What we're listening to

In case you care, here's an update.

Jimmy:

Good call on the Bad Plus song in the music widget. They are probably my favorite modern jazz group. Their song "Thriftstore Jewelry" is awesome, as is their cover of "Everybody Wants to Rule the World".

Roberto:

I loved that album when it came out, and haven't been listening to much jazz lately but recalled that song when I went to throw together the playlist. Rediscovered the record and glad I did.

On that note, what are you people listening to these days?

For my part, the Crazy Heart soundtrack is pretty awesome if you like the country/Americana thing. Ryan Bingham's contributions are the clear standouts, but Jeff Bridges manages to hold his own, thanks to T. Bone's heavy production hand. More so than Beach House or Hot Chip or some of the electronicish albums I've been listening to, this one really has me craving a hot day under the sun.

Also, I'm a few months behind on it but Guy Clark's new[est] record is a bit uneven, though solid for the most part and as good as anything he's put out in a while to my memory. For someone with relatively spare song arrangements, he might not strike as a guy who'd be better in concert, but somehow his studio efforts have never held up to his live renditions for me, even (especially?) on the classics (thinking "LA Freeway" in particular). Nonetheless, these new songs are tight, and the record is great at its high points.

Let me also throw out Shearwater's The Golden Archipelago for discussion. At times I find myself really sinking into the melodies and depth of sound; at others I feel like I've walked into some hybrid sci-fi convention / renaissance fair gone awry where Antony Hegarty's second-cousin is attempting a post-ironic Ziggy Stardust impression. Yet I still want to rock. Confused.

Jimmy:

I will definitely have to check those out, as I am unfamiliar with all three. I've been listening to Local Native's new album Gorilla Manor for the past week and I'm definitely into many of the songs, especially "Wide Eyes", "Airplanes" and "Sticky Thread". I feel like the album starts and ends very strong, but some of the middle tracks are not as tight and begin to sound a bit formulaic. I would say that, at their best, Local Natives sound like a fresher sounding Fleet Foxes, and, at their worst, sound like The Fray (not a compliment, by the way).

I've also been listening to The Flaming Lips' Embryonic quite a bit lately and it has grown on me through repeated listenings. I left it off of my "Best Albums of 2009" list and I'm going to stick to my guns, but only because it's The Flaming Lips. If it were any other band, and this was their debut album, it probably would have made my list, fair or not. I've really been digging the songs "Worm Mountain" and "Watching the Planets". The vinyl version of this album really does the heaviness of the sound justice and sounds great when played through a system with a good subwoofer.

Another old album that I've been playing fairly often is the Beasties' best, Paul's Boutique. I never get tired of hearing tracks like "Egg Man", "Hey Ladies" or "Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun", but the one that really does it for me is "B-Boy Bouillabaisse". It's like a mini-rap opera and I can't help but compare it to Paul's medley's at the end of Abbey Road - pure genius by the Beasties. Also, the fact that the Beasties could seamlessly sample the themes from Jaws and Psycho into a song that also samples the songs "Pump It Up" by Elvis Costello, "Superfly" by Curtis Mayfield, "Dance to the Music" by Sly and the Family Stone, and "Bring the Noise" by Public Enemy (among several other songs), and have it turn into a hip-hop masterpiece is incredible. There will never be another Paul's Boutique, not just because the talent of the Beasties is epic, but because the amount of money it would cost now to sample that many songs on one album would be an incredible sum since copyright laws have changed, not to mention the fact that certain artists, like the Beatles, would probably not permit the type of sampling that was done on a song like "The Sounds of Science" irrespective of the Beastie's willingness to pay the fees.

El Loco Mooso:

Uhhhhhh... you guys went off - impressive insights. Like my personality, my thoughts will be much shallower.

My listening differs between work and home. I can only work to more ambient types of music.

Work - right now my Grooveshark playlist includes a lot of DJ Shadow, especially the Endtroducing album. Coincidentally Jimmy, "Best Foot Forward" samples "Party’s Getting Rough" by the BBs. So many great samples on that album: "Transmission 2" used synthesizers from Blade Runner (great movie), "Midnight in a Perfect World" sampled "Summer Breeze" by the Isley Bros, and of course, "What Does Your Soul Look Like, Part 1" sampled the voice of the Dream Giant from Twin Peaks Ep. 14 (one of my all time favorite shows). How could I not love that album forever.

Avalanches still get tons of play. All of the Memory Tapes stuff and Dayve Hawk’s other side projects. Lots of Boards of Canada, especially the Campfire Headphase and Geogaddi. I also mix in a lot of Ulrich Schnauss + A Shoreline Dream. Also Pantha Du Prince’s collaboration with Panda Bear (I think) is very good.

Home (when wife’s around) - Crystal Castles has been showing up a fair bit. I also am really digging the Local Native’s like Jimmy. Though, I don’t quite see the comparison to Fleet Foxes, as I think FF have a much richer sound where as LNs are defined by a rougher harmony. And I am still majorly stuck on Hot Chip’s One Life Stand. For me, that is far and away the best album of the year so far. Also, Owen Pallet’s Heartland is getting some iPod spins - especially "Oh Heartland, Up Yours!" and "Lewis Takes Off His Shirt."

Home (when wife isn’t around) - lately, I have really gotten back to metal roots and have been listening to Slayer’s Show No Mercy over and over. Metal Storm and Tormentor have some of the all time best thrash riffs. Mastodon and Baroness are going to start getting a lot of play in preparation for their upcoming show in Greensburg.

Ship ship McGip!

Roberto:

I agree with both points on Local Natives--digging it for sure, but don't hear the Fleet Foxes there for the most part. I've also been listening more to Embryonic recently, and it does come together on repeated listens. It's like a darker, more samey version of Yoshimi... which takes some time to sink its hooks into you beyond "Convinced of the Hex."

I sort of moved past the Hot Chip record in the past week but have been pretty heavy on both Owen Pallett and Beach House. That might be in part because I never put Hot Chip on the iPod though, so haven't been hearing it as much outside of the office.

Massive Attack, anyone? I never got into them in the past but I really, really like about 70% of the new record. The album ebbs and flows, as do several of the tracks, but most of the songs are mostly enjoyable, which is as much as you can ask of most albums, no? "Pray for Rain" with its awesome drumbeat is a great starting track, then "Babel" sort of loses my interest before "Splitting the Atom" comes in sounding a bit off-kilter but really pulls itself together and finishes beautifully. Some more ups and downs until you hit "Paradise Circus," which is just awesome imo. Hope Sandoval's voice melds nicely with that backing track that's reminiscent of a subdued Fiona Apple. Which I'm cool with.

Download/Stream:

Ryan Bingham - "The Weary Kind"

Local Natives - "Airplanes"