The New York Times Papercuts Blog has posted a list with notes of the music Ann and I have been listening to recently. Everything from Ray Davies* to Willard Grant to The New Pornographers to Supersystem. Check it out.

What’ve you been listening to? And why do you like it or hate it? What’s the soundtrack to your life right now?

*JB’s gonna hate that one.

(The cover of the Shriek limited, art by Ben Templesmith, design by John Coulthart; extras include The Church’s Shriek CD, a DVD of the Shriek movie, and some other surprises; possibly, Ambergris stamps.)

I’ve got a mile-wide grin on my face right now. I just received the 45-minute CD of music The Church recorded as a soundtrack to my Shriek novel. It will accompany the limited edition of Shriek forthcoming from Wyrm Publishing.

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All I have to say about this one is that Sharon Jones has an amazing voice and I’d buy a CD of her singing the phone book to me. It’s just classic stuff. The richness of Jones’ voice, the strength of it, astounds me. Love these songs. I’m reduced to having nothing else to convey to you about the record except: go buy it.

Just a thumbnail review of the last solo CD from Evan Dando. The video above is actually one of the lesser songs from the CD, but still indicative of the overall quality. I’m very much impressed. The quality is great, and there’s a kind of hidden depth to the work. A lush yet restrained quality to the production. I almost feel like I’m listening to an Aimee Mann CD. Really great stuff. Infectious and rewarding repeated listening. Thanks to Matt Staggs for turning me on to it.

Now, with my beloved Gators losing to Auburn, it’s a good time to go smoke a cigar…

Jeff

I’ve been a huge fan of Robbers on High Street ever since their first CD, Fine Lines (which oddly enough is the perfect soundtrack whilst reading The Golden Compass by Phillip Pullman). Fine Lines is a seriously cool CD of magically dark tracks with amazing riffs; it has the feel of something created spontaneously and perfectly on the first try.

Tree City by the Robbers, the follow-up, grew on me over time until I now listen to it almost as much as Fine Lines. In both cases, it’s like listening to a version of Spoon that isn’t about coiled tension but more about release. The lead singer even sounds a little like Spoon, although I’ve never found the band derivative.

However, now it’s 2007 and the release of the full-length Grand Animals finds me a bit nonplussed. Now I feel a bit like the band is working backwards. Grand Animals would’ve been an acceptable first effort, with Tree City a great sophomore leap forward. Fine Lines, as their third CD, would’ve seemed like a genius step up.

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Sometimes you get what you expect, and it still makes you “Feel So Good”. In the case of Richard Thompson, he’s well past the point where he’s going to surprise anyone. As one of the world’s greatest singer-songwriters, he’s followed an eclectic path toward non-stardom for over 35 years. Sweet Warrior isn’t going to change any of that, although it strikes me as more lively and less sludgy than Mock Tudor, his last effort.

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Maybe I’m just the world’s biggest jerk, but after one listen I kind of liked God Save the Clientele by The Clientele. After two listens I found it too shimmery-wishy-washy. By the third and fourth listens, I was just bored. By the fifth listen, I kept visualizing a very long, floppy piece of tofu and a bamboo stick. I kept seeing the tofu being laid over the stick and flopping down limp on both sides of the stick. Neither the bamboo nor the stick interested me that much.

I’m not quite sure I can quantify what it is I dislike about The Clientele, but it might have something to do with the way in which they take echoes of The Kinks and then weave a kind of diaphanous meditation mat out of it all. I kept wanting a little more in terms of differentiation, a little more variety…and not getting it.

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Graham Parker at the height of his powers, with Squeezing Out Sparks, Alive Alone in America, and The Mona Lisa’s Smile, among others, created incisive, sharp, melodic rock ‘n’ roll with heartfelt, mature lyrics.

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I didn’t really “get” The National’s latest CD, Boxer, until I listened to it late one night coming home from a bar. As I watched the street lights blur past, the music suddenly came into focus–glistening with darkness, powerful and fragile at the same time.

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Via Rajan, who got it from YouTube. Love the band, love the video.

Why do I love the video? Because it’s insane.

Jeff