Random Music Talk CXXVIII: Cobbler's 42 Hat Sucks

[cobl04]

I completely agree with you. It's a personal choice and at the risk of sounding like a right wing loser, I can't stand cancel culture, because it's so black and white, when life is a million shades of grey.

There are plenty of artists who've done bad shit that I'll continue to listen to; Aziz Ansari, The Beatles, RHCP, more than a few rappers, more than a few old bands full of white men who no doubt did bad shit in the 60s, 70s, 80s, Miles Davis, Louis CK, the list goes on.

The difference with Mark Kozelek is that he's been a fucking cunt for more than half a decade now. The insane, stupid public statements, the pathetic chest-beating and dick-swinging, the gross misogyny and then his music: doubling down on all the criticism and writing 2+ hour, unmusical diatribes because he thinks he's a victim. None of the stories that have come out have been remotely surprising. Such a shame for a man capable of writing such touching music, and perhaps I'll still be able to listen to Ghosts of the Great Highway and some Red House Painters records, but Benji feels too tied to his downfall for me to enjoy anymore without feeling gross.

 

[lazarus]

When it comes to someone like Kozelek, I never had much interest, especially after that juvenile War On Drugs diss track. And now I'm even less likely to ever listen to anything.

For artists I was already familiar with, it's kind of a before-and-after thing. Like I will still listen to older Morrissey and Kanye West albums, but after they've shown themselves to be giant assholes in recent years, I don't care to hear any further new material from either.

Maybe that attitude is easier when the artist has fell off in quality anyway, I guess it's convenient.

 

[cobl04]

I feel similarly about Kanye. Adore everything up to and including The Life of Pablo, everything since has been awful.

 

[lazarus]

There are plenty of artists who've done bad shit that I'll continue to listen to; Aziz Ansari, The Beatles,

What did The Beatles do?

Are you referring to Lennon's spousal abuse? As I've noted before here, he spoke very openly about his actions as a young man and became an outspoken feminist and critic of toxic masculinity, I'm not sure why there would still be a stumbling block to hearing any of his stuff. If he was some longtime abuser who never changed I could see why this would be an issue but he wasn't Ike Turner or Phil Spector.

Unless you're referring to McCartney being a knob and not being able to listen to the Beatles because of that.

I guarantee you that when it comes to women being treated poorly, none of The Beatles have anything on the Rolling Stones or Zeppelin, to name two other prominent classic rock acts.

 

[Axver]

What have I missed with Kozelek? I thought we already knew he was a totally dreadful man?

 

[gump]

What have I missed with Kozelek? I thought we already knew he was a totally dreadful man?

He is somehow even more dreadful that we knew, if that is even possible:

https://pitchfork.com/news/sun-kil-...sed-of-sexual-misconduct-by-seven-more-women/

 

[gump]

https://twitter.com/TheOfficialMBV/status/1376596472993619968

Could be just their catalogue being available on streaming services, but damn, this makes me excited.

 

[the tourist]

I would be incredibly happy to get their full discography on streaming services. As I’ve said before, my favorite song by them (Strawberry Wine) is not available to stream anywhere but YouTube.

 

[gump]

I am hoping for a vinyl reissue. Loveless is so freaking expensive on Discogs.

Their record engineer has also said he is working with them on a new album, so who knows? It's probably nothing - this is Kevin Shields after all - but I'll hold out some hope.

 

[Axver]

He is somehow even more dreadful that we knew, if that is even possible:

https://pitchfork.com/news/sun-kil-...sed-of-sexual-misconduct-by-seven-more-women/

Fucking hell, what a creep.

 

[cobl04]

I am just listening to Race for the Prize (weirdly because every now and then I remember the fact that the Flaming Lips rewrote the song in 2012 as the Thunder were going for the championship lol) and fucking hell, it's just so beautiful. There's a line in my edition of 1,001 albums to hear before you die about Backstreets being enough to make grown men weep, that's what I think of Race for the Prize. Such warmth, such humanity. I actually don't love the album THAT much (I think a few of the songs are pretty meh on their own and heavily outranked by the best songs, plus the live anniversary show I saw a couple years ago soured my view on it) but when it hits, it fucking hits to my core.

 

[gump]

Two new MBV albums in the works, vinyl reissues, streaming, and more. Really exciting!

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/31/arts/music/my-bloody-valentine-shields.html

 

[gump]

Managed to pre-order Loveless (and m b v). I somehow found three of my white whales this week: Loveless, Gal Costa's solo debut, and Clube da Esquina 1.

 

[bono_212]

Ah this takes me back to the days when we were waiting for M B V and their website kept crashing

 

[lazarus]

I still think after a 20 year break the least you can do is come up with an actual album title.

 

[bono_212]

I still think after a 20 year break the least you can do is come up with an actual album title.

They went for A E S T H E T I C S.

 

[gump]

The new album will have no title.

 

[lazarus]

They should drop it on Easter Sunday and call it My Bunny Valentine.

 

[the tourist]

Or sometime next month and call it May Bloody Valentine.

 

[bono_212]

They said there were two albums in the works, so ¿Por qué no los dos?

 

[gump]

This Parisian group Feu! Chatterton put out a remarkable album this year. A weird mix of Chanson Française, electro pop with a bit of Krautroch. I saw some people pointing out the In Rainbows influence, and I hear some of it through the album (the song below is kind of like Nude; another one, L'homme qui vient, clearly borrows from Weird Fishes). The albums is quite long and could do with some editing, but the good moments are really good.

 

[cobl04]

I'll listen to it, because your recommendations lately have been dope. Smiling with No Teeth is excellent and a lot of fun, the sort of album you use the word eclectic for. One moment you're listening to Death Grips, the next, Danny Brown, then a bit of Kendrick, modern funk pop, 70s glam, mid-80s Bowie, Prince, some dance-punk, and then there's three closers. I love it.

 

[mad1]

uhhhhhhm so recently I have been listening and watching

U2 (old skool and new skool)
Foo Fighters
Tinlicker
The Weekend (he is HOT!!..)
and erm...........yea I still hit on Eminem.

and the usual other songs inter mingle with but the above is kinda the main entertainment.

 

[gump]

I'll listen to it, because your recommendations lately have been dope. Smiling with No Teeth is excellent and a lot of fun, the sort of album you use the word eclectic for. One moment you're listening to Death Grips, the next, Danny Brown, then a bit of Kendrick, modern funk pop, 70s glam, mid-80s Bowie, Prince, some dance-punk, and then there's three closers. I love it.

Really glad you liked that one - I felt it was pretty much up your alley. Absolutely eclectic.

Hope you’ll enjoy Palais d’argile - definitely a very different listen.

 

[iron yuppie]

Gump, given your familiarity with French music, do you know about Wax Buyers Club? They are a Parisian subscription service that issues eclectic stuff, including a lot of albums from French musicians. I have bought a few of their records from Discogs - most recently a French-language version of Nouvelle Vague's debut.

 

[gump]

Gump, given your familiarity with French music, do you know about Wax Buyers Club? They are a Parisian subscription service that issues eclectic stuff, including a lot of albums from French musicians. I have bought a few of their records from Discogs - most recently a French-language version of Nouvelle Vague's debut.

Oh that looks nice. They seem to have a pretty wide selection based on their Discogs listings (many of which I couldn’t recognize). The Donald Byrd in Paris release caught my eye (as this the Nouvelle Vague album you mentioned). Oh my wallet.

 

[cobl04]

So I just did a big interference google, wanting to know when it was I first heard the song "Drinking in LA" by Bran Van 3000. I figured it was 2014 or 2015, turns it out it was 2012, way earlier than I thought. When Tame Impala were programming Rage, must have been shortly after Lonerism came out.

Anyway, I fell head over heels in love with the song immediately, and it became one of my favourite ever songs (though sadly nothing else by them is even half as good). I found it dreamy, particularly its main lyric, "what the hell am I doing drinking in LA / at twenty-six?", and I would often daydream about being in LA, drinking, at the age of 26.

I think about it every so often, because, and I say this with complete sincerity, one of the biggest regrets in my life is the fact that I actually WAS in LA, drinking, at the age of 26, because I was flew there for four nights to see two JT anniversary shows at the Rose Bowl. But after four years of build up, I forgot about that song and that lyric, and I never played it and never soaked in the moment.

 

[LemonMelon]

I drank a lot in LA at 26 and that year was one of the worst of my life hahaha

Looking forward to getting drunk in public again soon though.

 

[bono_212]

So I just did a big interference google, wanting to know when it was I first heard the song "Drinking in LA" by Bran Van 3000. I figured it was 2014 or 2015, turns it out it was 2012, way earlier than I thought. When Tame Impala were programming Rage, must have been shortly after Lonerism came out.

Anyway, I fell head over heels in love with the song immediately, and it became one of my favourite ever songs (though sadly nothing else by them is even half as good). I found it dreamy, particularly its main lyric, "what the hell am I doing drinking in LA / at twenty-six?", and I would often daydream about being in LA, drinking, at the age of 26.

I think about it every so often, because, and I say this with complete sincerity, one of the biggest regrets in my life is the fact that I actually WAS in LA, drinking, at the age of 26, because I was flew there for four nights to see two JT anniversary shows at the Rose Bowl. But after four years of build up, I forgot about that song and that lyric, and I never played it and never soaked in the moment.

I forgot to listen to Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska while I was driving through Nebraska on my way to LA and it keeps me up at night sometimes.


Exaggeration? Maybe?

 

[gump]

I forgot to listen to Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska while I was driving through Nebraska on my way to LA and it keeps me up at night sometimes.


Exaggeration? Maybe?

I feel that way whenever I forget to play New Year’s Day on New Year’s Day - and it’s an annual event, not a once in a lifetime occurrence (though I suppose you could always drive through Nebraska again).