Was going to share YouTube links to the first two tracks out, am having trouble finding these songs; they're running a tight ship this cycle. But there's this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9KQP3Cbt_g
― The Harsh Tutelage of Michael McDonald (Raymond Cummings), Wednesday, 28 March 2018 23:40 (six years ago) link
(I haven't gotten used to the idea of linking to tracks on Spotify or Apple Music yet.)
When "Middle America" first came out I was underwhelmed; my initial impression was that the music was really pretty but the lyrics were blah, but the whole has grown on me over time.
― The Harsh Tutelage of Michael McDonald (Raymond Cummings), Wednesday, 28 March 2018 23:44 (six years ago) link
I kind of dug the crunchy sound of the last LP, but these new tracks sound very much like standard-issue Jicks.
― absorbed carol channing's powers & psyche (morrisp), Saturday, 31 March 2018 04:52 (six years ago) link
what kind of chances did they take?
― alpine static, Saturday, 31 March 2018 06:44 (six years ago) link
Middle America's chorus sounds a lot like Loud Cloud Crowd's, cf:
Crush me back to where I belongHold me down with anchor strong
vs
Fractured knees, calamatiesEnfold me in serenity
― Jersey Al (Albert R. Broccoli), Saturday, 31 March 2018 06:56 (six years ago) link
lol I thought the same thing
― rap is dad (it's a boy!), Saturday, 31 March 2018 13:45 (six years ago) link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKpi9cAmnfo&feature=youtu.be
― The Harsh Tutelage of Michael McDonald (Raymond Cummings), Monday, 2 April 2018 23:47 (six years ago) link
Just wait until you hear the full album.
(Or maybe the tonal shifts within some of the as-yet unreleased songs, the thematic subject matter, the use of auto-tune, etc. are left turns only to me. We'll see.)
― The Harsh Tutelage of Michael McDonald (Raymond Cummings), Monday, 2 April 2018 23:49 (six years ago) link
Malk i'view in Pfork today (I found the interviewer's "as a millennial, I feel..." lines of questioning to be sorta amusing): https://pitchfork.com/features/interview/stephen-malkmus-on-how-to-be-a-useful-human/
― absorbed carol channing's powers & psyche (morrisp), Monday, 2 April 2018 23:50 (six years ago) link
(The link I posted a few minutes ago was to the acoustic Malkmus mini set.)
― The Harsh Tutelage of Michael McDonald (Raymond Cummings), Monday, 2 April 2018 23:52 (six years ago) link
xpHe also missed the chance to "point out" that the contrast SM apparently draws in this "Bike Lane" song is v similar to theme of "Grounded," from many moons ago
― absorbed carol channing's powers & psyche (morrisp), Monday, 2 April 2018 23:53 (six years ago) link
Reading this description by Malk, I'm gonna bet very little of this actually comes thru in the song itself:
The song starts really minimal, like Queens of the Stone Age on Xanax, and then changes into glam, like the Clash or something. In my mind, I was singing like the Ramones. It’s totally dark, like the cops and robbers stories of rock’n’roll: I fought the law and the law won, a lot of classic imagery of the outlaw.
― absorbed carol channing's powers & psyche (morrisp), Monday, 2 April 2018 23:55 (six years ago) link
(also: "glam, like the Clash or something"?)
― absorbed carol channing's powers & psyche (morrisp), Monday, 2 April 2018 23:56 (six years ago) link
RE:
Middle America's chorus sounds a lot like Loud Cloud Crowd's, cf:Crush me back to where I belongHold me down with anchor strongvsFractured knees, calamatiesEnfold me in serenity― Jersey Al (Albert R. Broccoli), Friday, March 30, 2018 11:56 PM (one month ago)
― Jersey Al (Albert R. Broccoli), Friday, March 30, 2018 11:56 PM (one month ago)
On Vish Khanna's podcast/interview with SM, SM mentions that "Middle America" shares the same tuning & chord relationships as "Freeze The Saints", "Shoot The Singer" & "Zurich Is Stained".
― Jersey Al (Albert R. Broccoli), Friday, 18 May 2018 03:55 (five years ago) link
"Solid Silk" reminds me of a 90s Thurston song off of EJST&NS or Psychic Hearts.
― Jersey Al (Albert R. Broccoli), Thursday, 7 June 2018 16:47 (five years ago) link
"Middle America"'s line: "Men are scum I won't deny" also echoes back to Thurston's line on Dirty's "100%": "But I've been around the world a million times/And all you men are slime"...
― Jersey Al (Albert R. Broccoli), Thursday, 7 June 2018 16:58 (five years ago) link
I loved Jagbags but after listening to this one a few times I think I'm ready to declare it my least favorite SM album.
― Paul Ponzi, Thursday, 7 June 2018 18:26 (five years ago) link
i think this is my third fav SM album behind Pig Lib and the s/t
― mizzell, Thursday, 7 June 2018 18:35 (five years ago) link
He's been closing his sets with "No Tan Lines" of late.
― Jersey Al (Albert R. Broccoli), Friday, 8 June 2018 18:10 (five years ago) link
ha, that's a funny one to dig out — i don't think pavement ever played it live.
― tylerw, Friday, 8 June 2018 18:13 (five years ago) link
Wow, that’s a great one!
― i’m still stanning (morrisp), Friday, 8 June 2018 18:19 (five years ago) link
^It occurred to me that maybe he’s playing that song b/c of the (now-opportune) lyric, “I live to be grey, I live to be GREY!”
― i’m still stanning (morrisp), Wednesday, 13 June 2018 04:16 (five years ago) link
Does anyone get a STRONG Wilco vibe from a lot of this record?Kite sounds directly influenced. His singing is very Tweedy, the krautrocky momentum, even the guitar solo blasts off in a very Nels Cline way.Not the only song to give off a Wilco vibe.
― edges, Monday, 18 June 2018 15:36 (five years ago) link
they should've left the Kim Gordon / country song off of this
― alpine static, Thursday, 21 June 2018 23:37 (five years ago) link
wasn't expecting to really love this record
― rap is dad (it's a boy!), Thursday, 21 June 2018 23:58 (five years ago) link
the last 2-in-1 track is so great
― alpine static, Friday, 22 June 2018 05:40 (five years ago) link
I like it, it's like an American Water outtake.
― Jersey Al (Albert R. Broccoli), Friday, 22 June 2018 10:22 (five years ago) link
what's a jick?
― Van Horn Street, Monday, 2 July 2018 22:28 (five years ago) link
Now it’s 2003, Stephen Malkmus is in a new band called the Jicks (the name derives from the intersection of “Jerk” and “Dick” or Mick Jagger in reverse, depending on who you ask, and when)
https://www.believermag.com/issues/200310/?read=interview_malkmus
― Jersey Al (Albert R. Broccoli), Tuesday, 3 July 2018 01:03 (five years ago) link
SM & Jicks have recently been added as an opening act for the Courtney Barnett show I’m seeing in October.
― i’m still stanning (morrisp), Tuesday, 3 July 2018 01:13 (five years ago) link
wtf
― J. Sam, Tuesday, 3 July 2018 01:25 (five years ago) link
Don't ask me to find the source interview but I believe it's "a Jick is a girl jock," or something to that effect? But who knows?
― The Harsh Tutelage of Michael McDonald (Raymond Cummings), Tuesday, 3 July 2018 01:34 (five years ago) link