.... here's hoping tomorrow brings a good change to our country.


And today brings a definite good change to our blog.

So go over there to find the new and improved I Correct Myself, I Mean All The Time.

Seriously. Redirect your blogrolls please :)

xoxoxo,
Tart

P.S. is this graphic offensive? come over to the new blog and tell me all about it, I dare ya. It's Puppet Show's fault, he sent it to me :p

She played them all. Yep, that's all you really need to know from this hoarse, exhausted, #1 fan of Amy Ray. It's over 24 hours since the show and I'm just now getting my voice back, just now feeling like I can walk around the block with my dogs at a normal pace. Damn, going to gigs in your 40s really sucks! Amy is a month older than this old Tart and she sure didn't show it last night. Her set list was long, her band was loud and hot and well tuned and even the new guy on bass who was so very obviously out of place (he had sheet music and they kept him in the way back, he was that new!) sounded very good. Amy worked her magic in that magical venue, the Metro. I've never been so close to her, a mere 25 feet from one of my favorite singer/songwriters, I swear she smiled right at me once. I swooned. We all did.

Her music is a rocking twist on folk-indie-pop with just enough roots in early punk to keep it edgy and fresh. The songs off her new album Didn't It Feel Kinder made her both dance and cry for us last night, they're so close to the surface of her emotions, so raw yet and new. She wowed us with extended versions of "Give In" and "Put It Out For Good." She flew to the ceiling in pure delight with our appreciation when we cheered and sang along to her new songs, "Cold Shoulder," "Bus Bus," and "Stand and Deliver."

Her voice was in great shape, she hit those high notes just the way I knew she would, in a way that made you go a little weak in the knees. It's not her usual range and you can tell, but you don't mind and neither does she. It's good to stretch a bit, and I noticed she did so again when she was improvising on the end of another song. When she's usually taking the low end of the scale with Emily in the Indigo Girls shows, on stage alone she's free to wander where she wants. And as always, the guitar work is beautiful, intricate at times, heavy handed and hard at others. One of the best things about Amy Ray is the versatility of her playing, of her talent. Her first encore was, of all things, "Johnny Rottentale" played on mandolin at an incredible speed.

I'm shaking my head in disbelief still at the whole experience of it. She said very little between songs, the lyrics say it all. And we all knew them, we all sang them for her, with her. When Amy gives it away in a gig, you take it home with you for days and days afterward. Here are some tracks previously posted here and here. I've reviewed her new album already, I'll not give any more out, go buy her stuff, you should support this artist who supports so many good things that are important to the idea of a better world,... oh and she rocks too.

Amy Ray's label, Daemon Records, buy her stuff here and support her other artists


I'm gonna save Arizona for a whole post of their own. Needless to say they were amazing, and I'm kicking myself for missing the first few songs of their show.
Their MySpace page.

Everyone, it seems, compares The Boxing Lesson to Pink Floyd. And well why not? Paul Waclawsky, lead singer and songwriter is a big Floyd fan without shame. But don't fear dear ones, this Floyd hater fell in love with Wild Streaks & Windy Days anyway. No, it's not because this is the very first band to enter my mail box, (ooh I've been de-flowered in yet another manner!) and no, it's not because I've since exchanged very cordial emails with their manager and publicist, Ryan Cano, who has been so kind as to grant me explicit permission to share any two files of my choosing with you all.

No, dear readers, I love this album for one simple reason: it's incredibly moody.

It's that bitchy woman that you love too much and put up with even when she makes ridiculous and loud arguments in public, even when she wears garish lipstick to make everyone look at her and want to kiss her, even when she pouts and gets sulky when you're so obviously JUST JOKING! You love that bitch.

See, I am that bitch sometimes. And Wild Streaks & Windy Days takes you through that process of knowing a woman like me. It starts out with a really great catchy song, a terrific guitar lick-- you want to hear the rest. That first wink really turns your head ;) And with a title like "Dark Side Of The Moog" who can resist wanting to know how Jaylinn Davidson is gonnna work that synthesizer? (It's a moog, by the way.) The album was created sequentially, in other words, in order, from one song to the next and listening to it that way is the way I love to listen to an album. It doesn't mean that all songs have to flow into one another. Everything a person says and is doesn't flow so reasonably does it? I expect some twists along the way and this album provides some really fun ones. It's heavy and dark at times, then twirls us back to modern rock and roll with songs like "Brighter" and "Hopscotch and Sodapop." Wild Streaks & Windy Days gets all moody and introspective and blue, but it takes you there with it. And it leaves you feeling melancholy and mellow, just like a night with a good woman.

"Hanging With The Wrong Crowd" is a fan-fucking-tastic song, if not for the cool electro opening, then for the repeated chorus of "she's such a whore" at the end. God!, I so want to be on stage with a guitar, screaming that into a microphone some days! Jake Mitchell's heavy beat is perfect on a song like this. Likewise, "Freedom" just makes you want to dance and sing along. That crazy synth takes a rather normal pop/rock song and pushes it right into the stratosphere. Damn, I wish they were touring up North soon. Chicago would welcome The Boxing Lesson with open arms, ... hint, hint.

My one complaint? I'd love to hear more of Jaylinn on this album. Her backing vocals are great, and I'm a sucker for female voices in a great punk song. The Boxing Lesson's sound could only be made bigger and broader by adding more vocals. Plus, well, she's really cute... so share the mic Paul! ;)

Wild Streaks & Windy Days is a great album by an up and coming band. Check out these two authorized* tracks and see what I mean.

Freedom mp3 The Boxing Lesson Wild Streaks & Windy Days
Lower mp3 The Boxing Lesson Wild Streaks & Windy Days

The Boxing Lesson on MySpace it's the only source you need, seriously, ... see their tour schedule, buy their album, hear more mp3s and see more pics there, it's a great site!
*There's been quite a drama going on about Blogger.com and google pulling posts with mp3s which have allegedly infringed on the copyright of artists and labels. I've been reluctant to post this review for fear of having it yanked. So I waited to get explicit permission from the publicist and manager of the band. He emailed me, saying "We realize and cherish the importance you play in helping people discover music. You definitely have our permission to post 2 songs as we own these songs and no one else." If anyone out there has a problem with that I suggest they contact Mr. Cano directly, his contact information is on the band's MySpace page.

And for more info on the apparent crack down and on the draconian DMCA law I refer you here and here. But don't worry, this will not stop the Tart from doing her thing! xoxoxo

Remember when I told you "Don't forget that real loss is not in things"?* Jesus Fucking God, that was asking for it.



Dear NastyEvilMotherFuckingPeopleWhoSteal,

It might not have occurred to you on Saturday night as you were smashing our car windows that I had already had a pretty bad day. I'll forgive you for not knowing that I had been to a wake, and a rather unpleasant appointment (that shall remain nameless) immediately following that, earlier in the day. I'll also forgive you for not knowing that even though we currently live in a pretty nice neighborhood, we have absolutely no money now thanks to the recent turn of events in the financial markets. How could you possibly know that, afterall?

HOWEVER, it strikes me as completely inexcusable that someone of any persuasion (and by that I mean politically, socially, racially, financially, ethnically, etc.) could possibly think that stealing our car, right from behind our apartment, is a truly righteous thing to do. Maybe if I had been careless and left it overnight down by the lake, or in a dark alley near some abandoned warehouses, then --- sure, it might seem up for the taking! But right behind our house? We paid good money to actually purchase that fucking parking spot, we even pay PROPERTY TAX on our fucking, goddamned parking spot. That's how much our car belongs there, motherfucker! You really deserve castration for such a heinous act, and how do I even know you have a penis? I don't believe a woman does this kind of thing regardless what Hollywood would try to sell us. Read on for my logic on this one.

AS for the damage done to our one remaining car, that was just completely gratuitous on your part. In fact, you're an awfully stupid nastyevilmotherfuckingthief because breaking the window to only take my gym bag was a real waste of time and only cost me $115.00 to replace (the window, not the damn bag.) You didn't even bother to take the bottles of extremely expensive hair products, you ignorant fools! Do your homework next time and learn to recognize high end packaging. This, I take as proof you're a man or gang of underdeveloped, wanna-be men who will never feel anyone's gorgeous locks of hair in their hands because they're simply TOO STUPID to be allowed that close to people, even their own kind. Go back to wanking into your dirty socks and leave people's cars alone. Or keep stealing cars and face the knife,... you choose.

BUT most importantly I want you to know just how incredibly idiotic you are because you took one car (the one that's not paid off, thanks for that, no really... we actually LIKE debt here in Chez Tart, we eat debt for BREAKFAST you fucktwit) but you didn't even realize that inside that car you stole is the key to the car YOU LEFT!!! Yep, both cars were ours! Didn't you notice the license plates were off by only one number?? No woman would be so stupid. I'm waiting with my cleaver, come on back to steal my remaining car, I dare ya! Ha! (ok, I exaggerate here male readers but I'm so extremely pissed off, just rant at me in the comments and I'll play nice again, I promise.)

YEAH that's right! We're laughing our asses off at you and your unmatched level of collective ineptitude because the car you left would get you a whole lot more money on the black market, weenies! Not to mention the incredible sounding BOSE stereo you left in it, mmmwwwaaaahhhhhhaaaaahhhhhhaaaaaa!!!!!!! Fucktards, you lose!!!!

SO peoplewhosteal, you suck. You deserve to sit in a really filthy Burger King restaurant on a Sunday morning listening to your wife's ineffective attempts to cheer you, drowned out by the cries of small children and the endless soundtrack of Kenny Rogers, Neil Diamond, and Celine Fucking Dion. I hope you get to one day share in my joy of hearing that re-keying a car with a really great stereo will cost you almost as much as parking it in a garage for the past three nights did. I really do.

And for you out there who took my cellphone three weeks ago, please make sure to use it while driving. Get into a really good fight with your sweetheart, maybe she'll even dump you as you're driving on Lake Shore Drive and you'll be distracted and drive right off the road and into it. Just don't take anyone else out with ya, ok? The same goes for the person who stole my previous cellphone a month before that too, just in case you were wondering...and my wallet that one time in the Tucson airport, my bike in 1989, my dog when I was 9, and my lunch money every day of my life in 6th grade, YOU ALL ARE NASTYEVILMOTHERFUCKINGPEOPLE.

xoxo,
Tart

*well ok, I can't let it go at that, because deep down I do still believe that real loss isn't in things. At least we weren't in the damn car when they wanted it. More music tomorrow I promise, and I've got a surprise for you all. Two, yep, two bands wrote us and want us to review their music! Wheeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!

I'm loving this track by Dropsonic, it's odd how you find cool stuff when looking for something else, eh? Anyone heard of them?



I need this:

I'm in a punkish mood, not helped by various and assorted rants here and there in the blogosphere, (all deserved and supported by me, 100%). So while it's Friday and I do believe Fridays are for gearing up for a sex-a-licious weekend, I am also feeling a bit sharp around the edges and that combination calls for only one type of music!

Luckily I ran into The Loved Ones' new album recently and let me tell you Build and Burn, their sophmore album, is awesomely good. It's solid, it's well mastered, sounds very professional and not muddy as so much good recorded punk music does. Released in early 2008, it's full of songs that show off the band's growth lyrically from Keep Your Heart, a broader vocal style and just some really catchy tracks. Always earnestly focused on love and loss, The Loved Ones put a really sweet love song on this album which I give you today to give ya a little tingle for your hot date tonight ;)

And what punkish mood would be complete without some girly tunes? I've not listened to Sleater Kinney in a while, and combing their catalogue for a love song took quite a while! Not surprised are you? Yes, they're a dreary group generally. "I wanna be your Joey Ramone" is just so.... so.... well, if you know me, it's so me, ha! Like The Loved Ones, this track is off their sophmore album. And the other track, "The Size of Our Love" I'm afraid only MeatPocket will truly understand completely. I love you baby! xoxoxo

So, get off your asses this weekend, snuggle up to your lover or your one night stand, or even to your one hand (and your favorite movie/magazine) and make something of it. Channel that rage at the economy, at those major corporations who rip us off on a regular basis, at your hated political figure of choice, at the lack of political choices in general! -- take all that rage and have some outrageously loud sex with it, people! Wake the fucking neighbors! They've done it to you at least once.

I Swear mp3 The Loved Ones Build and Burn (2008) give em some money!
I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone mp3 Sleater Kinney Call The Doctor (1996) pony up
The Size Of Our Love mp3 Sleater Kinney The Hot Rock (1999) big love, small price

photo credit: Charlemagne 13

Vote early please folks. It's as simple as that. If you live anywhere near a large city or if you live in an African American neighborhood or in a "swing state" please vote early. There is early voting in 46 states and it's started already. Go stand in line now and get it over with, find out now if your vote can be cast. And most importantly, DO NOT ACCEPT A PROVISIONAL BALLOT. Stand in line and wait until the poll workers can give you a real ballot and come back the next day if you need to in order to cast a ballot.

Read this fantastic article in Rolling Stone to see how voter suppression works, it's a biased article, I'll say it right here. It claims that the Republicans are actively suppressing the vote. But Robert F. Kennedy and Greg Palast give ample, legal evidence for his claims and I think everyone should see it, and decide for themselves what they think. In the very worst case scenario, you read the article and go to the poll and prove him wrong!

Now, have a great day, go vote, and rock on with our friends, Against Me! a great punk band from Gainesville, Florida (that's a swing state, by the way.)

Unprotected Sex With Multiple Partners mp3 Against Me! Americans Abroad!!! Against Me!!! Live in London!!! (2006) -- yeah it's about the music industry, ya pervs!

Reinventing Axl Rose mp3 Against Me! Americans Abroad!!! Against Me!!! Live in London!!! (2006)
buy into the system

Some days you're just in the mood for some chick to yell at you with lots of experimental music in between. Those days are for Rolo Tomassi. So if your weekend wasn't full of marital strife then this album is right up your alley!

Eva Spence is simply amazing on lead vocals, they're a UK band from Sheffield and are playing England, Scotland and Wales this fall, so go check them out and let me know how they are on stage, eh? And tell them to come to the U.S.!

Chez Tart was full of work, lots of sleeping and only a wee bit of yelling over the weekend so I'm enjoying this today, hope you do too, and this is about as far as I'm going into Halloween land folks, xoxo


Macabre Charade mp3 Rolo Tomassi Hysterics
Trojan Measures mp3 Rolo Tomassi Hysterics

Rolo Tomassi on MySpace
get out your pocketbook for Hysterics

(special thanks to Battle For Midwestern Housewifes for introducing me to this! That is one rocking punk blog over there, check them out)

especially on a Friday! But in the midst of this crazy election with "negative campaigning" and that crazy fucker "Joe Plumber" who is not really even a plumber at all and who is honestly just a really misguided lower-middle-class guy with pretensions of being rich, well....let's just say I'm glad the debates are over and I'm feeling in need of a hymn right now. So have a listen to this even though it is rather "churchy" for me.

You see, the strength of the Republican Party's ideology in this country lies in their ability to manipulate the "every man's" belief that he can achieve anything he puts his mind to. Self reliance, a very popular and populist notion is a powerful tool whereby politics becomes a game for "winners" and self interest and "opportunities for success." However, from my perspective, it's yet another example of what Gramsci called "contradictory consciousness," where people don't act in their own interest to get what's good for them and for their families because they believe in something that holds them hostage to doing what's good for capitalism.

Joe the Plumber believes that if the government gave him enough opportunity he could feasibly buy his employer out, (Wurzelbacher, 34, said he doesn't have a good plan put together on how he would buy Newell Plumbing and Heating in nearby Toledo), and make over $250,000 in income and he thinks that under Obama's proposed economic plan he will be punished by paying higher taxes for doing so. It's very simple in Joe's mind. By entering the "rich" class he will have to pay for all those "poor" folks who need healthcare and other social services. Joe's against socialism. The mainstream media just won't come out and put it this bluntly to you, but I bet talk radio is saying it, no?

Joe's contradictory consciousness dictates that even though right now he's making quite a bit less income than $250,000 and probably has huge health insurance premiums for his family of two, and perhaps fears for the future if he loses his job and his health insurance, he's getting ripped off because he's not owning his own business. He's limited in the amount of money he can make because he's someone's employee instead of employing others.

What he fails to take into account, because of his belief in the "American Dream" is that in employing others he will be burdened with providing them fair wages, adequate healthcare, maternity leave, .......oh wait... with the "American Dream" in power there's no need for that! All he has to do is make as much money as he can. So yes, I guess Joe is right, he should vote for McCain so that when he gets enough capital together to qualify for that Small Business Administration load to buy out his boss he can exploit workers just like he's being exploited right now. In the meantime he can suffer along with all the rest when it comes to wondering where his health insurance is coming from. Or money to pay off his car loan, his credit card debt, his mortgage.

Of course in a perfect world, employees can just go find a job where good wages, adequate healthcare, and safe working conditions are available, if Joe's boss doesn't provide them. It's a free market of competition out there for jobs afterall ;) Let me know where that world is, I'll help ya pack.

Joe the Plumber and our election seems like a small and local issue in light of the recent economic crisis. But we'd be a fool to not realize how this election plays into that. The world is watching to see what happens on Nov. 2.

Finlandia is hymn of internationalism. For me it evokes a sense of how small our "American Dream" is and should be in this globalized world. We can no longer afford to dream that dream... So if (like me) the god bits don't speak to you, just listen to the rest xoxo

Finlandia mp3 Indigo Girls Rairities
invest in it

I've been listening to new music, I swear! But somehow the Jesus and Mary Chain keep running through my brain. So I put Psychocandy on the other day, just for fun, and what do ya know? Aside from the upfrontness of all that feedback (which, oh my god, I love!) it really reminds me quite a bit of what bands like Glasvegas are doing with a kind of surfer sound. Here, have a listen and tell me I'm wrong!

The Jesus and Mary Chain, You Trip Me Up (1985)



Go Square Go Glasvegas, Glasvegas (2008)
get your own copy

Further devolution in sound brings us to this, the song that every indie snob hates to love.... The Killers, Somebody Told Me (2004).


Sometimes things change for the worst (keeping our fingers crossed for the upcoming year, politically!) But I'm not ashamed to say I really am enjoying all three of these albums this year. Maybe it's the extended autumn here and driving through the city and seeing scenes like this that's turned my head:

photo credit: RcktManIL

add The Jesus and Mary Chain to your collection
go ahead and add The Killers too!

The new Pretenders' album is o.k. I like a few songs very much. I like the whole of it a little. It just might grow on me, so I'll reserve any scathing reviews or disappointments for a month or so from now when I'm settled into it. For now it's just fine. I have three or four tracks that I really like and I think the rest will be good soon. Does this happen to you? I really need a month or so to digest a new album by someone whose work I know and love.

My favorite track, by far is "Almost Perfect." It's frankly, well... er, almost perfect! Chrissie Hynde's voice is spectacularly melodic, soulful, emotive and wistful. Like Amy Ray on "She's Got To Be," you desperately want her to sing this song to you. The musical accompaniment is simple, it's all about the vocals. And I love songs like that. I also love songs that are all about guitars or all about the tense interplay between rhythm and bass, but there's something about a woman's voice that makes me go all gooey in the right places. What can I say? And a song like this that pushes that voice out there in front, that presents it to you like the way a good dancer presents his partner to the audience, is a beautiful thing to me. It's funny how gendered I think of life, of music despite my best intentions.

But... there's something bothering me beyond all that about this almost perfect song. This song is most decidedly not perfect. Two thirds of the way through Chrissie Hynde clears her throat. (It's a the 3:26 mark if you care to confirm.)

Why did they leave that in the final cut? Is that some sort of joke on the theme of the song? Some sort of nod to the imperfection of it? I know I should overlook it or celebrate the humanity of it or some such nonsense but honestly, it bugs the shit outta me! I realize she made this record in 10 days (foolish woman) but could she seriously not take the time and money to do another take? Tell me why this is acceptable in these days of digital recording. Tell me why this shouldn't matter in this song. Is it irony? Am I, as usual, over thinking the thing? Oh someone, put me out of my misery!

I must say, it's difficult to continue to suffer from a song with the lyrics... "paranoia drug addicted pornographically afflicted ... sleep with me..." If that's not Tart-able, I don't know what is.

Let's take comfort together in my next favorite track, "You Didn't Have To" which is just a lovely, and totally, Pretender-ish love song. The country twanginess of it is complimentary to her slip-sliding vocals. The steady rhythm lets her wander in such a sweet way over the words and notes to tell us how this one let her be just that free. I love that about this song. And in lust and love, I often do feel that kind of gratitude.

Almost Perfect mp3 The Pretenders Break Up The Concrete
You Didn't Have To mp3 The Pretenders Break Up the Concrete
(don't worry, there's more rockin' tracks on the album, I only picked the slow ones)
buy it

Dear Ben,

I was at your show last night. I'm sorry we left early. I know it probably wasn't your fault, but honestly take my advice please, and don't ever play at the Congress Theater again, ok? As Time Out Chicago reports:

Simply put, the Congress is a terrible-sounding venue, and for a performer who favors fuzzed-out bass and piano within arrangements that often find the instruments working in heavy competition with each other, it’s the kiss of death. Folds’s voice, sung or spoken, got lost in the fierce echo of the building, or overpowered by the drums. Coaxing an audience through an hour and a half of mostly new, unfamiliar material is always tough; it’s damn near impossible when they can’t hear the lyrics or the music as you intend.

I would have loved to get to know your music, Ben. But it was just impossible. We tried the skybox, (after a flash-- a smile of course! and a wink -- Sarah Palin style! to a rather yummy looking security guard), we tried the balcony (gave that up rather quickly due to some chattering college student who would not shut the fuck up after the 4th withering look), we even braved the main floor (standing right in front of the sound booth, thinking that has to be the place where the sound is best). Alas, even your between song banter was lost to the echoes of the domed ceiling of the Congress, a stately, theater that is just not built for modern music. Ben, I beg you, never, ever come here again.

So, I hope I get another chance. I'm begining to like your recordings. You do kinda cheer me up on a bad day, and well... Puppet Show swears you're really, really good!

hoping to become a real fan someday,
xoxoxo
a Tart

Reader(s): Please do check out the review linked above, it's a good one and it gives the playlist and other technical details. It also notes the din of chatter that we noticed during the concert and I have to say it was shocking to hear so many people talking incessantly during a show for such a big star. What has happened in this country that we no longer listen to music? Or am I just getting old? Oh god, shoot me now if the latter is true.

Ben Folds plays tonight, we shall see him for the first time. Review soon after will appear in this space. In the meantime, this song has been rattling about in my head for about two days now and finally Puppet Show helped me figure out enough of the words (yeah all it took was Da, Da, Da) to remember the name of the band. And a post over on Song, by Toad got my ass in gear to post it, so go blame him! But stop and buy the album, Trio & Error first.

Now don't judge them until you know more. They're not as stupid as they appear at first glance. Remember time and place, folks. As Wiki tells us, history matters.

It was a product of the Neue Deutsche Welle (or NDW). However, Trio preferred the name Neue Deutsche Fröhlichkeit, which means "New German Cheerfulness", to describe their music. At that time, as now, popular songs were based on extremely simple structures that were ornately produced. Trio's main principle was to remove almost all the ornamentation and polish from their songs, and to use the simplest practical structures (most of their songs were three-chord songs). For this reason, many of their songs are restricted to drums, guitar, vocals, and just one or maybe two other instruments, if any at all.

I give you Trio.

Da Da Da (no, it's better than the bit they put in that VW commercial)


Broken Hearts For You And Me

Faith Collapsing mp3, Ministry, The Mind Is A Terrible Thing To Taste

Ashes In The Fall mp3, Rage Against The Machine, The Battle For Los Angeles

fuck it, buy the damn music folks!


There's a time and place for being really pissed off about politics and economies and newscasters and pundits and television. And today I'm deciding that time is now and that place is here. So scoot off to another happy blog if you want some cheery trip down memory lane about a great pop song from the 90s cause it ain't gonna be here folks.

See, the thing that gets me about this mess is that it's nothing new. It's nothing that no one with their eye on the financial markets didn't see coming. It's nothing that your average real estate broker didn't know about two or five years ago. It's nothing that anyone in the business of predicting retail sales didn't know, in the business of advising college students on future careers didn't know, many of us knew that we were living in a bubble. And without blame, we forgot. Like the wife with the cheating husband who brought home a great bouquet of flowers every Friday night and remembered all the kids' birthdays and was there for every holiday, we "forgot" about the indiscretions. We see what we want to when times are good folks, admit it. We see what we want to when we live lives that are privileged enough to allow us to do so.

Now, those of us who don't have that privilege, (I can't truthfully count myself in that class any longer, I have been fortunate and have benefited from others' wealth) can't choose to see life the way we want. And it becomes impossible to turn the other way when that husband cheats or it becomes impossible a lot sooner for us than for those who live in privilege. So, who's noticing that $700 Billion right now? Students whose loans aren't going through, people who soon won't get food stamps, folks who need to move to take a job in another locale and can't get a mortgage or can't get a buyer who can get one, or find their house devalued so much that they take a serious hit. That cheating husband becomes a real bastard mighty quick.

And that cheating husband is us. It's all of us who have lived with clean drinking water and free elementary and secondary public education, and a relatively safe air traffic control system, and an expectation that the food we eat won't kill us... while at the same time AND AT THE EXPENSE OF other countries (whose labor we import to maintain our privilege) who live without these standards of living. Did I lose you there? Do you feel blamed? I'm sorry, but I mean it. It's my rant, remember? We live with these standards of living because we make them live without them. Yeah, I'm making it be that simple. Politically, economically, morally, it's a zero sum game on the big capitalistic scorecard because individual competition mandates that I win at your expense. Collaboration reduces profit.

Yes, our politicians have done it to us, for us. No, it's not just an American (no -- strike that, make that US because ya know what? There's a whole continent down there that's called Central and South AMERICA and we're just the United States up here), problem/issue. It's all of the industrialized world who live at the expense of the "emerging" countries. Well they've emerged to some extent now.

This "crisis" is in most ways a realignment of financial and economic and credit markets that simply reflects the fact that we can no longer enjoy our position as a buyer of credit and a buyer of imported labor and goods at a cheap rate. We are jockeying for position and have little to no capital spend. The masses are beginning to realize that we are now in the passenger seat, we're the sellers and what product will we offer?

McCain, and his flying monkey, Caribou Barbie, hopes to sell the public on our patriotic duty of "rooting out terrorism and killing the enemy" which is an age-0ld trope, using nationalism to unify and strengthen morale and thereby increase consumer confidence as well as confidence abroad in our markets. Too bad it's a 20th century strategy in a 21th century world. And every poll (from 2005 to today) shows that the majority of people in the US want out of the war business.

Obama and Biden hopes to sell the public on our technological ability to transform our world ecologically and industrially in order to become independent of oil, and to preserve our environment. Perhaps with our country's resources they will enable us to sell that technology to the world. I support the Democratic party in this, it's the lesser of two evils right now. And I've put my money and my time where my mouth is on this. I encourage you to do the same.

At the moment, President Bush is selling our nuclear capabilities to India. That sentence alone frightens me.

As you might have guessed, I'm no Democrat, I'm no supporter of the capitalist system, and what I see happening right now is a whole lot of economists running about trying to figure out how to run most wisely, head long, into a long dark tunnel and that's all they know -- it's a long dark tunnel. Look to Social Scientists for help here, see what historians, Political Scientists, Sociologists and other people who read and study how Japan and Sweden and Russian dealt with and are dealing with financial crises. Consider why England has nationalized 8 major banks yesterday and why Russia's RTS index is down 67% year-to-date. China is also cutting interest rates on one year loans and yet the average Joe thinks Russia and China will bail us out? I'm mystified. No one will put money in our market when there's no hope of getting something back, no matter how many times McCain bellows "The American workers are the best in the world!"

The theme of this rant: people get educated. Ask some fucking questions. Don't pull your money out of the market if you are lucky enough to have any. Sit tight, and ask why these supposed answers are answers in the first place?

Oh, and have a good day, xoxo
regular Tart posting resumes tomorrow, rant over. That Ministry track has been going through my head for about two weeks, I hope this exorcism helps, it's pure, industrial genius, let it seep into your psyche and then let Rage take over ;)

I hate dreams, .... I hate hearing other people's dreams, ... and I live with a woman who loves to tell me her dreams first thing in the morning, go figure! (She loves morning sex as well, which I'm also not a huge fan of, but hey I'm coming around to that). But back to the topic at hand, I hate dreaming.

Most people go to sleep hoping for good dreams. I go to sleep hoping to not dream. My dreams are rarely satisfying, even the good ones. Last night's was particularly emblematic of this point. I dreamt a great dream about friendship (thanks Pup, for fodder for that!) In my dream I was hanging out with my dear friend D, we were listening to great music, getting ready to go out dancing as we used to do, laughing and enjoying each other's company with innenduos and jabs that only real friends who care about one another deeply can make so freely. It felt so nice to be in his company, seeing the sparkle in his eye as he teased me and made me laugh.

And then I woke to my alarm, to the gentle sound of "bubbles" on my iphone (oh that's a whole other story, of how I was suckered into that purchase!). And it was awful, it was devastating, for D has died, gone from this world 5 years now, and I rememered how wonderful he was, and how much I missed him. I had that pang of recongition, "oh, it was a dream" and I rolled over and dozed off, back to sleep. An hour and a half later I woke with a start from a deep sleep, in the middle of a dream again. I can't remember one detail of it now. Something else about friendship and loss and love and well..... welcome Autumn, eh?

So, in this crazy, chaotic international crash of the markets don't forget that real loss is not in things. Somehow, I find that oddly comforting, call me crazy. This song popped up today, and it speaks to what's going on with me on a lot of different levels. I heard about this band over on a great Chicago blog, The Leather Canary. So, let me introduce you to Blitzen Trapper, (if you haven't heard) they're cool, xoxox

Edit: (Alright, so I didn't want you to get a wrong taste for what Blitzen Trapper is about, so I've included another song for ya, enjoy Sleeptime In The Western World too!)

Edit2: (Ok, so I'm changing the track below. I inadvertently gave you the same track as my friend over at The Leather Canary, ooops!)

Not Your Lover mp3 Blitzen Trapper Furr
Fire & Fast Bullets mp3 Blitzen Trapper Furr
buy their music on their MySpace page

photo credit: patrick dentler

The Thrill Kill Kult came to town last night and dredged up quite a motley crew of fans to pack the Metro (in itself a wonderful and historic venue, go see the wiki page, really). We were surrounded by middle aged, pudgy, balding mohawked punks, younger couples in love, single guys on the prowl (a few of whom hit on us, declaring their appreciation for lesbian love, like we care!), and the usual 20-something I'll-go-to-any-gig kinda guy. Sure the music was repetitive, droning, and after the show I seriously couldn't remember a single song they did, but we danced our asses off and that's what a group like TTKK is for. The lovely MeatPocket had rarely heard the music before and since she had taken a oxycotin before the gig for her aching back, she was soon making up funny lyrics for the mostly indistinguishable ones that Groovie Mann and Buzz McCoy were singing. It should be noted, however, that most of the rest of the crowd did know the words and were chanting/yelling them at the top of their lungs throughout the show, it was amusing at all times. But not as amusing as MeatPocket's "Kill the pony!," "Green Bean Power," "Jesus Buys Breakfast," (I thought it was "Jesus something something and it's the day of the nosehairs"). So a good time was had by all.

I must say, it's the first show I've been to in quite a while where there was a mosh pit, a rather tame one, it's Chicago and the Metro afterall, but we were a bit afraid that some of those spinning out from it would emerge onto us spewing something nasty (there was quite a bit of grabbing someone and swinging them about in a circle until they couldn't stand up anymore, very amusing until they staggered your way). And one person was seen crowd surfing, the lucky bastard. I always wanted to do that!

Musically, I was disappointed to not see any guitars or even a drum kit. Yes, there were two keyboardists and three, sometimes four vocalists. The women singers were wonderful and the energy was high at times. But we couldn't help feel that it was indeed a 20th Anniversary show, it showed it's age a bit on this gig. Enjoy the tracks below, play them loud and have a few friends over to dance with, the music is still great! And check out their MySpace page to hear their new single, "Invasion" they're still putting out fresh new stuff! xoxo

Sex On Wheels mp3 My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult Sexplosion
One Night Stand mp3 My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult Gay Black And Married
Leathersex mp3 My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult Sexplosion
A Daisy Chain For Satan mp3 My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult Confessions Of A Knife
Buy their albums
TTKK on MySpace

In light of the Biden/Palin debate tonight wherein Sarah Palin evaded any question of substance and was not held to answer for any false statements (neither by Biden nor by the moderator, Gwen Ifill); wherein Sarah Palin purported to know something about foreign policy while at the same time making ridiculous statements about it; wherein Sarah Palin showed no emotion whatsoever except to wink (!) at the audience, at the newscasters, and at her husband, even when Senator Biden choked up (as he often does) when talking about his dead wife and daughter; and, wherein Sarah Palin expressed a sincere desire to expand the legislative powers of the vice president, I am hereby forced to revert to childhood musical taste and curl up in a corner of my bedroom, rocking myself to sleep to the sounds of horrible, fluffy, 1970s love-pop. I'm sorry. Please forgive me in advance for inflicting it on you all. (But seriously, isn't that picture awesome!, who knew if you googled "bread" you'd get *that*?)

I loved the group, Bread. They sang all the love songs that 8 year old me wanted to believe defined love. Back then no one sang about "fucking" or "sex" or even "shoop"ing. "Make It With You" was explicit enough for 8 year old me. That's how people said it back then, "Do you wanna make it?" or "Did you make it last night?" It seems so odd now to think about that, so 70s! Anyway, if you've not heard Bread, you really should have some sugary sweet 70s love pop for your Friday groove, and get out there and Make It this weekend folks, xoxoxo

Make It With You, mp3 Bread, On The Waters ..... Buy it
It Don't Matter To Me, mp3 Bread, Bread ..... Buy it
If, mp3 Bread, Manna ..... Buy it

black heart today
she brings me spanish clemintine
i eat them by the waterside
throw the peels and taste the clean
how could i still feel so mean

take this meanness out of me

i got a black heart today
no amount of kindness can turn it the other way
even the dogs are tired of me
howling at the trees

take this meanness out of me

i got a black heart today

Black Heart Today mp3 Amy Ray Stag -- her first solo effort
buy it

Rodeo

She comes down to Georgia to dance across my kitchen floor,
Leavin’ black marks on linoleum, a country song on the radio.
I am just a rodeo calf with tender feet and sewn on horns and
Love is a kindness that I’ve never known before,
I’ve never known before.

She say’s “I’m bound to Carolina to join the kids in ‘Truth or Dare’.”
And she laughs and says its just a game when I tell her that I’m scared.
I am just a dog waitin’ at the kitchen door,
Love is a kindness that I’ve never known before,
I’ve never known before.

Make it last, make it stay
Can you hold on long enough to make this pay.

She said,” My daddy was a grifter and I was in my momma’s way,
So I drifted for a while, because I could not stand to stay.”
And she said, “Love is a kindness that I’ve never understood.”
I said, “I‘ll give it to you willingly, its something you deserve,
Its something you deserve.”

And I’ll make it last, I’ll make it stay.
If you can hold on long enough I can make this pay.

‘Cause I am just a calf with tender feet and sewn on horns,
Love is a prize waitin’ on her at the rodeo.

Rodeo mp3 Amy Ray Prom

buy it

Nope, that's not the song I've got for you tonight, psych!!!

Sometimes I sit in my living room and work, listening to music and yes, even with X amount of gigabites of music on my fuckpod I still find myself with nothing to listen to. Just like when I sit down to watch TV with 300 channels including HDTV there's not a darn thing on that I want to watch - ah the postmodern malaise.

So, on days like this I turn on one of the music channels so graciously offered me by my local cable company (no, not for a song, you shush over there in the peanut gallery). I started out today on "metal (uncensored)" but when they began a 20 minute block of Metallica I bailed and hit the "alternative (uncensored)" in time to catch some great tunes.

I looked up from my work to check out the title of a few songs--some to note what to look further into, some to chuckle to myself about what crap is out there for the unassuming masses. A love song caught my ear, it had a familiar sound, I placed it immediately but I'd never heard it before. Somehow the latest Smashing Pumpkins (well, 2007) had passed me by. "That's The Way (My Love Is)" is a great tune lyrically, a bit mysterious, sweetly sung though in that gentle, wistful way Billy Corgan does so well. And it just so happens to sum up how I'm feeling tonight, lucky you!

I've coupled it with another awesome tune from the ever-reliable (oh god, that's redundantly redundant!) Otis Redding, the ultimate source for love songs. It's a track I particularly like and not one that I think he's very very famous for, so enjoy! I love you MeatPocket, don't you ever underestimate that, baby. xoxox

That's The Way (My Love Is) mp3 The Smashing Pumpkins Zeitgeist buy it
That's How Strong My Love Is mp3 Otis Redding The Great Otis Redding Sings Soul Ballads buy it

Sometimes it's better not knowing... I'd rather not know how much the stock market fell today (almost 800 points, ouch!). I'd rather not know how ill equipped Sarah Palin is for the White House (that SNL skit was all too close to the real thing, eh?) And today as I was browsing through some music I've not heard in a while I looked up this song and found that no, I didn't need to know the meaning behind "Monkey Gone To Heaven" by The Pixies. It's a great song, a catchy song, a song that brings back happy memories and if it's truly about environmentalism, as wikipedia says, well I'm better off not knowing it, it's just a great tune. So, I'm sorry if you didn't know, just erase that from your mind and enjoy the tune. More Pixies to come, I'm refreshing my knowledge of this great American band.

Monkey Gone To Heaven mp3 The Pixies Doolittle

buy Doolittle

photo credit: eightdaysjet

I'm listening to Amy Ray's new album Didn't It Feel Kinder and it's good, ... it's uneven, as some of her stuff is. So I'm disappointed but also so happy because when she's good, she's excellent. And when she's not good, she's just o.k. and that's still pretty good in my book. I'm a die hard fan. I'm one of those that can sing all the songs, that can tell you all the details of the album covers, all the liner notes, all the points along my life where the songs meant what and why and how. It's not something I'm particularly proud of, I mean, I don't consider The Indigo Girls and Amy's solo projects to be the cutting edge of great music by any stretch but then again, it's not bad stuff either. Like most folk-rock out there, it's good cause it's good to me. It's good in my mind, I like the way it sounds, I like what it evokes in my memory and it's good to me in that it does good things to me. It makes me feel good about my life, it causes me to remember the good things in my life, the tough shit I've got through, the great times I've had with friends and lovers, that music has been there for all of it. So this new album is just another ring on a finger on a hand that travels with me. And eventually I'll have listened to it so many times that I won't recognize the songs that I think aren't so good at first hearing. But for now, track two,"She's got to be" is excellent.

Well that paragraph was written about a month and a half ago. It sat in my blogger draft box all this time while I kept on listening, just waiting for the right time to be posted, to be ready. And yes, I've forgotten which tracks are uneven, which aren't so good at first hearing. But "She's got to be" is still the BEST ONE, oh my god, it's good. You want Amy to sing those high notes. You want to make Amy sing those high notes just for you. Oh god if only she sang those just for you. Ok, I lie, it's not her singing you want. Making those sounds yes, in your ear, in your bed, in with you, hmmm yes. Amy doesn't sing those high notes very often you see.

Now, the music. "Birds of a Feather" starts on a rather sour note, a typical Amy note in fact, and if you've not heard a lot of her music it's rather jarring to have an album open with a song that seems to be so down, so despondent, so un-melodic in fact. But if you listen to it four or five times it shines and especially that last chorus will make you smile. It's the perfect set up for the star track of the project, "She's got to be" (did I mention yet that it's the BEST ONE?).

Amy's in love. We love Amy when she's in love. Hell, we love Amy when she's heartbroken, when she's bitterly disappointed, when she's mad as hell and not going to take it anymore, and when she's sobbing like a baby because somebody took her last cigarette. But we really love Amy when she's in love. Amy in love is like a momma dog protecting her pups, like a eagle bringing fresh meat home to the nest, like pelican plucking her own breast to feed her chicks her own blood if need be (even tho that's indeed a myth). She's noble, regal, beautiful and sexy. And so is this song. Listen to it, buy it, soak up the love folks.

The falsetto is gorgeous and tender next to the more typical sounds of the chorus, the background vocals are smooth and angelic and the easy pop sounds of the guitars make this song a total hit.

"Cold Shoulder," "Who Sold the Gun," "SLC Radio," "Rabbit Foot" all sound like other songs from Amy's solo efforts, all follow formulas from other albums. But they're formulas we like. I don't mind one bit that "SLC" is the same genre as "Let It Ring" lyrically, or that "Cold Shoulder" fills the space of "Driver Education" or "Rural Faggot." "Who Sold The Gun" might be my least favorite song from the album but I guarantee you I'll love it live. Those yearning lines are hard to capture on a recording but are so damn sexy to hear in concert. And yes, it's reminencient of "Covered For You." Of course, "Rabbit Foot" is so much like "Rodeo" and that's just fine with me. I love those bittersweet songs.

Some are harder to match but just feel like they fit... "Out On The Farm" is a great song, so much like one that would go on an Indigo Girls album but I'm glad Amy saved it for this one, it's a song that deserves a solo vocal, that showcases her tone, her sound and the background vocals once again do that justice in a way that Emily Saliers accompanient changes things. There's a reason why artists do solo work when they're well known as being part of a duo.

"Bus Bus," (we'll overlook the verb conversate here) just whispers The Clash to me. Is it because I know of Amy's love for that band? Or is there something musically of it there? Readers, tell me! She proves she's not stuck in a 1990s musical style, though I doubt we'll see a Amy Ray hip hop catalogue any time soon.

All in all, Didn't It Feel Kinder is a new/old sound for Amy. How's that for a review!? New in that it's a real step away from her jangly, punk, rockabilly inspired tunes of Prom and Stag. This is a polished, much more produced, Indigo Girls sounding work, many tracks treading the line between solo and duo work. And old, in that the formulas remain the same, the lyrics revisit many themes that are constant in her music (thankfully) and with each effort Amy gives us quality, thoughful, and evocative art.

She's Got To Be mp3 Amy Ray Didn't It Feel Kinder
Bus Bus mp3 Amy Ray Didn't It Feel Kinder
buy it!

er,.... moan?

Public Service Announcement: fucking your friends has many benefits! So stretch your moral boundaries a bit (if you care to), play safe, and include your wife!

Regular blogging will resume after Dutch sex slaves/houseguests leave on Friday and I regain feeling in lower extremities. Hopefully by then I'll be able to walk as well ;)

Ooops, I'm being beckoned from the bathtub, until then enjoy vicariously with my favorite sex symbol (what is it about those Welsh men!?) and a great cover of another, xoxo!

Sexbomb Tom Jones Reload buy it
You Can Leave Your Hat On Tom Jones The Full Monty OST buy it
Do Ya Think I'm Sexy Revolting Cocks (Rod Stewart cover) Do Ya Think I'm Sexy buy it

Do you still listen to the music you loved in high school? Lately, I'm beginning to feel that the worse the news gets, the more us 30 and 40 somethings retreat into our past, into the music we cut our teeth on during the last great economic downturn.

Every semi serious music lover experiences changes in their musical taste as they become exposed to more and different kinds of genres. Part of blogging about music, for me, is looking back on how I received new music at different points in my life and comparing those memories to how I listen now. A great post over on Pretending Life Is Like A Song has me reminiscing and analyzing my transition from guitar-driven rock and roll to Punk and New Wave music in the early 80s. Adam unravels the meaning of "Alison" by Elvis Costello in both an academic and quite personal way -- this is great blogging folks, check it out.

And yes, Elvis Costello was pivotal for my transition. Other groups of the time also opened my eyes to a less regional sound (southern USA, "hard rock" bands like Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Outlaws, The Allman Brothers, Molly Hatchet and Tom Petty dominated the airwaves where I lived. I took that to simply be what rock music was, not knowing how much more there could be). Soon, like everyone my age, I was lapping up everything the UK could offer me and American bands were evolving as well. But Elvis Costello--he was first.

This transition morphed into a very important social marker in highschool. There were three crowds to fit into: The Jocks/Preps, The Nerds/Geeks, and The Stoners. As you might guess they were closely aligned with social class, identified by the kind of clothes you wore, and the grades you earned. Until Punk and New Wave music hit, I had firmly been a member of The Stoner crowd. We liked our Southern Rock just fine, and threw it back with a hefty shot of Jack Daniels, a Budweiser chaser and some imported Colombian you-know-what. Football games were spent under the bleachers, Saturday nights saw us huddled around a blanket on the beach getting high to the sounds of a car radio.

Then the 80s hit and I began to find a niche academically. New Wave and Punk music had a cache that tore me out of my stupor, the lyrics were witty and meaningful. Reagan and Thatcher were gutting the working class, the mentally ill, and the children while the upper classes' wealth grew. My teenage angst was in high gear. I knew I'd never be "cool" but I might as well enjoy pretensions of Continentalism now if I were to ever escape my little beach town. I dreamed of college, Socialism, travel, love- all things that my Stoner friends hated with justifiable class resentment. But academics might be a way out, I reckoned and indeed, I was one of the lucky few who did make it. Music propelled me to aspire to larger things, it still does.

So the first major transition occurred. Another big one would happen about 10 years later, but that's another post....

Goodbye Stranger Supertramp Breakfast In America, buy it
Kid The Pretenders Singles, buy it
Is She Really Going Out With Him Joe Jackson, Classic Joe Jackson, buy it
Cockney Kids Are Innocent Sham 69 The Punk Singles Collection 1977-80, buy it

No crap post from me today! Nosiree! I've been up to my eyeballs in some good old-fashioned punk and it's got me out of my Saturday funk. Lucky you!

Someone please tell me, why are the Dead Kennedys still so completely a propos? Hmmm, ten bonus points for naming the country Bush will invade by January!

Kinky Sex Makes The World Go Round Dead Kennedys Give Me Convenience or Give Me Death
Macho Insecurity Dead Kennedys Bedtime For Democracy

Buy the Dead Kennedys!

When I Was Cruel has plenty of gorgeous pop songs, but one in particular, "Tart", will have you sweating and crying, as Costello's voice rings out the emotion in your body, and the pretty melody brings out the joy in you.

Well, I am not one for music reviews, but I found this track to be so completely awful that I went searching for validation. Alas, I may be alone in my opinion. God, I hope not.

Tart, Elvis Costello When I Was Cruel

I know this is supposed to be serious Gothic Rock music, but listening to these tracks cheers me up somehow. Maybe it's the whiplash effect of justifying the "gothic" image of this group with their "retro" sound, (I mean how can I not think of "You Spin Me Round" by Dead or Alive?), especially as heard on these two tracks.

Anyway, "Assassinate Me" is incredibly catchy, and well, "Nowhere Girl" just makes me laugh. Go figure. xoxo

Assassinate Me Jesus On Extasy Holy Beauty
Nowhere Girl Jesus on Extasy Holy Beauty


J.O.E. MySpace
Buy Holy Beauty

Jeane The Smiths Troy Tate Sessions, 1983 - the original.

Jeane The Smiths Hand in Glove (Sandie Shaw version), 1984 - Sandie Shaw, a great pop singer of the 1960s whom Morrissey and Marr idolized, makes a guest apperance on this track. You can hear Morrissey doing awesome, howling, back up vocals.

Jeanne Billy Bragg The Peel Sessions, 1991, or earlier as this is a collection of performances up to that date - fast paced, straining on the high notes, but for Bragg it's surprisingly in tune. This is my favorite version, although I hated it at first listen.

Jeane Billy Bragg Reaching To The Converted, 1999 - a slow, out-of-tune-starting version. Classic Bragg, he made this song his own, all full of angst, strongly accented with his Cockney inflection. Bragg says,

The Smiths cast a long shadow over this compilation, either in the person of Johnny Marr or in the influence on my songwriting. I felt they were my comrades in a struggle to bring the focus of songwriting away from production and videos and back to good tunes and great lyrics. They stopped playing this song so I picked it up and looked after it for a while.

Jeane Billy Bragg - unknown source
As far as I can make out, this track came from the great blog, This Recording, but I can't find any tag information for it. Do any of you know? It's labeled as track 18 but that didn't help me at all. Maybe it will you. Of course it doesn't help that I've found the title spelled as both "Jeane" and "Jeanne." It sounds like an older Billy rather than a younger one, so I'm guessing it's a late 1990s or early 2000s recording. It's in a lower key, with less angst, and more resignation to the delivery. Bragg's songs become less regional sounding as he ages, and yet still he gives us a gorgeous tune.

Nope, no hidden meaning in the lyrics of this one for me. I just loved playing around with the different versions this evening and seeing how Bragg, a favorite artist of mine, took something and gradually molded it to his own style.

buy The Troy Tate Sessions... well, keep checking here, you might find one!


buy Billy Bragg from his website!