New SFA Record in March/April!!!!!

[Dalton]

Hey, sorry about what I think was kind of a needlessly brusque reply, up there, Dalton. Something with Interference was and is screwy, and my post went up before I read it...and now I'm not being allowed to edit it. I'm just sorry if I sounded like a douchebag. Whether or not you agree with me, I still think that I did.

Ironically, though (and this is what I mean by muddled politics, which didn't just suddenly crop up in Phantom Power, but rather got harder to overlook), there is a soundbite and a bit of scrolling text which always plays during "The Man Don't Give a Fuck." It says...

All Governments Are Liars and Murderers

So, it seems that they agree with you!

I thought your reply was perfect, IYS. I didn't take any offense. This isn't FYM. This is just one of those subjects that tweaks my nipples. I blame John Lennon.

 

[If you shout...]

If this is our standard by which we judge community institutions than both government, family, and community living in general would all be thrown to the wayside.

Hey, sorry about what I think was kind of a needlessly brusque reply, up there, Dalton. Something with Interference was and is screwy, and my post went up before I read it...and now I'm not being allowed to edit it. I'm just sorry if I sounded like a douchebag. Whether or not you agree with me, I still think that I did.

Ironically, though (and this is what I mean by muddled politics, which didn't just suddenly crop up in Phantom Power, but rather got harder to overlook), there is a soundbite and a bit of scrolling text which always plays during "The Man Don't Give a Fuck." It says...

All Governments Are Liars and Murderers

So, it seems that they agree with you!

 

[lazarus]

That scrolling quote is from the late comedian Bill Hicks, who also had The Bends dedicated to him by Radiohead.

 

[No spoken words]

Um. WTF? How is it possible that I never listened to these guys before? Been listening to Rings Around the World (An expended edition of the album bought from itunes) and it's fantastic. Fuck.

 

[If you shout...]

'Tis but the tip of the iceberg. You have no idea what you've started, by getting into that record. I'm considering getting "SFAOK" tattooed on my knuckles.

Or at least paying for a license plate which reads "SFA OK." Whatever, really.

 

[If you shout...]

Oh, and the Tradewinds EP is stellar, yeah. There are some ballin'-ass songs on that mo'fucker, for sure. "Happiness is a Worn Pun" (the Sasquatch's vocals are beyond priceless), "Edam Anchorman," "Gypsy Space Muffin"...all them shits is fucking brilliant, and so're the other tracks. I adore "All The Shit U Do."

 

[No spoken words]

I'm just sort of stunned that I'd never even heard of them as of a few months ago.

 

[If you shout...]

There was a time when they held great sway over the UK charts, but those times're sadly long-gone. In the States, it was a lot easier to miss them.

Here's a sobering, perspective-granting fact: Since the Furries moved to Rough Trade, you can no longer buy any of their music in, say, Best Buy (unless the store has old records lying about which haven't yet been sold; I see Songbook, Vol. I, from time to time, but that's all). You can, however, stroll into nine of out ten Best Buys and buy the new album from...Japanese home-recorded, toy piano-playing artist Shugo Tokumaru. And in the Rock/Pop section, no less! It's insanity. Props to Tokumaru, too. Dude knows what's going on.

 

[lazarus]

It is ridiculous that they haven't broken here, right? They write a pop song as brilliantly as Blur or Oasis ever did, and can experiment as much as Radiohead without losing the plot.

Also, I always listen to the Rings EP because in my opinion Edam Anchorman segueing into All The Shit U Do is just like the best ending, ever.

 

[LemonMelon]

Um. WTF? How is it possible that I never listened to these guys before? Been listening to Rings Around the World (An expended edition of the album bought from itunes) and it's fantastic. Fuck.

Next: Radiator, with my blessing.

 

[lazarus]

I think he should work his way forward now all the way to Hey Venus, then go back.

 

[LemonMelon]

Hey Venus deserves a shot, but why listen to Phantom Power and Love Kraft without hearing Radiator, Guerrilla, and Mwng first?

 

[lazarus]

If I hear something I really like from a band, I try to get something right before or after, for context.

If you think he should try Guerilla, that makes sense, but it's a lot weirder. I say finish out the more accessible, pop stuff before diving into the more challenging material.

For the record, I like Phantom Power and Love Kraft a lot better than Radiator.

 

[LemonMelon]

I say finish out the more accessible, pop stuff before diving into the more challenging material.

OK, that's what I thought you were going for.

But it still feels a bit like telling someone to listen to ATYCLB and HTDAAB before The Unforgettable and Zooropa to me.

 

[If you shout...]

I agree with Laz, regarding context, but I think that Love Kraft is, by far, their most challenging album. It's all subjective, I guess, but I really believe that. Structure's a lot more fluid, things are very gauzy, and the record tries to cruise by on mood, I think, rather than melody. I'm not saying that there aren't melodies, of course, but rather than they take a backseat, relative to the typical SFA record. "Lazer Beam" and "The Horn" are pretty immediate, though...

 

[lazarus]

I understand that analysis, but it's a pretty pleasurable listen that I couldn't classify as "challenging" as Mwing, or even Guerilla.

Agreed though that it shouldn't be someone's first SFA album, which is why I'd say Phantom Power, which starts going down that Brian Wilson road on some of the arrangements. Which is a good setup for LK.

As far as melody goes, you're really overlooking the choruses of Zoom!, Ohio Heat, and Atomic Lust, which are all pretty damned catchy.

 

[No spoken words]

You fucks, settle on the next album I should listen to.

 

[LJT]

Go with Guerilla...Do or Die, The Turning Tide, Northern Lites, Night Vision...Some Things Come From Nothing is a tune You know I once made a mix of Kid A with it on it...it works so well

 

[If you shout...]

You fucks, settle on the next album I should listen to.

Okay, here's a batting order:

1) Rings Around the Motherfucking World
2) Songbook (really, this is the way to go)
3) Phantom Power
4) Hey Venus!
5) Mwng
6) Guerrilla
7) Radiator
8) Fuzzy Logic
9) Love Kraft

Out Spaced is a ballin' collection of b-sides ("Guacamole," "Don't Be a Fool, Billy," "Smokin'," etc.) and shit, but you can get "The Man Don't Give a Fuck" on Songbook.

 

[No spoken words]

Okay, here's a batting order:

1) Rings Around the Motherfucking World
2) Songbook (really, this is the way to go)
3) Phantom Power
4) Hey Venus!
5) Mwng
6) Guerrilla
7) Radiator
8) Fuzzy Logic
9) Love Kraft

Out Spaced is a ballin' collection of b-sides ("Guacamole," "Don't Be a Fool, Billy," "Smokin'," etc.) and shit, but you can get "The Man Don't Give a Fuck" on Songbook.

Thanks...lead-off hitter has been listened to a lot today, so, onto Songbook.

 

[lazarus]

Unless you're ready for an album sung entirely in Welsh, you might want to move Mwing down that list. And I still say Love Kraft should come between Phantom and Venus, so you have a sense of their progression.

But Songbook is a smart choice.

 

[LemonMelon]

No way should Mwng be higher than Radiator. Radiator-->Guerrilla would be a great tandem after Songbook, which is certainly a smart choice. It's got Ice Hockey Hair and The Man Don't Give A Fuck, after all. You can't go wrong there.

 

[If you shout...]

I'm not ranking the records, mind you. I just think that it's important to listen to the albums with some sense of progression, is all. First roughly moving forward, and then roughly moving backward. I've got Songbook near the top to help give a sense of what's to come, while heading in reverse.

Mwng is fucking brilliant, by the way. Anybody heard "Charge," the b-side to "Ysbeidiau Heulog"? Holy shit, what a jam.

 

[lazarus]

I have the songs from the Mwing bonus disc, but no b-sides. Hmm.

 

[No spoken words]

No way should Mwng be higher than Radiator. Radiator-->Guerrilla would be a great tandem after Songbook, which is certainly a smart choice. It's got Ice Hockey Hair and The Man Don't Give A Fuck, after all. You can't go wrong there.

Until two years pass from the day you so vehemently defended QB ratings, I have to take the advice of others over yours if you are discussing the same topic.

 

[If you shout...]

I forgot about the bonus disc releases. They're not entirely comprehensive, as you can see. "Charge" could wipe the fucking floor with "Calimero." Untouchable. Blistering as fuck.

 

[LemonMelon]

Until two years pass from the day you so vehemently defended QB ratings, I have to take the advice of others over yours if you are discussing the same topic.

Eli Manning is fucking overrated.

Congratulations on six, and finally discovering SFA. This has been a good week for you.

 

[If you shout...]

Until two years pass from the day you so vehemently defended QB ratings, I have to take the advice of others over yours if you are discussing the same topic.

So you know, though, LM does have a point. I could easily take his/her side. By my not-as-generous-as-others' count, they have five straight-up masterpieces--Radiator, Guerrilla, Mwng, Rings Around the Motherfucking World, and Hey Venus!--in addition to a slew of other, almost equally genius releases.

Really, it'd be hard to go wrong. In the end, it's kind of like picking which pot of gold you'd like to take, from the end of the rainbow? Really, you can do no wrong. You're rich, no matter what. Gold is gold.

 

[No spoken words]

So you know, LM has a point. I could easily take his side. By my not-as-generous-as-others' count, they have five straight-up masterpieces--Radiator, Guerrilla, Mwng, Rings Around the Motherfucking World, and Hey Venus!--in addition to a slew of other, almost equally genius releases.

Really, it'd be hard to go wrong. In the end, it's kind of like picking which pot of gold you'd like to take, from the end of the rainbow? Really, you can do no wrong. You're rich, no matter what. Gold is gold.

LM always has a point when it comes to music, I have a lot of respect for his opinion....that being said, he still defended the importance of the QB rating, and for that, he needs to be punished, or at least ignored.

LM, thanks for the kinds words, this has been a good week indeed.

 

[If you shout...]

QB ratings aren't all that. And neither is Eli Manning. In fact, he's been generally terrible, and played largely like shit, in that Superbowl. Luck goes a long way, though, and I'm happy as a pig in shit that he got as lucky as he did. Oh, man...I really couldn't have been any happier. Not possible.