Mixmasters Round 13 A mix by Steven Reule My round 13 CD has no title. It has no title because it has no underlying concept, other than being full of great music. Rather than trying to find a common thread where there is none, I will simply let the music speak for itself. Those of you who remember my electronic mix, my punkpop mix, my all-covers mix, and others can rejoice in the knowledge that there will be at least a few things for you to like this time! No gimmicks, no filler, not a speck of cereal. Enjoy! SOMETHING CORPORATE "As You Sleep: Album: North (2003) This pop-punk band could have been on my round 12 mix, but they didn't quite fit. This song, for instance, is almost pretty in a rock way, with the prominent piano. "A constellation of frustration driving north, singing my thoughts back to me and watching heartache on TV" PEDRO THE LION "Start Without Me" Album: Achilles Heel (2004) Mostly one man, with some help from his friends, this was a suggestion from a 24 year old at work. I was expecting loud and noisy but I got sensitive, skilled songwriting and catchy if slightly mournful melodies. "It's not like it wasn't all for you, but like everything I do it's misunderstood" INTERPOL "Next Exit" Album: Antics (2004) I had read that they were like a more accessible Joy Division. Of course, almost everything is more accessible (no offense to JD). They have the same driving melodies and semi-deadpan vocals but the music is catchier. This is the lead track from their latest album and it's one that builds and sucks the listener in. "Make it with me in preparation for tonight, we've got so much to leave that's not what makes this right, you've been building up steam ignited by the fight, so do this thing with me instead of tying on a tight one tonight" THE POSTAL SERVICE "The District Sleeps Alone Tonight" Album: Give Up (2003) One of the best-selling "indie" releases of the last year, it's Sub Pop's second best selling album ever (didn't pass Nirvana yet but it's much more clever and interesting). The vocalist is from Death Cab For Cutie and the 'other guy' brought the electronics. Lots of bleeps and blips, great lyrics, and cool pop hooks too. Buy this one. "You seem so out of context in this gaudy apartment complex" NICK LOWE "Cracking Up" Album: Basher - The Best Of Nick Lowe (1989) Nick has never been used in Mixmasters so I have now corrected that oversight, including a couple tracks from his great late seventies work. I took them from a best-of CD that is a very good introduction to his pop sensibilities. I liked this song the first time I heard it and still like it. "I don't think it's funny no more" THE DIVORCE "Save It For The Judge" Album: There Will Be Blood Tonight (2003) As many of you know, every year for the past four we have gone to the 4-day Bumbershoot music and arts festival in Seattle. We always find some interesting new music and The Divorce was one band that we enjoyed this past year. They are not polished and high-tech but on the other hand their songs are not just simple rock songs, they have emotion and above average lyrics. This band can rock but still have some hooks to hang on to. "I wouldn't come around with a face like that. You blow up like a roman candle but you probably just burn out like some… punk" PINK "Don't Let Me Get Me" Album: M!ssundaztood (2001) Sure she's not ultra-hip and cool but this CD is great. I was expecting funk and hip-hop but got a lot of pop, rock, ballads, and all sorts of things. I picked two tracks from it for my mix, this one is catchy pop with a sarcastic edge. You know I like that. "Doctor, doctor, won't you please prescribe me something, a day in the life of someone else" EMM GRYNER "Christopher" Album: Asianblue (2003) She was another find a few years ago in Seattle. The CD itself is a mixture of pop and singer-songwriter stuff, but this sparse ballad outdoes Tori at her own game. She did this song solo in concert and it was moving and mesmerizing. "Streetlamps flicker with stops and starts, we drag race our devils to fill empty hearts, with headlines and curtains and cities drawn dark, and Christopher floats to the stars, Christopher walks on the dark" JACK JOHNSON "Flake" Album: Brushfire Fairytales (2001) I kept hearing this song on the radio but they would never say who it was by. But by a fluke we bought his later album and the voice sounded familiar. Then we picked up this earlier CD and lo and behold, there was the song I kept hearing. It's very good and then it really kicks in for the second half. That's Ben Harper helping out on slide. "It seems to me that maybe, pretty much always means no" NICK LOWE "American Squirm" Album: Basher - The Best Of Nick Lowe (1989) Another classic from long ago, you can hear the new wave feel, helped out by the master Elvis Costello on backing vocals. More of Nick's pure pop for now people. "I made an American squirm, and it felt so right" INTERPOL "Evil" Album: Antics (2004) This complex rocker has some twists and turns but turns out to be a seductive, driving, and hypnotic track, with just the bite that the doctor ordered. I hear more in this with each listening. Great mood and lyrics and it totally rocks. "But hey, who's on trial?" THE DIVORCE "Redcoats" Album: There Will Be Blood Tonight (2003) It's kind of a rock grunge emo dumb yet smart rock track. But I can't get the chorus out of my head. See these guys live if you get a chance, a lot of potential here. "You could have warned me, you could of said, here come their redcoats with their coats all red, all along the promenade that would have been good. Instead you said that one thing, that thing you said that I forgot, was kind of odd, that would have been good" PEDRO THE LION "The Fleecing" Album: Achilles Heel (2004) I wanted to put about five PTL tracks on my mix but narrowed it down to two. I love this post-folk rock ballad. It begins kind of down and mournful but when it kicks into "I could buy you a drink" it takes off. And the lyrics are interesting each time, no stupid love song here. "I can't say it like I sing it. I can't sing it like I think it. I can't think it like I feel it. And I don't feel a thing" BRANDI CARLILE "Again Today" Album: We're Growing Up Time for a quieter track, at least near the beginning. Brandi is another Seattle-based artist but also tours other parts of the country. I think she calls it alt-county but I don't think I would. I saw her do this live before I bought the CD and I kept hearing the chorus over and over in my head. Good thing I have plenty of empty room in there. "The path of least resistance is catching up with me again today" KEANE "Somewhere Only We Know" Album: Hopes And Fears (2004) This one is a pretty big radio hit on the alt-rock station around here, but I won't hold that against it. Up-front piano, a Radiohead-lite vocal, a nice and pretty feel, and undeniable pop hooks make it a good song, even if it is popular. I am not as enthused about the rest of the CD but I'll give it a few more listens and see what happens. "If you have a minute why don't we go talk about it somewhere only we know, this could be the end of everything so why don't we go somewhere only we know?" EMM GRYNER "Symphonic" Album: Asianblue (2003) A lighter and more upbeat track from Ms Gryner. To me, this is a feel-good pop song with an memorable chorus. Nice multi-track vocals and a great pop sheen, with a killer bridge in the middle too. I almost ended or started the CD with this track but I was afraid you would think I had gone soft in my old age. "You said don't forget about me, don't forget about me. Like I'd ever forget about you" THE GET UP KIDS "Let The Reigns Go Loose" Album: On A Wire (2002) These emo-poppers were a pretty noisy bunch at one time. I have an older album and it's more guitar based and noisy. But for this album they apparently mellowed a bit. The chosen track here is really catchy. You can still hear traces of the emo rock sensibility in there somewhere but those hooks! Yow! "Can you take the bullet back, change it to a heart attack? JOHN MELLENCAMP "Peaceful World" Album: Cuttin' Heads (2001) Not everything John has done is a classic, that is for sure, but his later work is pretty solid and he's moved way, way beyond his Johnny Cougar days. You gotta like someone that wants a peaceful world, especially while people are dying left and right all over the world. And it's certainly time for him to be included in Mixmasters. Good music too. "It's what you do, not what you say. Everything is cool as can be in a peaceful world" PINK "My Vietnam" Album: M!ssundaztood (2001) A stark ballad from someone I thought was another hip/hop bimbo. There is a lot more to her, as this song shows. She has a dark side, which I love in music, and does so many styles of music on this album that I can't help but like it. I'll bet Britney, Christina, and Jessica will never do a song like this one. "Momma was a lunatic, she liked to push my buttons, she said I wasn't good enough, but I guess I wasn't trying" THE POSTAL SERVICE "Such Great Heights" Album: Give Up (2003) Bubbly electro-pop but not the heavy-handed Duran Duran / Erasure / Pet Shop Boys kind. This combines the indie vocal and songwriting style with computer fun and musical depth and layering. I'm telling you, this is an album you need to listen to a bunch of times. The more I hear it the better it gets. "I am thinking it's a sign, that the freckles in our eyes are mirror images and when we kiss they're perfectly aligned" SOMETHING CORPORATE "21 And Invincible" Album: North (2003) And we end with a catchy pop-punk number, with funny and sarcastic lyrics. I wanted to end with a simple yet memorable chorus, so here it is. Sing it in the shower. "I'm 21 and invincible, can't wait to screw this up, I'm in power for the hour, I guess today's gonna blow us away" As always, send hate mail and money to: Steven Reule P.O. Box 340564 Sacramento, CA 95834 See you at http://www.obsessed-with-music.com Liner notes at: http://www.obsessed-with-music.com/mm13/notes.htm