Category Archives: alternative

Discovery

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“I do not seek. I find.”

-Pablo Picasso

It’s interesting how I discover music. It’s like a rabbit hole. One song leads me to another album then to other bands, and suddenly I am discovering a new band altogether. New to me at least.

I was checking the blog email box and saw that Philip Selway just leaked a track off an upcoming solo album.

Latest tracks by Philip Selway

You know Mr, Selway, the drummer for a an itty bitty UK band called Radiohead.

I start to do some other searches for Radiohead and Selway. I start to head down the road of the band 7 Worlds Collide, a band Selway contributed to. Instead, I come across something I thought was much better.

I discover that there is a new Stereogum project out called OKX: A Tribute to OK Computer that celebrates the 10th anniversary of Radiohead OK Computer. The idea was to get a bunch of musicians to cover every song of the album. One of the standouts was a cover of Exit Music (For a Film) by Vampire Weekend.


Download Vampire Weekend – Exit Music (For a Film)

Here is what Ezra Koenig had to say about the original and the cover the band did:

“Exit Music (For A Film)” was the first Radiohead song I really got into. My friend Olympia put it on a mixtape for me. At the time I was struck by how much it sounded like classical music. Now I hear trip-hop and maybe a little Pavement (?!?!). No matter what I hear in it, this song is still 100% high-style Radiohead, a super-ambitious, pre-millennial banger.

Then I realize…Pavement? I thought Pavement was a heavy metal band…wait…have I ever listened to Pavement? huh.

I delve into the bands history and discography. An indie band that stayed indie for every release. 5 full length albums and 9 EPs in 10 years. Not metal… alternative rock. Apparently they only experienced moderate commercial success but had a strong cult following.

The group broke up in 1999 but has a reunion show scheduled in New York’s Central Park on September 21, 2010. The tickets sold out in two minutes.

I checked out the albums “Slanted and Enchanted” (1992 and their first full length release) and “Terror Twilight” (1999 and their final full length album) and I like what I heard, but it felt dated. I mean they are old albums, but sometimes an album can still fell cutting edge and fresh years later. These two releases were not that. I can see how they must have influenced many bands that I love. Modest Mouse, Silver Jews, Built To Spill, Wavves all feel like they might have been influenced by Pavement.

That’s how I discovered the band Pavement.


Download Pavement – Ann Don’t Cry

Lube up!!!

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No, this won’t be some weird post about Brokeback Mountain or something. It’s about an album I recently picked up again after not having listened to it for years. The second album by Stone Temple Pilots, Purple, could possibly be the best album of the 1990’s. Yes. I said that. Better than the self-titled debut by Weezer, even. This is one of the very few albums I can listen to beginning to end and enjoy. That’s how I base my own personal “rating system”. So it’ll differ with yours, no doubt.

Well, of course, the song “Vasoline” is the first track I heard from it, and goddamnit-all if I still don’t just absolutely love this song. So here it is.

[Download Stone Temple Pilots – Vasoline]

And as for another little ditty? How about Scott Weiland’s solo career? Well, His first solo album, 12 Bar Blues, is mostly crap, to be honest. The first three songs on it I absolutely love, however. The following is the cut “Barbarella”. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy, like good – or bad – liquor. And somehow it doesn’t take my self-respect away like the liquor does.

[Download Scott Weiland – Barbarella]

And if you don’t buy this stuff, I will make you eat my cooking. Seriously. You should be scared of that.

The best soundtrack EVAR!

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I needed to do that dumb intentional misspelling. Just to be oddly poignant. Because let’s be honest, spelling words “EVAR” of “TEH FUNNAY” could be one of the dumbest things ever. If you do it? You should be locked up in a room with Robert Downey, Jr., and have a bag of coke thrown on you. Good luck surviving that.

But that’s a total sidetrack. Here I just wanted to discuss the best soundtrack ever. No, it doesn’t feature anything by Bette Midler. I know you’re disappointed. In all honesty, if you’re a fan of Bette Midler, I’d have to question your overall character. Hey, to each their own, I guess. Sorry. The sarcasm is flowing like PBR off tap into my mouth today.


So for the honors of best soundtrack? No offense to Trainspotting‘s wonderful soundtrack, but this flick holds it down. Which movie? Why, it’s one of the more underrated ones, in my opinion. Judgment Night features Denis Leary and his band of merry thugsters. They chase Emilio Estevez, Cuba Gooding, Jr., and Jeremy Piven through the rough streets of a full on ghetto and it makes for a pretty good flick.

The best part is the soundtrack. It features hip-hop artists – circa 1993 – with alt-rock and metal bands. The listing of tracks is as follows:

1. Just Another Victim – Helmet/House Of Pain
2. Fallin’ – Teenage Fanclub/ De La Soul
3. Me, Myself & My Microphone – Living Colour/Run D.M.C.
4. Judgment Night – Biohazard/Onyx
5. Disorder – Slayer/Ice-T
6. Another Body Murdered – Faith No More/Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E.
7. I Love You Mary Jane – Sonic Youth/Cypress Hill
8. Freak Momma – Mudhoney/Sir Mix-A-Lot
9. Missing Link – Dinoasur Jr./Del Tha Funky Homosapien
10. Come And Die – Therapy?/Fatal
11. Real Thing – Pearl Jam/Cypress Hill

So now I guess I should give you the best part – the music! So here are two tracks from the movie. “Disorder” – by Ice-T and Slayer – is one incredibly angry tune! But if this doesn’t make you get fired up and breaking stuff, then you need a therapist. Because all of that pent up anger inside just does you no good. For real. The other one I’ve chosen is on the other side of the emotional spectrum. Del Tha Funkee Homosapien is part of the Hieroglyphics crew. It consists of other hip-hop artists from the Bay Area such as Souls of Mischief and Casual. He’s teamed up here with Lou Barlow’s Dinosaur, Jr. for a really mellow jam called “Missing Link”. Well, in comparison to “Disorder”, that is.

And again, please buy it if you like it! In this case, either the movie or soundtrack will do. They’re both worth it!