338. The Mission UK, Gods Own Medicine (1987) “I was sat at home one night, up very late, listening to records, and I’ve got Mission speakers,” Wayne Hussey explained when asked about the inspiration behind the name he chose for … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #338 to #336
341. Sonic Youth, EVOL (1986) In retrospect, it’s clear that EVOL is the album that marked Sonic Youth starting to grow up. Devotees of the band’s earlier anti-music roughhousing might have been more inclined to call it selling out, to … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #341 to #339
344. Graham Parker and the Shot, Steady Nerves (1985) For the erudite plentitude that touted Graham Parker of one of the great songwriters of his generation, and who rooted for the man to finally have a taste of the mass-market … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #344 to #342
347. Guadalcanal Diary, 2×4 (1987) Guadalcanal Diary evidently sought to recapture something they felt they lost when they recorded their third album, 2 x 4. After an excursion with other collaborators, the band from Marietta, Georgia returned to the producer … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #347 to #345
350. The House of Love, The House of Love (1988) Signed to Creation Records not long after their formation, the House of Love released a couple successful singles and seemed quickly, comfortably on their way to their debut full-length album, … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #350 to #348
353. Meat Puppets, Mirage (1987) Meat Puppets spent the first chunk of the nineteen-eighties making music almost relentlessly. They churned out recordings with speed and aplomb, then followed those with lengthy tours. About the only think that could slow their … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #353 to #351
356. Translator, No Time Like Now (1983) When 415 Records, an independent label based in San Francisco, inked a distribution deal with Columbia Records, Translator was the first act they brought to the newly accessible masses. Heartbeats and Triggers, Translator’s … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #356 to #354
359. The B-52’s, Mesopotamia (1982) After two full-length studio albums, the B-52’s had exhausted their backlog of original songs. Gary Kurfirst, the band’s manager, insisted that shouldn’t stop them from getting to work on a third record. His urgency to … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #359 to #357
362. Martha and the Muffins / M + M, Danseparc (1983) With the band’s fourth album, guitarist Mark Gane finally got the name change he’d been agitated for. Well, almost. The Toronto band Martha and Muffins took on their moniker … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #362 to #360
365. The The, Soul Mining (1983) Matt Johnson was just a teenager when he posted flyers seeking musical collaborators who, like him, were inspired by Syd Barrett and Throbbing Gristle. The various collaborators who came into his sphere over the … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #365 to #363
Coffee for Two 