The Things You Do For Love Are Gonna Come Back One By One

I promised to be more prolific, and here it is, a second blog post this week.  Will wonders never cease.  Today, I'm kind of copping out, while sharing some excellent music with the collected masses. 
Archive.org has long been one of our favorite sites, as it houses a collection of over 90,000 live recordings by thousands of artists (all of whom have given their blessing on recording their shows).  In the Cuddle's recent search for everything Mountain Goats related, we stumbled upon a huge treasure trove of shows by John Darnielle's collective at the site.  Below, you'll find one of our favorites, a wonderful sounding show from December, 2009 recorded at Webster Hall in New York City.  The version of "Love Love Love" is absolutely devastating.  There's just something about Darnielle's lyrics about human interaction that is so pure and simple and bare.  The show gives a great overview of the Mountain Goats' career, but sadly, doesn't include any of the excellent songs from All Eternal's Deck.  The player is a little wonky, as it doesn't include the set list as you listen, but the entire set list, along with directions on how to download the show for your very own are found HERE.  Enjoy none-the-less:



Until next time, browse around on Archive.org, find some great new music, and listen...

And I Feel Guilty, But I Can't Feel Ashamed

Sorry.  That's all I can say.  I've neglected you too long, my dear blog, but now I've returned to the fold, spurred on by wistfully picked acoustic guitar notes from an unlikely source, and some other indie treasures.  It's not like I have avoided music for the past (almost) 4 months, it's just that, you know, I get, er... distracted.
Enough about that.  I'm back.  I was knee deep in a jazz phase just weeks ago, and with it came a deluge of new purchases (mostly CD, not vinyl - Blue Note original pressings are too damn expensive).  But overshadowing that is my new love of everything Mogwai, Mountain Goats, and Antlers (yes, I guess I'm in an animal phase).
Mogwai was a band that I'd always been interested in, but never jumped on board with.  Coming across like an indie-metal version of Sigur Ros (without the made-up language), Mogwai make post-rock sound scapes that swell and burst in all the right places.  A friend passed me a copy of Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will, the band's 2011 release and I was immediately hooked.  "Mexican Grand Prix" sounds like a Kraftwerk outtake to me, but is ridiculously catchy.  Little did I know that this song doesn't come close to what the band does best.  "Rano Pano" seemed more like it - slow-burning crescendos with eruptions of wall-of-sound guitars.  I liked the record enough to seek out some other records, and was quickly directed to Young Team, the band's first album, and it's crushing centerpiece, "Like Herod".  For those who haven't experienced it (and sometimes, if it catches you off guard, those who have), the song's cathartic breakthrough is breathtaking and should not be missed by anyone with even a passing interest in this type of music.
Friends had always told me that The Mountain Goats would be a perfect band for me to obsess over.  The brainchild of John Darnielle (and sometimes, only Darnielle), The Mountain Goats cannot be easily categorized.  His songs are obtuse, verbose, strange, heartbreaking, and beautiful - sometimes all in the space of the same song.  His melodies are deceptively simple and often pushed by simple acoustic guitar lines augmented with just a touch of bass, piano, and drums.  I'm in the process of finding my way through the band's back catalogue, but for now, their new release, All Eternal's Deck, along with some beautifully recorded live shows by the king of New York City live shows, nyctaper, are plenty to keep me busy.  The new album's lead single, "Damn These Vampires" is a great place to start for the uninitiated (and the song that got me hooked).  You'll listen to it at least 3-4 times before you really figure out what's going on in Darnielle's lyrics, but when you do, a beautiful cinematic tapestry opens before you.  Beware - this band has what can only be called a FANATICAL following, where it's not uncommon to see many audience members openly sobbing during shows while singling along to every word.
Finally, the Antlers - I missed out on seeing this band live, opening for The National at Massey Hall last year by showing up just a little late.  At the time, I didn't blink an eye.  I hadn't tried to get into Hospice, their 2009 breakthrough that was universally praised by indie critics, nor did I really care to.  While listening to the College Rock station on XM Radio last week, I was struck by a song that was very different from anything that I was currently listening to, but had elements of Radiohead's Kid A, falsetto singing, a driving beat, and strange lyrics about teeth falling out.  The song turned out to be "Every Night My Teeth Are Falling Out" by The Antlers.  The falsetto voice belongs to Pete Silberman, the mastermind behind the group.  I took a chance on the record, based on that single song, and was not disappointed.  The album is definitely brooding, dark, and despondent, but somehow, gorgeous.  The opening track, "I Don't Want Love" is a perfect entry point to the band, and if you like that track, you'll like the album, Burst Apart - it's quickly rising to the top of my best of 2011 list.
The Mountain Goats - "Damn These Vampires" from All Eternal's Deck
The Mountain Goats - "Lovecraft In Brooklyn" from Heretic Pride
The Antlers - "I Don't Want Love" from Burst Apart
Mogwai - "Like Herod" (Live)

Here's hoping my next post won't be 4 months away (as there won't be anyone left to read what I write), but until next time, take a chance on some new music - you might be blown away by what you find... and listen...