Good morning-
7 years since the last post. Here's what's on my mind:
1. I hate reading things that I wrote and posted to the internet in the past. Things I thought were deep and well thought out seem contrived and poorly composed. It's embarrassing. I put two spaces after periods. What the fuck was I thinking? Did I proofread none of it? I can't wait until 2026 when I look back on this post with utter disdain.
I don't know why I started with a numbered bullet point. The rest of this post will be a jumbled mess of thoughts about music. Here we go.
Why did I just sign up for Spotify premium only this past week? It is worth every penny and then some. I feel so far behind the times but I suppose it's better late than never. What a world. So much music. At work. In the car. Lying in bed. I've been missing out.
What ways do you discover music? Seriously- if you somehow find yourself reading this, I want you to leave a comment. For a couple of years after my last post, I was discovering music at music festivals. Two trips to Bonnaroo and a trip to Osheaga introduced me to quite a bit. I attended those festivals over a three year period between 2013 and 2015. I try and keep my eye on big festival lineups, and they just don't seem to have the same luster today. Am I old and out of touch? No, no. It's the young people who are wrong.
One way I have consistently discovered more music, for a much longer period of time, is through the NPR Tiny Desk series. So many artists who I've obsessed over that I may have never discovered short of the Tiny Desk. To name a few: Thundercat, Andy Shauf, Anderson Paak, Aimee Mann, Nate Wood, Nate Smith. Even musicians like Chick Corea and Gary Burton, who I've always known about were illuminated in a new light behind (or in front of?) the Tiny Desk. I've really benefited from this series as a means of discovery. Nate Smith has even begun to collaborate with Vulfpeck!? What an insane collision of two worlds which I had no idea even knew of each-other's existence. These are two artists who are on the top of my 'must see' list. If I could see them at a single show, that would be insanity.
I've also recently gotten over a 4-5 month obsession with the Crash Test Dummies. Well, one album: God Shuffled His Feet. I had re-re-rediscovered the album maybe in October or November of last year, and CTD just so happened to be gearing up to launch a tour for the 25th anniversary of the album! What are the odds? My Dad and I caught their show in Fall River in December. It was mildly disappointing. Not sure what the sound guy was thinking. The whole show was kind of blown out for the size of the venue and the style of music. Plus, I was disappointed that Dan Roberts' bass playing wasn't showcased like I had hoped. Afternoons and Coffeespoons was performed acoustically without any bass guitar accompaniment. Additionally, they completely omitted 'Here I Stand Before Me'. That bugged me since they were on tour celebrating the 25th anniversary of this album. That was another track where I was looking forward to the bass guitar performance. Oh well. I can now say without lying that I've been to a Crash Test Dummies show. Weird, I know, but, you'll have to take my word for it. God Shuffled His Feet is a great album. I can take the heat.
March 20, 2019
May 1, 2012
We Might Be Wrong: The Top 15 Albums of 2001
We Might Be Wrong 2001 closes with the big list: our 15 favorite albums of the year. As with last year, there is a link provided to listen to each album in its entirety at Grooveshark. 56 albums in total received at least one vote this year (you can see the individual contributors' lists here). Again, feel free to let us know what you think in the comments or post your own lists; thanks for reading.
April 30, 2012
We Might Be Wrong: The Top 10 Singles of 2001
As we did last year with the year 2000, we begin our look back at 2001 with our list of our 10 favorite singles of the year. Our list was compiled using a points system similar to the one used last year, and once again, any single released during the calendar year as well as any single appearing on a 2001 album was eligible for inclusion. 81 singles received at least one vote in the poll this year; these are the top 10! (Individual contributors' lists can be found here.)
Also, rather than providing links just to listen to each single, we've provided links to the music videos for each song, seeing as some of these videos are among the best ever made (particularly #4, #2 and #1).
So, here it is. Let us know what you think, and feel free to post your own top tens in the comments..enjoy!
Also, rather than providing links just to listen to each single, we've provided links to the music videos for each song, seeing as some of these videos are among the best ever made (particularly #4, #2 and #1).
So, here it is. Let us know what you think, and feel free to post your own top tens in the comments..enjoy!
April 29, 2012
We Might Be Wrong: 2001
So this blog has been rather neglected for awhile, as seems to sometimes happen, but this week we will be publishing our second annual edition of We Might Be Wrong: tomorrow, we'll be publishing our Top 10 Singles of 2001, and on Tuesday, our Top 15 Albums of 2001. We know you've been looking forward to this.
March 2, 2012
McCoy Tyner at the Blue Note Club
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During a recent trip to New York City, a friend of mine was reading through the New Yorker and casually noted that McCoy Tyner would be playing at the Blue Note Club the following night. After skipping a couple heartbeats, I expressed to my friend that this was something we should see.For several years McCoy Tyner had been at the top of my list of performers to see live. I had nearly gotten to see him on a couple of occasions, but had been unable to attend for one reason or another. Anyway, I had always imagined that if I did get to see him, it would be in some giant hall like the Four Seasons Centre in Toronto, where I saw Dave Brubeck in 2007. But the Blue Note Club is a small, intimate venue, and there was McCoy Tyner, sitting at his piano less than ten feet from me. It was an almost surreal experience.
But it was indeed real. The show itself, of course, was wonderful. Tyner was joined by saxophonist Gary Bartz, who he had recorded with in the late '60s and early '70s, and who played beautifully; bassist Gerald Cannon; and a young Cuban drummer, Francisco Mela, who threatened to steal the show. But of course, no one was stealing this show from the man of the hour. Tyner's presence in itself was special, and his playing was as powerful as ever, his left hand a driving force behind the music. It was one of those rare shows where you realize in the moment that you're witnessing something extraordinary.
[Listen to "Blues on the Corner" at Grooveshark]
October 19, 2011
Finally
Ok, so this is going to sound crazy, but I'm not exaggerating when I say that last week I attended what was probably my most anticipated concert ever. I'll start with some back story.
In fifth grade I decided to take up an instrument at school, the orchestra bells. I was the only kid at Plympton Elementary that chose the bells. (I quickly started referring to them them as 'the xylophone' since the aforementioned name was embarrassing for whatever reason.) Being the lone bells player, every Friday during recess became a personal lesson from a guy who must have been one of the best music teachers to ever live: Walter Tokarczyk. He was short, stout, bald, and very tough. He told me that one of his former students named Mike Mangini was a very successful drummer now, so he was going to hold me to high standards. I told my father about the Mike Mangini story that Mr T had told me earlier. I remember my dad responding by telling me stories about how he and his brothers used to hang out with Mike (who they aptly called 'mini-guinea') quite a bit and play music, but that is a story for another time. At any rate, I stuck with the bells for about 3 years before I (regrettably) quit. Then Mr T retired and I couldn't imagine starting back up without him as my instructor. Other students tended to dislike him, but I'm positive that's because he knew very well when kids didn't practice at home. He was openly very hard on those students, often in front of the entire band. Anyway, I look back at my time spent with Mr T very fondly; he wanted to mold me (and all his students) into real-ass musicians.
Over the years post xylophone, I came to know more and more about Mike Mangini, his world records and his overall technical mastery of the drums. When the youtube era rolled in I finally got to see some footage of Mike playing. It was insanity. Inspiring... we had the same teacher goddammit. Why did I quit? Anyhow, it got me into thinking about Mr T again. I Googled him. He had died a year ago, in 2005.
The thought of getting to see Mike Mangini perform was an awesome thought. Here's another one of those rare folks who remembers Mr T as fondly as I do. Hell, I even feel like we share a bit of history, with our childhood music instructor as the medium.
Fast forward to 2011. I hear that a band called Dream Theater had been auditioning new drummers and that Mangini actually won the job. I was pumped. I had been a DT fan since high school and had seen them in concert four or five times. I was not going to miss their next tour stop through Boston.
As a DT fan, I was not impressed with the set list. A lot of their newer songs are just not enjoyable for me. However, they are very technical and fun to watch. The older songs they did play were mind bogglingly good, and really exciting to see and hear with Mangini behind the drums.
As a Mangini fan, I was blown away. The solo they gave him was worth my money alone. The speed, the stamina, the polyrhythms, the showmanship. I might be a bit biased, but I wasn't the only amazed person in the Orpheum.
Its too bad I didn't get to bump into him outside and say something like "Remember Mr. Tokarczyk, man?" I was clinging onto that possibility until we hit the highway on the way home.
In fifth grade I decided to take up an instrument at school, the orchestra bells. I was the only kid at Plympton Elementary that chose the bells. (I quickly started referring to them them as 'the xylophone' since the aforementioned name was embarrassing for whatever reason.) Being the lone bells player, every Friday during recess became a personal lesson from a guy who must have been one of the best music teachers to ever live: Walter Tokarczyk. He was short, stout, bald, and very tough. He told me that one of his former students named Mike Mangini was a very successful drummer now, so he was going to hold me to high standards. I told my father about the Mike Mangini story that Mr T had told me earlier. I remember my dad responding by telling me stories about how he and his brothers used to hang out with Mike (who they aptly called 'mini-guinea') quite a bit and play music, but that is a story for another time. At any rate, I stuck with the bells for about 3 years before I (regrettably) quit. Then Mr T retired and I couldn't imagine starting back up without him as my instructor. Other students tended to dislike him, but I'm positive that's because he knew very well when kids didn't practice at home. He was openly very hard on those students, often in front of the entire band. Anyway, I look back at my time spent with Mr T very fondly; he wanted to mold me (and all his students) into real-ass musicians.
Over the years post xylophone, I came to know more and more about Mike Mangini, his world records and his overall technical mastery of the drums. When the youtube era rolled in I finally got to see some footage of Mike playing. It was insanity. Inspiring... we had the same teacher goddammit. Why did I quit? Anyhow, it got me into thinking about Mr T again. I Googled him. He had died a year ago, in 2005.
The thought of getting to see Mike Mangini perform was an awesome thought. Here's another one of those rare folks who remembers Mr T as fondly as I do. Hell, I even feel like we share a bit of history, with our childhood music instructor as the medium.
Fast forward to 2011. I hear that a band called Dream Theater had been auditioning new drummers and that Mangini actually won the job. I was pumped. I had been a DT fan since high school and had seen them in concert four or five times. I was not going to miss their next tour stop through Boston.
As a DT fan, I was not impressed with the set list. A lot of their newer songs are just not enjoyable for me. However, they are very technical and fun to watch. The older songs they did play were mind bogglingly good, and really exciting to see and hear with Mangini behind the drums.
As a Mangini fan, I was blown away. The solo they gave him was worth my money alone. The speed, the stamina, the polyrhythms, the showmanship. I might be a bit biased, but I wasn't the only amazed person in the Orpheum.
Its too bad I didn't get to bump into him outside and say something like "Remember Mr. Tokarczyk, man?" I was clinging onto that possibility until we hit the highway on the way home.
September 8, 2011
Song of the Moment: "Mississippi Goddam" by Nina Simone
"Mississippi Goddam" is one of Nina Simone's more well-known songs, and a classic of the civil rights era. The most well-known and perhaps most striking version was recorded live at Carnegie Hall in March of 1964. Simone opens by introducing it, to what is presumably a mostly white audience, saying "the name of this tune is 'Mississippi Goddam!' And I mean every word of it," drawing a hearty laugh from the crowd. After an opening chorus, she says "this is a show tune, but the show hasn't been written for it yet." A less hearty, slightly nervous laugh. Then, she goes into the verses, which contain some extremely serious civil rights messages, and some palpable anger. After a couple verses she says, "bet you thought I was kiddin', didn't you?" This time, you can almost hear the audience fidgeting. It's horribly uncomfortable and brilliant and really amazing. Not to mention it's a great song.
[Listen at Grooveshark]
[Listen at Grooveshark]
March 15, 2011
The Way Out - The Books
In the case of The Way Out, one of the most important of these new ideas for the Books is hypnotherapy. At a Books show at Chicago's Museum of Contemporary Art in 2009, Nick Zammuto, one half of the band, explained that the duo had discovered and gotten heavily into hypnotherapy, and that this had heavily influenced their forthcoming album. Of course, he meant that they had been listening to recordings of hypnotherapy, not that he and fellow Book Paul de Jong had undertaken hypnotherapy themselves. Their discovery is indeed evident on the album in question, and the recurring spoken hypnosis extracts have a way of making the listener part of the experience. The Way Out is also harder than much of the Books' previous work; there's an edge to it that distinguishes it from earlier Books music, particularly evident on tracks like "I Am Who I Am" and the hilarious "A Cold Freezin' Night."
But whatever can be said about it, all that really matters is that when you sit down and play The Way Out, it's an absolutely amazing listen, a truly moving experience. As always, their music is overflowing with beauty, imagination, humor, and optimism. So yeah...just another Books album.
[Listen to The Way Out at Grooveshark.com]
March 13, 2011
Flawless victory!
Another innovative 6 string madman on candyrat records that I would love to see live. There's a small delay effect which gives an echo, but he still picks flawlessly and fast giving it a real trance-ish effect.
March 10, 2011
A Good Year
So I've written about this before, but it's true: 2010 was an astoundingly good year for music, one of the best in a long time. Here's a rundown of some of my favorite albums of the past year (in alphabetical order for now..if you're wondering, The Suburbs was my number one).
The ArchAndroid - Janelle Monáe
Before Today - Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti
Black City - Matthew Dear
Brothers - The Black Keys
Congratulations - MGMT
Cosmogramma - Flying Lotus
Fang Island - Fang Island
Forgiveness Rock Record - Broken Social Scene
Hearbeats - Grum
Maya - M.I.A.
Melted - Ty Segall
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy - Kanye West
Plastic Beach - Gorillaz
Rated R - Rihanna
Say It - Born Ruffians
Senior - Royskopp
Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty - Big Boi
Swim - Caribou
The Suburbs - Arcade Fire
Teen Dream - Beach House
This Is Happening - LCD Soundsystem
Together - The New Pornographers
Treats - Sleigh Bells
Under Great White Northern Lights - The White Stripes
Volume Two - She & Him
The Way Out - The Books
Write About Love - Belle and Sebastian
The ArchAndroid - Janelle Monáe
Before Today - Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti
Black City - Matthew Dear
Brothers - The Black Keys
Congratulations - MGMT
Cosmogramma - Flying Lotus
Fang Island - Fang Island
Forgiveness Rock Record - Broken Social Scene
Hearbeats - Grum
Maya - M.I.A.
Melted - Ty Segall
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy - Kanye West
Plastic Beach - Gorillaz
Rated R - Rihanna
Say It - Born Ruffians
Senior - Royskopp
Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty - Big Boi
Swim - Caribou
The Suburbs - Arcade Fire
Teen Dream - Beach House
This Is Happening - LCD Soundsystem
Together - The New Pornographers
Treats - Sleigh Bells
Under Great White Northern Lights - The White Stripes
Volume Two - She & Him
The Way Out - The Books
Write About Love - Belle and Sebastian
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