Archives

Purchase log, 2021-10-19

[Res - How I Do]

I catalog my music purchases on Collectorz and Discogs, but they don’t give me a sense of change over time. So I’m noting them here weekly as well.

New releases

CD
  • Craig Armstrong, Nocturnes: Music for Two Pianos

Catalog

CD
  • Art of Noise, The Ambient Collection
  • Brothers Johnson, Light Up the Night
  • Fishbone, Fishbone 101: Nuttasaurusmeg Fossil Fuelin’ the Fonkay
  • Hirosue Ryoko, Arigato!
  • John Zorn / Yamataka Eye, John Zorn Birthday Celebration, Vol. 10
  • Muse, Showbiz
  • Muse, The Resistance
  • Spandau Ballet, True
  • Sufjan Stevens, Seven Swans
  • The B-52’s, Time Capsule: Songs for a Future Generation
  • Tyler the Creator, Cherry Bomb
  • Tyler the Creator, Wölf
  • ZARD, BEST ~Request Memorial~
Vinyl
  • Electric Light Orchestra, Time
  • Eurythmics, Touch Dance
  • Marvin Gaye, Here, My Dear
  • Res, How I Do
  • Styx, Kilroy Was Here
  • Soundtrack, Patty Hearst

Reissues

CD
  • Sugababes, One Touch (Deluxe Edition)
Vinyl
  • Sinéad O’Connor, So Far … The Best of Sinéad O’Connor
  • Sugababes, One Touch

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Purchase log, 2021-05-25

I catalog my music purchases on Collectorz and Discogs, but they don’t give me a sense of change over time. So I’m noting them here weekly as well.

Catalog

CD
  • Fishbone, The Essential Fishbone
  • Patti Smith Group, Wave
  • Peter Gabriel, Scratch My Back
  • Shivaree, I Oughtta Give You a Shot in the Head for Making Live in This Dump
  • Stereolab, Dots and Loops
  • The Hilliard Ensemble, Perotin
  • The Velvet Underground, Live MCMXCIII
  • Yes, Close to the Edge

Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Purchase log, 2020-08-11

[Charlie Puth - Voicenotes]

I catalog my music purchases on Collectorz and Discogs, but they don’t give me a sense of change over time. So I’m noting them here weekly as well.

New releases

CD
  • Inventions, Continuous Portraits
Vinyl
  • Duran Duran, Diamond of the Mind Live 2011

Catalog

CD
  • Arcade Fire, Reflektor
  • Charlie Puth, Voicenotes
  • Dirty Projectors, Bitte Orca
  • Don Dixon, Most Girls Love to Dance But Only Some of the Boys Like to
  • Fishbone, Set Up the Booty Right: Bonin’ in the Boneyard
  • John Zorn, Taboo and Exile
  • Ride, Carnival of Light
  • Ride, Tarantula
  • T. Rex, Electric Warrior (Special Edition)
  • The Roots, undun

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Favorite Edition Rewind: 1986

[Nakamori Akina - Fushigi]

A decade ago, I wrote a series of entries ranking my favorite albums from 1985 to 2004. My collection has expanded greatly since then, particularly in the last five years. So I wanted to see what has changed in 10 years.

In 2008, my collection tapered off with releases before 1987. I went so far as to call 1986 an uninteresting year. I’ve since had time to explore the year in greater depth.

  1. The Art of Noise, In Visible Silence
  2. Janet Jackson, Control
  3. Soundtrack, Megazone 23 Song Collection
  4. Paul Simon, Graceland
  5. XTC, Skylarking
  6. The Smiths, The Queen is Dead
  7. Prince & the Revolution, Parade
  8. Nakamori Akina, Fushigi
  9. Duran Duran, Notorious
  10. Club Nouveau, Life, Love and Pain

Other favorites from the year:

  • Anita Baker, Rapture
  • Bananarama, True Confessions
  • Fishbone, In Your Face
  • Run DMC, Raising Hell
  • Peter Gabriel, So
  • John Adams, Harmonielehre
  • Enya, Enya
  • Dwight Yoakam, Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc. Etc.
  • R.E.M., Lifes Rich Pageant
  • Pet Shop Boys, Please
  • Kronos Quartet, Music of Sculthorpe, Sallinen, Glass, Nancarrow, Hendrix
  • The Human League, Crash

If you told Younger Me that Older Me would like So and Raising Hell, Younger Me would wretch. At the time, Run DMC and Peter Gabriel were so ubiquitous, I felt I would never need to hear “Walk This Way” or “Sledgehamer” for the rest of my life.

One advantage of growing older is no longer caring about looking at all fashionable.

Younger Me would have been puzzled by the inclusion of Dwight Yoakam on the extended list, to which Older Me would have to tell Younger Me to wait 9 years.

Younger Me: Oh, I was wondering whether I should get that Human League album. Is it really that good?
Older Me: Yeah, but I don’t think you’d quite appreciate it at your station in life. Wait a few years.
Younger Me: Really? How many?
Older Me: 30.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Favorite Edition Rewind: 1991

[Slint - Spiderland]

A decade ago, I wrote a series of entries ranking my favorite albums from 1985 to 2004. My collection has expanded greatly since then, particularly in the last five years. So I wanted to see what has changed in 10 years.

I’m not sure other music writers would agree that 1998 is an important year in music for the ’90s. 1991 saw Guns N’ Roses cap the era of hair metal and Nirvana usher the unfortunately-named alternative rock. But it didn’t have Neutral Milk Hotel.

  1. Smashing Pumpkins, Gish
  2. Nirvana, Nevermind
  3. R.E.M., Out of Time
  4. U2, Achtung Baby
  5. Throwing Muses, The Real Ramona
  6. Soundtrack, Bubblegum Crisis Vocal Collection, Vol. 1
  7. Guns N’ Roses, Use Your Illusion II
  8. Enya, Shepherd Moons
  9. Lou Harrison, Music of Lou Harrison
  10. Elliott Carter, Music of Elliott Carter

Other favorites from the year:

  • Pearl Jam, Ten
  • Igor Stravinsky, Le Sacre du Printemps/Symphony in Three Movements (Zubin Mehta, New York Philharmonic Orchestra)
  • Mazzy Star, She Hangs Brightly
  • Soundgarden, Badmotorfinger
  • Bill Frisell, Where in the World?
  • Fishbone, The Reality of My Surroundings
  • Metallica, Metallica
  • Kronos Quartet, Lutoslawski: String Quartet
  • Black Sheep, A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing
  • Hamada Mari, Tomorrow
  • Electronic, Electronic
  • Slint, Spiderland
  • My Bloody Valentine, Loveless
  • Painkiller, Guts of a Virgin
  • Mr. Bungle, Mr. Bungle

Slint and My Bloody Valentine are additions 2004-me would have made. 1991-me would have side-eyed 2004-me.

And he would have scoffed at 2018-me for including Black Sheep, after emitting a gasp at seeing Fishbone on the list at all.

He would have begrudgingly nodded at the additions of Metallica and Hamada Mari, and he would have been curious about Electronic. And he would have gone out and found Painkiller the first chance he got.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Purchase log, 2018-08-14

[Bobby Long - A Winter Tale]

I catalog my music purchases on Collectorz and Discogs, but they don’t give me a sense of change over time. So I’m noting them here weekly as well.

Catalog

CD
  • Adam Guettel, Myths and Hymns
  • Anonymous 4 / Chilingirian Quartet, Darkness Into Light / Tavener: The Bridegroom and other works
  • Beyoncé, Beyoncé
  • Dirty Three, Ocean Songs
  • envy, All the Footprints You’ve Ever Left and the Fear Expecting Ahead
  • Isis, Oceanic
  • Huck Hodge, Life Is Endless Like Our Field of Vision (Talea Ensemble; JACK Quartet)
  • Pedro the Lion, The Only Reason I Feel Secure
Vinyl
  • Ben Watt, Fever Dream
  • Bobby Long, A Winter Tale
  • Bobby Long, Wishbone
  • Eluvium, Pedals / Petals
  • Fishbone, Truth and Soul (RSD 2014)
  • Inventions, Blanket Waves
  • Inventions, Maze of Woods
  • Semi Precious Weapons, Aviation
  • Teitur, Story Music

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Purchase log, 2018-07-17

[Leo Imai - VLP]

I catalog my music purchases on Collectorz and Discogs, but they don’t give me a sense of change over time. So I’m noting them here weekly as well.

New releases

CD
  • Leo Imai, VLP
  • Steve Grand, not the end of me

Catalog

CD
  • Go-Go’s, Beauty and the Beat
  • New Order, Power, Corruption & Lies
  • Tomosaka Rie, Murasaki.
  • Wendy Carlos, Switched-On Bach
  • Original London Cast, Miss Saigon
Vinyl
  • Andy Gibb, Shadow Dancing
  • Cannonball Adderley, Somethin’ Else
  • Chris Isaak, Forever Blue
  • Enigma, The Cross of Changes
  • Fishbone, In Your Face
  • McCoy Tyner, The Real McCoy
  • Ready for the World, Ready for the World
  • Simple Minds, Sparkle in the Rain
  • The Flaming Lips, Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots
  • The Pogues, Rum Sodomy & the Lash

Reissue

Vinyl
  • Anne Dudley, Anne Dudley Plays the Art of Noise
  • Fishbone, The Reality of My Surroundings

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Looking ahead, June-July 2018

[Utada Hikaru - Hatsukoi]

I started a new job on May 21, and I’m still getting adjusted to a new routine. I’m not ready to say the hiatus has ended just yet, but I can say new entries should resume before the end of summer. Till then, here’s a preview of upcoming releases.

Emmylou Harris, Ballad of Sally Rose (Deluxe Edition), June 1

I have listened to a lot of Emmylou Harris, and I can say this album is my least favorite. But its underdog status makes me curious about what didn’t make the album. Also, the current CD pressings sound awful, and I hope the remastering rectifies that.

Clannad, Turas 1980, June 8

This live album contains songs never recorded in the studio by the band.

Utada Hikaru, Hatsukoi, June 27

In retrospect, Fantôme was something of a downer. The singles preceding the release of Hatsukoi indicate a bouncier direction. Utada comes full circle title-wise — hatsukoi is the Japanese translation of “first love”.

Guns N’ Roses, Appetite for Destruction (Deluxe Edition), June 29

This album hadn’t already received a deluxe edition treatment? I’m not shelling out for anything more than the 2-disc edition.

Leo IMAI, V L P, July 11

I really enjoyed Film Scum, and it’s too bad the full album was only available at his live shows. I look forward to this album nonetheless.

Vinyl

Anne Dudley, Anne Dudley Plays the Art of Noise, June 22

This album receives a physical release in the UK and a digital release in the US. I was impatient and got the Japanese release last year, and Dudley employs some real studio wizardry to interpret the Art of Noise acoustically.

Fishbone, The Reality of My Surroundings, July 13

Trips to Goodwill have allowed me to rediscover this band.

Tags: , , , , , , ,

Purchase log: 2018-02-27

[Fishbone - The Reality of My Surroundings]

I catalog my music purchases on Collectorz and Discogs, but they don’t give me a sense of change over time. So I’m noting them here weekly as well.

Catalog

CDs
  • Andrew Lloyd Webber, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
  • Benjamin Gibbard and Andrew Kenny, Home, Vol. 5
  • Black Flag, The First Four Years
  • Elvis Costello, The Very Best of Elvis Costello
  • Fishbone, The Reality of My Surroundings
  • Ministry, The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste
  • Ministry, Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed or the Way to Suck Eggs
  • Neil Young, Harvest
  • Nirvana, In Utero
  • Television, Marquee Moon

Vinyl

  • Marvin Gaye, Let’s Get It On
  • Patti Smith, Horses
  • Roxy Music, Avalon
  • X, Los Angeles

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,