Chairman Meow Best Cat Name it is not. ...
― sarahell, Tuesday, 1 August 2017 20:00 (six years ago) link
reading the track list is more entertaining than listening to the songs
― calstars, Tuesday, 1 August 2017 20:51 (six years ago) link
ripe for a poll IMO
― calstars, Tuesday, 1 August 2017 20:52 (six years ago) link
KKG is bloated but "R. Stevie's Brain" is a classic
― flappy bird, Tuesday, 1 August 2017 20:59 (six years ago) link
On first listen this (the new album) is pretty good
― The Harsh Tutelage of Michael McDonald (Raymond Cummings), Tuesday, 1 August 2017 21:10 (six years ago) link
"Make me a man" etc
― calstars, Tuesday, 1 August 2017 23:41 (six years ago) link
Jameson IS good, I think. The relative concision and tidiness after pom pom threw me at first.
― Maximum big surprise! (Nag! Nag! Nag!), Friday, 4 August 2017 10:59 (six years ago) link
Didn't know that I Wanna Be Young and Dedicated To Bobby are reworks of his old tunes.. :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94rAxrSE65M
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFTrxYIC3vw
― nostormo, Friday, 4 August 2017 13:32 (six years ago) link
Interesting! Were these on any of his "official" releases ?
― calstars, Friday, 4 August 2017 17:25 (six years ago) link
no, not on any of the Paw Tracks albums or Scared Famous or Loverboy. my friend is a massive AP head and has all this stuff on its own external hard drive. i think those are both from Yas Dudette (which has multiple versions with different sequencing and mixes).
― flappy bird, Friday, 4 August 2017 18:09 (six years ago) link
I Wanna Be Young was on the official Oddities Sodomies compilation. Time Dandelion is rare and is on the Oddities Sodomies tour cdr.
― Le Bateau Ivre, Friday, 4 August 2017 18:30 (six years ago) link
(hadn't made the connection of reworkings yet because I've yet to hear the new album)
― Le Bateau Ivre, Friday, 4 August 2017 18:31 (six years ago) link
oh yeah Oddities Sodomies, iirc that's where the original (superior) version of "Beverly Kills" comes from
― flappy bird, Friday, 4 August 2017 18:36 (six years ago) link
No, Beverly Kills is from Scared Famous/FF>>
― Le Bateau Ivre, Friday, 4 August 2017 18:46 (six years ago) link
Time Dandillion (dandelion?) is pretty cool but I prefer the fidelity and better chorus of the remake. Tinsel-town tran hey!
― calstars, Saturday, 5 August 2017 01:08 (six years ago) link
xp ohh whoa, shit nvm, i was confusing Oddities Sodomies with Grandes Exitos: Greatest Hits. i assume it's the same recording/mix, although who fuckin knows...
― flappy bird, Saturday, 5 August 2017 01:21 (six years ago) link
xpost is that definitely the lyric?
― PaulTMA, Saturday, 5 August 2017 18:09 (six years ago) link
Really enjoying the b-side to the "Another Weekend" single, "Ode to the Goat (Thank You)" - that one isn't on the album right? love this line in the chorus: "hashtag yipikayay-ay!"
― flappy bird, Wednesday, 23 August 2017 22:09 (six years ago) link
Sounds tasty. Got a link?
― calstars, Wednesday, 23 August 2017 22:12 (six years ago) link
It didn't come with a download code :( I'll email Mexican Summer and try to get one, song is dope
― flappy bird, Wednesday, 23 August 2017 22:25 (six years ago) link
p4k likes it
my LP is in the mail, excited to hear it
― flappy bird, Friday, 15 September 2017 16:33 (six years ago) link
Glad that we're finally listening to the proper record/higher quality files than that terrible leak
― bunny slopes, Friday, 15 September 2017 19:05 (six years ago) link
halfway thru my 2nd full listen... really different from Mature Themes and pom pom, which were very immediate... this record feels like it's covered in gauze, in that way it's more similar to his lo-fi records than his previous three. The production is really interesting, spread out & immersive - also the songs are so much less 'wacky' for lack of a better word. The melodies are more traditional. A world away from "White Freckles" and "Pink Slime." More than anything, this record is just further proof of his incredible songwriting abilities. This is his Brill Building record. Nothing stands out except "Time to Live." It feels so coherent as a whole, but song for song not sure I dig this one as much as MT or PP. More guitar, less synths. But "Time to Live" is pretty amazing.
My LP came with a bonus disc with four b-sides, all pretty good:"Nighttime is Great!" "Lil' Birdie Told Me""Non-Sequitur Segues""May the Music Never Die Again"
― flappy bird, Tuesday, 19 September 2017 05:08 (six years ago) link
This gets so much better on repeated listens. "Death Patrol" and "Dedicated to Bobby Jameson" are so beautiful. "Death Patrol" starts off like a pom pom song, juicy clavinet chords panning back and forth... and then it goes into that chorus... so sad & melancholy... the melancholy on this record is so specific and nuanced, the whole thing feels like a peek into another world, just like those upthread talked about The Doldrums: "the genius is you're imagining with him." it just the lyrics, or the consciously straightforward & impersonal songwriting, there's just this veil of sadness over the whole album... and all of that makes for something much easier to project onto and imagine, get lost in... there was no mystery in the 4AD records. and how these songs just blossom listen to listen, new details reveal themselves... as much as he's trying to downplay it, I really think this is a major work, and time is very important... my view has already changed so much since last night...
― flappy bird, Tuesday, 19 September 2017 22:25 (six years ago) link
mp3s of the above 4https://ufile.io/xlmty
https://i.imgur.com/Vyp7jLe.jpg
― calstars, Wednesday, 20 September 2017 21:07 (six years ago) link
Oh sick, thank you!!
― flappy bird, Wednesday, 20 September 2017 21:32 (six years ago) link
Been hunting for rips of the Japanese CD for ages, anyone know? Has these songs on there.
― PaulTMA, Thursday, 21 September 2017 17:41 (six years ago) link
return to form production wise for sure. bubblegum dreams has gotta be the worst thing he's ever done!
― kurt schwitterz, Thursday, 21 September 2017 18:10 (six years ago) link
Still trying to get into this one, definitely prefer Pom Pom so far.
― Moodles, Thursday, 21 September 2017 19:08 (six years ago) link
i definitely prefer it over pom pom just because it isn't anywhere as annoying as most of that. 'time to live' is the clear highlight but i really like the b-side 'ode to the goat' too
i like that the production is a more listenable version of his early lo-fi sound, but it also makes tracks blend together a little more than they should? still need to spend more time with it
haven't listened to the bonus EP yet
― ufo, Thursday, 21 September 2017 19:25 (six years ago) link
Ode to the Goat might be my favorite out of all of these
― flappy bird, Thursday, 21 September 2017 20:16 (six years ago) link
New album's my favorite thing he's done since the original classics.
― carpet_kaiser, Saturday, 23 September 2017 02:08 (six years ago) link
In fact, it's the only album I've liked since House Arrest
I think it's his worst album. Can't get into it.
― afriendlypioneer, Tuesday, 26 September 2017 19:41 (six years ago) link
Is “Time to Live” an accidental ripoff of “video killed the radio star”?
― ✖✖✖ (Moka), Tuesday, 26 September 2017 19:46 (six years ago) link
vocal melody seems like an intentional tribute. as discussed, he does his lyrics and vocals last and hates doing it. it's really apparent on the last 2 records.
― kurt schwitterz, Tuesday, 26 September 2017 19:55 (six years ago) link
it's totally intentional, and of a piece with other musical quotes on the record: "Light My Fire" guitar lead at the end of the title track, "Bubblegum Dreams" = "Son of a Gun" by the Vaselines, "Feels Like Heaven" = obvious Cure homage/pastiche. I think he's tweaking a signature aspect of his lo-fi records: instead of the references & influences being just out of reach & hard to place, he's made them impossible to ignore. Also in line with his declaration that this record has "no theme" or narrative. He's elided his persona so much that instantly famous pop melodies slip in unadulterated.
Something else I've been wondering about: what is the other verse melody in "Time to Live" referencing? This part:
"Winter solstice (rise as the snow's coming)Before life is over (rise up and look for it)"
― flappy bird, Tuesday, 26 September 2017 20:06 (six years ago) link
almost certainly not Bullfrog Green by The Boo Radleys but that's what it reminded me of
― PaulTMA, Tuesday, 26 September 2017 21:09 (six years ago) link
(mentioned this elsewhere, but) Another Weekend borrows the open from William Bell and Judy Clay’s Private Number (beautifully).
― by the light of the burning Citroën, Tuesday, 26 September 2017 21:16 (six years ago) link
I can understand how "Bubblegum Dreams" might be irritating. Though I do like that the verses bring to mind some Let's Active song that may or may not actually exist.
― Maximum big surprise! (Nag! Nag! Nag!), Wednesday, 27 September 2017 00:51 (six years ago) link
also w/r/t this one being more similar to the original classics than any of the 4AD albums: there's no lyric sheet included. there are several songs (the chorus of "Death Patrol" for example) where I have no idea what the fuck he's saying. like, I wondered for years what the words were in the chorus of "Every Night I Die at Miyagis." I called into KXLU when Ariel was playing some of his old tapes almost two years ago, and I asked him what the words were in that song. it's "off in the world, off in the world of girls, i choke - i'm lost for words." anyway that's another thing that distinguishes DTBJ from the 4AD albums & reminds me of his old records.
― flappy bird, Wednesday, 27 September 2017 01:08 (six years ago) link
god "I Wanna Be Young" is so good. one of the few old songs he's redone that's better than the original
― flappy bird, Wednesday, 27 September 2017 01:24 (six years ago) link
I like “Time to Live” but I think 50% of my enjoyment is the “video killed the radiostar” melody in the vocal verse and the other half is the bassline. I could do without the opening 2 minutes of looped low fi noise in the beginning tho they sort of ruin the song for me... i find myself skipping them everytime.
― ✖✖✖ (Moka), Wednesday, 27 September 2017 01:41 (six years ago) link
A few songs feel a bit Pom Pom-lite, Time To Live being Not Enough Violence, Santa being Black Ballerina
― PaulTMA, Wednesday, 27 September 2017 11:18 (six years ago) link
really like his weird accent for "Santa's in the Closet" (also the mix is really nice, the vocals have this sheen to them that fits w the synth sweeps). its a bit DAF or Die Toedliche Doris or Trio or something, fake German industrial. love it!
― AdamVania (Adam Bruneau), Wednesday, 27 September 2017 16:00 (six years ago) link
i love the noise bit on time to live, not enough violence is great but time to live is better. i'm starting to think that this might be close to his best album, just for its focus and quality control.
― ufo, Wednesday, 27 September 2017 16:23 (six years ago) link
I love both, but I think I prefer Not Enough Violence by a hair... Time to Live is pretty amazing though... just the density of it, did someone on here describe it as Buggles meets "Sister Ray"? maybe that was a review I read... @PaulMTA i agree, good point about Santa/Black Ballerina, i never would've made the connection bc Santa is such a throwaway and Black Ballerina is imo one of his best songs, & one that stands alone, i can't think of another song of his that sounds like it, or even has the same vibe...
― flappy bird, Wednesday, 27 September 2017 16:43 (six years ago) link
The new album's biggest problem to me is that it sounds like the classic case of a single album having to follow a classic double (with no bad songs IMO) which doesn't quite live up to the same standard, treads familiar ground and feels more streamlined - ultimately the actual music is excellent to me, but following Pom Pom it just can't compete. I imagine I'd feel differently had the albums been released in reverse order
― PaulTMA, Wednesday, 27 September 2017 17:22 (six years ago) link
So I'm only saying it's disappointing as it didn't equal or come close to bettering one of the best albums in recent years.
― PaulTMA, Wednesday, 27 September 2017 17:24 (six years ago) link
this is my fav thing AP has done since the classix i wish Jorge and him would make a whole album like this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vjf5O4bzGuU
― kurt schwitterz, Wednesday, 27 September 2017 17:27 (six years ago) link