Brad Stengel's Magical Musical Orgy of Sound

Brad Stengel · 11-04-2008, 03:23 PM

#16

The Magnetic Fields
"69 Love Songs"(1999)

I dare you to find a larger, more eclectic collection of music released that is not a compilation or box set, that holds up as well as this does. Somehow Stephen Merrit put out 69 songs on one release, the majority of which are solid, and even the ones that are not, never ruin the album(s). I use the interchangeable plural there because you can think of this as one huge release, or three volumes, which is the way I purchased it. In any case, all three volumes are solid enough to place the entire work as my 16th best music purchase of 2006.

When you have 69 tracks, three albums worth of material, theres plenty of room to reach out into other genres, and that's exactly what Merritt does here. You have the piano ballad, "I Don't Believe In The Sun", the Johnny Cash tribute, "Chicken With It's Head Cut Off", an electro-pop gem "I don't Want to Get Over You", the crooner, "My Sentimental Melody", and the wonderful epic, "Sweet Lovin' Man". And that's just on the first CD, admittedly the best of the three, but that's not to say there arent plenty of other gems on the other two parts.

Theres three things that make this such a solid release to me, one is how different all of the songs are, all the genre hopping, which I already mentioned. Another is how solid all these songs are melodically. I have The Magnetic Fields' first two albums, "i", and "Distortion", and although I like those albums, they're spotty at best. Theres generally 2 or 3 AWESOME songs, 3 or 4 decent ones, and the rest filler. On the entirety of 69 Love Songs, theres maybe only 10-15 songs I don't care for, the bulk of which are under 1:30 anyway, so they never disrupt the amazing flow of this album, a flow driven by well written melodies, and-ah! The third thing I love about this album, the lyrics.

Stephen Merritt is one of my favorite lyricists. For me, the best kind of lyrics, are simple, yet tightly constructed, and very witty. That sums up the whole of this album, it's all very witty, cutesy, simple, yet you can tell the man behind them is very intelligent. Take the lyrics of "The Night You Can't Remember", about a dancer taking advantage of and marrying a drunken sailor, with the chorus, "The night you can't remember...the night I can't forget!" or the bridge in, "I Think I Need A New Heart", in which Merritt laments his incapacity for love, "Because I always say 'I love you' when I mean 'turn out the light'/and I say 'let's run away' when I mean 'just stay the night'". These aren't just love songs, in alot of them, the narrator is a bitter, heartless douchebag. This is another reason why the album is so listenable, it's not just some mushy singer-songwriter album-theres a wealth of emotions, instruments, attitudes, singers (theres three different singers on this album, including a female, and Merritt himself), themes-Merritt has 69 tracks on this release, but he uses all the space to it's fullest extent, and covers just about every facet and genre of pop music created in the 40 years before the release of this masterpeice. And the fact that he does all of that in a mere three hours worth of music is a true testament to the genius of this album. No, theres nothing new here, but these 69 songs not only instill a passion for the past of pop music, but hope that in the future, that in another 40 years perhaps a performer as witty and talented as Merritt can create another perfect summary of pop music, using 69 Love Songs as a touchstone.
95/100

Brad Stengel · 11-04-2008, 06:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 4ZZZ

And don't that sum up life.

Same here. That's why I could only do a list like this, where it's limited to what I've heard, because if I were to do something like "My favorite albums of the 90's" I know thered be stuff I'd leave out that would make it worthless to me in 5 years.

Brad Stengel · 05-09-2009, 03:24 PM

Okay, so I've decided to revive this thread. Only this time, it won't just be albums from a specific year, it'll be anything I want. That way I won't get bored or discouraged and have to abandon the thread. So if any mods want to rename the thread "Brad Stengel's Magical Musical Orgy of Sound", it would be greatly appreciated.

I'm in the mood to write, so I think right now Im just going to start reviewing everything in my collection alphabetically, from 45's to full lengths, starting with...

!!!

"Take Ecstasy With Me (45 rpm)"

I basically bought this last summer because I wanted to check out '!!!', and also, it's a cover of my favorite Stephen Merritt song. The song is a beautiful dreamy pop song on the surface, but if you listen a little closer, the lyrics are actually about a *** couple getting the shit kicked out of them, ("A vodka bottle gave you those raccoon eyes"). A perfect tune.

Now, as far as !!!'s cover, they do a great job. They give it the dance music treatment, and drag the song out for 7 minutes (the original is like 3 or 4 minutes long), but in a good way. It's a melody I want to hear for that long, and although Stephen Merritt's absurdly deep vocals aren't present, Nic Offer does a fine job. While I still prefer the original, this is everything I hope for in a cover tune: !!! make the song their own while still maintaining everything great about the original.

The B-Side, "Get Up" is your standard dance-punk fare, though it's not entirely dismissable. I particularily enjoy the drawn out noisy bits over the pounding drums. Relistening to this reminds me that I still need to hear an album from these guys, anyone who dares to cover my favorite Magnetic Fields song and leave me satisfied is worth repeated listens as far as I'm concerned.

8/10

Brad Stengel · 05-21-2009, 09:40 AM

Deerhunter
"Rainwater Cassette Exchange (2009)"

Deerhunter has a lot to live up to after the success of their three previous releases, 'Microcastle/Weird Era Cont.', the 'Fluorescent Grey' EP, and 'Cryptograms', this not even taking into account how great all of the music Bradford Cox's solo project Atlas Sound has released for free on Deerhunter's blog. Thankfully, 'Rainwater Cassette Exchange' adds to Deerhunter's extremely solid discography.

The tracks on 'Rainwater Cassette Exchange' all debuted (save 'Game of Diamonds') as live versions posted online in an entire Deerhunter set. It should be noted that these versions are all much different than the actual studio release. A friend of mine and equally obsessive Deerhunter fan mentioned hearing these live versions and being disappointed by the straightforward 'Strokes-y' sound. Deerhunter however are notorious for making music that is orgasmic to listen to with headphones, and they truly deliver adding theremin, bongos, and sound collages to the Microcastle-esque pop songs contained within.

The albums highlight is by far 'Famous Last Words'. Reported by the blogs as being perhaps the poppiest Deerhunter song as of yet when the live version emerged, Deerhunter still prevent any mainstream access by adding off-kilter guitar leads, theremin(!), and lyrics about a boy being run over by a truck while skateboarding to the mix, giving it that signature 'catchy but fucked up' Deerhunter sound.

The only thing about this EP I'm not head-over-heels in love with is the version of 'Game of Diamonds' presented. Don't get me wrong- the version on this is great, it's just that the version posted as a demo on the Deerhunter blog was another thing entirely. With one of the loudest guitar tracks I've ever heard, the original 'My Bloody Valentine as a 60's pop group' version is superior.

Overall, an excellent new member of the Deerhunter discography will satisfy any fan of the band, although now I'm going to be anxious for a new album until 2010. At least Atlas Sounds' 'Logos' is slated for release this year.
84/100

Brad Stengel · 05-31-2009, 11:31 PM

King Khan and the Shrines
What Is?!? (2007)

Hey MusicBanter reader.

Do you like punk rock?
Do you like James Brown?

If you answered yes to both of these, download this NOW.

If you answered no, download this anyway. If you still don't like it do yourself a favor and see them live anyway. The nudity, energy, and banana throwing will provide the best live music performance you'll ever see, I guarantee it. Look up shows in your area now.
88/100

Highlights: How Can I Keep You (Outta Harms Way), I Wanna be A Girl, Land of the Freak

jackhammer · 06-02-2009, 06:17 AM

I have last years release:

King Khan & His Shrines - The Supreme Genius of King Khan and the Shrines based on the cover art alone and really liked it

Have you heard this:

This came out a few years earlier and is an actual cover album of Soul & Funk tunes done sorta Garage/punk style and is well worth a listen. I have it if needed.

Brad Stengel · 06-02-2009, 11:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jackhammer

This came out a few years earlier and is an actual cover album of Soul & Funk tunes done sorta Garage/punk style and is well worth a listen. I have it if needed.

This album is fucking sick, especially the feedback utilized in a few songs, notably 'The Thing'. Anything else you know of that sounds like this?

Brad Stengel · 06-02-2009, 08:07 AM

I'm looking for that on Soulseek now. 'What Is!?' is much better than his greatest hits, IMO.

simplephysics · 06-02-2009, 04:29 PM

Woah, I didn't know !!! covered a Magnetic Fields song, mad props to them.. I love that tune.

Brad Stengel · 06-02-2009, 11:31 PM

Also, holy shit I had know idea this came out 8 years ago I legit thought this was from the seventies, mainly from the cover but, oh man, tell me this group is still around?

11-04-2008, 03:23 PM	#1 (permalink)
Brad Stengel This Space for Rent Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 815	#16 The Magnetic Fields "69 Love Songs"(1999) I dare you to find a larger, more eclectic collection of music released that is not a compilation or box set, that holds up as well as this does. Somehow Stephen Merrit put out 69 songs on one release, the majority of which are solid, and even the ones that are not, never ruin the album(s). I use the interchangeable plural there because you can think of this as one huge release, or three volumes, which is the way I purchased it. In any case, all three volumes are solid enough to place the entire work as my 16th best music purchase of 2006. When you have 69 tracks, three albums worth of material, theres plenty of room to reach out into other genres, and that's exactly what Merritt does here. You have the piano ballad, "I Don't Believe In The Sun", the Johnny Cash tribute, "Chicken With It's Head Cut Off", an electro-pop gem "I don't Want to Get Over You", the crooner, "My Sentimental Melody", and the wonderful epic, "Sweet Lovin' Man". And that's just on the first CD, admittedly the best of the three, but that's not to say there arent plenty of other gems on the other two parts. Theres three things that make this such a solid release to me, one is how different all of the songs are, all the genre hopping, which I already mentioned. Another is how solid all these songs are melodically. I have The Magnetic Fields' first two albums, "i", and "Distortion", and although I like those albums, they're spotty at best. Theres generally 2 or 3 AWESOME songs, 3 or 4 decent ones, and the rest filler. On the entirety of 69 Love Songs, theres maybe only 10-15 songs I don't care for, the bulk of which are under 1:30 anyway, so they never disrupt the amazing flow of this album, a flow driven by well written melodies, and-ah! The third thing I love about this album, the lyrics. Stephen Merritt is one of my favorite lyricists. For me, the best kind of lyrics, are simple, yet tightly constructed, and very witty. That sums up the whole of this album, it's all very witty, cutesy, simple, yet you can tell the man behind them is very intelligent. Take the lyrics of "The Night You Can't Remember", about a dancer taking advantage of and marrying a drunken sailor, with the chorus, "The night you can't remember...the night I can't forget!" or the bridge in, "I Think I Need A New Heart", in which Merritt laments his incapacity for love, "Because I always say 'I love you' when I mean 'turn out the light'/and I say 'let's run away' when I mean 'just stay the night'". These aren't just love songs, in alot of them, the narrator is a bitter, heartless douchebag. This is another reason why the album is so listenable, it's not just some mushy singer-songwriter album-theres a wealth of emotions, instruments, attitudes, singers (theres three different singers on this album, including a female, and Merritt himself), themes-Merritt has 69 tracks on this release, but he uses all the space to it's fullest extent, and covers just about every facet and genre of pop music created in the 40 years before the release of this masterpeice. And the fact that he does all of that in a mere three hours worth of music is a true testament to the genius of this album. No, theres nothing new here, but these 69 songs not only instill a passion for the past of pop music, but hope that in the future, that in another 40 years perhaps a performer as witty and talented as Merritt can create another perfect summary of pop music, using 69 Love Songs as a touchstone. 95/100 __________________ These is the musics I own: http://rateyourmusic.com/collection/BradStengel/oo

05-09-2009, 03:24 PM	#3 (permalink)
Brad Stengel This Space for Rent Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 815	Okay, so I've decided to revive this thread. Only this time, it won't just be albums from a specific year, it'll be anything I want. That way I won't get bored or discouraged and have to abandon the thread. So if any mods want to rename the thread "Brad Stengel's Magical Musical Orgy of Sound", it would be greatly appreciated. I'm in the mood to write, so I think right now Im just going to start reviewing everything in my collection alphabetically, from 45's to full lengths, starting with... !!! "Take Ecstasy With Me (45 rpm)" I basically bought this last summer because I wanted to check out '!!!', and also, it's a cover of my favorite Stephen Merritt song. The song is a beautiful dreamy pop song on the surface, but if you listen a little closer, the lyrics are actually about a *** couple getting the shit kicked out of them, ("A vodka bottle gave you those raccoon eyes"). A perfect tune. Now, as far as !!!'s cover, they do a great job. They give it the dance music treatment, and drag the song out for 7 minutes (the original is like 3 or 4 minutes long), but in a good way. It's a melody I want to hear for that long, and although Stephen Merritt's absurdly deep vocals aren't present, Nic Offer does a fine job. While I still prefer the original, this is everything I hope for in a cover tune: !!! make the song their own while still maintaining everything great about the original. The B-Side, "Get Up" is your standard dance-punk fare, though it's not entirely dismissable. I particularily enjoy the drawn out noisy bits over the pounding drums. Relistening to this reminds me that I still need to hear an album from these guys, anyone who dares to cover my favorite Magnetic Fields song and leave me satisfied is worth repeated listens as far as I'm concerned. 8/10 __________________ These is the musics I own: http://rateyourmusic.com/collection/BradStengel/oo

05-21-2009, 09:40 AM	#4 (permalink)
Brad Stengel This Space for Rent Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 815	Deerhunter "Rainwater Cassette Exchange (2009)" Deerhunter has a lot to live up to after the success of their three previous releases, 'Microcastle/Weird Era Cont.', the 'Fluorescent Grey' EP, and 'Cryptograms', this not even taking into account how great all of the music Bradford Cox's solo project Atlas Sound has released for free on Deerhunter's blog. Thankfully, 'Rainwater Cassette Exchange' adds to Deerhunter's extremely solid discography. The tracks on 'Rainwater Cassette Exchange' all debuted (save 'Game of Diamonds') as live versions posted online in an entire Deerhunter set. It should be noted that these versions are all much different than the actual studio release. A friend of mine and equally obsessive Deerhunter fan mentioned hearing these live versions and being disappointed by the straightforward 'Strokes-y' sound. Deerhunter however are notorious for making music that is orgasmic to listen to with headphones, and they truly deliver adding theremin, bongos, and sound collages to the Microcastle-esque pop songs contained within. The albums highlight is by far 'Famous Last Words'. Reported by the blogs as being perhaps the poppiest Deerhunter song as of yet when the live version emerged, Deerhunter still prevent any mainstream access by adding off-kilter guitar leads, theremin(!), and lyrics about a boy being run over by a truck while skateboarding to the mix, giving it that signature 'catchy but fucked up' Deerhunter sound. The only thing about this EP I'm not head-over-heels in love with is the version of 'Game of Diamonds' presented. Don't get me wrong- the version on this is great, it's just that the version posted as a demo on the Deerhunter blog was another thing entirely. With one of the loudest guitar tracks I've ever heard, the original 'My Bloody Valentine as a 60's pop group' version is superior. Overall, an excellent new member of the Deerhunter discography will satisfy any fan of the band, although now I'm going to be anxious for a new album until 2010. At least Atlas Sounds' 'Logos' is slated for release this year. 84/100 __________________ These is the musics I own: http://rateyourmusic.com/collection/BradStengel/oo Last edited by Brad Stengel; 05-21-2009 at 10:28 AM.

05-31-2009, 11:31 PM	#5 (permalink)
Brad Stengel This Space for Rent Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 815	King Khan and the Shrines What Is?!? (2007) Hey MusicBanter reader. Do you like punk rock? Do you like James Brown? If you answered yes to both of these, download this NOW. If you answered no, download this anyway. If you still don't like it do yourself a favor and see them live anyway. The nudity, energy, and banana throwing will provide the best live music performance you'll ever see, I guarantee it. Look up shows in your area now. 88/100 Highlights: How Can I Keep You (Outta Harms Way), I Wanna be A Girl, Land of the Freak __________________ These is the musics I own: http://rateyourmusic.com/collection/BradStengel/oo

06-02-2009, 06:17 AM	#6 (permalink)
jackhammer Ba and Be. Join Date: May 2007 Location: This Is England Posts: 17,331	I have last years release: King Khan & His Shrines - The Supreme Genius of King Khan and the Shrines based on the cover art alone and really liked it Have you heard this: This came out a few years earlier and is an actual cover album of Soul & Funk tunes done sorta Garage/punk style and is well worth a listen. I have it if needed. __________________ It be my music and film collection. “A cynic by experience, a romantic by inclination and now a hero by necessity.”

06-02-2009, 08:07 AM	#8 (permalink)
Brad Stengel This Space for Rent Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 815	I'm looking for that on Soulseek now. 'What Is!?' is much better than his greatest hits, IMO. __________________ These is the musics I own: http://rateyourmusic.com/collection/BradStengel/oo

06-02-2009, 11:31 PM	#10 (permalink)
Brad Stengel This Space for Rent Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 815	Also, holy shit I had know idea this came out 8 years ago I legit thought this was from the seventies, mainly from the cover but, oh man, tell me this group is still around? __________________ These is the musics I own: http://rateyourmusic.com/collection/BradStengel/oo