90 Day Men – Panda Park : sort of a mellow
prog.experiment? interesting/cool
Air – Talkie Walkie : better than the last, worse than
the first
Crystal Method – Legion of Boom : oh that big beat …
is so 90’s
Liars – They Were Wrong So We Drowned : weird
art-dance-punk. I don’t get it
Mr. T Experience – Yesterday Rules : good ol’
MTX!!
Statistics – Leave Your Name : I can almost like
this
Trans Am – Liberation : =headache
Walkmen, the – Bows and Arrows : NYC rock, darn
good
Xiu Xiu – Fabulous Muscles : oh my now, isn’t it all
(supposed to be) so sad …
Jaguar Wright – And Your Point Is? : perfectly decent
jazz/R&B
VAST – Nude : interesting, strangely compelling, maybe
it’s the dope?
Franz Ferdinand – Franz Ferdinand w/ live bonus disk : very good, excellently put together
Get Up Kids – Guilt Show : reminds me a bit of Green
Day, in a very good way
Iron & Wine – Our Endless Numbered Days : puts me
soundly to sleep
Down to the Bone – Cellar Funk : great BNH-style acid
jazz
Mum – Summer Make Good : i’ll just stick to the Sigur
Ros
Norah Jones – Feels Like Home : very nice, ready to be
overplayed
The Mountain Goats – We All Shall Be Healed : freakily fantastic!
Phantom Planet – Phantom Planet : now they’re
garage-y? but it’s real good, yo
Courtney Love – America’s Sweetheart : not nearly as
awful as I thought it would be
Gerardo Frisina – Hi Note : dance-floor bossa nova, a
few downtempo’s appeal
Melissa Etheridge – Lucky : sounds EXACTLY like you’d
think it would
Michelle Williams – Do You Know? : pleasant enough, a
bit too gospel for my tastes
Stereolab – Margarine Eclipse : excellent return to the
fold
Von Bondies – Pawn Shoppe Heart : kick-ass!!
jumpin’ rock, catchy as hell
Zero 7 – When It Falls : same as Simple Things,
notthattheresanythingwrongwiththat
Bearsuit – Cat Spectacular!
Savath & Savalas – Apropra’t : fabulously subtly
delightful
Lambchop – Aw, C’mon : great 2-fer-1, totally
defies description
Lambchop – No, You C’mon : ditto, head
DJ Danger Mouse (Jay-Z -vs- The Beatles) – The Grey Album : fucking brilliant
The Black Cherries – The Black Cherries : compelling
German(?) punk-rock. I can find no info…
Califone – Heron King Blues : weird sounds and
odd beats, strangely serene
Mary Chapin Carpenter – Between Here and Gone : professional, Nashville, easy-to-listen-to
Tantric – After We Go : fairly standard, moderately
enjoyable, circa ’93 grunge
Experimental Pop Band – Tarmac & Flames : VERY,
VERY excellent
Preston School of Industry – Monsoon : love that indie
indie rock sound
TV on the Radio – Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes : yowza! compelling as hell
Local H – Whatever Happened to PJ Soles? : classic-rock?
indie-rock? nu-rock?
Modest Mouse – Good News For People Who Love Bad News : maybe not quite up to the hype, but still great
The Kleptones – Yoshimi Battles the Hip-Hop Robots : not
quite the Gray Album, but still great
Asylum Street Spankers – Mercurial : a bit flat in
spots
Blonde Redhead – Misery is a Butterfly : bah,
zzzzzzzz
The Vines – Winning Days : has its’ moments, but not
many
Jonatha Brooke – Back in the Circus : lacking something,
but still nice
Aerosmith – Honkin’ on Bobo : surprisingly excellent,
their best in years
Damaged Goods – Based on a True Story : fun (mid-90’s)
pop-punk
Manyfingers – Manyfingers : VERY nifty ambient,
it’s a keeper
Robert Miles & Trilok Gurtu – MilesGurtu : thoroughly engaging, seems way too short
Matthew Sweet – Kimi Ga Suki * Raifu : the man is
pure genius, with a kick-ass band
David Byrne – Grown Backwards : typically
adventurous, typically great
The Unicorns – Who Will Cut Our Hair When We Are Gone? : an absolute keeper!
Beta Band – Heroes To Zeroes : growing on me more and
more, still doesn’t sound like BB
Destroyer – Your Blues : great, mellow folkie pop. high
points are awesome
Magnetic Fields – I : typically difficult MF release,
takes time to decipher
Mirah – C’mon Miracle : smart, funny, warm,
GREAT
Jay-Zeezer (Jay-Z -vs- Weezer) – The Black and Blue Album : some of this is quite good
Ben Kweller – On My Way : straightforward, raw
rock-n-roll
Prince – Musicology : very entertaining, old-skool
prince
Sufjan Stephens – Seven Swans : very nice, very
pleasant. starts slowly
Camera Obscura – Underachievers Please Try Harder : pleasantly twee
The Elected – Me First : awesome melding of
some-of-this-some-of-that
Janet Jackson – Damita Jo : C-R-A-P
Onelinedrawing – The Volunteers : interesting and emo?
possible? yes
D-Cyde (Jay-Z -vs- Prince) – The Purple Album : another
dope mix
Electrelane – The Power Out : super interesting and
unusual art-rock
Modest Mouse – Baron von Bullshit Rides Again : great ‘official’ live-bootleg
Of Montreal – Satanic Panic in the Attic : very
gripping, if a bit New Wave-y at times
Rumblefish – Exit Highland : standard nu-metal, not all
crap but mostly
William Hung – Inspiration : i feel dirty listening to
this, and it sucks so badly
!!! – Louden Up Now : dance-punk? it works, very
well
Cowboy Junkies – One Soul Now : very organic, not as
calculated as prev. releases
DJ N-Wee (Jay-Z -vs- Pavement) – The Slack Album : OK, I
think we’re done with that then
Queens of the Stone Age – Stone Age Complications : rock-n-rarities, some cool covers
Sonic Youth – Sonic Nurse : great guitar
rock
Sunburned Hand of the Man – Rare Wood : unlistenable at
times, decent at best
Supercar – Answers : some very nice high points, the
rest is blah
The Veils – Runaway Found : prefectly unoffensive; nice
even
Alanis Morrisette – So Called Chaos : less bitter,
otherwise the same. Good, but same
Ash – Meltdown (w/ bonus live disc) : great
pop-punk for the 00’s
Broken Spindles – Fulfilled : Complete : liberatingly goes everywhere, extremely cool
Grant Lee Phillips – Virginia Creeper : straight
singer-songwriter album
Johnny Cash – My Mother’s Hymn Book : some extremely
beautiful music here
Magicrays – On The Shoreline : uh, been-there,
done-that
Mirah – To All We Stretch The Open Arm : awesome!
peace is in the process
Morrissey – You Are the Quarry : annoyed me then, annoys
me now
Patty Griffin – Impossible Dream : perfectly nice
Scissor Sisters – Scissor Sisters : some fun, some
annoying as hell
Seachange – Lay of the Land : great indie rock, love the
violin
Tortoise – It’s All Around You : great
sound-scapes…
Friends of Dean Martinez – Random Harvest : typically
atmospheric, typically great
Badly Drawn Boy – One Plus One is One : a winner, let’s
see how it grows
Fila Brazillia – Life & Times of Phoebus Brumal : another piece of brilliant electro-downbeat
Lenny Kravitz – Baptism : LK is now officially
over…RIP
Matt Pond PA – Emblems : pleasant viola-guitar
songwriter stuff
Avril Lavigne – Under My Skin : not bad but
samey-samey-samey; underproduced??
Datsuns – Outta Sight/Outta Mind : mind-numbing
guitar-rock musak
Eaves – Landing Lights : fairly yuck
Graham Coxon – Happiness in Magazines : great!!
so much better than Blur
McLusky – The Difference Between Me & You is I’m Not On Fire : abrasive as hell, but pretty good
PJ Harvey – Uh Huh Her : another winning record,
PJ can’t be stopped
Rachel Goswell – Waves are Universal : beautiful,
simple, lush, beautiful
The Red Thread – Tension Pins : drags a bit, but
otherwise very nice
Kathryn Williams – Relations : very nice covers, done
very well
Leslie Feist – Let It Die : pleasing-to-the-ear; but a
bit serious, no?
Division of Laura Lee – Das Not Compute : awesome, fun Swede-rock
Patty Smith – Trampin’ : genius at work
Beastie Boys – To The 5 Boroughs : it’s all on past
glories
Call & Response – Winds Take No Shape : ‘whatever’
pretty well sums it up
Guided by Voices – Half-Smiles of the Decomposed : another in a long line of very good GbV albums
Melissa Auf Der Maur – Auf Der Maur : not bad I suppose.
I think she’s supposed to be hot
They Might Be Giants – The Spine : gods among
men
Velvet Revolver – Contraband : somewhat ho-hum, mostly
as expected
2 Lone Swordsmen – From the Double Gone Chapel : absolutely awesome (in spots)
A.C. Newman – Slow Wonder : the man is a pop
god
Deerhoof – Milkman : interesting and super
inventive
Juliana Hatfield – In Exile Deo : perfectly charming
indie chick-rock
The Album Leaf- In A Safe Place : bit of a
dissapointment, just doesn’t grab me
63 Crayons – Good People : excellent, fun
pop
Aaron Booth – Our Last Escape : perfectly pleasant
indie-pop
Nellie McKay – Stay Away From Me : simply
awesome
Bumblebeez 81 – The Printz : innovative and fun
as hell
Kings of Convenience – Riot on an Empty Street : Simon
and Garfunkle for the 00’s
All Night Radio – Spirit Stereo Frequency : psychedelic
sounds of pop. interesting
The Bees – Free the Bees : noisy, retro and damn
fun!
Breezy Porticos – Keep it Crisp : perfectly-friendly-sunny pop
The Cure – The Cure : infinitely better than I thought
it would be
Dogs Die In Hot Cars – Please Describe Yourself : no
thanks
Ides of Space – Sleeping Fractures : disappointing and dull
The Killers – Hot Fuss : eye-opening. interesting.
uneven.
P:ano – The Den : moments of mellow brilliance
Angie Stone – Stone Love : perfectly nice, but nothing grabs ya’
Brenda Russell – Between the Sun and the Moon : smoothed out jazzy R&B (sorta dull)
Detroit Grand Pubahs – Galactic Ass Creatures From Uranus : crappo ‘booty-techno’
Eskimo Joe – A Song Is A City (+ live bonus disc) : adult-pop, fairly dry
Libertines – The Libertines : excellent in spots,
overall very fun
Tragically Hip – In Between Evolution : classic
indie-rock
Thievery Corporation – The Outernational Sound : that
unmistakable classy-cool ESL sound
Dillinger Escape Plan – Miss Machine : punk as
fuck!
Divine Comedy – Absent Friends : surprisingly sublime
execution
The Faint – Wet From Birth : some of this I REALLY like,
some not so much
Keane – Hopes and Fears : oh no, no thank you
Kittie – Until the End : hands down, worst thing i’ve
heard this year
The Snake the Cross the Crown – Mander Salis : not too
offensive
Washington Social Club – Catching Looks : fun
straight-forward indie-rock
Jim White – Drill a Hole in That Substrate and Tell Me What You See :
words fail
Chris Robinson & the New Earth Mud Band – The Magnificent Distance : some fun blues grooves
Jackpot – F+ : great twangy-pop with a fun
groove
Aeroc – Vicious Solid : excellent ambient, if a bit too ambitious
Ben Jelen – Give It All Away : egads, that’s awful
The Davenports – Hi-Tech Lowlife : Ben Folds-esque piano pop
Devendra Banhart – Rejoicing in the Hands : very well done modern folk
Fiery Furnaces – Blueberry Boat : certainly interesting and innovative, better with each listen
Frank Black Francis & Two Pale Boys – Frank Black Francis & Two Pale Boys (2of2) : interesting, but very flat
Helmet – Size Matters : not bad, a bit toned down from old-skool helmet
The Hives – Tyrannosarus Hives : quick, light punkish fun
Jimmy Buffett – License to Chill : country-fied and laid-back
Two Gallants – The Throes : promising as hell
Loretta Lynn – Van Lear Rose : so great, in so many ways
Linford Detweiler – Unspoken Requests : beautiful piano album, a bit new-agey
Ministry – Houses of the MolÈ : big bad ministry is back, great album
Nick Drake – Made to Love Magic : some goodies
Patty Scialfa – 23rd Street Lullaby : um, no
Polyphonic Spree – Together We’re Heavy : reel from the bliss, man
Treeball – National Treasure : oh, those poppy scandenavians
Rachael Yamagata – Happenstance : very nice, if a bit too Norah
Breaking Benjamin – We Are Not Alone : a fine cd, better than the rest
Joanna Newsom – The Milk-Eyed Mender : very thoughtful. too serious?
Tanya Donnely – Whisky Tango Ghosts : extremely mellow and moody
Ted Leo & the Pharmacists – Shake the Sheets : kick-ass punky pop
50 Foot Wave – Bug : explosive math-n-rock
Blanche – If We Can’t Trust the Doctors : countrified gloom-americana
Delays – Faded Seaside Glamour : pop-for-pop’s-sake
Mark Lanegan Band – Bubblegum : dark,dark,dark and great,great,great
Rilo Kiley – More Adventurous : dozens of bands wish they could sound this good
Rogue Wave – Out of the Shadow : fine pop music, nothin too special
Steve Earle – Revolution Starts Now : yeeeee-haw. In a good way
Wilco – A Ghost is Born : pretty OK; i just don’t get it?
Omar A. Rodriguez-Lopez – A Manual Dexterity – Soundtrack Volume 1 : awesomely weird
Pauline London – Quiet Skies : Funky Juice indeed!!
Sam Phillips – A Boot and A Shoe : solid adult rock
Animal Collective – Sung Tongs : tripped-out folk, sorta proggy
Simple Kid – Simple Kid 1 : excellently innovative and fresh
Mission of Burma – ONoffON : still raucus, still punky, still relevant
Los Lonely Boys – Los Lonely Boys : latin-influenced Texas rock
Eric Clapton – Me and Mr. Johnson : back to the blues, not much to really grab me
American Hi-Fi – Hearts on Parade : nice simple indie-rock for the masses
Asia – Silent Nation : professional-strength awful
Delgados – Universal Audio : fairly boring, perhaps it’ll grow on me
Elliott Smith – From A Basement on a Hill : some great, some overly dour…
Eminem – Eminem is Back : innovative and interesting, but still gangsta-crap
Giant Sand – Is All Over the Map : a lo-fi-ish trip, like only Gelb delivers
Velvet Crush – Stereo Blues : that great classic power-pop sound
The Sunshine Fix – Green Imagination : accessible and fun, if not quite genius
Bill Frisell – Unspeakable : moments of brilliance
Beep Beep – Business Casual : interesting. beep-beep indeed
Clinic – Winchester Cathedral : it’s an ‘art’ thing I guess
Comets on Fire – Blue Cathedral : hyper-kinetic and crazed!!
Horns of Happiness – A Sea As A Shore : getting better with every listen
The Operators – The Operators : fun punk-reggae energy
Paul Weller – Studio 150 : some delightful, most boring
Sondre Lerche – Two Way Monologue : nice adult pop music
Tangiers – Never Bring You Pleasure : not bad, just uninspiring
The Thermals – Fucking A : dull-edge-mainstream-punk-ish
Trashcan Sinatras – Weightlifting : nope. this is crap
The Ponys – Laced With Romance : fuzz-bomb rock-n-roll
R.L. Burnside – A Bothered Mind : someone must kill Kid Rock
Twilight Singers – She Loves You : all covers, mostly awesome
Bjork – Medulla : very, very weird. and excellent too
Drive-By Truckers – The Dirty South : professionally fun
Old 97’s – Drag It Up : blah blah zzzz
The Thrills – Let’s Bottle Bohemia : with most of the fun sucked out…
Tom Waits – Real Gone : starts slow, finishes awesomely
The Black Keys – Rubber Factory : rockin’ (but subdued?)
Jill Scott – Beautifully Human: Words & Sounds Vol. 2 : damn that’s sultry
The Frames – Set List : super live energy
Black Lips – We Did Not Know The Forest Spirit Made the Flowers Grow : lo-fi weird-o-ness
Brian Wilson – Smile : …smile…
Cake – Pressure Chief : much better than I thought it would be
Dizzee Rascal – Showtime : not for me
DJ Shadow – In Tune And On Time : partay baby!!
Eagles of Death Metal – Peace Love Death Metal : expected crappy, got pretty good
Ella Guru – The First Album : cool, mellow, Lambchop-py
Elvis Costello – The Delivery Man : generally very nice, not very inspiring
Fatboy Slim – Palookaville : funky-fly dorky
Green Day – American Idiot : awesome!!
Jem – Finally Woken : interesting, bouncy and FUN
Joss Stone – Mind, Body & Soul : absolutely uninspiring
Mooney Suzuki – Alive and Amplified : kick-ass, rockin’ party music
Neko Case – The Tigers Have Spoken : the voice(!!) doing covers, live
Grand National – Kicking the National Habit : really excellently executed pop
Kleptones – A Night At the Hip Hopera : a-w-e-s-o-m-e
Radio 4 – Stealing Of A Nation (w/ bonus CD) : well executed, but a bit too monotonous
Robyn Hitchcock – Spooked : some nice harmonies, otherwise a bore
Social Distortion – Sex, Love and Rock’n’Roll : same-old-same-old
The Used – In Love and Death : screamscreamscreamscreamscreamscreamscream
Blues Explosion – Damage : excellent. by now it all sounds old skool
DJ Krush – Jaku : just when I’m thinking hip-hop is dead
Frank Black Francis – Frank Black Francis (CD 1of2) : great look at early Pixies tunes
Interpol – Antics : no thanks…
Mos Def – The New Danger : whatevah
Pinback – Summer in Abadonn : very, very excellent!
R.E.M. – Around the Sun : yuck. it’s officially over
Ray Charles – Genius Loves Company : RIP, but this is sooo shmaltzy
Arcade Fire – Funeral : often superb, trying at times
Soundtrack of our Lives – Origin I : great party rock
Stars – Set Yourself on Fire : there are too many bands named “Stars”
Talib Kweli – The Beautiful Struggle : some fun rhymes and dope beats
The Tangent – The World That We Drive Through : noodle-y prog, v interesting
Soledad Brothers – Voice of Treason : a little cleaner, but damn fun
The Bloodthirsty Lovers – The Delicate Seam : oddly transfixing
Brand New Heavies – All About the Funk : fun and funky. missing n’dea…
The Concretes – The Concretes : very nice lush-pop
Cyann & Ben – Happy Like an Autumn Tree : some of this is just excellent!
The Czars – Goodbye : horribly pretentious
The Dears – Thank You Good Night Sold Out : if it’s supposed to suck, they did a great job
The Features – Exhibit A : full of hooks and odd turns
The Invisible Cities – Watertown : pleasant and very engaging
Kings of Leon – Aha Shake Heartbreak : masterpiece? could be…
Dead Texan – The Dead Texan : awesomely subtle-ambient
The Donnas – Gold Medal : eh. not bad, but why would i listen to this?
The Go! Team – Lighting Thunder Strike : this is how the brave party
Le Tigre – This Island : DUD. Bye-bye Le Tigre
Leonard Cohen – Dear Heather : I am officially afraid of Leonard Cohen
Marjorie Fair – Self-Help Serenade : fairly blah…
Medeski, Martin & Wood – End of the World Party : noodle-y jam-y dull-y
Midnight Movies – Midnight Movies : i don’t get it. is this it?
Luna – Rendezvous : saving (one of) the best for last
Pictures of Lily – Midnight Groove : umm, no. this is as bad as it gets
The Secret Machines – Now Here is Nowhere : very compelling, excellently executed
Sytrofoam – Nothing Lost : smart, mellow IDM with a bit of a MBV-esque vibe
Two Lone Swordsmen – Peppered With Spastic Magic : moments of great, moments of crap
US3 – Questions : whateva
Wei Chi – One I, Two Eyes : crapp-o dance shite
Ani Defranco – Educated Guess : uh, mmm, ok ….
Chin Up Chin Up – We Should Have Never Lived Like Skyscrapers : decent art-rock.
Earlimart – Treble and Tremble : fairly ordinary, if often interesting
Fila Brazillia – Dicks : not quite cohesive enough to really grab me
Gibby Haynes and His Problem – Gibby Haynes and His Problem : weird-as-hell but catchy as all get out
The Guild League – Inner North : it’s just so sweet (and sappy)
Mark Scudder – Don’t Wait : ULTRA-spacey acousti-ambient
The Rurals – Messages : crisp, funky, house (which ends up sorta blah)
Snoop Dogg – The Masterpiece : i’m no expert, but this seems just OK
De La Soul – The Grind Date : fun
Federico Aubele – GranHotelBuenosAires : mysterious and sexy tropicalia dub
Handsome Boy Modelling School – White People : a bit o’ this, a bit o’ that
Kayne West – College Dropout : now those are beats and rhymes
MF Doom – MMÖ Food : fuckin’ dope, yo!
U2 – How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb : astonishingly decent
Snow Patrol – Final Straw : pleasantly dull
Gwen Stefani – Love Angel Music Baby : ummm, no
Hanson – Underneath : sugar-sweet pop goodness
Jimmy Eat World – Futures : they certainly wish they were Green Day …
Ozomatli – Street Signs : 90% great latin rock-funk
Tommy Stinson – Village Gorilla Head : interesting but not special
Air Formation – Stay Inside, Feel Everything : unmemorable shoegaze clone
Mad Professor – The Next Revolution Will Be Dubwise : cool space dub; very fun
New Found Glory – Catalyst : yet another “wish we were Green Day” band
Sequel – Motorized Instinct : bah
The Futureheads – The Futureheads : some good, some V. bad
DJ BC – The Beastles : played
Mr. Airplane Man – C’mon DJ
Detroit Cobras – Baby
Ambulance Ltd. – Ambulance Ltd.
Mark Sandman – Sandbox
The Sadies – Favourite Colours
Sahara Hotnights – Kiss and Tell
Waterloo – In the Light of Day
-live-
Libertines – Manchester Acadamy 01-03-04
Cranebuilders – Mutua Fides, Groningen 01-09-04
Rilo Kiley – Bottom of the Hill, SF 01-11-04
White Stripes – Liverpool Royal Court 01-19-04
Spiritualized – Carling Academy, Liverpool 01-24-04
The Waifs – live on Andy Kershaw 01-25-04
Electrelane – Peel Session 01-29-04
The Unicorns – The Earl, Atlanta 02-03-04
White Stripes (Jack White solo) – Peel Session 02-04-04
The Shins – Canes Ballroom, San Diego 02-08-04
Mountain Goats – Mills College Chapel, Oakland CA 02-11-04
Prince – Fillmore, SF 02-14-04
Modest Mouse – Social, Orlando FL 02-15-04
Mountain Goats – The Earl, Atlanta 02-18-04
Lambchop – Echo Lounge, Atlanta 02-21-04
Adam Green – Feierwerk, Munich 02-23-04
Love – Liverpool Carling Academy 02-24-04
Nelly McKay – Live in Studio 4A (NPR) 02-26-04
Brian Wilson – Smile at The Royal Festival Hall, London 02-27-04
Mountain Goats – Knitting Factory, NYC 03-03-04
Spoon – The Parish, Austin TX 03-05-04
Fountains of Wayne – CafÈ de la Danse, Paris 03-06-04
Better Than Ezra – Irving Plaza, NYC 03-06-04
Matt Nathanson – Slim’s, SF 03-06-04
The Constantines – Lager House, Detroit 03-11-04
G. Love & Special Sauce – 9:30 Club, Washington DC 03-14-04
Lambchop – Live in Vienna (radio) 03-18-04
Camper van Beethoven – The Vic, Chicago IL 03-18-04
The Who – The Forum, London 03-22-04
Dan Bern – Housing Works Used Book Cafe, NYC 03-24-04
Super Furry Animals – Liverpool Royal Court 03-24-04
Preston School of Industry – WFMU, 03-28-04
Nelly McKay – Knitting Factory, LA 03-29-04
Mountain Goats – XFM Session 04-08-04
Smog – The Earl, Atlanta GA 04-10-04
The Pixies – Fine Line Music Cafe. Minneapolis MN 04-13-04
The Pixies – Burton Cummings Theatre, Winnipeg 04-14-04
The Pixies – Doris Knight Ballroom, Regina SK 04-15-04
Deerhoof – Emo’s, Austin TX 04-16-04
The Pixies – Prarieland, Saskatoon Canada 04-17-04
The Pixies – Red, Edmonton 04-18-04
The Pixies – Macewan Hall, Calgary 04-19-04
The Pixies – Victoria Curling Club, Victoria BC 04-21-04
Mr. Airplane Man – Peel Session 04-21-04
Franz Ferdinand – La Cigale, Paris 04-22-04
The Pixies – Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver BC 04-22-04
The Pixies – Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver BC 04-23-04
Tortoise – 9:30 Club, Washington DC 04-24-04
The Pixies – The Big Easy, Spokane WA 04-24-04
The Pixies – The Big Easy, Boise ID 04-25-04
Avril Lavigne – Denny, UK 04-26-04 (webcast)
Polyphonic Spree – The Backyard, Austin 04-27-04
The Pixies – McDonald Hall, Eugene OR 04-27-04
The Pixies – McDonald Hall, Eugene OR 04-28-04
Mountain Goats – Peel Session 04-28-04
The Pixies – Freeborn Hall, Davis CA 04-29-04
The Pixies – Coachella Festival, Indio CA 05-01-04
Beck – Coachella Festival, Indio CA 05-01-04
Radiohead – Coachella Festival, Indio CA 05-01-04
Kraftwerk – Coachella Festival, Indio CA 05-01-04
The Sleepy Jackson – KCRW 05-03-04
Britt Daniel – The Garage, London 05-04-04
PJ Harvey – Peel Acres 05-04-04
Ben Kweller – Crystal Ballroom, Portland OR 05-05-04
Deerhoof – Peel Session 05-12-04
Paul Westerberg – Brown Theatre, Louisville 05-15-04
Velvet Revolver – Quest Club, Minneapolis 05-15-04
New Model Army (as Justin Sullivan & Friends) – DNA Lounge, SF 05-19-04
Mike Watt – La Zona Rosa #2, San Pedro CA 05-21-04
Mountain Goats – KEXP Session 05-21-04
Velvet Revolver – Kool Haus, Toronto 05-21-04
Kings of Convenience – Radio 1 Blue Room 05-22-04
Mountain Goats – Bottom of the Hill, SF 05-26-04
Avril Lavigne – Intimate & Interactive, MuchMusic Toronto 05-28-04
The Pixies – Pinkpop 2004 05-30-04
Datsuns – Pinkpop 2004 05-31-04
Black Eyed Peas – Pinkpop 2004 05-31-04
Franz Ferdinand – Pinkpop 2004 05-31-04
The Thrills – Pinkpop 2004 05-31-04
Paul Weller – Royal Albert Hall, London 06-02-04
The Pixies – Brixton Academy 06-02-04
The Pixies – Brixton Academy 06-03-04
The Pixies – Brixton Academy 06-04-04
The Pixies – Brixton Academy 06-05-04
The Decemberists – Lees Palace, Toronto 06-06-04
Badly Drawn Boy – BBC Radio2 06-07-04
PJ Harvey – Heineken Music Hall, Amsterdam 06-10-04
Beta Band – Black Session 06-10-04
Van Halen – Greensboro Coliseum 06-11-04
Cracker and Camper van Beethoven – Bonnaroo Festival , Manchester TN 06-13-04
Cracker – Blue Cats, Knoxville TN 06-15-04
Spoon – Blueberry Hill’s Duck Room, St. Louis, MO 06-24-04
Belle & Sebastian – Glastonbury Festival 06-27-04
Bo Diddley – House of Blues, Las Vegas 07-01-04
The Pixies – Belfort, France 07-03-04
The Pixies – Heineken Music Hall, Amsterdam 07-06-04
Nellie McKay – South Street Seaport, NYC 07-07-04
Dan Bern – 12 Galaxies, SF 07-08-04 (early show)
Dan Bern – 12 Galaxies, SF 07-08-04 (late show)
Snow Patrol – T’ in the Park 07-11-04
Cowboy Junkies 0 Atlanta Botanical Gardens 07-14-04
…And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead – Big Orange, Austin TX 07-15-04
Melys – Peel Session 07-20-04
Southern Culture on the Skids – The Visualite, Charlotte NC 07-23-04
Bob Schneider – Borders in-store, San Diego CA 07-24-04
Devo – Central Park, NYC 07-24-04
Tanya Donnely – Mark Radcliffe Show, BBC Radio 2 07-26-04
Rilo Kiley – Bottom of the Hill, SF 07-30-04
Eric Clapton – HP Pavillion, San Jose 07-30-04
Lianne Hall and Caroline Martin – Peel Session 08-05-04
Paul Weller – Haldern (Ger) Pop Festival 08-07-04
Charlie Hunter – Great American Music Hall, SF 08-21-04
Franz Ferdinand – Lowlands Festival, Holland 08-22-04
Donavon Frankenreiter Band – Greek Theatre, Berkeley CA 08-27-04
G. Love and Special Sauce – Greek Theatre, Berkeley CA 08-27-04
Jack Johnson – Greek Theatre, Berkeley CA 08-27-04
Detroit Cobras – Peel Session 09-14-04
Neil Young – Berkeley Community Theatre 09-15-04
Soundtrack of our Lives – Austin City Limits Festival, Zilker Park 09-18-04
Interpol – Melkweg, Amsterdam 09-23-04
Air – Hollywood Bowl, LA 09-26-04
Rilo Kiley – The Black Cat, Washington DC 10-10-04
Badly Drawn Boy – KCRW Morning Becomes Eclectic 10-12-04
Brian Wilson – Carnegie Hall, NYC 10-12-04
Velvet Revolver – The Roxy, Hollywood 10-13-04
Tom Waits – Orpheum, Vancouver BC 10-15-04
Giant Sand – Muhle Hunziken, CHE 10-15-04
Jandek – Instal.04 Festival, Glasgow 10-17-04
The Mountain Goats – The Earl, Atlanta GA 10-18-04
Patti Smith – White Session 10-22-04
Pinback – The Black Cat, Washington DC 10-25-04
Mark Lanegan Band – Paradiso, Amsterdam 10-28-04
Britt Daniel – Swedish American Hall, SF 10-29-04
Lali Puna – Peel Session 10-30-04
Local H – Double Door, Chicago IL 10-31-04
Call & Response – Gideon Coe 11-04-04
Camper van Beethoven – Amoeba in-store, Hollywood CA 11-08-04
Ballboy – Peel Session 11-09-04
The Black Keys – Zane Lowe 11-10-04
John Mellencamp – Live by Request (A&E) 11-11-04
Arcade Fire – TT the Bears, Cambridge MA 11-12-04
Mermen – New Jury Room, Santa Clara CA 11-20-04
Tragically Hip – Grey Cup halftime 11-21-04
Low – Gideon Coe 11-23-04
Pinback – Bimbo’s 365 Club, SF CA 11-27-04
Pinback – Bimbo’s 365 Club, SF CA 11-28-04
PJ Harvey – John Peel Tribute, Maide Vale 12-16-04
-re-release/comps-
Cafe de Soul, vol 4 : make-out music (for 12
year-olds?)
Acid Jazz Vol. 85 : some very cool stuff in here amidst
the junk
The Ladykillers OST : fun, fun, fun
The Punisher OST : bah
Alternative Times, Vol. 47
Lamb – Best Kept Secrets : Best of 1996-2004 : a nice
set, some of this is so passe
Vienna Scientists IV – Five Years of Solid Grooves : groovy
Les Savy Fav – Inches : whattanidea! art-rock concept,
glorious
Silicon Summer 2004 : way too squarpusher-y
Modest Mouse – The Moon and Antarctica [remastered]
Brian Eno – Before and After Science (remaster)
Brian Eno – Taking Tiger Mountain (By Strategy) (remaster) : a ‘classic’ for a reason
Tribute to the Fall – (Perverted by Mark E) (2cd) : most of this is really excellent
100 Songs on 1 CD : interesting concept with some interesting tunes
The Believer, June 04
Pure Moods – A Celestial Celebration : craaaaappppp
Amon Tobin – Solid Steel Mix : like clubbing, without the fun
KFOG Live from the Archives, Vol. 10
Future Soundtrack For America : great comp, NO MORE BUSH!!
Mountain High : disappointingly boring
Rare Elements – Ustad Sultan Kha
The Outernationalists – Ethnomixicology : a bit heavy on the disco…
Nu-Funk
Essential R&B – The Very Bestof Summer 2004
Garden State OST
Supergrass – Supergrass is 10. Best of ’94-’04 : treasure trove
Boards of Canada – Music Has The Right To Children : perfectly nice background muzak
Late, Great Daniel Johnson Discovered Covered : so great
New Testament of Funk Exploring the Funkier Side of All Things : definitely funky
Om Lounge, vol. 9
Erlend ÿye – DJ-Kicks : fair to middlin’
Rip. Sample. Mash. Share. – The Wired Creative Commons CD : great idea, boring album
Thievery Corporation – Babylon Rewound : a dim shadow of the original
Pavement – Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain : LA’s Desert Origins : best 90’s indie album?
This is Indie Rock: The Best Bands You’ve Never Heard
Ray Charles – Ray OST
Wilco – The Wilco Book
Bobby Darin – Beyond the Sea: The Very Best of Bobby Darin
Live – Awake
O.C. Enhanced Soundtrack
Ursula 1000 – Ursadelica : fun and funky party disk
The Waifs – A Brief History
Not The Same Old Blues Crap 3
-singles/EPs-
Buddha Bar VI (sampler)
The Decemberists – The Tain/5 songs EP : a little
different, still great
Erick Sermon – Relentless promo single : s-t-u-p-i-d
(not fresh)
Muse – Hysteria DVD single
Alanis Morrisette – Everything promo single
Pink – Last to Know (promo single)
Calexico – Convict Pool EP : awesome release, as
always
They Might Be Giants – Indestructible Object : it’s
all(ways) good
Killers, the – Somebody Told Me single : catchy and fun
rock
Avril Lavigne – Donít Tell Me (promo single)
Death Cab For Cutie – The New Year 7″ single
Gene Simmons – Asshole promo : oh god, this is
AWFUL
Langhorne Slim – The Electric Love Letter EP : ‘backwoods anti-folk’ with a farked bent
Morrissey – English Heart Irish Blood single
Eskimo Joe – From the Sea single
Cure, the – End of the World (promo single)
Silvertide – Show & Tell (album sampler) : bring the
rawk!
Kamikaze Hearts – Foxhole Prayers EP : fun bluegrassy
folk
Frans Ferdinand – Take Me Out single
Silver Mountain Reveries – Prettty Little Lightning Paw EP : interesting, nice and short
Blue States – Across the Wire single
P:ano – Pure Evil 7″
Look Down – The American Hustle EP
Razorlight – Golden Touch CD single 1
Razorlight – Golden Touch CD single 2
Always the Runner – Always the Runner EP : cool
loud-soft instrumentals
Belle & Sebastian – Books EP : fairly b-o-r-i-n-g
Papa Roach – Getting Away With Murder (promo CDS)
The Unicorns- 2014 EP
Cowboy Junkies – ‘Neath Your Covers EP : all filler, all the time
Rachel Goswell – The Sleep Shelter EP : just soooooo fantastic
Melys – Eyeliner CDS
Metallica – Some Kind of Monster EP : new tracks=crap, live=not up to old glory
Court and Spark – Dead Diamond River EP
Crosby and Nash – Lay Me Down (promo CDS)
Silk – Silk (promo)
Rivulets – You’ve Got Your Own EP
Twilight Singers – Black Is the Color of My True Loves Hair EP
The Stills – Still In Love Song CDS-2
Black Keys – The Moan CDS : in the raw, baby!
Franz Ferdinand – Michael 12″
Handsome Boy Modelling School – Fall Sampler for the Discriminating Gentleman
Detroit Cobras – Cha Cha Twist 7″ : nothing new, still awesome
Hot Hot Heat & The Red Light Sting – Split CD
Mountain Goats – Letter From Belgium single
Pinback – Too Many Shadows (tour EP)
The Waifs – Bridal Train EP : great song, mediocre version
Postal Service – live on XFM radio
Keane – Live acoustic EP : at least as good as the real release
Minus 5 – At the Organ EP
The Furlongs – Mother’s Day demos