Donald Fagen, "Sunken Condos" (2012)

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thread to come anticipate and/or stream on msn. giving it a listen now -- apprehensively, since i wasn't into morph the cat at all.

sriracha bishop (get bent), Wednesday, 10 October 2012 01:26 (7 months ago) Permalink

The first leaked track was fab.

the ones that I'm near most: fellow outcasts and ilxors (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 10 October 2012 01:28 (7 months ago) Permalink

so far pretty tight. i think he's going for a nightfly feel rather than try to sound especially current. "slinky thing" is my favorite of the three tracks i've heard; "memorabilia" is intriguing though and seems to be the "green earrings" of the record.

sriracha bishop (get bent), Wednesday, 10 October 2012 01:31 (7 months ago) Permalink

"out of the ghetto" is tremendous. the klezmer fiddle at the end shouldn't work as well as it does. doesn't feel jokey.

sriracha bishop (get bent), Wednesday, 10 October 2012 01:46 (7 months ago) Permalink

such a great title.

We demand justice: who murdered Chanel? (Matt P), Wednesday, 10 October 2012 02:19 (7 months ago) Permalink

i love this

emo canon in twee major (BradNelson), Wednesday, 10 October 2012 14:11 (7 months ago) Permalink

Liked the songs (that is, lyrics) on "Morph the Cat," but I've been bummed at the relative lack of tasty licks on that disc and the last couple of SD discs. Like, playing is tight, but the arrangements are pretty static, iirc.

Josh in Chicago, Wednesday, 10 October 2012 14:38 (7 months ago) Permalink

disagree re Everything Must Go, which I recently discovered. At least six killers.

the ones that I'm near most: fellow outcasts and ilxors (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 10 October 2012 15:00 (7 months ago) Permalink

I love that album, don't get me wrong. "The Last Mall" is a great song. So is "GodWacker." etc. I just remember, say, the drum parts being pretty static. Like, just 4/4 grooves, not a lot of fills or tricky arrangements.

Josh in Chicago, Wednesday, 10 October 2012 15:14 (7 months ago) Permalink

Trying to find this hilarious interview with the guys in the back of a taxi c. that album.

Josh in Chicago, Wednesday, 10 October 2012 15:16 (7 months ago) Permalink

great album title

has important things to say about gangnam style (Hurting 2), Wednesday, 10 October 2012 15:31 (7 months ago) Permalink

always knew he was a ballardian

you can kill things and still like them, i don't know (Jon Lewis), Wednesday, 10 October 2012 15:34 (7 months ago) Permalink

don's voice sound shot on "miss marlene". a little bummed

reggie (qualmsley), Thursday, 11 October 2012 20:46 (7 months ago) Permalink

love that the album title is a debussy reference.

With extreme tenderness - flexible - always guided by the words (get bent), Tuesday, 16 October 2012 20:21 (7 months ago) Permalink

"out of the ghetto" is tremendous. the klezmer fiddle at the end shouldn't work as well as it does. doesn't feel jokey.

― sriracha bishop (get bent), Tuesday, October 9, 2012 6:46 PM (1 week ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

this is my fav so far.

We demand justice: who murdered Chanel? (Matt P), Tuesday, 16 October 2012 20:55 (7 months ago) Permalink

"miss marlene" sounding pretty good too. is it the clavinet?

We demand justice: who murdered Chanel? (Matt P), Tuesday, 16 October 2012 20:57 (7 months ago) Permalink

this is starting to sound like my 2012 holidaze album

We demand justice: who murdered Chanel? (Matt P), Tuesday, 16 October 2012 20:58 (7 months ago) Permalink

on first listen much....livelier than Snore The Cat.

the ones that I'm near most: fellow outcasts and ilxors (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, 16 October 2012 21:03 (7 months ago) Permalink

listening to this right now. Digging the groove on Slinky Thing.

Moodles, Wednesday, 17 October 2012 00:19 (7 months ago) Permalink

Out of the Ghetto has some wild jamming on it!

Moodles, Wednesday, 17 October 2012 00:47 (7 months ago) Permalink

Listened to this this morning. It's pretty good. Very uptempo. But isn't "Miss Marlene" basically "IGY" with new vocals?

誤訳侮辱, Wednesday, 17 October 2012 14:00 (7 months ago) Permalink

i've tried on 2 different computers (pc and mac) to get that goddamn MSN stream to work but it won't - any advise?

rap game klaus nomi (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Wednesday, 17 October 2012 15:42 (7 months ago) Permalink

it's on spotify

congratulations (n/a), Wednesday, 17 October 2012 15:55 (7 months ago) Permalink

oh i didn't know it was out, might have to hit best buy at lunch

rap game klaus nomi (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Wednesday, 17 October 2012 15:58 (7 months ago) Permalink

wow this is good so far...best thing he's done since the nightfly?

rap game klaus nomi (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Wednesday, 17 October 2012 16:45 (7 months ago) Permalink

(including steely dan records)

rap game klaus nomi (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Wednesday, 17 October 2012 16:45 (7 months ago) Permalink

I'm totally blown away by how good this is. To these ears, definitely his best since "Nightfly," and that includes the nu-Dan records...

Davey D, Wednesday, 17 October 2012 17:45 (7 months ago) Permalink

at first i thought a few of the tracks here might be as inert as some of morph the cat but the whole record really opened up to me on the most recent listen. fantastic

emo canon in twee major (BradNelson), Thursday, 25 October 2012 01:01 (6 months ago) Permalink

yeah I just reviewed it. It's not at The Nightfly's level -- he's too old to take real chances -- but it's a consistent delight.

the ones that I'm near most: fellow outcasts and ilxors (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Thursday, 25 October 2012 01:03 (6 months ago) Permalink

I probably need to listen to Kamakiriad and Morph the Cat again to definitively declare that Sunken Condos is his best since The Nightfly, but the fact that those two never clicked with me in the first place means I'm probably right.

Sandy Denny Real Estate (jaymc), Thursday, 25 October 2012 01:39 (6 months ago) Permalink

i hadn't clicked with kamakiriad at all until last month. turns out it's great

emo canon in twee major (BradNelson), Thursday, 25 October 2012 01:59 (6 months ago) Permalink

Becker's last album owns this but it's still pretty good

burrito smalls (some dude), Thursday, 25 October 2012 04:22 (6 months ago) Permalink

Pretty good so far.

_Rudipherous_, Sunday, 4 November 2012 02:26 (6 months ago) Permalink

3 months pass...

"Not the same without you" is such an excellent song. Love the central conceit of a guy bragging about radically effective self improvement since his girlfriend has left him.

dsb, Monday, 11 February 2013 15:39 (3 months ago) Permalink

so this is p much the best dan project since nightfly huh?

downton arby (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Monday, 11 February 2013 21:35 (3 months ago) Permalink

I like 'H Gang' from the last one more than anything on 'Condos'

calstars, Monday, 11 February 2013 21:36 (3 months ago) Permalink

i love "h gang" but insanity

emo canon in twee major (BradNelson), Monday, 11 February 2013 21:41 (3 months ago) Permalink

h-gang is good, but i think there are better songs on here

but either way i meant the album as a whole

btw i love it when the chorus on "weather in my head" sounds like "they may fix the weather in the world/just like mystikal said"

downton arby (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Monday, 11 February 2013 21:44 (3 months ago) Permalink

huh i think kamakiriad is better than this and the last one but I do love em all.

brimstead, Monday, 11 February 2013 21:46 (3 months ago) Permalink

Not the best Dan project (Everything Must Go is marginally superior) but the best Fagen solo album since '82, sure.

the little prince of inane false binary hype (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Monday, 11 February 2013 21:54 (3 months ago) Permalink

you guys haven't heard Becker's Circus Money, have you? really worth a listen, big improvement on his first, by far my fav 21st century Dan project.

BIG REUSS aka the fun.driver (some dude), Monday, 11 February 2013 22:03 (3 months ago) Permalink

i have not!

that one kind of snuck out for some reason

downton arby (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Monday, 11 February 2013 22:21 (3 months ago) Permalink

well i think it's understandable that Fagen's solo material has a higher profile, he is The Voice of SD. but i feel like Becker has come into his own as a vocalist, kind of a gravelly Warren Zevon thing (whereas Fagen is not necessarily at his best on later records), and Circus Money is more about lively musicianship than the spotlessly clean sound they've had from Gaucho onward.

BIG REUSS aka the fun.driver (some dude), Tuesday, 12 February 2013 01:45 (3 months ago) Permalink

LOVE Kamikiriad!

Iago Galdston, Tuesday, 12 February 2013 01:51 (3 months ago) Permalink

i worked an event a while back where the sound guy played Kamikiriad while we were setting up (and another event more recently where the sound guy played "F.M." for a minute -- sound guys love the Dan apparently)

BIG REUSS aka the fun.driver (some dude), Tuesday, 12 February 2013 02:00 (3 months ago) Permalink

Circus Money - Something about Becker's voice reminds me of Mark Eitzel. It's got an expressive sadness to it. Together with the Steely-esque arrangements, it's an interesting listen.

calstars, Tuesday, 12 February 2013 22:57 (3 months ago) Permalink


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