Monday Mixtape, Vol. 122

I follow a number of random playlists by music doppelgängers that I’ve found during my searches through time, and many of them will post their favorite current albums by bands I’ve never heard of and wonder what rock these guys found them under, but alas, I will listen to the first two tracks of every album by these randomly named bands which will give me a feeling of whether they’re worth digging into more.

This is an easy technique to listen to a TON of new stuff to quickly cull through the garbage and find that which rings my ears. I bring you into this weird world of mine because I’ve started today’s mixtape with the first two tracks from James Blake’s (I know, I know, not exactly a “random” artist - WE’RE STARTING SLOW) new album, the fourth of his career, called Assume Form.

If you don’t know James Blake, words don’t exactly do him justice, his voice says it mostly and his production/orchestration say the rest. He’s not everyones’ cup of tea, but these two tracks (the second is expertly assisted by Travis Scott) give you a great approximation of whether you should dig in further to this album.

The remainder of the mixtape includes two tracks from Deerhunter’s EIGHTH ALBUM (I write this in CAPS because it’s wild that I’ve been listening to these guys since the beginning of their career back in 2007 - Yes, this is a sign that I’m (we’re) getting old), Post Malone’s new track, a great track from the perennially underrated Bear Hands, and my favorite song from Sharon Van Etten’s new album.

Happy New Year to all. Let’s have a hell of a 2019 in music and life.

Monday Mixtape, Vol. 54

The real star on this mixtape is Amber Arcades. This is the female Deerhunter. If you don't know Deerhunter, do yourself a favor and go listen to Halcyon Digest, one of the strangest, catchiest rock albums this decade. I included "Nothing Ever Happened" to follow Amber Arcades because a) I thought it sounded the most like "Fading Lines" although Deerhunter's "Desire Lines" was a very close second and b) it's my favorite Deerhunter song and it's actually not on Halcyon Digest! 

Just started listening to this track by Future Haunts - whoever the hell they are (all two tracks of them on Spotify) - and it immediately caught me. 

These Spotify Sessions curated by Jim Eno (the drummer of Spoon and producer extraordinaire) are recorded really well and worth checking out. I heard this one with FJM and have been digging into them since. 

A while back I wrote about Ghostface Killah making a really great jazzy album with a group called Badbadnotgood. This is a track off their new album with the wild and super cool live:

lead singer from Future Islands. (Letterman loved it!)

Have a great week all. 

Monday Mixtape, Vol. 25

This week's mixtape has got to start with Deerhunter. In anticipation of their new album released last Friday, I wrote them up in my 5 Faves a couple months ago. Their new album, Fading Frontiers, is fantastic.

I think it's their second best album behind Halcyon Digest, and the two tracks on this mixtape represent what is probably my two favorite tracks on the album. How good is the chorus in "Breaker" and the echoing interstellar keys in "Duplex Planet"? 

The second the drums come in on "Get To You," you have to be thinking one band: The Pixies. A band that is easily one of the most influential bands since the 1980s. Love the pace and guitar of this track.

I also wrote a 5 Faves on The Underachievers months and months ago. These two play off each other very well and choose psychedelia over whatever "hot" rap sound is taking over radio at the moment. I've followed these guys for a while now, and they just released a new album which I've been enjoying but still need to dissect further.

Julia Holter is a 30 year-old singer/songwriter who floats over orchestras and strings. She has a great voice, and I can't stop listening to "Feel You." She reminds me of Andrew Bird.

"Cuz I got a really big team, and they need some really big rings!"  

Kacy Hill. Check her out.

5 Faves - Deerhunter

There are bands that come along that defy convention. They don't get swept under the rug of "rock" or "rap" or any other genre but are viewed as unique without any distinct peer. Deerhunter is a perfect example.

Listening back to their discography, the band is all over the place. Their most recent album, Monomania, is a lo-fi Marhshall amp blasting decibels of fuzz and distortion. Before Monomania was their amazing (and my favorite) Halcyon Digest from 2010, a roller coaster of an album wrapped in a warped beauty. The opening track, "Earthquake," is unforgettable and the rest of the album outshines the opener in depth and originality. "Helicopter" sounds like a spaceage Ambien lullaby and "Desire Lines" is basically Part 2 to "Nothing Ever Happened."

As we go further back in time, the band is finding itself, rummaging around for a sense of identity while wearing masks of sounds to experiment with. My favorite track Deerhunter has ever made, "Nothing Ever Happened," is from 2008's Microcastle. It's six minutes of fucking rock, solos, and a bridge that never really ends. This track will determine whether these guys are for you - and admittedly, they're not for everyone!

I'm doing my 5 Faves for Deerhunter because they have just released their first single off of their new album, Fading Frontier, set to release in October of this year. As appears to be status quo for these guys, "Snakeskin" is just a bit different than their other stuff - a bit funkier, a bit more upbeat, a bit of all the other bits in their discography. Super pumped for the album!