Introduction
Five Songs, 5/29/2017
Five Songs

Five Songs, 5/29/2017

Memorial Day! We here at Five Songs Multinational Holdings never sleep in order to bring you the freshest beats and finest jams.

Diamond District, "Intro"

The times when I'm most tempted to cheat at this is when shuffle pulls up a skit, or an intro, or something like this. This is, um, an intro to the excellent In The Ruff by the throwback hip-hop group Diamond District. Maybe they'll come up again soon!

The Blood Brothers, "Fucking's Greatest Hits"

Have I ever mentioned that lots of these songs are not safe for work? I guess I should have mentioned that. Anyway, the Blood Brothers are back for noise and howling, and from the same album to boot.

(previously)

They Might Be Giants, "Celebration"

I do so enjoy Join Us. Please check it out if you're a fan of the band and haven't already! Also: it occurs to me that we're going to eventually get Fingertips mixed in here. That'll be amusing and annoying at the same time!

I'm not sure I'm really capable of unpacking the appeal of TMBG to me. Obviously, I first encountered them at a particular time of my life when folks are very impressionable. But I'm still listening to them, twenty eight years later. I'm also still enjoying their new material. So there's clearly an appeal that just goes beyond locked in tastes from being a teenager.

Incidentally, I put together a Power Hour of TMBG, if you'd like to listen to some of my favorites of theirs back-to-back. It's a response to the AV Club's misguided attempt at the same.

James Brown, "My Thang"

James Brown! The Godfather of Soul! The Hardest Working Man in Show Business! From the very first gong, you know it's going to be good. And it is, of course. Brown was a force of nature, laying down so many elements that would be incorporated into so much of popular music that it's hard to really underline any one thing. The full four disc Star Time boxed set is just an amazing listen from back to front.

Prefuse 73, "Through Light"

Here, Prefuse 73 is sounding like nothing so much as the intro to a late-period Flaming Lips song. I keep waiting for Wayne Coyne's vocals to come in. Instead, it's just kind of orchestral meandering that goes nowhere in particular, especially divorced of its original context on the album. I definitely prefer my Prefuse 73 in the glitchy, chopped up hip-hop vein.

Joshua Buergel
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