Good Question That

Today's query is short and sweet. "I stand for language, I speak the truth..." New Wave was a term coined by record companies of course, trying to sell a varied batch of young bands (from the Go Go's to Dire Straits and from Mink deVille to the Cars) to customers thought to be wary of the scary punk moniker. Although this is a Mike Watt composition, let's send it out in loving memory of Minutemen mastermind D. Boon, who died way too young in a van crash back in 1985.

Minutemen - Do You Want New Wave Or Do You Want The Truth?

Of Kings...

"I used to be a king and everything around me turned around, but I know all I have to do is sing and I'll lift myself way off the ground..." Presenting part 1 of a royal megamix. Stay tuned for installment #2.

Graham Nash - I Used To Be A King MP3

Bob Dylan - Queen Jane Approximately (live Rotterdam '87) MP3

William Bell - A Tribute To A King MP3

Soft Boys - Queen Of Eyes MP3

Minutemen - King Of The Hill MP3

Ike & Tina Turner - Mojo Queen MP3

Henry Cow - Nine Funerals Of The Citizen King MP3

David Bowie - Queen Bitch MP3

Guided By Voices - Weed King MP3

Rachel Sweet - Truck Stop Queen MP3

Son Of A Gun

Guns. Never liked 'em, never will. Subject of many a good song though. Here's a small selection. Go tell 'em, Lou. "Don't you mess with me, carrying a gun..."

Lou Reed - The Gun MP3

Junior Walker & The All Stars - Shotgun MP3

Calvin Russell - Living At The End Of A Gun MP3

Unkle - Guns Blazing (Drums Of Death Pt. 1) MP3

Henry Rollins - Gun In Mouth Blues MP3

Tappa Zukie - Stop The Gun Shooting MP3

Fotheringay - John The Gun MP3

The La's - Son Of A Gun MP3

Minutemen - Little Man With A Gun In His Hand MP3

Baba Brooks - Guns Fever MP3

Punch Line

In a hurry? Then waste no time opening up this fast and furious six pack of American pre-hardcore punk blasts, all guaranteed to clock in under the one minute mark. "Progressed to the point of no distinction, dementia of a higher order... what we do is secret, secret..." All you need is a punch line really.

Germs - What We Do Is Secret MP3

Circle Jerks - Red Tape MP3

Black Flag - Spray Paint The Walls MP3

Bad Brains - Joshua´s Song MP3

Descendents - Weinerschnitzel MP3

Minutemen - The Punch Line MP3

Wild Weekend Vol. 18

It´s a Wild Weekend once more, with a little something for everyone. The ghost in the iPod lined up some prime HipHop, rock, northern soul, country, Japrock and postpunk for you all this week. Enjoy.

Let´s get things going with a track that never fails to improve my mood. A Tribe Called Quest goes on "Award Tour, with Muhammad my man, goin´ each and every place with the mic´ in their hand..." Just go with the flow. And the cheer continues with that magical San Pedro threesome the Minutemen, and a fine song from their ´commercial´ Project Mersh. D. Boon, Mike Watt and George Hurley had the budget to hire some actual trumpet players here, which works a treat.

A Tribe Called Quest - Award Tour MP3

Minutemen - The Cheerleaders MP3

Around the time they released Hangtime, Soul Asylum was definitely one of the best live bands in the world. I caught them quite often in the late eighties and Pirner and co blew me away every time. The riff-heavy Ode brings back some excellent memories. Ready for some country now? Good. Next up is the one and only George Jones, who found himself a woman as smooth as Tennessee whiskey, as sweet as strawberry wine, and as warm as a glass of brandy. Quite a find, mr. Possum. "And you brought me back from being too far gone..."

Soul Asylum - Ode MP3

George Jones - Tennessee Whiskey MP3

It´s been quite a while since we featured one of these feedback-drenched jewels by that obscure Japanese band with the faux-French name. But here we go again. Close the curtains, sit back and take it all in: Takashi Mizutani is the man. And for the last song of this week´s edition we turn to one of those rare soul grooves they´re so fond of up north. "Here I am on bended knees, I lay my heart down at your feet..." Towel and talcum powder at the ready? Go.

Les Rallizes Dénudés - Flames Of Ice MP3

Frank Wilson - Do I Love You (Indeed I Do) MP3

33 1/3

Now I don´t know about you, but I always like to read about my favorite albums. And that´s exactly where the 33 1/3 series comes in. A few years ago Continuum Books started to publish these small, handsome books about classic albums, and until now they´ve released the staggering amount of 55 different tomes. No mean feat. I haven´t collected all of them yet, but I guess I´ll end up buying the lot (ok, except for the Abba, Celine Dion and Guns & Roses ones). Which probably means the publisher and I have slightly different opinions on the definition of what makes a classic album, but I´ve got a hunch these titles ultimately just shift more units than Beefheart´s Trout Mask Replica or Throbbing Gristle´s 20 Funk Jazz Greats.

From the ones I´ve read, most are illuminating, in-depth studies with loads of background info that can even make you listen to a long loved album in a different way. I can particularly recommend the books on Court And Spark (Joni Mitchell), Daydream Nation (Sonic Youth), Endtroducing..... (DJ Shadow), In The Aeroplane Over The Sea (Neutral Milk Hotel), Exile On Main St. (Rolling Stones, written by Bill Janovitz of Buffalo Tom fame btw), Forever Changes (Love) and Double Nickels On The Dime (Minutemen). Only Sign ´O´ The Times (Prince) proved dissapointingly shallow, so avoid that one. London Calling (The Clash) and Horses (Patti Smith) are in the works, while the next installment in the series will be Mountain Goats´ mastermind John Darnielle dissecting none other than Master Of Reality by Black Sabbath.

Neutral Milk Hotel - In The Aeroplane Over The Sea MP3

Rolling Stones - Hillside Blues (Exile On Main St. outtake) MP3

DJ Shadow - What Does Your Soul Look Like (Part 4) MP3

Joni Mitchell - Free Man In Paris MP3

Sonic Youth - Teenage Riot MP3

Minutemen - History Lesson - Part II MP3

Love - A House Is Not A Motel MP3