California Life is Alright with Me

On paper, I thought Avalanches + Rivers Cuomo wouldn't work, but I really like this. And Pink Siifu doing David Berman's line (from Purple Mountains' Darkness and Cold) in the breakdown is the cherry on top.

California life is alright with me.

Bandcamp Day: FRI 1 MAY

Bandcamp is doing another fee waiver day this coming Friday. 100% of the money from anything you purchase will go straight to your favourite band(s). Bandcamp will also be doing at least a couple more of these on the first Fridays of June and July. Read more about it here. Also, I use the Bandcamp app a lot to listen to music. Easy to use UI and you get unlimited streaming with no ads. Totally recommended. So there's that. You know, if you're interested.

Twin Peaks: It Is Happening Again

Johnny Jewel posted a pretty cool Twin Peaks 86-track playlist entitled Twin Peaks: It Is Happening Again over on Spotify. As you might know, Jewel was involved with the Twin Peaks: The Return return a couple years ago. Chromatics appeared in the series (episodes 2 and 12!) Roadhouse scenes. Click above or below to check it out.

 

Indie Record Stores Need Help

The Y Axes - No Waves (2019)

Just FYI, a couple of my favourite record stores have set up GoFundMe pages. Like anyone, they're being gutted by the current crisis. Amoeba has been with me for nearly all of my adult life, I've spent countless hours at the Berkeley and SF locations learning about and tracking down new music. 1-2-3-4 GO! Records has been my local here in Oakland for the past 12 years, about a 10 minute drive away. When I get the itch, I like to wander down there and flip through the bins and see what I treasures I can dig up. I don't know who reads this, if anyone, but I thought I'd try to amplify.

Amoeba Records: https://www.gofundme.com/f/amoeba-music-needs-help-to-survive

1-2-3-4 GO! Records: https://www.gofundme.com/f/1234goneedsyourhelp

Dolly Parton's America

Dolly Parton's America

I listened to the Dolly Parton's America podcast this week. Super interesting, inspiring and moving. I love Dolly. I wish I had paid more attention to her when I was younger. I think it's a good place to start if you're new to her and hardcore fans will find some interesting info as well. I'm somewhere in the middle, myself, and I enjoyed all of it; even moved to tears at points. She's just such a fascinating, complicated lady and a shrewd business-woman. I think my favourite thing about her is her self-deprecation. She's willing to make herself the target of a joke, kind of diminishing anyone's venom or deflecting pot-shots. The podcast is 9 installments, click on the image to check out the site or find it wherever you get your podcasts.

Glider

My Bloody Valentine - Glider (1990)

Happy 30th name-day to My Bloody Valentine's Glider EP, which contains my fave MBV song, Off Your Face. I love love love this song. Click the album cover to check out the EP.

Figure 8

Elliott Smith - Figure 8 (2000)

Like many people, Elliott Smith's Figure 8 was a comfort to me in dark times. Pretty much all of his albums, really. That guy just fucking knew what was up. Figure 8 was released 20 years ago today and it's still a comfort to me now, like an old friend I can meet up with after years apart and we can still pick up where we last left off. Click the album cover to get reacquainted, or maybe this is your first time. All good either way. There's never a bad time for some Elliott Smith. 

Fetch the Bolt Cutters

Fiona Apple - Fetch the Bolt Cutters (2020)

The new Fiona Apple album is finally here and, predictably, it's reeeeeeeeeally good. It feels more raw and direct than The Idler Wheel, kinda fitting for these times. I've listened to it a couple times so far and I can already tell it's gonna be in constant rotation around here. Click the album cover to check it out.

Sawayama

Rina Sawayama - Sawayama (2020)

Rina Sawayama's new album, Sawayama, is an absolute banger. I became interested in her ever since I heard the excellent Ordinary Superstar a couple years ago. Sawayama (the album) is kind of a melting pot of pop ideas and influences. It comes at you from a lot of different (and sometimes unexpected) angles, but it doesn't feel like a massive Zerg attack trying to overwhelm and smother you. Every moment is a pinpoint surgical strike, and it's beautiful to behold. Album of the summer and beyond, y'all. For real. Anyway, it's officially out now, click on the album cover and hear for yourself.