Nobody's Listening, My Friend

Good Evening.  Tonight, we are happy to introduce a new and (hopefully) recurring feature at The Ideological Cuddle.  I had the idea recently to throw some quick hit posts out there, highlighting Top 5 lists (everyone likes lists, right???).  There are tons of ideas bouncing around in my head (and further suggestions are always welcome... leave a comment).  Here's the first :

The Ideological Cuddle Top Five:  Unexpected Covers

1. The Afghan Whigs - "Miss World" - This might be my favorite cover of all time.  Greg Dulli manages to boil the punk roots of the Hole original down into a dirge - comprised of slow marching piano, pleading trumpet, sax, and trombone only.  Courtney Love's lyrics of self-loathing are taken from declaration of independence into funeral rite.  Originally released on the "Somethin' Hot" single, it is well worth seeking out.

2. Elvis Costello - "Beautiful" - Recorded for and initially heard over the end credits to an episode of the TV show House, Costello's take on the Christina Aguilera hit is surprising for its unadorned beauty.  It can be found on the soundtrack to the same show.

3. My Morning Jacket - "Tyrone" (Live on KVRX Radio, October, 2000) - This one shouldn't come as much of a surprise to those of you familiar with MMJ's sound.  Fans know that the band can stretch out into funk territory with the best of them.  Their reworking of Erykah Badu's classic is very faithful, funky, and fully-realized.  Jim James' gentle falsetto sits front and center.  The band has been known to pull this one out of their bag of tricks from time to time live in concert.  Keep an eye out for it (and click above for the real thing).

4. Gillian Welch and David Rawlings - "Black Star" (Live at Bonnaroo, 2007) - I hope everyone out there has heard the Radiohead original of this song, as it's a beautiful, guitar-driven ode to relationships on the brink of disaster, and one of the band's true underrated gems.  Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, alt-country troubadours to be sure, strip away the noisy layers of guitar and feedback, leaving the beautiful, acoustically strummed melody unadorned.  Their voices intermingle beautifully, leading to a stunning performance.  Not to be missed.

5. Ted Leo - "Since U Been Gone > Maps" (Live in Studio) - OK, not only does this track include two covers, but it shows Ted Leo's range (or possibly his insanity... maybe both).  Not many indie rock superheroes would dare cover something as mainstream as a Kelly Clarkson song, but Leo pulls it off with aplomb, showing the song to be a stunningly catchy tune.  His ability to go seamlessly into the Yeah Yeah Yeahs lone hit, "Maps", shows not only his range, but the scary similarities between the tunes.

BONUS COVER!!!  Ted Leo - "Spirit of Radio" (Rush cover Live In Studio) - The awesomeness of this track just speaks for itself - Ted Leo + Rush = Indie Fan Boy Wet Dream (and shit can Ted play guitar).

Until next time, drop your thoughts on future Top 5 lists below, or just feel free to share some of your favorite Unexpected Covers... and don't forget to listen...

I've Got Style, Miles and Miles, So Much Style That It's Wasted

Just a short update and some recommendations from your friends here at the Ideological Cuddle. The first week of big releases of 2010 was last week, and with it came 2 wonderful records. First, Ted Leo and his Pharmacists dropped The Brutalist Bricks - now fighting with Spoon's Transference for first place in the early Best of 2010 race. It's filled with Leo's trademark hooks, political rants, and enough guitar RAWK to satisfy the most jaded of rock fans. Leo always brings the indie cred as well, as most of our favorite indie outlets (pitchfork, Stereogum, et al) are drooling over this record. As usual, I suggest the vinyl version - available at most music outlets worth their salt, or at matadorrecords.com. Unfortunately, the local Ideological Cuddle turntable had to be sent back from which it came for repairs (it's never good when you can't get through a track without significant motor slowdown), but hopefully it will return very soon.
The second of last week's important new releases (ok, there were plenty more, including The Broken Bells record - Danger Mouse and James Mercer of Shins fame; Titus Andronicus' The Monitor; and The Gorillaz' Plastic Beach) is the first "greatest hits" record from THE MOST IMPORTANT BAND IN MUSIC HISTORY (according to Pitchfork and hipsters everywhere). That I am this late to this party (15-20 years by my calculations) comes from avoidance. There was just soooooo much hype around this band that I purposefully didn't listen. Now that I am completely obsessed, I wish I wouldn't have been so foolish.
The band is Pavement, the record is Quarantine The Past. Since the band only had one "hit" (90's alternative anthem "Cut Your Hair"), this isn't really a "greatest hits" album. It's more of a love note to fans old and new. Since most Pavement devotees will already have all of these songs, Matador likely put this together as a means to capitalize on the band's reunion tour and a means to rope in younger fans. Their plan worked with this new convert. When I initially considered picking up the record, I checked out Pitchfork's review - the critic described each of the album's 23 tracks as "unimpeachable gems" and gave the record a 10 out of 10. Hmmm. Sounded like typical Pavement wankery to me... until I actually listened. "Cut Your Hair", "Summer Babe (Winter Version)", and "Unseen Power of the Picket Fence" I knew. But tracks like "Stereo", "Golden Soundz", "Two States", "Shady Lane", "Range Life", and "Spit on a Stranger" just blew me away. Slightly off-kilter but genius none-the-less, I slowly began to agree with Pitchfork's assessment. Needless to say, the CD hasn't left my car's stereo. I look forward to digging deeper into the band's back catalogue (which isn't that extensive and has been exhaustively expanded through Matador's re-releases) along with Stephen Malkmus' work with The Jicks.
A final word for today's post. This month's issue of Paste magazine contains a great little one page editorial article by Maura Johnston that describes why MP3s and digital music don't have the power of physical forms of music like albums and CDs. I encourage all of you to check it out, as it beautifully sums up my feelings. Check it out at Paste's website HERE.

Until next time, check out Matador Records' latest two-headed monster - Ted Leo and the Pharmacists' The Brutalist Bricks and Pavement's Quarantine The Past - while thinking about thumbing through some albums that you might have forgotten about. Enjoy.

I Was Whistling A New Song To Myself, And It Went, It Went Something Like This One

Good Morning, blog aficionados. Welcome back to the suddenly prolific Decade's Best list at the Cuddle. Today, we roar into the top 5 with a record that remains very special to me for a number of reasons.

NUMBER 5:
Ted Leo & The Pharmacists - Hearts of Oak

Fiercely independent. Trailblazer. Progressive. All of these have been used to describe Ted Leo, and each is perfectly accurate. His music stands as a signpost in the last decade's indie music explosion - mixing the best parts of indie rock, punk, new wave, folk, and even hardcore into something that still sounds fresh every time you listen. I can clearly recall purchasing this beauty in New York City at Other Music while visiting one of my dearest friends, KB, who has been a driving force in pushing my musical boundaries for the past 15 years. I was lucky enough to find myself in her neck of the woods in the Spring of 2003, and had heard about Ted Leo through one of the many music blogs that I frequent. On first listen, Hearts of Oak roared into my consciousness.
The progressiveness of his music is apparent from the opening statement, "Building Skyscrapers in the Basement", but the first bouncing guitar chords of the following track - "Where Have All The Rude Boys Gone?" - is where things take off for the stratosphere. The tune, an ode to The Specials and the 2-Tone sound, shows that Ted is one of us - a music fan and hipster in every sense of the word. I chose the song as my favorite of 2003. The hooks continue a-plenty through "Hearts of Oak", "Dead Voices", and "The Anointed One". The pace is breakneck through many of these tunes, although never unfocused or chaotic. There seems to be a sense of control that only Leo could bring to the affair. Although his ringing guitar is front and center through most of the record, he deftly weaves other prominent sounds through the songs. Check out "Bridges, Squares" : a prominently pushing and rising bass line bounces throughout the track and hits front and center at the song's breakdown at the 2:49 mark -you'd swear you were listening to "Police and Thieves" by The Clash (and, in fact, that's likely the allusion that Leo is making). On "Tell Balgery, Balgury is Dead", an organ line announces its presence at the song's outset and fills the background with color throughout.
Ted Leo's voice and lyrics are really the star of this album. Lying somewhere between the excited bleat of Phil Lynott (from Thin Lizzy - a common point of comparison in other critical analyses) and the political fire of Joe Strummer, Leo's voice screeches and hits falsetto on many points. At others, his machine-gun delivery peppers the listener (i.e. on "Ballad of the Sin Eater"). He never shies away from giving the listener some new words to chew on - ever heard a rock record's lyrics incorporate the words "ossify" and "apostasy"? How about in the same chorus? "Bridges, Squares" manages that feat. Hearts of Oak can't be considered as political as some of his later albums (Living With The Living comes to mind), but is definitely his most heart-felt, choosing to investigate the politics of relationships romantic, nostalgic, and otherwise.

I can't speak about this record without making special mention of "2nd Ave, 11 A.M.", a straight-forward punk song that has been known to hurtle along at an insane pace live in concert. The song is great, but took on greater significance for me after physician mentor of mine asked me to put together a workout mix for him (since he knew that I was really into music). The song fit as the centerpiece of a mix I anointed the "Heavy Workout Mix" (really inventive, I know). I can only hope that he used that mix as much as I'd hoped he would, as, a short few months later, that man, Dr. Richard Sarkin, was tragically killed in a plane crash in October, 2004. A master educator and driving force at The University of Buffalo's School of Medicine and at Women and Children's Hospital in Buffalo, Dr. Sarkin remains a legend to all of those whose path he crossed. I think about Dr. Sarkin and his profound influence on my career everyday as I see my patients. I couldn't have gotten to where I am today without him and know that his ears were opened to new worlds with that mix. I can only hope that Ted Leo brought some energy to his days, as it clearly has to mine.

Hearts of Oak - "Hearts of Oak"
Hearts of Oak - "Where Have All the Rude Boys Gone?"

Number 4 later today. The Top 3 later this week.
Until then, relax, listen, and remember those who have meant so much to your lives.