Blue Hearts, the new album from Bob Mould, opens with something of a fake out. “Heart on My Sleeve” is Mould with little more than his acoustic guitar, strumming a muscular but lean melody as he sings out a weary … Continue reading The New Releases Shelf — Blue Hearts
446. Neil Young, Trans (1982) Neil Young was living through a strange time in the early nineteen-eighties, so it makes sense that he made some strange records. A cranky iconoclast often misconstrued as a folksy troubadour, Young simultaneously came upon … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #446 to #444
“Stupid boys with broken hearts/ Love to watch you fall apart” is a pretty irresistible chorus, especially when delivered with the bright brio Bleached bring to their songs as a default. There are more tumultuous undercurrents to the sentiment, though. … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Bleached, “Stupid Boys”
These posts are about the songs that just barely failed to cross the key line of chart success, entering the Billboard Top 40. Every song featured in this series peaked at number 41. The Kinks always felt like the underdogs … Continue reading Top 40 Smash Near Misses — “(Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman” and “Do It Again”
449. The Allman Brothers Band, Enlightened Rogues (1979) Enlightened Rogues is one of the clearest examples in nineteen-seventies rock of a band rising from the ashes of their own self-destruction. The infighting after the Allman Brothers Band’s 1975 album Win, … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #449 to #447
I think it’s the probing, slightly spooky synth line opening the song that takes me back to the college wonderments of decades past. And yet “Sad Cowboy,” the new single from Goat Girl, doesn’t sound like a throwback to me. … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Goat Girl, “Sad Cowboy”
452. Berlin, Pleasure Victim (1982) No one was really taking the group Berlin seriously at the time they released the album Pleasure Victim, least of all the individuals on the band’s roster. From the time the band formed in 1978, … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #452 to #450
Seventy-one candles make for an awfully bright birthday cake. When I was sitting in my basement bedroom back in high school, studying Bruce Springsteen lyric sheets like they were holy documents (and, to me, I guess they were), I wasn’t … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Bruce Springsteen, “Ghosts”
These posts are about the songs that just barely failed to cross the key line of chart success, entering the Billboard Top 40. Every song featured in this series peaked at number 41. Maxine Taupin used to sew patches onto … Continue reading Top 40 Smash Near Misses — “Tiny Dancer”
455. The Tubes, Remote Control (1979) It was a pairing destined to take pop excess to new heights. Across the late nineteen-seventies, the Tubes made a name for themselves by going large and bold with their rock pronouncements, like Elton … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #455 to #453
Coffee for Two 