I still haven’t really decided how tenuous to the site theme posts on here are going to get. I mean obviously it should be music related, but how much do you care about personal stuff? How much do I care how much you care? How much do you care how much I care how much you care? And so on ad nauseum.
This is a long way of saying that I’m going to talk about gigs. On the back of going to see MxPx on Saturday.
I’m not very punk rock. I like punk rock, but not in enormous doses. I did very much enjoy going to a punk rawk show though. I must have first heard MxPx in 96 or 97, when I picked up a Move to Bremerton EP on the basis that I had heard of them in connection with Aaron Sprinkle of Poor Old Lu. Never got to hear them live though. That is, until 20 years later. It’s been about 10 years since I last went to a big punk rock gig (Less than Jake, does that count?). All I can say from looking at the crowd is that punk rockers got older. As did I, I guess. All in all though, it was a great set, which I thoroughly enjoyed.
Next gig should be Foy Vance. L’il bit different, you’ll agree. I also haven’t had a chance to hear Foy yet, but I’ve only been listening to him for a year or so. Looking forward to that one too. He’s got a way with a tune that one.
Sad to report that I didn’t manage to get tickets for Radiohead at the Roundhouse, which would have been sweet as a nut (sweet like tropicana), but I did manage to get Glastonbury tickets. I also haven’t, uh, seen Glastonbury (see, it kind of fits together!) before. The line up looks pretty cool. I’m hoping that my favourite performance won’t be anything I can predict, but from the bands listed thus far it should be pretty cool to see Muse, Adele, Beck, ELO and Sigur Rós. Amongst others.
That’s where it’s at this Monday. We’ll see if we can get you some new music this week. Dependent on factors outside our control, but rest assured you’ll hear it first here.
Sadly, I first listened to Nirvana post-1994, courtesy of a copied tape of Nevermind that my dad had. This album remains my all time favourite Nirvana album. I had a copied tape of this (I have since bought the CD *and* DVD, you’ll be pleased to know) given to me by a girl I liked. Better people than me have written better things than I could about this album, but I think it’s gorgeous and vulnerable and amazing.
Given what I said earlier, this might seem a little bit of a lame and obvious choice as it’s probably one of the biggest christian albums of all time. However, I was gobsmacked when I first heard it, and I still love the songs. There’s some weird bits, and some cheesy bits, but it’s still a great album.
This was another of my dad’s cassettes that got a LOT of plays on the old walkman. Again, a pretty obvious choice, being PG’s “brief intersection with the life of pop stars”, but that’s the way it goes. I first paid attention to Peter Gabriel as a result of Red Rain on the Rainbow Warriors album (more of which next) and this was the album with Red Rain on it.
This is perhaps the maddest choice – a compilation album. But honestly, listening to this album was one of the first times I can remember thinking that this was what I wanted to do with myself. And there’s some corking tunes on here. Very 80s, which I’m generally not so fond of, but I’ll make an exception this time. And did I mention this was another cassette filched from my dad’s study? Doesn’t seem to be online, but I did the legwork for you and 
Someone asked me in 99/00 whether I’d heard Graceland. I said I hadn’t and was duly lent a copy, only to find out I knew it very well. I can only assume from it being played in the house/car when I was younger. I can always go back to this and enjoy it. Yes yes.
I’m a fan of all stages of Radiohead. And I think all of their albums will follow me around, but OK Computer still has a special place. There’s a reason it gets held up again and again as an all time great album. The one-two punch of Electioneering followed by Climbing up the walls gets me every time.
Having bemoaned my teenage music embargo, it did lead me to some of my favourite ever albums, so, as ever, it’s swings and roundabouts. Model Engine were pretty short lived, unfortunately. This was their only album (although they recorded another album and an EP in an earlier incarnation, Black Eyed Sceva), but it’s an utter stunner. Full of smart lyrics and clever music, there’s not a bad song on here.
As with Radiohead (and Five Iron Frenzy – see below), it’s theoretically tricky to pick just one album for Switchfoot. But my limiting this to pre-2000 helps. And in any case, this album is a winner. It’s forever linked with summer in my head for some reason. And it’s just full of great songs that never get old.
I don’t remember when or how or why I had this tape, but it was one of the earlier albums I owned and I loved it. Sure, some of it is cheesy as hell (cheese out of hell?) and some of it is inexplicable (Wasted youth anyone?), and of course I imagine the first Bat out of hell is regarded as the classic of the two, but this popped into my head again recently and I had a listen and it’s still a stupidly splendid album. So it makes the cut.
Might be running out of steam with the descriptions. Or maybe just running out of adjectives. Hopefully I haven’t repeated myself. Hopefully I haven’t repeated myself. Anyway, Poor Old Lu are a long time favourite of mine, and I bought this album without having listened to it (I did read a review) and was instantly pleased that I did. It’s very engaging from start to finish and the guitar solo on Sickly is one of my favourite ever.
Pretty much my all time favourite band. This was the first album I owned of theirs and I think the first album ever (possibly the only album ever) that I could sing to myself all the way through without the album playing (got me through a lot of long hours working at McDonald’s I can tell you). I think their latest album might just be my favourite, but this one will always be special. And the artwork is baller.
Ok, I’ll admit it, this is a bit of a cheat. I heard Waltz #2 when it was Mark and Lard’s song of the week (they were Radio 1 DJs back in the day, remember that?), but I don’t think I bought the album until after 2000. Whatever, this is a hauntingly beautiful album and Waltz #2 is almost as perfect a song as I can imagine a song being.