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Black Merda :: Cynthy-Ruth

As much as I love the mid-seventies proto-punk that Death laid down via (the Drag City Records unearthed) For The Whole World To See, it's their Detroit brethren Black Merda that I've been heavily revisiting of late. Comprised of Anthony and Charles Hawkins, VC Veasly and Tyrone Hite, Black Merda worked a hard driving guitar . . .

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AD Presents :: DJ Soft Touch, A Mixtape

Over the past year I’ve been inviting some of my favorite voices online (and beyond) to guest DJ during my weekly radio show on SIRIUS/XMU. For those of you sans satellite radio we’ve been turning the sets into an ongoing mixtape series. This week we catch up with Los Angeles's own Clifton Weaver, aka DJ Soft Touch, who, along with Oliver Wang of Soul Sides, is my favorite rare soul, funk and r&b selector. I've never once heard the man spin without taking down at least   few notes that had me digging for weeks. I promise you his set here is no exception.

Soft Touch will be guest hosting the second hour of my show this Friday. Mixtape download and details after the jump…

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Leon Russell :: If I Were A Carpenter

Leon Russell's take on "If I Were A Carpenter" was laid down in a Nashville jam session in 1974 with a group of friends including fellow Oklahoman J.J. Cale. I'm sure I'm not alone when I say: can someone please release those sessions? Here, the self-described 'master of space and time' works up what might be my favorite version of the oft-covered standard---fooling with the lyrics a bit---turning the song into some sort of cosmic plea from . . .

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Hooray For Earth :: True Loves

If you attended this year’s SXSW festivities you eventually became increasingly aware of two things: “Jeremiah Weed” is actually a canned alcoholic tea beverage and Hooray For Earth is a band you’re going to run into at least three times a day whether you like it or not. You could throw a rock and hit any member of the group within a square mile’s distance of James Blake. They worked a rigorous schedule in anticipation of their Dovecote debut, True Loves. Theirs is the sound of memorable synth hooks, melodic euphoria and layers of rich vocals taking precedence over guitars, a theme that is constantly evolving -- and also standard practice -- in today’s fast-paced music release cycle and at any music conference like SXSW. The days of the guitar-based album may be temporarily behind us, but at least we have a growing stable of evidence in bands like Hooray For Earth to keep us excited about the future.

On True Loves, Hooray For Earth creates gigantic, glowing melodies and choruses that stretch far beyond what I expected. Unlike many bands that poke you with their gritty, choppy synths, there’s no vagueness (too much reverb) or confusion (hyperactive vocals) between the audience and the artist's message as Noel Heroux connects with casual, and sometimes commanding, vocal melodies. The cascading synths are also one of its selling points that may remind you of the swirling New Wave/Pop created by OMD. The pace is generally slower, but songs like “Last Minute”, “Sails” and “Same” are shining examples that are on par with the best material found on this year’s strongest albums.

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SIRIUS/XMU :: Aquarium Drunkard Show

Our weekly two hour show on SIRIUS/XMU, channel 35, can now be heard twice, every Friday - Noon EST with an encore broadcast at Midnight EST.

SIRIUS 201: Jean Michel Bernard - Generique Stephane ++ Pixies - Bone Machine ++ Turf War - Cheers To The Years ++ Bleached - Dazed ++ Yellow Fever - Culver City ++ Black Lips - I Feel Alright ++ The Raincoats - Lola ++ Girls Names - I Lose ++ The Jesus And Mary Chain - Taste The Floor ++ Love And Rockets - Rain Bird ++ Ty Segall - My Sunshine ++ Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers - Born To Lose ++ The Almighty Defenders - Bow Down And Die ++ Ganglians - Jungle ++ Ramones - 53rd & 3rd . . .

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Megafaun :: These Words

Earlier this summer Sara from Hometapes and I drove up into the hills behind L.A.'s Griffith Park at dusk armed with a six pack of tallboys and a CD-R containing the upcoming, self-titled, Megafaun record. Never one to sit still, the band has once again turned yet another stylistic corner incorporating swaths of new sounds and influences. The results are a heady mix. I'll try and steer away from gross hyperbole only to say . . .

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Roy Wood :: Boulders

Roy Wood, one of the architects of ELO and The Move, possessed some of the most eclectic tastes and interesting ideas of any pop artist of his time. Boulders, his self-produced 1969 (though released 1973) solo outing combines the hard rock swagger of The Move with Wood's own classical tastes, pop composition skills, and general studio wizardry.

A brilliant listen from start to finish, opener . . .

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Bob Lind :: Since There Were Circles

"Bob Lind"---both the name of the gent who landed a folk hit in 1966 with "Elusive Butterfly" and the title of a song by Pulp. While a case can be made for both, Lind's true triumph is his 1970 LP

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Diversions :: Roadside Graves on Genesis: The Lamb Lies Down

(Diversions, a recurring feature on Aquarium Drunkard, catches up with our favorite artists as they wax on subjects other than recording and performing.)

Upon first meeting Roadside Graves keys/synths/piano-man Johnny Piatkowski, two things came to mind: 1) damn, this guy can really play, and 2) damn, this guy has a most impressive array of Peter Gabriel-era Genesis t-shirts. Having known Johnny a few years now, both traits have only grown in my estimation. Roadside Graves have a new full-length out later this month entitled We Can Take Care Of Ourselves. As such it seemed like a grand opportunity to let Johnny wax on his favorite band's 1974 concept album---The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway. Johnny, in his own words, below.

I can't decide whether to go the Dune route or the Star Wars route with this one. Both involve deserts and aliens; common subjects in Genesis songs. Genesis is like old Ben Kenobi, living in exile out in the Judland Wastes of Tatooine. Most residents believed that he was just an old loon; someone not to be approached. Some might have remembered his past as a great Jedi warrior. Some will cringe at the very thought of the movie Buster (I do). All points are completely valid. However, one fateful day, someone finally gave the old hermit a chance, and as a result, an entire galaxy-spanning Empire crumbled. Plus he owned a laser sword, or something...

I feel like all musicians have a 'big bang' moment, like when Paul Atreides drank the Water of Life (a consolation prize for you Duners). Not to say a mind can be blown only once, just that other revelations that follow tend to be 'supernova' by comparison. For me, it is definitely when I delved deeply into the music of Genesis for the first time, mainly, if not only, their 1970-1977 period (unlike Patrick Bateman, I stray from  most of their 80's-90's material). The thoughtfully created textures and dynamics between the instruments---whether it is a quiet acoustic twelve string piece, or an earth shattering Mellotronic fanfare---lends a certain dramatic and otherworldly aspect to their music which gives me goosebumps every time I listen. Admittedly, I can understand those who find the often times fantastical lyrical subjects of their songs hard to stomach. Songs about vengeful plant life, genetically shrunken tenement dwellers, croquet mallet decapitators, horny snake women,  and confused aliens might turn one away. What makes it work for me is the emotion evident in Peter Gabriel's delivery. It feels genuine, and makes each piece less of a song, and more like a mini opera. I love it. I feel bad for that confused alien,  and I hope the avenging plants find peace.  Well, I am obviously a science fiction nerd. That helps.

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Sylvie Vartan :: Sylvie A Nashville

Alright, so it's no Dusty In Memphis, but that is not to say Sylvie A Nashville is without its charms---quite the contrary. Not unlike the Dusty In Memphis project, here we find yé-yé chanteuse Sylvie Vartan away from the Saint-Germain and in wilds of Nashville during the mid-60s trying her hand at cutting some country sides. Whereas Dusty found herself surrounded by, and recording with, the cream . . .

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SIRIUS/XMU :: Aquarium Drunkard Show

Our weekly two hour show on SIRIUS/XMU, channel 35, can now be heard twice, every Friday - Noon EST with an encore broadcast at Midnight EST.

SIRIUS 200: Jean Michel Bernard - Generique Stephane ++ Andenu - Cowboy Zoo Theme ++ Bleached - Think of You ++ Earth Girl Helen Brown - Girls Of My Dreams ++ La Sera - Devils Hearts Grow Gold ++ The Vaselines - No Hope ++ Crystal Stilts - Precarious Stair ++ The Velvet Underground - Venus In Furs ++ Girls Names - I Lose ++ The Jesus & Mary Chain - Taste of Cindy ++ Abby Gogo - Louder Than Dreams ++ Deerhunter - Dr. Glass (Daytrotter Session) ++ The Truants - Sunset Surf ++ Ty Segall - The . . .

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The Truants :: Sunset Surf

Vintage languid and drowsy instrumental surf dirge courtesy of the Truants. File under: fake nostalgia.

MP3: The Truants :: Sunset Surf
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Jim Ford :: Harlan County (Reissue)

(Our friends at Light In The Attic Records have gone ahead and done justice to one of our favorite records, Jim Ford's Harlan County. We are giving away a copy of the deluxe vinyl reissue. To enter, leave a comment with your favorite LITA reissue, below. The following is an old AD post on Ford from a few years back.)

Recently, sitting in a dark booth of a non-descript bar in a non-descript . . .

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Drendall, Thrower & Friends :: Papa Never Let Me Sing The Blues

There are enough worthwhile vanity pressings from the late 60s - mid 70s that make collecting a rewarding interest, though the really good ones (the Bachs, the Rising Storm, Wilson McKinley, Relatively Clean Rivers et al) are far and few between. Most of these records, while musically very good, are overpriced because so few quantities were initially pressed. Please be warned though, most private press albums . . .

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