Free Music Friday: Bad Religion Tribute Mixtape

Buying a Halloween costume for a 5-year-old is possibly one of the most difficult tasks a parent will ever undertake.  Picking out birthday or Christmas presents pales in comparison.  With presents, worst case, you can just let your kid go on a feeding frenzy in a toy store and just buy whichever toys they amass.  They go home happy.  You go home happy.  Halloween costumes are another difficulty level altogether.  First is the month long argument to decide who your kid is going to dress up as...if it's appropriate and if it's feasibly possible.  How do you logically convince a 5-year-old not to dress up as "Miss California?"  Or explain to them the social implication it comes with?  I just resort to, "Go to your room until you decide to dress up as something else."  It is effective.  After the argument comes the extensive Halloween costume scavenger hunt of traveling to twenty different stores to not only find a costume that your kid likes...but then to find it in their size.  She was originally going to be Dorothy from Wizard of Oz...but not one store had her size.  Not one.  I went to 20 stores.  And here's the kicker...none of them were sold out...none of them ever ordered that size.  Finally, after hours of tears and disappointment, we settled on an angel.  Now I have to figure out what the 2-year-old is going to wear.

Germs of Perfection: A Tribute to Bad Religion

1.  William Elliott Whitmore - Don't Pray On Me
2.  Frank Turner - My Poor Friend Me
3.  Weakerthans - Sanity
4.  Switchfoot - Sorrow
5.  Ted Leo - Against The Grain
6.  Cheap Girls - Kerosene
7.  New Politics - Generator
8.  Cobra Skulls - Give You Nothing
9.  Polar Baear Club - Better Off Dead
10.  Guttermouth - Pity
11.  Riverboat Gamblers - Heaven Is Falling
12.  Tegan & Sara - Suffer


Free Bad Religion Mixtape Tribute via Spin Click HERE.

The 11 Best Songs By Ima Robot

In TV, when a show has hit a wall for new ideas, they do something called "jumping the shark" in refernce to Fonzi on Happy Days epic episode about jumping over a tank of sharks on his motorcycle.  Most of the times, the producers will have one of the characters gets pregnant because new babies add a plethera of cheesy cliche episodes about stinky diapers.  I have two kids.  I watch TV to get away from kids, not watch other people's kids...

That said, "jumping the shark" isn't just resigned to TV shows.  Bands can jump the shark.  Directors can jump the shark.  NFL quarterbacks can jump the shark.  Even companies.  Specifically...Emusic.  For years Emusic has been the indie world's darling for online music retail.  They even threatened itunes by doing everything different.  There was no DRM on the songs.  The songs were better quality.  You could download them infinite amount of times once you bought them.  And the selection was much more user friendly.

That was the case.  On Nov 1st.  Emusic will abandon everything they did that gathered them such a strong cult following and become just another online retailer like Amazon on Itunes.  You will still to have a montly account...but now instead of credits it's just money.  You will still have to pay a montly fee upfront...and if you don't use all the money by the end of the month...oops...oh well...

Why the big change?  Why is emusic tossing their salad in the face of all their fans?  Because Universal Music Group is being added.  Oooh....a bunch a music that no one at emusic wants.

Guess who's not getting renewed.

Here are the 11 Best Song By Ima Robot:

1.  The Beat (Monument To The Masses)
2.  Alive (Ima Robot)
3.  Pouring Pain (Monument To The Masses)
4.  Scream (Ima Robot)
5.  Cool Cool Universe (Monument To The Masses)
6.  Creeps Me Out (Monument To The Masses)
7.  Sing Boy (Search and Destroy)
8.  The Beat Goes On (Public Access Single)
9.  Let's Talk Turkey (Ima Robot)
10.  A Is For Action (Ima Robot)
11.  Two Hearts Too Young (Search and Destroy)

Buy Ima Robot's new album, Another Man's Treasure, now!!!

The 11 Best Songs By Kings of Leon

Let's just get one thing straight.  There are two versions of the Kings of Leon.  There's the diry south, grungy unwashed version that delivered the first three albums.  Now we have the second incarnation of the band that has gone for a smoother, grander sound in the vein of U2.  Most of the fans that have been follwing the band since the Youth and Aha days, curse the new version of the band.  They're sell-outs.  They're knock-offs.  They just all out suck.  But do they?  Are they?  Let's for a minute imagine if the first 3 Kings albums didn't exist.  Imagine if their first album was Only By The Night.  Would they still suck?  Or would people have a different view of them?  I'll be the first one to say that I like their early albums better than their recent offerings...but that doesn't mean the new albums are bad.  Sex On Fire is still one of the best songs of the past decade.  And Caleb Followill has one of the best rock voices out there.  His voice is so good it could be and r&b...and isn't that what Sex on Fire really is...an r&b song?

I honestly wish there were more bands out there who sold-out like the Kings of Leon.  How much better would the world of music be if that was the case?

Here are the 11 Best Songs By Kings of Leon

1. Sex on Fire (Only By The Night)

2. Knocked Up (Because The Times)
3. The Bucket (Aha Shake Heartbreak)
4. True Love Way (Because the Times)
5. Closer (Only By The Night)
6. McFearless (Because the Times)
7. Soft (Aha Shake Heartbreak)
8. California Waiting (Youth And Manhood)
9. Use Somebody (Only By The Night)
10. Spiral Staircase (Youth And Manhood)
11. Velvet Snow (Aha Shake Heartbreak)

Buy the Kings of Leon's new album, Come Around Sundown now!!

The 11 best Songs By Idlewild

On my October release poll, we had one vote for the new Idlewild.  Made me think it was not worth doing a list for the band, since no one was excited to hear the album.  Then I thought, maybe the whole reason that no one is excited to hear the new album is because you guys are not familiar with the band.  Therefore, here's a catch-up for all those who don't know them.  Hope you enjoy the Scottish R.E.M.

Here Are the 11 Best Songs By Idlewild:

1.  You Held The World In Your Arms (The Remote Part)
2.  These Wooden Ideas (100 Broken Windows)
3.  A Modern Way of Letting Go (The Remote Part)
4.  Century After Century (The Remote Part)
5.  No Emotion (Make Another World)
6.  Little Discourage (100 Broken Windows)
7.  Roseability (100 Broken Windows)
8.  As If I Hadn't Slept (Warning/Promises)
9.  El Capitan (Warning/Promises)
10.  A Ghost in the Arcade (Make Another World)
11.  Everything (Make Another World)

Buy Idlewild's new album, Post Electric Blues...now!!!

The 11 Best Songs By Belle & Sebastian

I never understood how Belle & Sebastian could be happy all the damn time.  Is Stuart Murdoch taking some sort of ultradose of SSRIs 24/7?  Sure, there are things in life to make you happy...but there are also things that make you sad.  I quote the famous poet, Butthead, when he said, "You have to have things that suck, so you know what things are cool."  For example, if those miners hadn't been trapped in that mine for 68 days, then we wouldn't be reminded how lucky we all are.  And without bands like Maroon 5, we wouldn't know how good B&S are.  Get it?

Here Are the 11 Best Songs By Belle & Sebastian:

1.  If You're Feeling Sinister (If You're Feeling Sinister)
2.  Like Dylan in the Movies (If You're Feeling Sinister)
3.  The Boy With The Arab Strap (The Boy With The Arab Strap)
4.  There's Too Much Love (Fold Your Hands Child)
5.  Dress Up In You  (Life Pursuit)
6.  Stay Loose (Dear Catastrophe Waitress)
7.  Me And The Major (If You're Feeling Sinister)
8.  Another Sunny Day (Life Pursuit)
9.  Seeing Other People (If You're Feeling Sinister)
10.  Piazza, New York Catcher (Dear Catastrophe Waitress)
11.  The Blues Are Still Blue (Life Pursuit)

Buy Belle & Sebastian's new album, Write About Love, now!!!

The 11 Best Songs By Cursive of the 00s

Today, I stopped by a Crown Book liquidation center.  I only planned on buying some $1 books for stocking stuffers.  Thought I'd walk out of there spending no more than  5 or 6 bucks.  Not even close.  I did a ton of really good deals.  A ton of respectable $1 books...if there is such a thing.  But I made one unique discovery.  Something I never thought in a hundred years I would find...a CD.

In the back of the store, behind a rack of VHS movies, I found the CD shelves.  Strangely, the CDs were hidden behind an even more obsolete medium...or maybe not.  Most of the CDs, were very obscure groups on even more obscure labels.  Yet, one artist stood out.  One artist I had been looking for...for years.  That artist is Sweet 75.

For those who don't know, Sweet 75 is the short-lived post-Nirvana project of Krist Novoselic.  It didn't have the sparkle of the Foo Fighters...and sold only a few dozens copies.  I'm a huge Nirvana fan and always wanted a copy...but it was impossible to find one.  It was released one Tuesday and was out-of-print by Friday.  I scoured used stores...even ebay.  But the price tag was always too high.  Until today.  Today, I found the CD for $1.  One freaking dollar.  From the most important band of the 90s to the $1 rack at a liquidation center.  Take note Guy Berryman...you're next.

Here are the 11 Best Songs By Cursive of the 00s:

1. Rise Up! Rise Up! (Happy Hollow)

2. Some Red Handed Slight of Hand (The Ugly Organ)
3. Dorothy At Forty (Happy Hollow)
4. Art Is Hard (The Ugly Organ)
5. The Martyr (Domestica)
6. In The Now (Mama, I’m Swollen)
7. Sierra (The Ugly Organ)
8. Mama, I’m Satan (Mama, I’m Swollen)
9. Into the Fold (Happy Hollow)
10. The Night I Lost the Will To Fight (Domestica)
11. The Great Decay (Burst and Bloom)

Buy Tim Kasher's solo album, The Game of Monogamy , now!!

The 11 Best Songs By Travis of the 00s

Have the 90s finally died?  Or just waiting to be re-incarnated?

This year has become the year of the solo album.  But most of these solo albums are alum from bands who blasted onto the music scene in the 90s.  Incubus, Live, Sleater-Kinney, Outkast, Radiohead, and the Wallflowers were all big names in the 90s.  They were the trendsetters in the 90s.  Now, outside of Radiohead, they have become irrelevent to the current mainstream output and remain merely classic influences to today's crop of youngsters.  Therefore, members of these bands have had to go out and re-invent themselves to become relevent again.  Although, the first couple of 90s artists to try the solo thing were Stephen Malkmus and Chris Cornell.  Both guys spent this past summer on sold-out reunion tours with their original bands.

So, maybe this whole solo thing is just some big ploy to get audiences pining for the old stuff...the classic stuff.  In this business, in this age...whatever works.

Here are the 11 Best Songs By Travis of the 00s:

1. Side (The Invisible Band)

2. Quite Free (Ode To J. Smith)
3. Big Chair (The Boy With No Name)
4. Sing (The Invisible Band)
5. My Eyes (The Boy With No Name)
6. Quicksand (12 Memories)
7. Sailing Away (The Boy With No Name)
8. Pulling Mussels (Selfish Jean Single)
9. Re-Offender (12 Memories)
10. Long Way Down (Ode To J. Smith)
11. Flowers in the Window (The Invisible Band)

Buy Fran Healy's new solo album, Wreckorder, now!

The 11 Best Songs By Revenge

I wonder if the music industry is purposely trying to shoot itself in the foot or they're really just the biggest morons this side of the government.  It's like they're making a bigger effort to fail than to succeed.

This past week, Soundgarden sold 1 million plus copies of their newest hits compilation, Telephantasm.  Only it was packaged with Guitar Hero.  Therefore, Billboard disqualified all those GH sales from Soundgarden's official sales number.  Instead having a well-deserved comeback #1 on the billboard charts, they sink to #24.  In a digital age, SG found a way to push CDs.  Something...no one can do.  Yet, they did it.  And instead of rewarding them and ushering in a new era of creative sales, the industry wants to bury this brilliant move...and their own careers along with it.

I don't think it's any surprise that I just found out that Freebass (the uber supergroup featuring Peter Hook of New Order, Mani of the Stone Roses, and for a moment Andy Rourke of the Smiths) was released two weeks ago.  Who has the time to promote an album made-up of influential artists when you need to put all your effort into selling pop music's newest crap fest?

Here's Peter Hook's other solo band Revenge...and a look back.

Here are the 11 Best Songs By Revenge:

1.  Big Bang (One True Passion)
2.  Little Pig (Gun World Porn EP)
3.  Slave (One True Passion)
4.  Deadbeat  (Gun World Porn EP)
5.  Televive (V2.0/Be Careful What You Wish For)
6.  Soul (V2.0/Be Careful What You Wish For)
7.  Surf Nazi (One True Passion)
8.  Cloud Nine  (Gun World Porn EP)
9.  Jesus...I Love You (V2.0/Be Careful What You Wish For)
10.  The Wilding (V2.0/Be Careful What You Wish For)
11.  Pineapple Face (One True Passion)

Buy Freebass' new album, It's a Beautiful Life.

The 11 Best Songs By Sleater-Kinney

In last week's LA Times, there was an article on the owner of the Amoeba Record chain.  In an eye-opening write-up (eye opening to everyone who thinks they know the music industry but doesn't), it revealed that in this digital age of music...Amoeba records has seen no sales decrease.  Let me repeat that...Amoeba Records in the worst era ever for the music industry has seen zero sales decrease.  Why?  Why has Amoeba succeed while others have failed?  What is it that Amoeba has done right where the others have done wrong?

It's simple.  Know your audience.  Amoeba knows its customers and knows what they want.  They stock their shelves with music (from all genres) that will attract all audiophiles from all listening habits.  The big box stores and Tower Record-like places only pushed music on major labels.  They limited their supply and short-changed their audience.  They tried to make the audience like what they were feeding them instead feeding the audience what they liked. 

Even today, I'll go into Best Buy or Target on new music Tuesdays and not find 50% of the new releases I'm looking for.  They have 250 copies of Taio Cruz but one copy of Jenny Lewis (I bought it).  Two weeks later, they have 244 copies of Taio Cruz still sitting there and no copies of the new Bad Religion.  No copies of the Corin Tucker Band.  No copies of Fran Healy.  No copies of Tim Kasher.  Do they not realize that just because they don't have what I want, I'm not going to buy what they have?  Obviously not.

Thank you to Taio Cruz for being today's example.

Here are the 11 Best Sleater-Kinnery Songs:

1.  Turn It On (Dig Me Out)
2.  I Wanna Be Yr Joey Ramone (Call The Doctor)
3.  The Professional (All Hands On The Band One)
4.  Jumpers (The Woods)
5.  Dance Song '97 (Dig Me Out)
6.  Start Together (The Hot Rock)
7.  Good Things (Call The Doctor)
8.  The Day I Went Away (Sleater-Kinney)
9.  Stay Where You Are (Call The Doctor)
10.  It's Enough (Dig Me Out)
11.  Entertain (The Woods)

Buy the new album by the Corin Tucker Band, 1,000 Years now!!!

The 11 Best Chris Cornell Solo Songs

lLast week, I went to the Sonic Youth/Pavement show.  There was something comforting about listening to 2 1/2 hours of fuzzy guitars and warped lyrics while pounding an Estrella Damm Inedit (best beer in the world).  Then a strange realization hit me.  Pavement's been around almost 20 years.  While Sonic Youth is pushing 30.  These two indie niche bands have surpassed many of their hitmaking contemporaries, not only in the dust, but in obscurity.  Why did they survive while all the mainstream marvels crashed and burned?

This past week Soundgarden released their greatest hits package, which many are touting as their first comprehensive compilation (did everyone forget about A-Sides?).  Soundgarden hasn't been around in over a decade.  They completely missed the 00s.  But they are coming back with a bang. Once last week's sales numbers are official, Soundgarden, will have a platinum album and the number 1 album in country.  An accomplishment...no one has done in a long time.

What Soundgarden did was brilliant.  They are attaching their new album with every copy of the new Guitar Hero game.  For every video game sold, they sell one album.  How did they do so far?  They sold 1 million copies on the first day.  Take that Nsync.

Here are the 11 Best Chris Cornell solo songs:

1.  You Know My Name (Carry On)
2.  Sunshower (Great Expectations sdtk)
3.  Can't Change Me (Euphoria Morning)
4.  Seasons (Singles sdtk)
5.  Billie Jean (Carry On)
6.  Flutter Girl (Euphoria Morning)
7.  Time (Scream)
8.  No Such Thing (Carry On)
9.  Moonchild (Euphoria Morning)
10.  Enemy (Scream)
11.  Never Far Away Rock Version (Scream)

Buy Soundgarden's Greatest Hits Telephantasm now!!