thing straight - when you mix math rock with Oxford England and a lead singer named Yannis, you know you're dealing with Holy Fire.  Like Christopher Columbus, I found this band by chance.  My daughter was playing around with my iPod one day, and must have accidentally purchased one of their songs.  The pure rage of .99 lost turned into pure joy as I listened to the floating vibes.  She was named "Blue Blood"

The Foals have a strange way of mixing familiar riffs into something completely original.  While listening, I often strain trying to make connections with other bands or vocalists (Temper Trap?).  Perhaps this tendancy is informed by their influences.  They site bands like Arthur Russell, Talking Heads, and The Redneck Manifesto.  Personally, I have a hard time drawing the comparison.

I love how they turn an elevator tune into something so violent and exciting.  Their new album, Holy Fire, really is something else.  Like Empire of the Sun, the music should really have a prescribed wardrobe, scandinavian name, and facial hair.  Something like this:



For as vague as I've been, you'd think I was trying to break up with my girlfriend.  The ultimate message - it's not me, it's them.  They are the real deal.  Along with their stellar sound, they have managed to stay obscure enough to retain my attention.  Without reservation, I recommend this band.

Along with Blue Blood, check out these songs:

Late Night:

My Number:

Bad Habit (personal favorite):

Bright Eyes - I Love Him Like My Luggage

A while ago, MG asked who I wanted to see most in concert, and I can never answer questions like that on the spot...don't ask me why. Of course, the answer is Bright Eyes!!! And here is an interesting article I read today that I thought I would share since you all love Top 10 lists so much. While this is not my Top Ten...I will agree that these are all fantastic songs.

The Ten Best Bright Eyes Songs - Stereogum

La la la la la la la la la

WTF....almost my entire music library is not showing up in iTUNES!!!!!!

My Tardy K's

The long awaited K's:

• Karma Police - Radiohead
• Kids - Sleigh Bells ( I would have done MGMT's Kids, but I think MG took it)
• Kill - Jimmy Eat World
• Kim & Jessie - M83
• Kinder Blumen - Real Estate
• King of the Beach - Wavves
• Know Your Onion - The Shins (MG, you didn't take this right?)

BOTW - The Cowboy Junkies

So a friend posted an interesting article on Facebook from The Alternate Root listing their opinion of the top roots albums of the past 25 years. Of course I was intrigued, but the most exciting part was rekindling an old flame.

Now I know you all have issues with the moniker "Alt-Country"...so you probably couldn't get past the eye rolling enough to read the above mentioned article which I recently posted on this blog. (Honestly enough with the eye rolling. You could injure yourselves - pop an aneurism or a kidney stone or something.) If you did read the article, then #9 is the flame of which I speak. Yes, The Cowboy Junkies. And despite the name, they really aren't cowboy at all.

Senior year in high school I fell in love with #9, their album The Trinity Sessions. It is a thing of beauty. Remember at this time I was mostly listening to bands you would find on MTV's 120 Minutes, or playing in your local mosh pit. So this was quite a departure for me. Unbeknownst to teenage me the Los Angeles Times named the album one of the top ten albums of 1988, and they were nominated for Group of the Year at the Juno Awards in 1990 and 1991.

The band formed in 1985 and is comprised of three siblings and an outsider all from Toronto, Canada. Their sound using the ambisonic microphone and a mix of blues, country, folk, rock and jazz has earned them both critical attention and a cult following. They continue to make albums, but none have attained the fame of The Trinity Sessions. In 2007 they released Trinity Revisited, a re-recording of the album with guests Ryan Adams (oh I love him!), Natalie Merchant and Jeff Bird among others.

If you get nothing else from this post, you must listen to their cover of The Velvet Underground's Sweet Jane. Ethereal. Sublime. Even Lou Reed likes it.

I love this one too. I was never into bad boys...but singing this song could let any girl's imagination run a little wild. Misguided Angel also off of "The Trinity Sessions."

This is a sublime cover of Townes Van Zandt's To Live's to Fly off of a subsequent album "Black Eyed Man."

Blue Moon Revisited (A Song for Elvis) - what is not to love about a harmonica? Who is that girl in the video?  Who knows?

The History of Awesome

I threatened to put this link on here. And I think I will just to show there are other people out there with awesome music taste like mine. Plus it leads nicely into my hijacked Band of the Week. So there. Read if you dare...I feel a little like Vincent Price right now.


The Top 35 Roots Albums of the Last 25 Years

(o)K

I was going to start this off with a rousing version of "Kum Ba Yah", but I thought DP might never forgive me. So here goes the K's.

1. "Kamera" - Wilco. Makes me want to go make some photographs. Or dress up like a hobo. Not sure which.

2. "Kick Drum Heart" - The Avett Brothers. They are just so adorable...the number 1 reason you should like a band.

3. "King of Birds" - REM. "Standing on the shoulders of giants leaves me cold." They are poets, I tell you!

4. "Kiss Off" - The Violent Femmes. Best top ten list in a song. I especially like # 8.

5. "Know How" - Kings of Convenience. Gotta love me some Scandinavian mellow sounds. Plus Leslie Feist's voice is like buttah in this.

6. "Kicked It In the Sun" - Built to Spill. I always think Doug Martsch sounds like a smashed cat when he sings. This one totally exemplifies that thought.

7. I was going to pick your other Shins song, but I will leave it for DP. I did an eeny mo miney between several "Kiss" songs, and this one won. "Kissy Kissy" - The Kills.