7 May 2013 - Michael Penn - No Myth

I saw Michael Penn a few years back when he was touring for his fantastic Mr. Hollywood Jr., 1947 record. Much like his better half Aimee Mann, he's a tremendous storyteller and performer. He's also very funny too, especially when he introduced this song -- surprisingly not called "Romeo in Black Jeans."

6 May 2013 (Part II) - The Darling Buds - Burst

So, while planning for Darling Buds Day 2014 - because, you know, this is a thing now - I will be petitioning to make this a national holiday in Wales - I started to worry.  What if I had found their only two videos?

I need not have worried.  We're so set for years to come that I felt it safe to post a SECOND video.  Whereas this and this were from their second album, the classic Crawdaddy, this one is from their debut, Pop Said.... The sound is slightly different - less pop, more rock - but three things are clear.

1. Their record label was hellbent on marketing them as a rock band with a blonde female lead vocalist.
2. Said blonde lead vocalist - Andrea Lewis - was really charismatic without showing too much boob (something that I would not say about Wendy James of Transvision Vamp, who was marketed the same way).  In fact, she was kind of modest.
3. This band is full of great musicians.

This song is fast-paced and will give you whiplash, much like most of their first album.  Probably why I love it so much.

6 May 2013 - The Darling Buds - Crystal Clear

I am thinking of making May 6th Darling Buds Day. After all, last May 6th, I posted a video of theirs under the Guilt-Free Sunday hashtag.

This song gets no such hashtag.  In fact, this was the song - and video - in which the Darling Buds had the exact opposite reaction to being lumped in with all the other vaguely rock-and-roll alternativesque British bands led by blonde lead vocalists - c'mon, I've told you about this before.  They ran right toward it.  They got poppier, less dark, and tried to be mainstream.  This pursuit led to the band's implosion, but that's another story.

As far as this song, from the great Crawdaddy album.... well, it's just poppy fun, and there's nothing wrong with that.  The video is a little odd, but hey. So, enjoy it.

5 de Mayo 2013 (Special Edition) - Liz Phair - Cinco De Mayo

Cinco de Mayo is celebrated in Mexico in the state of Puebla to celebrate the 5 May 1862 victory of the Mexican over the French in the Battle of Puebla.  It is not widely celebrated in Mexico outside of American tourist traps, and is not a Mexican federal holiday. So, let's celebrate the little-known Mexican holiday that is propped up by American retailers of Mexican beer by enjoying this jangle-pop classic, not about the battle of Puebla, but about a fizzled love, by Liz Phair.

3 May 2013 - Soul Asylum - Can't Even Tell

At one point in my life, I was a really big fan of Soul Asylum.  Hang Time was a fantastic album.  Fantastic.

Then they followed up that album with ....And The Horse They Rode In On.  Which wasn't all that good and was the beginning of the commercial success that would lead to me not being able to stand them.

Then came 1994.  The album I consider to be their comeback - Let Your Dim Light Shine - was still a year in the future.  Kevin Smith made a little movie called Clerks and commissioned Soul Asylum to do the song for the closing credits.

The result?  A nihilistic song about seizing the day that was an instant classic.  I've been a fan ever since.

2 May 2013 - The Soup Dragons - Divine Thing

I honestly can't remember the last time I put on Hotwired (or Lovegod for that matter) by The Soup Dragons. We used to listen to those albums all the time in college (I'm dating myself again here aren't I?). Heck, I actually saw them twice on their tour with James in 1992. Or was it 1993? It doesn't matter. It was a whole lot of fun . . . as is this video.

1 May 2013 - The Breeders - Cannonball / Safari

For most of you, this was your first and only meeting with The Breeders.   Which is all well and good.  It was a great song - still is.  It is a modern rock classic, with a great double guitar, a  very distinctive bassline by the under-appreciated Josephine Wiggs, and a catchy vocal by Kim Deal.


For me, it was a letdown.  I knew what they had been less than a year prior.

The Breeders were a modern rock supergroup, featuring the aforementioned Kim Deal (of The Pixies), Jo Wiggs (of The Perfect Disaster), and the woefully under-appreciated guitarist Tanya Donelly (at this point, of Throwing Muses).  Their first album, Pod, was a very dark, sparsely-produced (by Steve Albini) classic.  After that album, Kim's twin sister, Kelley, joined on guitar.  And, for one EP - Safari - they all stayed together.  And they rocked and rocked hard.



After the Safari EP, Tanya left to form Belly.  And her absence was noted by people who were in the know. I mean, don't get me wrong - The Breeders were still really good.  They just weren't the same band.  The band even went on to re-record one of the Safari songs for the Last Splash album - "Do You Love Me Now?" - and it was good..... but a little bit of a letdown.