What I Got Out of Record Store Day 2010

Record Store Day, conceived in 2007 by a Bull Moose music employee in Maine, started as a full-fledged idea in 2008.  What started as an attempt to throw a life preserver to independent record stores has become an international event the third Saturday of every April.  Bands create releases exclusively for Record Store Day, primarily vinyl, both as giveaways and for sale.

I've been to the last two; after going in 2009 and getting shut out on some things, in 2010 I decided to get to the Newbury Comics in Norwood about a half an hour before the store opened.

I figured I'd be plenty early -- and I was wrong.  I was about 30th in line.  Yup, 28 guys and one woman ahead of me.  And by the time the doors opened, the line had doubled.


It got ugly quickly.  I grabbed the last Weezer freebie 7" just as an alpha nerd reached for it as well.  Said alpha nerd already had one in hand, but he STILL gave me the "Fireball +20 damage" look.  The geek tension was palpable.


Fortunately, no more shows of dorky one-upmanship occurred.  In the end, I got a lot of music between the freebies, samplers, and limited edition items.  (Confession:  I did have to hit the Needham store on the way home to pick up some items that were already gone in Norwood.  I have a problem.)


So how did it work out in the end?  Pretty well.  I've boiled down just the free compilation/sampler discs to 3 1/2 hours; I used two 7 hour flights to pare down the list to that point.  Not bad for zero dollars.


As for the rest, all are singles on vinyl from 2010 unless otherwise noted:

• Against Me! - "I Was a Teenage Anarchist."  I've waxed eloquently (and at some length) about Against Me!, and I'd quote myself and link to said reviews if I weren't feeling quite so lazy at the moment.  This is a great pop punk single.  It's not like I wouldn't have bought the album without hearing the single, but it's great to hear on vinyl.  And the "acoustic version" b-side is actually a re-recording, not just stripping out the bass, drums, and electric guitars.  Good stuff.
  
  
• Built to Spill  - "Water Sleepers."  This is actually worth the price of admission for the b-side, "Linus and Lucy (Live)," which is a cover of the "Peanuts" Schroeder song.  But the a-side is no slouch either -- sounds like it's a throwback to the Keep It Like a Secret or Perfect from Now On era.  Very spacey and slow, but in the classic BTS way.  A really cool little single.
  
  
• The Clash - At Shea Stadium.  I am about to commit many acts of heresy, so please prepare yourself accordingly.  1) I don't like The Clash.  2) I don't like the legendary album London Calling.  So why on earth would I pick up a vinyl single promoting a live album?  Simply, because it was the most visually arresting item there.  It's a picture disc and just looks damn cool.  Now some more heresy.  3) I think this version of "London Calling" is better than the one on London Calling.  And thus 4) At Shea Stadium is going to be a better album than London Calling.  I thank you in advance for your hate mail and comments.
  
  
• The Constellations - "Setback."  Scott and I listened to this at 45 rpm (it is a single, after all), and found it to be quite interesting, although the woman's voice was way out there.  At 33 rpm (correct speed), that dude and his lame sound really did nothing for me.  Adding Cee-Lo to side 2 wasn't enough of a life-saver. Speed it up, kids.
  
  
• Roky Erickson with Okkervil River - True Love Cast Out All Evil.  I was truly shocked to see this in the store.  Since seeing Roky Erickson's comeback in 2005 at Austin City Limits, I've picked up his compilation, but I did not know he was making new music.  This is a combination of home recordings from over the years and new Roky performances, is all over the place and wacky, and is absolutely terrific.  Car CD Changer material.
   
• Jay Farrar and Benjamin Gibbard - One Fast Move or I'm Gone (Music from Kerouac's Big Sur) (single).  Jay Farrar (Wilco, Son Volt, Gob Iron) writes the music with Jack Kerouac's words, and trades vocals with Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie, Postal Service).  It's really great sounding:  not surprising, it's alt country.  The two songs here definitely make me want to hear the whole album -- it's an ambitious project for sure, but they do a nice job paying it off.
  
  
• Fly Leaf - "Chasm"/Paper Tongues - "Trinity."  Fly Leaf's lead singer is a powerhouse.  This song is right in the way that most of today's music is wrong:  the vocal presentation is forceful, the lyrics are interesting, and the music has both power and tension.  Paper Tongues, on the other half of the split single, show what's wrong with most of today's new music:  the vocal presentation is soft, the lyrics are cliché, and the music is formulaic and generic; not bad, but not good either.
  
  
• Gogol Bordello - "We Comin' Rougher (Immigranada)."  A bit smoother than what I've previously heard from these guys (probably because it was produced by Rick Rubin), but with the same raw energy and wackiness you'd expect from gypsy punks.  Very impressive.  I will be checking out the full album (Trans-Continental Hustle) for sure.
  
  
• Kasabian - "Fire."  I was on the fence on this one (a bit dance-y for me), but it has a great riff and they really have something nice going on here.
  
  
• John Lennon - Singles Bag.  I picked this up as an afterthought, but the recaps of the event say this was the rarest piece out there.  The three A-sides (despite what Ken might tell you) are classic:  "Mother," "Imagine," and "Watching the Wheels."  The three B-sides are terrible.  I'm not that interested in the poster, the postcards, and custom adaptor hub, but collectors probably are.
  
  
• Modest Mouse - The Moon and Antarctica (2000, re-released in 2010).  One of my favorite albums, finally available on vinyl.  And it sounds great.  One of the best takeaways of the day.
  
  
• Nada Surf - If I Had a Hi-Fi (CD).  The primary reasons I made the second stop in Needham was for the Modest Mouse vinyl and for this CD.  It's a covers album (and I love covers) by Nada Surf (and I love Nada Surf).  Unfortunately, the covers are mostly of songs I'm not familiar with; the best covers are Depeche Mode's "Enjoy the Silence" (which was one of the ones I did know), Arthur Russell's "Janine," and Kate Bush's "Love and Anger."  I guess I don't like the same groups these guys do; if I did I might like the album.  But it's all about me, and thus became Sell-back Pile 1 material. The packaging is very nice, though.   
  
  
• Rogue Wave - "Lake Michigan."    Of everything I got on Record Store Day, this was the best surprise.  Think of Sunny Day Real Estate crossed with Glen Echo.  Really excellent stuff.  Not the most revolutionary, but there is something really nice about the sound of these guys.  A check of this album is in order. 
  
  
• Weezer - "(If You're Wondering if I Want You to) I Want You to."  After wrestling Golem for this puppy (see above), I felt like my expectations were not met with this one right off the bat.  Besides an annoyingly long title for the A-side, I really did not like the song, which tends to be an issue.  However, it has grown on me, and thus the yellow vinyl stays. 

- Snilch

Quick Hits - The Undecided List, Part 2

The genesis of this, once again, was 25+ hours in a car, which was followed up on with an additional 12 hours on a subsequent trip. Again, these ones are out of the mix for getting into the car, as they didn’t grab me the first time there. Make sense?

In alphabetical order:

• Gabby Glaser - Gimmie Splash (2007). As detailed here, I've always been a big fan of Gabby Glaser of Luscious Jackson fame, but was quite puzzled that neither she nor songwriting partner Jill Cunniff had released anything since the band broke up. Then they both release solo debuts the same year. Very odd. This album has the groove of Luscious Jackson, but it's oddly detached and thus falls short. This one hangs on for grim death at the very end of my CD Rack, but only because of her history with LJ. Maybe it will eventually grow on me.
  Verdict: Blah. CD Rack.
  
  
• Gogol Bordello - Gypsy Punks Underdog World Strike (2005). Allmusic.com describes this group as "combining elements of punk, gypsy music, and Brecht-ian cabaret," which is better than how I would have summed them up. Pat turned me on to this band after seeing them play a screaming live show. This album is a trip... just all over the place. These people are truly nuts. I think I need to see them live to make a better determination as to what they are all about... the album itself is just tough to completely fathom. Who am I kidding, they are completely and wonderfully warped. How's that for a review?
  Verdict: Undecided but intrigued. Use this to scare unwanted Republicans away from your house. Portable CD Case as I have to give it more listens (clearly).
  

• Grizzly Bear - Friends EP (2007). I got into these guys when I heard a partial clip of their fantastically sparse cover of Yes's "Owner of a Lonely Heart," which still has not been officially released to my dismay (and while I'm at it: Cat Power, please release your cover of "Hanging on the Telephone" as well). This is very sparse, delicate at times, but well-crafted and interesting. This is nice music... very mellow but never boring.
  Verdict: Recommended. Portable CD Case.

• Grizzly Bear - Yellow House (2006). I make it a point not to review albums by the same band in the same post, but I goofed here. When writing the above review for Friends, I thought I was listening to Yellow House, which I discovered as I attempted to put the Friends CD in a case that was already full. This turns out to be a solid but unspectacular full-length of originals. Oddly I prefer Friends, which consists of 2 new songs, 5 alternate versions of songs they've previously released, and 3 covers of their songs by other bands (including CSS). I know this review is supposed to be about Yellow House right now, but Friends has much more to talk about. Go figure.
  Verdict: I'd listen to Friends first, but this is not bad. CD Rack.
  

• Jesu - Conqueror (2006). There's not much I can say about this one -- it is so good it's scary. The 2-CD version (with "Sundown" and "Sunrise") really makes this a complete album, although when I bought this version I could only find it as an import. It's worth the extra expense. Think My Bloody Valentine at 2/3 speed. Really cool stuff, it just doesn't play in the car. Absolutely one of my favorite albums from the last 2 years. It's droney, plodding, and deliberate in a great way. I love this one.
  Verdict: Just beautiful. Portable CD Case.

• Mia - Kala (2007). The musicality of this one can't be denied -- but as it's not quite as silly as Mu or as dense as later De La Soul, I've had problems painting this one into its proper corner. Today I've decided to be optimistic. It's a little hip-hop, a little (very little) dance, and a little old-school rap. I have to say hearing the lyrics to "Where is My Mind" by The Pixies re-done as a monotone, synthesized chorus in "20 Dollar" took some getting used to, but I'm coming around to it. "XR2" is a great play on "Shake Your Rump," complete with cash register and gun firing sound effects -- I've decided to be amused rather than disturbed by this, and to treat this as an ironic and not damning social commentary at the moment. Overall, I need to listen to this more, but for the moment I'll give it the benefit of the doubt.
  Verdict: Recommended if you like the genre. Portable CD Case (for research purposes).

• Motörhead - No Sleep 'til Hammersmith (1981, re-mastered version released in 2001). I'm going to go out on a limb here and suggest you're unlikely to find any music source that is willing to go from Jesu to Mia to Motörhead in the same breath and pretend it still can be taken seriously. Fortunately, I have no such aspirations. I'd never listened to Motörhead in my life until about 6 months ago, which apparently is some type of crazy hole in my musical life. This live album would be great for Motörhead freaks... not for me, though. Probably not for you either, eh?
  Verdict: Sell-back 1.

• The Screaming Blue Messiahs - BBC Radio 1 Live in Concert (1988). My friend Liz gave me some tapes with a bunch of odds and ends from early '80's Boston radio on it -- and what really stuck was The Screaming Blue Messiahs. Apparently known for their "hit" "I Wanna Be a Flinstone" (news to me), this group mysteriously just stopped in the late '80's before they ever got big, with no real explanation. Finding their albums is like trying to find breadcrumbs in a forest of pigeons. But I tracked this down and I must say that I'm happy I did. They are a country/blues band sped up, and thus very pleasing. Frontman Bill Carter gets on my nerves slightly with his over the top, almost evangelical, delivery, but his guitar playing is topnotch. As everything comes in 3's, think of him visually as the younger brother of Bob Mould and Frank Black -- and "once described as 'the ugliest man in rock!'" That quote (and the exclamation point) are from the album liner notes. 'Nuff said.
  Verdict: Recommended if you can find it. Portable CD Case.

• Peter Searcy - Trust Falls (2005). This is the Squirrel Bait frontman's 3rd solo effort, following 2000's somewhat lackluster Could You Please and Thank You and 2004's breakthrough Couch Songs. This one doesn't measure up to the acoustic Couch Songs, which is odd for me as this is more rock and I tend to stray towards the heavier stuff. Peter constantly straddles the line between pure pop/rock excellence and pure pop/rock sappiness, and here he mostly verges towards the latter. Which is too bad -- he needs a bit more sneer. I wonder if his follow-up (2007's Spark) is better... but you'll just have to wait on that for another day.
  Verdict: Not recommended. CD Rack in case I have a change of heart later.
  

• Social Distortion - Prison Bound (1988). I got into these guys late in the game, but 1990's Social Distortion and 1992's Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell are about as good as you'll ever hear in back-to-back albums. This album got high marks too, but it's not in that class. A little more raw, a little less defined, but you can hear where they were going. Something like "Lawless" is rough, but they are laying the foundation melodically towards a couple of great albums.
  Verdict: Recommended for Social D fans, but only after buying those other 2 albums. CD Rack.
  

• Sum 41 - All Killer No Filler (2001). My friend Sean was into these guys and thus I gave them a shot. Well, 7 years later, but better late than never, right? I think he was actually referring to their debut, Half Hour of Power, but I could be wrong. This was enjoyable but a little dated to listen to, surprisingly. I just could not get into it. We'll give Half Hour a shot, though.
  Verdict: Sell-back pile 1.
  

- Snilch