A Song A Day The Eyeball Way

I'll post links to songs that I dig, daily*, and maybe talk about them a little. You guys listen to the songs, then comment, or not. Cool?

*...or whenever I can get to it. It probably won't be daily, but I'll try not to "Laugharn" the thread too quickly. Some days I might just have to dump a link without talking about the song.

Day One:

Slint - Good Morning, Captain (Spiderland, 1991)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoH5MPIgM7c (studio)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJYQv...eature=related (live in 2007)

If this is your first exposure to this song, get a high quality version instead of listening through youtube. Then, listen to it alone, at night, LOUD. It's in the running for my favorite song of all time. The end never fails to give me goosebumps.

The rest of the album, while great, simply can't top this. It's too much.

Lyrics:

Let me in, the voice cried softly,
from outside the wooden door.
Scattered remnants of the ship could be seen in the distance,
Blood stained the icy wall of the shore.

I'm the only one left. The storm, took them all,
He managed as he tried to stand.
The tears ran down his face.
Please, it's cold.

When he woke, there was no trace of the ship.
Only the dawn was left behind by the storm.
He felt the creaking of the stairs beneath him.
That rose, from the sea, to the door.

There was a sound at the window then.
The captain started, his breath was still.
Slowly, he turned.

From behind the edge of the windowsill,
There appeared the delicate hand of a child.
His face was flush and timid.
He stared at the captain through frightened eyes.

The captain reached for something to hold on to,
Help me, he whispered, as he rose slowly to his feet.
The boy's face went pale,
He recognized the sound.

Silently, he pulled down the shade against the shadow.
Lost in the doorstep of the empty house.

I'm trying to find my way home.

I'm sorry...
...and I miss you.

I miss you.
I've grown taller now.
I want the police to be notified.
I'll make it up to you,
I swear, I'll make it up to you.

I miss you.

Day 2:

Pulsars - Submission Song

The best, poppiest, most gentle and heartfelt song about S&M you'll hear all day!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4e9h...eature=related

These guys disappeared for most of the last decade, but in my search for this video, I also found live performance videos from late last year. Yay!

Martin: I saw the Pulsars live a couple of times. They were great. I was sad we never got another album from those guys, but the fact that they're playing gigs again gives one hope.

Parker: As I alluded in my post, Good Morning, Captain sort of obliterates anything else Slint ever did. I also find it hard to make it through all of Spiderland unless I'm in the right mood. And the production does suck.

Day 3:

Soul Coughing - Screenwriter's Blues
http://lala.com/zs0lI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laIy1PgcVnA

This is a song any film fan should know and love.

I get the feeling - perhaps misguided - that Soul Coughing has kind of been dismissed as a novelty act, but their first two albums are really, really good. I always loved the way they deployed samples. And the lyrics to this song are burned into my brain.

Yeah, El Oso is good too. Regarding your "Why'd they break up?" lament, I think Mike Doughty was really, really unhappy in that band towards the end. I follow him on Twitter, and he had a mini-rant on there a few weeks ago that was something like, "Hey Soul Coughing fans, that was 15 years ago. Get over it!". There was also a recent interview where he talked about being frustrated with having a lot of his ideas get shot down.

He was also doing a shitload of drugs in those days and is clean now.

All that said, I miss the band too. Doughty's first 2 solo projects are good, but I haven't been able to get into the rest very much.

Day 4:

Pavement - Box Elder
http://lala.com/zsTLI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfMW7VjqgU4

In their review of Pavement's new "Best-Of" compilation, "Quarrantine the Past," Pitchfok calls Box Elder "a platonic ideal of simple, lo-fi indie pop." That about sums it up.

Day 5:

Medicine - She Knows Everything (Billy Corgan remix)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQpH-...=youtube_gdata

Don't let Corgan's name sway you either way. But be prepared for the aggressive, effects heavy, jet engine shriek of Brad Laner's guitar contrasted with lovely female vocals. Corgan mostly just mixes this so the drums pop and the guitar pummels you. It's superior to the original mix, by far.

Day 6:

MF DOOM - Money Folder (Four Tet Remix)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rtA_OeMwsSY

Possibly my favorite remix of all time.

There's a whole EP of Four Tet/Madvillain remixes. They're all good, this is just my favorite. Search iTunes for madvillain remixes: four tet - ep

I really want Four Tet to produce an entire hip-hop album or produce his own side project a la the stuff Danger Mouse does.

Day 7:

Ministry - So What (Live)

WARNING: Highly, highly NSFW lyrics.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4lHyS...=youtube_gdata

This comes from my favorite Ministry record, "In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up (Live)". One of my big music regrets is that I never saw these guys at the height of their powers. During the era in which this album was recorded, they were just a force of nature on stage. I have a good friend who saw them at the first Lollapalooza, and he says the only other acts that came close to dealing out this level of endurance-testing punishment were The Melvins and My Bloody Valentine.

There are louder tracks than "So What" on this album, but I just love the balancing act in this performance. You've got a fantastic bass groove, the gunshot-snare drum pattern, samples, and Al Jourgenson's processed scream/singing. Then it shifts into massive riffage and holy shit. A marathon-length burst of awesome.

It's too bad Ministry sputtered out and became awful, but once upon a time they were terrific. Exhibit A.