[Preview / Didn’t-Play-List] NEW MUSIC NIGHT is this Thursday at River Gods
Posted on May 21, 2012 at 10:30 am | No Comments
First off, take note, Boston: The next edition of NEW MUSIC NIGHT, during which Jay Clicky Clicky and myself take to the River Gods DJ booth in Cambridge and play nothing but carefully-chosen new songs, takes place this coming Thursday, May 24th, 2012. Got it? Good.
The last time our every-other-month event went down, I was sadly absent *. Yes, among the casualties of the soul-crushing sickness I came down with in mid-March was my planned appearance at that 5th edition of NMN, but before I succumbed, I was able to pull together a pretty spiffy setlist, if I do say so myself. And I do. I spent a ton of time gathering these all-new tracks, perfectly sequenced for her and his pleasure, but sharing them was, alas, not meant to be. Not going to let that stop me from posting it here, though.
What follows is what you would’ve heard, had I not been at home shivering beneath the covers. Some of these may show up in my playlist on Thursday, but a ton of great new stuff has come out since then, so who knows. Do join us, won’t you?
( * My thanks to WMBR DJ/Pipeline host Jeff Breeze for filling in, by the way… the pinch hit was very much appreciated. For Jay’s playlists from NMN-V, head over to Clicky Clicky.)
The did-not-playlist…
** = Boston-area band
01. AV Linton – “Big Ocean“
[ new recording from ex-Henry’s Dress & Aislers Set member / listen at Soundcloud ]
02. Sharon Van Etten – “Give Out“
[ from the “Tramp” LP / stream at P4K ]
03. Pools – “Bad Enough“
[ from the “Cabin” EP / stream at Bandcamp / MP3 ]
04. Husky – “The Woods“
[ from the upcoming “Forever So” LP on Sub Pop / video ]
05. Frank Lenz – “Chicago“
[ from the “Holy Rollers” soundtrack / stream at Soundcloud ]
06. Guided By Voices – “Keep It In Motion“
[ from “Class Clown Spots a UFO” / stream at Soundcloud ]
07. The Mary Onettes – “Loves Taking Strange Ways“
[ from the “Love Forever” EP / MP3 ]
08. The Minor Leagues – “Ghost Maps“
[ from the “North College Hill” LP / free download at Bandcamp ]
09. ** Slowdim – “Money“
[ new single / stream at Bandcamp / MP3 ]
10. ** The Rationales – “Radio“
[ new single / stream or free download at Bandcamp ]
11. The Wedding Present – “Back A Bit… Stop“
[ from their “Valentina” LP ]
12. Now Now – “Thread“
[ from the “Threads” LP / video ]
13. Eux Autres – “Home Tonight“
[ from the “Sun Is Sunk” EP / MP3 ]
14. Averkiou – “Fuzzy Photograph“
[ from “The New Imperative” EP / stream at Soundcloud ]
15. Beach Fossils – “Shallow“
[ from the 7-inch / download at Spin ]
16. Craft Spells – “Still Left With Me“
[ from the “Gallery” EP / stream at Soundcloud ]
17. DIIV – “Geist“
[ from the 7-inch / stream at Stereogum ]
18. ** Gulls – “Hair“
[ from the “Down The Hatch” LP / stream & free download at Bandcamp / MP3 ]
19. 2:54 – “You’re Early“
[ from their debut album / stream on Soundcloud ]
20. A Little Affair – “December“
[ from their self-titled debut LP / stream at Soundcloud ]
21. Sun Kil Moon – “Sunshine In Chicago“
[ from the “Among The Leaves” LP / stream at Caldo Verde ]
22. Milano Sun – “Already Gone“
[ / stream at Soundcloud / video ]
23. Magnetic Fields – “I’d Go Anywhere With Hugh“
[ from the “Love At The Bottom Of The Sea” LP / stream LP at Merge ]
24. ** The Dirty Dishes – “Blur“
[ from “The Most Tarnished Birds” EP / stream & download on Soundcloud ]
25. Detective Agency – “Daggers“
[ from the “Daggers” EP / stream on Bandcamp ]
26. Belle & Sebastian – “Crash” (Primitives cover)
[ from the “Late Night Tales” compilation / stream at Soundcloud / video ]
27. Desert Stars – “Boys Like“
[ from their debut 7-inch / stream & name-your-price download on Bandcamp ]
28. Black Tambourine – “What’s Your Game” (Ramones cover)
[ from the “OneTwoThreeFour” double 7-inch / stream at Soundcloud / MP3 ]
29. Violens – “Der Microarc“
[ from the “True” LP / video / stream at Soundcloud / MP3 ]
30. Beach House – “Myth“
[ from the “Bloom” LP / video / download via Topspin ]
31. Real Estate – “Exactly Nothing“
[ b-side to the “Easy” 7-inch / stream at Soundcloud ]
32. ** Age Rings – “One” (Harry Nilsson cover)
[ digital single release / download at Midriff Records ]
33. Jeremy Enigk – “Last Rites” (Damien Jurado cover)
[ / stream at the Seattle Times ]
34. Elliott Smith – “Needle In The Hay” (with Eric Matthews)
[ unreleased version (with EM on trumpet) from the CASH Music Kickstarter compilation ]
35. Tara Jane O’Neil – “The Rainbow Connection” (Muppets cover)
[ b-side of the “Sirena” 7-inch ]
Once again: This Thursday, River Gods, Cambridge, MA. 4 hours of new music. 9pm on the nose.
[Reissue Review] Ride’s “Nowhere” (Rhino Remaster vs. 1990 original)
Posted on April 30, 2012 at 11:50 pm | 8 Comments
On any given day, if you forced me to shout out my favorite album ever, there’s a very good chance I’d yell “NOWHERE”! For many, many months after Ride’s 1990 start-to-finish masterpiece was released it rarely left my walkman, soundtracking a very volatile chunk of my formative years. The 11 songs on Ride’s debut full-length (after a string of ace EPs) settled down very, very deep into my heart and brain, and to this day I’ve never once tired of hearing it. Hell, I nearly named this blog after a “Nowhere” lyric, but didn’t want to step on Frank‘s already-Ride-referencing toes.
So when the album hit the 20-year mark and Rhino Handmade released remastered double-disc/single LP versions in late 2010, you’re damn right I re-bought it. Sure, I have that purist part of me that screamed “Don’t mess with perfection!”, but I needed to know what they’d done to my dearly beloved. Even if it was going to cost me 40 bucks plus shipping to find that out.
Well, whaddya know… they done good.
Today, to coincide with Clicky Clicky‘s release of the lovingly-curated “NOFUCKINGWHERE” tribute compilation (on which 11 Boston bands cover every single song from the record), and realizing that a $40 pricetag is tough for your average Ride fan to throw down for a 20-year old album they probably know by heart, I thought I’d lay out some simple audio/visual evidence in support of the reissue. Whether you’ve heard the original never, a dozen, or a million times, the remastered “Nowhere” should be on your shelf. Thanks to Rhino, by the way, for allowing me to use the audio tracks below.
The aural dynamics are a vital part of “Nowhere”, so when I heard they were remastering the thing, I feared that we’d get unnecessary compression and over-maximization of valleys vs. hills (don’t worry if you didn’t understand that, it may not actually make sense). The album came out well before the hot-levels craze, where every track was squashed to hell and pinned to max volume. Fortunately those days have (mostly) passed, and Nick Webb at Abbey Road (a former Beatles engineer who handled the remastering) kept all the lows, highs, and dynamic shifts intact – to me, they feel more powerful than ever.
(For a far better explanation of mastering, specifically “loudness”, than I could ever hope to write, check out this excellent primer over at Bob Weston & Jason Ward’s Chicago Mastering Service. It’ll help you understand what I’m trying to get across. Basically this image = bad.)
Compare the waveform of the original 1990 version of “Vapour Trail” with its remastered counterpart, and you’ll see how the volume was increased without maxing all the levels to their highest points…
But more importantly, listen to the original and the remaster back-to-back. Yes, obviously the new version is a bit louder, but pay particular attention to when the drums kick in, or when the strings arrive…
The bass drum and snare are punchier but still in the pocket – they don’t distract from the guitars or vocals. They’re clearer, as are the all-important strings, which are given added definition without sterile separation. I hear details in these songs that I’ve never heard before, and given how many times I’ve listened to them, that’s a mastering miracle. It’s really a near-perfect production job, finding a balance between added clarity and the original’s warm blanket sound.
For another taste (unfortunate but unplanned pun), have a look and listen to “Paralysed“, a longer and more dynamic track than “Vapour Trail“…
Aside from the audio improvement the remaster provides, the bonus material is the other obvious reason to pick up the “Nowhere” reissue: The 4 ridiculously great songs from “Today Forever” EP, which were also remastered, are tacked on the first disc at the end of the album. The original version of EP track “Today” suffered from very low levels, and was a bit muffled – that’s finally been remedied, and it positively sparkles now. (side note – check out Lou Barlow’s thoughts on the “Today Forever” EP right here)
The second disc of the pair holds a previously-unreleased live recording of the band at what some would call the peak of their power, during their first U.S. tour in 1991 at the Roxy in LA. 12 tracks, including 7 from “Nowhere”. It’s probably the best live document of the band I’ve ever heard, and I’ve heard more than my share.
The packaging of the double-disc is impressive as well, featuring a 6″ x 6″ hardbound book with a lenticular version of iconic blue wave image on the front, and photos, lyrics, artwork, and an understandably gushing essay from music critic Jim DeRogatis on the inside. The presentation nearly does the audio justice. I haven’t checked out the 180g vinyl remaster, which keeps things simple with just the original “Nowhere” tracks, but it looks, and likely sounds, just as gorgeous. This is the first time the LP version has been available in the states, and pulling together this post has just convinced me I really need to upgrade my original import-only copy.
So hit up Rhino before I grab the last LP (it actually says “Low stock”, so I’m not really kidding), or snag the 2CD version. Then head straight to Clicky Clicky and download “NOFUCKINGWHERE” (for free) so you have something to listen to while you wait by your mailbox.