No intro today, straight to the tunes!
Propagandhi, "Utter Crap Song"
Propagandhi, avowed anti-capitalists and purveyors of radical left-wing politics, played catchy punk with lyrics that were largely polemics. But they made things work, and their best albums (largely their first two records) didn't let the propaganda totally take over the proceedings. This song is from a compilation of singles, Where Quantity is Job #1, which is as uneven as most singles comps are.
Rocket From The Crypt, "Bucket Of Piss"
I first met Megan in college, during my junior year. Through a chain of events that I don't really recall, I found myself playing Bridge in her dorm hallway while she was trying to work on her architecture homework. She later joined our regular Bridge game when our fourth, a guy named Chris, failed out of school. Why do I bring up this story now? Well, our friend Erich gave Chris a nickname. "Skinny Bucket of Piss". It occurs to me that that nickname and this song are the only places I can really recall that construction.
Gas Huffer, "Mr. Sudbuster"
Garage rock from Seattle, featuring Matt Wright's distinctive vocal style. Gas Huffer won my heart with the song "Night Train to Spokane", one of a very short list of songs that mention my hometown. In fact, that song was how I ended up with my sophomore year roommate. At a party, we were chatting, and when I mentioned that I was from Spokane, he immediately referenced that song, whereupon we discovered shared musical interests (such as an agreement that Nirvana's "Negative Creep" is awesome). I wonder what happened to him?
The Blood Brothers, "Shame"
I first picked up this album from local post-hardcore band The Blood Brothers after it showed up on a bunch of "best of" lists here in Seattle. I wasn't really sure what to make of it at first, giving the amount of howling going on. I've come to be more accepting of that style of vocals, which means I've been enjoying these records more than I used to at the time.
Flying Lotus, "Never Catch Me"
Flying Lotus is best known as one of Kendrick Lamar's frequent collaborators, but he's been making jazz-inflected hip-hop beats for years and years. This track features Lamar, and comes from the incredible You're Dead!, an album I wholeheartedly recommend.