The opening plinking tones, the gently kneaded sample of Hugh Masekela’s version of the R&B song “Stop,” the easygoing urgency of Black Thought’s rapping: there’s so much about “No Gold Teeth” that commands attention. Presented as an introduction to a … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Black Thought and Danger Mouse, “No Gold Teeth”
200. Los Lobos, By the Light of the Moon (1987) “We were trying to take it somewhere else — a step further or something, just to not repeat what we’d done,” David Hidalgo, guitarist and vocalist of Los Lobos, later … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #200 to #198
This is exactly the sort of breezy melancholy I’m looking for in my summer jams. Set against a shuffling indie-rock rhythm and lithe synth and guitars, the track expresses that sense of stasis that twentysomething scufflers have been humming about … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Sunflower Bean, “In Flight”
ROKIA KONÉ AND JACKNIFE LEE, Bamanan (Real World) — You don’t have to understand the language Rokia Koné sings in on Bamanan to feel the power of her words. A gifted performer from Mali, Koné expresses herself with resonant intensity, the … Continue reading Medium Rotation — Bamanan; Angel in Real Time; Squeeze
203. JoBoxers, Like Gangbusters (1983) Subway Sect was a band that spun like a revolving door. Their first single, released in 1978, featured them playing with fervor and fury. By the early nineteen-eighties, their sound shifts entirely to lounge-tinged pop … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #203 to #201
Yeah, that’s the stuff. We, the new album from Arcade Fire, is scheduled for release in May. Continue reading This Week’s Model — Arcade Fire, “Unconditional I (Lookout Kid)”
SPOON Lucifer on the Sofa (Matador) — Ten albums deep, there’s only so much boat rocking Spoon is likely to do at this point. They can change recording locales and approaches, layer on different sonic techniques, and try to tap … Continue reading Medium Rotation — Lucifer on the Sofa; Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You; Life on Earth
206. Kate Bush, Hounds of Love (1985) After releasing four studio albums in the span from 1978 to 1982, Kate Bush was conspicuously absent. Following the release of her 1982 album, The Dreaming, Bush retreated to the countryside, in part, … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #206 to #204
I come by the selections for this weekly feature in a variety of ways, but I think this is the first time the cut in question first found my earholes because it was lobbed into my social media feeds by … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Linqua Franqa, “Oh Fxck”
BLACK COUNTRY, NEW ROAD Ants from Up There (Ninja Tune) — If Ants from Up There must be the valedictory statement from this particular lineup of Black Country, New Road, at least it’s a bold, bristling farewell. Just days before … Continue reading Medium Rotation — Ants From Up There; Pompeii; Lighten Up
Coffee for Two 