tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67135051897345451482024-03-13T02:39:09.191-05:00Cherche la Fave...Please join me on the impossible quest to identify my one, favorite song!Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-6801318410396357722011-12-25T00:46:00.005-06:002011-12-25T01:07:46.205-06:0017. Pearl Jam vs. The Hush Sound vs. Hole<table border=0 cellspacing=3 cellpadding=0>
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<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXhrtISMxNfReyIaxrL6JJA1viPzh6saasAiakDSyW6d1bRA6HlePJRLjZNIQ4IfTuw1Wpl6zylvcyTGsTJa3Gfu0JJVOO2KJWOEgHyEAdIWVYdpdyaKBrWJrtpWBVUyRP2ohXntxpybQ/s320/17a-vs.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-kAkCK9sHS5JiKrKnISPrkSPV0Nal7WOh5mHohHnrBAD4DXGa8f560N_X0vZrbVBbn5OSXmXayiFx5vXttQpw2_1VNSJsuIoIp76NbfLPid6FwSRkVKNRUuoZJi5yuQrixaBLZai_28E/s320/17b-likevines.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzhzcuKD5vblVLJgekvKaHje5QZcjVTZGC8kgJbM9Bagdh6hjvqq4kfbW8XepdaQbGgLCeBBF7jxQAe3ccT9Tvcn-esYjS1o5LhR_aChF2RBbBJ8On5dC95VM3xtE_w_kHAZe85PFIZ8w/s320/17c-livethroughthis.jpg" border="0"></td>
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<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Rearviewmirror"<br>by Pearl Jam<br>from <i>Vs.</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Sweet Tangerine"<br>by The Hush Sound<br>from <i>Like Vines</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Miss World"<br>by Hole<br>from <i>Live Through This</i></font>
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<p><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1V19GJG6TF4eoHDkm3MA6M" target="_new">"Rearviewmirror"</a></b> (6 plays at Last.fm, unranked): It's weird how we map ideologies onto our tribes. In that strange time from the fall of 1991 to the spring of 1993, I was a devoted Nirvana partisan. I hated Pearl Jam and the, let's say, corporate rock that they represented. They were had an easily packaged angsty story that wasn't exactly buried under layers of subtext. They were in "Singles," the "Desperately Seeking Susan" of the early 90s. When people accused Stone Temple Pilots of ripping them off, I wondered how you could rip off something so fake.
<p>But OK, I was 13, and by the time I turned 14 something clicked. Their superb performance on <i>Unplugged</i> helped, as did the advance hype for <i>Vs.</i> And though it set sales records on the strength of "Go" as the lead single, I suspect it could've done even more leading with this song, which was never even officially released as a single. Opening with a bouncing, simple riff, it's almost perfectly inviting, and is structurally magnificent. The breakdown and return sections work great as Eddie Vedder's vocals begin to strain and deteriorate. Vedder wrote the music himself and it really demonstrates his growth as musician, as the lyrics and music work more cohesively than anything on <i>Ten</i>.
<p>Thematically, the angst and anger of <i>Ten</i> gives way here to emergence and escape, and does so without some of the really obvious poetry that fills both of the first PJ albums. This is a taste of where Vedder would go on <i>Vitalogy</i>. It's also the second of three amazing eighth tracks that the band would their career with, following <i>Ten</i>'s "Porch" and preceding <i>Vitalogy</i>'s "Corduroy," which is coming later in the tournament.
<p><b><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ah4cFhN0ibw" target="_new">"Sweet Tangerine"</a></b> (17 plays, tied for #40): The middle part of the last decade saw the quick rise and fall of a certain kind of male/female indie pop-rock epitomized by the Hush Sound. The form is basically already gone -- most practitioners have shifted noticeably harder (Tonight Alive) or softer (Gold Motel, featuring the Hush Sound's Greta Salpeter). The Hush Sound's second album is probably the foremost example of this genre, and this song is one of its several extremely catchy tunes that combines a plinky piano line with overdriven guitars to create a great, driving tension.
<p>As great a song as it is, though, I'm not even sure it's my favorite song on this album. "Don't Wake Me Up" is also terrific, as is "A Dark Congregation" and a few others. So not a likely winner, but a solidly built and powerful pop song, of a kind that disappeared too fast.
<p><b><a href="http://www.vevo.com/watch/hole/miss-world/USUV70601012" target="_new">"Miss World"</a></b> (3 plays, unranked): Even as a Nirvana partisan, I don't know if there's a party line on <i>Live Through This</i>. It's trite to call it the "lost Nirvana album," and I tend to think there's some sexism in that legend, too (though I don't really feel the same about calling <i>Celebrity Skin</i> a Billy Corgan project for some reason). There's no denying the influence of Kurt Cobain here, but it's also nothing like what Nirvana had become by the time it was recorded in 1993. If anything, you can hear a reappraisal of <i>Bleach</i> and the early Nirvana singles in this album's fuzzed-out, simple guitars and pop song structures; if <i>Nevermind</i> was about ripping off the Pixies, <i>Live Through This</i> was about ripping off the Breeders.
<p>"Miss World" itself was released as a single eight days before Cobain's suicide, and at exactly three minutes long, it is maybe the quintessential pop single of the original grunge era. The dueling crunchy and bright guitar parts play off each other beautifully, particularly in the repeated choruses toward the end; Courtney Love's vocals mirror this as she switches between sneer and sincerity. And of course, there's more than a little in there to glom onto in retrospect, realizing it all had to end. This album, <i>Vitalogy</i> and Soundgarden's <i>Superunknown</i> sort of form the firewall of 1994's clash with the future in my mind, and this song is where it starts.
<p><b>VERDICT</b>: I realize that it's now over 18 years old, and is edging very close to classic rock status, but that's a label that "Rearviewmirror" really deserves. As key a role as it played in turning me around on Pearl Jam, I probably could've written another 500 words just on its subject matter. It'll be interesting to see how it holds up next to some newer classics in later rounds.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-83526654479734352322011-11-22T14:38:00.002-06:002011-11-22T14:38:48.172-06:0016. Queens of the Stone Age vs. Failure vs. Piebald<table border=0 cellspacing=3 cellpadding=0>
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<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaWIwr3Q4K9GdtdvqYOlfFYLm2EzEsSO4XWemzQ1M7U8KmuSnA5tlfujqkmgmWKvXZXVNue_HEcl19MvKn3CTwxOcGC7p8mj0SOXQZIXGh-l7UH2-mo0S_N_v-5v3tTwIWG5kmbfiY_Bk/s320/16a-songsforthedeaf.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNRBh4gq9PutHBz3cap7ClLiRs4ET24-eodQLvlsQYi7A28r0URofgk5-jAHZ_51oTs8KtoLGhyzL8YFZyZ8GuyEH84NS6kH7EAUgtYCMn63Fy6i4dwBedZLuzbixOyA3jMlaf2zCrJPo/s320/16b-fantasticplanet.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWMA8bIB6KNwC0Vav0LQQ2wfEn-KzLdrYhoYqvRCF0Aaqi-MnAxkSF12fglhoTKdkzfbTOk2LAvNzLvIMouxMwuLzGaeaoYMVyY3EPkgOLLFESnN_ht7EfkPxzz1HLYMAeH1IpSfp1ckc/s320/16c-wearetheonlyfriendswehave.jpg" border="0"></td>
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<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"No One Knows"<br>by Queens of the Stone Age<br>from <i>Songs For the Deaf</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Stuck on You"<br>by Failure<br>from <i>Fantastic Planet</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Just a Simple Plan"<br>by Piebald<br>from <i>We Are the Only Friends We Have</i></font>
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<p><b><a href="http://www.vevo.com/watch/queens-of-the-stone-age/no-one-knows/USIV20200255" target="_new">"No One Knows"</a></b> (7 plays at Last.fm, unranked): Every time I hear this song I think of something Kurt Cobain said in that big Nirvana interview with MTV around the time <i>In Utero</i> was released. He said one reason he was excited to have Dave Grohl join the band was that his drumming was so metronomic. I don't think that's more true on any other song than this one. The driving rhythm of his drumming and Nick Oliveri's bass is so key to making this tune work that I couldn't imagine it happening had Grohl not been part of this album. On top of that, this is both the quintessential QotSA song and the best song of Grohl's hard rock summer of 2002, as well as bring the rare breakout single that's both highly anticipated and totally awesome.
<p><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/2OIVVL8IZsyUufcaCxdh4g" target="_new">"Stuck on You"</a></b> (1 play, unranked): As much as I liked Ken Andrews' subsequent bands, On and Year of the Rabbit, I never could get into his classic first band, Failure. This song is the exception. That squealing, opening lick is the kind of thing that makes you want to be in a band, just to cover it at the top of your set. Meanwhile, the grinding melody of the rest of the song makes for a great closer (as Andrews also later did with YotR's "Say Goodbye"). It's a real accomplishment to have a song that feels so much like the mid-90s but also seems to foretell a lot of what I would like in the hard rock of the following decade.
<p><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/35UHMIzxbMkaCwxwFSeuvh" target="_new">"Just a Simple Plan"</a></b> (5 plays, unranked): Hearing this song as my first exposure to Piebald, I never would have guessed that they'd previously been a hardcore band, and that they angered many of their fans with a big shift towards pop. This was the record that really pulled me into the nexus of alt. power pop bands like OK Go and Troubled Hubble, but Piebald -- especially here -- always had a very unique flavor to how they did it. The music here is simple but with a subtle snark to it -- not Aquabats snarky, but something almost soundtrack-like. At the same time, Travis Shettel's vocals are clever and self-referential without seeming forced. The voice in this song (and the whole album, really) shows a perfect transitional state between the hardcore and "mature" versions of the band.
<p><b>VERDICT</b>: I will actually rock out to "No One Knows" in the car, nearly 10 years later. As much as "Stuck on You" still works for me, the edge goes to the song that was both the calling card and swan song of the real Queens of the Stone Age, before Oliveri went nuts and left the band's sound a trebly mess.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-30459803959478559462011-11-21T14:53:00.000-06:002011-11-21T14:53:16.028-06:0015. Charlemagne vs. Eisley vs. Interpol<table border=0 cellspacing=3 cellpadding=0>
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<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgczvKSh_mDX1mNxfINM4FsdcYy8Hhy0jrswkHQ5qaxKzEbgjmoqPkzwJnx68cWIKersmDQyT0ivkz0jGfogBHaTWBgIbLveOzL33w4aE2KlZZozdPhg2JVL_0bEAfIOrfE8YSAtNDIH_I/s1600/15a-detourallure.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNLQowHmSZaPvu-AE_L-ynPlLJTIQU_q56aBZjBXAJYwxsng00fmuBezerKaoZJ42p16JxF3xwZ5lJXclLiyvGpVEF8JbeC-Cd-G585ApuLdUSOrZR28l8RN9l72OCs2ny8g6H0jFn7I8/s1600/15b-roomnoises.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlqXPY4QojyV5V8QKvgDn4L6x2sE73T7JKe3nXD0BYjaLEKyGs6UBEe7h27udj_OPiMihn9U2PTU9wP1xIY0uNy3yxfjoq46wqDCf5Kq5EKSRsx_6esm6ybPMk3kJ3SzeE4irxXwaFXtU/s320/15c-antics.jpg" border="0"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Pink and Silver"<br>by Charlemagne<br>from <i>Detour Allure</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"I Wasn't Prepared"<br>by Eisley<br>from <i>Room Noises</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Evil"<br>by Interpol<br>from <i>Antics</i></font>
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</table>
<p><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3nZhyA40xwjy0SLzmTwKON" target="_new">"Pink and Silver"</a></b> (14 plays at Last.fm, tied for #82): Leading off Charlemagne's second album, this tune's synthy, fuzzed-out folk pop encapsulates in many ways the preeminent Madison sound of the middle of the 2000s. It's hugely catchy and makes for a great, stage-guest friendly set opener. On the other hand, it's a little slight lyrically, especially when compared with the also catchy "Fave Unknown" from the same album. Possibly my favorite local song, but not a likely contender overall.
<p><b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/78ff88Z1ZBcqy8TUTX7wuY" target="_new">"I Wasn't Prepared"</a></b> (4 plays, unranked): My first time through Eisley's debut LP, this was an immediate grabber. The song is so well structured as a showcase for Stacy DuPree's breathy soprano, without itself being overly fragile. And in fact, this was the song I kept coming back to for quite a while. But while this one a ceiling early on, others such as "Telescope Eyes" and "Trolleywood" have grown on me a lot, leaving this song's relative prominence a bit lower. Still, it's a big part of what drew me to similar acts such as Minipop.
<p><b><a href="http://hypem.com/item/4dgh" target="_new">"Evil"</a></b> (9 plays, tied for #299): I never got into the first Interpol album, and I think the consensus over the last few years is that they're no good anymore. But I liked <i>Antics</i> a lot, and this was the song that opened the door. That sweet, simple bass line to kick it off builds to an awesome song structure that culminates in one of those great moments as it all peaks - "Rosemary, <b><i>aw</i></b>, heaven restores you in life." It brings things together to set the album's mood in a way that probably wouldn't work without this song.
<p><b>VERDICT</b>: This is sort of a weak round, but "Evil" stands out as the best of the bunch. The way it crescendos and glides back down really makes the whole album work and allows Interpol their best moment of their own identifiable sound.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-45234329666710006992010-06-30T12:47:00.002-05:002010-06-30T12:48:22.713-05:0014. System of a Down vs. Pearl Jam vs. Weezer<table border=0 cellspacing=3 cellpadding=0>
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<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjll9Emxf_od68-3YAJRgUnEFzb5gEQlYhmfI34hK22bAadZ9gsGiIlbEkQBEcahlPTeYQ-U73p48F_SzDfPY6ehgQvULvI2oJmXTxdua9CKwqEAe6eG6EbjQLc70pPEyXYXL_DDlgVkd0/s320/14a-toxicity.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiOm4AavwtRKdOX_Z2yPKJBHo9u5vtjJZHabMo-ch1DzbmQ-zAgKes4Xd8bmfigl1Y8wohxgajQO7EFzam1wE7w4DT9VAVtYUIanO6gJQIj-LtG4IfC_eSGJgJoHRQEYriylH3uyln6sI/s1600/14b-yield.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWKNdXmb_Jc6ahmi2gGkDcoHvYspfbA-qgwbAFWjwRF4I56SuLy-yUAOQi52LqrwwkaXFLe9xRjkHI3i-WnUPapyycDOh6UOnQEWNsOn67JVB8_qOm2cLcj-e2YEzpODgluIH1sz_54TI/s320/14c-weezer.jpg" border="0"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Aerials"<br>by System of a Down<br>from <i>Toxicity</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"In Hiding"<br>by Pearl Jam<br>from <i>Yield</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Only in Dreams"<br>by Weezer<br>from <i>Weezer</i></font>
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</table>
<p><b><a href="http://www.rhapsody.com/system-of-a-down/toxicity--edited" target="_new">"Aerials"</a></b> (7 plays at Last.fm, unranked): There's so much to hear in this tune it's hard to know where to start analyzing it. You can find Alice in Chains, you can find Metallica, you can find Soundgarden, not to mention the band's eastern European influences and unique showmanship. As the best song on an album the band didn't know how to follow up, it has the bitter flavor of impending doom to it, but also has come to signify for me the final end of the 90s hard rock era. The rest of the field was in transition, with nu metal and the point-missers of nu grunge coming on. Hard to believe it's been almost ten years.
<p><b><a href="http://www.rhapsody.com/pearl-jam/yield" target="_new">"In Hiding"</a></b> (5 plays, unranked): It's amazing how hopeful so much of this album is, in the context of PJ's first three albums and the false start of <i>No Code</i>. Landing near the record's end, it caps the set with lyrics that aren't so much positive as they are looking toward positivity: "It's funny when things change so much/It's all state of mind." It's also a great and subtle showcase for the band's musicianship. Eddie Vedder gets some terrific Cornellian crooning opportunities in the chorus, while the variations within the tune provide ample room for different guitar approaches. By 1998 they had become a careerist band, and this is a careerist song, but it's one that should be among their best-loved mid-period album cuts.
<p><b><a href="http://www.rhapsody.com/weezer/weezer-blue-album" target="_new">"Only in Dreams"</a></b> (5 plays, unranked): At the time I was simply amazed. The blue album was astonishing. Now it's diminished in some ways and grown in others. Opinions on the exact date differ, but there is a broad consensus that Weezer began to suck hard sometime from 2001 to 2005, and it's difficult not to let that suckage impact the older, brilliant material. At the same time, as an older, wiser music fan, I'm now able to hear more in a song like this. I can imagine this being a local band's first incredible song, the one that everybody shows up early to hear, that sells hundreds of copies of their EP. It's such a raw and unassuming song -- even more so than the rest of the album, and that's saying something. The combination of teenage uncertainty and garage-based guitar fantasy could never be made this organically on anything but a first record, and the way it bookends the opening cacophony of "My Name Is Jonas" is a feat unmatched in the modern era. An absolute classic; just writing about it is almost enough to make me forget "Beverly Hills."
<p><b>VERDICT</b>: "Only in Dreams" in a landslide.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-209594047515607852010-06-29T09:31:00.004-05:002010-06-29T13:20:58.718-05:0013. Cracker vs. Massive Attack vs. R.E.M.<table border=0 cellspacing=3 cellpadding=0>
<tr>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWYhArbNo8vuAuuYLj-bUO8qmOPlDdiPT_1G3yhOK2e-WKz6uE44cooKsl9-eblH3bf6Uk4RB8dIYqqzFdwMNKM1gHBGmzyzSSQ3gWd3HZdWwAdttH9B7Ql9-URDh1Ch5Kwob-vTF4c3M/s1600/13a-kerosenehat.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJmQggA0ywi2b8PgTOBs_8rv329r-uMNtC2JbN-A0emBPYMI1jYTsaxF0UUvSexwWkGDbQBYq9cryyLwMFWZg67O70iRmAS2cYgKp_9EdokWqom8kvt162fJz04PL7qRxUy5_s3Ug1-KM/s1600/13b-newadventuresinhifi.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2bUdPObQBxzdSayiQ07BwEWkYiWAto_yd1tXrw3CZbAifzj51U_aQPCDfDzz6v4rEYLq8Ix8s4004ry7VzhBy69Cju67nmS-2hTQahynA9SJ7mKsg91X-Ll1bkRIMn1csrByyz_xrzL0/s320/13c-mezzanine.jpg" border="0"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Euro-trash Girl"<br>by Cracker<br>from <i>Kerosene Hat</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Leave"<br>by R.E.M.<br>from <i>New Adventures in Hi-Fi</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Teardrop"<br>by Massive Attack<br>from <i>Mezzanine</i></font>
</tr>
</table>
<p><b><a href="http://www.rhapsody.com/cracker/kerosene-hat" target="_new">"Euro-trash Girl"</a></b> (4 plays at Last.fm, unranked): In my mid-90s college days I bought a used copy of <i>Kerosene Hat</i>, mostly on the strength of "Low," but also after hearing this song on my school's radio station. To my horror, the copy I bought was the version distributed by BMG, which didn't contain any of the hidden tracks, including this gem. As a result I always considered this like a lost track or a rare b-side or something, which only added to its epic nature. It's probably the least gratuitous eight-minute song in the history of rock, and the subtle way it builds to its climax is stupendous. There's also something about it that sort of epitomizes its era of college rock, in a way that validates a lot of music that, 15-20 years later, doesn't get the kind of respect it deserves.
<p><b><a href="http://www.rhapsody.com/rem/new-adventures-in-hi-fi" target="_new">"Leave"</a></b> (4 plays, unranked): And then you have R.E.M.'s most gratuitous song (most gratuitous <i>good</i> song, at least). The original version of this track includes a sweet little introductory dirge, while the main body features six straight minutes of knob-twisting by Scott McCaughey, which would certainly have been looped by a lesser band. The song is the peak of the band's music and ambition in the <i>Monster</i>/<i>New Adventures</i> period, which makes it such a disappointment that they've largely abandoned it for a shorter, thinner, quieter version that originally appeared on the soundtrack to "A Life Less Ordinary." It also makes for a great, though unintended, dénouement for the band's original line-up, and a high point that they have yet to reach again since.
<p><b><a href="http://www.rhapsody.com/massive-attack/mezzanine" target="_new">"Teardrop"</a></b> (1 play, unranked): Often when a song I love appears repeatedly on TV I'm done with it, but this track acting on the theme to <i>House</i> hasn't dampened my appreciation for it. If anything, it's a frequent reminder that I'd really like to listen to the full version, with vocals. Massive Attack is an atmosphere band working in an atmosphere genre, but this track -- perhaps on the back of its wooden beat and sparse piano chords -- takes it a step further. I'm writing this entry on a dark plane between Tokyo and Singapore, and it's taking all my effort not to simply declare this one the winner of the whole tournament and be done with it.
<p><b>VERDICT</b>: I think I can be objective enough to factor out my surroundings and gauge my typical standing enthusiasm for "Teardrop" a little lower. And in the battle of lengthy, era-defining songs, I have to give the edge to the era that's stuck with me a bit more. 1996 might be my favorite year of music ever, and "Leave" was a big part of that.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-76250923258876154542009-06-25T12:29:00.008-05:002010-06-29T09:31:17.887-05:0012. The Dismemberment Plan vs. Rage Against the Machine vs. Fastball<table border=0 cellspacing=3 cellpadding=0>
<tr>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVpoVq5dQuH8asIiZqi62e3zjfdL3buB5bKnSY4lBJECgaXsvjrURzv3p1BBDuOWFjXL03D6ogMoE0ZQCiCcUdYccj6OLO6mnKURu7GZCtJkVkVlGGwC0H1cKjV_s6na_xbqN17ovh-8E/s320/12a-emergencyandi.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkmifuECPJkHOBrmO72xXwQfwsWhLjYySdzy41pHTyJhWHq3tjzg5s2Py9nnHDDT1uUp5PzPPtfyc0mSHzbT3e4Xv5nPTcaSNmBG05tobdnyXFmJa0c4w45O6_fPBOefoa39Y_LwKk5Og/s320/12b-rageagainstthemachine.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpjeDVzn-X7OyM_2hL70T6h4C7S52AZgdofMzhTIJMvYPsYAl_me0lOBSbWC0moPsiJwwltB8ywbSIRw0dLndQnH_Xq0d17h3qitXhNmZAqOVMBda9QyR1Lutv42owEB1xHVf3BA-UGi4/s320/12c-allthepainmoneycanbuy.jpg" border="0"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"The City"<br>by The Dismemberment Plan<br>from <i>Emergency & I</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Wake Up"<br>by Rage Against the Machine<br>from <i>Rage Against the Machine</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Fire Escape"<br>by Fastball<br>from <i>All the Pain Money Can Buy</i></font>
</tr>
</table>
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/The+Dismemberment+Plan/_/The+City" target="_new">"The City"</a></b> (8 plays at Last.fm, tied for #395): It's hard to overstate the tragedy of the Dismemberment Plan over the past decade. Since making one of the best indie rock records ever -- this tremendous song is one of four in the tournament, out of just 12 on the album -- they produced a middling follow-up, a forgettable remix album, broke up and gave birth to Travis Morrison's embarrassing solo career. This tune is maybe the most disappointing of it all, though, in that it should have been a radio smash. I suppose 1999 was not the right time for it, but the guitar chime opening just begs to heard with "This is the Dismemberment Plan on Z104" over it. The rest of the song is structured impeccably, with verses flowing smoothly into a little chorus descent, and matching the tone of the lyrics -- despair, loss and understanding -- exactly. The one and only time I got to see them live, on their farewell tour, that last line, "All... I... ever... say... now... is... good... bye!" was a tough one.
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Rage+Against+The+Machine/_/Wake+Up" target="_new">"Wake Up"</a></b> (2 plays, unranked): There are a handful of songs in this tournament almost entirely because of their use in film, and this is one of them. For a lot of reasons, this was the perfect track for the coda and credits of <i>The Matrix</i>. That said, it's also by far the best encapsulation of the Rage sound -- I think it says something for it that I originally assumed it was new when I first heard it, rather than seven years old at the time. You've got explicit politics, historical metaphor, calls to action, solid rapping, Tom Morello's wakka-wakka funk, some excellent youthful screaming from Zach de la Rocha. Even the six-minute length works well -- the bridge allows for some nice metal moves to be thrown into the mix and connects and makes the whole song really feel epic. The second half does a lot of things you don't often get from Rage, and certainly not from the later, more singles-oriented work.
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Fastball/_/Fire+Escape" target="_new">"Fire Escape"</a></b> (3 plays, unranked): 1998 brought an odd flood of power-pop hits that I liked but whose follow-ups I loved, and no one else did. This is one (Barenaked Ladies and Semisonic had the others). I've always thought this song was much better than "The Way," which always seemed a little gimmicky to me for some reason. This tune told me there was really something there with this band, and the record wound up becoming one of my favorites of the late 90s. It's still quite good, but it hasn't aged as well as it could've. While the genre as a whole has taken a commercial nosedive in the U.S., this decade has brought about a lot of great power-pop records from the likes of Starling, the Long Winters, Fountains of Wayne, the New Pornographers, etc. I'm still able to appreciate the well-founded melody here, the harmony and jangle, but it doesn't have the same kick it used to.
<p><b>VERDICT</b>: Later rounds of this tournament may be dominated by the Dismemberment Plan, quite frankly. "The City" barely has to nod in the direction of the other songs to advance, and it's going to be tough to beat until it's up against another one from <i>Emergency & I</i>.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-3620251449414737592009-06-05T11:40:00.006-05:002009-06-05T12:23:53.183-05:0011. Mates of State vs. The Anniversary vs. nine inch nails<table border=0 cellspacing=3 cellpadding=0>
<tr>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5WUggFwUk2rHjH7yWM4LWzUHJ4KcEiJjNzDJvzflF70dUG8v4A0HHIfDt5Qx6u_oryn4ZHaZgCfFN9hBOTc5Kl32aO2UPQLW-ulMuK52R6Cqygb4Wsu05SlY80dicMjSOT5nFBLjhFGI/s320/11a-mysoloproject.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-1T-pOGJ1IW7ePWVUIh7DK6e2eUmGHAzqZ-bQCk4Yq0C317ZKMc0nGjK-HEAsPNhHsAyiLugDHDH9oUSGkl5YpOdhIMVfWnjv5vBXClm_0vdF0euq2EiWGOkRRHZeqHoCeSK-Y4a_Kyc/s320/11b-designinganervousbreakdown.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPwtPrZ9NZ3_oWquCe1k4jD7QjUfeP2AuRykcA-dDvhD52_V_2y2-KVtdoiPv1-xfD1Ok5QqxoUmFwqJmwkBgW2LFl0VAhpk9P1bNC_g01jfKWBlGtGhXXVzDEW6gIGgJFXnNoesiZpb4/s320/11c-thecrow.jpg" border="0"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Proofs"<br>by Mates of State<br>from <i>My Solo Project</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"All Things Ordinary"<br>by The Anniversary<br>from <i>Designing a Nervous Breakdown</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Dead Souls"<br>by nine inch nails<br>from <i>The Crow</i></font>
</tr>
</table>
<p><b><a href="http://www.rhapsody.com/mates-of-state/my-solo-project" target="_new">"Proofs"</a></b> (1 play at Last.fm, unranked): I don't know if any debut album has had a more style-encapsulating first song than this one. You can hear where Mates of State will go over their first three albums in this song, and yet even now it feels much more unique than derivative. The recording is still a bit lo-fi and the basic song structure is wonderfully natal -- plain organ and drums, vocal back-and-forth with occasional harmony. And it's so happy! Kori Gardner's "Yea-eah!" near the end is just blissful, coming on the heels of two and a half minutes of "It doesn't matter what might come true/It's simple enough to try." It's a triumph of the boy-girl indie pop genre and a testament to track sequencing; I don't think anyone could listen to this song and not want to hear more, more, more.
<p><b><a href="http://www.rhapsody.com/the-anniversary/designing-a-nervous-breakdown" target="_new">"All Things Ordinary"</a></b> (6 plays, unranked): Between <i>My Solo Project</i> and the album this song comes from, 2000 seemed to herald a new age of poppy, keyboard-driven harmonies. This one, too, is a bit of archetype for the band, and it's one that was followed-up on much more by other bands (like the Hush Sound and 1997) than the Anniversary, who produced one more, quite different album, then broke up. What I like about these guys more than the rest, though, is that they're not ashamed to let the synth lines be out in front. That bouncy line along with the yearning vocals -- nicely split between male and female parts -- creates a danceable setting that's still recognizably within the late 90s/early 00s emo landscape. It's too bad that there's nobody really putting all those elements together anymore.
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/nine+inch+nails/_/Dead+Souls" target="_new">"Dead Souls"</a></b> (1 play, unranked): In the middle of 1994, a crazy year musically and the first summer of my college years, <i>The Crow</i> was released with what's turned out to be a relatively seminal soundtrack. What I remember most from the movie and from the ads are Stone Temple Pilots' "Big Empty" and this superb Joy Division cover by NIN. I had no idea it was a cover at the time, I was just getting into the band and thought, hey, awesome new song that's not on my copy of <i>the downward spiral</i> for some reason. Now I know it's heresy in some circles to admit this, but I don't care for Joy Division at all, and as a result I find this cover vastly superior to the original. Trent Reznor pulls back some of the explosive energy he had on <i>broken</i> and combines it with the atmospherics of some of the remixes that were being made from <i>the downward spiral</i> at the time. The result is both a great soundtrack tune and a terrifically listenable song that fits flush within the NIN canon, even presaging the thick drums of 1997's "the perfect drug" a little bit.
<p><b>VERDICT</b>: All these songs are pretty evenly matched and it's tough to say one is any greater than the others. But, "All Things Ordinary" is the one that I get the itch to listen to the most, so that gets the win.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-36900329804468246002009-04-26T12:28:00.008-05:002009-08-20T13:52:29.931-05:0010. Foo Fighters vs. Portastatic vs. Mates of State<table border=0 cellspacing=3 cellpadding=0>
<tr>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXE4L3Lc_Wb_FenIVB6vfld-RFqHPgAcQFfjfjGoM05YogvRB0uUNzl328LuncY_9l0jiOptdtTufvwU-ZieIXnsURH7_l4PeWO4eYXOOiMpGQ4HjItl-0ffp71zAuN3AZ1DS8xUzl9Us/s320/10a-foofighters.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaV9ps0FdL-YuTg9XMe27TFBhza50vf7b-8sB-UkQ6rpwb3W74isYeqtD_prcvR-BpON9GlW1LZ9MB4sQlfDkIOUpFFEM8yZ34nlkwMeQClHDd1nfKUoqh0svKEN1Y-1yy9CRhUKEpS18/s320/10b-bestillplease.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBWHUYlmKy5xygUmg_B4EaC18zgvSZkdb9KvgNipPv-tsBX9tiSd43cV4JHnFSEVWIqif9r8rpeyZjCKsQP4GfEVV8n6JOa8-eXSLdPJ0XSWI9gwy5UVa2xcQiVi05CrLE9LU6Jy18H_w/s320/10c-teamboo.jpg" border="0"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"For All the Cows"<br>by Foo Fighters<br>from <i>Foo Fighters</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"You Blanks"<br>by Portastatic<br>from <i>Be Still Please</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Whiner's Bio"<br>by Mates of State<br>from <i>Team Boo</i></font>
</tr>
</table>
<p><b><a href="http://www.rhapsody.com/foo-fighters/foo-fighters" target="_new">"For All the Cows"</a></b> (2 plays at Last.fm, unranked): The first time I played the debut Foo Fighters album was an unnerving experience. I had heard "I'll Stick Around" a couple times but I was basically going into it deaf and trusting in my love of Dave Grohl as Nirvana's drummer. As good as the whole thing was, this was the song that immediately stuck out for its quiet-LOUD-quiet structure, its shimmery guitars, even its obtuse lyrics to a certain extent. It's the one that sounds most like a Nirvana track, and I kind of felt at the time (and especially when the next Foo record came out) that it was a closure track -- the thing that allowed Grohl to move forward. That was probably a bit of a 16-year-old's overreading, but the way the album is sequenced, you can still get that sense that Grohl needed to make some kind of statement, but that he wanted to build to it over the first 2/3 of the album, and then do it indirectly.
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Portastatic/_/You+Blanks" target="_new">"You Blanks"</a></b> (22 plays, tied for #13): The most overlooked measure in public opinion polling is the right track/wrong track measure. For the last couple years of George W. Bush's presidency, even before the economy crashed, right track was at about 20%. Now it's in the high 40s, even though little substantive change has actually happened yet, the economy's still in the toilet, we're being besieged by pirates, etc. Atrios, who frequently promoted this song, formulated <a href="http://www.eschatonblog.com/2009/04/right-track.html">today</a> that right track/wrong track is all about subconscious feelings about the president, and that everybody basically hated Bush. This song captures that era perfectly: "All my songs used to end the same way/'Everything's gonna be OK'/You fuckers make that impossible to say." The sheer lizard-brain loathing for what the Bush administration did to this country is still not well appreciated by pundits or scholars, but Mac McCaughan expresses it as well as can be -- both at the individual level of his song-writing and at the societal level ("Now every horse I dream about is pulling a hearse").
<p><b><a href="http://www.rhapsody.com/mates-of-state/team-boo">"Whiner's Bio"</a></b> (9 plays, tied for #299): The night I met my wife Mates of State played what I assume was one of the earliest live performances of this song; a couple years later we saw them again and they dedicated it to us. It also represents in a lot of ways the end of the first Mates of State era. This song is structurally more similar to their first album than to the one that followed it, but it includes some of the flourishes (e.g., a horn line) that would mark their transition on <i>Bring It Back</i>. That combination really has them at their peak so far -- complicated harmonies, a good mix of keyboard tones and a catchy chorus.
<p><b>VERDICT</b>: I thought coming into this round that "You Blanks" might have the edge. My Last.fm stats go back to the start of 2006, and it's the highest-ranked song in the tournament so far by quite a bit. But listening to "For All the Cows" again really brought home how well put-together it is. A part of my music brain is always going to be stuck in the early and mid-90s (earlier today I found myself thinking how underappreciated the Juliana Hatfield Three's <i>Become What You Are</i> is), and this song is one of the important tethers.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-33875818971841504272009-04-09T00:02:00.004-05:002009-04-09T00:14:25.502-05:009. Radiohead vs. Nirvana vs. Nirvana<table border=0 cellspacing=3 cellpadding=0>
<tr>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS2e8Bbizf3g8WEImBA4V20BaPdOtINOqZeEeNFovuH42IxhmRm5B4cbyE6yv1i9Q6vHBR2qGgy8Z31CprsMPqWj57d-_4ajzvU7sIkrCIMKuZfO2lbob1-LMdnRMa_8RcryQ9c7_RjLc/s320/09a-airbag.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRoJ1E6SqSCWI7btTMUCJe09LuILDp6rDg7mPbuC3xqs4HTXRMqOq5tdpmdNDUduzLyIuapai_ICnBx20NsxuASPa6PKiAEnlcHVEhDb6c4Uv2Dl-PmV4tiEjtoNS8ae3pTn_ma0zg7NM/s320/09b-inutero.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4KkKo0tDbugP6fSROKidKVUxby228rTU4lzhHQzEMYOyLmI3ZF6g54hNJzvDi47vkF3Yi4TQdaWcvoIILvUTfYLhRrbWuYPYqRQfnYqZz9-LKTDKLOMYufpwJ0U5YQww4-TjUjffen_I/s320/09c-incesticide.jpg" border="0"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Palo Alto"<br>by Radiohead<br>from <i>Airbag/How Am I Driving?</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Heart-Shaped Box"<br>by Nirvana<br>from <i>In Utero</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Sliver"<br>by Nirvana<br>from <i>Incesticide</i></font>
</tr>
</table>
<p><b><a href="http://mp3.rhapsody.com/radiohead/no-surprises--id24284865/palo-alto" target="_new">"Palo Alto"</a></b> (7 plays at Last.fm, unranked): I think the listening public has largely come around to my view that <i>The Bends</i> is superior to <i>OK Computer</i>. A big part of why my opinion came out that way is the quality of the b-sides found on the <i>Airbag</i> EP, of which this tune is the last and best. It neatly encapsulates what made the band's 90s output so great, both musically and lyrically -- the little guitar and noise flourishes, the big crunchy chorus, the desolate and soulless future. For me, this was essentially Radiohead's high-water mark. I couldn't say yet whether it's their best song -- "Just" will provide stiff competition if it comes to that -- but it may well be.
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Nirvana/_/Heart-Shaped+Box" target="_new">"Heart-Shaped Box"</a></b> (7 plays, unranked): Like so many Nirvana songs, it's hard for me to hear this one for just the song and not for the memory ripples it kicks off. I remember the late summer of 1993, just as I was starting college, being all about this song and its superb video. Those first few times hearing, it was face-smacking: This dry sound, this raucous mess was how they were going to follow up the bright shimmer of <i>Nevermind</i>. It was so much more visceral and narrow; it didn't trade in melody the same way "Teen Spirit" and the other previous singles had. Throughout the promotion and discussion of the album -- and I recall the review in <i>Rolling Stone</i> hitting this pretty hard -- was the awareness of a line being drawn through the band's audience, with this song on one side and about 80% of <i>Nevermind</i> owners on the other. Sales-wise, it didn't quite to that, but this thing that was excised from Kurt Cobain as a middle finger to the grunge industry was revelatory for me both as music and as cultural commentary. I don't think it's a coincidence that I later wound up enjoying artists like Marilyn Manson as media provocateurs as much as musicians.
<p><b><a href="http://www.rhapsody.com/nirvana/nirvana">"Sliver"</a></b> (4 plays, unranked): The randomizer put these two Nirvana songs together in this round, and I guess it's appropriate that they be from such different eras. And how odd is that this band can be said to have eras at all, let alone these distinct ones three years apart? The sort of play-acted innocence of this song (and the use of Frances Bean Cobain as a prop in the video) is typical of a lot of the band's early recordings ("School," for instance), but this one has such great pop energy that you can't help but be taken by it. Of all the songs that I'll never get to see performed live, this one might be the most disappointing. It's such a perfect two-minute bounce for a small club full of kids looking to dance off a buzz.
<p><b>VERDICT</b>: I vary from match-up to match-up on how to weigh my historical feelings about older songs, and this time I think my history puts "Heart-Shaped Box" over "Palo Alto" by a nose.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-63942427216239158162009-03-03T13:53:00.007-06:002009-03-03T14:23:58.500-06:008. Fiona Apple vs. Weezer vs. Toadies<table border=0 cellspacing=3 cellpadding=0>
<tr>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdsZvIG9RyV5L74GHwbfQtpWtQb4izwmrcrdWEbEUP3Jrueq-dhR8beqF5Y5iNRnLbTuCgDFOyFuHs6pW7aOhGJwPjjxiTIwUr1o0gw6xksvbasalc9-WBXcM284DDiZMv7H9M-i_jQ-Q/s320/08a-tidal.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIFAK2dBYYHiOZyehg0OaSF-qW4M39XA4JaGVMPKV7ZOUzXCDtaO9SwWQXrCgj3GxnJgEZED_D08di1lf8QR6kTWH9l1Jhyphenhyphen56elbX9Sm0voFZER5LMyvwWiAxzZewjm81ScH_4ZMbTy-0/s320/08b-pinkerton.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwmNFSlxVuhgcPFdgJtKfJK6SpCbw7_ZWxCweFeiKY1_exYJQEMBrKCZlfXxr09cU4uTDXiNYFuVKC5wf39X0xgDZkS0obrC8yNLRqQLB2nyHT0JhotAlXV-oqaV8yMbhKrW_awteLlUA/s320/08c-rubberneck.jpg" border="0"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Criminal"<br>by Fiona Apple<br>from <i>Tidal</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Tired of Sex"<br>by Weezer<br>from <i>Pinkerton</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Possum Kingdom"<br>by Toadies<br>from <i>Rubberneck</i></font>
</tr>
</table>
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Fiona+Apple/_/Criminal" target="_new">"Criminal"</a></b> (3 plays at Last.fm, unranked): Despite the fact that Fiona Apple's second album is head and shoulders above her first, in my opinion, this debut single remains her best song. It's sultry and lush, and probably could only have come about between Liz Phair's <i>Whip-Smart</i> and Britney Spears' <i>...Baby One More Time</i>. Structurally, it's got a kind of wicked confidence, with Apple's vocals anticipating beats and meshing with the light drums maybe more than anything else. It feels like a hit single, which makes the extended, eastern-teasing outro that much more interesting; I'm positive it was cut for radio promos, though I can't say I remember for sure. In a lot of ways, it's a song that's built to be hard to follow up (and the herion-chic, underwear-filled video probably didn't help that any), which makes the fact that Apple disappeared into cult popularity afterward not that surprising.
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Weezer/_/Tired+of+Sex" target="_new">"Tired of Sex"</a></b> (6 plays, unranked): In some ways, the first 22 seconds of this song, before the vocals come in, are the most awesome in the history of rock. Coming off a polished, poppy, MTV-friendly first record, Weezer recast themselves as a noisy emo band (and that's "emo" as it was understood in the mid-90s, as opposed to the 80s or today). In so doing they provided a bridge between Braid and the Get Up Kids and established an incredibly high-energy presence that held throughout <i>Pinkerton</i> and its b-sides. Everything is on full shout here, and come on, "Tired of Sex" could be the title of a thousand parody emo songs if it weren't already real. It's the slightly stronger half of a great couplet of angst and confusion with "Getchoo," the two songs making a perfect musical dovetail and a frustrating lyrical clash. It's material that you could imagine turning Rivers Cuomo into a hermit if, say, <i>Rolling Stone</i> were to give it an incredible panning (which it did).
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Toadies/_/Possum+Kingdom">"Possum Kingdom"</a></b> (11 plays, tied for #180): This round really is an encapsulation of mid-90s rock radio. Several years ago (I want to say 2003, but I don't recall for certain) I went back to my undergrad alma mater for its Winter Carnival and somehow found myself in a frat house basement with about 50 people ranging from age 18 to 30 or so. When this tune came on, everybody sang it. The whole thing. When I saw the Toadies last summer, it was the same thing (and I was really glad to see them not eschewing their One Big Hit). The little repeated guitar progression was an incredible building effect -- I think when you listen to the song it seems like it's just the quieter-to-louder vocal repetition at the end, but that guitar provides the foundation for it throughout the song. Then, of course, when you get to that peak it's like all Hell breaking loose. It sounds, on record, like a live crowd going crazy, so much so that when an actual live crowd actually goes crazy it feels familiar.
<p><b>VERDICT</b>: This is a really tight one between "Tired of Sex" and "Possum Kingdom." Weezer gets the edge because the anticipation that comes at the end of "Tired of Sex" -- both because it's an incredible trailer for their sound at the time and because you know "Getchoo" is coming next -- is so exquisite.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-35879566904505951242009-02-18T13:54:00.001-06:002009-02-18T13:55:01.876-06:007. Year of the Rabbit vs. The New Kentucky Quarter vs. Finch<table border=0 cellspacing=3 cellpadding=0>
<tr>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDukHow23NbeLeujkhgyBhLMyQmw-uh5Bxj5SArjur7ikkj-g-wX9TYO5UCpmeIzVF4lV8vAdVCIT19hNGR0OFe-YFT1CsCs6SEJDifdUh0IqUs5CPkSJ7PCtTxQuIuZxg6D11V0An6xc/s320/07a-yearoftherabbit.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxXlhOfpvkNByTyF_Jwf18OEY1nWPr6JyZScjoM3jNvwNcRpkZ8BufCEE8QL3ECsmCYMNv5BcHdeMEaVO14O_8CdzuQYDTwNVF_sPpI2vaPHy2GRgYZBU2yZARDWe5r5_CNBACBB3RYIo/s320/07b-carryitaround.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMXMT_eBdjAGqh94D1CFVsLwfpZHjjFMl-lsXZOcRto5LuCVztldPcxY8QUlD9tNNKuCy8x3zGJBbChWTTVTK3dFzFGmgt3sr3vEWZYTGMHwnpMoH111PTgXrC2vz-mp_k_LHMYDTfIAs/s320/07c-whatitistoburn.jpg" border="0"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Say Goodbye"<br>by Year of the Rabbit<br>from <i>Year of the Rabbit</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Carry It Around"<br>by The New Kentucky Quarter<br>from <i>Carry It Around</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Letters to You"<br>by Finch<br>from <i>What It Is to Burn</i></font>
</tr>
</table>
<p><b><a href="http://www.rhapsody.com/year-of-the-rabbit" target="_new">"Say Goodbye"</a></b> (10 plays at Last.fm, tied for #218): Year of the Rabbit frontman Ken Andrews is in this tournament as the leader of three different bands (the other two being Failure and On), which is pretty impressive. This band released its only album at a time when the majors briefly tried their hand at angular shimmer rock, and this closing track brought the whole thing to an incredible, if tragically destined, head. The lyrics have a nice back and forth across the verses, and Andrews had really perfected the arena version of his croon when we saw YotR play the comically undersized (and underfilled) Rave Bar in Milwaukee. Of all the bands that fit this subgenre (Failure being one, but also Hum, late-model Cave In, Shiner), I think this one is one of the few that are carried by vocals at least as much as by music, and this song is a great example of it.
<p><b><a href="http://www.purevolume.com/thenewkentuckyquarter" target="_new">"Carry It Around"</a></b> (13 plays, tied for #101): This might be the most obscure track in the tournament. Madison's the New Kentucky Quarter released a couple of EPs, then broke up a short while after this one came out. This title track from their swan song is a superb piece of pop-rock that I suspect would've burned up the charts if had it found its way into a Zach Braff soundtrack. The boy-girl harmonies in the chorus are terrific, as are the slight changes to the vocal melody each time through. We saw them play at the Terrace without ever having heard them before and fell it love instantly -- if anyone has a line on their earlier releases, please let me know!
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Finch/_/Letters+to+You">"Letters to You"</a></b> (2 plays, unranked): Come to think of it, all the songs in this match-up are fairly obscure. Finch was part of an early 2000s wave of halfway decent screamo that went light on the screaming, then they put out a forgettable follow-up, split, and reformed to release a forgettable EP last year. These songs are also all really well structured -- with lesser execution that could be a bad thing, but with all three and this one in particular, it feels like the band is taking you on a tour of how the song works, and even though it's not an unprecedented setup, it sounds impeccably put-together. It this case it's things like false stops being just in the right place, like the perfect placement of decorative mouldings or something. This song also has a lot of resonance for personal historical reasons, as it came out in 2002, just as I had was going through a lot of life upheaval. It can still feel and understand it now, but it's less salient than it was then -- I've been known to scream this one out in the car in the past, but it's been a while.
<p><b>VERDICT</b>: "Letters to You" has lost a bit due to time, and it's a tough choice between the other two. I'm going with "Carry It Around," because upon close review of "Say Goodbye" it seems like it doesn't quite have the energy it once did -- I want it to be a little faster and a little harder.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-88245094655291355142009-02-09T15:06:00.001-06:002009-02-09T16:13:42.406-06:006. Motion City Soundtrack vs. Fear of Pop vs. Matthew Sweet<table border=0 cellspacing=3 cellpadding=0>
<tr>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC-QEDHu40FVWDUP8013VVRcVCS9BzTr3keksMnHLeb2GB3HY1s1XluGeaIyIjegFySGsItO14M2ih_uDEVtndeJh1ghfEf2wfmUkLrygnpeS12WPQZypclE2zs8jKn555H6XkObQ8ayI/s320/06a-backtothebeat.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXeUZ1GpuxAFqJnuCiiWJmr37aD2wA4TBeWnqvvRe3MoMPaFX-6Mbw22kRw5CChvcxJKVqkdnd7CkR3sOtrWH-TjF18j1Q71b9jNHH7RcS3qicWodUxFmn_AEV8fBPe_ObKeKC1PzWhX0/s320/06b-volume1.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3jp0-nZ9L6O9JvReZfl9YaDg1e09HkW47UIAFzDNp6je_p1E5j2L2t1pZgaLG5BpXvx821PeDq3WiIpB5hC2uSAxanRD_8mkJUKZJ4XqLYt6uTVHkN_EvRHSJ2lYq1KEex-PUrPeXdWo/s320/06c-100fun.jpg" border="0"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Capital H"<br>by Motion City Soundtrack<br>from <i>Back to the Beat</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"In Love"<br>by Fear of Pop<br>from <i>Volume I</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Sick of Myself"<br>by Matthew Sweet<br>from <i>100% Fun</i></font>
</tr>
</table>
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Motion+City+Soundtrack/_/Capital+H" target="_new">"Capital H"</a></b> (9 plays at Last.fm, tied for #299): This song appeared on an early Motion City Soundtrack EP, and then was rerecorded for the Epitaph re-issue of their debut LP, <i>I Am the Movie</i>; the former is the version on this list. It's the thing in the MCS catalog that best combines their ramshackle beginnings with their synth-driven melody and vocal mania. It's also maybe the most fun live track ever -- the little two-note kick-off and big synth waves get a crowd jumping like nothing else I've ever heard. Maybe more than any other song in this competition, this tune is pure energy. The rerecorded version is not, unfortunately; it's much more subdued and sacrifices a lot of personality for professionalism. If you can find the <i>Back to the Beat</i> version, I highly recommend it.
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Fear+of+Pop/_/In+Love" target="_new">"In Love"</a></b> (7 plays, unranked): Ben Folds has got some problems with women. There were a few Ben Folds Five songs that strongly hinted at it ("Song For the Dumped," most notably), but his solo material goes there a lot more directly. When his Fear of Pop record came out, though, very little of that stuff had been produced yet. This tune -- a template for his later production of William Shatner's <i>Has Been</i> -- is by far the standout from that project. Over a soft and quirkly melody, with Folds doing a 60's ballad in the background, Shatner gives an incredible reading of a diss track to an anonymous woman. The last verse is just devastating: "I can't tell you anything, and I... can't.. commit! You're right! I can't commit! To you. I will always treasure our time together. I don't feel enough of anything to harbor the kind of disdain that you'll maintain. You painted me into what you wanted to see -- and that's fine! <i>But you will never know me.</i>" On top of that, the music really is terrific, in the vein of then-recent BFF tunes such as "Smoke" and "Selfless, Cold and Composed."
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Matthew+Sweet/_/Sick+of+Myself">"Sick of Myself"</a></b> (8 plays, tied for #395): Most cite <i>Girlfriend</i> as Matthew Sweet's breakthrough album, but for me he moved to the next level with the four muted quarter notes that open this tune and his fifth album, <i>100% Fun</i>. He adds some "power" to his "power pop" here -- the sound neatly foreshadows his Specter-esque <i>In Reverse</i> -- and encapsulates the sound of a fairly broad 90s movement that also included bands like Urge Overkill and the Lemonheads. It's a tune that is immensely hummable, with some great garage guitar work and fun use of false stops at the end.
<p><b>VERDICT</b>: The other two songs would've won in a lot of other match-ups, but "In Love" is going to go a long way in this competition. On top of all of its awesome qualities, I suspect it's also partly responsible for the cultural resurgence of William Shatner in the last decade, and it's hard to overstate the value of that.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-72877167427937816882009-01-24T15:02:00.002-06:002009-01-24T15:02:50.657-06:005. The Long Winters vs. Pixies vs. Stone Temple Pilots<table border=0 cellspacing=3 cellpadding=0>
<tr>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyck4WBY_ofwiKSROlgeF9bKLZiUpLhT4P_ZRGG2iMpLnl8O3tAL-fkVv5zqmRBPheQYnXD8BSHtnMPebk0HjySu0CA7usJPNwVTP34PN10H1j8Del5Ol_rDSFpbCA2mqdAtBos2Y-IC8/s320/05a-whenipretendtofall.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnKvHjIorGq8QIuF1O4Y0mzwwpe5bNYZsYAFQBtqy9iiyK20EoHLynY24GHFPW9FbX1uv-YgE8HfWNXJImCDQjLUxh7urdudWoQKZ-v_hSmS1CTdW26MfY1CBHwQh-O9bTNLSh8kwwWVI/s320/05b-completebsides.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4JtgN2eZPGEdS758pVMUiHdn1d1qyd20y_66sOmpuOAcUrl2C-JcO8ISkRuUgDXSeyfb9jS_SxYOE6SC9EtmkCsAtPgo6GMJvPnoeRm-QPWeQjHzkM9Y1zgZO9__XwDK7ebUTc-ZElGg/s320/05c-purple.jpg" border="0"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Stupid"<br>by The Long Winters<br>from <i>When I Pretend to Fall</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Winterlong"<br>by Pixies<br>from <i>Complete 'B' Sides</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Interstate Love Song"<br>by Stone Temple Pilots<br>from <i>Purple</i></font>
</tr>
</table>
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/The+Long+Winters/_/Stupid" target="_new">"Stupid"</a></b> (13 plays at Last.fm, tied for #101): Listening through these songs, it's becoming clear I have a thing for little opening flourishes, whether they're loud and brash or lush and pretty like the one that opens this song. Like most of the Long Winters' terrific catalog, this tune combines a nice, simple chord progression with great poetic lyrics and a wonderfully bright vocal line from frontman John Roderick. On top of that it's some of the best vocal harmonies of any of their songs and an interlude of what sounds like (but probably isn't) two-part lap steel. Then there's the little stutter-step false start near the end, which I can't help suddenly thrash about to -- a great cap to a really strongly constructed song.
<p><b><a href="http://www.rhapsody.com/pixies/complete-b-sides" target="_new">"Winterlong"</a></b> (2 plays, unranked): Another great opening bit, as a quick run up a scale sets up a great duet between Kim Deal and Frank Black's not-quite-falsetto. Their voices, and the band's guitar sensibility, is what really makes the track work for me -- I really can't get into the Neil Young original, even though I've given it a valiant try (though I wonder if Young had re-recorded it around the time the Pixies did, if it wouldn't sound much the same as theirs). The ability of the Pixies to both display and reinterpret their influences like this is one of the things that really separates them from many of their peers and followers -- this is a perfect companion to "Here Comes Your Man," for instance, but it's also a perfect homage.
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Stone+Temple+Pilots/_/Interstate+Love+Song">"Interstate Love Song"</a></b> (2 plays, unranked): I probably should've been a major label executive. I had an impressive string of predicting songs that would become hit singles back in the early and mid 90's, and this was one of them. I bought <i>Purple</i> largely on the strength of <i>Core</i>, and when this track first came up I was blown away. It's a step away from the 1992-era grunge that STP was otherwise soaking in at the time, sounding really nothing at all like, say, the Pearl Jam catalog to that point. The riffs are great, and the subtle bass line does way more work than it has an right to. The way the verses move forward is so well aligned that it's hard to believe the band didn't pop champagne as soon as they finished the last take. Unfortunately, they never really took this sound anywhere, which is pretty much true of every good song they ever had. A schizo band if there ever was one, I certainly hope this is something they can recapture if they ever record again.
<p><b>VERDICT</b>: There's a lot of perfection in these three songs, to be sure; it's probably the strongest group of three so far. I think the win has to go to "Stupid" on the basis of visceral love -- it's a song I still turn up when it shuffles to the top, while the other two have shifted somewhat into historical love territory.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-31682488994295381812009-01-16T12:46:00.000-06:002009-01-16T12:46:24.238-06:004. Cowboy Junkies vs. Taxpayer vs. nine inch nails<table border=0 cellspacing=3 cellpadding=0>
<tr>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJk2Hes6GVe_m5k-Cj58czPOuF6lLVum4Q2w6qaWRIoKnoDQWNmZGCqHnrNKGMkDQYUaKKjlNE_pSErBM4qsF6jPIyL17UAusPruMJ9oWBUQEpTpoaLvcK1BnERKZO-K6tqa59-UsEzYs/s320/04a-thetrinitysession.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaMZGWtk9UWMveP4j_mK67G1LjhtPEwDayn0tGX3UNnfPPTUBAa3gBTtpHMwbIlouLkO4lt-U-ie4u-xFFFj8k5D5KUySaciNrMU9DFQ0Nc9r5e_-NK5UxRKfPPVvVWdCobwdWazHPGWI/s320/04b-bonesandlungs.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtaQ_Gdk0E40hwd9Mi6xrO1dgFmmBucZduXFuEjXcSC2xcT45-QsJbDellIr83NxrRXstjo2Iz1vPPP391wgQe4GfDhAtudjWLvWPdNOAnENwk_FiRxrXTvfIPglJnOyJVcKYmMPBea7A/s320/04c-broken.jpg" border="0"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Sweet Jane"<br>by Cowboy Junkies<br>from <i>The Trinity Session</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"When They Were Young"<br>by Taxpayer<br>from <i>Bones & Lungs</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"wish"<br>by nine inch nails<br>from <i>broken</i></font>
</tr>
</table>
<p><b><a href="http://www.rhapsody.com/cowboy-junkies/the-trinity-session" target="_new">"Sweet Jane"</a></b> (1 play at Last.fm, unranked): This track is from an early Cowboy Junkies album, but really it's from the <i>Natural Born Killers</i> soundtrack. It's in many ways the processional for Mickey and Mallory's impromptu bridge-top wedding, and I'd say it reimagines the original Velvet Underground version at least as significantly as Jeff Buckley reimagined John Cale's reimagining of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah." Margo Timmins' voice and style bring a totally different flavor to the song than the downtown wink-and-sneer maleness of Lou Reed. That such a simple song could be so changed is one of the things I like best about music.
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Taxpayer/_/When+They+Were+Young" target="_new">"When They Were Young"</a></b> (10 plays, tied for #218): I discovered this band when I learned about the Boston <i>Phoenix</i>'s music blog, a site from which I subsequently never found anything else good. The song came out a year before the Killers' "When <i>You</i> Were Young," and coincidentally is not dissimilar to that song's style. The difference is that Taxpayer's song is wickedly catchy, with much livelier vocals and more interesting lyrics. The band in general is pretty good, though this is by far their best song; if they'd gotten any exposure outside the northeast I suspect they'd've hit it big by now.
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Nine+Inch+Nails/_/Wish">"wish"</a></b> (4 plays, unranked): When I got into the NIN back catalog around the time I was 16 and deep into <i>the downward spiral</i>, this song sounded like a clear pivot point for Trent Reznor. Nothing on <i>pretty hate machine</i> was this full or loud or aggressive, and much of it actually sounds pretty thin compared to subsequent NIN material (maybe down to late 80's mastering style, but I don't think so). This song (and <i>broken</i> as a whole) came through on the Reznor's clear promise, apparently at the expense of all kinds of personal damage. It's a great metal song and a great live experience, and it's too bad that so few of the bands influenced by this NIN era seem to get how it works.
<p><b>VERDICT</b>: It's a tough call. "Sweet Jane" is too slight compared to the other two tracks. As great and historically important as "wish" is, "When They Were Young" is one of a handful of tracks that I often feel compelling to listen to, even when I'm in the middle of listening to something else, so it moves on to the next round.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-52420854055177761852008-12-30T22:44:00.002-06:002008-12-30T22:47:54.414-06:003. Everclear vs. Nine Inch Nails vs. Firewater<table border=0 cellspacing=3 cellpadding=0>
<tr>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzP1x1SYbZ0yFQDkeJKEjJ1xPGiwudrmjvLQeRiEUbRqYxR1TuopgCLxp60cVlsfn7tAu9T9Ttp8onuL5iolNZ-KjjauiK2fqm4_T6i8Du5hMmFJNoO3vOhG7JghLDzITb8cw4lncMKIc/s320/03a-sparkleandfade.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3B65co88qE0EC8PAC-aFi-VDOMOHgfig_9mfuT3CZIXz4-zpJZKqvdsNwcr-PVHBMuwIZ9U0UsjOTwEacMXxALez8S80WGr-TOx-SU1-V8kkR3_BkSr0Atu674ueMt7nWwj_NYGeZc9w/s320/03b-thefragile.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsFkSXP1oRBCfVUZH0Mh0aT0zCeCrjAIH1IvGTxkQFP3_jr9C61bIS9CTVYwvSDSGCLlHyTfQTaXxxvjkWxuJKLCSiHd5XwcTFDAgt0WmgxCF2AsiUcS6DImt43d5zplk_VLOvhXRJzLM/s320/03c-theponzischeme.jpg" border="0"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Queen of the Air"<br>by Everclear<br>from <i>Sparkle and Fade</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"No, You Don't"<br>by Nine Inch Nails<br>from <i>The Fragile</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"I Still Love You Judas"<br>by Firewater<br>from <i>The Ponzi Scheme</i></font>
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</table>
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Everclear/_/Queen+of+the+Air" target="_new">"Queen of the Air"</a></b> (3 plays at Last.fm, unranked): This was the song that made Everclear my favorite band for a while, after "Santa Monica" had prompted me to buy the record. There's a lot of mid-90's shimmer in here, but the structure also calls back to the abrasiveness of Everclear's first independent release, 1993's <i>World of Noise</i>. Maybe the most significant addition it makes to that structure is a terrific melodic bassline that has a really nice interplay with the slight guitar melody -- it's not overpowering the way a lot of contemporaneous songs are. The story that Art Alexakis tells is short and compelling -- the narrator's supposed aunt but actual mother jumping from a bridge to her death -- and I was surprised to learn to was totally made up. Alexakis uses so many harsh autobiographical details in the first three Everclear records that a story like this one doesn't raise an eyebrow, but it's of a piece with the working class heartbreak and drama that he used to be so good at.
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Nine+Inch+Nails/_/No%2C+You+Don%27t" target="_new">"No, You Don't"</a></b> (4 plays, unranked): Looking back on what Trent Reznor has done in the past nine years, <i>The Fragile</i> looks like the most important thing in the NIN catalog. You can hear bits and pieces of his subsequent three full-lengths and the <i>Ghosts</i> collection all over the place -- it's the beginning of a more cohesive sound than he ever had with <i>pretty hate machine</i>, <i>broken</i> and <i>the downward spiral</i> (though those are better works overall). When the album came out, the build and noise of this track were just what I wanted to hear (another NIN song, "the great collapse," appears later in the tournament for the same reason). It's a great singer and a great screamer, and I suspect largely underappreciated in a sea of album cuts from an oft-overlooked record.
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Firewater/_/I+Still+Love+You%2C+Judas">"I Still Love You Judas"</a></b> (9 plays, tied for #299): I discovered Firewater through their first album when hosting a college radio show at 3AM Sunday mornings, but it's their follow-up that I really love. Frontman Tod A is a terrific lyricist, but the band manages to create music that's both atmospheric and cinematic as an accompaniment. It's unfortunate that the band's style was so out in 1998 (it would've been killer in 1992 or 2006), because their vocal-driven, minor-key rock with strings could've developed a real audience in the right conditions.
<p><b>VERDICT</b>: This is a tough call, but I think Firewater wins out. The opening of the song has that spark to it, that when you hear it come up on shuffle you perk up, turn up the volume and get ready to submerge into the song.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-56354064629558938082008-12-06T16:03:00.001-06:002008-12-06T16:06:58.602-06:002. Hum vs. Liz Phair vs. Superdrag<table border=0 cellspacing=3 cellpadding=0>
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<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1LarJHtC3nkn6B_Jda_M5Y31SHGXpZxf17UwNt2mRKXCju2cPLQFi6FdJy5Bkee8VyWkIrDYQJKz54lfPJaitMsZ2UfagV16oMGHC1FHuLe0rpqsiRN1jBUwq1ECB4RHkejqjhvejQPc/s320/02a-youdpreferanastronaut.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnGrH8t7Mqdb3hXzLTSfHYg5enCRTTXUZqy5YBVfIuOx2f1_e3RvEvWXGp8fLLdQ8xTzf-iq2G7w801tdHF1lBhzbRPTJPhbzkLvePhEmmIj8eqNu_R16c7Zpci7k0cwcATeIW_eGshA4/s320/02b-exileinguyville.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-AL5DkYYimKHrjkRI093PUfwqb7C5_0TMEECPccrn-LGlI0YzOswAiUtz4BgSE3rpBdA-328jqBkyCljLRWvLLP7AEfgUJPOlh2D2DJ_O0UENHRbT0-3yvuMWbr9OCebdHWgnILtSK9U/s320/02c-inthevalleyofdyingstars.jpg" border="0"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Stars"<br>by Hum<br>from <i>You'd Prefer an Astronaut</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Divorce Song"<br>by Liz Phair<br>from <i>Exile in Guyville</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Gimme Animosity"<br>by Superdrag<br>from <i>In the Valley of Dying Stars</i></font>
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<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Hum/_/Stars" target="_new">"Stars"</a></b> (3 plays at Last.fm, unranked): Hum is one of those mid-90's bands that found minor success before the label machine ate them, and "Stars" was their entree into that world. I think it's playing in a Cadillac commercial now. It's also maybe the best example of what the Smashing Pumpkins' explosion did for the Chicago fuzz-rock scene. It's a pretty simple song, really -- an uncomplicated melody and unassuming lyrics over a technically fancy lead guitar progression, lots of cymbal crashes in the background. The band and the song had a lot to do with what came later from bands like Cave In and the Life and Times, and even Ken Andrews' various late-model projects. The good news is that Hum is now out touring a reunion show, so maybe the density and energy of this song will be found again in a new record.
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Liz+Phair/_/Divorce+Song" target="_new">"Divorce Song"</a></b> (9 plays, tied for #299): Oh, Liz. I've <a href="http://www.etchouse.com/cpd/archives/000092.html">written</a> <a href="http://www.etchouse.com/cpd/archives/000297.html">before</a> about the tragedy that is Liz Phair, and this song is in so many ways the prologue. Others might identify a different <i>Guyville</i> song as the epitome of what Liz Phair, the entity, meant in 1993, but for me everything is in this song. Compared with the rest of the album, it's one of the most expanded songs from what she'd done on the Girlysound tapes. There's the harmonica outro, the shakers, the extra guitar lines. Her low alto is as gruff-sounding as the lyrics are fatalistic, and titling it "Divorce Song" without including an ending in the song's story is an exceptional bit of framing. And it's a perfect story-song in so many ways, the sort of thing that really does sound like a direct counterpoint to the Stones' "Ventilator Blues." Hearing what Phair's doing now, it's like rewatching a movie when you already know the character in the tragic setting isn't getting out.
<p><b><a href="http://www.rhapsody.com/superdrag/in-the-valley-of-dying-stars">"Gimme Animosity"</a></b> (10 plays, tied for #218): For some reason it took me until early 2000 to pick up Superdrag's debut LP, even though I'd loved their one hit ("Sucked Out") when it was released in 1996. After buying that record, I was consumed with anticipation for their then-upcoming release, <i>In the Valley of Dying Stars</i>. When I got it, this was one of a few songs that went on constant repeat for the rest of the year. The driving guitar and insistent vocals from Jon Davis keep things cranking during the chorus, and the way the bass swoops in during the verses is spectacular.
<p><b>VERDICT</b>: "Stars" is awesome to rock out to, but I'm not sure it would even win a Hum-only favorite song contest (look for their "The Scientists" to show up in a future round). "Divorce Song," on the other hand, is an all-time great: a fabulous piece of poetry, and an untarnished core sample of an indie explosion that never quite happened.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-62536072057556393652008-11-26T11:04:00.002-06:002008-11-26T15:29:22.979-06:001. Blink-182 vs. Nirvana vs. Splashdown<table border=0 cellspacing=3 cellpadding=0>
<tr>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-2SnIX-JsJFseFdL7xACtbCJ0gwjO6dUFC99Hno6hxNs7pg5vHHM7BYMBYIchcb_M0Yt98DahzhUpGtytGKM0wM35SzqKMrfihVedQMduvCVeq1x6aU1wgMgDO3ZYBbT_ekYQHqksWxs/s320/01a-enemaofthestate.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Qy0iBWwfFgb1WcK4QRL6OQ3SqWw7_llJRSDAsiAh0RvvCYQ5ATTqcWC4a92Vjs5KZU5GZl7Zi6sJjn8J-nrpQkzHOQRH8f3FPZ1UzQ1ELYn1OsroG5H_s3Y3jQJx35QJ9brIaXDx4Q0/s320/01b-mtvunpluggedinnewyork.jpg" border="0"></td>
<td valign=center align=center>vs.</td>
<td width=140 height=140><img width=140 height=140 src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ-vQCDMb6vvT1zwuIRXVNpYINAYoY78th-m-nWZ-YYY8Kl6Idj3bwqc3SzKdLr8-jxbDlJ9wlRZYgLAh1HapeIYb9ry4_D9VUso3qc0nB8XTJXcglQ8vSxxcFhTbuRJunEu_J9jJXboA/s320/01c-redshift.jpg" border="0"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Adam's Song"<br>by Blink-182<br>from <i>Enema of the State</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Pennyroyal Tea"<br>by Nirvana<br>from <i>MTV Unplugged in New York</i></font>
<td> </td>
<td valign=top align=center><font style="font-size:10px;">"Mayan Pilot"<br>by Splashdown<br>from <i>Redshift</i></font>
</tr>
</table>
<p><b><a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Blink-182/_/Adam%27s+Song" target="_new">"Adam's Song"</a></b> (1 play at Last.fm, unranked): When I first heard this song I knew Blink-182 for "Josie" and "What's My Age Again?," which are both enjoyable but completely by-the-numbers examples of the skate-punk that dominated early Warped tours. This was before it came out as a single and I was really surprised by both the musical and lyrical depth of the song (which were pretty obviously revamped for "Stay Together For the Kids" on their next album). It's a rare example of an explicitly post-teen angst narrative in a teenagers' genre and it paints a really effective picture by focusing on the space around the narrator and the hole that he leaves. Musically, it foreshadows a lot of what they would do on their self-titled break-up album, with more layering and piano, less chk-chk-chk-chk pop-punk.
<p><b><a href="http://www.rhapsody.com/nirvana/unplugged-in-new-york" target="_new">"Pennyroyal Tea"</a></b> (6 plays, unranked): I imagine that there is a substantial group of people like me, who get a bit of a chill hearing Kurt Cobain ask his bandmates, "Am I going to do this by myself?" before launching into his solo version of "Pennyroyal Tea" on <i>Unplugged</i>. It's such an anomaly in the set -- of 14 songs, six are covers and three are quiet Nirvana songs. There are no other songs whose studio versions carry the menace and noise of this one, particularly in the super-secret Steve Albini mix. That Kurt screws up his last run through the chorus makes it even a little bit better -- it caps the stand-out track from maybe the definitive Nirvana document; just as it's done, Dave Grohl compliments him, and Kurt tells him to shut up.
<p><b><a href="http://sadenaco.ipower.com/music/splashdown/mp3s/Splashdown%20-%20Redshift%20-%2003%20-%20Mayan%20Pilot.mp3">"Mayan Pilot"</a></b> (8 plays, tied for #395): When I discovered Splashdown in 2000 it was a revelation of what the Internet could do for a music obsessive like myself. Here was an excellent band producing a sound that seemed difficult to market in the late 90's and getting screwed by their major label deal. It seemed at the time that I was discovering great new bands every week, but Splashdown were one of the few that stuck, and a big part of it was this funky but light track built on the sweet vocals of singer Melissa Kaplan. Their whole catalog is full of solid pop songwriting and creativity, but this is the tune that's consistently gotten lodged in my head over the past eight years.
<p><b>VERDICT</b>: Not a close call, really. I liked "Pennyroyal Tea" a lot when I first heard it on <i>In Utero</i>, but the details of the <i>Unplugged</i> performance have been seared into my brain for nearly 15 years. As much as I love the music itself, it's really the significance of it to my cultural upbringing that makes it so tough to beat it in the first round.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6713505189734545148.post-44655970687210014372008-11-23T17:18:00.001-06:002008-11-23T19:16:08.215-06:00What's Your Favorite Song?A couple days ago, <a href="http://www.thedailypage.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=44494&sid=96d5cae5013a86fb7c0a1a17432b3ebc" target="_new">a post</a> at TheDailyPage.com raised an impossible question: What's your favorite song? It's a question I couldn't even begin to think of an answer to. I've got 500+ songs rated at five stars on my iPod and if I have one favorite song, it's in there somewhere. But how to distinguish it among flash-in-the-pan recent loves and other tunes that are great but not GREAT? Could it even be done?
<p>
Well, maybe. I thought about a series of head-to-head comparisons of 128 songs, widdling them done to one champion. So I took the list of fivers from the iPod and started striking songs that weren't legitimate contenders. Newer stuff got kicked. Almost all local songs were out, on the idea that part of what makes the favorite is a sense of a large community of fans existing somewhere out there. And in any case in which one album had multiple fives I tried to pick my favorite from those (e.g., Radiohead's "Just" knocked "My Iron Lung" out). And I was still left with over 200 tunes. So I took another whack at the list, got it down to 192 and decided to do three-way trials in the first round. I put them all in random order then grouped in threes for 64 sets. For each set, I'll listen to the songs, figure out which I like best, and write it up. In 127 posts I'll have a favorite song, just in case this ever comes up again.Aaron Veenstrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17461686803383474523noreply@blogger.com0