Ted Leo & the Pharmacists on NPR

Wednesday, NPR interviewed Ted Leo on All Things Considered, most well-rounded news show to ever hit the airwaves. Go on over the sight now. You can listen to the interview, where he talks about guitars and throat problems, and download a live show from the 9:30 club in DC.

I've got a couple tracks for ya, too.

Ted Leo - "Since U Been Gone" (Yes, that's a cover.)
Ted Leo & the Pharmacists - "The Sons of Cain" from Living with the Living

Living with the Living on Emusic
Living with the Living on iTunes
Living with the Living on insound

The Secret's Out

Before reading, The Secret, and new book from Dark Horse, I feared it might be too much like the bevy of mediocre teen-slasher flicks on the market. Unfortunately, my fear has been confirmed. Possibly driven to force the plot by the comic media, writer—and Dark Horse founder—Mike Richardson introduces the conflict before we hardly know the characters’ names. (For a better, but similar device, see the Luna Brothers’ Girls.) By the end of the issue, it appears one of the stock high schoolers we follow may already be gone.

Jason Shawn Alexander’s (of Stoplight Sleep- favorite The Escapists) art is sketchy and expressive. His method of portraying sound effects is better than the unbelievable dialogue. Although his fresh style begs a second visit, I doubt I’ll fork over another three bucks to read about teenagers who live and talk like they were parented by Jeepers Creepers 2 and Cruel Intentions.

If you really want good graphic fiction about rebellious teenagers, pick up R. Kikuo Johnson’s Night Fisher.

For the best in comic-book horror, read The Walking Dead and Fell.

Best reviewed review

There is no possible way 300 could be as good as this guy claims it is. Hell, there's no way it could be as entertaining as the review itself. I've been looking forward to seeing this movie for several months, but now that I know the main characters are "a super-human elite squad of lumberjack pirates who were trained by the the great-great-grandpa of Chuck Norris' paternal ancestor," I'm afraid we've got another Snakes on a Plane.

But seriously, if you go see this movie tonight, you just might see me there.

Podcast #2, Reposted

I forgot to add the details for the last podast. Here they are:

Playlist

1. A Band of Bees (The Bees [UK]) - "Listening Man" from Octopus
2. Girl Talk remix of "Knife" by Grizzly Bear
3. Bloc Party - "The Prayer" from A Weekend in the City
4. Minus the Bear - "Drilling (P.O.S. Redo)" from Interpretaciones del Oso
5. Amy Winehouse - "Rehab" from Back to Black
6. Justice - "Phantom" from Phantom (limited 12")
7. Mari Taylor - "Lost Time" from Lynn Teeter Flower
8. Glen Glenn - "One Cup of Coffee" from Rarext Rockabilly & Hillbilly Boogie / The Best of Ace Rockabilly
9. Charlie Feathers - "Wild Wild Party" from Memphis Rockabillies, Hillbillies, & Honky Tonkers, Vol. 4
10. Eddie Bond - "Raunch" [Take 3] from Memphis Rockabillies, Hillbillies, & Honky Tonkers, Vol. 4
11. The Decemberists - "Bridges & Balloons" from Picaresqueties

Other tracks used: Bloc Party - "Helicopter (Whitey Version)" from Silent Alarm Remixed; Amy Winehouse - "Rehab (Hot Chip Remix)"

Comics discussed: JSA; Jack of Fables

Download it!

Random 5

Using iTunes’s Party Shuffle function, I picked 5 random tracks from my library for you to hear and me to discuss:

1. Make-Up – “R U A Believer” from I Want Some (single comp., 1999 on K Records)

Forget Fugazi. Forget Minor Threat. Forget Bad Brains. Even forget Bikini Kill. Make-Up are the best DC band ever.

OK, I’m kidding, but they did give the scene some much needed class. Featuring Ian Svenonius (Nation of Ulysses, Weird War) on lead vocal, Make-Up brought an early R&B vibe to the scene. If Little Richard and Lou Reed had an insane love child, that would be weird.

This track is flat compared to some of their better efforts, but it has a classic punk structure, giving it a certain appeal. The minimal lyrics, squirted out in a plee from Svenonius, rip up what could otherwise be boringly monotonous. Michelle Mae’s (Weird War) gigantic bass drives the song, while guitar and drums decorate her line like tinsel on an Xmas tree.

2. Smart Went Crazy – “A Halo & A Nosebleed” from Cubbyhole (EP, 1994 on CozyDisc [vanity label])
   

Another DC band. Smart Went Crazy may actually be the most under-rated DC/Dischord group. An indie-math outfit on the surface, SWC succeed due to Chad Clark’s vinyl-warm vocals, Jeff Boswell’s raindrop guitar, and Hillary Soldati’s restrained cello work.

This song is a classic example of the band’s talent. It also follows a popular theme of their lyrics: troubled relationships and malignant deeds hidden behind a sweet feminine persona (see also “Con Art” and “So Speaks the Queen Bee” from their class Con Art).

3. Bellini – “Patience and Passion in Brown” from Snowing Sun (2002 on Monitor)
   

The term “supergroup” gets thrown around carelessly, but in the world of art rock, Bellini fits the definition. The band features husband and wife Agostino Tilotta (guitar) and Giovanna Cacciola (vocals), both of Uzeda and Alexis Fleisig of GvsB.

Their sound is basically Shellac with a female lead singer, but they’ve developed into something more worthy. Cacciola’s violence replaces Albini’s wit. Where Shellac’s rhythms mimic hip-hop, classic rock, or industrial, Bellini’s are more post-punk or no-wave.

Notice the stuttering verses that give way to the bouncing riffs of the chorus and the metallic bridge. As usual, Cacciola struggles to overcome the sonic crowd or her own bandmates. If they were less talented, cynical, and arty, they might be Kittie.

4. Modifiers – “I Like Her (Band)” from a Magnet New Music Sampler
   

I’m not sure which is sadder: that this band is nothing more than an alt. country bar act channeling the Replacements or the verse-capping rhymes. Charming in a Zack-Braff way at most.

5. Aphex Twin – “Phloam” from Classics (1994 on R&S)
   

I think we all know Aphex Twin. The amount of this electronic juggernaut I have on my harddrive is inversely proportional to what I have to say about them.

On this track, as with much of their work, one loop in the mix (listen at 0:11) threatens to drive me insane at the very moment it disappears, only to reappear a minute and a half later. No band begs more to be remixed.