ad hoc.

I think that Built to Spill INVENTED the catchy guitar hook. They have been around a while and basically influence every indie band out there. Choosing one of their albums is hard, but this release from 1999 seemed appropriate.

[BUILT TO SPILL; Keep it Like a Secret]

Wikipedia: Built to Spill

More ESSENTIAL ALBUMS

Sometimes I don’t know what to write about these. They are essential, just listen to them now. Name drop them for cred if you want. It’s hard to pick Spoon’s favorite album so luckily I got my hands on the discogrpahy. If I were forced to pick, Girls Can Tell and Gimme Fiction are the best. But the rest run a very close second.

Find out more about Spoon here.

Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga (2007)

Gimme Fiction (2005)

Kill The Moonlight (2002)

Girls Can Tell (2001)

A Series of Sneaks (1998)

Telephono (1996)

I can hardly believe that it has been 25 years since Daydream Nation came out. Sonic Youth is known for its experimental, sometimes nonmusical experimentation with using amp feedback. They are skilled in the abstract music as well as commercially compatible rock. Daydream Nation fits both those categories and is beyond amazing. I luckily was able to see them live in 1995 and it initiated me into music snobbery. There is also an extensive backstory in Our Band Could Be Your Life (which is essential reading). 1991: The Year Punk Broke, their tour documentary is amazing. I would say they can also be credited with introducing Nirvana to the mainstream. Sonic Youth’s bassist, Kim Gordon is also one of the few female musicians who have gained credibilty regardless of being female, and never been labeled as a “chick rocker”. She and Thurston Moore now have teenage kids, and I hope they appreciate how cool their parents are.

[SONIC YOUTH; Daydream Nation]

more essentialo albums

I haven’t done one of these in a bit. Social Distortion has an amazing sound, I guess you could call it rockabilly? I think this is what Johnny Cash would sound like if he decided to go in a heavier direction. Mike Ness, the main singer songwriter is a genius. The songs are pretty much punkish, but still have a strong melodic bass. The rhythm section is great, there is a constant full drumbeat and chord progression throughout every sone. They have been around since the late eighties, with their peak in the early to mid-nineties. Their latest came out in 2005, and personally I thought it was one of their best. It’s one of those bands whose albums sound similar to each other, but that is welcome because if it’s great, no need to fix it. Most of the bands popular today wouldn’t even exist if Social D was not around, and the influences are obvious. Good Charlotte thinks they sound like Social Distortion (bwah!) and even Green Day has taken a cue from them. Their album Between Heaven and Hell is considered their most consistent, so that whole album is here. I’ve also included some of their better tracks from other albums, which are also worth checking out. Even if you think you haven’t heard them before, I guarantee you’ve heard “Story of My Life” and “Ball and Chain”. They are always used in movies and commercials. Their cover of “Ring of Fire” is, dare I say, better than the original.

Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell (1992) (full album)

From Social Distortion (1990)

03-story-of-my-life.mp3 /05-ring-of-fire.mp3 / 06-ball-and-chain.mp3 / 02-let-it-be-me.mp3

From White Light, White Heat, White Trash (1996)

under-my-thumb.mp3 / dear-lover.mp3 / i-was-wrong.mp3

From Sex, Love & Rock N Roll (2004)

01-highway-101.mp3 / 05-nickels-and-dimes.mp / dont-take-me-for-granted.mp3

[More essential albums]

Emo boy bands are everywhere now, wearing women’s skinny jeans, and whining about lost loves and have long song titles that have nothing to do with any of the lyrics of the actual song. These bands may seem like a fad, but there is always the one group that was the pioneer. The Strokes were amazing and one of a kind and practically a Velvet Underground tribute band, but then came the wave of all the post-grunge, leather-jacket-wearing New York bands, and it was hard to remember when it was original. Same with Green Day in the 90s, whose pop-punk at the time was basically an Operation Ivy/Screeching Weasel tribute. Then came the waves and waves of new “punk” whose fans were not even born to be able to listen to the influences.

So, Taking Back Sunday may strike you as another “scene” band with screaming fangirls, a permanent fixture on the Warped Tour, in hot topic sweatbands. I will make the claim that when they came out in 2001, they were pretty original. Although they have obvious influences from hardcore, emo, and classic rock, they broke it through to the mainstream. (Although many would also fault them for this as cheapening the punk name). I would say one of the most notable qualities is having both the lead singer and guitarist share the vocals, in a call-and-response where one sings semi-melodically, and the other has a more visceral yell. This has been copied since then more times than I can count. Basically every rock band on Myspace.

TBS have three albums out, with the last two released on a major-label, and the sound is getting more and more polished and radio-friendly. They are still good, but you can hear the major-label influence. Also, guitarist (and yeller) John Nolan left the band after this album (and started the encredibly shitty band Straylight Run) and without his vocals and songwriting the other stuff is not as good.

By claiming to like Taking Back Sunday, some people would probably say that strips me of my cred. I’d say that this is just a really addicting album, probably one that encapsulates the sound of popular punk/emo of the early 2000’s.

I may also have to claim that “Cute Without the ‘E’ (Cut From the Team)” is probably one of my top five favorite songs (and video) ever. So addictive. Although every song on here can get stuck in your head.

I’s also like to add that this blog gets about 25% of its traffic from mentioning the name Adam Lazarra (the lead singer) who is probably one of the most searched people on the internet. He is a total emo heathrob poster boy. He is also knows for intense histrionics while singing. Usually people find my blog while searching for things like “does Adam Lazarra have a girlfriend?” or “Adam Lazarra nude pics” (I don’t actually have those on here anywhere”.

I did get a chance to see them live in 2003, and it was quite amamzing. I have never seen fans so much in a daze of utter devotion, screaming every word to every lyric. Despite your opinion, you couldn’t help but be impressed.

[TAKING BACK SUNDAY; Tell All Your Friends] [multiply] [sendspace]

more ESSENTIAL ALBUMS

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The New Pornographers are one of the bands I had in mind when I first started posting essential albums, but I’ve been putting in off in fear that I could not do the band justice in my writing. They only formed in 1997 but basically created instant classics that I think are going to outlast all the other hyped bands that come out every five minutes. What do they sound like? I guess power pop is how they have been described, with influences cited as Cheap Trick, the Cars, Burt Bacharach and Brian Wilson. The songs are insanely melodic with lots of layered instruments, including pianos, organs, and acoustic/electric combos, and harmonized vocals. They also have a rotating lineup of male and female singers, including Neko Case, who is known for her solo work wihich is more country-based. It is hard to pick a best album. Many would go with Electric Version, which came out in 2003.

I’m posting the whole discography here, because you should own all their albums. Period. End of story. Listening to them will make you understand good songwriting, musicianship, lyrics, singing ability, the whole deal.

Here’s the discography listed out by song. If you are overwhelmed by this, I can let you know that the best songs are (and many like to argue with me over this)

• The Slow Descent into Alcoholism
• Letter From an Occupant*
• The Body Says No
• The Laws Have Changed
• The New Face of Zero and One
• Miss Teen Wordpower
• When I Was a Baby*
• The Bleeding Heart Show
• Twin Cinema

*Tracks so good I actually cry.

And here is each album individually. Believe me, you won’t be sorry.

[MASS ROMANTIC] (2000)

[ELECTRIC VERSION] (2003)

[TWIN CINEMA] (2005)

Previous Essential Albums

Ok, maybe Jimmy Eat World have since turned into VH1-power ballad heroes, but 2001’s Bleed American is fantastic. This album pretty much ruled the year 2001 for me. If you forget that you’ve heard “The Middle” about a thousand times, it’s actually a good song. “A Praise Chorus” is the best song, with “Authority Song” in a close second. If most mainstream music sounded like this, it would be bearable. If I were to make a list of my favorite albums of all time (which I may do soon) this would probably make my top 50.

[JIMMY EAT WORLD; Bleed American][mediafire][multiply]

more essential albums

The Verve is another one of those bands that I cannot BELIEVE the US has caught on too like they have in the UK. Most people would know them from the song “Bittersweet Symphony” but they have done tons more. Richard Ashcroft may also be one of the most depressed, bitter musicians ever, and it certainly shows. In their constant scowls and in the music. In fact, their song “The Drugs Don’t Work” was voted the most depressing song ever. In fact, most of their songs are heart-wrenching. And awesome. Urban Hymns was really one of their best albums, but here is a collection of their singles that is quite awesome.

[THE VERVE; This is Music]

I am not even going to try to explain the significance of the DC punk scene of the early eighties, or the rise of Dischord records. When most think of punk, they think of the Sex Pistols and the Ramones. The DC scene gave rise to hardcore punk, including Bad Brains, Black Flag, and Minor Threat (look into those too). You wouldn’t think of DC as the home to this scene, because things have changed. Thanks, gentrification. Fugazi actually came later, and is led by Ian MacKaye, who actually runs Dischord records and also was the founder of Minor Threat.

A lot of Dischord bands also part of the straight edge movement. As am I. You didn’t know how punk I was, huh?

This is a lot of information. The only thing to know is that Fugazi is amazing. They make amazing use of the rhythm section, and the bass lines actually make me feel faint from amazingness. Ok, so picking one of their albums was pretty hard, but I’ll go with 13 songs, their first one.

[FUGAZI; 13 SONGS]

More information that is more informative than my rant:

• Wikipedia: Fugazi
• Our Band Could Be Your Life by Michael Azerrad
• The Capital of Punk DC punk tour
• Fugazi: Instrument documentary

Goddam. I was born about 15 years too late. I would have killed to be here:

Truthfully The Dandy Warhols were one of the bands that inspired me to start posting about essential albums. I’ve been hesitating because I am not sure what to say about them because whatever I say will not do them justice. The Dandy Warhols were an indie/alternative band of the early nineties, and were targeted by major labels when the whole grunge/alternative invasion took over. They did not gain the noteriety that was expected, but they have still continue to make albums and have a pretty good following. This band has the perfect amount of fame, in my opinion. They have enough loyal fans to keep them making music, but it is not ridiculous. The Dandys definately have a unique sound that so many bands copy. Pandora describes it as “mixed electronic/acoustic guitars, electronic instrumentation, harmonized singing, and breathy male vocals”. Sure, I guess that’s correct. Courtney Taylor is also the typical frontman. I always talk about this, but the movie Dig! is a fantasic chronicle of the rise and fall of the band and about the 90s alternative music boom.

The second problem is: what album to post? With the exception of the most recent album, it is impossible to decide which one is best. For now we’ll go with 1995, Come Down, which includes the quintessential Dandys song, “Minnesoter.”

[THE DANDY WARHOLS; COME DOWN]

I’ll also include some other songs that you also need to know here.

Unfortunately, their talents did not lie in making good videos.

If you haven’t actually heard the Misfits, I am sure you are familiar with their mascot/logo. You’ve probably seen kids hanging out at the mall with these t-shirts.

Every subgenre of punki has another subgenre of punk. The Misfits basically created “horror punk”. They were an influential punk band of the late seventies/early eighties. Their music was pretty upbeat, but the lyrics were always about vampires, gore, and typical horror stuff. Some are quite disturbing and arguable misogynist, but I’ll let that slide right now because it RAWKS!!! [insert devil horns hand gesture]

[ The Misfits; Legacy of Brutality ]
The recent resurection of the band is certainly does not do justice to the original band. The bands the Misfits haveinfluenced is immeasuarble. They are contemporaries of the Ramones and sound like it. Some of the best stuff this album does not include are:

Last Caress*** / Teenager from Mars / Angelfuck

From Wikapedia:

The Misfits are a horror/hardcore punk band formed in Lodi, New Jersey in 1977 and led by singer and songwriter Glenn Danzig (born Glenn Anzalone). The Misfits were the progenitors and creators of the horror punk subgenre of punk rock music, and were highly influential on the genres of heavy metal, punk rock and rock music in general. Though they ceased recording and performing in 1983, a “resurrected” version of the band, without its founder and creative leader Danzig, began operations in 1995.

***If I cold only listen to one song for the rest of my life, this may be it.

more essential albums… 

First learning about Rilo Kiley in 2003 really changed my whole view on music. When I listen to this stuff I realize that I will never even have an inkling of talent to write a song. THe lyrics are cryptic and thoughtful without being pretentious, and their is a perfect blend of depressing stuff and poppish tunes. LISTEN NOW!

[Rilo Kiley; The Execution of All Things]

[Aimee Mann; Magnolia ]

What is there really to say about the soundtrack to Magnolia? Aimee Mann has written some of the most beautiful, depressing music ever. This raised the bar impossibly high for soundtrack music. The great thing is the music surpasses all genres. I think it appeals to anyone, regardless of what you usually listen to. The movie was actually based on these songs. The cover of “One” is phenomenal. Listen now.

[more essential albums]

Whether you enjoy punk or not, this one is definately worth a listen. While some may target the birth of punk in the late seventies in the UK, Operation Ivy definitely started West Coast, odern punk, and even a little ska. Their stuff also had political and social messages, a hallmark of “real’ punk. The band only lasted two years, 1987-1989, but what a fucking awesome two years. Energy is actually a compilation of their whole discography.

[Operation Ivy; Energy]

Two of the members left the band and started Rancid, which gained mainstream notoriety when Green Day suddenly made punk popular in the old days. I think Rancid took the best of Operation Ivy and took it to a modern level. This shit makes me want to join a band. Most of their later stuff doesn’t even compare. “Journey to the End of Easy Bay” talks about the forming and breakup of Op Ivy.

[Rancid; ...And Out Come the Wolves ]

Oasis blew up in the mid-nineties, but has continued to make albums for the last few years. Reviews have not been good for their recent stuff, which is not surprising when they came out so strong at the beginning any opportunities to grow and change their music risks being critically panned. The set the bar extremely high for alternative rock bands in the mid-nineties. Oasis always fascinated me because they could churn out great melodies in a heartbeat aside from having so many internal struggles. The Gallagher brothers were always drunk and fighting, and one of them quit the band every five seconds. Now, I wouldn’t normally condone that, but it just added to the awesomeness of their rockstar images. This is the one band that could probably be compared to the Beatles and have it actually be true. I also usually hate live albums, but Familiar to Millions covers some of their best singles, and it one of the only bands that sound even better live than on the album. ANd it is awesome to hear the crowd know just about every word. It’s the one of the only live albums I would but on a “Best of” list. I am sure many of you remember “Supersonic” and “Wonderwall” but believe me their other stuff is just as good if not better.

[ Oasis; "Familiar to Millions" ]

[Oasis Wikipedia entry]

[more essential albums]

Luckily, someone else wrote this one for me. The Jesus & Mary Chain’s record company recently reissued all their old albums, and Pitchfork summs it up nicely here.

But after a brief scientific study of their equipment, it came to the JAMC’s attention that electric guitars, when paired with high amplifier volume and harmonic distortion, could create feedback, thereby producing aggressive noises mostly on their own, and freeing their actual players to stand around looking half dead, depressed, and generally too contemptuous and disgusted to really bother playing– all of which seemed, in 1985 and in the particular case of the JAMC, totally super-awesome.

The band practically copy-righted the fuzzy, psychadelic sound that was later ripped off by bands like the Dandy Warhols, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, and the Raveonettes. Psychocandy is really heir best, but in 2002, they released 21 Singles, which is basically like a greatest hits album, so that seems like the best one to get an introduction to the band.

[ The Jesus and Mary Chain; "21 Singles" Part 1 / Part 2 ]

[More essential albums]

Continuing my committment to posting essential rock albums, I am going with an older one this time. Gang of Four hit their peak in the late 70s/early 80s, and really were the first to mix punk with other “danceable” forms of music- funk, reggae, disco, etc. All the bands tofay that play indie-dance that the kids are liking so much can all admit they were influenced by this band. In fact, The Rapture, Franz Ferdidnand, and Bloc Party might as well call themselves Grang of Four tribute bands.

Pursits would probably hate me for this, but I am posting two albums that are worth listening to. Entertainment! is from 1979 and is arguable their best. It is also embedded with philosophical messages without trying too hard. There is a more eloquent review here. Last year, the group reformed, rerecorded and remixed some of their songs and released Return the Gift. One might equate this with a pathetic arena reunion tour of Sammy Hagar/David Lee Roth, but I am okay with it because at least those listening to the bands they later influenced can here something current from them and appreciate where the influence came from. So both ae here. Entertainment! is definitely lo-fi and captures the original sound, but Return the Gift also is pretty fucking good.

[ Gang of Four; Entertainment! ]

[ Gang of Four; Return the Gift ]

Note: downloads are only availble for secen days. 

As NME was so kind to remind me, it’s been five years since The Strokes released their first album. I can get carried away and say most bands are influential and life-changing and I exaggerate, but I can say that other than Nirvana in 1992, The Strokes had the most influence on my love of music. After several years of having commercially produced rock and where everything had a pop influence, they revitalized indie music and produced their album with a lo-fi sound. It’s funny how they seem kind of cliche because so many bands have copied them since. Suddenly every skinny kid in Brooklyn started a band called “The ___s”. For me, it kickstarted the way I love rock music now. They also had a personal style and attitude that was just so fucking cool. It made me realize I had to dig deeper to find what I like instead of listening what was handed to me and to go back and listen to older established bands that were the influence for the current bands. It also marks a certain era of my life and camptures the feeling of that time. I have been fotunate enough to see them live three times and I will never cease to have a semi-religious experience when I see them.

I kind of feel weird when people ask me my interests and I say “I love listening to music”. It seems so vague, but as most of you know, music is a huge chunk of my life and brings me my most enjoyment. And not just listening to it- to me it is like a hobby of collecting and organizing things. Collecting albums and completing collections is huge for me, as well as knowing trivia (who produced what album, what band members left what band at what time, what influenced the album), as well as it being like a soap opera to follow (when is the album coming out, what interviews they do, what they say about other bands, when are they touring, what label they sign to, etc.) Ok, and yea, I do enjoy looking at the members of the bands sometimes. Furthermore, making mixes and collections and finding songs for every occasion, emotion, and event is huge for me.

With that, I love nothing more than to share music and introduce people to music they wouldn’t have heard of if it weren’t for me. I do recognize, however, that my music interests can be overwhelming to some. After all, I acquire about 10 new albums a week. I post a lot of music I like here, and several of you request specific stuff, and I can continue to do that. However, I am going to make sure that I make a regular habit of posting albums that I deem as essential to someone who wants to have a complete appreciation of indie rock music. Sort of a cheat sheet for someone who hasn’t quite built up their collection. Albums to own that will give someone real “cred” when listening, discussing, and buying music in the future. I will say I will not post stuff just because for image’s sake or by dropping the name of the band has some worth on its own. I’ll post it because it’s a great listen. I’m not the greatest in describing albums, as you know, but I’ll try.

I might as well start with The Strokes’ Is This It, their first album released in 2001. They have two other albums since, which I think are equally as good (despite critics not thinking so) but it is worth having their debut because of the influence. Some say it sounds like the Velvet Underground, but I don’t necessarily think that is completely true. To me it sounds like good music recorded on a lo-fi machine in someone’s basement.

The Strokes; Is This It? (2001) [This is missing two tracks which for some reason are not on my hard drive and I cannot find the cd at the moment. No matter, you still have the standout tracks on there.]

I also should add that the inspiration for starting these posts comes from Andrew’s Madonna project. Check it out.

My main playlists mostly consist of new bands. It’s kind of hard because many of these become a passing fad that I quickly get tired of (anyone remember The Bravery? How about the Vines? Exactly). Sometimes I will actually do some research and go back and look at the influences on these newer bands, because nothing is ever new anymore, all music now is a throwback to something older. To up my cred, I guess, I try to add older more established bands to my reptoire. A band I’ve heard before but never really gotten into was Echo and the Bunnymen. I guess they were bigger and Britain than here and were part of the whole new-wave thing of the late eighties.

Well, I did some searching around and thanks to the wonders of the internet, I had their whole discography. Phew! If I had to describe them, I would say they are very new-wavy. I don’t know what that means. You may know them best from the song “The Killing Moon” which was used in the opening scene of Donnie Darko. Crocodiles is what I think is their best album, and I’ve put it here.

Really, I’ll listen to stuff that I just enjoy hearing, but for me as a music collector, and not just a listener, there is something satisfying about listening to something that I know is groundbreaking and influential in alternative music in general, rather than some cheesy trendy Brooklyn band witha synthesizer and trendy clothes.

One of the (if not the) finest of the British Post-Punk exponents of the late ’70s and one of the bright, shining lights of ’80s music, Echo and the Bunnymen delivered a series of records that ranged from gloomy, muted blasts of dark guitars and moaning vocals to unabashed pop songs with glorious orchestral arrangements. At times frightening, at times beautiful, the band conjured up sullen images of mystery with their cloudy, swirling, psychedelic tapestries. Frontman Ian McCullough flaunted his permanently tousled and nicotine-addled persona through most of the English press of the ’80s while his band backed him up with Doors-fueled dramatic dirges that grew into giant, arena-ready anthems for the darkly clad, pale art kids. This angular, epileptic pop could draw you into the glorious dregs of the underground as McCullough muttered post-Syd Barrett lyrical spirals on records like Heaven Up Here or sent you sailing across the deep blue orchestral seas of Ocean Rain. As the ’80s closed, they achieved their biggest successes, filtering their original essence down to some catchy, at times brilliant, poetic alt-pop. Despite an ill-fated record sans McCullough in 1990, the band has kept their dignity in the time since. Most successfully, their 1999 release What Are You Going To Do With Your Life? showed the band were still capable of evoking their patented gloomy grandeur without falling victim to the dreaded “modern update.”