Stanley Film Festival 2015 In Review

This year I was a very lucky man and my wife got us fancy passes to the 2015 Stanley Film Festival in Estes Park. It was this past weekend and it was one of the awesomest experiences of my life. Hanging out with genre film nerds and people that make such genre films, seeing tons of movies that haven't been available to the public as of yet, and just hanging around the historic Stanley Hotel all contributed to that. I'm going to spend the bulk of this entry talking about the movies to hopefully help spread the word about them and contribute in my own small way toward their success. And really, it's all about the movies.

But let me also quickly mention things like the great parties. Bands like Snake Rattle Rattle Snake played, which was super cool. And the awards brunch included such high concepts as our Saw table, requiring us to locate a key hidden in a dummy's mouth to get our silverware and our Re-Animator biscuits & gravy included an awesome green hot sauce in a syringe just because. And if they count as parties, all the other immersive/interactive things going on, it was more than a film festival. It was a full weekend of insanity.

And the people! Jess is quite good at striking up conversations with people at the festival, finding common ground in our obvious similar obsessions with horror movies. Just talking about movies with other people that developed toward the same obsessions over different time periods, talking about other interests, it seemed like everyone was generally easier to talk to there than in the real world. I miss that already.

Oh and being star struck because I don't get to meet a lot of heroes, but there were so many filmmakers in attendance. For every movie we saw but two, at least the writer or director was in attendance for a Q&A after the screening. The insight on the creative process was so inspiring that I am starting to think that I can maybe make at least a short myself someday soon. And submit it to various festivals. And use that to get funding for a real live, honest movie! And start a career and all that. Some directors seemed awesome (particularly Karyn Kusama and Todd Geoghegan) and some seemed somewhat douchey (not going to call them out here) but it was always interesting and inspiring to hear them talk about their craft.

What a great way to segue into the movies themselves! I'll just write a little bit about each one I saw and maybe be more obvious about recommending things that I feel should be recommended. Which is most of what I saw, but some more passionately than others.

Day One: April 30
The opening night film was Cooties, produced by Elijah Wood's SpectreVision. Goofy horror comedy. We saw a lot of goofy horror comedy, which is kind of our main subgenre of "horror" anyway. This had an all star comedy cast including Elijah Wood, Alison Pill, Rainn Wilson, and more (you can look at imdb for such details) and was about teachers surviving a crazy zombie-like outbreak amongst the students. Without giving too much away, there is a lot of kid killin' in the most tasteful way possible. I will highly recommend this when it comes out. I gave it 4 out of 5.

Day Two: May 1
We showed up over an hour early to see Director's Commentary: Terror of Frankenstein. We did not need to do this. We could have easily seen another movie before hand. But with the legendary Leon Vitali in attendance I figured it would be much more popular than it turned out to be. The concept was an odd one: a made up director's commentary track on a DVD for a real movie from the 70s revealing a very strange and tragic string of events (paralleling the story of Frankenstein in its own way) happening behind the scenes. A bit better in theory than in practice, it was still a very interesting concept and a bizarre experience.

Then we got to the main theater for The Invitation. Very anxious and stressful, very good at keeping you guessing, maybe more thriller/drama than horror film but very well executed. This is the new one from Karyn Kusama (Girlfight, Jennifer's Body) so I'm sure you'll be seeing it somewhere soon enough. I gave this one a 4 as well.

We only saw three films on Friday due to needing to eat and not seeing one before Terror of Frankenstein. So after dinner and hanging out in the lounge, we made our way to the midnight(ish) movie of the night, Deathgasm. I'd watch it again because it was quite entertaining but I can't give it the greatest rating for a couple reasons. As funny and gory as it was (New Zealand horror comedy), a couple things seemed a little derivative (using a chainsaw...) and disingenuous (it's about a metal fan but it felt like the writer didn't really care about/fully understand metal music and this is coming from someone who doesn't fully understand metal music). But overall, it's a silly comedy and worked great as a midnight(ish) movie. It's not exactly asking to be judged on very high standards. I think I gave it 3.

Day Three: May 2
We started our day at the oldest movie theater in the country (that was originally built as a movie theater) with a world premiere (much of the cast in attendance!) of Some Kind of Hate. The first real horror movie in a way. Very violent, pretty serious, and the second movie in a row that included an instance of a metal head introducing a cool/popular girl to metal music and her life being changed. Is that a common fantasy amongst high school metal heads? Anyway. This reminded both of us of Carrie. The drama factor wasn't as strong as the film wanted it to be, but the horror aspect was great.

We stayed at the old theater for a 35mm print of the classic film Re-Animator. Neither of us had seen it, shamefully enough. But we can no longer say that. Director Stuart Gordon was in attendance to receive the Master of Horror award (an axe, of course) and he sat in the same row as us! And Barbara Crampton presented it to him! What an experience this film was, I don't know how we never made our way to seeing that one in our annual October tradition, but luckily that has been remedied. I don't think I need to say much about this other than the fact that the final act is one of the most amazing displays of ridiculous gore I've ever seen.

We made our way over to the closing night presentation of The Final Girls. Another horror comedy, this one is super meta, think Sherlock Jr. meets Friday the 13th. Or an elaborate episode of Community. Without saying too much, it was quite funny, not quite scary, and surprisingly quite touching. Almost everybody we talked to loved it, I gave it 5 out of 5 stars, and I highly recommend it when it comes out later this year. But it was also the best possible crowd for this type of film, I'm not sure how it would land without having such an enthusiastic crowd. The other concern I must bring up is that one person we talked to that didn't love it. He hated it. He felt like it was too cheeky, that it was making fun of old stupid horror movies and their tropes. I took it as a harmless tribute made with love of the genre, but apparently a small percentage of the audience may not see it the same way.

Day Four: May 3
On the last day we had to see as many movies as we could. Meaning two before we had to head back home to the real world. After the awesome brunch alluded to above, we made our way to see We Are Still Here. The other "real" horror movie we saw. Another one I really don't want to say much about for fear of ruining your experience, I'll just say that it is a haunted house movie, it stars the legendary Barbara Crampton, and it has some amazing amazing practical effects and gore. Maybe the scariest movie we saw all weekend as well. I wanted to give this one a 5 (and kind of regretted giving The Final Girls a 5 the night before) because it was just so great, so mature (particularly for a first time director!) so scary, so mysterious and intriguing enough that I want to re-visit it when it comes out to the public. Unfortunately for some reason we didn't get ballots to vote for this one. See this movie when you can. It was my favorite. Just love.

And finally we caught When Animals Dream. A movie about a werewolf in Denmark. That description made me want to see it in hopes that it would be somewhat similar to Let the Right One In. And I guess it was. Subtle, dramatic, and very Nordic. It really reminded me of the great films I watched in my Nordic Film & Lit class. Like The Match Factory Girl except she turns into a werewolf. I gave it a 4. Just a great depiction of sadness and repression and...well you can probably imagine but you should see it for yourself anyway. It's got the same distributor as Let the Right One In so it'll probably make its way to theaters soon enough.

That is a lot of high ratings. There were some fantastic films. And many we were not able to see. Such is the nature of such things. I want to go back next year. And I highly recommend genre lovers do so as well. It is getting more and more popular and it will probably be crazy. Maybe they'll eventually have to expand it to a full week!

An Ear For An Era: 2003

2003 was a year of the heavy hitters. The big dogs. Massively massive albums. The year of over selling things.

I turned 20. That was pretty neat.

It was also the first year I really started getting into the "ranking the albums of the year" practice that I have obsessed over since. The year I recognized years as the next unit up from album. This year was way better than that year. The basis for this whole thing, I guess, kind of came from these exercises. So all of these albums I'll talk about, let's just say they could all be called album of the year. Maybe. We'll see how this goes.

The #1 Dance Punk or Whatever Album of 2003:
Pitchfork ranked the #1 album of 2003 as Echoes by The Rapture. I wonder if they have any regrets about that. It seems like they were trying to capture the band that most exemplified the most NOW sound of those days. Or something. The whole dance punk craze. But damn it, it is an amazing album. Does it outrank the other ones I'm going to talk about? I guess Pitchfork thinks so. What is it about this album? I have no qualms calling it the best entry in that whole dance punk world. DFA production. Passion upon passion. It really is punk rock. I think I probably got into this around 2004. But maybe that all ages dance night I went to would play "House of Jealous Lovers" and I got really good at dancing listening to that song. When I started going to Lipgloss (the 21+ "hipster or whatever" dance night) in 2004 it was possibly my #1 jam.

The Rapture "House of Jealous Lovers"

Lesser dance punk entries (I guess I can use this format):

• Metric- Old World Underground, Where Are You Now? Right before they really hit their peak, this debut album is a good taste of the good stuff.
• Electric Six- Fire. Kind of ridiculous. I still enjoy about 3 of the songs but it feels pretty dated compared to the rest of the crop.
• Ladytron- Softcore Jukebox. Can I put a mix tape here? Ladytron demonstrated their impeccable taste with this mix including My Bloody Valentine, Pop Levi, and a bunch of people I haven't heard of. And closed it off with Nancy & Lee!
• Ima Robot- Ima Robot. They were pretty fun. I saw them live at the Larimer Lounge (I bet Black Black Ocean opened up the show) from the front row. Good times!
• Les Savy Fav- Inches. Okay, there is nothing at all "lesser" about LSF. They are kings of this stuff. Inches was a compilation in reverse chronological order of a series of singles they put out over the years. Behold! De-evolution! But a good third of those singles were from 2003 anyway. So this album just kicks off with a series of amazing dance punk tracks of pure energy and pandemonium. Possibly my favorite 6 tracks by the band.
• Black Black Ocean- Operacion and Vultures for Permanent Fix. They were my favorite local Denver band. Always getting uncomfortably close. I'll talk about them more when I talk about their final album.
• The couple songs LCD Soundsystem put out in 2003 were great. "Give It Up" is still an all-time favorite. I kind of want to do that song karaoke some day.
• Let's put Polysics here! Neu is such a masterpiece in their new wave psycho psycho punk style, probably their best. Before Myspace Records or whatever discovered them, they were just a crazy Japanese band that Asian Man imported. I had no reference for this sound, as much as they insisted Devo were their major influence. It just sounded out of this world to me. This album in particular, it is a little more nuanced than Hey Bob! My Friend! It has some slower songs that build energy and the whole album is just pure joy.

Polysics "Black Out Fall Out"

The #1 Album of I Still Listened to Some of The Same Bands I've Always Listened To:
I'm sure much of the indie/emo crowd ranked the #1 album of 2003 to be The Ugly Organ by Cursive. If I'd been honest at the time I probably would have as well. I probably had it way up there. One of the first albums I pre-ordered from the record label for mailorder. I got it at my place in Boulder. And listened to it on vinyl. A lot. It was just so brutally honest about the artistic process and other personal things that just came crashing out. Such a good sound of chaos as well, with minor chords being played on said organ. Yet promising. The cello (this is their only full album with that cello!!) just brings in the hope and the sadness. I just think of the end of the song "A Gentleman Caller." When the cello comes in. Here, just listen to it (listen to the whole song):

Cursive "A Gentleman Caller"

The cello is what I associate with the line "the worst is over..."


Honorable albums of I still listened to some of the same bands I've always listened to (?):

• The Lawrence Arms- The Greatest Story Ever Told. Probably their most concepty album. And I loved it from the first notes I heard of it. This was when they were my favorite band. It just kind of felt like a celebration of how awesome they were.  And the three years between this one and the next one made it feel like some sort of final statement on the "middle" era of the band. They were very productive up until this point. Anyway, this was probably easily in my top 5 at the time.
• Alkaline Trio- Good Mourning. Such a complicated relationship I have with Alkaline Trio. I loved their first couple, hated Infirmary, and then quite liked Good Mourning, but not enough to buy anything they've put out since. I listened to this one like 6 times in a row once I got it and I got quite fond of it. Good personal songs, good sadness.
• Mike Park went solo (officially) on For the Love of Music. Less ska, very personal acoustic music. Gotta dig it.
• The Smoking Popes went Christian (officially) with the band Duvall. I liked the songs that were less obvious about being preachy. I saw them live. It was great and I thought it would be my only chance to see members of the actual Smoking Popes live.
• Ted Leo & The Pharmacists- Hearts of Oak. For some reason I didn't get into them as much as my peers at the time but now I know better. This is some great punk rock.
• The Honor System- Rise and Run. They brought a lot more energy into their sound here while keeping the passion and poetic political lyrics. Fantastic!
• The Weakerthans- Reconstruction Site. All of his albums are so great. All.
• Black Eyes- Black Eyes. Holy crap. I need to listen to this one over and over again. I didn't get this album until they'd broken up even though I got their second one. Another case of things being hard to find back in the day. But this is one of the best hardcore albums I own that I haven't listened to enough.
• The Suicide Machines tried to redeem themselves with A Match And Some Gasoline. I liked it okay. It sounded just like their first two albums, which were the ones I liked.

Officially The Best Acoustic or Something Music of 2003:
I didn't know anything about Sufjan Stevens until Illinois, but the start of his 2 States Project was Greetings From Michigan: The Great Lake State. A lovely album of sadness and sorrow and some hope as well, a very personal album and a great showcase of his arranging skills. You can just hear the love he has for the state all over this album.

Honorable Acoustic or Something:

• Songs: Ohia put out the album Magnolia Electric Co and it was fantastic stuff.
• The Handsome Family- Singing Bones. Hey, it has that True Detective song on it! 
• Jose Gonzalez- Veneer. Because it is the one.
• Cat Power- You Are Free. This showed her starting to branch out and incorporate different styles/arrangements. I haven't given this one its fair shake but I've been obsessed with everything she's put out since, and listening to this recently I could tell why. Here's another one for the obsession.
• Nina Nastasia- Run to Ruin. This was the Nina Nastasia album it took me forever to track down. But I've been a fan of hers since right around this time. She was probably the first female solo artist for me to get into. I just love how she puts her voice up and down like a rollercoaster on "I Say That I Will Go."

Nina Nastasia "I Say That I Will Go"

The Greatest Hip Hop Album of The Entire Year of 2003:
This is another one that is obviously well regarded a dozen years later. Or should I say another TWO? That's right, I'm talking about Outkast. Speakerboxxx/The Love Below. Because my ex girlfriend was obsessed with Outkast I was able to be aware of this when it was new. Also there was the fact that nobody on this planet was going to escape "Hey Ya!" the earworm that would not go away but would not get old. The Onion mini-headline "Outkast Universally Accepted" kind of said it all. We were all cool with Outkast at this time. I feel like everything's been said about this. Big Boi's Speakerboxxx is a crazy accomplishment in that it is a full album where it's all bangers, no bar is wasted, it doesn't let up. It gets overlooked because of its game-changing accompanying disc, but on its own it could be the #1 hip hop album of the year or more. And then Andre 3000's The Love Below is a crazy good experiment that went right. Channeling Prince, it's not really hip hop at all. Just brilliant experimental pop music. I don't know, have you heard "Hey Ya" before? It's a pretty catchy tune!

Honorably Hip Hop:

• Kid Koala- Some of My Best Friends Are DJs. A DJ album! All scratches! I discovered him through the fact that he worked with Deltron 3030. And then I found out he had solo material. This is so like nothing else I'd ever heard. Jazz music created by turntables. Far out, man!
• Madlib- Shades of Blue. Then this similar idea but way different execution. Madlib remixing/reimagining the Blue Note catalog!
• Jaylib- Champion Sound. The album with Jay Dilla rapping! And Madlib! The two most respected producers in early '00s hip hop (don't quote me on that) working together to mixed results. Hey, I like the song with Talib Kweli!
• Hieroglyphics- Full Circle. I don't know this one as well as their other one but they are quite a crew.
• Jay-Z- The Black Album. It took me longer than perhaps it should have for me to discover this one. I finally did before he came out of retirement, so I did get to experience it as his "final album." Such a great final statement for an artist to make, all-encompassing, his autobiography. And "99 Problems." Of course. The whole thing just sounds like victory.
• Ludacris- Chicken N Beer. This one holds a special place in my heart because it's the first Ludacris album I actually bought. It's a bit ridiculous but has a couple songs I still like quite a bit, particularly "Hip Hop Quotables."

The Probably One Of The Most If Not The Most Loved Album 12 Years Later Album of 2003:
In retrospect, this might be the real #1 album of 2003 as a universal truth. Depending on your opinions of Outkast and The White Stripes and whatever. But this one has really stuck around. I'm talking of course about Give Up by The Postal Service. One of those albums I can completely agree with my wife on (although The Ugly Organ also shares that distinguishment). Sure, "Such Great Heights" may have been overplayed but these days it is still a treat to hear. Ten tracks that all kind of have the same feel, but it's such a great feel. Tamborello's production toed the line between cold and comforting, distant and embracing. Something completely organic produced by something completely digital sounding. Gibbard's vocals were completely on point, his lyrics relatable and familiar, it's just a lovely unassuming record that accomplishes so much. A little side project that may have been the best work either of them ever put out.

The Postal Service "Nothing Better"

And Finally! My Officially Declared Album of 2003 As Declared In 2003 So It Doesn't Matter What I Think 12 Years Later:
When I got De-Loused in the Comatorium by The Mars Volta I didn't know what prog was. I thought it was something boring like jazz. I only knew that this was a crazy ambitious album with lots of long songs, arranged like a crazy symphony. It was the guys from At The Drive-In with all the vision and to me it was the most amazing thing I'd ever heard. I remember listening to it once and thinking, "why do I even listen to pop music? I should start only listening to music like this." I thought it was so beyond everything else out there. So I had to call it my #1. Someone else on my message board put it a little lower on his list saying he didn't rank it higher because he doesn't actually listen to it enough. I chided him (slightly) and said that was his problem, not the album's. Of course, now I know what he meant. It's not like your personal ranking can't take personal subjectivity into account. Anyway, looking at all the other stuff that came out this year, I can't say I still think this is the best of 2003 but it's a hell of a ride all the same. They had a way with energy, these guys. It translated well from At The Drive-In because they were able to harness crazy amounts of energy and then unleash it in such a beautiful way.

The Mars Volta "Roulette Dares (The Haunt Of)"

The Rest of the Honorable Mentions:

• Hail to the Thief by Radiohead was the other album I put up on top of my list at the time, maybe at #2 or 3 or 4. The other one I listened to when I wanted to get away from all the "pop" stuff. Good and political and stuff. I liked the politicalness of it.
• I don't know where to put Feast of Wire by Calexico. It is awesome and probably deserving of being #1 on some list somewhere. #1 Calexico? Maybe!!
• Early Okkervil River! I got a song off of Down The River of Golden Dreams once upon a time because I liked their name. I liked that song. I looked for their stuff everywhere and eventually gave up. The song was "The War Criminal Rises and Speaks." I still love that song. Eventually they got very popular and I became more of an official fan.
• Is Apple O' Deerhoof's best? I think of it as quintessential Deerhoof-from-before-I-knew-them.
• Janelle Monae's debut Audition gives just the faintest hint about what she would go on to achieve.
• Poodle Hat was Weird Al just throwing it all out the window. That's what I felt when I heard what the album would be called and saw the cover. Is that his most random cover? Might be. Just might be. In general it may be a slightly lesser Weird Al album, but that might just be my opinion. But there are some gems, especially "Bob." Doing an artist parody of Bob Dylan and making every line a palindrome is one of the most poetic things one could do. I still can pull out random lines from that song to demonstrate palindromes. A Toyota's a Toyota. Do Geese See God? Do Nine Men Interpret? Nine Men, I Nod.
• Yeah, Goldfrapp was neat too.
• So was The National!
• And Beaulah. Yoko was their last album! It was funny, it took me forever to get Yoko even though I loved the band because I'd found an exclusive indie record store "demos" version of it, so I already had and knew all the songs, just in demo version. When I finally got the album, I think I decided I liked the demo versions better...
• Hey, early Dirty Projectors!
• Where else do I put Elephant by The White Stripes? This seems so wrong to put them way down here! But they did get their due. I remember tons of magazines and such put this as their #1 album of 2003 so who cares if my little blog throws it down here? I didn't really get into The White Stripes until their next album. "Seven Nation Army" is a classic tune though. And it seems like they're having fun. Expanding their palate a bit. 
• Oh, if I only had known about TV On The Radio in 2003. The Young Liars EP came out and would have blown me away. I waited until they had a full-length album before finding out about them though.
• The New Pornographers - Electric Version. Because they are fun!
• Is Transatlanticism the best Death Cab for Cutie album? Please discuss.
• Elvis Costello doing piano based love songs! North is the name of the album. Pretty good, but I like everything he does.

What Happens Next?
I'm glad you asked! After 2003 comes 2004. 2004 includes music from the likes of Annie, Arcade Fire, Battles, Black Black Ocean, Black Eyes, some album from Brian Wilson called Smile, CocoRosie, Descendents (!), DeVotchKa, a double Elvis Costello release, The Ex, Franz Ferdinand, The Go! Team, Jens Lekman, some kid named Kanye West, Le Tigre, Madvillain, Modest Mouse gets huge, Scissor Sisters, TV On The Radio, and !!!. Among other things.

An Ear For An Era: 2002

Your bitterness doesn't surprise me. A quote from 2001 but that was what 2002 was like. I remember blowing off a class because I was bitter about a relationship status. Feeling alone and not wanting to deal with macroeconomics or whatever it was. I think I ended up doing ok for the semester but taking like a week off from class.

It was a painful breakup and it was fueled by painful breakup music. It was perfecting loneliness. It was online friends because I'd alienated all my physical friends. Not discounting said online friends, and if any of you are reading this you were amazing at helping me fight my way through this. It got better. But 2002 was a tough year for me. Not that I should have let that get to me, I was in fact very lucky in all ways except that crucial one way.

Not that it was terrible the whole time. It was a turbulent year with ups and downs, just as the breakup I went through had its on and off points, and I still owe that girl a lot for what she did for me musically. In addition to getting me into some of the crucial emo-esque-whatever bands of the time, she insisted and fought me until I accepted the art of hip hop. So here in 2002 we have the first hip hop album I bought, my favorite hip hop album for the longest time, and even today it stands amongst my favorites.

It came about because I went with her to see Jurassic 5. They were pretty darn cool. Even in 2002 when they were collaborating with Nelly Furtado. Looking at the lineup, there were some cool looking openers and I was curious about this group called Blackalicious. I found my way upon this track they had done called "Chemical Calisthenics."

 

Blackalicious "Chemical Calisthenics"

This song right here was undeniable proof of the presence of talent in hip hop (yeah yeah, baby steps). Incredible talent. And braininess. Smarts. Cleverness. Uniqueness. Everything I thought I knew about this art form was turned on its head because of this song. A nerdy song about chemistry. With different movements and melodies incorporated. Eventually I picked up the album. Blazing Arrow. I still remember going to a record store somewhere in Boulder (I don't think it's there anymore, it was down 28th by where Barnes & Noble was somewhere I think) and picking it up. And listening to it in my car. And becoming obsessed. This was a hip hop album that was immersive and contained, a statement rather than a selection of songs, but something that flowed throughout, in a way I previously credited to the highest honored rock groups like Fugazi. This was an opus. It sampled Harry Nilsson! And had PASSION! And politics and brains and SO MUCH SOUL. And it introduced me to Saul Williams on the epic hip hop track (!!) called "Release." It not only became my immediate favorite hip hop album (not a challenge at the time since it was my only hip hop album, but it remained my favorite hip hop album for years and push come to shove it might still be) but one of my favorite albums of all time. I just can't get over it. It is everything.

So hip hop was entering my consciousness. The Streets were getting started with Original Pirate Material, full of great beats and an interesting perspective on the genre. The Roots took some interesting turns on Phrenology. And oh boy, Talib Kweli. Quality is the other indisputable classic hip hop album of 2002. The lyricism is dazzling, the way he weaves stories and social commentary through classic beats is phenomenal. To me, this is where it feels that Kanye West as a producer really established himself. Sure, that Jay-Z album sounds great. But the songs he does on this album are just unbeatable. "Get By" and "Gorilla Monsoon Rap" are earworms/bangers/everything. And Kweli just makes them so thoughtful and perfect.

Another of my favorite albums of all time doesn't particularly hold a resonance tying itself to my personal life (and I don't think I got into it until it was a couple years old), but nonetheless has been a personal favorite and something I can always rely on to lift my spirits and get my brain working is High Society by Enon. This album is all over the place, hitting so many sounds, but hitting them all right on the head. It feels smart to me but wholly entertaining. This song says it all: Less pop, more fizz.

Enon "Carbonation"

There was a good beat here though, which segues nicely into the other thing that was slowly developing for me. Dance music. Lots of bands I liked started taking this turn toward the dance floor and over the next 2 years I'd discover my own internal lord of the dance which would kind of change my life eventually. Q and Not U were one of these bands. Different Damage seemed like something entirely different and new for a math rock esque band to tackle and I loved it.

And lots of the greatest hits of Lipgloss (the premier indie dance night of Denver) of 2004-5 (when I would go) came out in '02, it turns out. The famous Junior Senior's D-D-Don't Stop the Beat was out and LCD Soundsystem's early single "Losing My Edge" took name dropping to a new, acceptable level. Ladytron was more electronic than most of what I'd listened to but were very catchy. Interpol...I used to think they were famous and crappy but I probably just had them mixed up with someone else. At Lipgloss I enjoyed them. And Hot Hot Heat! "Bandages" was definitely my jam to dance to.

The first new Elvis Costello album that came out when I was closely following him (i.e. getting all the deluxe reissues of all of his back catalog) was When I Was Cruel. Such a great breakup album, full of bold experiments in song structure. Such a perfect album for me to become obsessed with. It combined my budding love of his cynical lyrics and my interest in the abstract and the weird. I just loved that such a respectable artist, a good quarter century into his career, was doing such exciting and weird things while keeping with the spirit of his whole career.

One of my best memories of 2002 was April 20, 2002. The school put on a show to get us kids doing other stuff besides getting stoned because I went to CU Boulder and that was pretty much the thing to do on 4/20. I was not interested in any of that though, and it turned out to just be a great excuse to bring The Lawrence Arms to town! I had just gotten a video camera and my dorm was approximately a block away, so my friend Greg and I decided to go ask Brendan (of said Lawrence Arms) if it would be cool if I video taped their set. He said that would be fine. And I was going to get up to the front to get a good angle with my camera when he brought us back stage to talk to the band and then had us posted on the side of the stage for the duration of the show. It was hard not to dance around and scream along to all of of the words. Anyway, great time. It was right after Apathy & Exhaustion came out, which was kind of a pinnacle achievement for the band. They had just moved over to Fat Wreck Chords and I was worried the sound would be influenced by the label (I'd previously made fun of the fact that all Fat bands sounded just like NOFX, and similarly favorite band Alkaline Trio took a bit of a nosedive when they moved labels), but it was really just an extension of the sound they'd developed on "the splits" that I've mentioned in previous posts here. In fact, as much as they change from album to album, the smallest change they ever made between two albums was this one, the one time they moved record labels. As far as the songs themselves go, Brendan's got increasingly philosophical in their crass self deprecation, and Chris' just got more personal and closer and closer to my own heart. This was emphasized by the song "Brick Wall Views," which I took as my AIM screen name as I drifted away from my ex girlfriend and needed someone to understand. I felt like this song understood me. Which made it even more amazing on April 20 at that show, because Brendan dedicated that very song to "these guys over here, to Greg and Brandon."

The Lawrence Arms "Brick Wall Views"

Of all the shows I saw with Greg in these days, one local band seemed to open up every damn time. Laymen Terms. To where we learned the songs and became pretty big fans. Still not the best of that crop, but they had a few good jams that took me back when I heard them.

Brian Moss of The Wunder Years had a new band called The Ghost, and they released their debut album This Is A Hospital to much acclaim among me and a couple friends. It took the sound of The Wunder Years and put more heave behind it, oozing with passion and stuff.

What really defined me in these days, or maybe this was more 2003 and 2004 but the album came out in 2002, was Perfecting Loneliness by Jets to Brazil. This came out after all my friends talked about Orange Rhyming Dictionary being so great and Four Cornered Night being disappointing. It didn't seem like anyone was talking about Perfecting Loneliness. But what a title! I found the vinyl in some sort of clearance rack, I hadn't heard of a third Jets to Brazil album so I picked it up. And I put it on with much frequency. For the longest time I only had it on vinyl and I still listened to it more than most other music I had access to. Living in a small house by myself, putting this on lonely Friday nights when I had nothing to do but stay inside, this made it feel okay. "Thank God for no phone calls."

Jets to Brazil "Further North"

Other Things About Things:

• Early Iron & Wine was something special and intimate.
• For some reason even though I skipped an album by Reel Big Fish and was totally over them by now, I got Cheer Up! and it was the right thing to do at the time. Even though I did not want to cheer up, the album hit home in a surprisingly strong way. And the closing track "Drunk Again" has gone on to be one of my favorite self pity songs of all due to lyrics like "If I had a dollar bill for every time I've been wrong, I'd be a self-made millionaire and you'd still be gone..."
• Speaking of ska that still ska'd my world, MU330's Ultra Panic cemented the band as something beyond my 90s ska phase. The personal, thoughtful lyrics on "Speed Bump" and "Hey Now" still resonate.
• Similarly, Slow Gherkin's Run Screaming made them a ska band to grow on. "Baby Snakes" spoke to me pretty intimately.
• Desaparecidos were the only way I could handle Conor Oberst at the time. Overtly political and too loud to notice the whiny vocals? Yes please!
• I just recently got Title TK by The Breeders. Nice record!
• Stephin Merritt's Eban & Charley soundtrack was lovely enough, but it includes one of my (many I guess) favorite Merritt compositions, "This Little Ukulele." One of those simple songs that seemed like it should have been put together before 2002 A.D. but we finally got it and it's an instant classic.
• Dntel with Ben Gibbard = the beginnings of a certain Postal Service...oh boy!
• Jim O'Rourke did a lot of good for the music world in 2002. He brought Sonic Youth to sound a little bit more like Wilco on Murray Street, and he made Wilco sound a little bit like Sonic Youth on Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. Both of these albums are bonafide indie classics.
•  I went and saw Cursive this past month on their Ugly Organ tour. That album was from 2003 and I'll talk about it plenty in the next entry I'm sure. But on the way to the show, on shuffle for 2002, I was fortunate enough to have their split with Eastern Youth come on. One of their best uses of cello, the song "Excerpts from Various Notes Strewn Around the Bedroom of April Connolly Feb 24, 1997" came on and I remembered it being one of my favorite Cursive tunes. They played that one at the show and I was one of the few people rocking out to it, which was weird because it's one of their best but I guess that split is less well known than their full length albums.
• Some real indie stuff was getting started in 2002, bands that would hit their peak in popularity in the era of 2005-2007, when I was at my peak in listening to bands like that. Mirah, Deerhoof, Spoon (the official beginning of their Midas phase which is still going on??), some Neko Case, Decemberists, The Mountain Goats, and more!
• Flaming Lips. Yoshimi. Do you Realize?? Do I need to say anything more?
• Heiruspecs became a favorite hip hop live band that I happened to see a few times. Their next album was better though so I'll try to talk about them when that comes up.
• Beck on Sea Change was a new Beck but it really showcased that he was more than fun beats and fun tricks...
• For more mainstream hip hop, Missy Elliot nailed it on Under Construction.
• Johnny Cash's American Recordings comeback became very real to me (and probably many others) on American IV: The Man Comes Around. The first one I got personally, the one I probably listen to the most, is probably the most vital of the era, and of course it has his cover of "Hurt" which needs no other words.
• I had a recording of the CU Marching Band doing all the songs we did that previous fall. I think I could kind of hear that great trombone player known to readers as Quiet Brandon, but who knows because he was probably pretty quiet.

Next Time:
Alkaline Trio kind of redeem themselves to me! Beulah finishes up. Black Eyes are amazing. Classic Calexico! Deerhoof/Decemberists/Dirty Projectors for a trio of D. The Black Album!! Another great Lawrence Arms classic! I go pretentious with The Mars Volta & Radiohead! Speakerboxx/The Love Below! Another Polysics album to go down in history! Something called The Postal Service. Michigan. The debut EP from TV On The Radio!! Elephant is something classic I think! And another indisputable classic album by Weird Al.

An Ear For An Era: 2001

A Space Odyssey. Still the first thing I think of when I hear "2001." Even though experiencing it first hand it didn't feel like science fiction. It was an incredibly transformative year for me personally and for the country and the world, for better or worse. At the time it just felt like life was happening. The expected (going to college, hanging out with my same friends), the unexpected, I just took it as it came. Lived in the moment as I felt necessary.

I'm not sure what I'm getting at here. I just feel obligated to make this a pretty reflective piece for 2001.

It was so long ago when I listened to this stuff. Or about a month. I just took a long break before writing this. We'll see how it goes. It's really just guideposts for things that have always been in my head for years.

Like Radiohead's Amnesiac. Silly enough, this was my first Radiohead album. I think. If I remember correctly. Best Buy or someone had a deal that if you got Amnesiac you'd get half price on another Radiohead album or something, and I think I also got OK Computer.  But I liked Amnesiac quite a bit pretty quickly, particularly the driving beats on "I Might Be Wrong." The closest link to punk I could find, even though it was miles away from everything else I listened to at the time.

Electroclash was starting to gain steam in 2001, not that I would have known/cared about it at the time. A few years later I'd get way into it for about a year though. Miss Kittin & The Hacker's First Album was a great dance party with all the appropriate filthy/sexy songs that just turn the party up that much more. And "La La Land" by Green Velvet would be one of my favorite songs in 2005 dance mode. Finally (not really electroclash but dancy), the self-titled debut from !!! had "Intensify" which is still probably my favorite live song by them.


Remember those "The" bands? They were supposedly saving rock and roll or something? I saw it as a stupid thing at the time, they were not original, they were just playing garage rock. And rock and roll didn't need saving. I'd been listening to rock and roll for quite some time, punk rock for about 5 years at this point and it was doing just fine. So I saw through the BS that MTV was trying to feed me. The Strokes? You gotta be kidding me. The dude just got a record deal because he's related to someone important. I think. I eventually did cave, YEARS and YEARS later, and got Is This It. It's a decent record. Maybe above decent. The media just turned me off to them before I could have given them a chance at being relevant to me.

The same thing happened to me with The White Stripes. Another damn "The" band thinking they are so cool with their costumes! What about music? Focus on your music, not your image! Of course, the music on White Blood Cells is some of the greatest music created this century so I really must have given them no chance at all. I probably only heard "Fell in Love with a Girl" and assumed they were just another Strokes-type band. Oh, the years I wasted not listening to The White Stripes. This has since become one of my favorites if you can't tell.

Gorillaz got quite popular in their own way. I was dating a girl obsessed with Blur so she was also into Gorillaz. I couldn't really get the appeal, although it would be pretty soon after this that I'd discover how awesome Del the Funky Homosapien is. But that album, I like it quite a bit in retrospect.

What I was into was indie rock! Built to Spill, yo! I remember a bunch of hipsters (before those were a thing everybody hates) were in my dorm cafeteria sitting within earshot. They were talking about Modest Mouse and Built to Spill and I thought, "Wow! Somebody else knows about these bands!" I did not go talk to them because I still thought I was cooler than them and/or not cool enough for them. One of the dudes ended up being in a couple of my film classes though. Anyway, Ancient Melodies of the Future is a pretty good title for an album put out in 2001. Especially for something you're listening to in 2015. I don't know, my main memory of Built to Spill is putting this song on pretty much every mix CD I made for anyone from 2001-2005.

Built to Spill "The Weather"

Former (and current) Pixie Frank Black put out an album with The Catholics called Dog In The Sand. I remember seeing a postcard thing for the album at Albums on the Hill when I visited Boulder for some reason (before going to college). I eventually got the album but one song I heard early, I think from illegal downloading way back when, "If It Takes All Night" has stuck with me for the past 14 years as a favorite.

I remember the day Fugazi's last album The Argument came out. Because that was the day in college I went to Wax Trax after class to pick it up. And the accompanying Furniture EP, of course. You know, 2001 was also the year I saw Fugazi. I turned 18 in 2001 and they played in Denver the night before my birthday. So I hit midnight on my 18th birthday in the front row of the Ogden Theater listening to maybe the most legendary band of my youth. Unfortunately, the Fugazi Live Series has not posted that show yet. I was hoping it'd be up before I listened to 2001! Anyway, that was an amazing life experience. What to say about the album though? Who knew it would be their last? It is as epic as anything else they did, so it's a fitting farewell. I just want more, always.


The Hip Hop:
Word of Mouf was a great continuation of the fun and silly Ludacris I liked so much a little later. Jay-Z and Nas had quite the words for each other on their respective releases. I liked Jay-Z's better. The Blueprint is pretty classic and in addition to "The Takeover" it has my favorite Eminem song, his collaboration with Hova called "Renegade." But you probably already know that song. Oh, and Dilated Peoples' Expansion Team was fantastic. I only recently acquired that one so I'd only known "Worst Comes to Worst" before this.


Remember in the last entry when I explained my thoughts on Suicide Machines' self-titled album that angered me so? I think some of that anger pushed me to be overly judgmental of another of my favorite bands. Asian Man Records has always had a policy of supporting their artists as they get too big for such a tiny label and need to move on. But when Alkaline Trio moved to Vagrant Records, I was pretty furious. This was a band I took VERY personally, because they had spoken to me on such a personal level at a critical time in my development. So the idea of having to share them with people not cool enough to track them down on their own made me pretty sad. But I also like to think I gave them a chance. When the track listing for From Here to Infirmary came out, I remember just being so excited about the prospect of Dan singing a song called "Crawl" or Matt singing one called "You're Dead." But then the album came out. And I hated it. When, to be fair, I probably should have only liked it a little less than Maybe I'll Catch Fire. But "Stupid Kid" was all over MTV and some of those songs were just not up to par lyrically. When you have to have the lyrics "In case you're wondering we're singing about growing up..." then maybe you're either being too cryptic otherwise or you don't think too highly of your audience's ability to understand a song. Anyway, listening to the album in 2015 I realized it's pretty decent. It's got some good songs on it. They couldn't just keep making Goddamnit.

On the other hand, related band The Lawrence Arms continued their ascent into my heart with a split EP with The Chinkees called Present Day Memories. The four Lawrence Arms songs instantly became some of my favorites, so perfectly expressing the exasperation of loneliness and laziness and not finding your way out. Only The Lawrence Arms could speak so boldly with a sigh in a song...

The Lawrence Arms "Hey, What Time is 'Pensacola: Wings of Gold' on Anyway?"

And the triptych concludes with The Honor System. 100% Synthetic sees them moving a little away from the Broadways influence and rocking just a little bit harder without sacrificing any of the passion that made them great.

Cursive was in between their two great albums so of course they put out their great EP Burst and Bloom. "Sink to the Beat" is my go-to when I want to convert someone to the greatness that is Cursive. So I'll play it for you now in case you didn't know and feel the need to know.

 Cursive "Sink to the Beat"

The final album by The Wunder Years was an EP recorded in Fort Collins. I have to credit The Blasting Room for bringing so many great bands through our small city outside of Denver, providing many great memories and making so many records feel all that more personal, knowing they were recorded in my hometown. I think I saw The Wunder Years three times. One of the times was at The Back Alley, a tiny venue that didn't last long but was my favorite venue while it was around. Have I already told this story? I don't know. It looked like it was a 21+ show so I emailed the band asking about it because I was only 17 or 18 or so. He wrote back saying I should be able to get in. I went and I got in. And he found me and somehow knew I was the one that had written (maybe I was obviously the youngest person there?) and asked if I got in okay. What a guy! Anyway, Function Over Fashion is a great final word to go out on for The Wunder Years as well as a look into the future of Brian's next band The Ghost. Just a harder take on things with that much passion.

The Smoking Popes' final album was full of covers and pretty good. But my interest gravitated toward former Smoking Popes guitarist Tom Daily. First I heard him cover their rarity "First Time" and just destroyed it. Will never get over that version. Then I ran across his album The Burlington Northern, which quietly became one of my favorite albums. Something I can't really relate to with anyone, because I don't think any of my friends really listened to him. I got one friend to enjoy "What's It Like?" by putting it on a mix (and I think I also played "First Time" for him) but beyond that, this is my own personal treasure. It feels like a very personal record filtered through lots of digital effects that aren't meant to cover anything up, but rather bring you in. Pique your curiosity with some echoes here or there but bring you in with some straightforward melodies and lyrics. I guess it's my original, personal version of The Postal Service.

Another former Smoking Pope (and Alkaline Trio drummer at the time) Mike Felumlee took part in a message board I posted to and founded an awesome record label, and I became a fan. He put out an album called 64 Hours and it was a great collection of Smoking Popes-style pop with his own personal take.

I guess Beulah fits here because indie pop or whatever. The Coast Is Never Clear was their best album in my opinion, a great combination of cynical lyrics and Beach Boys-meets-90s-indie-pop music. References to Stephin Merritt. It's just so upbeat and good sounding to deliver such hatred, it's a wonderful thing. La la life sucks! Perfect for me in the early 2000s.

What can I say about Polysics? I have to say something about Polysics. When I first heard them it was on an Asian Man Records compilation and I didn't care for them. Too weird somehow for me in 2001. Even though I was way into weird in 2001. It didn't take me too long to get curious enough to listen some more though, because as "too weird" as it was it still had me curious. I think my friends learning and doing a goofy dance to it helped. So anyway, eventually I just went for it and got their first album (to be released in America) called Hey! Bob! My Friend! and I haven't looked back. They idolize Devo, they play a similar new wavy type music with a ton of energy. Perfect for freakin' out squares and going crazy over.

And I'll end it with some ska. Acoustic ska. Chris Murray from King Apparatus put out a simple solo album on Asian Man Records called 4-Trackaganza! I quite enjoyed it but it came to mean so much more to me. Early in the morning on September 11th, I was in my dorm when the phone rang. My roommate had gone to class but his sister called and I answered it. I don't remember the exact conversation, other than her telling me that we were "under attack" and to turn on the TV and that a plane had gone down near "the 'Burgh" (he was from Pittsburgh) but his family was okay. And I turned on the TV and it was on when he came back to the dorm. I gave him the message from his sister. I don't remember much else. I feel like we were more in disbelief than anything. Not visibly upset, but not knowing what to think or how to feel. It took me days to process what had happened and what was going on around me, all the hatred that was coming out, everyone saying to bomb Afghanistan, all the racist talk that became so rampant. We were inevitably headed for war and beyond my selfish concern about being of age for the draft and being sent there myself (obviously there was no draft), I was just concerned about the direction the world was heading. Then one day on shuffle this song came on and while it didn't make me feel better about anything, it helped articulate my concerns.

Grandma's sewing denim patches on the pants of destiny
at the dawning of an era, watching history repeat
it's lookin' like the easy answer is to blame society for the wars
they were swimming in the ocean 'til they crawled up from the sea
then one day they started dying, 'til the last one disappeared
no they never saw it coming, though the signs were there to see
            -Chris Murray, "Dinosaurs"

Other things:

• The final piece from The Impossibles. 2001 I was in the CU marching band and we went to Austin. We met up with the Texas trombone section and one suggestion was to go see The Impossibles. Unfortunately, us punk rock band geeks got outvoted and we ended up playing a drinking game at some house somewhere. I did not drink. The end of that story. Oh yeah, the piece. 4 Song Brick Bomb. An EP with...4 songs. Great stuff.
• The first Quasi album I got was The Sword of God. It has the song "It's Raining," which might be my favorite of theirs.
• "Crystal Frontier" may have been Calexico's finest achievement.
• I remember "Rockin' The Suburbs" by Ben Folds! That one amused me. Turns out that record has a few great songs on it.
• 2001 was when Adult Swim was getting started on Cartoon Network. My beloved Space Ghost Coast to Coast had an expanding universe with lots of great shows. One of these was The Brak Show (not to be confused with Brak Presents The Brak Show Starring Brak). In one episode, Zorak has something removed from his throat and he ends up having a singing voice not unlike the popular boy bands of the era. All of this is to say I still have the songs from that episode. Zorak singing about kicking your ass. Good stuff.
• Thelema is a nifty little EP by Murder City Devils.
• Amethyst Rock Star is a great intro to Saul Williams and he would turn out to have a big impact on me personally.
• That Pigeon John Is Clueless album is kind of funny in its very Christian messages on a couple songs. I'm glad he toned that down a little later on.
• Perennial favorites Enon put out a collection of loops called On Hold. It was pretty rare but I eventually picked it up at a show. It's pretty great for what it is. I used to think it needed some rappers to rap over some of the tracks on some sort of remix version to give it more exposure, but this last time listening to it I realize it is dynamic and interesting without the aid of others. Just a really cool album.
• Spoon was really finding themselves, but I didn't get into them quite yet. But Girls Can Tell is pretty great, a band that would end up being one of the most consistent in rock.
• The Ex was still amazing all these years later on Dizzy Spells.
• After hearing the song he was featured on on the 6ths album, I had to hear more from Momus. Eventually I tracked down his album Folktronic and paid a pretty penny for it. Must have been an import or something. Most of the album is silly and ephemeral and not really worth listening to much, but there are a couple songs that break through the silliness to reach something profound. "The Lady of Shallot" is a mixtape favorite.
• Rufus Wainwright's Poses is a great, personal, devastating album.

Next Time:
2002! The last palindrome year of our lives! Let's see...Trail of Dead! Early Amy Winehouse stuff! My first hip hop purchase (and favorite for a long long time), Blackalicious! A personal favorite Elvis Costello album! The greatest Enon album! Yoshimi! Perfecting Loneliness! The Lawrence Arms reaffirm my love yet again! Early LCD Soundsystem songs! Talib Kweli! Wilco! Lots of great personal stuff here.

An Ear For An Era: 2000

In the year 2000...

I remember when 2000 was far away. And then not so far away. And then the past. And Conan continuing the "In the year 2000" skits regardless. It's just a number. An idea. It used to be the idea of the future. So whatever the number is. It's just a number. When everybody was freaking out about Y2K and apocalypse and whatnot I just kind of laughed it off because of how arbitrary numbers are anyway.

2000 was the year I started my senior year in high school, it was a year I started off by being blown off by my friends but hanging out with my brother so it's fine, it was the year I got a serious girlfriend and went to school dances instead of making movies on school dance nights.

The future.

Now 15 years gone.

Music blog.

I'm going to start off the actual portion of this that is not a meaningless/meaningful introduction by talking about hip hop. 2000 was an insane year for great hip hop. I didn't know at the time because my mind was still closed, but there was a lot.

Soon to be one of my favorite MCs Del The Funky Homosapien had a very fantastic album Both Sides of the Brain that for a long time was the most recent Del solo album so it always felt like latter era Del. He's really upped his productivity in recent years, however, and now I guess I'd call it "mid period" because it is still pretty far removed from his early 90s repertoire. Same attitude, new production. But of course the big one was Deltron 3030, his project with Dan the Automator and Kid Koala. The future! Not sure how much I need to explain to this audience, but this concept sci-fi album is so much fun to listen to, as Del seems to bring out the best in Automator and vice versa (Koala's input is somewhat limited in comparison to his solo stuff...). It's just vivid, it's catchy, and impeccably done all around.

Deltron 3030 "Virus"

More hip hop, quick rundown style...
Ludacris, whom I would pretty soon discover for myself, has been historically viewed by me as just a fun, funny MC without too much to say. I think he's broken that stigma but he was very entertaining on Back for the First Time. De La Soul's Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump is a great showcase of a band still at the top of their game a decade in. Quality Control by Jurassic 5 is kind of a peak for the group creatively as a bunch of MCs that manage to find a level of harmony rarely heard in this century's hip hop, and also exemplified by the dual-DJ attack and "Swing Set," an awesome track of a couple DJs just showing off in a way that usually only MCs attempt. Speaking of DJs (producers?), Quasimoto is an interesting showcase of Madlib's behind-the-mic skills. I don't have the Wu-Tang Clan album The W, but I have "Gravel Pit" and yeah. You know that one is grand. Umm, Train of Thought by Reflection Eternal starring Talib Kweli and Hi-Tek is master class 2000 hip hop.

And of course Outkast. Stankonia was the last super collaborative album they put out together and pretty much the best. "Ms. Jackson" and "B.O.B." and other songs I haven't given their proper due. But "B.O.B." will always get me going nuts. I hated Eminem at the time but he's grown on me a little. The homophobia is pretty awful but he's not the only one with awful homophobia in his music from this time, so I guess he shouldn't have been singled out as much as he was...I know Common was guilty of some homophobia as well but Like Water For Chocolate is praised. And it should be for most reasons.

And now the stuff from the genres I really listened to back in 2000.

I hate being one of those guys that gets mad at a band for going in a new direction or whatever because you're the artist/follow your muse/etc, but The Suicide Machines really pissed me off when they put out their self-titled album in 2000. My saviors, a band that helped me understand this complicated world and work through it, put out some awful pop music and I was pissed. I took it personally. They kind of made up for it later, realizing their mistake and signing to an indie label and being punk again, but my relationship with what was once one of my favorite bands was never the same.

One of my oldest shirts is what I now kind of use to prove my punk rock credentials. It's from the CD release show for Problematic by All. You can barely read it, but it spells out the show date in 2000. At the time it seemed like I was late to the party on it, but at this point 15 years are a lot of years.  I don't listen to Problematic all that often but it does take me back. Not my favorite All record but still good.

The Impossibles got back together while I was still into their ska stuff. And became sort of power pop, in a way that outside observers said they sounded like Weezer (in a good way). I had not really listened to much Weezer, but you can give The Impossibles credit there, for directing me that way. Because Return is a fantastic pop album with great hooks and great heartbreak. "Never Say Goodbye" was my anthem when I was graduating high school. Not that I see any of those people anymore (with approximately 1 exception), so maybe I should have said goodbye?

I don't know how many friends I introduced to the brilliant Shellac when I discovered them, but people did not need to be post-rock/math-rock/experimental music followers to follow the message on "Prayer to God." Profane, hilarious, but so true to the raw emotions that people have, when I was faced with a similar situation the song just got stronger and stronger to me (but still funny, because I'm not a psychopath that takes it seriously). The rest of the album 1000 Hurts is part of what got me into the post-rock stuff later on, but it's easy if you've had a broken heart to latch right on to this song.

Shellac "Prayer to God"

I was always a few steps behind my friends on The Weakerthans. Not sure why. I love their music. Pretty astonishing that this was a guy from Propagandhi being poetic and not political. But John K. Samson is among the greatest lyricists not only in indie rock but in rock. "How I don't know what I should do with my hands when I talk to you, how you don't know where you should look...so you look at my hands." Oh yeah, the album is called Left & Leaving. Fantastic stuff.

Speaking of lyricists, Stephin Merritt. This is the right-after-69-Love-Songs Stephin Merritt and even though the 6ths album Hyacinths and Thistles was not as well received critically, I feel like he was still on a roll. There are plenty of songs on this album that could have been 69 Love Songs standouts, particularly "As You Turn to Go" and "You You You You You."

Cursive's Domestica was one of my favorites. An examination of a bitter divorce with nothing held back. A modern Here, My Dear. But emo or whatever. I just always loved how Tim Kasher seemed to know exactly what he did wrong and acknowledged his weaknesses on here, not really pointing the blame in any direction but exploring the roots of the problems. It's uncomfortable but everything from his wife's point of view is the most poignant and you can see that he understands it. This will always be my favorite Cursive album because it taught me to look at myself and examine my own flaws in this area, and hopefully avoid making some of the same mistakes. This song I take very personally because it echoed the mistakes that I would eventually learn from in my relationship at the time to be a better partner today.

Cursive "The Martyr"

When I introduced my friend to the music of The Broadways, he said they reminded him of this other band that I should check out. So I was really excited to hear this band that sounded like The Broadways. But then when I heard them I couldn't really figure out the similarities he'd drawn between the bands. But it didn't matter because this was one of the most intense, aggressive, energy creating bands I'd ever heard. I made an analogy a while back on this blog about a band creating all this potential energy and releasing it and I don't remember who I was talking about, but the same could be said for At The Drive-In. Then I saw them on Letterman and knew I HAD to see them live. Then they broke up.

At The Drive-In "One Armed Scissor" Live on Letterman

I saw a very early The Mars Volta show a little while later but it just was not the same.

In the summer of 2000, Asian Man Records put together the Plea for Peace tour featuring all of the great bands on its roster. Maybe the best lineup I have ever seen. And my family was going to fly out to Florida on vacation the day before the show got to Denver. Somehow I convinced my brother to wait back with me so I could go to this show and convinced a friend who wasn't really interested in that type of music to go with me so I wouldn't be driving to Denver alone. And I SOMEHOW convinced my parents to let me and my brother drive across the country to meet up with them in Florida. All of those pieces fit together and I got to go to this show. And I will never forget that experience. The skapunk of the past (MU330! Mike Park doing Skankin' Pickle songs with them!) met the melodic punk of the future (Alkaline Trio! The Honor System! The Lawrence Arms!) and it was an amazing experience.

Alkaline Trio quickly became one of my favorite bands when they put out Maybe I'll Catch Fire, an album I could get and not feel awkward about its title. While not as great of an album as Goddamnit, it was special and it showed me some dark visions and introduced me to their world. The Honor System was close enough to The Broadways that I was immediately hooked. Single File was their debut and really echoes "Dan songs" by The Broadways. The passion in the political. Similar guitar licks.

And of course The Lawrence Arms. Ghost Stories is still my favorite album of theirs. Walking out of the concert I saw Brendan talking to some dudes in the alley and I told him he'd played a great show. And that was the first time I addressed him at a Lawrence Arms show. This practice would lead to him recognizing me and remembering my name and having longer conversations as the years went on. Anyway, a few years later I was talking to Brendan in one of our longer conversations about Ghost Stories. How it was my favorite and people don't seem to get it. And it was so validating when he agreed with me and said that it's kind of the measure of the real fans, because it really takes time to get it but then it comes together. This is a cold and distant record. The production is "gritty," I guess you could say. I like the word cold for it though. You need to embrace it and warm it up and then it speaks to you. Personal stuff. Poetic stuff. I could pick any song to play for you here because they are all special to me. This was when I really got into Chris' songs in particular. I'd appreciated him in The Broadways but he sounded quite a bit like Dan. He was unique here. I could really feel that he meant what he was singing. I don't know man, what do I say about this album? Criminally underrated. They don't even play these songs anymore. That's fine, you move on. But it will always be my special gem. Due to a fluke on my ipod this played twice and for the first time in the project I did not skip the repeat because I just couldn't stop it. I just had to let it play, once I heard the opening chords, through the secret tracks without skipping past the silence. Because even the silence between "The Last One" and its bonus tracks is part of the experience to me.

The Lawrence Arms "Ghost Stories"

They also put out a split EP with Shady View Terrace in 2000. It was the first step in a brand new direction for the band that is considered the classic, favorite era. A little "better" produced but still amazing. Especially those damn Chris songs...

I remember when Elliott Smith died (I know, not way back in 2000 but this is apparently his last album). I hadn't been a huge fan but one of my friends had. We heard he'd stabbed himself in the heart! We listened to a lot of depressing music but that kind of sealed the deal as him being the pinnacle of that. And from there, it seemed too real for me to approach it without taking it seriously and with the highest amount of respect. This has always put a certain amount of elusiveness on his catalog for me.

Elliott Smith "Can't Make A Sound"

Also Noted.

• Planes Mistaken for Stars! I had the "Fucking Fight" 7" and its intensity was just ridiculous. I only saw the band live a handful of times despite them being all over the Denver indie/emo/whatever scene but every time was very memorable and intense and terrifying. Legends around these parts. The Knife in the Marathon EP was fantastic as well but didn't have the insane intensity of that 7".
• The Dandy Warhols' Thirteen Tales From Urban Bohemia is kind of a classic of urban Bohemia. That's pretty much what I'd call it.
• Hot Hot Heat certainly was different in these days.
• The first Jill Scott album is fabulous. I wouldn't discover her until around '07.
• I haven't listened too much to Sufjan Stevens' debut A Sun Came, but it's quite pleasant.
• Yeah White Stripes, thisclose to legendary status...
• The distant warmth of Kid A is a brilliant album that I couldn't think of what to write about, so it's just "noted" even though many would consider it the best album of 2000. Take that, expectations!
• Once all of Coldplay's albums were on Amazon for like 50 cents each or something so I got them, thinking "ha! Take that, Coldplay! That's what your catalog is worth!" But now I have to actually listen to them in this thing so who's laughing now? They have a couple decent songs though.
• I saw The New Pornographers last year for the first time in concert (I know!), and they neglected to play the standout track from their debut album Mass Romantic, "Letter From An Occupant." I know, right??
• And Neko Case solo. So country back then. But she's always had that voice!
• Flogging Molly is entertaining.
• Cat Power's deconstruction of a covers album is really cool and really frustrating. Just sing the chorus!
• Don Caballero, one last hurrah of the classic lineup.
• Add Float by Aesop Rock to that hip hop list above. Good year indeed.
• Enon was one of my favorite bands and I'm throwing their debut down here?? Believo! was awesomely diverse and catchy yet only hinted at their future prowess.
• The last Man or Astroman album for a while was A Spectrum of Infinite Scale and for a long time it was the only one I had of theirs on CD. Anyone who can make a compelling track by recording the sound of a printer printing something that they programmed is pretty brilliant in my book.
• There's too much to write about! Daisies of the Galaxy by Eels!
• American III by Johnny Cash!
• Avalanches! Since I Left You is a party!
• Ghostface Killah! Supreme Clientele! I told you it was a year of hip hop!
• I didn't listen to much Modest Mouse in 2000. I know my girlfriend liked their 90s stuff but I didn't get The Moon & Antarctica until later on. Kind of a new direction for them but a fascinating one.

Next Time...
2001 was a big year of changes in my life and in the world. But this is about music. 2001 had some good music by artists such as Beulah, Built to Spill, Dilated Peoples, Ee, the last Fugazi album, Gorillaz, Jay-Z taking over, The National, Polysics, Pulp, The Strokes, Tom Daily, and !!!, among other things. Happy new year!

An Ear For An Era: 1999

Let's close out this millennium with style! Swag! Something special! Exclamation points maybe!

1999 was the year I got my driver's license and then broke my leg three days later playing soccer. One thing I remember from that ordeal was that the TV was messed up in my hospital room and so I requested that my parents bring me my discman and the CDs that were in the 6 disc changer in the car. I'd put 6 of my favorites in because duh, I got to drive and I was excited. I know Chumps on Parade was on there, probably Suicide Machines and Skankin' Pickle as well. And probably some Less Than Jake. Etc. Another thing I remember about the ordeal was that I decorated my crutches and walking cast with band stickers. All of this is to emphasize how much skapunk defined this experience for me, music was my life. My own music.

1999 was also the year my brother went to college. We drove down to Arizona with him to help him move in. I don't remember much about that trip except that I must have just gotten the Dan Potthast album Eyeballs right before, because I listened to that CD repeatedly on that trip. I was obsessed with that album. It emphasized the lyrical skills he had, the stories he told with multiple meanings, the clever way he turned a simple story into an analogy about life. And cute love songs, there are plenty of those as well. With Rivers Cuomo/Brian Wilson levels of insecurity. I wrote him a fan letter by hand and sent it in the actual mail and he wrote me back by hand. Such a cool guy that Dan Potthast is! And he's still at it! His band MU330 also put out two albums in '99 because he was so damn prolific in these days. There was a Christmas album that I always put on around Christmas even 15 years later (that wasn't part of this project because I've excluded Christmas music, not wanting to listen to the stuff in January-November) and their self-titled album. I remember this one being new, getting the album at that show I spoke of in a previous entry. The production on it was a little odd, a little lo-fi for MU330, but yet another showcase of Dan P's increasingly personal lyricism.

The Hippos improved when they put out Heads Are Gonna Roll. They shed their Reel Big Fish copping style for a synthy 80s flavored skapunk. Like The Cars meet skapunk. This time I listened to it while running my first half marathon and still really like their cover of "Always Something There to Remind Me."

The next album that came up during the half marathon was Fun in the Dark by Groovie Ghoulies. I don't know why I never got more of their albums because this one has been a favorite of mine for a long time. I always bust it out around Halloween time. It's just perfect spooky-ish pop punk. Spooky in the 50s horror/sci-fi style and pop punk in the 70s Ramones style. I'm glad it came up during October because that was perfect, and I'm glad it came up during the race because it was quite motivating.

One album from this era that I loved at the time and hadn't revisited in a long time but it all came back when I did was Hopeless Romantic by The Bouncing Souls. In '99 I enjoyed the earlier Souls records but they were both from a million years ago (i.e. from before I knew about them) and Hopeless Romantic was the one that came out while I was into them. So to me it feels a bit more mature but not too mature. Some sentimental tracks and some fun tracks. "Bullying The Jukebox" takes me right back to the time I saw them with my brother. They were playing with Less Than Jake and we saw them in downtown Denver. My parents dropped us off there and picked us up at Hooters (the only place we could find with a pay phone...remember pay phones??). Anyway, I'm getting off topic. They played and the singer just bounced around stage and it was just so much fun.

Another one I listened to contemporarily was Weird Al's Running With Scissors. This was a weird one for me but also the perfect one for me at the time. I had just enough exposure to mainstream music at the time to know and understand what he was parodying, and enough hatred for mainstream music at the time to laugh at it. Maybe too much hatred and too much laughter. But I really did hate that Offspring song "Pretty Fly for a White Guy" so I doubly appreciated Weird Al mocking it. It was also funny when the Backstreet Boys were in the polka and my little sister's friend got mad about it, "he can't be allowed to do that!!" I think this was the one where he shaved his mustache too, so it kind of signifies the second era of Weird Al or something. Where he was contemporary to me, up to date, and relevant. Yes, those all kind of mean the same thing.

After The Broadways (about whom I wrote very lovingly if you will recall), The Lawrence Arms formed and put out their debut album A Guided Tour of Chicago, featuring two of the members of The Broadways. The Lawrence Arms would soon become my favorite band for several years and are still up there. The debut was a lot more lo-fi than anything else they would do, and that made it feel like a step back from The Broadways at first. Some political songs, some songs of self loathing, it's a decent collection but their second album (coming up in 2000!) is where it's at.

Their peers Alkaline Trio put out their most solid release of all in 1999, the I Lied My Face Off EP. Four songs, all four stars or more in my ratings. Two Matt songs, two Dan songs. They were just on the top of their game, with Matt getting more poetic and Dan reaching the pinnacle of his angry side.

Alkaline Trio "This Is Getting Over You"

It was my college days when I got knee-deep in this melodic punk/"emo" stuff and Piebald was one of my favorite groups in those days. If It Weren't For Venitian Blinds It'd Be Curtains For Us All is probably their best one. I remember seeing them live and how awesomely unkempt the singer's appearance was, all with a white t-shirt and messy hair and scruffy face, and thinking of how awesome that was. Such beautiful music coming from someone who looked like he just walked in off the street. Maybe that's why I always let myself go in the facial (and head) hair department(s). Look up the song "Fat and Skinny Asses" though, because that's the good stuff.

I lost track (and then re-gained very recently) of Brian Moss, the singer for many projects over the years, starting with The Wunder Years. They had a couple releases in 1999. One was a split CD with Sorry About The Fire called On Behalf of Rock n Roll. It's decent, and I love the first track "You Know Who You Are" but the other album is one of those all-time favorites, Pitstops on the Road Less Traveled. Just an album of motivational songs for a high school kid, delivered with high amounts of passion. I hadn't listened to this album in a long time and of course it was another one of those where it came on and I was immediately singing along, remembering those days.

The only cure for cynicism is optimism. Or something like that. In the early '00s I was all down because my girlfriend had broken up with me and I listened to lots of that pseudo-emo stuff (and some real emo stuff!). I went to a show at Tulagi's in Boulder and Dressy Bessy opened (or maybe who I was seeing opened for Dressy Bessy?) I went by myself and I don't even remember who I was there to see. Because the thing that turned me around, changed my life in a way because it was what told me it would all be okay, was this Dressy Bessy set. Just some pure pop sugar to turn me around and show me that it will be okay. Optimism without sounding like something trying to tell me to be happy when I was not happy. I must have just been ready for it. I bought their CD Pink Hearts Yellow Moons and it's always been there for me since then.

Dressy Bessy "If You Should Try to Kiss Her"

Jim O'Rourke put out two amazing releases in 1999. The first was Eureka, and I don't know how to explain how brilliant it is. I'm sure others have been successful at that. But I just think it makes me feel good. It's comforting and the right kind of sad at the right moments. I think "Movie On The Way Down" is what exemplifies it for me, as it reminds me of the scene in Love Liza that uses it. Just the composition and the words it uses. The drunkenness of the horns. How it stumbles around in sadness.

Jim O'Rourke "Movie on the Way Down"

Keep it Like a Secret is arguably the best Built to Spill album. I think I might prefer some of their others, but they scaled back on the jamminess of Perfect from Now On without losing its technical brilliance. Pop music with respectability. Very 90s indie rock. The end of 90s indie rock?

Where do I fit Tom Waits into here? Mule Variations is yet another brilliant work by him, maybe even more brilliant than most of his other work. It starts off lo-fi-ish and pushes out from there. His blues songs have always been on point and the chaos around him splashing around, not overtaking the power of his vocals. I kind of hope one day to have a child listen to this with me and sing along with "Cold Water."

I didn't get into the Flaming Lips until a bit later than '99, even though I know my friend was a fan. But in retrospect, yes, The Soft Bulletin is one of the greatest albums of 1999. Full of songs of hope and hopelessness but trying. Just doing our best and it not being enough. It's sad but from a perspective of persistence. And selflessness. It wasn't until around 2006 that I saw this video but it is just so touching and everything I love about this album contained in a clip.

The Flaming Lips "Waitin' for a Superman"

Notice I called The Soft Bulletin "one of the greatest albums of 1999." That's because, without question, the BEST album of 1999 was a three-CD collection of 69 Love Songs by The Magnetic Fields. Sometimes an artist just has a time period where everything they do sounds just perfect, they're just tapped into this something. And Stephin Merritt took advantage of that by letting it all pour out over 69 damn songs. Sure there's filler, but it's barely any. Just a few silly songs like "Punk Rock Love," a repeating of the lyrics "Punk rock love punk love, punk love love..." Otherwise though, these are completely solid and overwhelming. Romantic, hopeful, sad, sadder, funny, and all very clever. Several perfect songs, as far as I'm concerned. My wife thought "Papa Was a Rodeo" was a cover of an old country song, and I have to think that's because it's so timeless now it's hard to imagine it being new ever. Like that line from Inside Llewyn Davis, that blues songs were "never new and never get old." My friend introduced me to the band with the song "The Luckiest Guy on the Lower East Side," which was funny and true and full of longing and sadness in a happy song. But the first song I actually ever heard by them was the result of grabbing a bunch of songs off a file sharing program in college. I didn't know what to think of it at the time, it wasn't really "rock" so why was it in the "indie rock" section? It sounded like an old song (as usual) and it stuck with me until I eventually figured out who this band was and put the song into context. And eventually, that was the song I danced with my wife to as our first dance at our wedding. No, not "The Book of Love," which everyone uses (even people who don't know who Stephin Merritt is!). This one. Simple but perfect, obvious but not too obvious. A song I love to associate with my marriage.

The Magnetic Fields "Nothing Matters When We're Dancing"

Other Stuff:

• Jay-Z's album Vol. 3...Life and Times of S. Carter is okay. It's got "Big Pimpin'" on it.
• The debut of !!! and sister group Out Hud was seen on their split EP Lab Remix Series Vol. 2. Very promising (and knowing history, both bands would turn out to be killer)
• Goodnight Pavement, Terror Twilight was their final album I believe.
• Fat Wreck put out a compilation of 101 30 second songs called Short Songs for Short People. I remember liking it for a few reasons. It introduced me to lots of bands. Blink-182 had a very profane song on it as did MTX. I don't know if anything else really stood out to me other than stuff like "hey cool a Rancid song!" and stuff like that.
• Eminem. The Slim Shady LP. I hated him at the time as a crusader against rap and as a budding crusader against homophobia. But why him specifically? Not sure. 
• Fifteen kind of entered that phase of their career of being super political and more about that than the music with Lucky. But it's heartfelt enough that I still find it somewhat endearing. And at the time I loved it because it was more lessons for me in leftist thought. 
• Beck's all super funky and such on Midnite Vultures.
• I only have a couple songs off The Faint's Blank-Wave Arcade but they are pretty great.
• AFI went all goth/dark/whatever on Black Sails in the Sunset, and at the time I dug it. Not super memorable though, 15 years later.
• The Roots were still awesome duh.
• Dr. Dooom killed Dr. Octagon. I like those Dr. Dooom records. No chorus. Really stupid album artwork. And rhymin' like only Keith can do.
• The first Hank Williams III album Risin' Outlaw is a great showcase of his vocals sounding just like his granddad's. Just a small hint of the way he would blow up the whole country music genre in a bit, it's pretty traditional but quite enjoyable.
• ODB! Got Your Money!
• The White Stripes' debut. I'll save my thoughts on them for a couple albums down the line. But it's good stuff.
• I liked a couple songs on the debut Common Rider album Last Wave Rockers. A different side of the OPIV singer, I kind of liked the songs he rapped on and remember thinking "this is the kind of rap I can appreciate." In retrospect, that was very silly of me.
• Sigur Ros, that stuff's pretty dreamy isn't it?
• More hip hop brilliance: Mos Def's debut album Black on Both Sides was quite the manifesto and a great start (not counting the already brilliant Black Star of course) and Handsome Boy Modeling School's debut So...How's Your Girl? was a nice collection of beats by two of the all-stars of hip hop at the time. With some fantastic guest spots from like likes of Del and El-P.
• Gah Les Savy Fav was great too!
• No Division was a Hot Water Music album I never got myself, but I always wanted to because I have two songs off it and they are probably my favorite HWM songs, "Free Radio Gainesville" and "Rooftops."
• And finally, the debut LP by Blackalicious Nia. Who knew that in a couple years I would discover this group and my entire perspective on hip hop would change? I probably would have actually liked this in '99 if I'd heard it. Very apparent skills on the mic, smart lyrics expressing the same thoughts I've always had, it's just a fantastic album.

Next Time: in the year 2000........(insert your favorite Conan joke here)

Aesop Rock, Alkaline Trio, At The Drive-In...and other letters besides A! Common and Cursive put out some of their best work, Deltron is appropriately futuristic, Enon, The Honor System are the flipside of that Broadways breakup, and my favorite Lawrence Arms album by the way, Ludacris, New Pornographers, Nina Nastasia, Reflection Eternal, Shellac, I get betrayed by The Suicide Machines, Weakerthans, other stuff.