Q#128 - October to November 2019

Please note that the zip file has a password: QCOMPS.BLOGSPOT  

Download mix from  https://www.mediafire.com/file/2qkhgx40bxzv2tp/Q%23128.zip/file

Now with added Spotify playlist at end of notes.

Q's Compilations

Vol #128 – October to November 2019

Well here we are again, pretty much three weeks late. October and November were pretty busy, I got my show count up to a more respectable number (though I don’t think I’ll quite hit the 50-mark I had modestly set) and had a holiday in Oxford/London/Paris. Not shabby.

01) Superchunk - Driveway to Driveway (acoustic): To celebrate the 25^th anniversary of their best album, Superchunk decided to re-record the entire record acoustically, and it’s unsurprisingly good! I managed to catch them on tour in this setup and though I’d have preferred seeing it performed in its original state, it was a treat nonetheless.

02) Lux Prima - Turn the Light: Danger Mouse and Karen O put out a collaboration as Lux Prima back in March, which I didn’t really listen to at the time but they played a show at Kings Theatre just around the corner from my apartment so it was rude not to go. It’s an effortlessly slick record.

03) Torres - Good Scare: It has been a while since Torres released anything (record company woes I think) but she recently signed to Merge records and will have a new album out next year. She opened for Superchunk at the show I mentioned above, albeit solo-acoustic so it was hard to get a feel for the new songs like this one.

04) Tool – Pneuma: Thirteen years after 10,000 Days was released, you’d have been forgiven for thinking Tool might not release another record, but here we are. I have to admit, Fear Inoculum can sound a little boring at times and I haven’t been wowed by it yet, but I did catch them live (for the first time in twelve years) and the record did come to life in an arena.

05) Maneka - Never Nowhere: You might recognise Devin McKnight as the guitarist in Grass is Green and formerly of Speedy Ortiz, his latest project is Maneka, who just released debut album Devin on Exploding in Sound Records and it’s a genre-bending record that deserves to get some traction.

06) Sheer Mag - The Killer: Philly quartet Sheer Mag put out their excellent new album, A Distant Call in August and those with a hankering for Thin Lizzy-esque rock should listen to it at your nearest convenience (or inconvenience, even). Produced by Arthur Rizk, the record nails a classic sound and captures the band at their most accomplished to date, while their previous efforts were somewhat endearingly lo-fi in places, A Distant Call captures the band at their peak that .

07) Psychedelic Porn Crumpets - Hymn for a Droid: You might form a decent idea about what Psychedelic Porn Crumpets sound like just by the name. The Australian (Perth) quartet’s brand of psych is heavier on the BPM than most with plenty of riffs and a bit more treble in the mix, and they nail it. Their latest album, And Now For The Whatchamacallit, was released back in May.

08) Follakzoid – II: My love for Chilean psychedelic rock will hopefully never end, and one of the heavyweights, Follakzoid, put out their latest record I in August. The previous record went off in more of a trance direction and the live tour went further that way, and I takes it to the extreme. A double-record with one song per side, the songs were stitched together from a series of single takes, by a producer who was not present during the recording. It ends up having a remix-album type of feel, and it’s good, though I wonder how much further the band can stretch the direction.

09) Michael Stipe - Your Capricious Soul: REM nerds were treated to a Michael Stipe solo track recently which feels a bit like an UP b-side, but I’ll take anything I can get these days and it does leave you wanting more.

10) Julia Jacklin - Don't Know How to Keep Loving You: February was so long ago now it’s easy to forget that Julia Jacklin released the quite superb Crushing, she seems so effortlessly at the top of her game. Steering away from the more traditional folk of her debut album, Crushing reminds me a little of Sharon Van Etten circa Tramp/Are We There with a few more BPM.

11) Mikal Cronin - Show Me: Mikal Cronin released three near-perfect garage-rock albums every two years between 2011 and 2015, so 2017 seemed like a cruel joke when the run didn't continue. That's not to say the four years since III were unproductive, Cronin is one of the busiest artists around and must have played on a dozen albums in the last four years. Thankfully, 2019 has given the world a little more balance with another of his solo albums, and this time he's leaned into his inner-Neil Young (if you had to pick a record this is closest to, it would be Neil's best - On the Beach). Trying to get over a bout of writer's block, he turned to the tried-and-true approach of retreating to a cabin in the woods to write, unfortunately that only lasted a month due to forest fires, and the record does come ablaze more than most, but there's certainly an earthy quality to it. Indeed the only song that screams cabin-in-the-woods is the solo-acoustic closer On the Shelf.

12) Big Thief – Not: The rise of Big Thief seems incredibly satisfying and it’s hard to think of a band who have made their ascent so seamless. A second record of 2019, Two Hands, was released on the 11th via 4AD, it’s a more rock/band-orientated album than U.F.O.F‘s more traditional folk. While most people don’t seem to think so, I think Two Hands is the stronger of the two.

13) Remember Sports - Tiny Planets: Philly act Remember Sports celebrated the 5th anniversary of debut album Sunchokes (back when the band were just called Sports) with an expanded re-issue, and this is just one of the no-frills fun indie-pop tunes from it.

14) Dude York – Falling: Seattle trio Dude York put out their second album, Falling, back in July on Hardly Art records, and it is smack in the middle of the Hardly Art venn diagram with pop harmonies and fuzzy guitars aplenty.

15) Screaming Females - No More I Love Yous: Screaming Females recently put out a compilation of non-album tracks, which I managed to snag on vinyl, the download and CD versions came with a few extra covers tacked onto the end, one of which is this Annie Lennox classic.

16) Michael Nau - On Ice: Sometimes you just want a smooth, perfectly executed set of melodic singer-songwriter tunes and Michael Nau & The Mighty Thread‘s 2018 album self-titled album is the middle of that venn diagram; like cruising in the middle lane of a deserted highway, there’s something deeply satisfying about how easy it is.

Phew, done, see you in 2020!

As always, Peace and Love - Q

Please note that the zip file has a password: QCOMPS.BLOGSPOT  

Download mix from  https://www.mediafire.com/file/2qkhgx40bxzv2tp/Q%23128.zip/file

Q#117 - December 2017 to January 2018

Please note that the zip file has a password: QCOMPS.BLOGSPOT

Download mix from: http://www.mediafire.com/file/c0ir8pqqdcdw80l/Q117.zip

Q's Compilations

Vol #117 – December 2017 to January 2018

Greetings! If you’re reading this, then congratulations on surviving 2017, it certainly wasn’t without its troubles, but there were some truly wonderful moments too. As is the norm, the first mix of the year is a “best of”, which is more of a “best acts of 2017” since I may already have used songs I preferred already and don’t want to double up, but you get the idea!

01) Metz - Mess of Wires: The Toronto trio will most likely never change, and sometimes that isn’t a bad thing. While their third album, Strange Peace, is probably different enough to stop things getting completely stale, their trademark pummelling approach is unyielding. This track opens the record.

02) Feral Ohms - Living Junkyard: One of the best shows I saw this year was a free Feral Ohms set in Union Pool’s back garden. Another band who are just simply relentless both live and on record, it was a hard task picking a track from their self-titled album from this year, but needless to say, if you enjoy this song, there’s more!

03) Waxahatchee – Silver: I’m just going to be lazy here and re-use what I wrote for FreeWilliamsburg’s top 25 albums of 2017 post! I saw Waxahatchee early in the year as a duo opening for The New Pornographers, and I’ve always preferred Katie Crutchfield’s songs when they’re delivered at their slowest and most bare, so while I enjoyed the first single from the record (Silver), I was hoping the bigger sound wasn’t going to be the norm. However, the sign of a great writer is to take you along with them and turn you around, and Out in the Storm is her best effort yet, with more layers and more guitars than before, turns out their all the better for it!

04) The Courtneys - Silver Velvet: I used Country Song back on Q#112, but this might just be the most me song of 2017. The first non-kiwi band to sign to the legendary Flying Nun label, I’ve conspired to miss them the couple of times they have played in New York and hope to not make it a hat-trick the next time. The Vancouver trio released II in February. “Can't get you out of my head, Even through the miles, I know that it is wrong but you, Just seem to drive me wild. And nothing you say and nothing you do, Can stop me from thinking about you, Doesn't matter if it's right, You're just the one I like”

05) Alex Napping - Temperamental Bed: I used the near-perfect Living Room on Q#112, which is on the band’s second album, Mise En Place which was released in May. The rest of the album doesn’t quite hit the same heights but it’s a delightful record. “How do you talk about a moment?”

06) Ryan Adams – Doomsday: Another of my FreeWilliamsburg contributions (the title track appeard on Q#113) - Sometimes a record comes along that just captures you in the moment. I’d dipped in and out of Ryan Adams’ discography about 15 years ago but I didn’t feel it at the time and never went back. However, I don’t think I’ve ever listened to an album so many times in a single year than I have done Prisoner, since I was a teenager. The title track in particular tackles that well-worn subject of forbidden love perfectly that even great writers can only manage sparingly, if at all. While some may prefer Adams in a more rustic vein, the immaculate production is another triumph here, and though I could understand people saying that it’s perhaps a bit too similar to his self-titled album from 2014, and even though this ends up as #6 on our list, it’s hard for me to see past this being my personal favourite of 2017 by some distance. “Can you stand and face your fears, my love? I will for you. I could stand in just one place, my love, And never move. As the fire burns around us in the dark, One part is the world and one's my heart”

07) Future Islands – Shadows: I used Aladdin on Q#113, and with The Far Field, the band kept the same formula that worked so well for them on Singles. For that reason, it seems to have been forgotten somewhat on most end-of-year lists, which is probably fair. It’s still a good record overall, albeit somewhat safe. A victim of their own success, perhaps.

08) Curtis Harding - Wednesday Morning Atonement: Another Free Williamsburg blurb: Anyone who follows Free Williamsburg won’t be surprised to see Curtis represented in this list, we’ve been huge supporters since the very beginning. His debut album, Soul Power, was so good that the three years it took for Face Your Fear to come out has seemed like an age. It has, however, been worth the wait, and while the debut was laced with horns and guitars, his latest effort is more like a contemporary take on smoother soul, with keyboards coming to the fore. The star of the show, is of course, Harding’s vocal delivery, which is even better than before. Not only is he continuing to be the only modern soul artist I can think of that doesn’t sound derivative of the past, his latest efforts show another great quality, someone who doesn’t want to make the same record twice. “Hello children, Well it's been, Such a very long time, Now I've finally found the mind, To explain, Where I've been living, Now I know I'm here to stay, Waiting on this better day”

09) Big Thief - Shark Smile: Another FW rip! Brooklyn-based quartet Big Thief stepped up their game massively in 2017, and that’s saying something after their 2016 debut, Masterpiece. While the former was a wonderful record, Capacity somehow manages to handle the fragile melodies and delicate finger picked guitar parts with so much more confidence, while also becoming more bare and intimate at the same time; quite the achievement. As long as Adrianne Lenker and co keep putting out records this beautiful, we won’t have to pine for the days when Mark Kozelek could remember what a vocal melody sounded like. “And she said woo, Baby, take me, And I said woo, Baby, take me too”

10) Molly Burch - Please Be Mine: Oops, I thought I was diligent but I just noticed that I did already use this track on Q#114 (and I’d used my favourite track from the record, Please Forgive Me on Q#112!). Probably the most chilled release of 2017.

11) The Magnetic Fields - Have You Seen It In the Snow: Stephin Merrit released 50 Song Memoir this year (he actually turned 50 in 2015 but that’s a minor technicality), with one song for each year of his life. As one can imagine, it’s a bit much to be memorable all the way through, but it still has all the classic vibes of a Magnetic Fields record. “They say this city is dirty and gray, But I think it's pretty on a summer day, And on rainy nights, When the streets smudge the lights, It's beautiful, you know”

12) No Joy – Hellhole: No Joy went shoegaze on their Creep EP from February 2017, and it’s a move they pull off with great aplomb.

13) Dream Wife – Somebody: I have to admit, I was somewhat struggling for inspiration at times with this mix, and while searching for upcoming gigs, realised I hadn’t actually checked out Dream Wife yet amid some hype I’ve heard. The London-based trio (via Icland and Brighton) are releasing their debut record in 2018 but tunes like this (which was released on the Fire EP this year) make for one of the most anticipated for the year.

14) Priests – JJ: My Free Williamsburg blurb again: While DC political-punks Priests have been around since 2012, this year saw the release of their debut full-length album, Nothing Feels Natural, via their own Sister Polygon label. The album has more of a post-punk influence than the earlier Eps and despite the name of the record, it definitely feels like a natural move for the quartet. Priests are perhaps the best current example of a band that are the sum of their parts, with Taylor Mulitz (bass) and Daniele Daniele (drums) forming one of the most interesting rhythm sections around, GL Jaguar’s classic post-punk tone, and Katie Alice Greer’s vocals have found an expanded range and sound from their earlier Eps that go perfectly with the new material.

15) Thundercat - Them Changes: Drunk came out with a lot of acclaim in 2017 but I felt like the praise had died down somewhat by the end of the year, and that might be a fair reflection of the kind of record it is, there’s a lot to love on a couple of listens, but the highlights appear few and far between on closer inspection. It is, however, still an enjoyable record with some fantastic bass work in particular.

16) Destroyer - Cover From the Sun: I didn’t give Ken a whole lot of thought when it was released in October but when it came to cramming in some records for research purposes I found it a very strong record. It seems unfair to say that I find it harder to separate Dan Bejar from New Pornographers than Neko Case or AC Newman, especially given that Destroyer is further removed than their solo work is. Alas, this is one of the more straightforward songs from the album but the sugar rush drew me to it for this mix.

17) Justin Currie - I'll Leave It To You: His fourth solo release, possibly the one person outside and friends and family who has had the most impact on me as a person, This Is My Kingdom Now goes back to more of a What Is Love For vibe (his first solo record after Del Amitri). This is a typically sombre affair as most of his piano-led songs are, but there are some delightful harmonies here too!

18) Pile – Texas: A Hairshirt of Purpose saw Boston’s Pile kick things up a notch, with more intensity and focus, which seemed a hard task considering 2015’s You’re Better Than This seemed hard for them to top.

19) Guided By Voices - Cheap Buttons: What can one say about Guided By Voices, and Robert Pollard in particular, that hasn’t been said before. August By Cake was Pollard’s 100^th release of his career. That’s right… one-hundred. And he still managed to get another one out by the end of the year. Augusts By Cake was the band’s first double-record and it flies by with all the hallmarks of a great GBV record.

20) Lee Bains III & the Glory Fires - Save My Life!: My last Free Williamsburg bit: We’ve liked Lee Bains III & the Glory Fires since first stumbling onto a set at CMJ in 2014, and while their record at the time was a blaze of AC/DC-inspired southern rock and roll (released via Sub Pop), I was very excited to hear that they had signed to Don Giovanni Records for what would be their third album, Youth Detention. The rough edges have been sharpened and while the fire is still there in spades, I would say Youth Detention is perhaps the best radio-rock album I have heard in many a year, the songs hit fast and true but are filled with catchy hooks and one can’t help but feel like this is an album that should be in everyone’s car. This is a record that deserves to be paid for, and played loud, with a smile on your face.

21) Steven Wilson – Detonation: Steven Wilson turned 50 this year and released his fifth solo record, To the Bone, though I have to confess I’m rather lukewarm to it. He’s either a victim of his own success for me or more likely, I don’t think his work is challenging or changing enough, which has been the case since Porcupine Tree’s 2002 In Absentia record. Granted, his first couple of solo records seemed an uptick from PT’s end. I threw this on the end because I didn’t know where else to put it, and then since forgot I had omitted songs by B Boys and Cayetana. Alas, it’s not exactly a bad record and I do like this song!

And there we have it, 2017, folks. There’s a lot of hard work ahead for 2018 but I’m hopeful it’s going to be an excellent one despite some turbulence, the future looks bright in many ways.  

As always, Peace and Love

Q

Please note that the zip file has a password: QCOMPS.BLOGSPOT

Download mix from: http://www.mediafire.com/file/c0ir8pqqdcdw80l/Q117.zip

Q#114 - June to July 2017

Please note that the zip file has a password: QCOMPS.BLOGSPOT

Download mix from: http://www.mediafire.com/file/6y261vrdaspmqpx/Q114.zip

Q's Compilations

Vol #114 – June to July 2017

Greetings! I completed another orbit around the sun on the 13^th of June and so far 35 is treating me pretty well, let’s hope that continues. This time around you’re getting mostly new releases with a few leftovers from a different mix I made recently.

01) Feral Ohms - Love Damage: Oakland power trio Feral Ohms recently played a couple of shows in New York and it was one of the best no-frills sets I have seen in a long time. I should have just bought the vinyl there and then but ended up buying the bandcamp download. “There’s a love damage in my skull”

02) The Creation - How Does It Feel to Feel: The Numero group did their usual excellent work by putting together a comprehensive 2LP set called Action Painting. If you know any other song by them aside from Making Time then it’s probably this but I just wanted to put it on.

03) Robert Pollard - My Daughter Yes She Knows: The ever prolific Robert Pollard released the 100^th album of his career earlier in the year with Guided By Voices’ August By Cake, this track, however, comes from his last “solo” album, Of Course You Are, from 2016.

04) Ride – Cali: Oxford legends Ride got back for some shows a couple of years ago, but just released their first album in 21 years with Weather Diaries, and while most bands fail to recapture the magic after that long apart, the record is much better than their final couple from their original run.

05) The Pains of Being Pure at Heart – Anymore: Brooklyn’s Paints of Being Pure at Heart released their first album in three years in July with The Echo of Pleasure. I saw them for the first time in five years recently and forgot how much I enjoyed them. “I couldn’t take anymore, anymore, anymore.”

06) Waxahatchee - Sparks Fly: Katie Crutchfield just released Out in the Storm, via Merge Records, Waxahatchee’s fourth record. It’s probably the most guitar-driven to date and I caught a full-band show at Warsaw recently, which I was a bit sceptical if it would work given that her best material is stripped down with just an acoustic guitar (like this track, for the most part!), but it was perfect. “Death grip on some feigned humility, Effort executed beautifully, My pride clenched tight in my shaky hand, Til I let go and buried my head in the sand”

07) Big Thief - Mythological Beauty: The band’s second album, Capacity, via Saddle Creek, and it’s one of the most beautifully delicate records I’ve heard in some time. Given Mark Kozelek’s reluctance to actually write songs at the moment, it’s definitely filling some of my Red House Painters desires. I saw them recently at Prospect Park and while it’s quite hard to play this kind of music in a large outdoor setting, it was still a wonderful set. “You’re all caught up inside, but you know the way”

08) Jeffrey Lewis - Roll Bus Roll: I used a different Jeffrey Lewis track on a mix for a friend recently but this was very close to making the cut instead, and so I felt like I had to throw it on. This is from perhaps his best album, Em Are I, and I just love the vivid imagery. “Old bodegas and old streetlights, Harlem looks so warm tonight”

09) The Mountain Goats - This Year: Being let loose on a friend’s vinyl collection, I made the mistake of playing this great album (The Sunset Tree), forgetting this track was on it. Perhaps not the best vibe for a dinner party. Anyway, The Mountain Goats just released their sixteenth record, Goths, which is their first record without any guitars. It’s pretty good. I’ll be seeing them in November. “I am gonna make it through this year if it kills me”

10) John Andrews & the Yawns – Drivers: Going through my press releases recently I was curious to hear this release from Quilt drummer John Andrews, Bad Posture is quite a delightful record, and certainly fitting with the Woodsist label from where it comes. “I don’t know you no more, don’t owe you no more”

11) Jesu & Sun Kil Moon – Bombs: I’ve already made reference to Mark Kozelek’s somewhat failure to write a conventional song these days and this is a good example. From the second collaborative record with Jesu, 30 Seconds to the Decline of Planet Earth, clocking in at 13 minutes, the spoken-word day-in-the-life-of-Mark-Kozelek is getting kinda tiresome but I still can’t help but like it somewhat. One does hope that he is reaching saturation point with this kind of thing, however.

12) Justin Currie - Failing to See: It’s possible you may not remember that Del Amitri are the greatest band of all time, and that’s ok, no-one is perfect. Frontman Justin Currie released his fourth solo record, This is My Kingdom Now, and it’s another obviously great collection of songs. “Do you hurt me just cos you know that I'll live?”

13) Big Star – Thirteen: I was out with a friend trying to keep a few thoughts to myself and this song played in the bar, and not that I needed reminding, but it really is just a fabulous song. I did not deliberately put this as track thirteen. This particular version is a live version from Big Star Story, which was my introduction to the band. “Won't you tell me what you're thinking of? Would you be an outlaw for my love?”

14) Julian Velard - Glad I Wasted All My Time With You: Having successfully completed a kickstarter campaign (of which I contributed), Fancy Words for Failure was just released and it’s a nice mix of ballads and sarcastic pop tunes. This is clearly the former!

15) Molly Burch - Please Be Mine: This is the title track from Molly Burch’s debut album (via Captured Tracks), and it’s an effortlessly smooth record with immaculate vocals (I just remembered I used Please Forgive Me on Q#112 if you’d care to revisit that too).

16) Thundercat - Captain Stupido: I sometimes think that flicking through vinyl and CD racks is the only way I can clear my head, or at least forget what’s bothering me temporarily, and while stress-buying far too many records back in April at Rough Trade, I heard this song playing over the PA. I can’t remember the last time my ears truly pricked up and made me buy something but Drunk feels like the first time that has happened in a while. There are some fairly silly songs on the record, of which this is one, but the bass work in particular over is pretty captivating. “I feel weird, Comb your beard, brush your teeth, Still feel weird, Beat your meat, go to sleep”

17) The Lemonheads - Down About It: This was another leftover from a different mix, The Lemonheads are one of my go-to bands when I’m not sure what I want to listen to, they can always make me feel something. “And out like a light when it's not plugged in, Fading around if it starts again, You just don't get it when, I get so down about it”

18) Superchunk - 100,000 Fireflies: I got the re-issued Distant Plastic Trees by the Magnetic Fields recently from Merge which obviously has this wonderful track on it. Then I remembered that Superchunk covered it and I wanted to use a track by them on a different mix, this didn’t make it, but it’s a great cover. “I went out to the forest and caught, 100,000 fireflies, As they ricochet round the room, They remind me of your starry eyes, Someone else's might not have made me so sad, But this is the worst night I ever had. Cause I'm afraid of the dark without you close to me, I'm afraid of the dark without you close to me, Always was”

19) Slowdive - Sugar for the Pill: Similar to Ride, Slowdive just released their first album in 22 years with a self-titled release, and once again it’s a pretty damn good record. I saw them on my last trip back home in June and it’s probably the best show I’ve seen this year. “Our love has never known the way, Sugar for the pill, You know it's just the way things are, Cannot buy the sun, This jealousy will break the whole”

As always, Peace and Love

Q