Archive for July, 2008

Thursday, July 31st, 2008

Recently, sitting in a dark booth of a non-descript bar in a non-descript portion of Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles, I was listening to the unashamed (and awesome) time-traveling selection of Los Angeles DJ Dr. Who (spins on Thursday nights at The Bar in Hollywood and deejays the soul-funk night at downtown’s La Cita on [...]

Thursday, July 31st, 2008

Paul Westerberg’s post-Replacements career has been an interesting one and listeners have dithered back and forth on the merits of each solo release, no two coming to a consensus on any one of them. But it was as universal a thought as possible that he had stumbled onto something good when the twin Stereo/Mono [...]

Wednesday, July 30th, 2008

This post actually began as a Sevens piece reflecting on Chris Bell’s single “I Am The Cosmos” – that is until I realized we had never discussed the album proper on AD in the past. For shame. For the non Big Star fanatics in the house, Chris Bell was Alex Chilton’s right hand [...]

Wednesday, July 30th, 2008

Off The Record is a recurring feature, here on the Drunkard, that marries two of my greatest interests; music and travel. Having a locals perspective when visiting a new locale is the difference between experiencing it through the lens of a tourist and of that of a native.
Off The Record gathers some of my favorite [...]

Wednesday, July 30th, 2008

Alright, so 2006’s A Hundred Miles Off was…well, a bit off; and the follow-up Pussy Cats, a practically note for note rendition of Harry Nilsson’s rasp-fest was, while good, just that (more often than not making me want to throw on the original and be done with it). But forget all that, or [...]

Tuesday, July 29th, 2008

Letting go of the Wooden Wand handle (at least for now), James Jackson Toth’s solo debut, Waiting In Vain, steers clear of the psychedelic folk jams of his former outfit in favor of fairly straight-ahead, soul-infused, roots rock. The trick is that in doing so, Toth has crafted his best, most concise, work [...]

Tuesday, July 29th, 2008

“Ben Weaver is the most exciting young songwriter I’ve come across – an American original whose voice and guitar are matched only by the power of his words. His songs are an incredible, haunting gift of music.” Author Larry Brown (1951-2004)
If you’re a fan of the late neo-southern gothic author Larry Brown (quoted above) and [...]

Monday, July 28th, 2008

Since 2004, (Fleet Foxes) J. Tillman has quietly been releasing records, some of limited quantity, some mostly available in Europe, but for the most part, unheard. The borderline-alienating starkness and well lived-in narratives of his first two records, “I Will Return” and “Long May You Run, J. Tillman” (released in limited runs of 150) endeared [...]

Monday, July 28th, 2008

I truly loved Liz Phair’s early stuff, and the recent ATO reissue of her Matador lo-fi debut – the still-excellent Exile In Guyville – only reinforced my appreciation. While I can’t necessarily speak to the quality of her last few albums (from the little I heard, they didn’t sound all too impressive) it’s telling [...]

Saturday, July 26th, 2008

I am hesitant to refer to anyone in their field of study as “an unknown,” – no matter if it’s in reference to a painter, director, or guitarist. But in many circles, when the late Roy Buchanan’s name is dropped, he is reverently referred to as just such: one of the great “unknown” blues guitarists. [...]

Friday, July 25th, 2008

Our weekly two hour show on SIRIUS, channel 26 Left Of Center, can now be heard twice, every Friday – Noon EST and then an encore broadcast at Midnight EST. Below is this week’s playlist.
SIRIUS 57: The Kinks – Johnny Thunder ++ Scott Walker – 30 Century Man ++ Art Guy – Where You Gonna [...]

Thursday, July 24th, 2008

After this Summer has come and gone I’ll think back to what I was listening to at the time and the reissue of Dennis Wilson’s Pacific Ocean Blue will most definitely be at the top of that list. The Legacy Edition, which came out last month, besides being chock full of photos and notes, presents [...]