Guest Music Thread [Joe Mannix]

Musical genre is one of those things that is subject to endless subdivision to the point of the absurd, and to endless conglomeration to the point of the useless. I am occasionally fascinated by some of the distinctions and subdivisions within genre, usually argued by those who are obsessed with whatever it is. Take, as a "for instance," Shoegaze. Per Wikipedia, Shoegaze is a subgenre of indie and alternative rock characterized by its ethereal mixture of obscured vocals, guitar distortion and effects, feedback, and overwhelming volume. It emerged in Ireland and the United Kingdom in the late 1980s among neo-psychedelic groups who usually stood motionless during live performances in a detached, non-confrontational state. Could be anything, I suppose.

What interests me more is what qualifies for any given appellation. Staying on the "Shoegaze" topic, take two bands widely considered representative of the genre. There's Lush and there's The Jesus and Mary Chain. They aren't exactly similar. Oh well. None of it really matters anyway, I suppose. If there's a thing, people are always willing to argue the finer points of it!

What genres are you in to, if any? Do you care about the minutiae of subgenre, or is it all just noise (unless, of course, you consider Shoegaze to be a subset or offshoot of Noise Pop, in which case we're right back where we started...)? Me, I am fascinated by the minutiae but would rather just put the record on!

NOTE: As always, the intro is just a conversation starter if needed. You're welcome to go off-topic, just please keep it to the world of music!

Exceptional Live Performances
AC/DC puts on a hell of a show. The scale of this concert at a stadium in Argentina is enormous, and boy can they work a crowd.

Great Singularly Pointless Covers
One thing about 90s music - love it or hate it - is that much of it was fun (or, at least, aspired to be fun). The New Radicals' big hit, "You Only Get What You Give" was never particularly great, but it was fun. Fun was primarily what it going for it. Which is why I just can't fathom this downbeat, boring, bored, breathy hipster take on it. The song wasn't exactly high art in the first place, and this cover lacks the main thing it had to its credit. Even odder, I first heard this song on a TV commercial for HP computers. I can't fathom hearing this and reacting with "Yeah! Buy that product!" Odd all around, I suppose.

Cool Music Videos
Sometimes simplicity is its own reward. This video is not elaborate. It's not brilliantly shot. It doesn't tell a grand story. It's just a desert, a demolition derby, chicks, breakdancers and some kids who look like they walked off the set of a Mad Max movie.

Arbitrary picks from my collection
In no particular order and no implications of quality, here are four songs I've heard recently.

Grace Potter & The Nocturnals - Turntable
I get the distinct impression that this song isn't actually about a record player.

Ugly Kid Joe - Panhandlin' Prince
He's got a bench for snooizn', some sauce to keep boozin' and he still manages to pull 20 Gs a year. What. A. Legend.

Fats Domino - Ain't That A Shame
Sometimes, a song doesn't really need to be over three minutes long. She broke his heart. It sucks. Oh well. The end.

Johnny Lang - Still Rainin'
Hard to believe he was only 17 when this album dropped.

Have a great rest of your weekend!

posted by Joe Mannix at 07:30 PM

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