Prefuse 73, "Eve of Dextruction"
Way, way back in probably 1995, I remember making fun of some prehistoric website where someone clearly wanted to be a music reviewer but had no idea how to approach it. He attempted to a bunch of songs, but after writing a sentence or two for the first couple tracks, he just devolved into saying "CLUB BANGA" for the rest of the songs. And that simple phrase, all-caps, CLUB BANGA, has stuck with me now for twenty seven years or whatever. A friend and I used to just text that phrase to each other sometimes, and it never failed to hit.
As this blog grinds inexorably onward, squeezing every last stray thought and limp opinion out of me like I'm a spent tube of toothpaste, we gradually but inevitably approach the day where I finally run out of things to say. The CLUB BANGA event horizon isn't yet detectable, but it's out there, it looms in my brain. I will one day become one with that poor, overmatched soul that I once mocked.
Clem Snide, "Nick Drake Tape"
But today is not that day. Today is the day I tell you all about CLUB BANGA, which puts it off by at least a day.
The Midnight Hour, "Better Endeavor"
As a reminder, the Midnight Hour is a collaboration between renowned hip-hop producers Ali Shaheed Muhammad and Adrian Younge, with a studio album and a live album to their credit. As you'd expect from two folks like this, it's super high quality, and if you like this, you'll like the album.
Karl Hendricks Trio, "Get Out Your Hankies For This One"
There's an art to a long song title. If you push it too far, it crosses the line from being charming to pretentious, and you just kind of look desperate. You're the kid wearing a lampshade on your head at a house party, not because you think it's funny, but because it's the least creative way you could come up with to get attention.
Anyway, the Karl Hendricks Trio usually nails it. There's some substance there to put a picture in your head, but not so much verbiage that you get tired waiting for the title to end.
Negativland, "Chicken Diction"
I really thought we were getting "Good Morning Good Morning" there for a second.