Go Ahead, Mr. Wendal

This morning at 3:10 A.M. I was awoken by the sound of my son singing/groaning, and I quickly realized that he was performing a startlingly faithful rendition of the repeating vocal sample used in the classic Arrested Development song “Mr. Wendal.” I went in and there he was, happily sitting up in his crib awake, continuing his homage to that great philosopher-hobo. It sounded exactly like this:

In our family, we also make it a practice to slightly modify the lyrics of “Mr. Wendal” to refer to one of Virginia’s heroes, Sister Wendy. Perhaps this is how the young lad has developed such a love for the song.

RE: Rolling Blackouts

I realize in retrospect that my last post, although it made perfect sense to me, may have been slightly confusing without some context.

It was in fact a record review of sorts of the album Rolling Blackouts by Brighton, UK band The Go! Team.  However, I’m a little tired of/uninterested in writing traditional record reviews (see A Change in Focus), so instead I opted for a sort of extreme-reader-response criticism/fan fiction type of record review. I hope to do more such non-traditional record reviews in the future because they are a lot more fun for me than regular record reviews.  Besides, you can find good regular reviews all over the place, so why do I need to bother with them, too?

I also would like to state for the record that Rolling Blackouts isn’t anything like my favorite album of 2011 or anything; it’s just a record I had a quick desire to write about in this method.  I hope to add more “reviews” to the site, including those written about albums that actually are my most favorites, but we know I have a poor track record of providing steady content and publishing all the things I intend to publish. So, I still have to add this disclaimer about Rolling Blackouts in case I never getting around to posting about any other albums and in their absence it appears as if it is my ultimate all-time-favorite album because it’s the only one I’ve written and published about.

That is all.  Thank you for your time.  We now return to our regular Froz-T-Freez programming, still in progress.

Rolling Blackouts

A crew of high school cheerleaders find a vintage 1980s boombox underneath the bleachers, with a mixtape of old-school hip-hop auspiciously cued up in the deck. When one brave girl presses play, hoping it might be just what they need for their new routine, they are mystically transformed into The Go! Team, which is something like Charlie’s Angels and the A-Team put together, but even cooler; they vow to use their newfound powers to become great MCs and also save the school from lameness. To achieve their aims they join forces with the ‘60s pop-loving sophisticates of the rival school’s marching band, and together they conspire to hijack the big football game mid-play-mid-field with a guerrilla marching cheer block party. It was the best Homecoming ever, and also the best episode of Glee that I’ve never seen. Bethany “Best Coast” Consentino and Satomi “Deerhoof” Matsuzaki guest star.

The Go! Team – T.O.R.N.A.D.O. from memphis industries on Vimeo.

The Go! Team – Voice Yr Choice from memphis industries on Vimeo.

The Go! Team – Buy Nothing Day from memphis industries on Vimeo.

The Go! Team – Apollo Throwdown from memphis industries on Vimeo.

The Go! Team
Rolling Blackouts
Memphis Industries
Released: January 31, 2011

http://www.thegoteam.co.uk/

Froztmix 2: Sailing

Sailing

1. Christopher Cross – Sailing
2. Radiohead – Bloom
3. Bon Iver – Lump Sum
4. James Blake – The Wilhelm Scream
5. Beach House – 10 Mile Stereo
6. America – Ventura Highway
7. Beck – New Round
8. Bjork – Sun In My Mouth
9. Deerhunter – Sailing
10. Baths – You’re My Excuse To Travel
11. Baths – Rain Smell

I Remember a Cassette Cathedral


One of my musical pastimes of 2011 shall be an exhaustive exploration of my tape collection. At New Year’s time I dug all of them out of my parents’ basement, and I’m so excited.

It’s been a long time since I’ve heard Fresh Aire V. Too Long.

Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti: Before Today

Record Review

In the late eighties, a succession of lemon vehicles and financial problems led my family to procure from my uncle a run-down, rust orange 1975 Chevrolet Impala out of desperation.  Un-affectionately referred to as Big Red, the “boat” was somewhat of an ugly embarrassment, and its exhaust production was so profuse that I don’t doubt that it could have single-handedly instigated our growing global warming crisis.  Still, it got us around just fine, and I now remember it with more fondness than any other car my family had during my childhood.

Seemingly exclusive to the period of the Impala, my dad tuned in to a 70s/80s soft rock station on a constant basis. This incessant radio listening and genre choice is one that I have never witnessed my dad repeat in any other car or at any other time in his life; it is as if the Impala itself demanded its own soundtrack, reliving its faded glory days back in the summer of ’75 with songs like “Jackie Blue” and “Summer Breeze” still blowing through its speakers.  Big Red has now long since met the junkyard, but my secret fondness for large American sedans, the color of rust, and, most of all, the music of Seals & Crofts, Hall & Oates, Christopher Cross, and many other fine artists still remains.  Judging from his band’s first full-length effort for label 4AD, Ariel Pink must have a similar fossil fuel-consuming dinosaur in his past.  Fully inhaling the carcinogenic particulate cloud of bygone pop eras, Pink has constructed a masterpiece of yacht rock, synth pop, TV show theme songs, and much, much more.

I wish I had that ‘75 Impala today, so that I could pop in a cassette of Before Today and drive around town listening to these would-have-been-on-the-Time-Life-compilation classics.  Big Red would have let these tracks breeze through its speakers with nary a backfire.  “Round And Round” is more than a great sing-along; it pulls out all the compositional stops with pre-choruses, bridges, and breakdowns all over the place.  Meanwhile, “Can’t Hear My Eyes” is the soft grooving #1 hit that Hall & Oates forgot to write. The impeccable vintage production work is lovingly crafted just for my Impala’s speakers, while the at times cartoonish vocal parts that burst out at random times imply that Pink shares with many of us that same complex love-hate relationship with this pop detritus to which he pays homage.  Some sort of ironic wink exists with every song on the album.  One example is “Fright Night (Nevermore),” in which Pink sings his own line “Knock knock on the door three times! Baby, knock knock on the door!” like it’s an irritating jingle he can’t get out of his head.  Most undercutting is the final track, which, while sounding like a murky, authentic reproduction of early British post-punk, proclaims somewhat cynically the anti-punk, anti-idealist declaration that “Revolution’s a lie.”  Pink’s songs do bring back that pleasant summer breeze of years past, but they bring with it the embarrassing exhaust, the rust, the broken door handles, and the guilt of a pop culture environmental catastrophe.

Before Today
Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti
4AD
Released: June 8, 2010

Froz-T-Freez Favorite Albums of 2010

Nothing fancy here, just my favorite albums of 2010, in alphabetical order by album title.

My Most Favorite Albums of 2010

Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti: Before Today
Vampire Weekend: Contra
No Age: Everything in Between
Jonsi: Go
Deerhunter: Halcyon Digest
Beach House: Teen Dream
Sufjan Stevens: The Age of Adz
Warpaint: The Fool
LCD Soundsystem: This Is Happening

Other Favorites of 2010

Woods: At Echo Lake
Abe Vigoda: Crush
Patty Griffin: Downtown Church
Wolf Parade: Expo 86
Broken Social Scene: Forgiveness Rock Record
Local Natives: Gorilla Manor
Laura Veirs: July Flame
Yeasayer: Odd Blood
Here We Go Magic: Pigeons
Delorean: Subiza
Arcade Fire: The Suburbs
Horse Feathers: Thistled Spring
Sleigh Bells: Treats


Notes

Of course I am always looking for more music and there is a lot of stuff from this year I haven’t heard yet, so suggestions are welcome.  Right now I’m checking out a lot of left-field electronic/hip-hop instrumental stuff like Flying Lotus, Baths, Forest Swords, etc.  Check back in a couple of days and I may be on to mainstream country again.  You just never know.  As you can see from above, though, indie rock still seems to be my home.

Froztmix 1: Summer Sun

Today I inaugurate a new feature here at the Froz-T-Freez: the Froztmix.  As we commence the beautiful hot month of July, this particular froztmix has been made with pure summer listening in mind.

What is a Froztmix?  It is no more and no less than a virtual mixtape.  This particular mix has been calculated to fit on two sides of a 90 minute cassette tape.  Of course, you can also listen to it using the mp3 player of your choice, or burn it onto a CD.

I suggest this mix as ideal for automobile listening while traveling, or for a small but good sounding portable stereo in an echoey basement or bathroom while doing laundry or other chores.

Well, on with it.  Right click on each side and choose “Save as…” to get the goods.

Froztmix 1

Side A

  1. Animal Collective: Summertime Clothes
  2. Sleigh Bells: Crown on the Ground
  3. Grizzly Bear: Two Weeks
  4. Vampire Weekend: California English
  5. Atlas Sound: Walkabout (feat. Noah Lennox)
  6. Neon Indian: Deadbeat Summer
  7. Nite Jewel: Want You Back
  8. The Cool Kids: Strawberry Girl
  9. Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti:  ‘Round and ‘Round
  10. Laura Veirs: July Flame
  11. Ganglians: To June

Side B

  1. Deerhunter: Strange Lights
  2. The Carter Family: Keep on the Sunny Side
  3. Best Coast: Sun Was High (So Was I)
  4. No Age: Here Should Be My Home
  5. Girls: Morning Light
  6. Yes: And You and I
  7. T. Rex: Mambo Sun
  8. Vampire Weekend: Cousins
  9. White Denim: Shake Shake Shake
  10. Holiday Shores: Errand of Tongue
  11. Girls: Summertime

If you find that you like any of the songs on this mix, please explore the artists’ work further and purchase the music.  Any questions or comments are, as always, welcome.