KEROSENE BEARS HAVE FUN

Of all the albums of 2007 that Ben owns or has listened to thoroughly, here are his favorite 15:

15. Good Bad Not Evil by Black Lips

14. We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank by Modest Mouse

13. Person Pitch by Panda Bear

12. Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? by Of Montreal

11. God Save the Clientele by The Clientele

10. The Reminder by Feist

9. Fluorescent Grey EP by Deerhunter

8. Mirrored by Battles

7. Andorra by Caribou

6. Neon Bible by Arcade Fire

5. The Boxer by The National

4. Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga by Spoon

3. In Rainbows by Radiohead

2. Friend Opportunity by Deerhoof

1. Night Falls Over Kortedala by Jens Lekman

Albums I have heard bits of and wish I knew more about that might have made my list: Sound of Silver by LCD Soundsystem, Wierdo Rippers by No Age, † by Justice, Graduation by Kanye West, A New Chance by The Tough Alliance, Friend EP by Grizzly Bear, and Joanna Newsom and the Y’s Street Band by Joanna Newsom.

This post is really late! I’ve had a busy past several days, so I haven’t had time to post this until now. But this blog was not created for Kerosene Bears to whine and vent about their personal lives. No. So I’ll stop this useless chatter and get to the important stuff. Alright!

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Black Lips - “Not a Problem”, “Hippie, Hippie, Hoorah”, and “Dirty Hands” off the album Los Valientes del Mundo Nuevo.

Black Lips are from Atlanta. Black Lips are from Atlanta. Woo! It seems like every music writer can’t stop talking about how these guys, (even more so) Deerhunter, Snowden, etc. are from Atlanta. I guess people are kind of surprised that some decent music is being created there. Sometimes it surprises me, too. Either way, I want to encourage my hometown Atlanta music scene, so I figured I’d mention the fact that Black Lips are from Atlanta a couple of times. I remember hearing about them a few years ago from my sister. My sister had a “Jewish friend who plays in this punk band called Black Lips.” I never really listened to them until maybe a year ago though. I hear their live shows are all wild and crazy, and that they were banned from playing at the 40 Watt in Athens for a while. These songs come from a live album they released earlier this year on Vice Records. It’s called Los Valientes Del Mundo Nuevo, and it was recorded just over the border in Tijuana, Mexico. Black Lips are from Atlanta.

The Beatles - “She Said She Said”, “Here, There and Everywhere”, “And Your Bird Can Sing” off the album Revolver

“She Said She Said” just goes to show that Ringo Starr is an amazing drummer. I’m tired of people talking trash about him. Sure, he may not be the best songwriter in the Beatles, but he was essential to the band. In a lot of ways, he created a new style of drumming. There are some awesome beats and fills that can really only be described as Ringo Starr-like. Where do people get the idea that he was a bad drummer? It must be something like a dirty rumor that people like to spread just so they can sound like they have a critical ear when it comes to music.

Band of Horses - “Is There a Ghost” off the album Cease to Begin

This is a new song of Band of Horses’ forthcoming album Cease to Begin that’s being released on October 9.

Explorers Club - “Don’t Forget the Sun”, “Forever”, and “Last Kiss”

Explorers Club is from Charleston, South Carolina, and yes, they sound like the Beach Boys. But they do it so well and manage to write creative and original songs without sounding like one of those awful tribute bands. These songs are various singles they’ve released over the past couple of years. “Last Kiss” is a single from their new album that will probably be released sometime in the next few months. Last time I heard, they were adding the finishing touches (e.g. sweet harmonies) in the studio in Atlanta. C’mon Explorers Club!

Bats for Lashes - “What’s a Girl To Do” off the album Fur & Gold

Bat for Lashes is the music of Natasha Khan from Brighton, England but originally born in Pakistan. I first heard a couple of songs and wasn’t too impressed. She sounded like just another Feist or Cat Power wannabe. But I found the video to this song (off of her 2006 album Fur & Gold), and both the video and the song kind of blew my mind. Please search for it on YouTube. Sweet claps and jumps!

Interpol - “The Scale”, “Pace Is The Trick”, “Rest My Chemistry” off the album Our Love to Admire

Mmm. Since I’m usually a fan of Interpol, I thought I wouldn’t get sucked into all the negative hype surrounding the album. I figured, even if it’s not their best, I’d enjoy it because it’s Interpol. Unfortunately, now that I’ve listened to it, I can’t help but be disappointed. Sure, there are some solid songs on it, like these. And I liked that single called “Heinrich Maneuver” (despite the fact that it had all the angst and intensity needed to be a radio hit). But overall, it’s just not near as successful as their previous releases. I knew it would come eventually though. They’re distinct sound was always great, but pretty limiting. Oh well, I will try not to judge them too harshly from now on. My expectations are much lower now, but maybe they’ll make a grand come back one of these days.

The Soulsavers - “Revival” and “Through My Sails” off the album It’s Not How Hard You Fall, It’s the Way You Land

Wikipedia describes the Soulsavers as an “English production team” and in the “electronica” genre. I found this interesting, because their album It’s Not How Far You Fall, It’s The Way You Land seems to have quite the opposite sound than what I’d expect from an electronic production team. It sounds more in the realm of old gospel tunes, Bonnie “Prince” Billy, Neil Young, Johnny Cash, and Woven Hand. I still have to figure out why in the world the Soulsavers are associated with electronic music. But either way, I’m very impressed with the little I bit I’ve heard. This album was released in the UK in April of this year, but will just now be released in the States this October (I can’t wait!). The song “Through My Sails” features Will Oldham (Bonnie “Prince” Billy).

Caribou - “Melody Day” and “Zoe” off the album Andorra

Formerly named Manitoba, Caribou is the brainchild of Dan Snaith. Snaith was forced to change the band name in 2004 after the Dictators’ frontman, Handsome Dick Manitoba, sued for trademark infringement. What a jerk! This album, Andorra, was just released this week on Merge records. The single “Melody Day” could easily be my favorite song of the year.

Spoon - “The Ghost of You Lingers”, “You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb”, and “Finer Feelings” off the album Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

Austin, Texas band formed in 1994 by Britt Daniel and Jim Eno. Despite many changes in the line up of Spoon’s band members over the years, the core to their unique musical sound is defined by Daniel’s vocals and guitar and Eno’s solid and confident drumming. Rarely do drummers make or break the sound of a band, but without Eno’s killer drumming, spoon would be nothing. I first heard Spoon several years ago on the radio with the song “The Way We Get By.” I always enjoyed the song, but never really took the time to check out any more of them. In the past couple of years though, I’ve slowly been more and more exposed to them. This latest album, Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, has some of the most melody and variety out of all the Spoon albums. They also experimented a lot more in the studio, especially with some well chosen reverb. Listen how solid of a song The Ghost of You Lingers is with such a simple and repetitive piano line. How did they pull that one off? And there’re no drums, either! Also, listen out for the c’mon’s in You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb. So good.

Graham Nash – “Military Madness” and “I Used To Be A King” off the album Songs for Beginners

British songwriter most famous for playing in the bands the Hollies, and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. His first successful pop band, the Hollies, was one of the more important bands of the 1960’s British Invasion. In 1968, Nash left the Hollies to joined the American musicians David Crosby and Stephen Stills to form the band Crosby, Stills, & Nash. Neil Young joined the band a year later. In 1971, Graham Nash released his first solo album, Songs for Beginners where these songs are found. The centerpiece of the album is his song “I Used to Be a King.”

The Rosebuds - “Leaves Do Fall” and “Warm Where You Lay” off the album Birds Make Good Neighbors

The band’s founding members, Ivan Howard and Kelly Crisp, met in Wilmington, North Carolina, while attending college there. They soon got married, and in 2001 decided to form a band together called The Rosebuds. They began releasing albums on North Carolina’s own Merge Records, starting with their album called Make Out. These songs are off of the 2005 album Birds Make Good Neighbors. I remember hearing about the Rosebud’s from my brother a couple of years ago when they played in Clemson, South Carolina or something, but it’s been just recently that I’ve been able to really listen to them.

The Curtains - “Go Lucky”, “Green Water”, and “Roscomore” off the album Calamity

Founded by former Deerhoof member Chris Cohen along with Trevor Shimizu and Jamie Peterson. Cohen released the first album with the Curtains in 2001 while still in Deerhoof. Shimizu and Peterson later left the band, and Greg Saunier (Deerhoof’s drummer) and Andrew Maxwell took their places. In 2006, the Curtain’s signed to Sufjan Steven’s record label, Asthmatic Kitty, and Cohen left the band Deerhoof to concentrate solely on The Curtains. October of that year, Cohen released the album Calamity. John Ringhofer of Half-Handed Cloud is featured on the album playing trombone. It’s a nice, quirky little album that doesn’t try to bite off too much.

Deerhunter - “Florescent Grey” and “Like New” off the Florescent Grey EP

This band is from Atlanta. Their singer, Bradford Cox, is tall, skinny, and looks like he’s about to collapse. But don’t worry. He’s not anorexic or a heroin addict. He just has a disease called Marfan syndrome. Joey Ramone also had this disease, so it’s cool. They’re kind of all the rage in the underground music world, or at least Pitchfork thinks so. But despite Pitchfork’s opinions, I’ve grown to like them. And they’re from my hometown, so I have to support them. They put on a good live show, and this EP, Florescent Grey, is awesome. Don’t read their blog!

The Atlas Sound - “Child Support”, “Monochromatic”, and “These Years” mp3’s off the Deerhunter blog

The Atlas Sound is the side project of the aforementioned Deerhunter frontman, Bradford Cox. It doesn’t compare to Deerhunter, but Cox has put together some pretty good little songs. Overall, they’re a lot more ambient than Deerhunter and less hard hitting. I found these on that Deerhunter blog you should never read.

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A big thank you to Will for calling in to the radio show and his kind words. Be sure to go to the station’s website, wegl91.com, and take the music taste poll. This is your chance to let WEGL know what you want them to be playing. Thanks for listening this week, and tune in next week on Thursday nights starting at 11PM!

I’ve got this little show on the Auburn University radio station, WEGL 91.1 FM. So if you’re in the listening area, check it out every Thursday starting at 11PM. Here’s the set list for my latest show, the first of the Fall ‘07 semester.

Chavez – “Peeled Out Too Late,” “Our Boys Will Shine Tonight,” and “Flight 96″ off the album Better Days Will Haunt You, released on Matador Records.

Early 90’s math rock-esque band led by singer and guitarist Matt Sweeney. Matt Sweeney later played with Guided By Voices and Zwan (Billy Corgan’s short-lived band which included David Pajo of Slint and Tortoise), and released the album Superwolf with Bonnie “Prince” Billy. Matador records rereleased Chavez’s two albums in 2006 in a double disc set.

I’m From Barcelona – “We’re From Barcelona” and “Treehouse” off of the 2006 album Let Me Introduce My Friends

29 member collective from Jonkoping, Sweden. “We’re From Barcelona” is a perfect introduction to the band. “Treehouse” is definitely one of my favorites on the record, partially because I’ve always been a huge fan of treehouses. The build up at the end is so good.

Thom Yorke – “Analyse,” “Atoms for Peace” (requested), and “Cymbal Rush” off the album 2006 The Eraser, released on XL Records.
First solo record from Radiohead frontman. Although I miss the musicianship of the rest of Radiohead (especially Johnny Greenwood’s guitars and the crisp drumming of Phil Selway), it’s a great album. It’s as good as I could expect from a Thom Yorke solo effort, if not better.

Robert Pollard – “Supernatural Car Lover,” “Boxing About”, and “Get a Faceful” off the 2006 album Normal Happiness released on Merge Records.

Former frontman of early 90’s college rock band Guided By Voices. Much like Guided By Voices, Robert Pollard’s solo work is chock full of roughly made pop songs that average around a measly 2 minutes long each. There’s not always much for me to really sink my teeth into with GBV and Pollard, but for their distinct short-but-sweet sound, they do it well.

Belle and Sebastian – “Seeing Other People” and “Get Me Away From Here, I’m Dying” off the album If You’re Feeling Sinister, released on Jeepster Records.

Glasgow, Scotland band formed in 1995 and have been consistently putting out records ever since. “If Your Feeling Sinister” is their second album, but their first to get any real acclaim. It still seems to be their most successful album. I just recently pulled this album out, and fell in love with it again. The album has a lovely simplicity and Stephen Murdoch’s lyrics are great, especially in these two songs. B&S’s can sometimes be a little hit or miss to me, but this album is solid all the way through.

Death Cab For Cutie – “We Laugh Indoors” and “Why You’d Want To Live Here” off the 2001 album The Photo Album, released on Barsuk Records.

Well everyone knows who these guys are now. Speaking of hit or miss, Death Cab’s songs definitely come across that way to me. But there good songs are not just good, but really good. Maybe they’ll come out with a consistently good album at some point. This album “The Photo Album,” has some of their most successful songs.

There you have it. Be sure to tune in next week! Yeah c’mon!