8.1.11
Double post today on my main blog and on my music blog, because the topic is a book about music, so it applies to both. The book is Kristin Hersh's Rat Girl, which is the one book that I read while on vacation in July that I haven't written about yet.

I should have actually written about it sooner, because while I was in the midst of reading it and immediately afterward, I had a nice entry mostly written in my head, but between getting back to work from vacation land and the subsequent passage of time, that's mostly gone and I'm left to reconstruct it from a few scant pieces that have stuck with me.

It's hard to really even describe this book, but following adjectives all apply: insightful, hilarious, serious, and quirky. And so many more, I'm not going to be able to do it any kind of justice. It's simultaneously the work of a professional artist (offically written by Hersh in her mid-40s) and a teen who was still figuring out her place in the world (because it's based on the diary that Hersh kept for a year in 1985, when she was only 19).

The main story elements are 1) Hersh's band, Throwing Muses, gaining enough critical praise and followers that they become the first non-British band signed to the legendary 4AD label, under whom they record their first album; 2) Hersh being diagnosed with bipolar disorder, which may or may not have been triggered by a hit and run accident where a car hit her while she was on her bike; and 3) Hersh getting pregnant and having her first child, which may or may not have helped her body chemistry get her biploar disorder back under control. And all of this happened in a single year, alongside her sort of going to college and befriending another student who happened to be a former major movie star who was several decades older than her.

I'm sure that when you read the phrases "memoir", "teen pregnancy", and "bipolar disorder" in the description of a book, it's very tempting to paint it as "a powerful story of coping and redemption" and blah blah blah. It's not that at all, not by a long shot. Hersh deals with these issues matter-of-factly and humorously; even though they are major story elements, she doesn't linger on them and ponder their meaning looking back two decades later. They are things that happened when they happened, and she dealt with them as best she could at the time. She spends far more time talking about her relationships with her bandmates and her friends and her family; she makes a bigger fuss about turning into a "coat slave" than she does about an unplanned pregnancy that has the potential to derail her budding music career.

All of this might sound highly improbable, and if you weren't already familiar with Hersh, you might be forgiven for thinking that many elements were embellished, or that the timeframe was compressed in a way that doesn't reflect reality. I don't believe either of these things are true, but if it makes you feel any better, read it as a work of fiction based on her life—it won't make the book any less great or her voice any less vital. It's a stunning work of art whether you read it as truth or fiction or some hybrid.

I was a fan of Kristin Hersh anyway—I've been a Throwing Muses fan since 1988 and have felt a renewed to connection to her over the last few years as she has crowdsourced her music career through CASH Music, posted frequently to her Twitter feed (she's still the most engaging person I follow), and explored other ways to share her art with her fans in an age where traditional platforms for distributing books and music are being destroyed and replaced by much less tangible things. But I still didn't expect this book to be this good; it's the best thing I've read in years, and I look forward to returning to it in a year and being surprised at its grace and honesty and wisdom and humor all over again.

8.2.11
To continue the Kristin Hersh theme, and because Throwing Muses was such a big part of my high school experience, I'm going to recount my favorite Throwing Muses memories.

I don't remember the exact timeline of when I discovered Throwing Muses, but I'm pretty sure that House Tornado was the first thing I owned by them. This means the record must have been released in early 1988, because by March or April of 1988 I had also acquired an import CD copy of their eponymous debut. House Tornado is one of my favorite records ever, and it remains my favorite Throwing Muses release, but their debut is a very close second, and I got pretty obsessed with it for a while, playing nothing else for weeks straight.

And then one day it was gone. I came back after classes to my dorm room (I went to a public boarding school that focused on math and science) to play the CD, which had been my habit for a while, and I couldn't find the CD anywhere. I was pretty distraught; I searched the room for hours, and at the end of it I just had no idea what might have happened to it. And since, even if the local record store happened to have another copy of it, I wouldn't be able to afford to repurchase, I knew it would be a long time before I heard that record again.

I complained about this incessantly, and my poor roommate, who didn't much like the album in the first place, had to hear most of it. And then suddenly, a week or two after it vanished, it reappeared, and I played the hell out of it for the next few days.

Although he never admitted it, I'm close to 100% sure my roommate hid it from me, expecting that I'd accept that it was gone and move on, and then he could return it to me at the end of the semester when he'd be in no danger of having to hear it any longer. But when I didn't let it go, I think he just gave up and decided to give it back to me early, because my complaining wasn't any more pleasant to listen to than the record for him. (I sound like a jerk in this relationship, but we actually got along pretty well and I was typically the put-upon roommate——he was constantly sneaking girls into the room, which was a fairly serious offense at our school, and he was also fond of bringing back dangerous chemicals like mercury and liquid nitrogen from the chem lab, which he had access to as a lab assistant.)

Anyway. I'm sure he'd be happy to know that whenever I hear that record, I think of him. And I'm sure if he's unlucky enough to stumble across what must be one of his least favorite albums, he still thinks of me, too.

8.3.11
The year after House Tornado, Throwing Muses released Hunkpapa, which was the closest they ever came to mainstream stardom. There was a big publicity push from Sire in America, it did extremely well on the college charts, and there were even a couple of videos that made it into the regular rotation on MTV's 120 Minutes. The record has grown on me over the years, but at the time, the softening of the band's edges seemed like an overt attempt to get airplay and make a lot of money, and I was still at a point in my musical development where it was impossible for a band to be both good and popular, so the thought of them trying to get a bigger audience really rubbed me the wrong way.

As part of this big publicity push, the label sent Kristin and the band's drummer, David Narcizo, on a promotional tour to visit radio stations and record stores. The high school I went to was only a few blocks from the Duke University campus, and so two of their stops were at the campus radio station and the local record store, Poindexter Records (which was owned by Jack Campbell, the bassist for two popular local groups, the Pressure Boys and Johnny Quest).

The record store visit was supposed to be a surprise drop-in, but the store owner was aware of how much I liked the band, so he told me when they would be coming. It was an afternoon when I was supposed to be at a for-credit internship at the Duke Primate Center (I Love Lemurs!), so I pretended to be sick and then snuck out of the dorm with a friend who also liked the band.

When we got to the store, it was just us and the owner, so I stood around, browsing the racks and waiting for Kristin to show up. I had never met someone I considered to be a star before this, and I kind of had a crush on her two, so I was pretty nervous. When she and David finally arrived in a limo, I refused to believe it was her because she would NEVER ride in a limo (although seriously, younger me, who else would be pulling up to a tiny independent record store at 2 in the afternoon on the day when a band was supposed to be stopping by on a promotional visit?).

She and David sayed for half an hour or so, and as I recall, not a single other person walked into the store the entire time, so me and my friend had them all to ourselves. The came with promotional posters, which they signed and which Kristin drew doodles on), and I also brought the CD inserts for Throwing Muses, House Tornado, and Hunkpapa, which both of them also signed. Kristen also explained to me that the cover for their first album was actually a picture of her that had been manipulated until it was an abstract pattern of green fields of color, and to prove it she drew a face to recreate the original image.

They were both very low-key and easy to talk to, and Kristin talked pretty much non-stop, telling stories about the band (Leslie, the bassist, was also supposed to come on the trip, but she had cut her hand badly right before they were supposed to leave) and talking about music. Up to that point in my life, that might have been the coolest day I had yet experienced. Added bonus: Kristin was the person who first told me about fellow Bostonites and 4AD signees the Pixies, insisting that I buy one of their records immediately (I couldn't, because I was a jobless high school student with no money, but I did so as soon as fiscally possible because of her recommendation).

8.4.11
I only saw Throwing Muses once live, on the Hunkpapa tour just a few months after I met Kristin and David at the record store event. It was at the Cat's Cradle in Chapel Hill (when it was located in an old post office), and I had this crazy idea that if we just wandered around Franklin Street a few hours before the show, we'd be able to find the band having dinner or something and I could get Tanya and Leslie to sign the CD inserts that David and Kristin had signed at the store.

We didn't find them, of course, but I did get a spot pretty close to the stage for the show. It was a pretty great show——the live setting made the Hunkpapa tracks sound much better than they did on the record——but after awhile, I noticed that they hadn't played ANY songs from their second record, House Tornado (which I was completely obsessed with at that point). Apparently someone else noticed, too, because as they were coming onstage for their first encore, someone in the crowd yelled out "Play something from House Tornado!" Kristin's response: "YOU play something from House Tornado."

I wish I had more specific memories of that show, but the ones I do have are good ones. The band wouldn't really be the band I loved for much longer——Leslie left before their next record, The Real Ramona (a nice comeback, but unfortunately the last record from them that I still consider to be a classic), and Tanya left after that to be a Breeder for their first album and then to form her own group, Belly, which would go on to have a huge hit in "Feed the Tree". They've been a trio, with Kristin and David joined by bassist Bernard Georges, since 1992, and although there have been some decent records with that lineup, there's nothing that really comes close to those first two records.

8.5.11
One last Kristin reference and then we'll done for the week: earlier this week, this interview with Amy Klein of Titus Andronicus spends a little time talking about Rat Girl. So if my telling you that this is a great book isn't enough to make you go out and buy it immediately, then maybe the recommendation of someone much cooler than me will help sway you.

8.8.11
Jens Lekman has posted the first single and title track from his new EP, An Argument With Myself, on his web site. These are all songs that he recorded while working on his new proper album, but which didn't fit that album, and it looks to be a collection of loose, funny tracks that will probably become crowd favorites at his live shows in years to come. In addition to "An Argument With Myself" (which is a recounting of exactly that: "Shut up!"/"No, you shut up!"), the EP also includes "Waiting for Kirsten", a song about stalking Kirsten Dunst when she was staying in a hotel in his hometown.

Jens bonus question to ponder (from his blog): What Morrissey quote would you have as a tattoo?

8.9.11
I ordered Eleanor Friedberger's (of Fiery Furnaces fame) first solo album, Last Summer, and also got the CD two-pack of the Wave Pictures' Instant Coffee Baby and If You Leave It Alone (which only cost as much as a typical CD, so even if it only has a single CD's worth of good songs on it——which seems likely——it will still be a pretty good bargain). Haven't looked too far ahead at the release schedule, but it feels like it's been a really slow year for new stuff——hopefully it will pick up soon.

8.10.11
The monthly Amazon offer of 100 MP3 albums priced at $5 each deal isn't too great this month, either. Echo & the Bunnymen's Ocean Rain is the only must-have, and that's truly a bargain at $5. I guess I could recommend Neutral Milk Hotel's On Avery Island or Deerhunter's Halcyon Digest, but I don't feel superstrongly about either of those releases. And there's nothing I'm planning to pick up myself, either. There are usually some real gems in this list every month, but it's just mostly trash this time.

8.11.11
Ordered another few new CDs from Amazon: Cloud Nothings' Turning On, a collection of their releases from 2010, Little Dragon's Ritual Union, and Cults' Cults. I fell in love with Little Dragon from her guest vocals on the last Gorillaz album, Plastic Beach, and the samples from the new CD sounded pretty good. Cults I've been hesitating on despite the good reviews of their debut, but I was taken with "Oh My God" when listening to the samples on iTunes. We'll see if the rest of the album holds up.

8.12.11
I preordered the deluxe edition of Wilco's upcoming album, The Whole Love, even though I've been less than impressed with their last couple of records. I also ordered the glow in the dark yo-yo, even though I have no intention of actually using such a thing. I just can't help myself.

8.15.11
The Cults debut album was probably the album I was most on the fence about ordering, but I've been listening to it like crazy. This one could wear thin after a while, but I'm loving it right now.

8.16.11
Got an invite to Spotify, and it's got some pretty interesting features, but I'm waiting to see how it compares to Apple's impending cloud music offering. It's pretty cool to be able to share playlists and have other people be able to stream the songs even if they don't own those songs, and it's also cool to be able to stream anything in my personal library that's also in the Spotify library (although with the free version, that only works in the desktop client——to make that happen with a mobile device, you have to be a premium subscriber for $10 a month).

I'm not likely to pay much for a service like this, either from Spotify or Apple, because I'm pretty comfortable with my current method of syncing songs from iTunes to my iPhone, but it could be useful for sharing songs and playlists with friends (once everyone has access, that is——right now the free version has a waiting list for invites).

8.17.11
I've listened to Watch the Throne a few times now, and it's hard to tell if it sounds like a letdown in comparison to Kanye's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy or if it's truly just a medicore record from two artists who can certainly do better. Although even if it grows on me, it's clear at this point that Kanye is carrying Jay-Z——just like "Monster", which is a near-perfect song except for Jay's middling verse, this probably would have ended up a stronger record if Kanye could have gotten over his loyalty and hero worship and left Jay-Z out of the process.

8.18.11
I sure wish the Arctic Monkeys hadn't gotten so complicated.

8.19.11
I sort of half-heartedly belong to the Atomic Music Club, a group led by Atomic Books owner Benn Ray that meets twice monthly to discuss mixes submitted by two group members. I occasionally participate in the discussion on Facebook, and I sometimes listen to the mixes, but I've never actually been to a meeting.

Recently, after Beirut's new album, The Rip Tide, was streamed in its entirety on NPR, someone who hadn't heard the band asked for comments after listening to it and being less than impressed after having reasonably high expectations from the description on the NPR page. There was one dismissive comment (from Benn, whose main objection seemed to be that the band is Christian-oriented, which I don't actually think is true) but no one else chimed in. I thought about it, but Beirut is not a band I'd go to great lengths to stick up for, and I also hadn't (and still haven't) listened to the new record, so I was going to let it go. But then the original poster asked one more time for comments, and I couldn't resist. Here's my not-so-brief response:

Okay, I'll take a shot. I don't feel very strongly about this band, but there are some tracks I like, notably "Scenic World", "Elephant Gun", and "My Night with the Prostitute from Marseille". Haven't heard the new album yet, but I'll take a serious listen at some point——there are usually a couple of tracks on each release that stick with me, although I agree that the constant references to a global sound (whatever that means) come mostly from what leader Zach Condon says about his music than the actual music itself.

I believe he is influenced by some traditional international sounds when he writes (he's flirted most overly with eastern European folk music and Mexican folk music), and he uses a lot of diverse instrumentation, but on the actual songs, he's borrowing less from his sources than, say, Paul Simon did with African music on Graceland. And sometimes it feels like his overuse of accordians, mandolins, etc., is a mask that he uses to distract you from the fact that his work is not as original as he wants you to think it is——when I mentally arrange his songs with traditional rock/folk instruments instead of his more esoteric ones, they turn a lot more ordinary.

Not sure where Benn is getting the Christian stuff from——I haven't studied the lyrics intensely, but in the songs I like (like the ones mentioned above), I don't really see much evidence of religious beliefs in general or Christian ones specifically, nor do I remember any references to that in interviews I've read over the years. Maybe Benn knows something I don't. But I would agree with his statement that they don't play rock music. Or pop. Folk would probably be the best high-level label, but that doesn't really describe them either.

If I was going to dismiss the band, it would be for the high ratio of ornately crafted but mostly forgettable songs to really great compositions. And because of their typically slow pacing and Zach's love-it-or-hate-it voice, there's a sameness to it when you listen to complete albums. I'm don't think I would call myself a fan, but I do keep an ear out for their new releases, because every now and then they come up with something really inspired.

Looking at my own list of favorite songs, they all date back several years, and I still haven't taken the time to listen to/buy their debut album, so my indifference is definitely real. But I re-listened to The Flying Club Cup in the wake of this discussion (I hadn't rated a single track on it), and I did add two or three tracks to my four-star list as a result. And I would like to hear the new record——I don't think it will substantially change my opinion about the band, but there should be a few keepers on there.

8.22.11
I know it shouldn't, but it still disappoints me when I find out that people who I otherwise think are pretty cool like lame music.

8.23.11
I have a real weakness for Tim Kasher and his various projects even though the last really solid album he put out was his 2006 Cursive release, Happy Hollow, but even I can't bring myself to buy the Bigamy EP, a companion to his Monogamy solo album from last year. There are a couple of songs that sound reasonably promising, but that's not enough to make up for the other ones or his general lack of interesting ideas over the past few years.

8.24.11
On a 90s kick again. I can't keep all of my four-star and up songs on my iPhone at this point, so I have a random playlist of 800 songs each for the decades of the 80s, the 90s, and the first decade of this century which I periodically clear out and have iTunes reload with a fresh selection of randomness.

This version is a lot less grunge-y than the playlist it gave me last time I listened to 90s stuff for a couple of days, and I'm enjoying it. I go back and forth from considering that a lost decade for music to thinking it wasn't any better or worse overall than the ones that immediately preceded and followed it. But I think it's still probably the one from lifetime that would be hardest to appreciate if you didn't live through it.

8.25.11
I didn't much care for the Weeknd's first release, House of Balloons, but I still downloaded their follow up, Thursday, mostly because it, like its predecessor, is free. Don't know if I'll ever actually listen to it, though.

8.26.11
I don't think I have anything preordered yet, and I'm not aware of specific releases on the horizon, but after a relatively quiet summer, I hope we're about to enter the traditional fall September/October slew of releases. That will be followed, of course, by 2-3 months of no releases during the holiday season, but hopefully I'll get enough good new stuff to carry me through the end of the year.

8.31.11
So...thank Irene for that little interruption in posts. No power from Saturday to Tuesday night, and I needed a day just to reorganize my world before I could get back in the habit of writing again.

Apparently I did have something preordered: Beirut's The Rip Tide, which I don't really remember ordering because I wanted to listen to it before I ordered it. But on first listen, I'm glad I did——in general, the songs are shorter and more pop-oriented than was typical on their previous albums, and since those are the kinds of songs that appeals to someone like me, there's a good chance this one will stick.