she took the oldsmobile out past condor avenue

I'm listening to From a Basement On the Hill as I type this, so I guess that makes me somewhat of a hypocrite (since I can't play what I want when I want.) Roman Candle is the 1994 debut of the great Elliott Smith, an uber-depressed, quasi-folk singer. Here he keeps the majority of the material acoustic, and he strikes gold. The title/opening track is a soft-toned but vicious "ode" to an abusive boyfriend of an acquaintance. Condor Avenue is probably the best track; you can hear Smith's multilayered harmonies really shine. Also included are four "No Name" tracks (the smooth No Name #1 and harmonica-sprinkled No Name #2 being the best) that would later be followed up by No Name #5 on Either/Or. Everything is really mood, and his refusal to shout only makes it moodier. Some of the tension is relieved by the conclusion of the album, an instrumental country melody strangely entitled "Kiwi Mad Dog 20/20." Having listened to Roman Candle for the first time in physics months back, it really cemented my respect for Elliott Smith. He quickly replaced Beck as my favorite solo-artist and is probably one of the most genuinely depressing figures in rock.

open your parachute and grab your gun

Elliott Smith will make you sad. Not "high school" sad, like the Get Up Kids or the Promise Ring; but real sad. This is due to the fact that Smith doesn't write about being a depressed teen; he writes about being a depressed human. From a Basement On the Hill was released on the same year of his suicide (2004), and it's his sixth studio album, just posthumously released. It's mainly a mix of his original works intended to be on the album, but some B-sides have been added in.

From a Basement On the Hill is one of the few albums that's sadder than Hospice. King's Crossing is probably one of the saddest songs ever made; it's also one of the greatest. When you put it into context of his suicide, it's really tragic. "Give me one good reason not to do it/So do it" is pretty overt about suicide, but the lyrics in general paint a picture of someone that doesn't want to go on living. Even Elliott Smith's interviews are depressing. I recall an interview on MTV Live where Elliott Smith is sitting on a stool, hugging his guitar while he's being questioned about his song Miss Misery (of Good Will Hunting fame.) He's not some glamorized asshole like Kurt Cobain; he's just a dude, and maybe that's why his music is so fucking good. He's singing about something that's got him so miserable, but it's hard to say what it is. So we're left to look at the details of his fucked up life and conjure up guesses as to why he stabbed himself to death.

indie folk wizards of oz

It's strange how some scenes that have been around for a long time can suddenly gain so much popularity in such a short time. Take Dubstep for example, it had been around since the early 00's, and only now has it sky-rocketed in terms of popularity. Well, while that sensation is burning away on the dance music side of thnigs, on the other side of the music chasm, a suddenly popular folk/indie hybrid is turning a lot of heads. Laura Marling, Mumford and Sons and Johnny Flynn appear to be getting a lot more coverage than they used to, and quite frankly, it's brilliant. Now folk bands can become superstars! And The Middle East ought to be no exception. After playing an incredible set at SXSW, there is a ton of buzz around them and they even got a full page spread in NME's Radar section. And it's all deserved.

There is something so beautiful about the music that The Middle East are making that really does leave you a little dumbstruck after listening, from their EP "The recordings of the middle east" opening track The darkest side is so soothing it could calm down an enraged BNP supporter had a mosque been built next door to his house. The vocals really are that sweet. Underlay all of this with vocal harmonies, acoustic guitars and a dash of other twee instruments and you do get folk perfection. The Middle East really are incredible and are capable of creating vast soundscapes as heard in the EP's closing track Tsietsi, which sounds very post-rock, sweeping violins included. Of course, it's nothing to dance to or put on at a party, but if you want to sit back and relax on a sunday afternoon with a cup of tea, it's actual perfection. I can find nothing bad to say about the Middle East and I will be eagerly awaiting the release of a full LP sometime. Until then, the EP will certainly make do. Make sure you listen to Blood, it really is amazing.

The Middle East have announced a small UK tour this June/July playing the following dates:

Manchester - 25th June
Dublin - 26th June
Brighton - 28th June
London - 13th July
*Sadly the Manchester and Dublin dates are 18+ :(

Anyway, here is a link to the EP

Also, Beck

Okay faggots, listen up. I'm giving in to the hype and downloading Radiohead's OK Computer, mainly because I heard Paranoid Android and got shivers. I'll give my honest opinion next post. So yeah.


When I posted the Beck discography I didn't really explain Don't Get Bent Out of Shape. It's one of his more famous demo tapes released, and it's actually quite good. 18-tracks of "what the fuck, man?"

The opening track, MTV Makes Me Want to Smoke Crack, is a dity he wrote when he worked at a shitty movie-rental store. Quite naturally, he didn't feel like he was in the right place. At the time (~1992) MTV was in it's "prime" (too bad it was always cancerous bullshit). While the pictures of people who have lavish lifestyles appealed to the masses, it just made Beck, as stated in the title, smoke crack. Really ace.

The second track, Mexico, is one of those "gather round the campfire and I'll tell y'all a 'lil story"folk songs. It's pretty fucked up though. I could go into detail, but I'll leave you with the lyrics:

"Come gather round me, people, here's a story you never heard 'Bout me and my friends and some shit that occurred. Well, we thought that we'd take a trip. We thought that we would go Spend a weekend pleasant down in Mexico. Well, I was working at McDonald's, doing the late night run When a car pulled up the drive-thru and pointed out a gun. Said, "Give us all your money and three Big Macs to go." I stuffed them all in a bag and I ducked down below. Well, the boss got angry when he found out I didn't call the police. I guess I was kinda nervous. There was a warrant out on me Concerning some jaywalking tickets I couldn't afford to pay. Needless to say, I got the axe that same day. Well, me being out of work just then, I didn't want to go home. My Mom said if I lost this job, I'd have to go out on my own. So I went over to Dave's house and got really stoned, Called up some girls, but none of them were home. Well, Steve came over and brought some alcohol. We were all gettin' really depressed just staring at the wall! Well, we thought we'd get some money. We thought that we might go Spend a weekend pleasant down in Mexico. Steve's Dad had a hunting rifle and we went and picked it up. We went and stopped at a 7-11 to try our luck. Now we pulled out that hunting rifle, but the counter guy just laughed. As he pulled out an Uzi, we turned and hauled ass. We were running so fast until we came to the McDonald's where I worked. We walked up to the drive-thru and gave my boss a jerk. Said, "Give us all your money and three Big Macs to go. And suck on this, you weasel! We're going to Mexico." We all got really wasted. Down South, Dave got a case of the runs. We were all really hungover and gettin' low on funds. Dave and Steve called their parents and took the bus back home. Me, I got a job at McDonald's down in Mexico."

So yeah, it's awesome. Get that shit right now.


tl;dr: Beck, please have sex with me.

The link's on the discography post. Look it up, lazy-ass

The Magnetic Fields leak!

Say farewell to the 4-year long "no-synth" trilogy. After this album the Magnetic Fields will, most likely, go back to synth-heavy indie-pop. The first track is essential Magnetic Fields: "If you think you can leave the past behind/You must be out of your mind". Stephin Merritt is, once again, a cynist living in a sugar world.