Ah, heck, it's a long weekend and there are plenty of S-bands to go around, so let's pour us another round. Let's start with another lo-fi riser. Just as D.C. Berman of the Silver Jews went on to develop some serious singer-songwriter alt-country chops, Bill Callahan of Smog has also come a long way, baby. Not that "Mice" or the other five bits of song on 1991's 7" EP Floating, also on Drag City, aren't enjoyable, but it's a quantum leap from here to "A River Ain't Too Much To Love". Still, it's fun to retrace the steps. Careful [...]
Alas, a spotty wi-fi connection has pushed our Wednesday feature deep into the evening. Not that it matters, especially. If anything it is for the better, the switch from day to night further expressing the post's themes of duality. You buy that? Smog - "Bathysphere" (live @ the Cooler, NYC, 10/23/95) I posted a very recent rendition of this '95 classic on [...]
And a little surprised actually. Definitely a little surprised. It seems, my little Toadlings, that yesterday was a record day for all things Toad. We managed a record 1012 hits here at Song, by Toad and are quite annoyingly pleased with ourselves. Although the more established and professional bloggers probably get this many every other half hour, it still seems quite impressive to me for a relatively new blog and I am rather pleased, if not a little taken aback. I mean seriously, is there that little else out there on the great rolling plains of the internet [...]
1) "Police On My Back" - The Clash from Sandinista! [ Buy it ] 2 ) "911 Is A Joke" - Public Enemy from Fear of A Black Planet [ Buy it ] 3) "Ex-Con" - Smog from Red Apple Falls [ Buy it ] 4) "Behind Enemy Lines" [...]
Some more singer songwriters found under the letter S : Sufjan Stevens - Pickerall Lake Six Organ of Admittance - Torn by Wolves Cat Stevens - The Wind Smog - Feather by Feather Paul Simon - Duncan And two Rare ones from Elliott Smith Elliott Smith - Georgia Elliott Smith - Angel in the Snow [...]
I love The Breeders. After the Pixies disbanded it was not Frank Black's career I followed with great interest, but Kim Deals. Austin's Yellow Fever sound a bit like Pod era Breeders, and "Katcatcher," the first song off their self released EP, had it's hooks in me from the get-go. If you listen to [...]
I would like nothing more than to share with you the new Bill Callahan track "Diamond Dancer" off the single I received in the mail from Drag City a couple of weeks ago; but being a single release that would entirely defeat the purpose. So, if you're a Smog fan, go buy that shit. [...]
Rob : I get by because of the people who make a special effort to shop here - mostly young men - who spend all their time looking for deleted Smith singles, and original - not re released, underlined - Frank Zappa albums. Fetish properties are not unlike porn. I'd feel guilty taking their money, if I wasn't...well...kinda one of them. High Fidelity as one of my All Time Favs? What a cliché, but a damn good cliché! I think I have watched this movie like 52 million times, maybe that's an exaggeration, [...]
Photo by Luisa Cinta I'm giving serious thought to turning this into a Smog tribute blog. I've already said my share about Bill Callahan's music ( here , here , here ), but then I'll lower my guard and its quiet graces will ensnare me all over again. The culprit this time is 1997's Red Apple Falls , an old favorite that I'm rediscovering whole new wealth in. When I first got it, I listened to it loyally for at least a week before finally [...]
relation to music is a strange thing, how it changes for no apparent reason - how, for maybe an entire year, i trawled through all of the prominent mp3blogs, and quite a lot of the littler ones, trying to get something. trying to get something new and, as i think i learned more in retrospect, something of a quick fix. it was almost about riffs and hooks, although not in the conventional sense...it was kind of about gimmicks, i suppose, even when it was very aware of this shallow need for gimmicry, hooks, whatever, it still had its own special [...]
I've been a big fan of Smog for about a decade but somehow Bill Callahan's album Supper slipped past me. Actually, I know exactly how it slipped past me. It came out in 2003 which was the same year my daughter was born. There are a lot of great albums missing from my collection from 2002 and 2003 since those were the years my kids were born and it really wasn't until the end of 2004 before I knew what had hit me. So, playing catch-up, I [...]
(photo by aislinn_niconghaile ) In 1636 George MacKenzie was born in Dundee, son of Simon MacKenzie, He was educated at the University of St Andrews, also studying in Aberdeen and France. In 1667 he became Lord Advocate underneath Charles II. During his life he was most famous for enforcing the persecution of the Covenanters, which he did with vigour and without mercy, earning him the nickname 'Bluidy MacKenzie'. He died in 1691 and was buried in Greyfriars Kirkyard, Edinburgh. Â There, that's the less interesting stuff over with, though it is all fairly [...]
Keeping It Peel... I meant to post a picture I took of the John Peel memorial mural in Brighton when I was there in 2005, but I never got around to it -- here's a link to some people who did, though . And, in honor of John Peel Day , since we didn't schedule a tribute gig (however, The Limelight in San Antonio have devoted this weekend to Peel's memory), here's some cool Peel Session tracks from the way, way back in the vault... (N.B. the quality's kind of sketchy on some of these...) [...]
Smog - Justice Aversion The thing that I love about Bill Callahan's songs is that despite their tendency to dwell on things perverse and unnatural, they are also profoundly moral. Normally I make a distinction between an artist and his/her songs, as there is usually a considerable disconnect between an artist's opinion, and the opinion which is expressed by his/her lyrics. However, in Callahan's case, this distinction is often not so evident to me. So while his songs have a tendency towards unpleasant subjects, I have a [...]
lali puna 's valerie trebeljahr and markus acher's friends always told them how much they looked, acted like john lennon & yoko ono. so together they named themselves appropriately and created an intimate 7" with two of their favorite covers. mastered at abbey road, familiarity of the lil sounds that are so easy to love are present but its unknown if john yoko may do anything beyond this secret out of print release. the morning paper ...its all bad news on every [...]
Things will be a tad quiet round here this week. I start my new job tomorrow and have training in Leeds towards the end of the week so forgive me if I'm not around as much as usual. Normal service will be resumed shortly. But right now, just before I go to bed, I'm combining dead excited with nervous and shitting it. Wish me luck. Hopefully the big kids will play nice. Smog - I'm new here from 'A River Ain't Too Much To Love' [...]
[ Viva Voce ] Some select shows with quality bands/acts follow. You know the drill with Iota, you can only buy tickets to the shows day of and after they open. The fact that Silversun Pickups are opening for Viva Voce leads me to believe that Top and I will be able to catch both SSPU and Sparta (playing at the Black Cat) that night. Or maybe we will just stay for Viva Voce and try meet the folks from SSPU. You can find showtimes, ticket prices and a menu here . [...]
Three items: This is the sexiest song I've heard in ... well, ages, really. Sorry to be the last person on this bandwagon, seriously. Everyone was telling me about this record, and for some reason, I just kept acting like I had no idea who Junior Boys were. Duh. Junior Boys -- In The Morning Junior Boys -- In The Morning (Alex Smoke remix) Junior Boys -- Bellona My neighbor is totally running away [...]
you shall know our discography
Merry Swankster
Song, by Toad
Nerd Litter
Thepunkguy
An Aquarium Drunkard
Untitled
i got my photos back; a lot of them are blurry.
Un violon, un jambon
False 45th
Spleendid Indie Music Videos
bluets
The Rich Girls are Weeping
A.M. 180
music is art
to die by your side
Metro Distortion
Pictures Of Andre 3000 As Jimi Hendrix
The Corner Laughers “Poppy Seeds”
Today I Feel I’ve Sprung A Leak
10 Free Songs You Should Download Right Now
