i'm working. sue me.

as difficult as it has been to get my proverbial shit together, i do appreciate people hounding me for not having my mix up. apparently, when you work, your free time goes out the window. i did manage to catch little miss sunshine yesterday, and i highly recommend it, as well as the soundtrack which is sampled below. and as buck pointed out, i did laugh about 10 times as hard any time steve carrell was involved.














without further ado, i present august '06, a fine mix in my estimation. keep a look out next month for the best of other people's mixes that i have received in the last few months... keep 'em coming!

1. it's a surprise! no, it is not a snakes on a plane reference.
2. tv on the radio - wolf like me
3. the roots - game theory
4. tv on the radio - snakes & martyrs
5. ratatat - wildcat
6. css - let's make love and listen to death from above (spankrock remix)
7. tv on the radio - dreams
8. m. ward - to go home
9. devotchka - how it ends
10. soltero - the priest
11. common - be
12. herbert - moving like a train
13. youngblood brass band - waiver
14. emily haines & the soft skeleton - the lottery
15. patton oswalt - death bed
16. m. ward - chinese translation
17. matt pond pa - bring on the ending

download august '06 here: http://www.bazoomercom.com/ari/August%20'06.zip

track 1 isn't really a big deal; just a rare glimpse of power at work. every morning on the T on the way to work, i dance to tv on the radio's wolf like me, and am tempted to howl along with the end of the song. man, the roots sound as amazing as i've ever heard them on game theory, a song with an intro as long as the actual verses and well worth it. if you hadn't figured out yet that i'm trying to beat you over the head with how great tv on the radio is, then here is another track, featuring antibalas and a fela kuti-esque groove. i know a lot of you are supremely excited about ratatat's upcoming new album, classics. anyone who went to that show while at midd knows how fun they are (except for coons), and i've never seen a band that played at midd sell more copies on an album just by showing up. everyone say it with me now: reeeoeooaaarroor! you'll know what i mean when you listen to wildcat. css is just fun. that's it; no story. nothing like a spankrock remix to boot. continued beating of tvotr. m. ward covers daniel johnston on his new album, and it is fantastic. can't wait to finally see him live. this devotchka track is the one i mentioned in the intro, the one that accompanies most of the soundtrack to little miss sunshine. thanks to shara, jeff, tommy et al for constantly telling me how cool they are. it finally sunk in. i just found out about soltero in reading an interview with the magnetic fields' stephen merritt, who mentioned a different song of theirs, but the priest is pretty damn cool. not that common needs my help to sell more albums, especially since knef just informed me that his album be just went platinum, but this is a great track that i thought i had put an an earlier mix. herbert's moving like a train is prince for the new millenium. his organic dance tracks make me feel better about what music will sound like when the lights, ehem, go out. damnit, if you don't like youngblood brass band, i don't know what's wrong with you. emily haines from metric is coming out with a solo album, and it sounds incredible. ok, ok, ok, with snakes on a plane finally coming out, i had to throw in a tangential reference, so here is a joke from patton oswalt show about shitty movies. more new m. ward (i feel like my mixes are somewhat repetitive... i apologize), and the lyrics are phenomenal. when i first heard matt pond pa's bring on the ending, i was surprised to learn that it was the first track on its respective album, but it makes for a good last track too.

august mix coming soon!

one for summer, one for the desert

what a week it has been! a most excellent kick-off to the summer months. congratulations to the newlyweds; enjoy the honeymoon!

this month is a double whammy of mixes, one to kick off the summer and one to celebrate a fantastic week in the desert, kicked off by a calexico concert in williamsburg last tuesday. for those of you that gave such positive feedback on the all-vinyl mix, thank you! i will definitely do it again, but it's going to be a little while before i do. as some of you know, i'm heading up to beantown and i'm going to have to get settled in first.



*courtesy of buck

where to begin... well, in honor of a week in tucson and a calexico concert to kick it off, i have created an all-calexico mix originally created for ara and cicely that i now share with you all. it's a great introduction to their music:

1. sunken waltz
2. quattro (world drifts in)
3. alone again or
4. crystal frontier
5. corona
6. across the wire
7. dub latina
8. cruel
9. service and repair
10. roka
11. el picador
12. ballade of cable hogue
13. not even stevie nicks
14. woven birds (cinematic orchestra remixico)
15. cast your coat
16. all systems red
17. sonic wind
18. muleta

download: http://www.bazoomercom.com/ari/Calexico%20Mix.zip

the summer mix, complete with the usual description:

1. wilco - summer teeth
2. chris miller - ton bec est doux
3. tim seeley - funeral music
4. daniel lanois - the unbreakable chain
5. mos def - umi says (zero 7 remix)
6. brian eno and david byrne - help me somebody
7. jon brion - i believe she's lying
8. the beta band - broken up adingdong
9. chris potter - shadow (for joe henderson)
10. john legend - she don't have to know
11. the chemical brothers - surface to air
12. sufjan stevens - no man's land
13. neko case - that teenage feeling
14. phoenix - consolation prizes
15. regina spektor - carbon monoxide
16. sigur rós - glósóli

download: http://www.bazoomercom.com/ari/July%20'06.zip

wilco's summer teeth is my perennial kickoff to summer. no summer mix would be complete without it. chris miller's ton bec est doux is largely responsible for my current cajun obsession. nothing like a bunch of happy, french gibberish to put you in a good mood (see: la bottine souriante). thanks to šara for introducing me to tim seeley. funeral is surprisingly catchy, given its title, and especially given the line "it's that look in your eyes that pictures me dead when i am sleeping." can't help but chuckle. i love daniel lanois' ethereal solo stuff. inadvertently, this mix ended up being a mix of people that have worked with u2 i suppose, as both lanois and eno are on this mix. mos def gets remixed by zero 7 to great effect. it really brings out the classic soul feel in the original. man, listen to the groove on brian eno and david byrne's from help me somebody on the my life in the bush of ghosts re-release. hard to believe it's 20 years old. jon brion's i believe she's lying is for conor, who, after seeing brion, felt inspired enough to call me and tell me all about it. the beta band is immortalized by the line "i will now sell 10 copies of three ep's by the beta band," delivered by john cusack in high fidelity. but contrary to popular belief, there are other songs besides dry the rain, such as broken up adingdong. chris potter's tribute to joe henderson, shadow, is meant for those quiet summer nights of introspection. john legend's she don't have to know is the closest i'm going to come to a pop radio plug. this song came on my itunes randomly a couple of months ago, and i became obsessed with the beat and legend's amazing harmonies. plus the lyrics are hillarious. then, less then a week ago, i heard the song randomly played on the radio. go figure. i only have one description for the chemical brothers' surface to air: where the streets have no name for the new millenium. astonishingly enough, sufjan's most perfectly-orchestrated ode to illinois came on the outtakes album, with no man's land. that teenage feeling by neko case brings back that whole AM radio feel, a new summer regular for me. and because it's summer, sometimes we just need to be happy, so here is phoenix's consolation prizes. regina spektor's carbon monoxide is the happiest tune about suicide since anything that elliott smith wrote. take that for what it's worth. and i've always wanted to end a mix with sigur rós' glósóli. so there it is.

Tags:

• july summer

acoustic june

after emerging from my dark lair, i have selected 17 choice tracks from the vault. that's right: this month's mix is all vinyl. one version is the mix all the way through (including intended transitions and whatnot), and i will also be posting the individual mp3's.

1. taj mahal - queen bee
2. tito puente - niña y señora
3. the rolling stones - i am waiting
4. stevie wonder - too high
5. sam prekop - faces and people
6. roy ayers - everybody loves the sunshine
7. richie havens - we all wanna boogie
8. trio mocotó - maior é deus
9. doves - there goes the fear
10. batucada - samba solos
11. elis regina - jardim de infância
12. caetano veloso - two naira fifty kobo
13. dave brubeck - strange meadow lark
14. roald dahl - charlie and the chocolate factory intro
15. charles mingus - mood indigo
16. wilco and billy bragg - at my window sad and lonely
17. jorge ben - aparaceu aparecida

taj mahal's queen bee was a song that we played with shari p'oons and the funk brigade, and personally one of my favorites. this calypso-ish version is from taj's evolution record. para los rumberos is a phenomenal tito puente salsa record from the 70's. where would santana be without tito paving the way? well, probably not making shitty records with rob thomas, so i guess that one is bittersweet. but the record still kicks ass. you might recognize i am waiting from the rushmore soundtrack, but it is in fact from the rolling stones record aftermath. i highly recommend a copy of stevie's innervisions if you don't have one already. too high was sampled by da alkaholiks song up all night which is a really great use of the beat. get lost in sam prekop's faces and people. it's a track that was truly meant for vinyl. roy ayers' everybody loves the sunshine is an acid jazz classic from the 70's. you would probably recognize richie havens from pbs fundraisers or mr. rogers, but he is in fact a really talented musician as well, and following his initial recognition as the "black bob dylan," produced some truly funky albums. trio mocotó was one of the first groups in brazil to incorporate elements of funk into samba music. check them out on this track, as well as the last track by jorge ben. doves may sound a little out of place at this point in the mix, but there goes the fear has a samba batuque outro that leads beautifully into the next couple of tracks, a batucada compilation with samba solos, and elis regina's beautiful jardim de infância. the afro-pop feel to caetano veloso's two naira fifty kobo really drew me in at first, but the entire album of bicho is one of my favorites all-around. dave brubeck's time out record is hardly obscure (you might remember take five from those old infiniti ads with the british dude), but for those of you less familiar with the record, this is a melodic sample of a seminal record in the jazz repertory. for those of you stressed out with work, i put up roald dahl reading the intro to charlie and the chocolate factory just to remind everyone to sit back and be a kid once in a while and not be in such a hurry to grow up. duke ellington's mood indigo is one of my favorite jazz ballads of all time, possibly because it sounds better with each instrument you add. charles mingus' interpretation is one of the best. i think i already put up this wilco & billy bragg track, and i'm not sure it was totally worth putting up the vinyl version, but alas here it is. trio mocotó is back with jorge ben, backing him up on his track aparaceu aparecida. truly funky brazilian groove. jorge is the master.

Download:
http://www.bazoomercom.com/ari/June%20Vinyl%20Mix.mp3

Tags:

• vinyl june

in the words of bill callahan, it's our (six-month) anniversary.

popozao indeed.

friends, friends of friends, people i don't know (apparently), i feel so close to you all. six months, seven mixes (six monthly + a holiday mix).

when reached for general comments regarding the may '06 mix, a spokesman had this to say:
may '06 shows how far we've come. some artists from the first mix have stuck around (the sea and cake), while others have been cast aside with the swift justice provided by retrospection and hindsight (nickel creek). some of the downsizing was due to feedback from you, the friends, while other reductions were judgement calls made by repetitive listenings, and liberal use of the "next track" function on my tool of choice, the ol' iPod mini.

and so without further ado, i present you with may '06, "a helluva mix."-timeout new york

1. tv on the radio - say you do
2. madvillain (remixed by four tet) - great day today
3. the sea and cake - sound and vision
4. josh ritter - lillian, egypt
5. stephen malkmus - trojan curfew
6. tapes 'n tapes - insistor
7. adem - spirals
8. tower of power - knock yourself out
9. calexico - cast your coat
10. sam winch - banter for the common man
11. neko case - star witness
12. groove armada - lazy moon
13. rainer maria - artificial light
14. calexico - sunken waltz
15. david bowie - sound and vision
16. miho hatori (with the incredible moses leroy) - the color of sky
17. mountains - sewn two
18. calexico - all systems red

i cannot say enough about tv on the radio. this rare gem comes off of their album ok calculator which was only distributed via cdr in public places (cafes, bookstores, etc.). the genius of mf doom as interpreted by four tet. just before i found this track, i was thinking about how much i wanted to hear a beautifully-produced hip-hop track, smooth and stylish with some grit. sound and vision, version one: the sea and cake. josh ritter (not to be confused with three's company's john ritter... too soon?) has a knack for catchy-ass riffs. stephen malkmus too, in his own way. i usually need an album that just rocks, to balance everything out. right now, it's the loon by tapes 'n tapes. adem (remember, it's pronounced ARdem) strikes back with his new record love and other planets. sappy but beautiful. dave garibaldi is all you ever need in a funk band, but tower of power lays it on thick nontheless. the end is TIGHT. i am obsessed with calexico lately. cast your coat is a beautiful b-side from their new album, garden ruin. sam winch: profundity in simplicity. gotta love it. neko case teams up with some alt-country all-stars and produces fox confessor brings the flood. star witness has a terrific piano outro. a little groove armada for after-hours. a new discovery from indie-anomaly rainer maria, who've been around for years while escaping my attention. more calexico, more imagery. sound and vision, version two: david bowie. more japanese singers with oddly sterile voices, but great production in miho hatori. mountains' sewn two is the calm before calexico's storm of a song, all systems red.

download: http://www.bazoomercom.com/ari/May%20'06.zip

Tags:

• may

best. mix. EVAR. so far.

i gotta tell ya, searching for "hyperbole" on google image search is some sort of existential journey or something, much like playing 20 questions with a word like "scorn." but luckilly, i was able to dig this up, which i think is pretty fantastic, both for its pun value and for its expression of an abstract concept:
































which brings me to this month's mix, a DOOZY of a mix. without further ado, i present April '06:

1. samuel l. jackson - the monologue "open a fucking window" from cinematic oeuvre snakes on a plane
2. mark ronson (feat. alex greenwald) - just
3. tv on the radio - i was a lover
4. johnny cash (feat. glen campbell) - gentle on my mind
5. adem - everything you need
6. (smog) - held
7. jens lekman - a sweet summer's night on hammer hill
8. architecture in helsinki - rendezvous: potrero hill
9. os mutantes - o relogio
10. noisettes - monte christo
11. leo kottke - girl from the north country
12. mike birbiglia - whiffle ball tony
13. bob dylan - mozambique
14. gnarls barkley - crazy
15. andre 3000 - vibrate
16. cinematic orchestra - burn out
17. taylor mali - totally like whatever
18. spankrock - put that pussy on me
19. wilco & billy bragg - at my window sad and lonely

download: http://projectbiobus.com/ari/April%20'06.zip

if you haven't heard of snakes on a plane yet, then go to your nearest internet browser, google the words "snakes on a plane" and watch the enjoyment unfold before you. to quote sam jackson, "it's kinda gonna be great." i've been grooving to mark ronson's cover of just for about a month straight now, and it just doesn't get old. makes me wanna dance and kill myself at the same time, just because it's radiohead! i predict 2006 to be the year of tv on the radio. i think this album is going to be dy-no-miiite, especially with tracks like this. i can't even express in words how comforting johnny cash's voice can be, especially in songs like this one. adem (pronounced ardem, strangely enough) was once in fridge with kieran hebden, aka four tet. his own album, home songs is a beautiful album. tracks like everything you need keep permeating my ipod mixes. (smog) rocks the house with held. like a scandinavian motown artist, jens lekman brings the soul in a sweet summer's night in hammer hill. definitely going on the car mixes this summer, when i get a new stereo... sigh. rendezvous: potrero hill sounds like archicture in helsinki's contribution to the rushmore soundtrack. short and sweet, but moody. in o relogio, os mutantes show why they are one of the most influential brazilian bands in history. jeff and i saw noisettes open for bloc party, and at the time i don't remember being particularly impressed. then i heard monte christo... leo kottke takes on my favorite dylan classic girl from the north country. mike birbiglia shows a new generation how to do political humor. and pizza. mozambique: bob dylan and emmylou harris off of desire. gnarls barkley is also going to have a huge year, as their single crazy is predicted to be the first online #1 single in british history tomorrow. andre 3000 continues the a-typical soul train in reverse, with vibrate. cinematic orchestra: extremely atmospheric acid jazz and audio ergo sum favorite. taylor mali's totally like whatever is the most impressive piece of poetry i've come across in quite some time. spankrock tells it like it is. probably not the best song to blast at work. i just made a mix of great wilco songs i keep forgetting about, and at my window sad and lonely always gets lost for some reason. but here it is! just for you, the listeners.

something in the air...

i'm feeling a bit atmospheric this month... lots of evocative choices, with the idea of being transported to a different time, a different place, familiar or foreign. without any further ado, here is the march '06 mix:

1. panda bear | untitled 3
2. saito | track 1
3. jason collett | hangover days
4. scissor sisters | take me out
5. nat king cole | if i may
6. mike birbiglia | secret public journal 1.17.06
7. loose fur | the ruling class
8. spirit of the west | home for a rest
9. broken social scene | backyards
10. michael blake | in the arms of ali
11. the cardigans | in the round
12. cat power | empty shell
13. andrew bird's bowl of fire | two way action
14. feist | it's cool to love your family
15. finley quaye | even after all
16. orchestre baobab | coumba

panda bear's album, young prayer is an abstract tribute to a lost loved one. beautiful album with great ups and downs. i couldn't find any information on the mysterious saito, but his japanese take on nick drake/americana has been lodged in my ipod for the last few months, where it'll stay for quite some time. hangover days includes the wonderful amy millan from stars, but comes from broken social scene's jason collett's album, idols of exile. george michael/elton john torchbearers scissor sisters transform franz's take me out into a mid-80's classic. if i may is possibly my favorite nat king cole arrangement, and an illustrative example of the evocative mood i was going for with this mix. mike birbiglia's inclusion is a bit tangential, but his comedy has been stuck in my mind for the last couple of weeks. check out his podcast, secret public journal on itunes. loose fur (i.e. lucifer) is jeff tweedy and glenn kotche's side project alongside sonic youth's jim o'rourke. this track was initially entitled crack-smoking jesus, but toned down slightly for public consumption. however, the lyrics were not... i think anyone can identify with spirit of the west's home for a rest, perhaps particularly our friends abroad right now (you know who you are) so this one is dedicated to you guys, as well as my camp friends. broken social scene returns with backyards, a fun little mess of a tune. saxophonist michael blake mellows the mood with in the arms of ali, a beautifully produced track. i think he and ben allison have the best produced jazz albums out there right now. thanks to my neighborhoodies pals for turning me on to the cardigans' in the round. clap your hands (you'll see when you listen to the song). cat power brings her supermodel voice to the country on the greatest. i've been getting into andrew bird's older catalog, and this album with his former band bowl of fire reminds me a lot of summerteeth-era wilco. feist's older catalog brought forth this gem, it's cool to love your family, playing on her 80's pop sensibilities. there are any number of places you could have heard finley quaye's even after all, and if you haven't, here it is. i saved the most atmospheric track for last, with senegal's orchestre baobab performing coumba, singing, "it was you who told me that i was the light of your life / it was you who told me that the sky and heavens are always blue." this song never fails to put me in another place. perhaps those of us that have been to senegal would like to expound on that, but i'll leave that be.

download:
http://bazoomercom.com/ari/March%20'06.zip

pretty fascinating, if monotonous musicology project

I came across this art exhibit from Nate Harrison today. It's a fascinating history of the "amen" break, or beat snippet for those of us less-versed in DJing. You've heard it before, and you'll hear it again. Might as well get learned in the process, no? I don't get the whole computerized vocal performance thing, but I was riveted nonetheless.

beautiful, snowy day!

*small request: hey friends. if you like what you hear, please leave comments. it's nice to know who's been stopping by, and what you guys like. and it helps me stay motivated to keep doing this.



i actually had this mix ready on time for once, but i'm glad i waited because i made some additions that were a better fit for the mix. above is the view from my window this fine day, along with some environmental commentary from mr. andrew bird.

1. nina simone - black is the color of my true love's hair
2. emilliana torrini - sunny road
3. jens lekman - rocky dennis' farewell song
4. hooverphonic - renaissance affair
5. architecture in helsinki - theme to motorhome
6. natalie merchant - san andreas fault
7. deerhoof - desapareceré
8. my morning jacket - knot comes loose
9. antony & the johnsons - for today i am a boy
10. my morning jacket - lay low
11. broken social scene - 7/4 (shoreline)
12. (smog) - the well
13. bob dylan - man in the long black coat
14. broken social scene - windsurfind nation
15. dangerdoom/zero7/sia - somersault
16. joe strummer - coma girl
17. the mavericks - dance the night away
18. radiohead - gagging order
19. stereolab - miss modular
20. the minus five/wilco - with a gun
21. broken social scene - fire eye'd boy

download here:
http://bazoomercom.com/ari/February%20'06.zip

nina simone: jazz goddess, and excellent remix by jaffa. i can't remember where i found out about emiliana torrini, but i love the ripoff of the opening of rod stewart's maggie may. i actually didn't like this cd all that much when i first bought it, but jens lekman's oh you're so silent, jens is really growing on me. i've loved hooverphonic for a long time, even before they were ripped off so blatently by frou frou and imogen heap, in my opinion. renaissance affair was in a VW ad a while back. architecture in helsinki makes it back on with an ode to the trailer park. natalie merchant, if you're reading this, i love you. desapareceré is such a great, creepy-ass song, with beautiful chord progressions and samples from deerhoof. z by my morning jacket has been on my ipod pretty solidly for a few months now, and is one of the most rockin' albums around right now. plus i'm a sucker for a lap steel guitar. antony got a lot of acclaim last year, and i am quite late to the party, but that soulful, diva voice is irresistable. lots
of broken social scene this month too, after missing both their shows and feist's show within the last two weeks. i am an idiot. dangerdoom's remix of zero7's somersault is pretty excellent, featuring sia on vocals (sia's colour the small one is another album everyone should check out, right, maia?). joe strummer's mescaleros rocked out on clash-themed tracks right up until his death a few years ago. this is my favorite post-clash strummer track. dance the night away is my favorite pick-me-up song ever, and an even better break-up song by the mavs. gagging order is a b-side from 2003's hail to the thief, and it looks like there'll be new radiohead soon enough! if i were a 60's superhero, i would be miss modular, the best 60's superhero theme song ever, by stereolab (of, "is this... stereolab?" fame in high fidelity). the minus five recently completed another album with wilco, spawning this great, ol' school-style wilco track.

It's late, and I hate Ikea.

before we kick things off... a moment of silence and of song: http://www.lib.virginia.edu/small/exhibits/music/audio/
mp3/we_shall_overcome.mp3

-----



sorry, i spent waaaaaay too much time at ikea today...

1. sufjan stevens - in the devil's territory
2. banda uniao black - yeah yeah yeah
3. the strokes - killing lies
4. stars - my radio (fm mix)
5. chris lightcap - lay-up
6. wayne shorter - over shadow hill way
7. architecture in helsinki - maybe you can owe me
8. reid anderson - todos las cosas se van
9. bloc party - two more years (mstrkrft remix)
10. feist - gatekeeper
11. m. ward - big boat v. 3
12. m. ward - hifi v.2
13. something for rockets - the line
14. martin dosh - nothing new
15. la volee d'castor - la voisine
16. kanye west - golddigger (DIPLO mix)
17. fourtet - smile around the face
18. nickel creek - toxic
19. iron & wine | calexico - all tomorrow's parties
20. mark turner - zurich
21. wilco & billy bragg - airline to heaven

download: http://bazoomercom.com/ari/January%20'06.zip

*updated april 25th, 2006

sufjan makes it onto the mix for the second straight month. i'm determined to get you all to love him, so damnit, get to it! banda uniao black's yeah yeah yeah is dedicated to my audio ergo sum/shari p'oons brothers and sisters. called "one of the most important bands of the black rio movement" by seu jorge (pele in the life aquatic with steve zissou and knockout ned in city of god), this track funks hard, and it funks right. with killing lies, the strokes take their sound in a new direction. i'm not going to try and sell anyone on the strokes, but i love this track. i'll even go as far as to say i think the strokes are pulling a radiohead on this one... stars are back for another go at it, and although this track is even cheesier than my last contribution, it has a kickass trombone part for mr. david lindholm. this mix is going to be pretty jazz heavy, mostly because of my personal attempt to renew my vows to jazz, and mr. ando helped me out by introducing me to chris lightcap last week. listen to that groove on lay-up, it's ridiculous... from sir edward comes this catchy architecture in helsinki track, which of course i had to follow up with an amazing jazz composition by reid anderson (of last month's the bad plus fame) entitled todos las cosas se van from the album, "abolish bad architecture." bloc party makes it back with an awesome remix of their new single two more years (which i'm pretty sure is a thinly veiled message of hope to those who aren't... mm... huge supporters of the current administration... but maybe that's my reading). feist is also back, with gatekeeper, a great semi-bossa nova track that highlights her gorgeous, er, voice. yes, there's a lot of repeats, with m. ward making it on TWICE in a row, with two of my favorite songs from his new album transistor radio. some of you are going to hate something for rockets, and some of you are going to love it, and some of you hate the postal service and will possibly like this instead. i dont' know which camp you'll fall into, but i'm curious! martin dosh i across with all my fine wrmc friends when we saw him perform with andrew bird in montreal back in november of '05. if you guys don't listen to acadian music yet, you're missing out. the most well-known is la bottine souriante, once dubbed the "best live band in the world," but this little ditty by la volee d'castor (french for... volleyball?) might be a nice little intro. golddigger: you've heard it in the clubs, at mccullough, played relentlessly, and maybe, if you were lucky, you won the super bowl and drove off in a hyundai. however, for the rest of us, thanks to kremnuts (aka hebrewtronix), you can check out this amazing remix by diplodocus, the hottest dj on the streets. fourtet's smile around the face says it all. nickel creek doing britney? why not! and iron & wine + calexico manage to extract all the epicness of the velvet underground's all tomorrow's parties and concentrate it into a beautiful, lush, americana-ish arrangement. zurich by mark turner has one of my favorite grooves in any jazz composition ever, plus a really cool floating melody. and finally, airline to heaven is one glorious piece of wilco, destined to become your favorite.

mix #1: a little bit for everyone

*note: i have no idea who this is...

ok everybody... so with this mix i tried to appease everyone and also hopefully turn people on to some music they were maybe less familiar with. some selections are songs that i found out about through friends, while others have been staples for the last year or so.

1. feist - mushaboom
2. sufjan stevens - the avalanche
3. bob dylan - shooting star
4. m. ward - helicopter
5. franz ferdinand - outsiders
6. dangerdoom (ft. ghostface killah) - the mask
7. roksopp - royksopp's night out
8. hollertronix (diplo and low budget) - quantic soul orchestra's prelude to happening
9. the bad plus - (theme from) chariots of fire
10. johnny cash - pocohontas
11. regina spektor - rejazz
12. aimee mann - save me
13. andrew bird & nora o'connor - oh, sister
14. andrew bird - the naming of things
15. kanye west (ft. adam levine ) - heard 'em say
16. anti-pop consortium - what am i?
17. the notwist - this room
18. keren ann - seule
19. stars - elevator love letter
20. the sea and cake - alone for the moment
21. stars - reunion
22. jeff tweedy, jay bennett and roger mcguinn - sugar baby
23. iron & wine calexico - history of lovers
24. sufjan stevens - the predatory wasp of the palisades is out to get us!

download (*updated 12.9.05):
http://s58.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=2SXM85T4BIICI0VE2HK4W9T92M

feist i found out about from npr, if i remember correctly. i think everyone will fall in love with mushaboom, which is why it's the first track. if you haven't heard (or heard of) sufjan stevens, prepare to be dazzled by his inescapable charm (thanks to buck for the avalanche). all tracks here are from come on and feel the illinoise, in my opinion the best album of the year. his goal is to make an album for all 50 states. shooting star is off of bob dylan's oh mercy, produced by my favorite producer daniel lanois, who also produced u2's the joshua tree and several other classics. m. ward has this great, out there country style that i absolutely adore (for fans of wilco). outsiders by franz ferdinand just kicks ass. dangerdoom is a collaboration between mf doom and dj danger mouse. the whole album revolves around adult swim. royksopp is a fantastic and fun electronica group from norway (for the 82 boys). diplo and hollertronix is the most fun you'll have at a dj show ever, i promise. the bad plus take on the eternally corny (theme from) chariots of fire in this track. pocohontas is johnny cash's awesome cover of my favorite neil young song. the lyrics are fancredible (i coined that). thanks to dave for introducing me to regina spektor. this is off her jazzier first album. aimee mann has a heartbreaking voice and lyrics to match. after seeing andrew bird live in montreal recently, he was solidified as one of my favorite musicians, period. a musician's musician. kanye. 'nuff said. anti-pop consortium is on the other end of the hip-hop spectrum. they mix rap, spoken word, beat and slam poetry. truly original. thanks to jeannie, i believe for introducing me to the notwist. this is their ode to drums'n'bass. keren ann is an original young voice from france. stars are the cheesiest and corniest band you will ever love. and you will love every minute of it. the sea and cake lay down some of the best, organic grooves of any group out there. jeff tweedy. 'nuff said. the iron & wine calexico collaboration produced a wonderful EP, including this van morrison-eque track. and finally, the best track on sufjan's illinoise.

As promised, a holiday mix

Some traditional favorites intertwined with more non-traditional renditions of classics. The tracklist is as follows (feel free to ignore the order)

1. Sufjan Stevens - Angels We Have Heard On High
2. Ella Fitzgerald - Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
3. James Brown - Soulful Christmas
4. Saturday Night Live (I can't remember who performed it) - Christmas Song 2000
5. Sufjan Stevens - That Was The Worst Christmas Ever!
6. Vince Guaraldi Trio -Christmas Time Is Here
7. The Drifters - White Christmas
8. Chris Potter - O Come All Ye Faithful
9. Nat King Cole - The Christmas Song
10. Sufjan Stevens - I Saw Three Ships
11. Westminster Choir - The Holly and the Ivy
12. Ivy - Christmas Time Is Here
13. Vince Guaraldi Trio - Skating
14. Sufjan Stevens - Come Thou Fount Of Every Blessing
15. Duke Ellington Orchestra - The Nutcracker Suite
16. Lou Rawls - Santa Clause Is Comin' To Town
17. Sufjan Stevens - O Come O Come Emmanuel

There she blows... Now, I was having problems finding a place to post the files, so I decided instead to put them in a .zip file. Basically, click on this link (i'm so cool i made it into the morning announcments: (*updated 12.10.05: http://s7.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=36BTLRZS6V3O71GPW68A6U4PL0) and follow the directions. Also, there's a limited number of downloads, so let me know if you can't download it.

friends! compatriots! gather round.

hi everyone.

welcome to my renewed blog effort. my last blog effort ran out of steam because, frankly, i ran out of brazilian music to post. but you live and learn.

this is basically gonna be a monthly sample of my musical obsessions. i feel like i send you guys enough random music as it is, so why not do it in some sort of organized fashion? plus i'll share other little observations from the zeitgeist. i'm gonna try and make the mixes one cd worth, so that all of you without ipods (archaic beings, you) can still participate. enjoy! and please feel free to leave me messages with whatever it is that you are listening to.