The Friday Five: March 2, 2012
Friday Five : ‘frī-(,)dā,-dē ‘fīv : On the sixth day of every week, I hit the shuffle button on my iTunes, then share the first five tracks and thought for each track. Sometimes there is a playlist involved, occasionally we’ll have a guest, but most of the time it’s just me. The rest is up to you, our friends and readers! Fire up your media player of choice and share the first five random track of your shuffle in the comments.
The Five:
“Nice Guys” by We Are Scientists (from Barbara, 2010)
I love tripping over songs that I forgot about. Ironically, the music blogosphere completely forgot about We Are Scientists by the time this release came out, which is a damn shame as it contains some of their strongest songs.
“The Stars of Track and Field” by Belle and Sebastian (from If You’re Feeling Sinister, 1996)
Oh, the toothache! Now with 90% more trumpet!
I kid, because I care. I stumbled onto Belle and Sebastian during my stint working at a record store in the mid-’90s. Yes, an actual record store.
“Long Kiss Goodnight” by The Notorious B.I.G. (from Life After Death, 1997)
Goddammit, Diddy is one annoying motherfucker.
“Leave in Silence (longer)” by Depeche Mode (from A Broken Frame, 1982)
Just lovely.
“Granny” by Dave Matthews Band (from Warehouse 8, Volume 3, 2007)
“Love! Baby!” Nothing like wrapping up another Friday Five with a little bit of love. To quote my friend Dennis, “Hope you all hear something good this weekend!”
What’s on your shuffle today?
The Friday Five: August 5, 2011
Friday Five : ‘frī-(,)dā,-dē ‘fīv : On the sixth day of every week, I hit the shuffle button on my iTunes, then share the first five tracks and thought for each track. Sometimes there is a playlist involved, occasionally we’ll have a guest, but most of the time it’s just me. The rest is up to you, our friends and readers! Fire up your media player of choice and share the first five random track of your shuffle in the comments.
The Five:
“A Boat Like Gideon Brown” by Great Big Sea (from Sea of No Cares, 2002)
“One Slip” by Pink Floyd (from A Momentary Lapse of Reason, 1987)
“Enemies With Benefits (feat. Tonedeff)” by CunninLynguists (from Oneirology, 2011)
“Spanish Eyes” by Madonna (from Like a Prayer, 1989)
“Shame” by Depeche Mode (from Construction Time Again, 1983)What’s on your shuffle today?
The Friday Five: July 15, 2011
Friday Five : ‘frī-(,)dā,-dē ‘fīv : On the sixth day of every week, I hit the shuffle button on my iTunes, then share the first five tracks and thought for each track. Sometimes there is a playlist involved, occasionally we’ll have a guest, but most of the time it’s just me. The rest is up to you, our friends and readers! Fire up your media player of choice and share the first five random track of your shuffle in the comments.
The Five:
“Behind the Wheel (Vince Clark remix)” by Depeche Mode (from Remixes 2: 81-11, 2011)
Both Vince Clarke and Alan Wilder make appearances on this second remix collection from Depeche Mode.
“Kept” by Matt Nathanson (from Modern Love, 2011)
I first discovered Matt Nathanson through his appearance on Live From Daryl’s House; and no sooner completely forgot about him. Save for his big hit “Come on Get Higher,” I’d be hard pressed to name another song. His new record, however, is quite good.
“Baba O’Riley” by Pearl Jam (from Live at the Gorge 05/06, 2007)
This is probably my favorite Pearl Jam cover. I remember buying a bootleg import back in the early ’90s that closed with an insanely raw version of the tune.
“Colonized Mind” by Prince (from Lotus Flow3r, 2009)
ZZzz …
“Michelle (1965 stereo mix)” by The Beatles (from Rubber Soul, 2009)
Let me take this space to express my extreme jealousy of those of you getting to see Macca at Yankee Stadium this weekend.
What’s on your shuffle today?
The Friday Five: March 12, 2010
Friday Five : ‘frī-(,)dā,-dē ‘fīv : On the sixth day of every week, I hit the shuffle button on my iTunes, then share the first five tracks and thought for each track. Sometimes there is a playlist involved, occasionally we’ll have a guest, but most of the time it’s just me. The rest is up to you, our friends and readers! Fire up your media player of choice and share the first five random track of your shuffle in the comments.
The Five:
“Comin’ Home” by City and Colour (from Sometimes, 2005)
A few weeks ago, I mentioned the songs that find you at the just the right moment in your life; this is another one of those songs. In the mid-aught’s my job had me shuttling back and forth to Toronto, Ontario on a monthly basis. On one hand, I got to know my host city in intimate detail, finding favorite restaurants, pubs — P.J. O’Brien, just in case you are curious — and hidden corners of Canada’s largest city. I was lucky enough to have my wife join me on more than one trip, but more often than not, I was alone and far from home. Around the same time, I discovered singer/songwriter Dallas Green’s City and Colour. I vividly recall listening to the album on one of many flights home and this song coming on, sealing it forever in that time and place.
Well I’ve been down to Georgia
I’ve seen the streets in the West
I’ve driven down the 90, hell I’ve seen America’s best
I’ve been through the Rockies, well I’ve seen Saskatoon
I’ve driven down the highway 1 just hopin’ that I’d see you soonCause I’m comin’ home, I’m comin’ home
“We Can Work It Out” by The Beatles (from Mono Masters, 2009)
If you had asked 13-year old me what my favorite Beatles tune was I surely would have responded with “We Can Work It Out.” These days I find myself gravitating to other, deep catalog tracks to find my favorite, but always come back to this as a great example of the Lennon/McCartney songwriting style. Listening to it now does reaffirm it as one of my Top 10 Beatles songs.
“Misunderstanding” by Genesis (from Turn It On Again: The Hits, 1999)
Somehow I had never put this together, but if you listen to “Misunderstanding” and follow it up with Led Zeppelin’s “Fool in the Rain” — which you call may recall is my favorite Zeppelin tune — you’ll notice certain similarities. Not just in its rhythmic swing feel, but lyrically it covers the same ground. Originally written by Phil Collins for his solo debut, Face Value, the track was a real departure from the rest of Duke. It is also one of my favorite Genesis tunes, which is probably somehow related to the whole “Fool in the Rain” thing, odd how that happens.
“Fragile Tension” by Depeche Mode (from Sounds of the Universe, 2009)
Why this is still on my iPod, I am not sure. As much as I dig Depeche Mode, this album was just awful.
“Misery Business” by Paramore (from RIOT!, 2007)
The little subtle things in this song are what make it so damned awesome. Sure, it is an arena-ready rock anthem, on par with some of the greats. The little things, like the half-time drums that build the tension in the second half of the chorus show attention to detail that is rare in a band so young.
What’s on your shuffle today?
The Friday Five: March 13, 2009
For those who have not joined in the Friday Five here is all you need to know; each Friday I hit the shuffle button on my iTunes and share my five and drop a little knowledge and insight for each track. Sometimes there is a playlist involved, sometimes there isn’t. Sometimes we have guest, but most of the time it’s just me.
The rest is up to you, our friends and readers! Fire up your media player of choice and share the first five random track of your shuffle in the comments. The more the merrier!
The Five:
“Big Bottom” (mp3) – Spinal Tap (from This Is Spinal Tap, 1984)
“The bigger the cushion, the sweeter the pushin'”
Seriously, what more can I say? So say we all: “Tap into America!”
“One Caress” – Depeche Mode (from I Feel You, 1993)
From the underrated Songs of Faith and Devotion, this track is Martin Gore doing what he does best.
“Solitude” (mp3) – Billie Holiday (from First Issue: The Great American Song Book, 1994)
Recorded during her tenure with Verve during the 50’s, this is a prime example of Lady Day at her best. This performance is soulful, intimate and absolutely essential listening for any fan of music in general.
“Stomp” – Brothers Johnson (from Light Up the Night, 1980)
A nice slice of 80’s pop-funk from the Brothers Johnson.
“P Control” – Prince (from The Gold Experience, 1995)
Much like last week’s “Trust” this is the lesser of the funk tracks on The Gold Experience. For my money nothing beats “Billy Jack Bitch” for a straight up jam. Also of note is that fact that this record (as well as last week’s Batman) are currently out of print. Odd? Maybe…
What is whisking you away today?
Ickmix Podcast: Alternative Thursday Night, Vol. 1
The Pre-Game Show
A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away I spent my evenings working in a tiny little club in a college town somewhere in upstate NY. It was the mid-90’s and while the other establishments in town focused on “Ladies Night” and “All Request Dance Night”, the bar I called ”home” was featuring “Alternative Thursday Night”. Originally helmed by DJ “Mad Man” Ray, I took over a few years later and dubbed myself DJ Flood. (There’s a long story that goes with that name but we’ll save that for another week.)
Pete’s recent trip down Cripple Creek inspired me to revisit the tunes that I used to spin to the masses and I got to thinking that this could be a great opportunity to regale in some short term nostalgia and put together some killer mixes. At the moment my plan is to make this a bi-weekly feature with the prior week’s mix only being available until the next one is released. I’ll keep the mixes to about 30 minutes at a clip but in the end you’ll be able to play the set back to back and get the full experience. Without further adieu, here’s Volume 1:
Download: Alternative Thursday Night, Vol. 1 (24.0 MB MP3)
Playlist (26.03):
“Something I Can Never Have” by Nine Inch Nails
(from Pretty Hate Machine)
“Under the Gun” by The Sisters of Mercy
(from A Slight Case of Overbombing: Greatest Hits, Volume One)
“Hell Is Round the Corner” by Tricky
(from Maxinquaye)
“Glory Box” by Portishead
(from Dummy)
“Paraffin” by Ruby
(from Salt Peter)
“Condemnation” by Depeche Mode
(from Songs of Faith and Devotion)Comments on Vol. 1:
When setting up and getting ready for the night I usually would run through two or three tunes to make sure everything sounded right. I was usually coming in the night after “80’s Night” and the previous night’s DJ inevitably left the EQ a mess and I had to make sure that I wasn’t going to blow the system up. There were usually only a few patrons in the place that early and generally it was just staff so I could get away with leaving longer and mellower tracks on and bellying up to the bar for my first round of shots and “Seinfeld”.
“Something I Can Never Have” by Nine Inch Nails was always my opening. There is something about that tune that despite all its tortured measure is quite peaceful and beautiful. Following that are the haunting lyrics behind “Under the Gun” which features the vocals of Terri Nunn formerly of Berlin. For a very long time that was one of my favorite songs and to this day holds a spot in that goth part of my heart. The paring of “Hell Is Round the Corner” and “Glory Box” is a no-brainer as they both borrow heavily from “Ike’s Rap II” by Isaac Hayes. “The Bristol Sound” was coming up and I fully embraced it for all its Trip-Hop goodness. “Paraffin” by Ruby keeps with the Trip-Hop and is probably the only song that I can recall that is about an old man’s ass. Closing volume one is “Condemnation” by Depeche Mode which is, for me, one of their defining songs. The emotion in David Gahan’s voice is nothing short of breathtaking.
So that’s it for Vol. 1, feel free to leave any requests (because a good DJ always takes requests), comments, compliments or complaints below and I’ll meet you all back here in 2 weeks for Vol. 2.