tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17686802585416228882024-03-13T16:37:16.206-04:00That's What I Was Going To SayBryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.comBlogger528125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-26689620735964552312016-08-01T21:01:00.000-04:002016-08-01T22:12:30.324-04:00We've Been Here Before: The Gipper, The Donald and Punk Rock<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2gnu2G7vk4c/V5_f1pbE4-I/AAAAAAAADuo/XPsLnZaFawgsrAoFH9kZ_g3dbKILM93YgCLcB/s1600/great-again.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="233" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2gnu2G7vk4c/V5_f1pbE4-I/AAAAAAAADuo/XPsLnZaFawgsrAoFH9kZ_g3dbKILM93YgCLcB/s320/great-again.jpg" width="320" /></a>I was in eighth grade when we elected an actor with bad hair and frighteningly hateful ideas to the White House. Ronald Reagan made sure we all knew how evil and terrible and frightening the Russians were, that if we didn't stand up and fight they'd infiltrate and destroy us. Illegal immigrants were bringing in drugs and taking our jobs. The economy was in ruins with inflation making everything too expensive for the average joe, but hey, no worries, The Gipper is here to fix it all. His campaign materials used a reassuring phrase: "Make America Great Again."<br />
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I remember the media telling us there was "no way" this county would ever elect an actor to the Presidency -- there was just no imaginable way Reagan could win, the pundits insisted.<br />
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But he did. Twice.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Lvsjbp6cSRE/V5_mjAXLiRI/AAAAAAAADu8/WE2_N7h2BBk1t1g2g_aNM5QfpLQzQA2KQCLcB/s1600/jellybeans.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Lvsjbp6cSRE/V5_mjAXLiRI/AAAAAAAADu8/WE2_N7h2BBk1t1g2g_aNM5QfpLQzQA2KQCLcB/s1600/jellybeans.jpg" /></a>If there was anything good about the Reagan years, especially during his first term, it was that he was a perfect target for the North American punk rock scene to vent its angry energy toward. The UK punks had both The Queen and Maggie Thatcher to spew their bile upon, but for the first couple of years, this side of the pond had no real galvanizing figure to equal either. Reagan fixed that. So much great music was made in protest of that man: D.R.I.'s spat out <i>"Reaganomics,"</i> The Minutemen imagined <i>"If Reagan Played Disco,"</i> Canadians D.O.A. chimed in from the great white north with <i>"Fucked Up Ronnie."</i> The Ramones checked in with <i>"Bonzo Goes to Bitburg"</i> while Reagan Youth presented an eponymously titled diatribe. Reagan's presidency provided fuel for hundreds upon hundreds of hardcore bands across the country. And for a while, hatred of Reagan fueled nearly everything Jello Biafra and the Dead Kennedys did. It was perhaps all best summed up with The Pop-O-Pies' wonderful <i>"A Political Song:"</i><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><i>"We don't want your apathy<br />No fucking government gets down on me.<br />Can you spare any change? Can you spare any change?<br />Anti-Reagan and stuff, man, yeah."</i></span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OATUeeeYDbg/V5_p9Qn9bkI/AAAAAAAADvM/BTRP1-bSxI8oNu1xGgMbQIAodXU1w2CDwCEw/s1600/trump-hat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="189" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OATUeeeYDbg/V5_p9Qn9bkI/AAAAAAAADvM/BTRP1-bSxI8oNu1xGgMbQIAodXU1w2CDwCEw/s320/trump-hat.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">So now here we are, 36 years later, and the possibility looms that we may elect a reality-TV star with bad hair and </span>frighteningly<span style="font-family: inherit;"> hateful ideas to the White House. Donald Trump </span>makes sure we all know how evil and terrible and frightening the Muslims are, and that if we didn't stand up and fight they will infiltrate and destroy us. Illegal immigrants are bringing in crime and taking our jobs. The economy is in ruins and everything is too expensive for the average joe, but hey, no worries, The Donald is here to fix it all. His baseball cap even sports a reassuring phrase: "Make America Great Again."<br />
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The media kept telling us there was "no way" this county would ever elect this buffoon to the Presidency -- there was just no imaginable way Trump could win, the pundits insisted.<br />
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But he won the Republican nomination, and there are those now saying he could win it all.<br />
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So where are the current crop of punks? Trump is ripe for the same musical evisceration, and they keep telling me punk's not dead. So far, we've had to rely on those who were there before: D.O.A. updated their classic as <i>"Fucked Up Donald,"</i> and Jello Biafra is at it again with his current band, The Guantanamo School of Medicine, who are now out on the road on their "Nazi Trumps Fuck Off" tour. The seeds are planted, the way has been shown.<br />
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A Trump presidency making America great again? Yeah, I don't think so. But if it happens, it just might make punk rock great again. Can you spare any change?<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JPSLmPokmtg" width="480"></iframe>Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-70364465936427426852015-12-13T19:59:00.000-05:002015-12-13T20:20:05.565-05:00Ringing In The Season Again With The Angry Snowmans<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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They're back kids! Bringing us yuletide joy from Victoria, British Columbia, with yet another sleighful of devastating spot-on Punk Rock Christmas parodies, The Angry Snowmans are once again ready to pogo with the jolly fat man in the red suit and the whiskers.<br />
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It's impressive to me that at this point, their fifth release, they're still coming up with material as brilliant as the first two albums, which <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2011/12/its-gonna-be-punk-rock-christmas.html" target="_blank">I first brought to your attention on this here blog</a>. (I still think they'll never top the title <b>What We Do Is Festive</b>, but damn they've come close a few times!) This year, it's a classic Minutemen album, 1983's <b><a class="zem_slink" href="http://www.amazon.com/What-Makes-Man-Start-Fires/dp/B000000LZ9%3FSubscriptionId%3D0G81C5DAZ03ZR9WH9X82%26tag%3Dzem-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3DB000000LZ9" rel="amazon" target="_blank" title="What Makes a Man Start Fires?">What Makes A Man Start Fires?</a></b>, that gets Snowmanned, reimagined as <b><a href="https://angrysnowmans.bandcamp.com/album/what-makes-an-elf-build-toys-ep" target="_blank">What Makes An Elf Build Toys?</a></b> (complete with accurate faux-<a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raymond_Pettibon" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Raymond Pettibon">Raymond Pettibon</a> cover drawing -- the level of detail these guys go to is incredible!).<br />
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The half-dozen song set charges out of the gate brilliantly with stab at the most well-known cut from that particular Minutemen record. <i>"Bob Dylan Wrote Propaganda Songs"</i> is regifted to us as <i>"Bing Crosby Wrote Festive Christmas Songs."</i> Elsewhere, The Meatmen and Black Flag are pulled into the jolly old mix among others (I won't give away all the wonderful surprises found within), all played with appropriate reverence for the originals and enough attitude to make it damn clear you haven't stumbled onto the <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Luboff" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Norman Luboff">Norman Luboff Choir</a> here.<br />
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So far I haven't seen anywhere to get ahold of a physical copy of <b>What Makes An Elf Build Toys?</b>, but it and all of the previous holiday cheer from the Snowmans can be had for your listening pleasure at <a href="https://angrysnowmans.bandcamp.com/" target="_blank">their Bandcamp page</a>. Go get 'em, and make your Christmas merry and bright!<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gJwxwhD8IWs" width="420"></iframe>Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-51723370936274773812015-11-19T05:00:00.000-05:002015-11-19T05:00:01.491-05:00Throwback Thursday: Adam & The Ants - "Kings Of The Wild Frontier" (1980)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It's a fairly straightforward recipe: mix a handful of twangy spaghetti-western guitar riffs with a pair of rumbling Burundi Beat drummers, toss in assorted yips, yelps and yodels, and wrap it all up in gooey wad of time-tested bubblegum hooks. Now, tilt the whole works just off-center, and voila - you've got Antmusic.<br />
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A strange concoction in many ways when you think about it. It's a light, airy kind of ear candy that threatens to evaporate into the ether upon first listen. Yet, it demands repeated listenings, and seems to get better, grow stronger, with every revolution of of the turntable. The dual rhythms both compete with and complement one another, and the whole sound sinks into your brain and makes a home there.<br />
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For a few years, <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_and_the_Ants" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Adam and the Ants">Adam & The Ants</a>' <b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kings-Wild-Frontier-ADAM-ANTS/dp/B0012GMZ86/ref=ntt_mus_ep_dpi_5" target="_blank">Kings Of The Wild Frontier</a></b> was my favorite album (eventually losing that crown to the <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2014/01/throwback-thursday-violent-femmes-1982.html" target="_blank">Violent Femmes' debut LP</a>); 35 years later, it's still a Top Ten pick. Adam would eventually go on to a solo career that could be described as spotty at best, with the occasional shining gem glistening among some pretty dire dreck. The early Adam & The Ants stuff from the late 1970s showed a lot of promise, but had not yet found the right balance of ingredients. By the time the band invited us to <i>"try another flavor"</i> on <b>Kings</b>, the recipe was just right.<br />
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The album opens with a stunning one-two punch: <i>"Dog Eat Dog"</i> and <i>"Antmusic"</i> are simply classics of the New Wave era and probably the strongest tracks on the album, but to let them overshadow the rest is to miss out on some truly outstanding songs. <i>"Press Darlings," "Feed Me To The Lions"</i> and <i>"Los Rancheros"</i> each are catchy, hook-filled confections that could have been hit singles themselves. But all is not just bouncy fun here in Antland: <i>"Ants Invasion"</i> strikes an eerie sci-fi pose, <i>"Killer In The Home"</i> ups the creepy factor, and <i>"Physical (You're So)"</i> is much darker here than even Trent Reznor could make it <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4jV22UJND7g" target="_blank">when he covered it years later</a>.<br />
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It was with the first single after <b>Kings Of The Wild Frontier</b> that Adam & The Ants hit their absolute pinnacle, but <i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4B2a6l6wM2k" target="_blank">"Stand And Deliver"</a></i> would have to wait until <b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Prince-Charming-ADAM-THE-ANTS/dp/B000IAZ8NG/ref=pd_bxgy_15_img_2?ie=UTF8&refRID=0AZADHNHGRW41B7BCBDR" target="_blank">Prince Charming</a></b> to appear on an album, and by then The Ants were starting to lose steam. <br />
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<b>Kings Of The Wild Frontier</b> belongs on anyone's short list of defining New Wave albums and still sees fairly regular airplay around these parts.<br />
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</iframe>Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-53899737789632904362015-11-05T03:45:00.000-05:002015-11-05T03:45:10.181-05:00Throwback Thursday: Richard Hell & The Voidoids - "Blank Generation" (1977)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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With its defiant opening lyric,<i>"I was saying 'Let me outta here!' before I was even born,"</i> <i>"Blank Generation"</i> (the song) immediately defines the ground rules under which <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Hell" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Richard Hell">Richard Hell</a> is playing: <i>"It's fascinating to observe what the mirror does, but when I dine it's for the wall that I set a place."</i> Similar themes of undefined alienation, social misalignment, and Life as constant irritant run through the entirety of <b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Blank-Generation-Richard-Hell-Voidoids/dp/B0017R5SSE/ref=sr_1_1_twi_lp__3?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1446689455&sr=1-1&keywords=richard+hell" target="_blank">Blank Generation</a></b> (the album), Hell's stunning and startling debut album with his own band, <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Hell_and_the_Voidoids" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Richard Hell and the Voidoids">The Voidoids</a> (<a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivan_Julian" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Ivan Julian">Ivan Julian</a>, <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Quine" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Robert Quine">Bob Quine</a> and Mark Bell, who would soon thereafter become <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marky_Ramone" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Marky Ramone">Marky Ramone</a>). <br />
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Richard Hell had been in the young NYC Punk scene for some time already, having been a founding member of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_(band)" target="_blank">Television</a> and doing a stint as one of <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2010/07/day-i-met-johnny-thunders.html" target="_blank">Johnny Thunders</a>' Heartbreakers. Hell was a musician, a poet, an artist and a confrontationalist. Hell skulked around <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CBGB" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="CBGB">CBGBs</a> in a t-shirt festooned with a bullseye and the words "Please Kill Me," and is often pointed to as the originator of the razor cut spiked hair and safety-pinned clothes look that the Brit Punks quickly appropriated.<br />
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While the title and lyrics of <i>"Blank Generation"</i> may seem on the surface to be the perfect representation of the expected "no future" mindset of many of his contemporaries, Hell saw it as hopeful. As he explained in a 1978 interview with Lester Bangs, "To me, blank was a line where you can fill in anything ... It's the idea that you have the option of making yourself anything you want, filling in the blank. And that’s something that provides a uniquely powerful sense to this generation. It's saying 'I entirely reject your standards for judging my behavior.'"<br />
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That anthem is the clear centerpiece of the album, but the rest of <b>Blank Generation</b> is much more than simply an undercard to the main event. Quine's sharply angular guitar carries Hell's painfully honest lyrics into the dark underbelly of after hours rock and jazz clubs, careening through dark passageways and pushing past sweaty, overpacked crowds of faceless onlookers. The vocals howl and shriek and plead and cajole; the overall sound is insistent if inconsistent; the lyrics are brilliant.<br />
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The opening track, <i>"Love Comes In Spurts,"</i> might just have a been a snickering double-entendre in anyone else's hands. It turns out to actually be a painful realization that relationships are not always what the appear to be: <i>"Love comes in spurts/In dangerous flirts/And it murders your heart/They didn't tell you that part." </i>That painful realization is expanded upon later on the track <i>"Betrayal Takes Two,"</i> leads him to question its purpose on <i>"Who Says?"</i> (<i>"Who says it's good, good, good to be alive?/It ain't no good, it's a perpetual jive."</i>), and finally brings him to the album's closer, <i>"Another World," </i>in which he decides, <i>"I could live with you in another world...but not this one." </i>Elsewhere, Hell calls out the fakers (<i>"Liars Beware"</i>), indulges in <i>"New Pleasure,"</i> interprets Credence Clearwater Revival's <i>"Walking On The Water" </i>and invites us all to meet up <i>"Down At The Rock And Roll Club."</i><br />
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Start to finish, <b>Blank Generation</b><i style="font-weight: bold;"> </i>is as solid an album as you could possibly want, filled with surprise turns and unexpected moments. Simply put, it's a must-have. However, avoid the 1990 CD reissue, which inexplicably opts for completely different recordings of some tracks and chooses to replace the original artwork.<br />
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</iframe>Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-79780870714829550722015-11-02T19:37:00.000-05:002015-11-02T19:37:24.220-05:00The Hell In My Head<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The dull pain behind my eyes has been nearly constant for almost six hours now. Tears want to roll down my cheeks but I cannot seem to summon them, even though I am crying on the inside. The back of my neck is tight, and my stomach feels as though it has clutched into a tight little ball . I feel trapped within myself, and utterly, utterly alone.<br />
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I am directionless, floating propelled by a current I am unable to fight, and am too tired to fight if I could. I'm tired of always fighting. I'm tired of always fighting.<br />
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I am drenched in paranoia. I feel unable to trust anyone; eventually everyone will turn against me if they haven't already. They talk about me behind closed doors; they snicker at me behind cupped hands; they are setting me up for a fall. They laugh at me. They're setting me up.<br />
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Family and friends with the best intentions tell me it's OK, try to give me positive affirmations, try to help me see the bright side. I know they are trying, but they are doing it wrong. The more they tell me how good I am, the more I know I am not. I can never be what they see. I am a fraud.<br />
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I'm not looking for "oh it's going to be OK," or "I am here for you," or "let's talk about it." They are well-meaning, but they don't fill the gaping empty hole. I am trapped inside my my own head, locked in, screaming. Can't they hear me screaming? Can't you hear me screaming?<br />
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The inevitable question I cannot answer: "What's wrong?" The cruelest question you could ask me. The question itself taunts me; it is asked knowing I cannot answer. What's wrong? If I knew I could fix it, change it or leave it. <br />
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I can never stop fighting, yet I am too tired to fight anymore. I don't want to feel like this anymore. I don't want to have to fight this anymore. Yet, I must.<br />
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Somewhere, echoing inside my hurting head, a sliver of a sane voice tells me to hang on; this storm will pass, like all the others have passed. But why must I suffer the storms, again and again?<br />
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I am tired of always fighting. I will cry myself to sleep tonight. The demons have won this battle; the war rages on.Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-1772461827394934202015-10-29T03:30:00.000-04:002019-10-28T21:22:57.615-04:00Throwback Thursday: Never Mind The Bollocks, Here's The Sex Pistols (1977)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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You may need to sit down for this one: This week, <b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000002KIE?keywords=sex%20pistols%20nevermind%20the%20bollocks&qid=1446076576&ref_=sr_1_1_twi_aud_2&s=music&sr=1-1">Never Mind The Bollocks, Here's The Sex Pistols</a></b> is 38 years old.<br />
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How can that be? It can't possibly have been that long ago, can it? Oh, it can, and it is, my fellow grumpy old punks. The album that signaled the end of civility and the utter collapse of the social order is getting to be downright middle-aged, like the bloody lot of us.<br />
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Remember the furor? <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Filth_and_the_Fury" target="_blank">The filth and the fury</a>, so to speak? The Sex Pistols were introduced to much of middle America by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MoO591pGkjA" target="_blank">stories on the evening news touting them as foul-mouthed, rude invaders from the UK</a> who were surely harbingers of the end at least of rock and roll if not the very fabric of society. They were unkempt, unclean; they couldn't play their instruments; they spit on their audiences and begged their audiences to spit on them! They wore ripped clothes held together with safety pins, with more safety pins stuck through their lips and cheeks! They hacked their hair into spiky mohawks and disheveled messes, and they hacked themselves bloody with razor blades, and they sang about anarchy and death to the Queen! And they were getting ready to come here, and YOUR KIDS were going to start listening to their music!<br />
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(Never mind that most of those assertions were, at best, a bit of public relations hyperbole and, at worst, flat out wrong.)<br />
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I do remember the excitement of hearing the record for the first time; at a friend's house, hearing <a class="zem_slink" href="http://www.johnlydon.com/" rel="homepage" target="_blank" title="John Lydon">Johnny Rotten</a> sneer <i>"Fuck this and fuck that, fuck it all and fuck a fucking brat..." </i>and being amazed that they let anyone record lyrics like that! And wasn't there something vaguely dirty about the way he emphasized the final syllable of <i>"Pretty Vacant?" </i>What strikes me listening to the album now, all these years later, is how remarkably tame it sounds in comparison to what came after it; hell, in comparison to what you can hear nowadays on the radio!<br />
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Without the hyperbole, without the shadow of <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sid_Vicious" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Sid Vicious">Sid's</a> (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sid_Vicious#Nancy_Spungen.27s_death_and_Sid_Vicious.27s_arrest" target="_blank">and Nancy's</a>) drug-addled demise, without the fears that the Pistols were taking us all to hell in the same handbasket that neither Elvis nor The Beatles quite got our parents there in either, the album holds up surprisingly well. Sure, there's nostalgia attached to it (still recall my friend Tom and I mimicking Johnny's over-pronunciation of the last word of <i>"No Feelings:" "...see his picture hangin' on yer <b>walllllllllll-uh!</b>"</i>), and some of the political posturing is a bit dated, but there really isn't a bad song to be found here: <i>"Anarchy In The UK"</i> and <i>"God Save The Queen"</i> are, of course, the classics, but <i>"Sub-Mission,"</i> <i>"Problems," "New York,"</i> and <i>"Holidays In The Sun"</i> are all right up there, too. And how can you not smile and sing along with their snub at former label "<i>EMI</i>?"<br />
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<b>Never Mind The Bollocks, Here's The Sex Pistols</b> was officially released on October 28th of 1977. 38 years on, the album neither destroyed music nor society, but it remains both an important touchstone in pop culture history and a damn good record. If you don't have a copy, what the hell is wrong with you?<br />
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</iframe>Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-37835810759614479692015-10-26T04:44:00.000-04:002015-10-26T04:44:31.680-04:00Now Hear This! (Podcast Edition)<div style="text-align: right;">
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Since I don’t drive, my commutes to and from work each day rely on public transportation. That means some walking time, some waiting time, some riding time and generally an overall longer time spent in transit than most folks. To pass the time, I load up the ol’ iPhone with podcasts, put on the earbuds, and listen to the modern-day equivalent of AM Talk Radio. <br />
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These days it seems everyone has a podcast (mine will be coming along soon, no doubt), and you can find the truly terrible, the overly self-indulgent, and the so slickly produced as to erase all personality among the thousands and thousands out there to choose from. How can you find the true gems amid all that crap? No worries, Friends! Once again, your ol’ pal Bryan is here for you, this time with a handful of podcasts you really should be listening to. Subscribe to these five and you’ll have something to listen to every day of your work week. You’re welcome.<br />
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<b><a href="http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/truth-and-iliza">The Truth and Iliza</a></b><br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-B0UkkEJ40Q0/Vi2GZIcdyfI/AAAAAAAABn0/-WgoYkwZpLk/s1600/tandi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="198" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-B0UkkEJ40Q0/Vi2GZIcdyfI/AAAAAAAABn0/-WgoYkwZpLk/s200/tandi.jpg" width="200" /></a>In addition to being one of the funniest comedians of the current generation, <a href="http://www.iliza.com/">Iliza Shlesinger</a> is very bright, very sarcastic and very opinionated. Is it any wonder I am a huge fan? All of these factor into her being perfectly cast in the role of host of her own podcast, <b>The Truth and Iliza</b>. Rather than the umpteen-millionth podcast where the host gushes over how wonderful that episode’s guest is and providing yet another generic platform for the guest to perform their shtick and plug the hell out of a current project, Iliza has created an environment where the guest is not necessarily the focus – the everyday things that piss them off is the jumping off point for a conversation that is usually very funny, searingly sardonic, and always authentic. Whether she’s <a href="http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/sideshow-network/truth-and-iliza/e/adam-carolla-40742407">coaxing Adam Carolla into a rage about moronic gatekeepers</a>, sharing a story about an astoundingly boorish family she had to deal with on a recent flight, or <a href="http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/truth-and-iliza/e/40742509?autoplay=true">fan-girling out while convincing Taylor Dayne to sing a chorus of <i>"Tell It To My Heart"</i> with her</a>, the reason Iliza makes this podcast work so well is that she isn’t doing an interview – she’s just hanging out with whomever is there with her and letting us listen in. The conversation goes wherever it goes, peppered with occasional non sequitur cartoon-voice asides to her dog Blanche. Join me and about 17 overnight truckers in listening to <b>The Truth and Iliza</b> regularly – this one is a must-listen. Oh, and bonus points for having the coolest damn theme song in the history of podcasts.<br />
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<b><a href="http://www.earwolf.com/show/spontaneanation-with-paul-f-tompkins/">Spontaneanation</a></b><br />
Do you like improv comedy? Of course you do; it’s hilarious! <a class="zem_slink" href="http://paulftompkins.com/" rel="homepage" target="_blank" title="Paul F. Tompkins">Paul F. Tompkins</a> seems to enjoy it as well. He and a rotating cast of improv pals put on a little skit each week, riffing off of themes, comments and offhanded remarks made during Tompkins’ welcoming monologue or the interview section of the program. Yep, you not only get an improv show, you get an interview – <b>Spontaneanation</b> is like two podcasts in one! Each week’s guest is presented with a question left by the previous week’s guest, and the interview flows from there. Then comes the main event: a complete narrative story, told from beginning to end yet often jumping around in time thanks to a series of sound effects, and set in a location chosen by that week’s interview guest. Did you follow all that? Well, go back and read it for yourself, then; I’ve explained it as clearly as I can. Like all improv situations, not everything works. It can be rather amusing, though, when you can tell the cast senses they are tanking and begin scrambling to find their way back on track. But, when they are on point (which they very often are), they can be laugh out loud funny. Which is unfortunate when I’m on a crowded bus at 6:15 in the morning listening on my headphones and suddenly doubling over in gales of laughter. <br />
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<b><a href="http://www.earwolf.com/show/how-did-this-get-made/">How Did This Get Made?</a></b><br />
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I have been a fan and regular listener of <b>How Did This Get Made?</b> for quite awhile now. You don’t believe me? Well just <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2012/07/things-you-should-be-seeing-hearing.html">follow this link right here and be reminded</a> that I suggested you start listening to this one years ago! Don’t feel so smug now, do you? The longevity of the show (podcast years and dog years can, I believe, be calculated in roughly the same manner) is proof that it is quality programming. A recent trend towards live episodes has injected renewed energy into a show that wasn’t flagging to begin with. <a class="zem_slink" href="http://www.paulscheer.com/" rel="homepage" target="_blank" title="Paul Scheer">Paul Scheer</a>, <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_Diane_Raphael" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="June Diane Raphael">June Diane Raphael</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jason_Mantzoukas">Jason Mantzoukas</a> have honed their film-skewering skills to a fine point over the life of the podcast, but when they have a live audience to play off of they are even better. Mini-episodes between regular podcasts give you a head’s up to what movie is being given the HDTGM treatment – helpful because the show works best when you have also watched the movie in preparation, but even if you don’t do your homework you’ll enjoy the fun.<br />
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<b><a href="http://shouldiworryaboutthis.com/">Should I Worry About This?</a></b><br />
I’ve shared many posts here over the years dealing with my anxieties, so you know I know worry. Hell, during those few instances when I am not worrying about something, I am worried that there ought to be something I should be worrying about! If only there were some sort of guide to help sort the stuff that’s worth worrying about from the stiff that isn’t. Cat Oddy and Eden Robins have come to the rescue with their wonderfully entertaining and informative podcast, <b>Should I Worry About This?</b> Every Monday they present a topic that one or both of them have found themselves worrying about, usually with some background story to go along with it, and they trade off doing the research to dig up the facts and determine whether it’s worth worrying about or not. Worrying about everything from <a href="http://shouldiworryaboutthis.com/post/118695928788/episode-025-should-i-worry-about-waking-up">waking up during surgery</a> to <a href="http://shouldiworryaboutthis.com/post/129073243448/episode-043-should-i-worry-about-regretting-my">regretting tattoos</a>, and from <a href="http://shouldiworryaboutthis.com/post/126911790305/episode-039-should-i-worry-about-rabies">catching rabies</a> to <a href="http://shouldiworryaboutthis.com/post/127477710713/episode-040-should-i-worry-about-president">having Donald Trump as President</a>, they cover a lot of ground. They keep the mood up, and more often than not reach the conclusion that we’re all probably worried about a lot more than we need to be, although I’ve now I find myself worrying about whether they’re going to end the podcast anytime soon…<br />
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<b><a href="http://www.radiolab.org/">Radiolab</a></b><br />
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<b>Radiolab</b> is an extremely popular podcast, with good reason. Part journalistic endeavor, part Mondo-style documentary, part history lesson and part sound-collage pastiche, with some good-natured humor and the occasional dose of acute skepticism tossed in for good measure, <b>Radiolab</b> uses its unique editing style to weave stories about amazing things you might never have known have happened or are happening in this world. Hosts <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jad_Abumrad" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Jad Abumrad">Jad Abumrad</a> and <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Krulwich" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Robert Krulwich">Robert Krulwich</a> make fine stand-ins for the listener, asking the questions that you or I would ask about things like <a href="http://www.radiolab.org/story/darkode/">Darkode hacking</a>, <a href="http://www.radiolab.org/story/mau-mau/">the Mau Mau Rebellion</a>, <a href="http://www.radiolab.org/story/91584-time/">how time moves and how we move throughout it</a>, and more. The interwoven sounds of interviews, audio verite, music and narration combine to pull you into the midst of the story at hand, and at the end if you haven’t learned something new (and if so, you weren’t really paying attention), at least you’ll have been on one helluva ride.<br />
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I'm always on the lookout for good podcasts to add to my listening rotation - if you have some favorites, share with us in the comments below, or visit <a href="http://www.radiolab.org/story/91584-time/">That's What I Was Going To Say on Facebook</a>. And hey, while you're there, consider "liking" the page. I'd be much obliged!<br />
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Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-37614085581948042592015-04-04T12:54:00.000-04:002015-04-05T10:55:37.475-04:00NEW MUSIC: One-Eyed Doll - "Witches"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A concept album is not the easiest trick to pull off. The risk of sounding either pompously pretentious or awkwardly forced when attempting to tie an album's worth of material into a coherent narrative is extremely high, as nearly every prog-rock album of the mid-seventies demonstrated. When the new <a href="https://www.facebook.com/oneeyeddollfans">One-Eyed Doll</a> album, <b><i><a href="http://oneeyeddoll.com/">Witches</a></i></b>, was announced some time back, I was thrilled - it had been way too long since the last album from my favorite current band (2012's <b><i><a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2012/07/one-eyed-doll-dirty.html">Dirty</a></i></b>); when word got out that it was to be a concept album telling the tale of the <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salem_witch_trials" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Salem witch trials">Salem witch trials</a>, I admit to feeling an uneasy shudder. Kimberly and Jason are certainly adept storytellers in the single-song format, but could they create a story arc that both spanned an entire album and maintained the level of energy, creativity and cleverness that has been their hallmark?<br />
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The short answer, I'm pleased to report, is "Hell yes!"<br />
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<b><i>Witches</i></b> is in all ways wonderful. The album swoops in with the frenetic attack of the opener, <i>"Ember,"</i> then effortlessly downshifts to the hauntingly beautiful <i>"Prayer"</i> before revving up again for the concert-ready chant-along <i>"Black in the Rye."</i> That juxtaposition of crazed high-energy assault and low-key melancholy continues throughout the album, keeping you constantly spellbound through the finale, <i>"The Ghosts of Gallows Hill."</i> <br />
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It would have been easy to simply cast Kimberly as either an actual witch or one of the wrongly accused and make the album's narrative into a character-driven tale; smartly, they did not go that route. Rather, she inhabits different roles in each song, reporting events from a number of points of view and never judging one against another. Here she is being sent to her death, condemned as a witch, there she is leading the angry mob's demands for <i>"More Weight" </i>to be applied to the accused to determine guilt; now she is accusing another as the one who has <i>"Afflicted"</i> her, now she's presenting theories that bacterial infection from spoiled bread caused the hysteria that afflicted Salem. In the end, the listener must draw his or her own conclusions.<br />
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Musically, this is the most gothic One-Eyed Doll record yet - which is saying something for a band that sings about vampires and serial killers, and who has recorded in a church. There is both soaring majesty and almost unbearable tension in each tune, and there is something about that banjo that is woven into the sonic tapestry that gilds it all with the perfect haunting edge. As is often the case with One-Eyed Doll, it can be easy to forget that it's only two people making all this deeply layered and nuanced music. Certainly the recording process allows for overdubs and production tricks, but those of us who have seen them live know they can blow the roof off any venue as well as much larger groups.<br />
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I am eager to hear how these new tracks will fit into One-Eyed Doll's live sets. In fact, I will get my first chance tonight - they are playing in the Baltimore, MD area (technically Halethorpe, but close enough) at <a href="http://www.fishheadcantina.com/">Fish Head Cantina</a> with <a href="https://www.facebook.com/CrypticMatter">Cryptic Matter</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/KamikazeKupcakes">Kamikaze Kupcakes</a>. If you're in the area, I hope to see you there!<br />
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Please enjoy a couple of my favorites from the album: the opener, <i>"Ember,"</i> and a live performance of <i>"Black in the Rye."</i> You can purchase <b><i>Witches</i></b> directly from the band or through <a href="http://merchnow.com/">Merchnow.com</a>
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Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-46528174347082001732015-03-22T21:22:00.000-04:002015-03-23T04:56:21.395-04:00The 10 Most Under-Appreciated Punk Rock Albums EverIf you surf around the Internets long enough, you're bound to stumble on this or that person's list of the top 10 or 15 or 25 Punk Rock Albums of All Time. You'll also quickly notice that the same titles seem to crop up on these lists over and over again: <b><i>Never Mind The Bollocks</i></b>, <b><i>Damned Damned Damned</i></b>, the first Ramones record, Black Flag's <b><i>Damaged</i></b>, <b><i>Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables</i></b>, <b><i>London Calling</i></b>, etc. Of course, those titles keep coming up because they are undeniably great records. But you'd start to think they're the only ones worth keeping on your shelves if you're old enough to remember those days, or the only ones to look for if you're a young'n looking to build a punk collection.<br />
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Well, I'm here to wave the banner for those that remain unheralded! There's a ton of great vintage punk rock vinyl out there just waiting to be rediscovered by the newest generation of leather jacket clad crate-diggers. Allow me to draw a handful of them to your attention. Herewith I offer, in no particular order, ten of the most under-appreciated punk rock albums out there. If you see any of these on one of your vinyl-buying journeys, grab them; you will not be disappointed!<br />
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<b>Henry Rollins - <i>Hot Animal Machine</i> (1987)</b><br />
Rollins' first solo effort brought original Black Flag intensity back to a post-Black Flag world. This is Henry at his alienated-from-society best: power chords and paranoia churn at peak volume on tracks like <i>"Lost And Found"</i> and <i>"There's A Man Outside;"</i> the creepiness factor is upped on covers of Suicide's <i>"Ghost Rider"</i> and The Velvet Underground's <i>"Move Right In;"</i> a truly harrowing report of a domestic violence incident, <i>"A Man And A Woman,"</i> closes the album with the kind of jam Rollins Band would become known for. Stunning.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JVLyaJYKkBY/VQ9mDKYQaoI/AAAAAAAABlE/2iNmd4nsIqk/s1600/krautadjust.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 0; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JVLyaJYKkBY/VQ9mDKYQaoI/AAAAAAAABlE/2iNmd4nsIqk/s1600/krautadjust.jpg" height="150" width="150" /></a><b>Kraut - <i>An Adjustment To Society</i> (1983)</b><br />
The debut album from one of the first and best bands to emerge in the early-'80s New York hardcore scene is solid start to finish. They were young (drummer Johnny Feedback was 15 at the time) and determined and had a couple of aces up their sleeves: ex-Pistol Steve Jones befriended the band and plays on a few tracks; they made <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjUOUaOYltk">a video for the lead (and best) track, <i>"All Twisted,"</i></a> that actually saw minor rotation on MTV (!); they made their debut as a band opening for The Clash. Make sure you look for the original 1983 pressing of the LP - it was reissued in 1988 with a slightly different cover, extra tracks and a subpar mix.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iot6wVIrgzM/VQ9mDjzjrGI/AAAAAAAABlM/FZRkucJzcWg/s1600/mdc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 0; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iot6wVIrgzM/VQ9mDjzjrGI/AAAAAAAABlM/FZRkucJzcWg/s1600/mdc.jpg" height="150" width="150" /></a><b>MDC - <i>Millions Of Dead Cops</i> (1982) </b><br />
This was the album that introduced me to hardcore. Politics, social commentary, shock for shock value's sake and a wicked sense of humor drive hyper-speed classics <i>"John Wayne Was A Nazi," "Violent Rednecks,"</i> <i>"Corporate Deathburger"</i> and <i>"I Hate Work,"</i> among others. <i>"Born To Die"</i> and <i>"I Remember"</i> also stand out amidst the racing buzzsaw guitars and over-revved rhythms as classics of the genre. A must-have.<br />
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<b>Channel 3 - <i>I've Got A Gun</i> (1982)</b><br />
This import-only compilation of singles, orphaned tracks and the best cuts from the first two proper Channel 3 albums ends up being the album they should have made in the first place. Part of the Southern California <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posh_Boy_Records" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Posh Boy Records">Posh Boy Records</a> scene, their brand of pop-punk has always been a winner to my ears. The title track, <i>"Wetspots,"</i> <i>"You Lie"</i> and <i>"Strength In Numbers"</i> all boast strong hooks and sing-along choruses that will catch in your head for days. Don't miss the shoulda-been-a-hit <i>"You Make Me Feel Cheap."</i><br />
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<b>Tenpole Tudor - <i>Eddie, Old Bob, Dick And Gary</i> (1981)</b><br />
Eddie Tenpole (a/k/a Eddie Tudor-Pole) was at one time, so urban legend goes, tabbed as the replacement for Johnny Rotten in The Sex Pistols. Indeed, you can find him stumbling his way through <i>"Rock Around The Clock" </i>in his own inimitable singing style in <b><a class="zem_slink" href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080813/" rel="imdb" target="_blank" title="The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle">The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle</a></b>. While that odd, loopy voice would never have worked in the Pistols' setting, with his own band it makes perfect sense. <i>"Wunderbar"</i> is the standout cut here, but <i>"Three Bells In a Row," "Judy Annual," "I Can't Sleep"</i> and <i>"Go Wilder"</i> do not fall far short in the running. Proof that punk rock could be every bit as much fun as it could be nasty,<br />
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<b>The Diodes - <i>The Diodes</i> (1977)</b><br />
Among the earliest Canadian punk bands, The Diodes' sound edged closer to what would become skinny-tie power pop than to the harsher sounds of the genre. Nonetheless, their debut album is stellar from open to close, and clearly influenced many who came after them. Intelligent and catchy originals like <i>"Death In The Suburbs," "Time Damage"</i> and <i>"Child Star"</i> are coupled with knowing covers of The Cyrkle's <i>"Red Rubber Ball"</i> and Max Frost & The Troopers' <i>"Shape Of Things To Come." </i>One of my personal favorite albums in my collection.<br />
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<b>The Lemonheads - <i>Hate Your Friends</i> (1987)</b><br />
I can hear some of you getting ready to argue already: "The Lemonheads fer crissakes?!?" Yep. Before Evan Dando became the darling of the college radio indie-rock set and MTV's face of alternative music, he and his band issued a debut album that just sizzles with punk attitude and energy, and does it well. The single <i>"Second Chance"</i> is simply awesome; the title track, <i>"Rat Velvet," "Sneakyville"</i> and <i>"Fed Up"</i> are all great; the closer, <i>"Fucked Up,"</i> coulda been an Adrenalin O.D. track. Pick this one up - you'll be pleasantly surprised.<br />
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<b>The Anti-Nowhere League - <i>We Are...The League</i> (1982)</b><br />
Those who loudly decried punk rock as sick, evil, vulgar and very bad for society would point to bands like The Anti-Nowhere League as proof. Those people also had no sense of humor whatsoever. The League spouted hateful, foul-mouthed diatribes at everyone and everything and were hysterically funny doing it. Declaring <i>"I Hate...People"</i> (<i>"...and they hate me!"</i>), insisting they <i>"Can't Stand Rock 'n' Roll"</i> and urging everyone on with <i>"Let's Break The Law,"</i> they played up every stereotype the haters threw at punk rock and amped it up beyond belief. The title track throws a knowing wink into the mix: <i>"Don't you criticize the things we do/No one fucking pays to go see you."</i><br />
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<b>Toxic Reasons - <i>Bullets For You</i> (1986)</b><br />
Based in Dayton, Ohio, but sounding for all the world like they must have been from the UK, Toxic Reasons issued this sizzling slab of melodic hardcore that has somehow remained fairly overlooked. The songs are anthemic shout-alongs reminiscent of British bands like Abrasive Wheels or Chron Gen, but with decidedly catchy hooks and just a glint of a metal edge. <i>"Killing The Future," "Never Give In"</i> and <i>"Do What You Can"</i> are all strong enough to stand alongside the classic cuts of the genre; the soul-searching <i>"You Gotta Believe"</i> is simply stunning. Look for this one.<br />
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<b>The Freeze - <i>Rabid Reaction</i> (1985)</b><br />
The band that offered, in my opinion, the strongest cuts on the seminal <b><i>This Is Boston Not L.A.</i></b> comp deliver the goods on this, their second proper album. A re-recorded version of that compilation's <i>"Trouble If You Hide" </i>leads a pack of snarly, snarky cuts wrapped in attitude and a wicked Boston accent. <i>"Misguided Memories," "No One's Coming Home," "Before I Hit That Rubber Room"</i> - there's not a clinker in the bunch here. IMO, the best example of Boston hardcore you can find.<br />
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So there you go, my pick for ten albums that generally get forgotten about when those "best of" lists get made. I know these lists are often argument starters, so have at it either in the comments below or over on the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TWIWGTS?ref=bookmarks">That's What I Was Going To Say Facebook page</a>. While you're there, if you haven't already, consider giving the page a "like" - I'd love to see that total get to 500!<br />
<br />Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-48218136853586125492015-03-21T19:52:00.000-04:002015-03-21T20:05:06.275-04:00NEW MUSIC: The Prefab Messiahs "Keep Your Stupid Dreams Alive"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Those who believe time is linear are only fooling themselves. Time loops back on itself, runs forward and backward, and occasionally stands still. Take the case of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ThePrefabMessiahs">The Prefab Messiahs</a>, whose new album, <b><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Keep-Your-Stupid-Dreams-Alive/dp/B00U6O49J8/ref=sr_1_1_twi_2_aud?ie=UTF8&qid=1426981181&sr=8-1&keywords=prefab+messiahs">Keep Your Stupid Dreams Alive</a></i></b>, showcases a band that exists simultaneously in 1968, 1981 and 2015, and whose watches have clearly stopped at exactly 25 o'clock.<br />
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Swathed in sitar/guitar reverb, neon paisley light and garage-band energy, <b><i>Keep Your Stupid Dreams Alive</i></b> picks up exactly where their 30-year old recordings collected a few years back on the wonderful <b><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Devolver-Prefab-Messiahs/dp/B000GBEL94/ref=tag_dpp_lp_edpp_img_in">Devolver</a></i></b> left off, yet it sounds every bit as modern as it does of a time when they could have been opening for <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Standells" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="The Standells">The Standells</a> (or The Standells opening for them). By names they were and are Xerox Feinberg, Trip Thompson, Doc Michaud and Ned Egg; by sound they are groovy, psychedelic, lo-fi, wild and outtasite.<br />
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The new record takes you on a trip through Wormtown (Worcester, MA, for the unhip) with the Messiahs. They help you avoid the <i>"Weirdoz Everywhere"</i> as you speed through twisting streets in <i>"Bobb's Psychedelic Car"</i> (that's <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobb_Trimble" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Bobb Trimble">Bobb Trimble</a>, again for the unhip), blaring <i>"College Radio"</i> through tinny speakers while <i>"Booshwa Sally"</i> throws her arms around you. It's akin to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siddhartha_%28novel%29">Siddhartha</a>'s journey of self-discovery (or should that be <i>"Ssydarthurr?"</i>); a stupid dream worth keeping alive, at least until you reach the <i>"Orange Room."</i><br />
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What I'm trying to say is: this is good. This is damn good. Equal parts tribute and parody with more than a little bit of social commentary in the mix. It's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naz_Nomad_and_the_Nightmares">Naz Nomad</a> meets <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dukes_of_Stratosphear">The Dukes Of Stratosphear</a>, only The Prefab Messiahs were doing it long before and are still doing it now, long after.<br />
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So get yerself over to <a href="https://theprefabmessiahs.bandcamp.com/">The Prefab Messiah's Bandcamp site</a> and grab the music. <b><i>Keep Your Stupid Dreams Alive</i></b>, as well as previous releases, are there as name-your-price offers - do give the band some support. If you prefer a proper vinyl copy, <a href="http://klyam.bigcartel.com/product/the-prefab-messiahs-keep-your-stupid-dreams-alive-10-inch-vinyl">the 10-inch disc can be had through KYLAM (Kids Like You And Me)/Burger Records</a> for just a ten spot.<br />
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In the meantime, here are two clips from the record: <i>"Weirdoz Everywhere"</i> and <i>"Bobb's Psychedelic Car."</i> Enjoy!<br />
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<br />Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-71771091848752024652015-02-22T21:40:00.000-05:002015-02-23T04:28:16.365-05:00NEW MUSIC: Plurals - "Your Situation"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Confession time: a big, goofy smile lit up my face the moment I first plunked the needle down on the beautifully marbled yellow vinyl album that arrived in the Ruttville mailbox a couple of weeks ago. <b><i><a href="http://pluralsband.bandcamp.com/" target="_blank">Your Situation</a></i></b>, the debut album from <a href="http://plrls.com/" target="_blank">Plurals</a>, immediately takes me back to a very happy musical place. From the first jackhammer guitar chords through the final washes against the side two inner groove, Plurals bring back everything that made New Wave (back in the days when it <i>was</i> a wave) so exciting and, yes, fun. Their thoroughly modern takes on that nostalgic noise have made them a favorite of mine since catching them <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2011/10/lets-knife.html" target="_blank">opening for Shonen Knife</a> a while back, and later <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2013/10/back-to-baltimore.html" target="_blank">supporting Peelander-Z</a>. I <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2012/08/now-hear-this.html" target="_blank">raved here about their first recorded output</a>, the digital EP <b><i><a href="http://pluralsband.bandcamp.com/album/laced-with-boniva" target="_blank">Laced With Boniva,</a></i></b> and it should be no big surprise that I'm about to rave again.<br />
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<b><i>Your Situation</i></b> reprises the four tracks from the EP, adding five more shots of their insanely clever and insidiously catchy sound. Over the course of nine tracks, the band (Michael Bowen on guitar and vocals, Elena Fox on bass, keyboardist Rachel Anne Warren, guitarist Jim Glass and Sean Pumphrey on drums) covers a whole lot of ground. The opener, <i>"Sicker/Better,"</i> starts off sounding like someone sped up Devo's <i>"Uncontrollable Urge"</i> until Fox and Warren bubble up through the mix with a series of tra-la-las that would make <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Banana_Splits" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="The Banana Splits">The Banana Splits</a> proud. As a counterpoint to Bowen's angular lead vocals, they evoke expected comparison to The B-52's. The girls play the distant, alienated, emotionless New Wave backup singers role to even better effect on the phenomenal <i>"Rose Garden,"</i> a bubblegummy romp that may be my favorite thing I've heard them do. <br />
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Sandwiched between those cuts is the hysterical <i>"Look At the Nerds,"</i> a nearly operatic celebration of geekdom that serves as a showcase for Warren to channel both <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nina_Hagen" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Nina Hagen">Nina Hagen</a> and <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Klaus_Nomi" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Klaus Nomi">Klaus Nomi</a> simultaneously (and yes, I used that line when describing the song as they played it live, but it is one of my favorite comparisons I've ever made and, if you listen, pretty damn accurate.) Also worthy of note among the new cuts is <i>"World Star,"</i> a knowing a jab at the infamous online site that collects cellphone videos of street violence and presents them as entertainment. The punchline, no pun intended, is perfect: <i>"The hits keep coming..."</i><br />
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As mentioned before, if you missed out on <b><i>Laced With Boniva</i></b>, all four cuts from that digital EP are here as well: the funky herky-jerky <i>"Manic Depressor,"</i> the almost Pixie-ish <i>"I Am The Lions,"</i> the slightly retitled <i>"On The Telephone (Clap Clap),"</i> and the simply excellent <i>"Mental Illness (Sooner Or Later),"</i> wherein <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beat_%28band%29" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="The Beat (band)">The English Beat</a> is paraphrased to wonderful effect.<br />
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Yeah, the record put a grin on my face, because the fun these five folks have making this music comes through viscerally, both in their live performance and in their recorded work. This is a band to keep an eye on, kids. I get the feeling we've only scratched the surface of what they are capable of. You can pick up <b><i>Your Situation</i></b> on vinyl or as a digital download at the band's website, <a href="http://plrls.com/home.html">PLRLS.com</a>. You can stream the whole record there, too, if that's your thing. Me, I'm old school: colored vinyl and lots of inserts can't be beat!<br />
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I shared <i>"Mental Illness (Sooner Or Later)"</i> with you back on <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2012/08/now-hear-this.html">this <b>Now Hear This</b> round up</a>; here are two standouts from the newer stuff, <i>"Sicker/Better"</i> and <i>"Rose Garden." </i> Enjoy, and then go pick up the whole album and help support the band!<br />
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<span style="color: blue;"><i>Sicker/Better</i></span></center>
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<span style="color: blue;"><i>Rose Garden</i></span></center>
<br />Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-74427098781554559052015-02-13T23:47:00.001-05:002015-02-13T23:49:24.446-05:00NEW MUSIC: The Dying Elk Herd - "For Real This Time"<div class="MsoNormal">
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<a href="http://thedyingelkherd.com/home" target="_blank">The Dying Elk Herd</a>’s debut album, <b><i>For Real This Time</i></b>, has
been basically on constant repeat in the Ruttville CD player for the past
week. The much-anticipated disc most definitely
delivers on the promise of their first two singles, the anthemic <i>“Another
Restless Night”</i> and the insanely catchy <i>“Don’t Let The Riverbeast Get
You.”</i></div>
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<b><i>For Real This Time</i></b> may be The Dying Elk Herd’s debut album, but
the band members themselves have been playing, both apart and together, for
some time now. Dave Benner, Greg Cathey
and Curt Laudenberger are all veterans of the Lancaster punk scene. Dave started out in Nobody’s Fools back in
the mid-80s while Greg and Curt cut their teeth in The Dilemmas; all three
eventually wound up members of Kirk & The Jerks and, later, Mystery
City. That pedigree is audible in the Herd’s
material. There is much reverence for the past in the music (fans of <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generation_X" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Generation X">Generation
X</a>, <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stiff_Little_Fingers" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Stiff Little Fingers">Stiff Little Fingers</a> and early <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Clash" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="The Clash">Clash</a> are urged to move to the front of the
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The Herd come charging out of the gate in the opener, <i>”Progress Has A Price.”</i> The chiming guitars, driving beat and
earnest lyrics set the tone for the rest of the ride. <i>“Restless
Night”</i> and <i>“Riverbeast”</i> are here,
of course, amid hook-filled, sing (or shout) along concoctions like <i>“Times Of Peril,” “Tired, Weary, Worn Out And
Broke”</i> and <i>“The Fight To Be Free.”</i> </div>
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The song that caught me most by surprise, though, is the
closer, <i>“Every Avenue.”</i> No new ground is being broken here: punk kid
has grown up and waxes nostalgic for the good old days while realizing the
person he’s grown to be could only exist by living that life. It’s a deft tightrope walk – a lyric like <i>“…so I stumbled through my teens and through
the Overlook Dance/And then on to Stan’s Records down Prince Street…” </i>runs
a high risk of overshooting the feeling of wistful nostalgia and landing
somewhere between maudlin tripe and pretentious name-checking just to get a
cheap pop from their fellow Lancastrians.
Here, they walk that line successfully, coming across with a gritty
realness that hits home for anyone. The
fact that I, too, stumbled through my share of dances at the Overlook Skating
Rink and spent most of my high school job’s earnings at <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2010/05/final-vinyl-racks-of-wax-platters-that.html" target="_blank">Stan’s Record Bar</a>, only
means I know the precise places mentioned. Substitute your town’s local dance, indie
record shop, neighborhood subdivisions and other landmarks, and you’ve lived
it, too.</div>
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You can pick up <b><i>For Real This Time</i></b> through <a href="http://thedyingelkherd.com/store" target="_blank">The Dying Elk Herd’s own website</a>, or download through iTunes, and you really should. I’ve shared <i><a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2012/08/now-hear-this.html" target="_blank">“Another Restless Night”</a> </i>and <i><a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2012/11/now-hear-this.html" target="_blank">“Don’t Let The Riverbeast Get You”</a></i> in earlier posts, so this time around, with the
kind permission of Dave Benner, I’m sharing the excellent opening track, <i>“Progress Has A Price,”</i> and the stunning
closer, <i>“Every Avenue.”</i> Enjoy!</div>
<br />
<br />
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<span style="color: blue;">Progress Has A Price</span></center>
<br />
<br />
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<center>
<span style="color: blue;">Every Avenue</span></center>
<br />
<br />Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-57010228248176740422015-01-29T04:37:00.000-05:002015-01-29T04:37:02.871-05:00Throwback Thursday: The Jesus And Mary Chain - "Psychocandy" (1985)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mWk-qHDHJoQ/VMn-Yo-4zPI/AAAAAAAABTc/kAy5PcOKE4E/s1600/psychocandy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mWk-qHDHJoQ/VMn-Yo-4zPI/AAAAAAAABTc/kAy5PcOKE4E/s1600/psychocandy.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
In the category of Things That Remind Me Just How Old I Am, I was gobsmacked to see notices popping up around the Internets that the <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Jesus_and_Mary_Chain" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="The Jesus and Mary Chain">Jesus And Mary Chain</a> would be touring this year in celebration of <a href="http://www.avclub.com/article/psychocandy-turns-30-jesus-and-mary-chain-announce-214349" target="_blank">the 30th anniversary of the release of their debut album, <b><i>Psychocandy</i></b></a>. Good grief, how can that record be 30 years old already?<br />
<br />
Had the Internet as we know it today existed when <b><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Psychocandy-Jesus-Mary-Chain/dp/B0013D8JBK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1422523822&sr=8-1&keywords=psychocandy&pebp=1422523822688&peasin=B0013D8JBK" target="_blank">Psychocandy</a></i></b> hit the shelves in 1985, the Jesus And Mary Chain would have been the then-current darlings of music bloggers everywhere; as it was, their name and dour, poofy-haired images were splashed all over the cooler zines of the day. I recall <i><a class="zem_slink" href="http://www.nme.com/" rel="homepage" target="_blank" title="NME">NME</a></i>, for example, practically gushing for what seemed like months about how fantastic they were. College radio stations talked them up long before the early import singles like <i>"Upside Down"</i> and <i>"You Trip Me Up"</i> found their way across the pond from Scotland. There was an album coming soon and was gonna be a big deal.<br />
<br />
In today's world, <b><i>Psychocandy</i></b> might not seem particularly special, but in its time its was groundbreaking. Literally nothing sounded like it before. Every song was drenched in feedback. Certainly, feedback had been used as an integral piece of composition and performance in rock and roll music before, but not like this: on <b><i>Psychocandy</i></b>, the feedback shimmered and sang. It provided the foundation for some tracks and threatened to drown out others. It hummed along with the melodies and tried to kick your turntable's stylus right off the vinyl. This was noise, but not just random white noise; it was tamed, at least to the extent it could be, and made to put on a show. (I vaguely remember reading somewhere at the time that at least one major record label had returned the Jesus And Mary Chain's demo tapes to the band believing the tapes to be defective because of the feedback noise!)<br />
<br />
What makes <b><i>Psychocandy </i></b>such a good record, though, is that beneath the feedback lay a collection of really good songs. Take away the gimmick and you still have an album that would score high marks. Winding and rolling amidst psychedelic garage stomp (<i>"My Little Underground"</i>), sticky bubblegum hooks (<i>"Just Like Honey"</i>) and punky attitude and imagery (<i>"Taste Of Cindy"</i>), every cut is solid and memorable. The centerpiece of the LP is <i>"Never Understand,"</i> a crashing, claustrophobic statement of purpose that encapsulates everything wonderful about the full album in a handy three-minute chunk. Play it loud - turned up to 11, as they say - to fully experience the gut-rumble.<br />
<br />
Though they kept at at for several years and managed a handful of likable tunes over the course of several albums, the Jesus And Mary Chain never were truly able to live up to where they set the bar on <b><i>Psychocandy</i></b>. In honor of it's 30th anniversary, I pulled the record out for the first time in a long while the other night, and it sounds every bit as good now as it did then. If you don't own it, pick it up. And play it LOUD.<br />
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Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-23843133856220820452015-01-05T22:05:00.000-05:002015-01-05T22:05:11.150-05:0048 Crash! My Bucket List for My 48th Birthday<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RAQlN8-ZEQA/VKtQan_MdfI/AAAAAAAABS4/8yJwB264kjc/s1600/1m7LBwr.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RAQlN8-ZEQA/VKtQan_MdfI/AAAAAAAABS4/8yJwB264kjc/s1600/1m7LBwr.png" /></a></div>
So tomorrow
(Tuesday, January 6th) I will be 48 years old.</div>
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As this
birthday began to make itself visible in the horizon a month or so ago, I found
myself eyeing it suspiciously, even fearfully. 48. Four dozen years. Only two
years away from the half-century mark.
Jeez, I’m old. I’m so old I’m -
<i>*gasp*</i> - middle-aged! (Consider the <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suzi_Quatro" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Suzi Quatro">Suzi
Quatro</a> song from which I borrowed this post’s title, with her snarling put down
of the stereotypical male midlife crisis: <i>“You've got the kind of a mind of a
juvenile Romeo/And you're so blind you could find that your motor ain't ready
to go...”</i> Ouch!) </div>
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But, as the
day has drawn ever closer, I changed my stance and decided to embrace it. Sure I’m older, but I've had many truly
wonderful experiences during my 48 trips around the sun. I figure I’d like to make it to 100, and by
that measure I’m not even halfway there!</div>
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Many folks
have their lifetime bucket lists – the things they want to do, see or
experience before they die. Since I have
already declared 2015 to be the First Annual Year of Bryan (first of many – I’m
going to 100, remember?), I have put together my bucket list not for life, but
for this 48<sup>th</sup> year! So here
are the 48 things I want to do, see or experience before 49 shows up in 365
days. Some are musts, some are wants,
some are hopes and dreams – but all are actually doable. I figure I will check in here at the blog
about once a month and let you folks know how I’m coming along. And please, if any of you wish to help out on
any item on the list, by all means speak up! The First Annual Year of Bryan is
for all to participate in and enjoy!</div>
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<br /></div>
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In no
particular order:</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>1.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Lose 48 pounds </b>(4 pounds a month is
very doable, I figure)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>2.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Develop weekly exercise program </b>(get
off my butt and move!)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>3.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Complete 1967 baseball card set </b>(already
in process!)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>4.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Front porch painted </b>(desperately
needed)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>5.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Deck repaired/sealed </b>(desperately
needed)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>6.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Learn to drive </b>(this would be a major
accomplishment)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>7.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Convert vhs collection to digital </b>(already
in process!)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>8.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Convert album collection to digital </b>(already
in process!)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>9.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>See <a class="zem_slink" href="http://www.oneeyeddoll.com/" rel="homepage" target="_blank" title="One-Eyed Doll">One-Eyed Doll</a> in concert again – this time
as a VIP </b>(my favorite current band – if you read this blog you know that!
Kimberly and Junior are awesome folks, but to get to hang out after a show with
them would be amazing!)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>10.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>See <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sparks_%28band%29" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Sparks (band)">Sparks</a> in concert </b>(my two all-time
favorite bands are <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bow_Wow_Wow" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Bow Wow Wow">Bow Wow Wow</a> and Sparks.
Got to see Bow Wow Wow in concert, but not Sparks…yet)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>11.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Visit the beach </b>(it’s been years since
I’ve seen the ocean)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>12.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Truly return to regular blogging schedule (</b>I
keep trying!)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>13.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Start my own podcast </b>(have wanted to do
this for awhile now)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>14.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Write a book </b>(I keep trying!)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>15.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Learn to cook pastitsio (</b>I am spoiled
by the annual Greek Food Bazaar here in Lancaster; I will learn to cook this
dish well!)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>16.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>See Mount Rushmore </b>(one of our country’s
sights I’ve always wanted to see in person to truly take in its scale and
majesty)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>17.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Travel out of the country </b>(I've never
been – not even to Canada or Mexico)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>18.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Attend a murder-mystery dinner </b>(they always seem like fun)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>19.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Host a cookout </b>(something I've wanted
to do for as long as I’ve owned the house)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>20.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Enroll in a beginner yoga class </b>(ties
into the earlier exercise thing)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>21.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Get back on radio in some way </b>(used to
do radio in college and loved it – and miss it!)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>22.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Try again to reconnect to Shillington, PA </b>(I
blogged about discovering that a childhood best friend had passed away <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2014/02/sometimes-you-cant-go-back.html" target="_blank">in this post.</a> Something is still nagging at me
to find a way to reconnect to someone from that era of my life. I’d like to follow that urge and discover why
– where will it lead me?)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>23.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Volunteer </b>(I want to find some way to
give back)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>24.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Take an improv comedy class </b>(I have
always been impressed by those who can do improve well; I’d like to see how
well I could do at it)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>25.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Research family tree </b>(already in
process – wonder how far back I can go?)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>26.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Spend one full week "off the
grid" </b>(one week with no internet, no iPhone, no Facebook…)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>27.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Cut debt load in half </b>(already in
process, I am pleased to say!)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>28.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Create a passive income source </b>(sure
would help with the debt load)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>29.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Taste a truly expensive scotch </b>(just to
see how truly different it is from the stuff I can afford)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>30.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Host a game night </b>(I love Wil Wheaton's
“Tabletop” YouTube series – I’d love to have a group of friends over for a
board game or two like that)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>31.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Host a movie night </b>(have a group over
to watch a couple of my personal faves)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>32.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Attend a storage auction </b>(I’m a sucker
for those storage auction shows on TV!)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>33.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>See the Grand Canyon </b>(another one of
our country’s sights I've always wanted to see in person to truly take in its
scale and majesty)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>34.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Drop grudges </b>(some I have held for too
long. I want to learn to forgive)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>35.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Speak before an audience of 1000 or greater
</b>(ah, the great fear of public speaking!)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>36.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Be onstage </b>(sort of ties into the item
above, but maybe as more of a baby step: just get onstage, even in a
non-speaking role, just to put myself in front of people)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>37.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Learn to juggle </b>(it always looks like
people who can juggle well are having a blast!)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>38.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Prepare my will </b>(I may plan to make it
to 100, but sometimes the Universe has other plans. Best to prepare)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>39.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Be a part of a flashmob </b>(have wanted to
do this for some time)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>40.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Take a hot air balloon trip </b>(seems like
it would be both peaceful and exhilarating)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>41.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Have a real lobster roll from Maine </b>(can’t
get ‘em much fresher, I’m told)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>42.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Take a coast-to-coast train ride </b>(what
better way to see the country?)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>43.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Learn CPR </b>(just think I should know in
the event of an emergency)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>44.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Fire a gun </b>(for the experience)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>45.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Visit a zoo </b>(loved the zoo as a kid;
haven’t been to one since I was a kid!)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>46.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Learn to play the harmonica </b>(for those
days when I get the blues in my soul)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>47.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Get a professional massage </b>(I’m told it’s
wonderful)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>48.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Cook every single recipe in a cookbook </b>(just
start at page one and work my way through!)<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/iQmP82hiCgQ" width="420"></iframe>Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-4484099001518775492014-12-15T20:51:00.001-05:002014-12-15T20:51:27.949-05:00This Is How It FeelsTo feel as if every compliment you receive is insincere,<br />
as if you're being lied to<br />
as if they're all laughing at you<br />
<br />
To feel, deep in your soul, that you're being<br />
set up<br />
torn down<br />
walked on<br />
worked over<br />
and that everyone - everyone - will eventually<br />
turn on you<br />
or leave you<br />
or deceive you<br />
<br />
To feel that clutching in your gut<br />
<br />
To feel like you're crying out from deep inside your own mind<br />
where you are trapped<br />
To feel like you're crying out from deep inside your own mind<br />
where you are trapped<br />
To feel like you are crying<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-23821001336115061922014-10-21T05:34:00.000-04:002014-12-29T22:01:54.773-05:00Now Hear This!Been awhile since I've done one of these round-ups of music I'm currently listening to and you oughta be listening to. Hopefully, it will serve as an introduction for some of you to a band or two you might never have heard otherwise. In the four previous Now Hear This posts, which you should check out <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2013/05/now-hear-this.html" target="_blank">here</a>, <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2013/03/now-hear-this.html" target="_blank">here</a>, <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2012/11/now-hear-this.html" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2012/08/now-hear-this.html" target="_blank">here</a> if you haven't already (and are worth revisiting if you have!), I've culled a fairly eclectic mix of goodies. This post follows in that spirit.<br />
<br />
It's a big wide Internet out there, and it's full of tunes. Some are good, some are bad; some you can acquire legitimately, some...well, not so much. It's enough to make your head spin! Friend, I'm here to help. I've done the hard part - I've separated the wheat from the chaff and come up with a list of 10 more excellent musical curios for your musical curio shelf...er, iPod. These aural treats are not presented in any particular order, and I am receiving no compensation of any kind from the artists, other than the sheer enjoyment of listening to their creations. Almost all of these are very recent, but some are not. Some aren’t even actually released yet. That's just the way it is – deal with it. Let's dig in!<br />
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<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/rancid" target="_blank">Rancid</a> - <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Honor-Is-All-We-Know/dp/B00IVLRC7Y" target="_blank">...Honor Is All We Know</a></i></b><br />
<br />
Might be my most highly anticipated release of the last half of 2014 – the first new Rancid album in six years is scheduled to hit shelves October 27. Thanks to a three-song preview video (and allowing those songs to be had in advance through iTunes), we can rest assured that <b><i>…Honor Is All We Know</i></b> will see the mighty Rancid doing what they have always done so well. Their particular brand of 1977 punk rock nicked directly from <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Clash" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="The Clash">The Clash</a>’s playbook and strained through filters of two-tone, rockabilly, and street life has always been right in my musical wheelhouse – I love this stuff, and cannot wait for the entire LP. Meanwhile, this trio of tunes has been played regularly and loudly in anticipation…<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/9SCF1zbsBfU" width="560"></iframe>
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<b><br /></b>
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/James-Williamson/108144412546757" target="_blank">James Williamson</a> - <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NCM0IBE/ref=s9_simh_gw_p15_d0_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=1T6FQNP9VMDGQ3XW00WB&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1688200382&pf_rd_i=507846" target="_blank">Re-Licked</a></i></b><br />
<b><br /></b>
Also looking forward to this one, scheduled for official release on October 29. James Williamson joined <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Stooges" target="_blank">The Stooges</a> in 1970 and continued writing and recording with Iggy even after the band dissolved. Here he takes a handful of leftover Stooges material and presents all-new recordings paired up with a variety of vocalists from Gary Floyd of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dicks" target="_blank">The Dicks</a> to <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2010/03/what-weekend-part-1-friday-in-philly.html" target="_blank">Jello Biafra</a> to <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2010/07/new-wave-for-new-week-75.html" target="_blank">Jim “Foetus” Thirlwell</a>. This re-imagined “lost” fourth Stooges album takes a better swing at it than the old <b><i>Kill City</i></b> release, if the early leaked tracks are any measure. <i>“I’m Sick Of You”</i> (with Mario Cuomo of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Orwells" target="_blank">The Orwells</a> on vocals) is one of those tracks and has been on high rotation here in Ruttville for the past week or so. <b><i>Re-Licked</i></b> can be pre-ordered over at <a href="http://amazon.com/">Amazon.com</a>.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/rXKuoX4koGU" width="560"></iframe><br />
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<iframe frameborder="no" height="166" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/163715922&color=0066cc&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false" width="100%"></iframe><br />
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<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/sonicscreammusic" target="_blank">Sonic Scream</a> - <i><a href="http://sonicscream.bandcamp.com/" target="_blank">Up Your Sleeve</a></i></b><br />
<b><br /></b>
Sam Sergeant and Terry Knight make one heckuva racket for two people, but it’s a racket worth raving about (as <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2013/05/now-hear-this.html" target="_blank">I did back in May of 2013</a>!). The lads from Hertfordshire are back with a brand new batch of brain-thumping grungy goodness. <b><i>Up Your Sleeve</i></b> continues in the same vein as its predecessor; tracks like <i>“7”</i> and <i>“Ain’t Having That”</i> roll in like thunder and shake the floorboards. It’s meant to be played loud, friends, so crank it…<br />
<br />
<iframe style="border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=1835419487/size=small/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/track=3202218127/transparent=true/" seamless><a href="http://sonicscream.bandcamp.com/album/zero-ep">Zero EP by Sonic Scream</a></iframe>
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<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Electric-Mess/48746063819" target="_blank">The Electric Mess</a></b> - <a href="http://www.amazon.com/House-Fire-Electric-Mess/dp/B00KHYCEA8/ref=sr_1_3?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1413880689&sr=1-3&keywords=electric+mess" target="_blank"><i><b>“Better To Be Lucky Than Good”</b></i> </a><br />
<br />
Another favorite of the blog, NYC’s The Electric Mess, released <b><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/House-Fire-Electric-Mess/dp/B00KHYCEA8/ref=sr_1_3?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1413880689&sr=1-3&keywords=electric+mess" target="_blank">House On Fire</a></i></b> this past April. With it came the simply fantastic clip for the single <i>“Better To Be Lucky Than Good,”</i> which demonstrates that even though MTV may have abandoned the music video, the format is still viable and, in the right hands, powerful. This one is the running for song of the year if’n you ask me, and the whole album is well worth picking up.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/zyKTeDYx8AI" width="560"></iframe><br />
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<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/wheelsonfireband" target="_blank">Wheels On Fire</a> - <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Get-Famous-Wheels-Fire/dp/B001P7YDNM/ref=sr_1_3?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1413880948&sr=1-3&keywords=wheels+on+fire" target="_blank">"I'm Turning Into You"</a></i></b><br />
<br />
Every now and then something turns up on the ol’ iPod that’s been hanging around in my collection but somehow always just stayed under the radar. Then, one day, it leaps through the earbuds, grabs me by the eardrums and shakes some freakin’ sense into me. Like this track from Ohio’s Wheels On Fire. How on Earth I haven’t been raving about this since its release on their 2009 album <b><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Get-Famous-Wheels-Fire/dp/B001P7YDNM/ref=sr_1_3?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1413880948&sr=1-3&keywords=wheels+on+fire" target="_blank">Get Famous</a></i></b> I can’t say – I can only apologize and insist that you listen to it and revel in its farfisa-driven wonderfulness with me now. Ready? Go!<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/fy8OQJLtNmw" width="560"></iframe>
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<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/TheMysteryLights" target="_blank">The Mystery Lights</a> - <i><a href="http://themysterylights.bandcamp.com/album/the-mystery-lights-ep" target="_blank">The Mystery Lights</a></i></b><br />
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The Mystery Lights have apparently arrived here (or at least in NYC) from 1968. They play a seething, eerie kind of psychedelic lo-fi freak-out music that all but demands to be played loud wherever swirling lights and neon colors and altered states of mind abound. Their four-track debut is uniformly excellent, with the standout being the final track, <i>“What Happens When You Turn The Devil Down,”</i> which will snake its way into your skull and slither down your spine in a most pleasing fashion. Hit up <a href="http://themysterylights.bandcamp.com/album/the-mystery-lights-ep" target="_blank">their Bandcamp site</a> for more.<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=2417153374/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=333333/tracklist=false/artwork=small/track=313724925/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;">&amp;lt;a href="http://themysterylights.bandcamp.com/album/the-mystery-lights-ep"&amp;gt;The Mystery Lights EP by The Mystery Lights&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;</iframe>
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<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Radiohearts/270582719083" target="_blank">Radiohearts</a> -</b> <b><i><a href="http://radiohearts.bandcamp.com/album/nothing-at-all-ep" target="_blank">Nothing At All</a></i></b><br />
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Fans of bands like <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2013/07/new-wave-for-new-week-164.html" target="_blank">The Buzzcocks</a>, <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2010/02/knacks-doug-fieger-passes-away-august.html" target="_blank">The Knack</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generation_X_(band)" target="_blank">Generation X</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_dB%27s" target="_blank">The dB’s</a> and other like-minded late-70s powerpop/punk bands (the younger set might use The Exploding Hearts and The Cute Lepers as frames of reference), rejoice! There exists a band today who knows what you want to hear, and it is exactly what they play. Well. Radiohearts’ new EP, <b><i><a href="http://radiohearts.bandcamp.com/album/nothing-at-all-ep" target="_blank">Nothing At All</a></i></b>, practically bubbles over with high energy melodic hooks dressed in skinny ties and wraparound shades. The only drawback here is that there are only four songs. More! Give us more!<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=2336264545/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=de270f/tracklist=false/artwork=small/track=3259786949/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;">&amp;lt;a href="http://radiohearts.bandcamp.com/album/nothing-at-all-ep"&amp;gt;Nothing At All EP by Radiohearts&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;</iframe>
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<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Lexxi-Vexx-the-Modern-Gentlemen/1405708886362046" target="_blank">Lexxi Vexx & the Modern Gentlemen</a> - <i><a href="http://themoderngentlemen.bandcamp.com/album/evolution-of-the-modern-gentlemen" target="_blank">The Evolution Of The Modern Gentlemen</a></i> </b><br />
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Punk done Portland style. Lexxi has been around for a bit in the underground scene; this is her latest combo, and possibly the best of the bunch. A lot of ground is covered on <b><i><a href="http://themoderngentlemen.bandcamp.com/album/evolution-of-the-modern-gentlemen" target="_blank">The Evolution Of The Modern Gentlemen</a></i></b>. At times the sound develops a decidedly metallic glint; other times echoes of west coast punk groups like The Nuns, UXA, and even The Avengers ring out. Lexxi doesn’t come by that booming voice by chance – her dad, Todd McPherson, in addition to being one of the Modern Gentlemen backing her, has been a member of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Kingsmen" target="_blank">The Kingsmen</a> (yes, those Kingsmen) since 1992. That’s about as killer a Portland rock ‘n’ roll pedigree as you can ask for. This is one not to be missed – <a href="http://themoderngentlemen.bandcamp.com/album/evolution-of-the-modern-gentlemen" target="_blank">get over to Bandcamp</a> and grab this’n. If you need proof, listen up:<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=2742993724/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=63b2cc/tracklist=false/artwork=small/track=1537694729/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;">&amp;lt;a href="http://themoderngentlemen.bandcamp.com/album/evolution-of-the-modern-gentlemen"&amp;gt;Evolution Of The Modern Gentlemen by Lexxi Vexx &amp;amp;amp; The Modern Gentlemen&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;</iframe>
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<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Theemptyheartsband" target="_blank">The Empty Hearts</a> - <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Empty-Hearts/dp/B00JXK0I2S/ref=sr_1_1_title_0_main?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1413881705&sr=1-1&keywords=empty+hearts" target="_blank">The Empty Hearts</a></i></b><br />
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The Empty Hearts are Wally Palmar of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Romantics" target="_blank">The Romantics</a>, Elliot Easton of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cars" target="_blank">The Cars</a>, Andy Babiuk of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Chesterfield_Kings" target="_blank">The Chesterfield Kings</a> and Clem Burke of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blondie_(band)" target="_blank">Blondie</a>. And that, my friends, should tell you roughly what it sounds like, why I like it so much and why you need to get yerself a copy. If it doesn’t, I’m afraid you’re going to have to retake <i><u>That’s What I Was Going To Say 101</u></i> next semester. The video for the single <i>“I Don’t Want Your Love (If You Don’t Want Me)” </i>will make a good study guide in the meantime.<br />
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<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/cheapcassettes" target="_blank">The Cheap Cassettes</a> - <i><a href="http://cheapcassettes.bandcamp.com/album/all-anxious-all-the-time" target="_blank">All Anxious All The Time</a></i></b><a href="http://cheapcassettes.bandcamp.com/album/all-anxious-all-the-time" target="_blank"> </a><br />
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“Big guitars and big hooks” is how The Cheap Cassettes describe themselves on <a href="http://cheapcassettes.bandcamp.com/album/all-anxious-all-the-time" target="_blank">their Bandcamp page</a>, right after listing a sizeable selection of their musical influences ranging from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Star" target="_blank">Big Star</a> to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redd_Kross" target="_blank">Redd Kross</a> to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Replacements_(band)" target="_blank">The Replacements</a>. OK, sold! Their debut LP, <b><i><a href="http://cheapcassettes.bandcamp.com/album/all-anxious-all-the-time" target="_blank">All Anxious All The Time</a></i></b>, is out now, and you can hear a couple of tracks from it on their page as well. They even offer up a pair of bonus free downloads of otherwise unreleased covers of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Vibrators" target="_blank">The Vibrators</a>’ <i>“Whips And Furs”</i> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Jesus_and_Mary_Chain" target="_blank">The Jesus & Mary Chain</a>’s <i>“Happy When It Rains.”</i> What are you waiting for?<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=1591421701/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=f171a2/tracklist=false/artwork=small/track=145738065/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;">&amp;lt;a href="http://cheapcassettes.bandcamp.com/album/all-anxious-all-the-time"&amp;gt;All Anxious, All The Time by The Cheap Cassettes&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;</iframe>
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</iframe>Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-87719955910470009202014-10-12T19:47:00.000-04:002014-10-12T19:47:47.090-04:00Six Word Sunday<br/><br/>
Patience. All things in good time.
<br/><br/>Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-36536825153129816522014-10-09T05:00:00.000-04:002014-10-09T05:30:13.975-04:00Throwback Thursday: Social Distortion "Mommy's Little Monster" (1983)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CffVCEEryAI/VDXbkTgZn3I/AAAAAAAABSY/rblCjNWiDwo/s1600/socdist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 0; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CffVCEEryAI/VDXbkTgZn3I/AAAAAAAABSY/rblCjNWiDwo/s1600/socdist.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
Every record collector has his stories of great finds and amazing deals, and I'm no different. Among my crate-digging stories is the day I scored an unopened second-pressing copy of <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_Distortion" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Social Distortion">Social Distortion</a>'s outstanding 1983 debut album, <b><i><a href="http://www.discogs.com/Social-Distortion-Mommys-Little-Monster/release/4266394" target="_blank">Mommy's Little Monster</a></i></b>, from the swiftly thinning vinyl racks of a mall chain record shop that was making the conversion to CD and cassette only and therefore dumping their vinyl stock for cheap. Total out-of-pocket cost including tax: $2.12. <i>That</i>, my friends, is a bargain.<br />
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<b><i>Mommy's Little Monster </i></b>captures Social Distortion immediately after their 1982 US tour with Youth Brigade chronicled in the excellent documentary <i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gpnz4i5rAzo" target="_blank">Another State Of Mind</a></i>. In the interim they had disbanded, but the film got enough interest going in the band again that they reformed and slashed out the album in a single day. Instead of making everything sound like a rushed job, the extremely short process imbues the album with a consistent sense of immediacy, urgency and energy that reflected the band at that point in time very well. <br />
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This isn't the Social Distortion that would evolve in later years, after Mike Ness became a hardened, jaded, modern day version of Johnny Cash. Here Ness and company are simply punk kids with an obvious appreciation for a well-placed hook and the yet-untarnished spark of enthusiasm that kicked an entire music scene into gear once upon a time. In nine short but memorable bursts of West Coast punk, Social Distortion created a classic album. <br />
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From the dizzying opening riffs of <i>"The Creeps (I Just Wanna Give You)"</i> to the ever-shifting tempo of the album's closer, <i>"Moral Threat,"</i> the three A's of the genre (alienation, angst and anger) are consistent themes. Solid playing and some surprising twists keep this from being just another by-the-numbers punk rock record, however: the song which lent its title to the previously mentioned documentary, <i>"Another State Of Mind,"</i> briefly drops the dangerous punk swagger for a surprisingly uncertain bit of reflection over life on the road; echoes of the sort of American roots rock that would become a hallmark of Ness's later music are already reverberating under the surface on more than a few tracks here.<br />
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The centerpiece, naturally, is the title track. <i> "Mommy's Little Monster"</i> paints two caricatures of go-nowhere punk kids, one male and one female, as society-rejecting, self-destructive wastes -- at least in the (socially distorted?) view of their parents -- and leaves their tales unresolved and without value judgment. Are they really so bad for having chosen a path away from the conformist norm? (<i>"His brothers and sisters have tasted sweet success/His parents condemn him, say his life's a mess"</i> and <i>"Her eyes are a deeper blue/She likes her hair that color too..."</i>) Maybe, as another Cali band would suggest a few years later, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoF_a0-7xVQ" target="_blank">all they wanted was a Pepsi</a>.<br />
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<b><i>Mommy's Little Monster</i></b> has been reissued several times over the years on a number of different labels, so it's not difficult to find. If you don't have this one, you should.<br />
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Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-24099378903290691142014-09-28T10:40:00.001-04:002014-09-28T10:40:47.862-04:00Six Word Sunday<br />
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I'm <i>*cough*</i> not <i>*sputter, snarfel*</i> sick!
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<br />Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-66293242262716826662014-09-25T05:00:00.000-04:002014-09-25T05:00:02.350-04:00Throwback Thursday: Tex & The Horseheads "Life's So Cool" (1985)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WLw-CqUAD9w/VCNxLwT35hI/AAAAAAAABSE/OmBrKxc2K-I/s1600/lifecool.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 0; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WLw-CqUAD9w/VCNxLwT35hI/AAAAAAAABSE/OmBrKxc2K-I/s1600/lifecool.jpg" height="250" width="250" /></a></div>
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/texandthehorseheads" target="_blank">Tex & the Horseheads</a> always struck me as if they just came stumbling out of a saloon in some post-apocalyptic future version of the mythical Old West, laughing and slapping each other on the back and falling down sloppy drunk and looking for their next drink, score or fight - whichever they happen to run across first. They were cowpunks before <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cowpunk" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Cowpunk">cowpunk</a> was a subgenre, both in musical style and in lifestyle. <br />
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They were led by a pint-sized whirling dervish by the name of Texacala Jones, a female version of <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stiv_Bators" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Stiv Bators">Stiv Bators</a> wearing <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Ant" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Adam Ant">Adam Ant</a>'s makeup who sported a sleepy "C'm'ere darrrrlin'" hick drawl worn raspy from an equal mix of whiskey, cigarettes and heartbreak with which she belted bootstompers like <i>"Tumbleweed"</i> and purred bluesy ballads like <i>"Big House Part III."</i> They were ragged, amphetamine-fueled, and authentic.<br />
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The best of their three albums was 1985's <b><i><a href="http://www.discogs.com/Tex-The-Horseheads-Lifes-So-Cool/release/1321510" target="_blank">Life's So Cool</a></i></b>, which contains the two titles mentioned above among its collection of hard hitting redneck punky rock-n-roll. Tales of drunken escapades (<i>"Bartender Sam"</i>), promises of rehabilitation (<i>"I'll Quit Tomorrow"</i>) and the inevitable backslide into bleakness (<i>"Jailed Again"</i>) combine for a helluva gut punch - you have no doubt at all that they have lived every word of it. Add to that a 40-second slice of <a class="zem_slink" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cream_%28band%29" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank" title="Cream (band)">Cream's</a> <i>"Cat's Squirrel"</i> (Texacala's Southern Comfort-slurred <i>"AWWWWrightawrightawrightawrightawright...all ri-i-ight!"</i> is the perfect intro to the album's festivities) and one of the greatest break-up songs ever, <i>"The Slip,"</i> and you've got a platter that is damn hard to beat. <br />
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Their earlier self-titled debut album is also good, but not nearly as self-assured; the import-only concert album that followed should have been a better document of the band in action but suffers from poor sound quality. <b><i>Life's So Cool</i></b> is the one to look for.<br />
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Check out two of my faves from the album, <i>"Lucky Hand"</i> and <i>"Big House Part III."</i> Enjoy!<br />
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<br />Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-34123404752478738842014-09-21T14:25:00.001-04:002014-09-21T14:25:29.212-04:00Six Word Sunday<br />
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Every day, getting better and better!
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<br />Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-76258793441431911002014-09-18T05:00:00.000-04:002014-09-18T05:43:12.817-04:00Throwback Thursday: Angry Samoans "Back From Samoa" (1982)<div style="text-align: left;">
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The <a href="https://www.facebook.com/angry.samoans" target="_blank">Angry Samoans</a> were abrasive, irreverent, sarcastic, crude and, as often follows, damn funny. On their second album, <b><i>Back From Samoa</i></b>, they were absolutely brilliant. <br />
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Fronted by the snarling "Metal" Mike Saunders, the Angry Samoans were part of the first wave of L.A. hardcore bands in the late 1970s. While they played as hard and loud and fast as any of their contemporaries, they stood apart from the crowd in attitude. Other bands may have taken the political route or tried to deliver some sort of message in their music, but not the Samoans. Instead, they reveled in B-movie schlock, class-clown antics, and a devastatingly sharp skewering of the very scene they were a part of. They refused to take themselves too seriously, but they had enough of an edge to make you think that they just might be dangerous.<br />
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On top of all that, they were good. Damn good. Their songs were short and punchy (<b><i>Back From Samoa</i></b>'s 14 songs fly by in just over 15 minutes!) but solid, and the musicianship matched. Even at top speed, the riffs are crisp, the rhythm on point, and the energy just crackles through the speakers.<br />
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Taken at face value, especially in today's Politically Correct world, the album could be seen as jaw-droppingly offensive; in the context of its time and place on the musical spectrum, the calculated shock factor is so defiantly over-the-top as to go beyond cartoonish and into the realm of self-parody. Songs like <i>"They Saved Hitler's Cock,"</i> <i>"Homo-Sexual,"</i> and the staggeringly foul <i>"Ballad Of Jerry Curlan"</i> (in which the title character's perverted sins, including incest and bestiality, are listed in specific detail) are so far over the line that only the most purposefully obtuse could possibly take them seriously. The band isn't actually encouraging you to <i>"put a fork in your hand/poke your eyes out"</i> (from <i>"Lights Out"</i>), they're just having fun (and poking fun at) being a stoopid punk band. Remember, in those days mainstream America thought punk rock was going to take us all to Hell in a hand basket. The Angry Samoans played right up to that fear and had a good laugh about it. <br />
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There are real gems to be found on the album as well: <i>"Gas Chamber" </i>is in the running for best hardcore song ever written; the sci-fi drenched<i> "Not Of This Earth"</i> foreshadows the direction the Samoans would go musically as the years went on; their cover of the Chambers Brothers' hit <i>"Time Has Come Today"</i> is not to be missed. <br />
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<b><i>Back From Samoa </i></b>is a classic punk album through and through. It has been reissued many times on many labels over the years, so tracking down a copy is not difficult at all. Obviously, the easily offended should stay away; those who can look past the surface and are willing to wallow in the muck for a bit will have a blast. To give you a taste, enjoy a clip of the Angry Samoans performing <i>"Gas Chamber" </i>and <i>"Not Of This Earth" </i>on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Wave_Theatre" target="_blank"><b>New Wave Theater</b></a> (with a brief interview that includes Saunders grabbing the microphone for an important message) and the actual video the band made for <i>"Time Has Come Today." </i> Enjoy!<br />
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Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-37991378616023580632014-09-14T10:06:00.000-04:002014-09-14T10:06:00.509-04:00Six Word Sunday<br/> <br/>Feels good to be blogging again. <br/> <br/>Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-72039003682170535602014-09-12T05:47:00.000-04:002014-09-12T19:04:08.929-04:00You've Been Comped! 10 of the Best Compilation Albums from the Punk/New Wave EraThe compilation album is a wonderful thing. In the times long before you kids had your newfangles digital doohickeys that allowed you to set up playlists of your favorite songs we had, of course, the mix tape. But before even the mix tape, the compilation album was the only way to go to have a mix of artists and songs all in one place. Part musical sampler platter, part musical buying guide, the compilation was a great way to be introduced to new bands that you were pretty much assured you were going to at least tolerate, if not like enough to go out and find their record. (One friend of mine built the foundation of his record collection on his stated goal to buy "every record by every band on that fuckin' <b><i>Burning Ambitions</i></b> album!")<br />
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My collection, too, experienced growth as a result of more than one compilation album brought into the house, and I can say from my own experience as a DJ on WDCE in Richmond, VA, that the comp is certainly the disc jockey's friend - a portable record collection in itself if you will.<br />
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Today, we celebrate the compilation album with this round up of ten of the best. You could begin with these ten and branch out from there to create a record collection that would be the envy of all your friends. So let's get to it! In no particular order:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-azFrRR_EN-c/VBKuOY-kYcI/AAAAAAAABQY/lliFv1cdJVA/s1600/burning.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 0; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-azFrRR_EN-c/VBKuOY-kYcI/AAAAAAAABQY/lliFv1cdJVA/s1600/burning.jpg" height="194" width="200" /></a><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">1.</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><b><i><a href="http://www.discogs.com/Various-Burning-Ambitions-A-History-Of-Punk/release/424574" target="_blank">Burning Ambitions: A History of Punk</a></i></b> (1984) – If you are looking
for one compilation to point to as a basic primer on UK punk rock, this
double-record import on the Cherry Red label is the one to pick, hands
down.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Though they weren’t able to get
the licensing to include the Pistols, The Clash or Siouxsie & the Banshees
(a fact bemoaned in the album’s liner notes), they were able to include just
about everyone else!</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">The Exploited, <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2009/05/punk-rock-weekend-part-one.html" target="_blank">The Damned</a>, Adam & the Ants, Generation X, <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2010/03/new-wave-for-new-week-56.html" target="_blank">The Stranglers</a>, The Lurkers, Cockney
Rejects, Sham 69 – they’re all here.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Even a couple Yankee acts (Dead Kennedys, The Heartbreakers) show up in
the mix.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">I remember whole weeks going by
when this album did not leave my turntable.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Why would it? It’s a virtual punk rock jukebox!</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Essential.</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ajoqj2bFvFU/VBK0n3n5cjI/AAAAAAAABRk/M5d0yTlLtk0/s1600/ROQalll.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ajoqj2bFvFU/VBK0n3n5cjI/AAAAAAAABRk/M5d0yTlLtk0/s1600/ROQalll.jpg" height="182" width="550" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">2.</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><b><i>Rodney on the ROQ</i></b> (<a href="http://www.discogs.com/Various-Rodney-On-The-Roq/release/1422687" target="_blank">1980</a>, <a href="http://www.discogs.com/Various-Rodney-On-The-Roq-Volume-2/release/676870" target="_blank">81</a>, <a href="http://www.discogs.com/Various-Rodney-On-The-ROQ-Vol-III/release/2329034" target="_blank">82</a>) – As young punk
I remember being pissed off that I lived on the wrong coast to hear the
legendary radio station KROQ out of L.A.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">I
read about the station and the fact that they played -- an actual radio station
that actually played -- all these bands I was into.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Longtime DJ and scenester Rodney Bingenheimer
led the charge with his Rodney on the ROQ show.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">The closest I ever got to hearing the show live was in the form of the
three comps put out on the Posh Boy label under Rodney’s name.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">All three are excellent, with the first being
the best of them:</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">when you begin with
Brooke Shields leading into <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2010/11/new-wave-for-new-week-101-by-request.html" target="_blank">Agent Orange</a>’s <i>“Bloodstains,”</i> you know you’re in
for a helluva fun ride.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Volume One also
features The Adolescents, Black Flag, The Simpletones and <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2010/02/new-wave-for-new-week-52.html" target="_blank">Cristina’s killer
rendition of <i>“Is That All There Is ?”</i></a></span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2010/02/new-wave-for-new-week-52.html" target="_blank"> </a>
</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Volume Two keeps the pace going with Social Distortion, Shattered Faith,
The Minutemen, The Little Girls and The Stepmothers; Volume Three counts Ill
Repute, Kent State’s killer <i>“Radio Moscow,”</i> Channel Three and a very early cut
from The Bangles (when they were still called The Bangs).</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Each splits the difference between a
definitely punkier side one and new-wavier side two, and each contains a
special issue of <b>Flipside</b> magazine.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">All
three are well worth picking up.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VJzZCPRVlE4/VBKuP8UVH4I/AAAAAAAABQo/tjSNEi0thIc/s1600/greatest.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 0; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VJzZCPRVlE4/VBKuP8UVH4I/AAAAAAAABQo/tjSNEi0thIc/s1600/greatest.JPG" height="198" width="200" /></a><o:p>3. <b><i><a href="http://www.discogs.com/Various-IRS-Greatest-Hits-Vols-2-3/release/1617274" target="_blank">I</a></i></b></o:p><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><b><i><a href="http://www.discogs.com/Various-IRS-Greatest-Hits-Vols-2-3/release/1617274" target="_blank">RS’s Greatest Hits Vols. II & III</a></i></b> (1981) – A
two-record set that begs the question, “Whatever happened to Volume I?”</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">(Bonus points to the first person commenting
with the correct answer.)</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">IRS (The
International Record Syndicate, silly) was one of the most awesome record
labels of the early 1980s, and this compilation of artists on their roster at
that time is flat-out mind-blowing array of talented artists with the chops and
the attitude to not only ride that somewhat tenuous line between punk and new
wave, but to stomp it fully into submission.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2009/05/punk-rock-weekend-part-one.html" target="_blank">The Damned</a>, The Cramps, <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2014/02/throwback-thursday-fleshtones.html" target="_blank">The Fleshtones</a>, <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2010/06/new-wave-for-new-week-72.html" target="_blank">Oingo Boingo</a>, The Buzzcocks, The
Fall, The Payola$, Squeeze, <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2011/04/new-wave-for-new-week-118.html" target="_blank">Skafish</a>, Alternative TV, The Humans, Fashion, Klark
Kent and more!</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> This one was a standard
party album for many years around these parts…</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ltg2W3JYso4/VBKuOPrODNI/AAAAAAAABQU/4_noBADYyeE/s1600/boston.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 0; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ltg2W3JYso4/VBKuOPrODNI/AAAAAAAABQU/4_noBADYyeE/s1600/boston.jpg" height="200" width="198" /></a><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">4. <b><i><a href="http://www.discogs.com/Various-This-Is-Boston-Not-LA/release/453709" target="_blank">This is Boston Not L.A.</a></i></b> (1982) – A wicked good
encapsulation of punk rawk done Boston style and, honestly, one of the best
hardcore albums ever.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">With bands like
Jerry’s Kids, The F.U.’s, Gang Green and The Freeze, how can you possibly go
wrong?</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Loud, hard, fast and fun – we
used to call this stuff “skate punk,” and while it certainly was a youthful
scene this old punk still smiles when he hears it.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">The Freeze’s stuff is the best here, in my
opinion, including classics like <i>“Idiots at Happy Hour”</i> and an otherwise
unavailable version of <i>“Trouble if You Hide,”</i> but there really aren’t any duds
here either.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">The CD adds the 7-inch
<b><i>Unsafe at Any Speed</i></b> comp released not too long after the album.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EwRnHltfMY8/VBKuM-ff6HI/AAAAAAAABQA/JRKk2U_C0g0/s1600/NNY.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 0; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EwRnHltfMY8/VBKuM-ff6HI/AAAAAAAABQA/JRKk2U_C0g0/s1600/NNY.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">5. <b><i><a href="http://www.discogs.com/Various-No-New-York/release/399666" target="_blank">N</a></i></b></span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><b><i><a href="http://www.discogs.com/Various-No-New-York/release/399666" target="_blank">o New York</a></i></b> (1978) – In the late 1970s, New York
City was not a pretty place. But there
were a lot of scenes happening all at once.
You had the Studio 54 disco scene, you had the CBGB’s punk scene, and
you had your mind-melting, ear-splitting No Wave scene combining the best parts
of both with a little (OK, OK, a </span><i style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><u>lot</u></i><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">)
atonal saxophone skronk added to the mix.
And you had Brian Eno there to document the latter in this nearly
indescribable album. <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2012/05/new-wave-for-new-week-152.html" target="_blank">The Contortions</a>,
Teenage Jesus & the Jerks (featuring a shrieking Lydia Lunch on vocals),
DNA, and Mars each contributed four cuts of mutant funk-punk squawking and
screaming and searing sound. Some will
find it painful to listen to, others (like me!) will revel in its anti-art
defiance, but anyone who hears it will not forget it.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cSj1aDqQJ4Y/VBKuO2aQYmI/AAAAAAAABQg/6kCbS44gWGM/s1600/front.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 0; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cSj1aDqQJ4Y/VBKuO2aQYmI/AAAAAAAABQg/6kCbS44gWGM/s1600/front.jpg" height="193" width="200" /></a><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">6. <b><i><a href="http://www.discogs.com/Various-Not-So-Quiet-On-The-Western-Front/release/582320" target="_blank">Not So Quiet On The Western Front</a></i></b> (1982) – 2
records. 47 bands in 74 minutes. An insert booklet that doubled as the first
issue of <b>Maximum Rock’n’Roll</b>. About the
finest damn hardcore compilation you’re ever going to hear, and proof that
those who said all those bands sounded alike either weren’t paying attention or
were fucking posers, man. Just a
recitation of the band names will bring a smile to the face of anyone who was
into the scene at the time: 7 Seconds, Pariah, Code of Honor, Bad Posture,
Flipper, Angst, No Alternative, MDC, and on and on. It’s fast, it’s furious, it’s excellent. And oh how we used to laugh (and still do) at
the Naked Lady Wrestlers’ <i>“Dan with the Mellow Hair.”</i> This one has been given a really nice CD
reissue with every track intact. </span><span style="font-size: 7pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Kdyw-D5DGTM/VBKuN-c1nAI/AAAAAAAABQQ/t7WCUg6RD1Q/s1600/Thau.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 0; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Kdyw-D5DGTM/VBKuN-c1nAI/AAAAAAAABQQ/t7WCUg6RD1Q/s1600/Thau.jpg" height="195" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">7.<b><i> <a href="http://www.discogs.com/Various-Marty-Thau-Presents-2x5/release/1144322" target="_blank">Marty Thau’s 2 X 5</a></i></b> (1980) – Marty Thau had been
around the record business forever, and was an early proponent of New Wave,
helping many artists get heard through his Red Star record label. For this compilation he selected two songs from
each of five New York City-based bands (hence the album title) and damn if he
didn’t go 10-for-10 picking them! Your
big name band here is <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2014/02/throwback-thursday-fleshtones.html" target="_blank">The Fleshtones</a>, who check in with an early version of
<i>“Shadow Line”</i> and a typical ‘Shtones romp,<i> “F-F-Fascination.”</i> Bloodless Pharoahs go a bit over the top with
their purposefully odd vocals, but they did count a young Brian Setzer among
the cats in the band. Neither The
Student Teachers nor The Revelons ever made big splashes on the scene, but
their contributions here are fantastic (especially Student Teachers’ <i>“Looks,”</i> centered
around the great couplet, <i>“I know I got my looks and you got yours/I guess it just wasn’t what I
was looking for…” </i> A couple of tracks
from The Comateens, who would go on to become a second-tier band of some note,
round out the collection nicely. A
must-own. </span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YVIaVK92XbY/VBKuO9WUcnI/AAAAAAAABRA/AsDFl3VpTLg/s1600/declaration.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 0; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YVIaVK92XbY/VBKuO9WUcnI/AAAAAAAABRA/AsDFl3VpTLg/s1600/declaration.jpg" height="200" width="188" /></a><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">8. <b><i><a href="http://www.discogs.com/Various-Declaration-Of-Independents/release/2375974" target="_blank">Declaration of Independents</a></i></b> (1980) – This early
comp collecting assorted regionally well-known independent label acts looking
to break big nationally is thoroughly undeserving of its relative obscurity
nowadays. (Granted, being on the fairly small but perfectly named Ambition
label meant the album wasn’t headed for a high-profile life from day one.) The biggest name on the album then – and now
– would be Pylon, whose debut single <i>“Cool” </i>is found here. But the music is start-to-finish solid,
ranging from the sparkly power pop of Luxury’s <i>“Green Hearts”</i> to the bar band
toughness of Robin Lane & the Chartbusters’ <i>“Rather Be Blind.” </i> There’s rockabilly from Tex Rubinowitz, surf
instrumental goodness from D. Clinton Thompson, Kevin Dunn’s giddy synth take
on Chuck Berry’s <i>“Nadene,”</i> and – only a few months removed from the Three Mile
Island nuclear scare – Root Boy Slim & the Sex Change Band teaching us to
do <i>“The Meltdown.”</i> Don’t miss Washington
DC’s Razz (featuring a young Tommy Keene, trivia buffs!), whose contribution
<i>“You Can Run (But You Can’t Hide)”</i> is a song begging to be covered for today’s
crowd. </span><span style="font-size: 7pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--tuIEYVVZ50/VBKuQmqyFVI/AAAAAAAABQw/bc85Q9-Q7g4/s1600/jelly.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 0; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--tuIEYVVZ50/VBKuQmqyFVI/AAAAAAAABQw/bc85Q9-Q7g4/s1600/jelly.jpg" height="200" width="195" /></a></div>
<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">9. <b><i><a href="http://www.discogs.com/Various-Let-Them-Eat-Jellybeans/release/4382052" target="_blank">Let Them Eat Jellybeans</a></i></b> (1982) – <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2010/04/what-weekend-part-3-always-room-for.html" target="_blank">Jello Biafra</a> curated this collection released smack dab in the midst of the classic
hardcore era. The big names here read like a who’s who of that scene: Circle
Jerks, Black Flag, D.O.A., Bad Brains and the Dead Kennedys themselves all make
appearances slashing along at top speed.
From Flipper’s <i>“Ha Ha Ha”</i> providing an uneasy funhouse-mirror
opening to Voice Farm’s eerily unsettling closer <i>“Sleep,”</i> the album never lets
up. Even a brief side-step in
pseudo-reggae (The Off’s wonderful <i>“Everyone’s A Bigot”</i>) is a bit jolting in
its frankness, and the guaranteed-to-offend track from The Feederz (<i>“Jesus
Entering from the Rear”</i>) simply has to be heard to be believed. A stunning collection. </span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PysaJI79u-c/VBKuRZk_Y0I/AAAAAAAABQ4/VQ9LZQvuMD0/s1600/urgh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 0; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PysaJI79u-c/VBKuRZk_Y0I/AAAAAAAABQ4/VQ9LZQvuMD0/s1600/urgh.jpg" height="200" width="198" /></a><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">10. <b><i><a href="http://www.discogs.com/Various-URGH-A-Music-War/release/5068289" target="_blank">URGH! A Music War</a></i></b> (1981) - Soundtrack to the movie of the same name,
the double-LP set compiles live performances by a simply fantastic collection
of new wave bands ranging from the famous (The Police, <a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2009/11/new-wave-for-new-week-43-bonus-entry-by.html" target="_blank">Devo</a> and Joan Jett are
all here) to the infamous (<a href="http://bryanrutt.blogspot.com/2011/04/new-wave-for-new-week-118.html" target="_blank">Skafish</a>’ s <i>“Sign of the Cross”</i> nearly got the whole
project banned in some places). Interesting
to note who was left off the album despite appearing in the film: punk poet John Cooper Clarke, the utterly
mysterious Invisible Sex (seriously, has anyone ever heard anything else from
them apart from their <i style="font-weight: bold;">URGH! </i>performance?) , and the only true punk band in the
picture, the Dead Kennedys, were all left off the vinyl. Still, it sits now as a nearly perfect time
capsule of what early 1980s radio would have sounded like in a perfect
world. Avoid the truncated CD reissue
and seek out the original vinyl. </span><br />
<br />
So, there's my list - how about yours? What are the compilations that got your record collection started? Which ones do we just have to hear? Tell us about them in the comments!<br />
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Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1768680258541622888.post-44682009678867594782014-09-04T01:00:00.000-04:002014-09-04T05:11:32.665-04:00Last Cigarette - Celebrating Ten Years Smoke Free!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ByrF71tJ_e4/VAe6ZzxTpDI/AAAAAAAABOI/ztsHq4Um_sk/s1600/smoke.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 0; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ByrF71tJ_e4/VAe6ZzxTpDI/AAAAAAAABOI/ztsHq4Um_sk/s1600/smoke.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<i>"<span style="color: #402297; font-family: arial; font-size: 12px;">Yea I know its killing me</span></i><br />
<i><span style="color: #402297; font-family: arial; font-size: 12px;">Yea I know its killing me</span><br style="color: #402297; font-family: arial; font-size: 12px;" /><span style="color: #402297; font-family: arial; font-size: 12px;">Yea I know I know I know I know I know I know I need a</span><br style="color: #402297; font-family: arial; font-size: 12px;" /><span style="color: #402297; font-family: arial; font-size: 12px;">Last cigarette, last cigarette, last cigarette, one before I go to bed..."</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="color: #402297; font-family: arial; font-size: 12px;"><br /></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #402297; font-family: arial; font-size: 12px;"> - Dramarama, "Last Cigarette"</span></i><br />
<i><span style="color: #402297; font-family: arial; font-size: 12px;"><br /></span></i></div>
<object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" height="40" id="gsSong490566185" name="gsSong490566185" width="250"><param name="movie" value="http://grooveshark.com/songWidget.swf" /><param name="wmode" value="window" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="flashvars" value="hostname=grooveshark.com&songID=4905661&style=metal&p=0" /><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://grooveshark.com/songWidget.swf" width="200" height="40"><param name="wmode" value="window" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="flashvars" value="hostname=grooveshark.com&songID=4905661&style=metal&p=0" /><span><a href="http://grooveshark.com/search/song?q=Dramarama%20Last%20Cigarette" title="Last Cigarette by Dramarama on Grooveshark">Last Cigarette by Dramarama on Grooveshark</a></span></object></object><br />
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At my worst, in my junior year of college, I was on a two
pack a day habit. Stop and think about
that for a moment. 20 cigarettes in a
pack means 40 cigarettes a day. To maintain that level of smoking, I had to
pretty much constantly have a cigarette going. And I pretty much did.</div>
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My smokes were always within arm's reach of the bed when I
went to sleep at night – you know, for those
wake-you-up-in-the-middle-of-the-night cravings – so the morning routine
involved having my first smoke of the day lit and half gone <i>before I even got out of bed</i>. If it
was a weekday, there were the before and after class clutches of smokers to
join in with. I smoked while I walked
between classes. I smoked before and
after meals in the dining hall. I smoked
while playing pool in the commons building.
I smoked while I studied back in the dorm room. If it was a weekend, well, there were parties
all over campus, and you couldn't have a drink without a smoke. Hell, I even mastered the art of smoking in
the shower.</div>
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Back then, though, most people I knew smoked. I knew more people who smoked than people who
didn't. It was something we just did. It was relaxing, stress-reducing. It was a social activity. It looked cool and chicks dug it, or so we
told ourselves. Hey, what better way to
break the ice with a cute co-ed than to ask if she had an extra smoke – or better
yet, to come to her rescue with an extra of your own if she was smokeless and nic-fitting. </div>
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We coughed up black stuff, we hacked and wheezed, we smelled
like chimneys, our clothes were permeated with the stench of stale tobacco, our
fingers were yellowed with nicotine stains.
And yet we smoked, smoked, smoked and smoked some more.</div>
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I had smoked on and off pretty regularly since I’d guess
about age 13 (confession: as a third or fourth grader I had experimented a
little bit thanks to neighborhood friends’ older brothers and sisters letting
smoke some of their cigarettes – usually as part of the pact made with the
younger siblings in exchange for their silence around <i>their</i> parents), but it was in college where I became a true
smoker. Never mind my terrible sinuses
or semi-annual bouts of bronchitis – smoke ‘em if you got ‘em!</div>
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One year, a particularly bad bout of bronchitis brought my
smoking to a temporary halt. I
physically could not breath in regular air without launching into an extended
coughing fit, much less inhale a lungful of tobacco smoke. After about a week, I was at my wit's end,
decided I was feeling well enough, and broke down and had a smoke. And another.
And then another. As coincidence
would have it, the bronchitis had run its course, and within a day or two I was
feeling much more like myself again. When
I recounted for anyone who would listen that finally smoking was surely what
had cured me, my roommate simply shook his head and said, “Bryan, you
have no friend in the Surgeon General.”</div>
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After college I wound up spending a few years in the
restaurant industry – again finding myself among a group of people who
smoked. Heavily. By now I was down to a more manageable half a
pack a day, but still I smoked. My
girlfriend at the time and I lived in a tiny two-room apartment, and we both
smoked - she probably more than I, although with a drink or two in me I could
still run through a pack or more in an evening if the mood was right. We’d tell each other that we really should
quit; we’d make pacts to quit together, but we never did quit.</div>
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Now, fast forward a few years. That girlfriend and I had split up; I was out
of the restaurant biz and doing very well in my marketing career. Well enough, in fact, that I was ready to
move out of that cramped apartment and buy my first house. As my friends and I were moving things out of
the apartment, I saw a sight I will
never forget. We pulled the sofa away
from the wall, and there was a nearly perfect outline of the sofa on that wall –
clean wall where the sofa had been, soot- and smoke-stained wall where it had
not. I vowed at that moment that I would
not treat my new house that way. I made
a rule for myself that I would not smoke in the new house. I would go outside
to smoke.</div>
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Over the course of the first two or three years in the
house, that's exactly what I did. There has
never been a cigarette smoked inside this house since I've owned it. I either went out on the front porch or the
back patio if I wanted to smoke. Slowly, over time, without realizing it, I was finding less and less
desire to stop whatever I was doing to go smoke a cigarette. Soon I was pretty much only smoking at work on
lunch break. </div>
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The Day came at the end of week's vacation from work. As usual for me, it was a stay-at-home
vacation. One night I went out on the
patio and lit up a cigarette. After just
a drag or two, it occurred to me that this was the first cigarette I had lit up
in a week. Not intentionally, not
consciously, it just hadn't occurred to me to smoke; I hadn't needed to smoke. “I don't need this!” I said to myself and
crushed out the nearly unsmoked cigarette.</div>
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That was September 4, 2004.
Ten years ago. I have not smoked
another cigarette since that day.</div>
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I vowed that I would never be one of those militant
ex-smokers. I’m of the live and let live
school: you want to smoke? Go ahead,
enjoy. Believe me, I know how good that
smoke can be. You're trying to
quit? Believe me, I know how hard the
habit is to break. But I am living proof
that it can be broken – for good.</div>
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Ten years smoke free.
That’s worth celebration.</div>
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Bryan Rutthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10472194924621675627noreply@blogger.com0